A PRACTICAL VIEW OF THE PREVAILING RELIGIOUS SYSTEM OF PROFESSED CHRISTIANS, IN THE HIGHER AND MIDDLE CLASSES IN THIS COUNTRY, CONTRASTED WITH REAL CHRISTIANITY. 

 By WILLIAM WILBERFORCE, Esq;Member of Parliament for the County of York. 

Search the Scriptures!---- JOHN, v. 39. 

 How charming is DIVINE PHILOSOPHY!Not harsh, and crabbed, as dull Fools suppose, But Musical as is Apollo's lute, And a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweets, Where no crude surfeit reigns. MILTON. 

 DUBLIN: Printed by Robert Dapper, FOR B. DUGDALE, NO. 6, DAME-STREET. 

 M. DCC. XCVII. 

INTRODUCTION. 

It has been, for several years, the earnest wish of the writer of thefollowing pages to address his countrymen on the important subject ofReligion; but the various duties of his public station, and aconstitution incapable of much labour, have obstructed the execution ofhis purpose. Long has he been looking forward to some vacant season, inwhich he might devote his whole time and attention to this interestingservice, free from the interruption of all other concerns; and he hasthe rather wished for this opportunity of undistracted and maturereflection, from a desire that what he might send into the world mightthus be rendered less undeserving of the public eye. Meanwhile life iswearing away, and he daily becomes more and more convinced, that hemight wait in vain for this season of complete vacancy. He must, therefore, improve such occasional intervals of leisure as may occur tohim in the course of a busy life, and throw himself on the Reader'sindulgence for the pardon of such imperfections, as the opportunity ofundiverted and more mature attention might have enabled him to discoverand correct. 

But the plea here suggested is by no means intended as an excuse for theopinions which he shall express, if they be found mistaken. Here, if hebe in an error, it is however a deliberate error. He would indeedaccount himself unpardonable, if he were to intrude his first thoughtsupon the Public on a question of such importance; and he can trulydeclare, that what he shall offer will be the result of much reading, observation, and inquiry, and of long, serious, and repeatedconsideration. 

It is not improbable that he may be accused of deviating from his properline, and of impertinently interfering in the concerns of a Professionto which he does not belong. If it were necessary, however, to defendhimself against this charge, he might shelter himself under theauthority of many most respectable examples. But surely to such anaccusation it may be sufficient to reply, that it is the duty of everyman to promote the happiness of his fellow-creatures to the utmost ofhis power; and that he who thinks he sees many around him, whom heesteems and loves, labouring under a fatal error, must have a coldheart, or a most confined notion of benevolence, if he could refrainfrom endeavouring to set them right, lest in so doing he should beaccused of stepping out of his proper walk, and expose himself on thatground to the imputation of officiousness. 

But he might also allege as a full justification, not only that Religionis the business of every one, but that its advancement or decline in anycountry is so intimately connected with the temporal interests ofsociety, as to render it the peculiar concern of a political man; andthat what he may presume to offer on the subject of Religion may perhapsbe perused with less jealousy and more candour, from the verycircumstance of its having been written by a Layman, which must at leastexclude the idea (an idea sometimes illiberally suggested to take offthe effect of the works of Ecclesiastics) that it is prompted by motivesof self-interest, or of professional prejudice. 

But if the writer's apology be not found in the work itself, and in hisavowed motive for undertaking it, he would in vain endeavour to satisfyhis readers by any excuses he might assign; therefore, without fartherpreamble, he will proceed to the statement and execution of hispurpose. 

The main object which he has in view is, not to convince the Sceptic, orto answer the arguments of persons who avowedly oppose the fundamentaldoctrines of our Religion; but to point out the scanty and erroneoussystem of the bulk of those who belong to the class of orthodoxChristians, and to contrast their defective scheme with a representationof what the author apprehends to be real Christianity. Often has itfilled him with deep concern, to observe in this description of persons, scarcely any distinct knowledge of the real nature and principles of thereligion which they profess. The subject is of infinite importance; letit not be driven out of our minds by the bustle or dissipations of life. This present scene, and all its cares and all its gaieties, will soon berolled away, and "we must stand before the judgment seat of Christ. "This awful consideration will prompt the writer to express himself withgreater freedom than he should otherwise be disposed to use. Thisconsideration he trusts, also, will justify his frankness, and willsecure him a serious and patient perusal. But it would be trespassing onthe indulgence of the reader to detain him with introductory remarks. Let it only be farther premised, that if what shall be stated should toany appear needlessly austere and rigid, the writer must lay in hisclaim not to be condemned, without a fair inquiry whether or not hisstatements accord with the language of the sacred writings. To that testhe refers with confidence; and it must be conceded by those who admitthe authority of Scripture (such only he is addressing) that from thedecision of the word of God there can be no appeal. 

CONTENTS. 

 Page

INTRODUCTION. V

CHAP. I. _Inadequate Conceptions of the Importance of Christianity. _ 1

CHAP. II. _Corruption of Human Nature. _ 14

CHAP. III. _Chief Defects of the Religious System of the bulk ofprofessed Christians, in what regards our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit--with a Dissertation concerning the useof the Passions in Religion. _ 43

CHAP. IV. _On the prevailing inadequate Conceptions concerning theNature and the Strictness of Practical Christianity. _ 100

CHAP. V. _On the Excellence of Christianity in certain importantParticulars. Argument which results thence in Proof of itsDivine Origin. _ 252

CHAP. VI. _Brief Inquiry into the present State of Christianity inthis Country, with some of the Causes which have led to itscritical Circumstances. Its Importance to us as a politicalCommunity, and practical Hints for which the foregoingConsiderations give occasion. _ 262

CHAP. VII. _Practical Hints to various Descriptions of Persons. _ 305

A PRACTICAL VIEW, &c. 

CHAPTER I. 

INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF THE IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 

_Popular Notions. --Scripture Account. --Ignorance in this Casecriminal. --Two false Maxims exposed. _

Before we proceed to the consideration of any particular defects in thereligious system of the bulk of professed Christians, it may be properto point out the very inadequate conception which they entertain of theimportance of Christianity in general, of its peculiar nature, andsuperior excellence. If we listen to their conversation, virtue ispraised, and vice is censured; piety is perhaps applauded, andprofaneness condemned. So far all is well. But let any one, who wouldnot be deceived, by these "barren generalities" examine a little moreclosely, and he will find, that not to Christianity in particular, butat best to Religion in general, perhaps to mere Morality, their homageis intended to be paid. With Christianity, as distinct from these, theyare little acquainted; their views of it have been so cursory andsuperficial, that far from discerning its characteristic essence, theyhave little more than perceived those exterior circumstances whichdistinguish it from other forms of Religion. There are some few facts, and perhaps some leading doctrines and principles, of which they cannotbe wholly ignorant; but of the consequences, and relations, andpractical uses of these, they have few ideas, or none at all. 

Does this seem too strong? View their plan of life and their ordinaryconduct; and not to speak at present of their general inattention tothings of a religious nature, let us ask, wherein can we discern thepoints of discrimination between them and professed unbelievers? In anage wherein it is confessed and lamented that infidelity abounds, do weobserve in them any remarkable care to instruct their children in theprinciples of the faith which they profess, and to furnish them witharguments for the defence of it? They would blush, on their child'scoming out into the world, to think him defective in any branch of thatknowledge, or of those accomplishments which belong to his station inlife, and accordingly these are cultivated with becoming assiduity. Buthe is left to collect his religion as he may; the study of Christianityhas formed no part of his education, and his attachment to it (where anyattachment to it exists at all) is, too often, not the preference ofsober reason, but merely the result of early prejudice and groundlessprepossession. He was born in a Christian country, of course he is aChristian; his father was a member of the church of England, so is he. When such is the hereditary religion handed down from generation togeneration, it cannot surprise us to observe young men of sense andspirit beginning to doubt altogether of the truth of the system in whichthey have been brought up, and ready to abandon a station which they areunable to defend. Knowing Christianity chiefly in the difficulties whichit contains, and in the impossibilities which are falsely imputed to it, they fall perhaps into the company of infidels; and, as might beexpected, they are shaken by frivolous objections and profane cavils, which, had they been grounded and bottomed in reason and argument, wouldhave passed by them, "as the idle wind, " and scarcely have seemed worthyof serious notice. 

Let us beware before it be too late. No one can say into what discreditChristianity may hereby grow, at a time when the free and unrestrainedintercourse, subsisting amongst the several ranks and classes ofsociety, so much favours the general diffusion of the sentiments of thehigher orders. To a similar ignorance is perhaps in no small degree tobe ascribed the success, with which Christianity has been attacked oflate years in a neighbouring country. Had she not been wholly unarmedfor the contest, however she might have been forced from her untenableposts, and compelled to disembarrass herself from her load ofincumbrances, she never could have been driven altogether out of thefield by her puny assailants, with all their cavils, and gibes, andsarcasms; for in these consisted the main strength of their pettyartillery. Let us beware, lest we also suffer from a like cause; nor letit be our crime and our reproach, that in schools, perhaps even inColleges, Christianity is almost if not altogether neglected. 

It cannot be expected, that they who are so little attentive to thisgreat object in the education of their children, should be more so inother parts of their conduct, where less strongly stimulated byaffection, and less obviously loaded with responsibility. They are ofcourse therefore, little regardful of the state of Christianity in theirown country; and still more indifferent about communicating the light ofdivine truth to the nations which "still sit in darkness. "

But Religion, it may be replied, is not noisy and ostentatious; it ismodest and private in its nature; it resides in a man's own bosom, andshuns the observation of the multitude. Be it so. 

From the transient and distant view then, which we have been taking ofthese unassuming Christians, let us approach a little nearer, and listento the unreserved conversation of their confidential hours. Here, if anywhere, the interior of the heart is laid open, and we may ascertain thetrue principles of their regards and aversions; the scale by which theymeasure the good and evil of life. Here, however, you will discover fewor no traces of Christianity. She scarcely finds herself a place amidstthe many objects of their hopes, and fears, and joys, and sorrows. Grateful, perhaps, (as well indeed they may be grateful) for health, andtalents, and affluence, and other blessings belonging to their personsand conditions in life, they scarcely reckon in the number this granddistinguishing mark of the bounty of Providence; or if they mention itat all, it is noticed coldly and formally, like one of those obsoleteclaims to which, though but of small account in the estimate of ourwealth or power, we think it as well to put in our title fromconsiderations of family decorum or of national usage. 

But what more than all the rest establishes the point in question: lettheir conversation take a graver turn: here at length their religion, modest and retired as it is, must be expected to disclose itself; herehowever you will look in vain for the religion of Jesus. Their standardof right and wrong is not the standard of the gospel: they approve andcondemn by a different rule; they advance principles and maintainopinions altogether opposite to the genius and character ofChristianity. You would fancy yourself rather amongst the followers ofthe old philosophy; nor is it easy to guess how any one could satisfyhimself to the contrary, unless, by mentioning the name of someacknowledged heretic, he should afford them an occasion of demonstratingtheir zeal for the religion of their country. 

The truth is, their opinions on these subjects are not formed from theperusal of the word of God. The Bible lies on the shelf unopened; andthey would be wholly ignorant of its contents, except for what they hearoccasionally at church, or for the faint traces which their memories maystill retain of the lessons of their earliest infancy. 

How different, nay, in many respects, how contradictory, would be thetwo systems of mere morals, of which the one should be formed from thecommonly received maxims of the Christian world, and the other from thestudy of the Holy Scriptures! it would be curious to remark in any one, who had hitherto satisfied himself with the former, the astonishmentwhich would be excited on his first introduction to the latter. We arenot left here to bare conjecture. This was, in fact, the effect producedon the mind of a late ingenious writer[1], of whose little work, thoughit bears perhaps some marks of his customary love of paradox, we must atleast confess, that it exposes, in a strong point of view, the _poverty_of that superficial religion which has been above condemned; and that itevery where displays that happy perspicuity, and grace, which soeminently characterize all the compositions of its author. But afterthis willing tribute of commendation, we are reluctantly compelled toremark, that the work in question discredits the cause which it wasmeant to serve, by many crude and extravagant positions; from which noone can be secure who forms a hasty judgment of a deep and comprehensivesubject, the several bearings and relations of which have beenimperfectly surveyed; and above all, it must be lamented, that it treatsthe great question which it professes to discuss, rather as a matter ofmere speculation, than as one wherein our everlasting interests areinvolved. Surely the writer's object should have been, to convince hisreaders of their guilt still more than of their ignorance, and to leavethem impressed rather with a sense of their danger than of their folly. 

It were almost a waste of time to multiply arguments in order to provehow criminal the voluntary ignorance, of which we have been speaking, must appear in the sight of God. It must be confessed by all who believethat we are accountable creatures, and to such only the writer isaddressing himself, that we shall have to answer hereafter to theAlmighty for all the means and occasions we have here enjoyed ofimproving ourselves, or of promoting the happiness of others. And if, when summoned to give an account of our stewardship, we shall be calledupon to answer for the use which we have made of our bodily organs, andof the means of relieving the wants and necessities of our fellowcreatures; how much more for the exercise of the nobler and more exaltedfaculties of our nature, of invention, and judgment, and memory; and forour employment of all the instruments and opportunities of diligentapplication, and serious reflection, and honest decision. And to whatsubject might we in all reason be expected to apply more earnestly, thanto that wherein our eternal interests are at issue? When God has of hisgoodness vouchsafed to grant us such abundant means of instruction inthat which we are most concerned to know, how great must be the guilt, and how aweful the punishment of voluntary ignorance!

And why, it may be asked, are we in this pursuit alone to expectknowledge without inquiry, and success without endeavour? The wholeanalogy of nature inculcates on us a different lesson, and our ownjudgments in matters of temporal interests and worldly policy confirmthe truth of her suggestions. Bountiful as is the hand of Providence, its gifts are not so bestowed as to seduce us into indolence, but torouse us to exertion; and no one expects to attain to the height oflearning, or arts, or power, or wealth, or military glory, withoutvigorous resolution, and strenuous diligence, and steady perseverance. Yet we expect to be Christians without labour, study, or inquiry. Thisis the more preposterous, because Christianity, being a revelation fromGod, and not the invention of man, discovering to us new relations, withtheir correspondent duties; containing also doctrines, and motives, andpractical principles, and rules, peculiar to itself, and almost as newin their nature as supreme in their excellence, we cannot reasonablyexpect to become proficients in it by the accidental intercourses oflife, as one might learn insensibly the maxims of worldly policy, or ascheme of mere morals. 

The diligent perusal of the Holy Scriptures would discover to us ourpast ignorance. We should cease to be deceived by superficialappearances, and to confound the Gospel of Christ with the systems ofphilosophers; we should become impressed with that weighty truth, somuch forgotten, and never to be too strongly insisted on, thatChristianity calls on us, as we value our immortal souls, not merely in_general_, to be _religious_ and _moral_, but _specially_ to believe thedoctrines, and imbibe the principles, and practise the precepts ofChrist. It might be to run into too great length to confirm thisposition beyond dispute by express quotations from Scripture. And (notto anticipate what belongs more properly to a subsequent part of thework) it may be sufficient here to remark in general, that Christianityis always represented in Scripture as the grand, the unparalleledinstance of God's bounty to mankind. It was graciously held forth in theoriginal promise to our first parents; it was predicted by a longcontinued series of prophets; the subject of their prayers, inquiries, and longing expectations. In a world, which opposed and persecuted them, it was their source of peace, and hope, and consolation. At length itapproached--the Desire of all Nations--The long expected Star announcedits presence--A multitude of the heavenly host hailed its introduction, and proclaimed its character; "Glory to God in the highest, on earthpeace, good will towards men. " It is every where represented inscripture by such figures as may most deeply impress on us a sense ofits value; it is spoken of as light from darkness, as release fromprison, as deliverance from captivity, as life from death. "Lord, nowlettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thysalvation, " was the exclamation with which it was welcomed by the piousSimeon; and it was universally received and professed among the earlyconverts with thankfulness and joy. At one time, the communication of itis promised as a reward; at another, the loss of it is threatened as apunishment. And, short as is the form of prayer taught us by our blessedSaviour, the more general extension of the kingdom of Christ constitutesone of its leading petitions. 

With what exalted conceptions of the importance of Christianity ought weto be filled by such descriptions as these? Yet, in vain have we "lineupon line and precept upon precept. "--Thus predicted, thus prayed andlonged for, thus announced and characterized and rejoiced in, thisheavenly treasure poured into our lap in rich abundance we scarceaccept. We turn from it coldly, or at best possess it negligently, as athing of no account or estimation. But a due sense of its value would beassuredly impressed on us by the diligent study of the word of God, thatblessed repository of divine truth and consolation. Thence it is thatwe are to learn our obligations and our duty, what we are to believe andwhat to practise. And, surely, one would think it could not be requiredto press men to the perusal of the sacred volume. Reason dictates, Revelation commands; "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word ofGod. "--"Search the Scriptures, "--"Be ready to give to every one a reasonof the hope that is in you. " Such are the declarations and injunctionsof the inspired writers; injunctions confirmed by commendations of thosewho obey the admonition. Yet, is it not undeniable that with the Biblein our houses, we are ignorant of its contents; and that hence, in agreat measure, it arises, that the bulk of the Christian world know solittle, and mistake so greatly, in what regards the religion which theyprofess?

This is not the place for inquiring at large, whence it is that thosewho assent to the position, that the Bible is the word of God, and whoprofess to rest their hopes on the Christian basis, contentedlyacquiesce in a state of such lamentable ignorance. But it may not beimproper here to touch on two kindred opinions, from which, in the mindsof the more thoughtful and serious, this acquiescence appears to derivemuch secret support. The one is, that it signifies little what a manbelieves; _look to his practice_. The other (of the same family) _thatsincerity is all in all_. Let a man's opinions and conduct be what theymay, yet, provided he be sincerely convinced that they are right, however the exigencies of civil society may require him to be dealt withamongst men, in the sight of God he cannot be criminal. 

It would detain us too long fully to set forth the various merits ofthese favourite positions, of which it is surely not the smallestexcellence, that they are of unbounded application, comprehending withintheir capacious limits, all the errors which have been believed, andmany of the most desperate crimes which have been perpetrated among men. The former of them is founded altogether on that grossly fallaciousassumption, that a man's opinions will not influence his practice. Thelatter proceeds on this groundless supposition, that the Supreme Beinghas not afforded us sufficient means of discriminating truth fromfalsehood, right from wrong: and it implies, that be a man's opinions orconduct ever so wild and extravagant, we are to presume, that they areas much the result of impartial inquiry and honest conviction, as if hissentiments and actions had been strictly conformable to the rules ofreason and sobriety. Never indeed was there a principle more general inits use, more sovereign in its potency. How does its beautifulsimplicity also, and compendious brevity, give it rank before thelaborious subtleties of Bellarmine! Clement, and Ravaillac, and otherworthies of a similar stamp, from whose purity of intention the worldhas hitherto withheld its due tribute of applause, would here have founda ready plea; and their injured innocence shall now at length receiveits full though tardy vindication. "These however, " it may be replied, "are excepted cases. " Certainly they are cases of which any one whomaintains the opinion in question would be glad to disencumber himself;because they clearly expose the unsoundness of his principle. But itwill be incumbent on such an one, first to explain with precision whythey are to be exempted from its operation, and this he will find animpossible task; for sincerity, in its popular sense, so shamefully isthe term misapplied, can be made the criterion of guilt and innocence onno grounds, which will not equally serve to justify the assassins whohave been instanced. The conclusion cannot be eluded; no man was evermore fully persuaded of the innocence of any action, than these menwere, that the horrid deed they were about to perpetrate was not lawfulmerely, but highly meritorious. Thus Clement and Ravaillac beingunquestionably sincere, they were therefore indubitably innocent. Nay, the absurdity of this principle might be shewn to be even greater thanwhat has yet been stated. It would not be going too far to assert, thatwhilst it scorns the defence of petty villains, of those who stillretain the sense of good and evil, it holds forth, like some wellfrequented sanctuary, a secure asylum to those more finished criminals, who, from long habits of wickedness, are lost alike to the perception asto the practice of virtue; and that it selects a seared conscience and aheart become callous to all moral distinctions as the special objects ofits care. Nor is it only in prophane history that instances like theseare to be found, of persons committing the greatest crimes with asincere conviction of the rectitude of their conduct. Scripture willafford us parallels; and it was surely to guard us against the veryerror which we have been now exposing, that our blessed Saviourforewarned his disciples: "The time cometh, that whosoever killeth youwill think that he doeth God service. "

A principle like this must then be abandoned, and the advocates forsincerity must be compelled to restore this abused term to its genuinesignification, and to acknowledge that it must imply honesty of mind, and the faithful use of the means of knowledge and of improvement, thedesire of being instructed, humble inquiry, impartial consideration, andunprejudiced judgment. It is to these we would earnestly call you; tothese (ever to be accompanied with fervent prayers for the divineblessing) Scripture every where holds forth the most animating promises. "Ask and ye shall receive, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall beopened unto you; Ho! every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters;"such are the comfortable assurances, such the gracious encouragements tothe truly sincere inquirer. How deep will be our guilt if we slight allthese benevolent offers. "How many prophets and kings have desired tohear the things that we hear, and have not heard them!" Great indeed areour opportunities, great also is our responsibility. Let us awaken to atrue sense of our situation. We have every consideration to alarm ourfears, or to animate our industry. How soon may the brightness of ourmeridian sun be darkened! Or, should the long suffering of God stillcontinue to us the mercies which we so much abuse, it will onlyaggravate our crime, and in the end enhance our punishment. The time ofreckoning will at length arrive. And when finally summoned to the bar ofGod, to give an account of our stewardship, what plea can we have tourge in our defence, if we remain willingly and obstinately ignorant ofthe way which leads to life, with such transcendent means of knowing it, and such urgent motives to its pursuit?

CHAPTER II. 

CORRUPTION OF HUMAN NATURE. 

SECT. I. 

_Inadequate Conceptions of the Corruption of Human Nature. _

After considering the defective notions of the importance ofChristianity _in general_, which prevail among the higher orders of theChristian world, the particular misconceptions which first come underour notice respect the corruption and weakness of human nature. This isa topic on which it is possible that many of those, into whose hands thepresent work shall fall, may not have bestowed much attention. If thecase be so, it may be requisite to intreat them to lend a patient and aserious ear. The subject is of the deepest import. We should not go toofar if we were to assert, that it lies at the very root of all trueReligion, and still more, that it is eminently the basis and ground-workof Christianity. 

So far as the writer has had an opportunity of remarking, the generalityof professed Christians among the higher classes, either altogetheroverlook or deny, or at least greatly extenuate the corruption andweakness here in question. They acknowledge indeed that there is, andever has been in the world, a great portion of vice and wickedness; thatmankind have been ever prone to sensuality and selfishness, indisobedience to the more refined and liberal principles of their nature;that in all ages and countries, in public and in private life, innumerable instances have been afforded of oppression, of rapacity, ofcruelty, of fraud, of envy, and of malice. They own that it is too oftenin vain that you inform the understanding, and convince the judgment. They admit that you do not thereby reform the hearts of men. Though they_know_ their duty, they will not practice it; no not even when you haveforced them to acknowledge that the path of virtue is that also of realinterest, and of solid enjoyment. 

These facts are certain; they cannot be disputed; and they are at thesame time so obvious, that one would have thought that the celebratedapophthegm of the Grecian sage, "the majority are wicked, " wouldscarcely have established his claim to intellectual superiority. 

But though these effects of human depravity are every where acknowledgedand lamented, we must not expect to find them traced to their trueorigin. 

 Causa latet, vis est notissima. 

Prepare yourself to hear rather of frailty and infirmity, of pettytransgressions, of occasional failings, of sudden surprisals, and ofsuch other qualifying terms as may serve to keep out of view the truesource of the evil, and without shocking the understanding, mayadminister consolation to the pride of human nature. The bulk ofprofessed Christians are used to speak of man as of a being, who, naturally pure, and inclined to all virtue, is sometimes, almostinvoluntary, drawn out of the right course, or is overpowered by theviolence of temptation. Vice with them is rather an accidental andtemporary, than a constitutional and habitual distemper; a noxiousplant, which, though found to live and even to thrive in the human mind, is not the natural growth and production of the soil. 

Far different is the humiliating language of Christianity. From it welearn that man is an apostate creature, fallen from his high original, degraded in his nature, and depraved in his faculties; indisposed togood, and disposed to evil; prone to vice, it is natural and easy tohim; disinclined to virtue, it is difficult and laborious; that he istainted with sin, not slightly and superficially, but radically and tothe very core. These are truths which, however mortifying to our pride, one would think (if this very corruption itself did not warp thejudgment) none would be hardy enough to attempt to controvert. I knownot any thing which brings them home so forcibly to my own feelings, asthe consideration of what still remains to us of our primitive dignity, when contrasted with our present state of moral degradation, "Into what depth thou seest, From what height fallen. "

Examine first with attention the natural powers and faculties of man!invention, reason, judgment, memory; a mind "of large discourse, ""looking before and after, " reviewing the past, and thence determiningfor the present, and anticipating the future; discerning, collecting, combining, comparing; capable not merely of apprehending but of admiringthe beauty of moral excellence: with fear and hope to warn and animate;with joy and sorrow to solace and soften; with love to attach, withsympathy to harmonize, with courage to attempt, with patience to endure, and with the power of conscience, that faithful monitor within thebreast, to enforce the conclusions of reason, and direct and regulatethe passions of the soul. Truly we must pronounce him "majestic thoughin ruin. " "Happy, happy world, " would be the exclamation of theinhabitant of some other planet, on being told of a globe like ours, peopled with such creatures as these, and abounding with situations andoccasions to call forth the multiplied excellencies of their nature. "Happy, happy world, with what delight must your great Creator andGovernor witness your conduct, and what large and merited rewards awaityou when your term of probation shall have expired. 

 "I, bone, quo virtus tua te vocat, i pede fausto, Grandia laturus meritorum præmia. "

But we have indulged too long in these delightful speculations; a sadreverse presents itself on our survey of the _actual_ state of man, when, from viewing his _natural_ powers, we follow him into _practice_, and see the uses to which he applies them. Take in the whole of theprospect, view him in every age, and climate, and nation, in everycondition and period of society. Where now do you discover thecharacters of his exalted nature? "How is the gold become dim, and thefine gold changed?" How is his reason clouded, his affectionsperverted; his conscience stupified! How do anger, and envy, andhatred, and revenge, spring up in his wretched bosom! How is he a slaveto the meanest of his appetites! What fatal propensities does hediscover to evil! What inaptitude to good!

Dwell awhile on the state of the ancient world; not merely on thatbenighted part of it where all lay buried in brutish ignorance andbarbarism, but on the seats of civilized and polished nations, on theempire of taste, and learning, and philosophy: yet in these chosenregions, with whatever lustre the sun of science poured forth its rays, the moral darkness was so thick "that it might be felt. " Behold theirsottish idolatries, their absurd superstitions, their want of naturalaffection, their brutal excesses, their unfeeling oppression, theirsavage cruelty! Look not to the illiterate and the vulgar, but to thelearned and refined. Form not your ideas from the conduct of the lessrestrained and more licentious; you will turn away with disgust andshame from the allowed and familiar habits of the decent and the moral. St. Paul best states the facts, and furnishes the explanation; "becausethey did not like to retain God in their knowledge, he gave them over toa reprobate mind[2]. "

Now direct your view to another quarter, to the inhabitants of a newhemisphere, where the baneful practices and contagious example of theold world had never travelled. Surely, among these children of nature wemay expect to find those virtuous tendencies, for which we have hithertolooked in vain. Alas! our search will still be fruitless! They arerepresented by the historian of America, whose account is morefavourable than those of some other great authorities, as being acompound of pride, and indolence, and selfishness, and cunning, andcruelty[3]; full of a revenge which nothing could satiate, of a ferocitywhich nothing could soften; strangers to the most amiable sensibilitiesof nature[4]. They appeared incapable of conjugal affection, or parentalfondness, or filial reverence, or social attachments; uniting too withtheir state of barbarism, many of the vices and weaknesses of polishedsociety. Their horrid treatment of captives taken in war, on whosebodies they feasted, after putting them to death by the most crueltortures, is so well known, that we may spare the disgusting recital. Nocommendable qualities relieve this gloomy picture, except fortitude, andperseverance, and zeal for the welfare of their little community; ifthis last quality, exercised and directed as it was, can be thoughtdeserving of commendation. 

But you give up the heathen nations as indefensible, and wish rather toform your estimate of man from a view of countries which have beenblessed with the light of revelation. --True it is, and with joy let usrecord the concession, Christianity has set the general tone of moralsmuch higher than it was ever found in the Pagan world. She has everywhere improved the character and multiplied the comforts of society, particularly to the poor and the weak, whom from the beginning sheprofessed to take under her special patronage. Like her divine Author, "who sends his rain on the evil and on the good, " she showers downunnumbered blessings on thousands who profit from her bounty, while theyforget or deny her power, and set at nought her authority. Yet even inthis more favoured situation we shall discover too many lamentableproofs of the depravity of man. Nay, this depravity will now become evenmore apparent and less deniable. For what bars does it not now overleap?Over what motives is it not now victorious? Consider well the superiorlight and advantages which we enjoy, and then appreciate the superiorobligations which are imposed on us. Consider in how many cases our evilpropensities are now kept from breaking forth, by the superiorrestraints under which vice is laid among us by positive laws, and bythe amended standard of public opinion; and we may be assisted inconjecturing what force is to be assigned to these motives, by thedreadful proofs which have been lately exhibited in a neighbouringcountry, that when their influence is withdrawn, the most atrociouscrimes can be perpetrated shamelessly and in the face of day. Considerthen the superior excellence of our moral code, the new principles ofobedience furnished by the gospel, and above all, the awful sanctionwhich the doctrines and precepts of Christianity derive from the cleardiscovery of a future state of retribution, and from the annunciation ofthat tremendous day, "when we shall stand before the judgment seat ofChrist. " Yet, in spite of all our knowledge thus enforced and pressedhome by this solemn notice, how little has been our progress in virtue?It has been by no means such as to prevent the adoption, in our days, ofvarious maxims of antiquity, which, when well considered, too clearlyestablish the depravity of man. It may not be amiss to adduce a fewinstances in proof of this assertion. It is now no less acknowledgedthan heretofore, that prosperity hardens the heart: that unlimited poweris ever abused, instead of being rendered the instrument of diffusinghappiness: that habits of vice grow up of themselves, whilst those ofvirtue, if to be obtained at all, are of slow and difficult formation;that they who draw the finest pictures of virtue, and seem mostenamoured of her charms, are often the least under her influence, and bythe merest trifles are drawn aside from that line of conduct, which theymost strongly and seriously recommend to others, that all this takesplace, though most of the pleasures of vice are to be found with lessalloy in the paths of virtue; whilst at the same time, these pathsafford superior and more exquisite delights, peculiar to themselves, andare free from the diseases and bitter remorse, at the price of whichvicious gratifications are so often purchased. 

It may suffice to touch very slightly on some other arguments, which itwould hardly be right to leave altogether unnoticed: one of these (thejustice of which, however denied by superficial moralists, parents ofstrict principles can abundantly testify) may be drawn from the perverseand froward dispositions perceivable in children, which it is thebusiness and sometimes the ineffectual attempt of education to reform. Another may be drawn from the various deceits we are apt to practice onourselves, to which no one can be a stranger, who has ever contemplatedthe operations of his own mind with serious attention. To the influenceof this species of corruption it has been in a great degree owing, thatChristianity itself has been too often disgraced. It has been turnedinto an engine of cruelty, and amidst the bitterness of persecution, every trace has disappeared of the mild and beneficent spirit of thereligion of Jesus. In what degree must the taint have worked itself intothe frame, and have corrupted the habit, when the most wholesomenutriment can be thus converted into the deadliest poison! Wishingalways to argue from such premises as are not only really sound, butfrom such as cannot even be questioned by those to whom this work isaddressed, little was said in representing the deplorable state of theHeathen world, respecting their defective and unworthy conceptions inwhat regards the Supreme Being, who even then however "left not himselfwithout witness, but gave them rain and fruitful seasons, filling theirhearts with food and gladness. " But surely to any who call themselvesChristians, it may be justly urged as an astonishing instance of humandepravity, that we ourselves, who enjoy the full light of revelation; towhom God has vouchsafed such clear discoveries of what it concerns us toknow of his being and attributes; who profess to believe "that in him welive, and move, and have our being;" that to him we owe all the comfortswe here enjoy, and the offer of eternal Glory purchased for us by theatoning blood of his own Son; ("thanks be to God for his unspeakablegift, ") that we, thus loaded with mercies, should every one of us becontinually chargeable with forgetting his authority, and beingungrateful for his benefits; with slighting his gracious proposals, orreceiving them at best but heartlessly and coldly. 

But to put the question concerning the natural depravity of man to theseverest test: take the best of the human species, the watchful diligentself-denying Christian, and let _him_ decide the controversy; and that, not by inferences drawn from the practices of a thoughtless anddissolute world, but by an appeal to his personal experience. Go withhim into his closet, ask him _his_ opinion of the corruption of theheart, and he will tell you that he is deeply sensible of its power, forthat he has learned it from much self-observation and long acquaintancewith the workings of his own mind. He will tell you, that every daystrengthens this conviction; yea, that hourly he sees fresh reason todeplore his want of simplicity in intention, his infirmity of purpose, his low views, his selfish unworthy desires, his backwardness to setabout his duty, his languor and coldness in performing it: that hefinds himself obliged continually to confess, that he feels within himtwo opposite principles, and that "he cannot do the things that hewould. " He cries out in the language of the excellent Hooker, "Thelittle fruit which we have in holiness, it is, God knoweth, corrupt andunsound: we put no confidence at all in it, we challenge nothing in theworld for it, we dare not call God to reckoning, as if we had him in ourdebt books; our continual suit to him is, and must be, to bear with ourinfirmities, and pardon our offences. "

Such is the moral history, such the condition of man. The figures of thepiece may vary, and the colouring is sometimes of a darker, sometimes ofa lighter hue; but the principles of the composition, the grandoutlines, are every where the same. Wherever we direct our view, wediscover the melancholy proofs of our depravity; whether we look toancient or modern times, to barbarous or civilized nations, to theconduct of the world around us, or to the monitor within the breast;whether we read, or hear, or act, or think, or feel, the samehumiliating lesson is forced upon us, Juppiter est quodcunque vides, quocunque moveris. 

Now when we look back to the picture which was formerly drawn of the_natural powers_ of man, and compare this his _actual_ state with thatfor which, from a consideration of those powers, he seems to have beenoriginally calculated, how are we to account for the astonishingcontrast! will frailty or infirmity, or occasional lapses, or suddensurprisals, or any such qualifying terms, convey an adequate idea of thenature, or point out the cause of the distemper? How, on any principlesof common reasoning, can we account for it, but by conceiving that man, since he came out of the hands of his Creator, has contracted a taint, and that the venom of this subtle poison has been communicatedthroughout the race of Adam, every where exhibiting incontestible marksof its fatal malignity? Hence it has arisen, that the appetites derivingnew strength, and the powers of reason and conscience being weakened, the latter have feebly and impotently pleaded against those forbiddenindulgences which the former have solicited. Sensual gratifications andillicit affections have debased our nobler powers, and indisposed ourhearts to the discovery of God, and to the consideration of hisperfections; to a constant willing submission to his authority, andobedience to his laws. By a repetition of vicious acts, evil habits havebeen formed within us, and have rivetted the fetters of sin. Left to theconsequences of our own folly, the understanding has grown darker, andthe heart more obdurate; reason has at length altogether betrayed hertrust, and even conscience herself has aided the delusion, till, insteadof deploring our miserable slavery, we have too often hugged, and evengloried in our chains. 

Such is the general account of the progress of vice, where it issuffered to attain to its full growth in the human heart. Thecircumstances of individuals will be found indeed to differ; theservitude of some, if it may be allowed us to continue a figure soexactly descriptive of the case, is more rigorous than that of others, their bonds more galling, their degradation more complete. Some too (itwill be remembered that we are speaking of the natural state of man, without taking Christianity into question) have for a while appearedalmost to have escaped from their confinement; but none are altogetherfree; all without exception, in a greater or less degree bear aboutthem, more visible or more concealed, the ignominious marks of theircaptivity. 

Such on a full and fair investigation must be confessed to be the stateof facts; and how can this be accounted for on any other supposition, than that of some original taint, some radical principle of corruption?All other solutions are unsatisfactory, whilst the potent cause whichhas been assigned, does abundantly, and can alone sufficiently accountfor the effect. Thus then it appears, that the corruption of humannature is proved by the same mode of reasoning, as has been deemedconclusive in establishing the existence, and ascertaining the laws ofthe principle of gravitation: that the doctrine rests on the same solidbasis as the sublime philosophy of Newton: that it is not a merespeculation, and therefore an uncertain though perhaps an ingenioustheory, but the sure result of large and actual experiment; deduced fromincontestable facts, and still more fully approving its truth byharmonizing with the several parts and accounting for the variousphænomena, jarring otherwise and inexplicable, of the great system ofthe universe. 

Revelation, however, here comes in, and sustains the fallibleconjectures of our unassisted reason. The Holy Scriptures speak of us asfallen creatures: in almost every page we shall find something that iscalculated to abate the loftiness and silence the pretensions of man. "The imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth. " "What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he shouldbe righteous[5]. " "How much more abominable and filthy is man, whichdrinketh iniquity like water[6]?" "The Lord looked down from heaven uponthe children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, andseek God. They are all gone aside; they are altogether become filthy:there is none that doeth good, no not one[7]. " "Who can say, I have mademy heart clean, I am pure from my sin[8]?" "The _heart_ is deceitfulabove all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it. " "Behold, Iwas shapen in wickedness, and in sin hath my mother conceived me. " "Wewere by nature the children of wrath, even as others, fulfilling thedesires of the flesh and of the mind. " "O wretched man that I am, whoshall deliver me from the body of this death!"--Passages might bemultiplied upon passages, which speak the same language, and these againmight be illustrated and confirmed at large by various otherconsiderations, drawn from the same sacred source; such as those whichrepresent a thorough change, a renovation of our nature, as beingnecessary to our becoming true Christians; or as those also which aresuggested by observing that holy men refer their good dispositions andaffections to the immediate agency of the Supreme Being. 

SECTION II. 

_Evil Spirit. --Natural State of Man. _

But in addition to all which has been yet stated, the word of Godinstructs us that we have to contend not only with our own naturaldepravity, but with the power of darkness, the Evil Spirit, who rules inthe hearts of the wicked, and whose dominion we learn from Scripture tobe so general, as to entitle him to the denomination of "the Prince ofthis world. " There cannot be a stronger proof of the difference whichexists between the religious system of the Scriptures, and that of thebulk of nominal Christians, than the proof which is afforded by thesubject now in question. The existence and agency of the Evil Spirit, though so distinctly and repeatedly affirmed in Scripture, are almostuniversally exploded in a country which professes to admit the authorityof the sacred volume. Some other Doctrines of Revelation, the force andreal meaning of which are commonly in a great degree explained away, areyet conceded in general terms. But this seems almost by universalconsent to have been abandoned, as a post no longer tenable. It isregarded as an evanescent prejudice, which it would now be a discreditto any man of understanding to believe. Like ghosts and witches andother phantoms, which haunted the night of superstition, it cannot inthese more enlightened times stand the test of our severer scrutiny. Tobe suffered to pass away quietly, is as much as it can hope for; and itmight rather expect to be laughed off the stage as a just object ofcontempt and derision. 

But although the Scripture doctrine concerning the Evil Spirit is thusgenerally exploded, yet were we to consider the matter seriously andfairly, we should probably find ground for believing that there is nobetter reason for its being abandoned, than that many absurd stories, concerning spirits and apparitions, have been used to be believed andpropagated amongst weak and credulous people; and that the Evil Spiritnot being the object of our bodily eyes, it would be an instance of thesame weakness to give credit to the doctrine of its existence andagency. But to be consistent with ourselves, we might almost as well, onthe same principle, deny the reality of all other incorporeal beings. What is there, in truth, in the doctrine, which is in itself improbable, or which is not confirmed by analogy? We see, in fact, that there arewicked men, enemies to God, and malignant towards their fellowcreatures, who take pleasure, and often succeed, in drawing in others tothe commission of evil. Why then should it be deemed incredible, thatthere may be one or more spiritual intelligences of similar natures andpropensities, who may in like manner be permitted to tempt men to thepractice of sin? Surely we may retort upon our opponents the charge ofabsurdity, and justly accuse them of gross inconsistency, in admitting, without difficulty, the existence and operation of these qualities in amaterial being, and yet denying them in an immaterial one (in directcontradiction to the authority of Scripture, which they allow to beconclusive) when they cannot, and will not pretend for a moment, thatthere is any thing belonging to the nature of matter, to which thesequalities naturally adhere. 

But to dilate no farther on a topic which, however it may excite theridicule of the inconsiderate, will suggest matter of furiousapprehension to all who form their opinions on the authority of the wordof God: thus brought as we are into captivity, and exposed to danger;depraved and weakened within, and tempted from without, it might wellfill our hearts with anxiety to reflect, "that the day will come, " when"the Heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shallmelt with fervent heat;" "when the dead, small and great, shall standbefore the tribunal of God;" and we shall have to give account of allthings done in the body. We are naturally prompted to turn over the pageof revelation with solicitude, in order to discover the qualities andcharacter of our Judge, and the probable principles of hisdetermination; but this only serves to turn painful apprehension intofixed and certain terror. --First of the qualities of our Judge. As allnature bears witness to his irresistible power, so we read in Scripturethat nothing can escape his observation, or elude his discovery; not ouractions only, but our most secret cogitations are open to his view. "Heis about our path and about our bed, and spieth out all our ways[9]. ""The Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginationsof the thoughts[10]. "--"And he will bring to light the hidden things ofdarkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the heart. "

Now, hear his description and character and the rule of his award: "TheLord our God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God. "--"He is of purereyes than to behold iniquity. "--"The soul that sinneth, it shalldie. "--"The wages of sin is death. " These positive declarations areenforced by the accounts which, for our warning, we read in sacredhistory, of the terrible vengeance of the Almighty: His punishment "theangels who kept not their first estate, and whom he hath reserved ineverlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day:"The fate of Sodom and Gomorrah; the sentence issued against theidolatrous nations of Canaan, and of which the execution was assigned tothe Israelites, by the express command of God, at their own peril incase of disobedience: The ruin of Babylon, and of Tyre, and of Nineveh, and of Jerusalem, prophetically denounced as the punishment of theircrimes, and taking place in an exact and terrible accordance with thedivine predictions. These are indeed matter of awful perusal, sufficientsurely to confound the fallacious confidence of any who, on the groundthat our Creator must be aware of our natural weakness, and must be ofcourse disposed to allow for it, should alledge that, though unableindeed to justify ourselves in the sight of God, we need not give way tosuch gloomy apprehensions, but might throw ourselves, with assured hope, on the infinite benevolence of the Supreme Being. It is indeed true, that with the threatenings of the word of God, there are mixed manygracious declarations of pardon, on repentance, and thorough amendment. But, alas! which of us is there, whose conscience must not reproach himwith having trifled with the long-suffering of God, and with having butill kept the resolutions of amendment, which he had some time or otherformed in the seasons of recollection and remorse?--And how is thedisquietude naturally excited by such a retrospect, confirmed andheightened by passages like these? "Because I have called, and yerefused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; but ye haveset at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof; I also willlaugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh: when yourfear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind;when distress and anguish cometh upon you: then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not findme: for that they hated knowledge, and did not chuse the fear of theLord[11]. " The apprehensions, which must be excited by thus reading therecorded judgments and awful language of Scripture, are confirmed to theinquisitive and attentive mind, by a close observation of the moralconstitution of the world. Such a one will find occasion to remark, thatall, which has been suggested of the final consequences of vice, is instrict analogy to what we may observe in the ordinary course of humanaffairs, wherein it will appear, on a careful survey, that God has soassigned to things their general tendencies, and established such anorder of causes and effects, as (however interrupted here below byhindrances and obstructions apparently of a temporary nature) loudlyproclaim the principles of his moral government, and strongly suggest, that vice and imprudence will finally terminate in misery[12]. Not thatthis species of proof was wanted; for that which we must acknowledge, onweighing the evidence, to be a revelation from God, requires not the aidof such a confirmation: but yet, as this accordance might be expectedbetween the words and the works, the past and the future ordinations ofthe same Almighty Being, it is no idle speculation to remark, that thevisible constitution of things in the world around us, falls in with therepresentations here given from Scripture of the dreadful consequencesof vice, nay even of what is commonly termed inconsiderateness andimprudence. 

If such then be indeed our sad condition, what is to be done? Is thereno hope? Nothing left for us, "but a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries[13]?" Blessedbe God! we are not shut up irrecoverably in this sad condition: "Turnyou to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope;" hear one who proclaimshis designation, "to heal the broken-hearted, to preach liberty to thecaptives, and recovering of sight to the blind. " They who have formed atrue notion of their lost and helpless state, will most gladly listen tothe sound, and most justly estimate the value of such a deliverance. Andthis is the cause, which renders it of such pressing moment not to passcursorily over those important topics of the original and superinducedcorruption, and weakness of man; a discussion painful and humiliatingto the pride of human nature, to which the mind lends itself withdifficulty, and hearkens with a mixture of anger and disgust; but wellsuited to our case, and like the distasteful lessons of adversity, permanently useful in its consequences. It is here, never let it beforgotten, that our foundation must be laid; otherwise oursuperstructure, whatever we may think of it, will one day or other provetottering and insecure. This is therefore no metaphysical speculation, but a practical matter: Slight and superficial conceptions of our stateof natural degradation, and of our insufficiency to recover from it ofourselves, fall in too well with our natural inconsiderateness, andproduce that fatal insensibility to the divine warning to "flee from thewrath to come, " which we cannot but observe to prevail so generally. Having no due sense of the malignity of our disease, and of its dreadfulissue, we do not set ourselves to work in earnest to obtain the remedy, as to a business arduous indeed, but indispensable: for it must ever becarefully remembered, that this deliverance is not _forced on us_, but_offered to us_; we are furnished indeed with every help, and are alwaysto bear in mind, that we are unable of ourselves to will or to dorightly; but we are plainly admonished to "work out our own salvationwith fear and trembling[14]. "--Watchful, for we are encompassed withdangers; "putting on the whole armour of God, " for "we are beset withenemies. "

May we be enabled to shake off that lethargy which is so apt to creepupon us! For this end, a deep practical conviction of our naturaldepravity and weakness will be found of eminent advantage. As it is bythis we must at first be rouzed from our fallacious security, so by thiswe must be kept wakeful and active unto the end. Let us therefore makeit our business to have this doctrine firmly seated in ourunderstandings, and radically worked into our hearts. With a view to theformer of these objects, we should often seriously and attentivelyconsider the firm grounds on which it rests. It is plainly made known tous by the light of nature, and irresistibly enforced on us by thedictates of our unassisted understandings. But lest there should be anyso obstinately dull, as not to discern the force of the evidencesuggested to our reason, and confirmed by all experience, or rather soheedless as not to notice it, the authoritative stamp of Revelation issuperadded, as we have seen, to complete the proof; and we musttherefore be altogether inexcusable, if we still remain unconvinced bysuch accumulated mass of argument. 

But we must not only _assent_ to the doctrine clearly, but _feel_ itstrongly. To this end, let the power of habit be called in to our aid. Let us accustom ourselves to refer to our natural depravity, as to theirprimary cause, the sad instances of vice and folly of which we read, orwhich we see around us, or to which we feel the propensities in our ownbosoms; ever vigilant and distrustful of ourselves, and looking with aneye of kindness and pity on the faults and infirmities of others, whomwe should learn to regard with the same tender concern as that withwhich the sick are used to sympathize with those who are suffering underthe same distemper as themselves. This lesson once well acquired, weshall feel the benefit of it in all our future progress; and though itbe a lesson which we are slow to learn, it is one in which study andexperience, the incidents of every day, and every fresh observation ofthe workings of our own hearts, will gradually concur to perfect us. Letit not, after all then, be our reproach, and at length our ruin, thatthese abundant means of instruction are possessed in vain. 

SECTION III. 

_Corruption of Human Nature. --Objection. _

But there is one difficulty still behind, more formidable than all therest. The pride of man is loth to be humbled. Forced to abandon the pleaof innocence, and pressed so closely that he can no longer escape fromthe conclusion to which we would drive him, some more bold objectorfaces about and stands at bay, endeavouring to justify what he cannotdeny, "Whatever I am, " he contends, "I am what my Creator made me. Iinherited a nature, you yourself confess, depraved, and prone to evil:how then can I withstand the temptations to sin by which I am environed?If this plea cannot establish my innocence, it must excuse or at leastextenuate my guilt. Frail and weak as I am, a Being of infinite justiceand goodness will never try me by a rule, which however equitable in thecase of creatures of a higher nature, is altogether disproportionate tomine. "

Let not my readers be alarmed! The writer is not going to enter into thediscussion of the grand question concerning the origin of moral evil, or to attempt at large to reconcile its existence and consequentpunishment with the acknowledged attributes and perfections of God. These are questions, of which, if one may judge from the little successwith which the acutest and profoundest reasoners have been everlabouring to solve the difficulties they contain, the full and clearcomprehension is above the intellect of man. Yet, as such an objectionas that which has been stated is sometimes heard from the mouths ofprofessed Christians, it must not be passed by without a few shortobservations. 

Were the language in question to be addressed to us by an avowedsceptic, though it might not be very difficult to expose to him thefutility of _his_ reasonings, we should almost despair of satisfying himof the soundness of our own. We should perhaps suggest impossibilities, which might stand in the way of such a system as he would establish: wemight indeed point out wherein (arguing from concessions which he wouldfreely make) his pre-conceptions concerning the conduct of the SupremeBeing, had been in fact already contradicted, particularly by theexistence at all of natural or moral evil: and if thus proved erroneousin one instance, why might they not be so likewise in another? Butthough by these and similar arguments we might at length silence ourobjector, we could not much expect to bring him over to our opinions. Weshould probably do better, if we were to endeavour rather to draw himoff from these dark and slippery regions, (slippery in truth they are toevery human foot) and to contend with him, where we might tread withfirmness and freedom, on sure ground, and in the light of day. Then wemight fairly lay before him all the various arguments for the truth ofour holy religion; arguments which have been sufficient to satisfy thewisest, and the best, and the ablest of men. We should afterwardsperhaps insist on the abundant confirmation Christianity receives fromits being exactly suited to the nature and wants of man; and we mightconclude, with fairly putting it to him, whether all this weight ofevidence were to be overbalanced by this one difficulty, on a subject soconfessedly high and mysterious, considering too that he must allow, wesee but a part (O how small a part!) of the universal creation of God, and that our faculties are wholly incompetent to judge of the schemes ofhis infinite wisdom. This, if the writer may be permitted to offer hisown judgment, is (at least in general) the best mode, in the case of theobjection now in question, of dealing with unbelievers; and to adopt thecontrary plan, seems somewhat like that of any one, who having toconvince some untutored Indian of the truth of the Copernican system, instead of beginning with plain and simple propositions, and leading himon to what is more abstruse and remote, should state to him at theoutset some astonishing problems, to which the understanding can onlyyield its slow assent, when constrained by the decisive force ofdemonstration. The novice, instead of lending himself to such a mistakenmethod of instruction, would turn away in disgust, and be only hardenedagainst his preceptor. But it must be remembered, that the present workis addressed to those who acknowledge the authority of the holyScriptures. And in order to convince all such that there is somewhere orother, a fallacy in our objector's reasoning, it will be sufficient toestablish that though the word of God clearly asserts the justice andgoodness of the Supreme Being, and also the natural depravity of man, yet it no less clearly lays down that this natural depravity shall neverbe admitted as an excuse for sin, but that "they which have done evil, shall rise to the resurrection of damnation[15]. "--"That the wickedshall be turned into hell, and all the people that forget God. " And itis worthy of remark, that, as if for the very purpose of moreeffectually silencing those unbelieving doubts which are ever springingup in the human heart, our blessed Saviour, though the messenger ofpeace and good will to man, has again and again repeated these awfuldenunciations. 

Nor (it must also be remarked) are the holy Scriptures less clear andfull in guarding us against supposing our sins, or the dreadfulconsequences of them, to be chargeable on God. --"Let no man say when heis tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man[16]:" "The Lord is not willing that anyshould perish[17]. " And again, where the idea is repelled as injuriousto his character, --"Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked shoulddie? saith the Lord God; and not that he should return from his ways, and live[18]?" "For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God[19]. " Indeed almost every page of the word of Godcontains some warning or invitation to sinners; and all these, to aconsiderate mind, must unquestionably be proofs of our present position. 

It has been the more necessary not to leave unnoticed the objectionwhich we have been now refuting, because, where not admitted to such anunqualified extent as altogether to take away the moral responsibilityof man, and when not avowed in the daring language in which it has beenabove stated; if may frequently be observed to exist in an inferiordegree: and often, when not distinctly formed into shape, it lurks insecret, diffusing a general cloud of doubt or unbelief, or lowering ourstandard of right, or whispering fallacious comfort, and producing aruinous tranquillity. Not to anticipate what will more properly comeunder discussion, when we consider the nature and strictness ofpractical Christianity; let us here, however, remark, that though theholy Scriptures so clearly state the natural corruption and weakness ofman, yet they never, in the most minute degree, countenance, butthroughout directly oppose, the supposition to which we are often tooforward to listen, that this corruption and weakness will be admitted aslowering the demands of divine justice, and in some sort palliating ourtransgressions of the laws of God. It would not be difficult to shewthat such a notion is at war with the whole scheme of redemption by theatonement of Christ. But perhaps it may be enough when any suchsuggestions as those which we are condemning force themselves into theimagination of a Christian, to recommend it to him to silence them bywhat is their best practical answer: that if our natural condition bedepraved and weak, our temptations numerous, and our Almighty Judgeinfinitely holy; yet that the offers to penitent sinners of pardon andgrace, and strength, are universal and unlimited. Let it not howeversurprise us, if in all this there seem to be involved difficulties whichwe cannot fully comprehend. How many such every where presentthemselves! Scarcely is there an object around us, that does not affordendless matter of doubt and argument. The meanest reptile which crawlson the earth, nay, every herb and flower which we behold, baffles theimbecility of our limited inquiries. All nature calls upon us to behumble. Can it then be surprising if we are at a loss on this question, which respects, not the properties of matter, or of numbers, but thecounsels and ways of him whose "Understanding is infinite[20], " "whosejudgments are declared to be unsearchable, and his ways past findingout[21]?" In this our ignorance however, we may calmly repose ourselveson his own declaration, "That though clouds and darkness are round abouthim, yet righteousness and judgment are the habitation of histhrone[22]. " Let it also be remembered, that if in Christianity somethings are difficult, that which it most concerns us to know, is plainand obvious. To this it is true wisdom to attach ourselves, assenting towhat is revealed where above our faculties, we do not say contradictoryto them, on the credit of what is clearly discerned, and satisfactorilyestablished. In truth, we are all perhaps too apt to plunge into depths, which it is beyond our power to fathom; and it was to warn us againstthis very error, that the inspired writer, when he has been threateningthe people, whom God had selected as the objects of his special favour, with the most dreadful punishments, if they should forsake the law ofthe Lord, and has introduced surrounding nations as asking the meaningof the severe infliction, winds up the whole with this instructiveadmonition; "Secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those whichare revealed belong unto us, and to our children for ever, that we may_do_ all the words of this law[23]. "

To any one who is seriously impressed with a sense of the critical statein which we are here placed, a short and uncertain space in which tomake our peace with God, and then the last judgment, and an eternity ofunspeakable happiness or misery, it is indeed an awful and an affectingspectacle, to see men thus busying themselves in these vain speculationsof an arrogant curiosity, and trifling with their dearest, theireverlasting interests. It is but a feeble illustration of this exquisitefolly, to compare it to the conduct of some convicted rebel, who, whenbrought into the presence of his Sovereign, instead of seizing theoccasion to sue for mercy, should even neglect and trifle with thepardon which should be offered to him, and insolently employ himself inprying into his Sovereign's designs, and criticising his counsels. Ourcase indeed is, in another point of comparison, but too much like thatof the convicted rebel. But there is this grand difference--that at thebest, his success must be uncertain, ours, if it be not our own fault, is sure; and while, on the one hand, our guilt is unspeakably greaterthan that of any rebel against an earthly monarch; so, on the other, weknow that our Sovereign is "Long-suffering, and easy to be intreated;"more ready to grant, than we to ask, forgiveness. Well then may we adoptthe language of the poet:

 What better can we do, than - - - prostrate fall Before him reverent; and there confess Humbly our faults, and pardon beg; with tears Watering the ground, and with our sighs the air Frequenting, sent from hearts contrite, in sign Of sorrow unfeign'd, and humiliation meek?

CHAPTER III. 

_Chief defects of the Religious System of the bulk of professedChristians, in what regards our Lord Jesus Christ, and the HolySpirit--with a Dissertation concerning the use of the Passions inReligion. _

SECT. I

SCRIPTURE DOCTRINES. 

That "God so loved the world, as of his tender mercy to give his onlySon Jesus Christ for our redemption:"

That our blessed Lord willingly left the glory of the Father, and wasmade man;

That "he was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, andacquainted with grief:"

That "he was wounded for our transgressions; that he was bruised for ouriniquities:"

That "the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all:"

That at length "he humbled himself even to the death of the Cross, forus miserable sinners; to the end that all who with hearty repentance andtrue faith, should come to him, might not perish, but have everlastinglife:"

That he "is now at the right hand of God, making intercession" for hispeople:

That "being reconciled to God by the death of his Son, we may comeboldly unto the throne of grace, to obtain mercy and find grace to helpin time of need:"

That our Heavenly Father "will surely give his Holy Spirit to them thatask him:"

That "the Spirit of God must dwell in us;" and that "if any man have notthe Spirit of Christ, he is none of his:"

That by this divine influence "we are to be renewed in knowledge afterthe image of him who created us, " and "to be filled with the fruits ofrighteousness, to the praise of the glory of his grace;"--that "beingthus made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light, " we shallsleep in the Lord; and that when the last trumpet shall sound, thiscorruption shall put on incorruption--and that being at length perfectedafter his likeness, we shall be admitted into his heavenly kingdom. 

These are the leading Doctrines concerning our Saviour, and the HolySpirit, which are taught in the Holy Scriptures, and held by the Churchof England. The truth of them, agreeably to our general plan, will betaken for granted. Few of those, who have been used to join in theestablished form of worship, can have been, it is hoped, so inattentive, as to be ignorant of these grand truths, which are to be found everywhere dispersed throughout our excellent Liturgy. Would to God it couldbe presumed, with equal confidence, that all who assent to them interms, discern their force and excellency in the understanding, and feeltheir power in the affections, and their transforming influence in theheart. What lively emotions are they calculated to excite in us of deepself-abasement, and abhorrence of our sins; and of humble hope, and firmfaith, and heavenly joy, and ardent love, and active unceasinggratitude!

But here, it is to be feared, will be found the grand defect of thereligion of the bulk of professed Christians; a defect, like the palsyat the heart, which, while in its first attack, it changes but littlethe exterior appearance of the body, extinguishes the internal principleof heat and motion, and soon extends its benumbing influence to theremotest fibres of the frame. This defect is closely connected with thatwhich was the chief subject of the last chapter: "they that are wholeneed not a physician, but they that are sick. " Had we duly felt theburthen of our sins, that they are a load which our own strength iswholly unable to support, and that the weight of them must finally sinkus into perdition, our hearts would have danced at the sound of thegracious invitation, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavyladen, and I will give you rest[24]. " But in those who have scarcelyfelt their sins as any incumbrance, it would be mere affectation topretend to very exalted conceptions of the value and acceptableness ofthe proffered deliverance. This pretence accordingly, is seldom now keptup; and the most superficial observer, comparing the sentiments andviews of the bulk of the Christian world, with the articles stillretained in their creed, and with the strong language of Scripture, mustbe struck with the amazing disproportion. 

To pass over the throng from whose minds Religion is altogether excludedby the business or the vanities of life, how is it with the more decentand moral? To what criterion shall we appeal? Are their hearts reallyfilled with these things, and warmed by the love which they are adaptedto inspire? Then surely their minds are apt to stray to them almostunseasonably; or at least to hasten back to them with eagerness, whenescaped from the estrangment imposed by the necessary cares and businessof life. He was a masterly describer of human nature, who thuspourtrayed the characters of an undissembled affection;

 "Unstaid and fickle in all other things, Save in the constant image of the object, That is beloved. "

"And how, " it may be perhaps replied, "do you know, but that the mindsof these people are thus occupied? Can you look into the bosoms of men?"Let us appeal to a test to which we resorted in a former instance. "Outof the abundance of the heart, " it has been pronounced, "the mouthspeaketh. "--Take these persons then in some well selected hour, and leadthe conversation to the subject of Religion. The utmost which can beeffected is, to bring them to talk of things in the gross. They appearlost in generalities; there is nothing precise and determinate, nothingwhich implies a mind used to the contemplation of its object. In vainyou strive to bring them to speak on that topic, which one might expectto be ever uppermost in the hearts of redeemed sinners. They elude allyour endeavours; and if you make mention of it yourself, it is receivedwith no very cordial welcome at least, if not with unequivocal disgust;it is at the best a forced and formal discussion. The excellence of ourSaviour's moral precepts, the kindness and simplicity, and self-denialand unblemished purity of his life, his patience and meekness in thehour of death, cannot indeed be spoken of but with admiration, whenspoken of at all, as they have often extorted unwilling praise from themost daring and malignant infidels. But are not these mentioned asqualities in the abstract, rather than as the perfections and lineamentsof our patron and benefactor and friend, "who loved us, and gave himselffor us;" of him "who died for _our_ offences, and rose again for _our_justification;" who is even now at the "right hand of God, makingintercession for _us_?" Who would think that the kindness and humanity, and self-denial, and patience in suffering, which we so drily commend, had been exerted towards _ourselves_, in acts of more than finitebenevolence of which _we_ were to derive the benefit, in condescensionsand labours submitted to for _our_ sakes, in pain and ignominy, enduredfor _our_ deliverance?

But these grand truths are not suffered to vanish altogether from ourremembrance. Thanks to the compilers of our Liturgy, more than to toomany of the occupiers of our pulpits, they are forced upon our notice intheir just bearings and connections, as often as we attend the serviceof the church. Yet is it too much to affirm, that though thereentertained with decorum, as what belong to the day and place, andoccupation, they are yet too generally heard of with little interest;like the legendary tales of some venerable historian, or othertransactions of great antiquity, if not of doubtful credit, which, though important to our ancestors, relate to times and circumstances sodifferent from our own, that we cannot be expected to take any greatconcern in them? We hear of them therefore with apparent indifference;we repeat them almost as it were by rote, assuming by turns the languageof the deepest humiliation and of the warmest thankfulness, with a calmunaltered composure; and when the service of the day is ended, they aredismissed altogether from our thoughts, till on the return of anotherSunday, a fresh attendance on public worship gives occasion for therenewed expressions of our periodical gratitude. In noticing suchlukewarmness as this, surely the writer were to be pardoned, if he wereto be betrayed into some warmth of condemnation. The Unitarian andSocinian indeed, who deny, or explain away the peculiar doctrines of theGospel, may be allowed to feel, and talk of these grand truths withlittle emotion. But in those who profess a sincere belief in them, thiscoldness is insupportable. The greatest possible services of man to manmust appear contemptible, when compared with "the unspeakable mercies ofChrist:" mercies so dearly bought, so freely bestowed--A deliverancefrom eternal misery--The gift of "a crown of glory, that fadeth notaway. " Yet, what judgment should we form of such conduct, as is herecensured, in the case of any one who had received some signal servicesfrom a fellow creature? True love is an ardent, and an activeprinciple--a cold, a dormant, a phlegmatic gratitude, are contractionsin terms. When these generous affections really exist in vigour, are wenot ever fond of dwelling on the value, and enumerating the merits ofour benefactor? How are we moved when any thing is asserted to hisdisparagement! How do we delight to tell of his kindness! With whatpious care do we preserve any memorial of him, which we may happen topossess? How gladly do we seize any opportunity of rendering to him, orto those who are dear to him, any little good offices, which, though inthemselves of small intrinsic worth, may testify the sincerity of ourthankfulness! The very mention of his name will cheer the heart, andlight up the countenance! And if he be now no more, and if he had madeit his dying request that, in a way of his own appointment, we wouldoccasionally meet to keep the memory of his person, and of his servicesin lively exercise; how should we resent the idea of failing in theperformance of so sacred an obligation!

Such are the genuine characters, such the natural workings of a livelygratitude. And we believe, without doing violence to the mostestablished principles of human nature, that where the _effects_ are sodifferent, the _internal principle_ is in truth the same?

If the love of Christ be thus languid in the bulk of nominal Christians, their joy and trust in him cannot be expected to be very vigorous. Hereagain we find reason to remark, that there is nothing distinct, nothingspecific, nothing which implies a mind acquainted with the nature, andfamiliarized with the use of the Christian's privileges, habituallysolacing itself with the hopes held out by the Gospel, and animated bythe sense of its high relations, and its glorious reversion. 

The doctrine of the sanctifying operations of the Holy Spirit, appearsto have met with still worse treatment. It would be to convey a veryinadequate idea of the scantiness of the conceptions on this head, ofthe bulk of the Christian world, to affirm merely, that they are toolittle conscious of the inefficacy of their own unassisted endeavoursafter holiness of heart and life, and that they are not daily employedin humbly and diligently using the appointed means for the reception andcultivation of the divine assistance. It would hardly be to go beyondthe truth to assert, that for the most part their notions on thissubject are so confused and faint, that they can scarcely be said in anyfair sense to believe the doctrine at all. 

The writer of these sheets is by no means unapprized of the objectionswhich he may expect from those, whose opinions he has been so freelycondemning. He is prepared to hear it urged, that often where there havebeen the strongest pretences to the religious affections, of which thewant has now been censured, there has been little or nothing of thereality of them; and that even omitting the instances (which howeverhave been but too frequent) of studied hypocrisy, what have assumed tothemselves the name of religious affections, have been merely theflights of a lively imagination, or the working of a heated brain; inparticular, that this love of our Saviour, which has been so warmlyrecommended, is no better than a vain fervor, which dwells only in thedisordered mind of the enthusiast. That Religion is of a more steadynature; of a more sober and manly quality; and that she rejects withscorn, the support of a mere feeling, so volatile and indeterminate, sotrivial and useless, as that with which we would associate her; afeeling varying in different men, and even in the same man at differenttimes, according to the accidental flow of the animal spirits; afeeling, lastly, of which it may perhaps be said, we are from our verynature, hardly susceptible towards an invisible Being. 

"As to the operations of the Holy Spirit, " it may probably be furtherurged, that "it is perhaps scarcely worth while to spend much time ininquiring into the theory, when, in practice at least, it is manifest, that there is no sure criterion whereby any one can ascertain thereality of them, even in his own case, much less in that of another. Allwe know is, that pretenders to these extraordinary assistances, havenever been wanting to abuse the credulity of the vulgar, and to try thepatience of the wise. From the canting hypocrites and wild fanatics ofthe last century, to their less dangerous, chiefly because lesssuccessful, descendants of the present day, we hear the same unwarrantedclaims, the same idle tales, the same low cant; and we may discern notseldom the same mean artifices and mercenary ends. The doctrine, to saythe best of it, can only serve to favour the indolence of man, whileprofessing to furnish him with a compendious method of becoming wise andgood, it supersedes the necessity of his own personal labours. Quittingtherefore all these slothful and chimerical speculations, it is truewisdom to attach ourselves to what is more solid and practical; to thework which you will not yourself deny to be sufficiently difficult tofind us of itself full employment: the work of rectifying the disordersof the passions, and of implanting and cultivating the virtues of themoral character. "--"It is the service of the understanding which Godrequires of us, which you would degrade into a mere matter of bodilytemperament, and imaginary impulses. You are contending for that whichnot only is altogether unworthy of our Divine Master, but which, withconsiderate men, has ever brought his religion into suspicion anddisrepute, and under a shew of honouring him, serves only to injure anddiscredit his cause. " Our Objector, warming as he proceeds, will perhapsassume a more impatient tone. "Have not these doctrines, " he mayexclaim, "been ever perverted to purposes the most disgraceful to theReligion of Jesus? If you want an instance, look to the standard of theinquisition, and behold the pious Dominicans torturing their miserablevictims for the Love of Christ[25]. Or would you rather see the effectsof your principles on a larger scale, and _by wholesale_ (if the phrasemay be pardoned;) cast your eyes across the Atlantic, and let your zealbe edified by the holy activity of Cortez and Pizarro, and theirapostles of the western hemisphere. To what else have been owing theextensive ravages of national persecutions, and religious wars andcrusades; whereby rapacity, and pride, and cruelty, shelteringthemselves (sometimes even from the furious bigots themselves) under themask of this specious principle, have so often afflicted the world? ThePrince of Peace has been made to assume the port of a ferociousconqueror, and forgetting the message of good will to men, has issuedforth like a second Scourge of the Earth[26], to plague and desolate thehuman species. "

_Objection discussed. _

That the sacred name of Religion has been too often prostituted to themost detestable purposes; that furious bigots and bloody persecutors, and self-interested hypocrites of all qualities and dimensions, from therapacious leader of an army, to the canting oracle of a congregation, have falsely called themselves Christians, are melancholy andhumiliating truths, which (as none so deeply lament them) none will morereadily admit, than they who best understand the nature, and are mostconcerned for the honour of Christianity. We are ready to acknowledgealso without dispute, that the religious affections, and the doctrine ofdivine assistances, have almost at all times been more or less disgracedby the false pretences and extravagant conduct of wild fanatics andbrain-sick enthusiasts. All this, however, is only as it happens inother instances, wherein the depravity of man perverts the bounty ofGod. Why is it here only to be made an argument, that there is danger ofabuse? So is there also in the case of all the potent and operativeprinciples, whether in the natural or moral world. Take for an instancethe powers and properties of matter. These were doubtless designed byProvidence for our comfort and well-being; yet they are oftenmisapplied to trifling purposes, and still more frequently turned intoso many agents of misery and death. On this fact indeed is founded thewell-known maxim, not more trite than just, that "the best things whencorrupted become the worst;" a maxim which is especially just in theinstance of Religion. For in this case it is not merely, as in someothers, that a great power, when mischievously applied, must be hurtfulin proportion to its strength; but that the very principle on which ingeneral we depend for restraining and retarding the progress of evil, not only ceases to interpose any kindly check, but is actively operativein the opposite direction. But will you therefore discard Religionaltogether? The experiment was lately tried in a neighbouring country, and professedly on this very ground. The effects however with which itwas attended, do not much encourage its repetition. But suppose Religionwere discarded, then Liberty remains to plague the world; a power whichthough when well employed, the dispenser of light and happiness, hasbeen often proved, and eminently in this very instance, to be capablewhen abused, of becoming infinitely mischievous. Well then, extinguishLiberty. Then what more abused by false pretenders, than Patriotism?Well, extinguish Patriotism. But then the wicked career to which we haveadverted, must have been checked but for Courage. Blot out Courage--andso might you proceed to extinguish one by one, Reason, and Speech, andMemory, and all the discriminating prerogatives of man. But perhaps morethan enough has been already urged in reply to an objection, whichbottoms on ground so indefensible, as that which would equally warrantour condemning any physical or moral faculty altogether, on account ofits being occasionally abused. 

As to the position of our Opponent, that there is no way whereby thevalidity of any pretensions to the religious affections may beascertained; it must partly be admitted. Doubtless we are not ablealways to read the hearts of men, and to discover their real characters;and hence it is, that we in some measure lie open to the false andhypocritical pretences which are brought forward against us sotriumphantly. But then these pretences no more prove all similar claimsto be founded in falsehood and hypocrisy, than there having been manyfalse and interested pretenders to wisdom and honesty, would prove thatthere can be no such thing as a wise or an honest man. We do not arguethus but where our reason is under a corrupt bias. Why should we be somuch surprised and scandalized, when these importers are detected in thechurch of Christ? It is no more than our blessed Master himself taughtus to expect; and when the old difficulty is stated, "didst thou not sowgood seed in thy field, whence then hath it tares?" his own answerfurnishes the best solution, --"an enemy hath done this. "--Hypocrisy isindeed _detestable_, and enthusiasm sufficiently mischievous to justifyour guarding against its approaches with jealous care. Yet it may not beimproper to take this occasion for observing, that we are now and thenapt to draw too unfavourable conclusions from unpleasant appearances, which may perhaps be chiefly or altogether owing to gross or confusedconceptions, or to a disgusting formality of demeanor, or toindeterminate, low, or improperly familiar expressions. The mode andlanguage, in which a vulgar man will express himself on the subject ofReligion, will probably be vulgar, and it is difficult for people ofliterature and refinement not to be unreasonably shocked by suchvulgarities. But we should at least endeavour to correct the rashjudgments which we may be disposed to form on these occasions, andshould learn to recognize and to prize a sound texture and justconfiguration, though disguised beneath a homely or uncouth drapery. Itwas an Apostle who declared that he had come (to the learned andaccomplished Grecians too) "not with excellency of speech, or the wisdomof words. " From these he had studiously abstained, lest he should haveseemed to owe his success rather to the graces of oratory, than to theefficacy of his doctrines, and to the divine power with which they wereaccompanied. Even in our own times, when, the extraordinary operationsand miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit having ceased, the necessity ofstudy and preparation, and of attention to manner as well as matter, inorder to qualify men to become teachers of religion, are no longersuperseded, yet it is no more than an act of justice explicitly toremark, that a body of Christians, which from the peculiarly offensivegrossnesses of language in use among them, had, not without reason, excited suspicions of the very worst nature, have since reclaimed theircharacter[27], and have perhaps excelled all mankind in solid andunequivocal proofs of the love of Christ, and of the most ardent, andactive, and patient zeal in his service. It is a zeal tempered withprudence, softened with meekness, soberly aiming at great ends by thegradual operation of well adapted means, supported by a courage which nodanger can intimidate, and a quiet constancy which no hardships canexhaust. 

SECT. II. 

_On the Admission of the Passions into Religion. _

The objection of our Opponent, that by insisting on the obligation ofmaking our blessed Saviour the object of our religious affections, weare degrading the worship of the understanding, and are substituting andraising up a set of mere feelings in its stead, is one which deservesour most serious consideration. If it be just, it is decisive; for oursmust be unquestionably "a reasonable service[28]. " The Objector mustmean, either, that these affections are unreasonable in themselves, orthat they are misplaced in religion. He can scarcely however intend thatthe affections are in their own nature unreasonable. To suppose him tomaintain this position, were to suppose him ignorant of what everyschoolboy knows of the mechanism of the human mind. We shall thereforetake it for granted, that this cannot be his meaning, and proceed toexamine the latter part of the alternative. Here also it may either beintended, that the affections are misplaced in Religion, _generally_, orthat our blessed Saviour is not the proper object of them. The strain ofour Objector's language, no less than the objections themselves whichhe has urged, render it evident that (perhaps without excluding thelatter position) the former is in full possession of his mind. 

This notion of the affections being out of place in Religion, is indeedan opinion which appears to be generally prevalent. The affections areregarded as the strong-holds of enthusiasm. It is therefore judged mostexpedient to act, as prudent generals are used to do, when they raze thefortress, or spike up the cannon, which are likely to fall into thehands of an enemy. Mankind are apt to be the dupes of misapplied terms;and the progress of the persuasion now in question, has beenconsiderably aided by an abuse of language, not sufficiently checked inits first advances, whereby that species of Religion which is oppositeto the warm and affectionate kind, has been suffered almost withoutdisturbance, to usurp to itself the epithet of _rational_. But let notthis claim be too hastily admitted. Let the position in question bethoroughly and impartially discussed, and it will appear, if I mistakenot, to be a gross and pernicious error. If amputation be indeedindispensable, we must submit to it; but we may surely expect to beheard with patience, or rather with favour and indulgence, while weproceed to shew that there is no need to have recourse to so desperatean enemy. The discussion will necessarily draw us into length. But ourprolixity will not be greater than may well be claimed by the importanceof the subject, especially as it scarcely seems to have hithertosufficiently engaged the attention of writers on the subject ofReligion. 

It cannot methinks but afford a considerable presumption against thedoctrine which we are about to combat, that it proposes to exclude atonce from the service of Religion so grand a part of the composition ofman; that in this our noblest employment it condemns as worse thanuseless, all the most active and operative principles of our nature. Onecannot but suppose that like the organs of the body, so the elementaryqualities and original passions of the mind were all given us forvaluable purposes by our all-wise Creator. It is indeed one of the sadevidences of our fallen condition, that they are now perpetuallytumultuating and rebelling against the powers of reason and conscience, to which they should be subject. But even if Revelation had been silent, natural reason might have in some degree presumed, that it would be theeffect of a Religion which should come from God, completely to repairthe consequences of our superinduced depravity. The schemes of merehuman wisdom had indeed tacitly confessed, that this was a task beyondtheir strength. Of the two most celebrated systems of philosophy, theone expressly confirmed the usurpation of the passions, while the other, despairing of being able to regulate, saw nothing left but to extinguishthem. The former acted like a weak government, which gives independenceto a rebellious province, which it cannot reduce. The latter formed itsboasted scheme merely upon the plan of that barbarous policy, whichcomposes the troubles of a turbulent land by the extermination of itsinhabitants. This is the calm, not of order, but of inaction; it is nottranquillity, but the stillness of death;

 Trucidare falso nomine imperium, & ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant--

Christianity, we might hope, would not be driven to any such wretchedexpedients; nor in fact does she condescend to them. They only thusundervalue her strength, who mistake her character, and are ignorant ofher powers. It is her peculiar glory, and her main office, to bring allthe faculties of our nature into their just subordination anddependence; that so the whole man, complete in all his functions, may berestored to the true ends of his being, and be devoted, entire andharmonious, to the service and glory of God. "My son, give me thine_heart_"--"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy _heart_:"--Suchare the direct and comprehensive claims which are made on us in the holyScriptures. We can scarcely indeed look into any part of the sacredvolume without meeting abundant proofs, that it is the religion of theAffections which God particularly requires. Love, Zeal, Gratitude, Joy, Hope, Trust, are each of them specified; and are not allowed to us asweaknesses, but enjoined on us as our bounden duty, and commended to usas our acceptable worship. Where passages are so numerous, there wouldbe no end of particular citations. Let it be sufficient therefore, torefer the reader to the word of God. There let him observe too, that asthe lively exercise of the passions towards their legitimate object, isalways spoken of with praise, so a cold, hard, unfeeling heart isrepresented as highly criminal. Lukewarmness is stated to be the objectof God's disgust and aversion; zeal and love, of his favour and delight;and the taking away of the heart of stone and the implanting of a warmerand more tender nature in its stead, is specifically promised as theeffect of his returning favour, and the work of his renewing grace. Itis the prayer of an inspired teacher, in behalf of those for whom he wasmost interested, "that their love" (already acknowledged to be great)"might abound yet more and more:" Those modes of worship are set forthand prescribed, which are best calculated to excite the dormantaffections, and to maintain them in lively exercise; and the aids ofmusic and singing are expressly superadded to increase their effect. Ifwe look to the most eminent of the Scripture Characters, we shall findthem warm, zealous, and affectionate. When engaged in their favouritework of celebrating the goodness of their Supreme Benefactor, theirsouls appear to burn within them, their hearts kindle into rapture; thepowers of language are inadequate to the expression of their transports;and they call on all nature to swell the chorus, and to unite with themin hallelujahs of gratitude, and joy, and praise. The man after God'sown heart most of all abounds in these glowing effusions; and hiscompositions appear to have been given us in order to set the tone, asit were, to all succeeding generations. Accordingly (to quote the wordsof a late excellent prelate[29], who was himself warmed with the sameheavenly flame) "in the language of this divine book, the praises of thechurch have been offered up to the Throne of Grace from age to age. "Again, when it pleased God to check the future apostle of the Gentilesin his wild career, and to make him a monument of transforming grace;was the force of his affections diminished, or was it not only thattheir direction was changed? He brought his affections entire andunabated into the service of his blessed Master. His zeal now burnedeven with an increase of brightness; and no intenseness, no continuanceof suffering could allay its ardor, or damp the fervors of histriumphant exultations. Finally--The worship and service of theglorified spirits in Heaven, is not represented to us a coldintellectual investigation, but as the worship and service of gratitudeand love. And surely it will not be disputed, that it should be evenhere the humble endeavour of those, who are promised while on earth "tobe made meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light, "to bring their hearts into a capacity for joining in those everlastingpraises. 

BUT it may not be unadvisable for the writer here to guard against amistaken supposition, from which the mind of our Objector by no meansappears exempt, that the force of the religious affections is to bemainly estimated (I had almost said by the thermometer) by the degree ofmere animal fervor, by ardors, and transports, and raptures, of which, from constitutional temperament, a person may be easily susceptible; orinto which daily experience must convince us, that people of strongconceptions and of warm passions may work themselves without muchdifficulty, where their hearts are by no means truly or deeplyinterested. Every tolerable actor can attest the truth of this remark. These high degrees of the passions bad men may experience, good men maywant. They may be affected; they may be genuine; but whether genuine oraffected, they form not the true standard by which the real nature orstrength of the religious affections is to be determined. To ascertainthese points, we must examine, whether they appear to be grounded inknowledge, to have their root in strong and just conceptions of thegreat and manifold excellences of their object, or to be ignorant, unmeaning, or vague: whether they are natural and easy, or constrainedand forced; wakeful and apt to fix on their great objects, delighting intheir proper nutriment (if the expression may be allowed) the exercisesof prayer and praise, and religious contemplation; or voluntarilyomitting offered occasions of receiving it, looking forward to them withlittle expectation, looking back on them with little complacency, andbeing disappointed of them with little regret: by observing whetherthese religious affections are merely occasional visitants, or theabiding inmates of the soul: whether they have got the mastery over thevicious passions and propensities, with which in their origin, andnature, and tendency, they are at open variance; or whether if thevictory be not yet complete, the war is at least constant, and thebreach irreconcilable: whether they moderate and regulate all theinferior appetites and desires which are culpable only in their excess, thus striving to reign in the bosom with a settled undisputedpredominance: by examining, whether above all they manifest themselvesby prompting to the active discharge of the duties of life, thepersonal, and domestic, and relative, and professional, and social, andcivil duties. Here the wideness of their range and the universality oftheir influence, will generally serve to distinguish them from thosepartial efforts of diligence and self-denial, to which mankind areprompted by subordinate motives. All proofs other than this deduced fromconduct, are in some degree ambiguous. This, this only, whether weargue from Reason or from Scripture, is a sure infallible criterion. From the daily incidents of conjugal and domestic life, we learn that aheat of affection occasionally vehement, but superficial and transitory, may consist too well with a course of conduct, exhibiting incontestableproofs of neglect and unkindness. But the passion, which alone the HolyScriptures dignify with the name of Love, is a deep, not a superficialfeeling; a fixed and permanent, not an occasional emotion. It proves thevalidity of its title, by actions corresponding with its nature, bypractical endeavours to gratify the wishes and to promote the interestsof the object of affection. "If a man love me, he will keep my sayings. ""This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. " This thereforeis the best standard by which to try the quality, or, the quality beingascertained, to estimate the strength of the religious affections. Without suffering ourselves to derive too much complacency fromtransient fervors of devotion, we should carefully and frequently proveourselves by this less dubitable test; impartially examining our dailyconduct; and often comparing our actual, with our possible services, thefair amount of our exertions, with our natural or acquired means andopportunities of usefulness. 

After this large explanation, the prolixity of which will we trust bepardoned on account of the importance of the subject, and the danger ofmistakes both on the right hand and on the left, we are perfectly readyto concede to the objector, whose arguments we have so long beenconsidering, that the religious affections must be expected to be moreor less lively in different men, and in the same man at different times, in proportion to natural tempers, ages, situations, and habits of life. But, to found an objection on this ground, would be as unreasonable asit were altogether to deny the obligation of the precepts, which commandus to relieve the necessities of the indigent, because the infinitelyvarying circumstances of mankind must render it impossible to specifybeforehand the sum which each individual ought on the whole to allot tothis purpose, or to fix in every particular instance, on any determinatemeasure, and mode of contribution. To the one case no less than to theother, we may apply the maxim of an eminent writer; "An honest heart isthe best casuist. " He who every where but in Religion is warm andanimated, there only phlegmatic and cold, can hardly expect (especiallyif this coldness be not the subject of unfeigned humiliation and sorrow)that his plea on the ground of natural temper should be admitted; anymore than that of a person who should urge his poverty as ajustification of his not relieving the wants of the necessitous, at thevery time that he should be launching out into expence withoutrestraint, on occasions in which he should be really prompted by hisinclinations. In both cases, "it is the _willing_ mind which isrequired. " Where that is found "every man will be judged according towhat he hath, and not according to what he hath not[30]. "

After the decisive proofs already adduced from the word of God, of theunreasonableness of the objection to the admission of the passions intoReligion, all farther arguments may appear superfluous to any one who isdisposed to bow to scriptural authority. Yet the point is of so muchimportance, and it is to be feared, so little regarded, that it may notbe amiss to continue the discussion. The best results of ourunderstanding will be shewn to fall in with what clearly appears to bethe authoritative language of revelation; and to call in the aid of theaffections to the service of Religion, will prove to be not only whatsober reason may permit, as in some sort allowable; but to be that whichshe clearly and strongly dictates to our deliberate judgments, as beingwhat the circumstances of our natural condition indispensably require. We have every one of us a work to accomplish, wherein our eternalinterests are at stake; a work to which we are naturally indisposed. Welive in a world abounding with objects which distract our attention anddivert our endeavours; and a deadly enemy is ever at hand to seduce andbeguile us. If we persevere indeed, success is certain; but our effortsmust know no remission. There is a call on us for vigorous and continualresolution, self-denial, and activity. Now, man is not a being of mereintellect. 

 Video meliora proboque, deteriora sequor, is a complaint which, alas! we all of us might daily utter. Theslightest solicitation of appetite is often able to draw us to act inopposition to our clearest judgment, our highest interests, and mostresolute determinations. Sickness, poverty, disgrace, and even eternalmisery itself, sometimes in vain solicit our regards; they are allexcluded from the view, and thrust as it were beyond the sphere ofvision, by some poor unsubstantial transient object, so minute andcontemptible as almost to escape the notice of the eye of reason. 

These observations are more strikingly confirmed in our religiousconcerns than in any other; because in them the interests at stake areof transcendant importance: but they hold equally in every instanceaccording to its measure, wherein there is a call for laborious, painful, and continued exertions, from which any one is likely to bedeterred by obstacles, or seduced by the solicitations of pleasure. Whatthen it to be done in the case of any such arduous and necessaryundertaking? The answer is obvious--You should endeavour not only toconvince the understanding, but also to affect the heart; and for thisend, you must secure the reinforcement of the passions. This is indeedthe course which would be naturally followed by every man of commonunderstanding, who should know that some one for whom he was deeplyinterested, a child, for instance, or a brother, were about to enter ona long, difficult, perilous, and critical adventure, wherein success wasto be honour and affluence; defeat was to be contempt and ruin. Andstill more, if the parent were convinced that his child possessedfaculties which, strenuously and unremittingly exerted, would proveequal to all the exigences of the enterprize, but knew him also to bevolatile and inconstant, and had reason to doubt his resolution and hisvigilance; how would the friendly monitor's endeavour be redoubled, soto possess his pupil's mind with the worth and dignity of theundertaking, that there should be no opening for the entrance of anyinferior consideration!--"Weigh well (he would say) the value of theobject for which you are about to contend, and contemplate and study itsvarious excellences, till your whole soul be on fire for itsacquisition. Consider too, that, if you fail, misery and infamy areunited in the alternative which awaits you. Let not the mistaken notionof its being a safe and easy service, for a moment beguile you into thediscontinuance or remission of your efforts. Be aware of your imminentdanger, and at the same time know your true security. It is a service oflabour and peril; but one wherein the powers which you possess, strenuously and perseveringly exerted, cannot but crown you withvictory. Accustom yourself to look first to the dreadful consequences offailure; then fix your eye on the glorious prize which is before you;and when your strength begins to fail, and your spirits are well nighexhausted, let the animating view rekindle your resolution, and callforth in renewed vigour the fainting energies of your soul. "

It was the remark of an unerring observer, "The children of this worldare wiser in their generation than the children of light. " And it isindisputably true, that in religion we have to argue and plead with menfor principles of action, the wisdom and expediency of which areuniversally acknowledged in matters of worldly concern. So it is in theinstance before us. The case which has been just described, is an exact, but a faint representation of our condition in this life. Frail and"infirm of purpose, " we have a business to execute of supreme andindispensable necessity. Solicitations to neglect it every where abound:the difficulties and dangers are numerous and urgent; and the night ofdeath cometh, how soon we know not, "when no man can work. " All this isgranted. It seems to be a state of things wherein one should look outwith solicitude for some powerful stimulants. Mere knowledge isconfessedly too weak. The affections alone remain to supply thedeficiency. They precisely meet the occasion, and suit the purposesintended. Yet, when we propose to fit ourselves for our greatundertaking, by calling them in to our help, we are to be told that weare acting contrary to reason. Is this reasonable, to strip us first ofour armour of proof, and then to send us to the sharpest of encounters?To summon us to the severest labours, but first to rob us of theprecious cordials which should brace our sinews and recruit ourstrength?

Let these pretended advocates for reason at length then confess theirfolly, and do justice to the superior wisdom as well as goodness of ourheavenly Instructor, who better understanding our true condition, andknowing our frowardness and inadvertency, has most reasonably as well askindly pointed out and enjoined on us the use of those aids which maycounteract our infirmities; who commanding the effect, has commandedalso the means whereby it may be accomplished. 

And now, if the use of the affections in religion, in _general_, be atlength shewn to be conformable to reason, it will not require many wordsto prove that our blessed Saviour is the proper object of them. We knowthat love, gratitude, joy, hope, trust, (the affections in question)have all their appropriate objects. Now it must be at once conceded, that if these appropriate objects be not exhibited, it is perfectlyunreasonable to expect that the correspondent passions should beexcited. If we ask for love, in the case of an object which has noexcellence or desirableness; for gratitude, where no obligation hasbeen conferred; for joy, where there is no just cause ofself-congratulation; for hope, where nothing is expected; for trust, where there exists no ground of reliance; then indeed, we must kiss therod, and patiently submit to correction. This would be indeed Egyptianbondage, to demand the effects without the means of producing them. Isthe case then so? Are we ready to adopt the language of the avowedenemies of our adorable Saviour; and again to say of him "in whomdwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, " that "he hath no formnor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that weshould desire him[31]?" Is it no obligation, that he who "thought it notrobbery to be equal with God, " should yet for our sakes "make himself ofno reputation, and take upon him the form of a servant, and be made inthe likeness of men; and humble himself, and become obedient unto death, even the death of the cross[32]?" Is it no cause of "_joy_, that to usis born a Saviour[33]", by whom we may "be delivered from the power ofdarkness; and be made meet to be partakers of the inheritance of thesaints in light[34]?" Can there be a "_hope_ comparable to that of ourcalling[35]"--"Which is Christ in us, the hope of glory[36]?" Can therebe a _trust_ to be preferred to the reliance on "Christ Jesus; who isthe same yesterday, to-day, and for ever[37]?" Surely, if our Opponentbe not dead to every generous emotion, he cannot look his own objectionin the face, without a blush of shame and indignation. 

SECTION III. 

_Consideration of the Reasonableness of Affections towards an invisibleBeing. _

But forced at last to retreat from his favourite position, and compelledto acknowledge that the religious affections towards our blessed Saviourare not unreasonable; he still however maintains the combat, suggestingthat by the very constitution of our nature, we are not susceptible ofthem towards an invisible Being; in whose case, it will be added, we areshut out from all those means of communication and intercourse, whichknit and cement the union between man and man. 

We mean not to deny that there is something in this objection. It mighteven seem to plead the authority of Scripture in its favour--"He thatloveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom hehath not seen[38]?" And it was indeed no new remark in Horace's days, Segnius irritant animos demissa per aures, Quam quæ sunt oculis subjecta fidelibus. 

We receive impressions more readily from visible objects, we feel themmore strongly, and retain them more durably. But though it must begranted that this circumstance makes it a more difficult task topreserve the affections in question in a healthful and vigorous state;is it thereby rendered impossible? This were indeed a most precipitateconclusion; and any one who should be disposed to admit the truth of it, might be at least induced to hesitate, when he should reflect that theargument applies equally against the possibility of the love of God, aduty of which the most cursory reader of Scripture, if he admit itsdivine authority, cannot but acknowledge the indispensable obligation. But we need only look back to the Scripture proofs which have beenlately adduced, to be convinced that the religious affections aretherein inculcated on us, as a matter of high and serious obligation. Hence we may be assured that the impossibility stated by our Opponentdoes not exist. 

Let us scrutinize this matter, however, a little more minutely, and weshall be compelled to acknowledge, though the conclusion may makeagainst ourselves, that the objection vanishes when we fairly andaccurately investigate the circumstances of the case. With this view, let us look a little into the nature of the affections of the humanmind, and endeavour to ascertain whence it is that they derive theirnutriment, and are found from experience to increase in strength. 

The state of man is such, that his feelings are not the obedientservants of his reason, prompt at once to follow its dictates, as totheir direction, and their measure. Excellence is the just object oflove; good in expectancy, of hope; evil to be apprehended, of fear; ourfellow creatures' misfortunes, and sufferings, constitute the justobjects of pity. Each of these passions, it might be thought, would beexcited, in proportion to what our reason should inform us were themagnitude and consequent claims of its corresponding object. But this isby no means the case. Take first for a proof the instance of pity. Weread of slaughtered thousands with less emotion, than we hear theparticulars of a shocking accident which has happened in the nextstreet; the distresses of a novel, which at the same time we know to befictitious, affect us more than the dry narrative of a battle. We becomeso much interested by these incidents of the imagination (aware all thewhile that they are merely such) that we cannot speedily banish themfrom our thoughts, nor recover the tone of our minds; and often, wescarcely bring ourselves to lay down our book at the call of realmisfortune, of which we go perhaps to the relief, on a principle ofduty, but with little sense of interest or emotion of tenderness. Itwere easy to shew that it is much the same in the case of the otheraffections. Whatever be the cause of this disproportion, which (asmetaphysics fall not within our province) we shall not stop to examine, the fact is undeniable. There appears naturally to be a certainstrangeness between the passion and its object, which familiarity andthe power of habit must gradually overcome. You must contrive to bringthem into _close contact_; they must be jointed and glued together bythe particularities of little incidents. Thus in the production of heatin the physical world, the flint and the steel produce not the effectwithout collision; the rudest Barbarian will tell us the necessity ofattrition, and the chemist of mixture. Now, an object, it is admitted, is brought into _closer contact_ with its corresponding passion, bybeing seen and conversed with. This we grant is one way; but does itfollow that there is no other? To assert this, would be something likemaintaining, in contradiction to universal experience, that objects ofvision alone are capable of attracting our regard. But nothing can bemore unfounded than such a supposition. It might appear to be toonearly approaching to the ludicrous, to suggest as an example to thecontrary, the metaphysician's attachment to his insubstantialspeculations, or the zeal displayed in the pursuit, Extra flammantia moenia mundi, of abstract sciences, where there is no idea of bringing them "withinthe visible diurnal sphere" to the vulgarity of practical application. The instance of the novel before-mentioned, proves, that we may beextremely affected by what we know to be merely ideal incidents andbeings. By much thinking or talking of any one; by using our minds todwell on his excellences; by placing him in imaginary situations whichinterest and affect us; we find ourselves becoming insensibly more andmore attached to him: whereas it is the surest expedient forextinguishing an attachment which already exists, to engage in suchoccupations or society, as may cause our casual thoughts and more fixedmeditations to be diverted from the object of it. Ask a mother who hasbeen long separated from her child, especially if he has been incircumstances of honour, or of danger, to draw her attention to him, andto keep it in wakefulness and exercise, and she will tell you, that sofar from becoming less dear, he appears to have grown more the object ofher affections. She seems to herself to love him even better than thechild who has been living under her roof, and has been daily in herview. How does she rejoice in his good fortune, and weep over hisdistresses! With what impatience does she anticipate the time of hisreturn!

We find therefore that sight and personal intercourse do not seemnecessary to the production or increase of attachment, where the meansof _close contact_ have been afforded; but on the other hand, if anobject have been prevented from coming into _close contact_, sight andpersonal intercourse are not sufficient to give it the power of excitingthe affections in proportion to its real magnitude. Suppose the case ofa person whom we have often seen, and may have occasionally conversedwith, and of whom we have been told in the general, that he possessesextraordinary merits. We assent to the assertion. But if we have noknowledge of particulars, no close acquaintance with him, nothing inshort which brings his merits home to us, they interest us less thanwhat we know to be a far inferior degree of the very same qualities inone of our common associates. A parent has several children, allconstantly under his eye, and equally dear to him. Yet if any one ofthem be taken ill, it is brought into so much _closer contact_ thanbefore, that it seems to absorb and engross the parent's wholeaffection. Thus then, though it will not be denied that an object bybeing visible may thereby excite its corresponding affection with morefacility; yet this is manifestly far from being the prime consideration. And so far are we from being the slaves of the sense of vision, that afamiliar acquaintance with the intrinsic excellences of an object, aided, it must be admitted, by the power of habit, will render us almostinsensible to the impressions which its outward form conveys, and ableentirely to lose the consciousness of an unsightly exterior. 

We may be permitted to remark, that the foregoing observations furnishan explanation, less discreditable than that which has been sometimesgiven, of an undoubted phænomenon in the human mind, that the greatestpublic misfortunes, however the understanding may lecture, are aptreally to affect our feelings less than the most trivial disaster whichhappens to ourselves. An eminent writer[39] scarcely overstated thepoint when he observed, "that it would occasion a man of humanity morereal disturbance to know that he was the next morning to lose his littlefinger, than to hear that the great empire of China had been suddenlyswallowed up by an earthquake. The thoughts of the former, would keephim awake all night; in the latter case, after making many melancholyreflections on the precariousness of human life, and the vanity of allthe labours of man which could be thus annihilated in a moment; after alittle speculation too perhaps on the causes of the disaster, and itseffects in the political and commercial world; he would pursue hisbusiness or his pleasure with the same ease and tranquillity as if nosuch accident had happened; and snore at night with the most profoundserenity over the ruin of a hundred million of his fellow creatures. Selfishness is not the cause of this, for the most unfeeling brute onearth would surely think nothing of the loss of a finger, if he couldthereby prevent so dreadful a calamity. " This doctrine of _contact_which has been opened above, affords a satisfactory solution; and fromall which has been said (the writer has reason perhaps to apologize forthe length of the discussion) the circumstances, by which the affectionsof the mind towards any particular object are generated andstrengthened, may be easily collected. The chief of these appear to be, whatever tends to give a distinct and lively impression of the object, by setting before us its minute parts, and by often drawing towards itthe thoughts and affections, so as to invest it by degrees with aconfirmed ascendency: whatever tends to excite and to keep in exercise alively interest in its behalf: in other words; full knowledge, distinctand frequent mental entertainment, and pathetic contemplations. Supposing these means to have been used in any given degree, it may beexpected, that they will be more or less efficacious, in proportion asthe intrinsic qualities of the object afford greater or less scope fortheir operation, and more or fewer materials with which to work. Can itthen be conceived, that they will be of no avail when steadily practisedin the case of our Redeemer! If the principles of love, and gratitude, and joy, and hope, and trust, are not utterly extinct within us, theycannot but be called forth by the various corresponding objects whichthat blessed contemplation would gradually bring forth to our view. Wellmight the language of the apostle be addressed to Christians, "Whomhaving _not seen_ ye love; in whom, though now ye _see him not_, yetbelieving, ye _rejoice_ with joy unspeakable, and full of glory[40]. "

BUT fresh considerations pour in to render in this instance, the plea ofits being impossible to love an invisible being, still more invalid. Ourblessed Saviour, if we may be permitted so to say, is not removed farfrom us; and the various relations in which we stand towards him, seempurposely made known to us, in order to furnish so many different bondsof connection with him, and consequent occasions of continualintercourse. He exhibits not himself to us "dark with excessivebrightness, " but is let down as it were to the possibilities of humanconverse. We may not think that he is incapable of entering into ourlittle concerns, and sympathizing with them; for we are graciouslyassured that he is not one "who cannot be touched with the feeling ofour infirmities, having been in all points tempted like as we are[41]. "The figures under which he is represented, are such as convey ideas ofthe utmost tenderness. "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; heshall gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, andshall gently lead those that are with young[42]. "--"They shall nothunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them; for hethat hath mercy on them, shall lead them, even by the springs of watershall he guide them[43]. " "I will not leave you orphans[44]" was one ofhis last consolatory declarations[45]. The children of Christ are hereseparated indeed from the personal view of him; but not from hispaternal affection and paternal care. Meanwhile let them quicken theirregards by the animating anticipation of that blessed day, when he "whois gone to prepare a place for them, will come again to receive themunto himself. " Then shall they be admitted to his more immediatepresence: "Now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face:now I know in part; but then shall I know, even as I am known[46]. "

Surely more than enough has been now said to prove that this particularcase, from its very nature, furnishes the most abundant and powerfulconsiderations and means for exciting the feelings; and it might becontended, without fear of refutation, that by the diligent and habitualuse of those considerations and means, we might with confidentexpectation of success, engage in the work of raising our affectionstowards our blessed Saviour to a state of due force and activity. But, blessed be God, we have a still better reliance; for the grandcircumstance of all yet remains behind, which the writer has been led todefer, from his wish to contend with his opponents on their own ground. This circumstance is, that here, no less than in other particulars, theChristian's hope is founded, not on the speculations or the strength ofman, but on the declaration of Him who cannot lie, on the power ofOmnipotence. 

We learn from the Scriptures that it is one main part of the operationsof the Holy Spirit, to implant these heavenly principles in the humanmind, and to cherish their growth. We are encouraged to believe that inanswer to our prayers, this aid from above will give efficacy to ourearnest endeavours, if used in humble dependence on divine grace. We maytherefore with confidence take the means which have been suggested. Butlet us, in our turn, be permitted to ask our opponents, have _they_humbly and perseveringly applied for this divine strength? ordisclaiming that assistance, perhaps as tempting them to indolence, have they been so much the more strenuous and unwearied in the use oftheir own unaided endeavours? or rather have they not been equallynegligent of both? Renouncing the one, they have wholly omitted theother. But this is far from being all. They even reverse all the methodswhich we have recommended as being calculated to increase regard; andexactly follow that course which would be pursued by any one who shouldwish to reduce an excessive affection. Yet thus leaving untried all themeans, which, whether from Reason or Scripture, we maintain to benecessary to the production of the end, nay using such as are of adirectly opposite nature, these men presume to talk to us ofimpossibilities! We may rather contend that they furnish a fresh proofof the soundness of our reasonings. We lay it down as a fundamentalposition, that speculative knowledge alone, that mere superficialcursory considerations, will be of no avail. Nothing is to be donewithout the diligent continued use of the appointed method. Theythemselves afford an instance of the truth of our assertions; and whilethey supply no argument against the efficacy of the mode prescribed, they acknowledge at least that they are wholly ignorant of any other. 

BUT let us now turn our eyes to Christians of a higher order, to thosewho have actually proved the truth of our reasonings; who have not onlyassumed the name, but who have possessed the substance, and felt thepower of Christianity; who though often foiled by their remainingcorruptions, and shamed and cast down under a sense of their manyimperfections, have known in their better seasons, what it was toexperience its firm hope, its dignified joy, its unshaken trust, itsmore than human consolations. In their hearts, love also towards theirRedeemer has glowed; a love not _superficial_ and unmeaning (think notthat this would be the subject of our praise) but constant and rational, resulting from a strong impression of the worth of its object, andheightened by an abiding sense of great, unmerited, and continuallyaccumulating obligations; ever manifesting itself in acts of diligentobedience, or of patient suffering. Such was the religion of the holymartyrs of the sixteenth century, the illustrious ornaments of theEnglish church. They realized the theory which we have now been faintlytracing. Look to their writings, and you will find that their thoughtsand affections had been much exercised in habitual views of the blessedJesus. Thus they used the required _means_. What were the _effects_?Persecution and distress, degradation and contempt in vain assailedthem--all these evils served but to bring their affections into _closercontact_ with their object; and not only did their love feel nodiminution or abatement, but it rose to all the exigencies of theoccasion, and burned with an increase of ardor; and when brought forthat last to a cruel and ignominious death, they repined not at theirfate; but rather rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer forthe name of Christ. By the blessing of God the writer might refer tostill more recent times. But lest his authorities should be disputed, let us go to the Apostles of our Lord; and while, on a very cursoryperusal of their writings, we must acknowledge that they commend andeven prescribe to us the love of Christ, as one of the chief of theChristian graces; so on a more attentive inspection of those writings, we shall discover abundant proofs that they were themselves brightexamples of their own precept; that our blessed Saviour was really theobject of their warmest affection, and what he had done and suffered forthem the continual matter of their grateful remembrance. 

The disposition so prevalent in the bulk of nominal Christians, to forma religious system for themselves, instead of taking it from the word ofGod, is strikingly observable in their scarcely admitting, except in themost vague and general sense, the doctrine of the influence of the HolySpirit. If we look into the Scriptures for information on thisparticular, we learn a very different lesson. We are in them distinctlytaught, that "of ourselves we can do nothing;" that "we are by naturechildren of wrath, " and under the power of the evil spirit, ourunderstandings being naturally dark, and our hearts averse fromspiritual things; and we are directed to pray for the influence of theHoly Spirit to enlighten our understandings, to dissipate ourprejudices, to purify our corrupt minds, and to renew us after the imageof our heavenly Father. It is this influence which is represented asoriginally awakening us from slumber, as enlightening us in darkness, as"quickening us when dead[47], " as "delivering us from the power of thedevil, " as drawing us to God, as "translating us into the kingdom of hisdear Son[48], " as "creating us anew in Christ Jesus[49], " as "dwellingin us, and walking in us[50];" so that "putting off the old man with hisdeeds, " we are to consider ourselves as "having put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that createdhim[51]"; and as those who are to be "an habitation of God through theSpirit[52]. " It is by this Divine assistance only that we can grow inGrace, and improve in all Holiness. So expressly, particularly, andrepeatedly does the word of God inculcate these lessons, that one wouldthink there were scarcely room for any difference of opinion among thosewho admit its authority. Sometimes[53] the whole of a Christian'srepentance and faith, and consequent holiness, are ascribed _generally_to the Divine influence; sometimes these are spoken of separately, andascribed to the same Almighty power. Sometimes different particulargraces of the Christian character, those which respect our duties andtempers towards our fellow-creatures, no less than those which havereference to the Supreme Being, are particularly traced to this source. Sometimes they are all referred collectively to this common root, beingcomprehended under the compendious denomination of "the Fruits of theSpirit. " In exact correspondence with these representations, this aidfrom above is promised in other parts of Scripture for the production ofthose effects; and the withholding or withdrawing of it is occasionallythreatened as a punishment for the sins of men, and as one of the mostfatal consequences of the Divine displeasure. 

The Liturgy of the church of England strictly agrees with therepresentation, which has been here given of the instructions of theword of God. 

SECT. IV. 

_Inadequate conceptions entertained by nominal Christians of the termsof acceptance with God. _

If then it be indeed as so has been now stated; that, in contradictionto the plainest dictates of Scripture, and to the ritual of ourestablished Church, the sanctifying operations of the Holy Spirit, thefirst fruits of our reconciliation to God, the purchase of ourRedeemer's death, and his best gift to his true disciples, are toogenerally undervalued and slighted; if it be also true, as was formerlyproved, that our thoughts of the blessed Saviour are confused and faint, our affections towards him languid and lukewarm, little proportioned towhat they, who at such a price have been rescued from ruin, and endowedwith a title to eternal glory, might be justly expected to feel towardsthe Author of their deliverance; little proportioned to what has beenfelt by others, ransomed from the same ruin, and partakers of the sameinheritance: if this, let it be repeated, be indeed so, let us not shutour eyes against the perception of our real state; but rather endeavourto trace the evil to its source. We are loudly called on to _examinewell our foundations_. If any thing be _there_ unsound and hollow, thesuperstructure could not be safe, though its exterior were lesssuspicious. Let the question then be asked, and let the answer bereturned with all the consideration and solemnity which a question soimportant may justly demand, whether, in the grand concern of all, _themeans of a sinner's acceptance with God_, there be not reason toapprehend, that the nominal Christians whom we have been addressing, toogenerally entertain very superficial, and confused, and (to speak in thesoftest terms) highly dangerous notions? Is there not cause to fear, that with little more than an indistinct and nominal reference to Himwho "bore our sins in his own body on the tree, " they really rest theireternal hopes on a vague, general persuasion of the unqualified mercy ofthe Supreme Being; or that, still more erroneously, they rely in themain, on their own negative or positive merits? "They can look upontheir lives with an impartial eye, and congratulate themselves on theirinoffensiveness in society; on their having been exempt, at least, fromany gross vice, or if sometimes accidentally betrayed into it, on itsnever having been indulged habitually; or if not even so" (for there arebut few who can say this, if the term vice be explained according to thestrict requisitions of the Gospel) "yet on the balance being in theirfavour, or on the whole, not much against them, when their good and badactions are fairly weighed, and due allowance is made for humanfrailty. " These considerations are sufficient for the most part tocompose their apprehensions; these are the cordials which they find mostat hand in the moments of serious thought, or of occasional dejection;and sometimes perhaps in seasons of less than ordinary self-complacency, they call in also to their aid the general persuasion of the unboundedmercy and pity of God. Yet persons of this description by no meansdisclaim a Saviour, or avowedly relinquish their title to a share in thebenefits of his death. They close their petitions with the name ofChrist; but if not chiefly from the effect of habit, or out of decentconformity to the established faith, yet surely with something of thesame ambiguity of principle which influenced the expiring philosopher, when he ordered the customary mark of homage to be paid to the god ofmedicine. 

Others go farther than this; for there are many shades of differencebetween those who flatly renounce, and those who cordially embrace thedoctrine of Redemption by Christ. This class has a sort of general, indeterminate, and ill understood dependence on our blessed Saviour. Buttheir hopes, so far as they can be distinctly made out (for their viewsalso are very obscure) appear ultimately to bottom on the persuasionthat they are now, through Christ, become members of a new dispensation, wherein they will be tried by a more lenient rule than that to whichthey must have been otherwise subject. "God will not now be extreme tomark what is done amiss; but will dispense with the rigorous exactionsof his law, too strict indeed for such frail creatures as we are to hopethat we can fulfil it. Christianity has moderated the requisitions ofDivine Justice; and all which is now required of us, is thankfully totrust to the merits of Christ for the pardon of our sins, and theacceptance of our sincere though imperfect obedience. The frailties andinfirmities to which our nature is liable, or to which our situation inlife exposes us, will not be severely judged: and as it is practice thatreally determines the character, we may rest satisfied, that if on thewhole our lives be tolerably good, we shall escape with little or nopunishment, and through Jesus Christ our Lord, shall be finallypartakers of heavenly felicity. "

We cannot dive into the human heart, and therefore should always speakwith caution and diffidence, when from external appearances ordeclarations we are affirming the existence of any internal principlesand feelings; especially as we are liable to be misled by theambiguities of language, or by the inaccuracy with which others mayexpress themselves. But it is sometimes not difficult to any one who isaccustomed, if the phrase may be allowed, to the anatomy of the humanmind, to discern, that generally speaking, the persons who use the abovelanguage, rely not so much on the merits of Christ, and on the agency ofDivine Grace, as on their own power of fulfilling the moderatedrequisitions of Divine Justice. He will hence therefore discover in thema disposition rather to extenuate the malignity of their disease, thanto magnify the excellence of the proffered remedy. He will find them aptto palliate in themselves what they cannot fully justify, to enhance themerit of what they believe to be their good qualities and commendableactions, to set as it were in an account the good against the bad; andif the result be not very unfavourable, they conceive that they shall beentitled to claim the benefits of our Saviour's sufferings as a thing ofcourse. They have little idea, so little, that it might almost beaffirmed that they have no idea at all, of the importance or difficultyof the duty of what the Scripture calls "submitting ourselves to therighteousness of God;" or of our proneness rather to justify ourselvesin his sight, than in the language of imploring penitents to acknowledgeourselves guilty and helpless sinners. They have never summonedthemselves to this entire and unqualified renunciation of their ownmerits, and their own strength; and therefore they remain strangers tothe natural loftiness of the human heart, which such a call would haveawakened into action, and roused to resistance. ALL THESE THEIR SEVERALERRORS NATURALLY RESULT FROM THE MISTAKEN CONCEPTION ENTERTAINED OF THEFUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIANITY. They consider not thatChristianity is a scheme for "justifying _the ungodly_[54], " by Christ'sdying for them "_when yet sinners_[55][56];" a scheme "for reconcilingus to God--_when enemies_;" and for making the fruits of holiness _theeffects[57], not the cause_, of our being justified and reconciled:that, in short, it opens freely the door of mercy, to the greatest andvilest of penitent sinners; that obeying the blessed impulse of thegrace of God, whereby they had been awakened from the sleep of death, and moved to seek for pardon, they might enter in, and through theregenerating influence of the Holy Spirit might be enabled to bringforth the fruits of Righteousness. But they rather conceive ofChristianity as opening the door of mercy, that those who on the groundof their own merits could not have hoped to justify themselves beforeGod, may yet be admitted for Christ's sake, on condition of their havingpreviously satisfied the moderated requisitions of Divine Justice. Inspeaking to others also of the Gospel scheme, they are apt to talk toomuch of terms and performances on our part, on which we become entitledto an interest in the sufferings of Christ; instead of stating thebenefits of Christ's satisfaction as extended to us freely, "withoutmoney and without price. "

THE _practical_ consequences of these errors are such as might beexpected. They tend to prevent that sense which we ought to entertain ofour own natural misery and helplessness; and that deep feeling ofgratitude for the merits and intercession of Christ, to which we arewholly indebted for our reconciliation to God, and for the will and thepower, from first to last, to work out our own salvation. They considerit too much in the light of a contract between two parties, whereineach, independently of the other, has his own distinct condition toperform; man--to do his duty; God--to justify and accept for Christ'ssake: If they fail not in the discharge of their condition, assuredlythe condition on God's part will be faithfully fulfilled. Accordingly, we find in fact, that they who represent the Gospel scheme in the mannerabove described, give evidence of the subject with which their heartsare most filled, by their proneness to run into merely moraldisquisitions, either not mentioning at all, or at least but cursorilytouching on the sufferings and love of their Redeemer; and are littleapt to kindle at their Saviour's name, and like the apostles to bebetrayed by their fervor into what may be almost an untimely descant onthe riches of his unutterable mercy. In addressing others also whom theyconceive to be living in habits of sin, and under the wrath of God, theyrather advise them to amend their ways as a preparation for their comingto Christ, than exhort them to throw themselves with deep prostration ofsoul at the foot of the cross, there to obtain pardon and find grace tohelp in time of need. 

The great importance of the subject in question will justify our havingbeen thus particular. It has arisen from a wish that on a question ofsuch magnitude, to mistake our meaning should be impossible. But afterall which has been said, let it also be remembered, that except so faras the instruction of others is concerned, the point of importance is, the internal disposition of the mind; _where_ the dependence for pardon, and for holiness, is really placed; not what the language is, in whichmen express themselves. And it is to be hoped that he who searches theheart, sees the right dispositions in many who use the mistaken anddangerous language to which we have objected. 

If this so generally prevailing error concerning the nature of theGospel offer be in any considerable degree just; it will then explainthat so generally prevailing languor in the affections towards ourblessed Saviour which was formerly remarked, and that inadequateimpression of the necessity and value of the assistance of the divineSpirit. According to the soundest principles of reasoning, it may bealso adduced as an additional proof of the correctness of our presentstatement, that it so exactly falls in with those phænomena, and sonaturally accounts for them. For even admitting that the persons abovementioned, particularly the last class, do at the bottom rely on theatonement of Christ; yet on their scheme, it must necessarily happen, that the object to which they are most accustomed to look, with whichtheir thoughts are chiefly conversant, from which they most habituallyderive complacency, is rather their own qualified merit and services, though confessed to be inadequate, than the sufferings and atoning deathof a crucified Saviour. The affections towards our blessed Lordtherefore (according to the theory of the passions formerly laid down)cannot be expected to flourish, because they receive not that which wasshewn to be necessary to their nutriment and growth. If we would lovehim as affectionately, and rejoice in him as triumphantly as the firstChristians did; we must learn like them to repose our entire trust inhim, and to adopt the language of the apostle, "God forbid that I shouldglory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ[58]"--"Who of God ismade unto us wisdom and righteousness, and sanctification, andredemption[59]. "

Doubtless there have been too many who, to their eternal ruin, haveabused the doctrine of Salvation by Grace; and have vainly trusted inChrist for pardon and acceptance, when by their vicious lives they haveplainly proved the groundlessness of their pretensions. The tree is tobe known by its fruits; and there is too much reason to fear that thereis no principle of faith, when it does not decidedly evince itself bythe fruits of holiness. Dreadful indeed will be the doom, above that ofall others, of those loose professors of Christianity, to whom at thelast day our blessed Saviour will address those words, "I never knewyou; depart from me, all ye that work iniquity. " But the danger of erroron this side ought not to render us insensible to the opposite error; anerror against which in these days it seems particularly necessary toguard. It is far from the intention of the writer of this work to enterinto the niceties of controversy. But surely without danger of beingthought to violate this design, he may be permitted to contend, thatthey who in the main believe the doctrines of the church of England, arebound to allow that our dependence on our blessed Saviour, as alone themeritorious cause of our acceptance with God, and as the means of allits blessed fruits and glorious consequences, must be not merely formaland nominal, but real and substantial: not vague, qualified, andpartial, but direct, cordial, and entire. "Repentance towards God, andfaith towards our Lord Jesus Christ, " was the sum of the apostolicalinstructions. It is not an occasional invocation of the name, or atransient recognition of the authority of Christ, that fills up themeasure of the terms, _believing in Jesus_. This we shall find no sucheasy task; and if we trust that we do believe, we should all perhaps dowell to cry out in the words of an imploring suppliant (he supplicatednot in vain) "Lord help thou our unbelief. " We must be deeply consciousof our guilt and misery, heartily repenting of our sins, and firmlyresolving to forsake them: and thus penitently "fleeing for refuge tothe hope set before us, " we must found altogether on the merit of thecrucified Redeemer our hopes of escape from their deserved punishment, and of deliverance from their enslaving power. This must be our first, our last, our only plea. We are to surrender ourselves up to him to "bewashed in his blood[60], " to be sanctified by his Spirit, resolving toreceive him for our Lord and Master, to learn in his school, to obey allhis commandments. 

It may perhaps be not unnecessary, after having treated so largely onthis important topic, to add a few words in order to obviate a chargewhich may be urged against us, that we are insisting on nice andabstruse distinctions in what is a matter of general concern; and thistoo in a system, which on its original promulgation was declared to bepeculiarly intended for the simple and poor. It will be abundantlyevident however on a little reflection, and experience fully proves theposition, that what has been required is not the perception of a subtiledistinction, but a state and condition of heart. To the former, the poorand the ignorant must be indeed confessed unequal; but they are far lessindisposed than the great and the learned, to bow down to that"preaching of the cross which is to them that perish foolishness, butunto them that are saved the power of God, and the wisdom of God. " Thepoor are not liable to be puffed up by the intoxicating fumes ofambition and worldly grandeur. They are less likely to be kept fromentering into the strait and narrow way, and when they have entered tobe drawn back again or to be retarded in their progress, by the cares orthe pleasures of life. They may express themselves ill; but their viewsmay be simple, and their hearts humble, penitent, and sincere. It is asin other cases; the vulgar are the subjects of phænomena, the learnedexplain them: the former know nothing of the theory of vision or ofsentiment; but this ignorance hinders not that they see and think, andthough unable to discourse elaborately on the passions, they can feelwarmly for their children, their friends, their country. 

After this digression, if that be indeed a digression which by removinga formidable objection renders the truth of the positions we wish toestablish more clear and less questionable, we may now resume the threadof our argument. Still intreating therefore the attention of those, whohave not been used to think much of the necessity of this undivided, and, if it may be so termed, unadulterated reliance, for which we havebeen contending; we would still more particularly address ourselves toothers who are disposed to believe that though, in some obscure andvague sense, the death of Christ as the satisfaction for our sins, andfor the purchase of our future happiness, and the sanctifying influenceof the Holy Spirit, are to be admitted as fundamental articles of ourcreed, yet that these are doctrines so much above us, that they are notobjects suited to our capacities; and that, turning our eyes thereforefrom these difficult speculations, we should fix them on the practicaland moral precepts of the Gospel. "These it most concerns us to know;these therefore let us study. Such is the frailty of our nature, suchthe strength and number of our temptations to evil, that in reducing theGospel morality to practice we shall find full employment: and byattending to these moral precepts, rather than to those high mysteriousdoctrines which you are pressing on us, we shall best prepare to appearbefore God on that tremendous day, when 'He shall judge every manaccording to his WORKS. '"

 "Vain wisdom all, and false philosophy!"

It will at once destroy this flimsy web, to reply in the words of ourblessed Saviour, and of his beloved Disciple--"This is the _work_ ofGod, that ye _believe_ in him whom he hath sent[61]. " "This is his_commandment_, that we should _believe_ on the name of his Son JesusChrist[62]. " In truth, if we consider but for a moment the opinions(they scarcely deserve the name of system) of men who argue thus, wemust be conscious of their absurdity. This may be not inconsistently thelanguage of the modern Unitarian; but surely it is in the highest degreeunreasonable to admit into our scheme all the grand peculiarities ofChristianity, and having admitted, to neglect and think no more of them!"Wherefore" (might the Socinian say) "Wherefore all this costly andcomplicated machinery? It is like the Tychonic astronomy, encumbered andself-convicted by its own complicated relations and uselessperplexities. It is so little like the simplicity of nature, it is sounworthy of the divine hand, that it even offends against those rules ofpropriety which we require to be observed in the imperfect compositionsof the human intellect[63]. "

Well may the Socinian assume this lofty tone, with those whom we are nowaddressing. If these be indeed the doctrines of Revelation, common sensesuggests to us that from their nature and their magnitude, they deserveour most serious regard. It is the very theology of Epicurus to allowthe existence of these "heavenly things, " but to deny their connectionwith human concerns, and their influence on human actions. Besides theunreasonableness of this conduct, we might strongly urge also in thisconnection the prophaneness of thus treating as matters of subordinateconsideration those parts of the system of Christianity, which are sostrongly impressed on our reverence by the dignity of the person to whomthey relate. This very argument is indeed repeatedly and pointedlypressed by the sacred writers[64]. 

Nor is the prophane irreverence of this conduct more striking than itsingratitude. When from reading that our Saviour was "the brightness ofhis Father's glory, and the express image of his person, upholding allthings by the word of his power, " we go on to consider the purpose forwhich he came on earth, and all that he did and suffered for us; surelyif we have a spark of ingenuousness left within us, we shall condemnourselves as guilty of the blackest ingratitude, in rarely noticing, orcoldly turning away, on whatever shallow pretences, from thecontemplation of these miracles of mercy. For those baser minds howeveron which fear alone can operate, that motive is superadded: and we areplainly forewarned, both directly and indirectly, by the example of theJewish nation, that God will not hold them guiltless who are thusunmindful of his most signal acts of condescension and kindness. But asthis is a question of pure Revelation, reasonings from probability maynot be deemed decisive. To Revelation therefore we must appeal; and asit might be to trespass on the reader's patience fully to discuss thismost important subject, we must refer him to the sacred Writingsthemselves for complete satisfaction. We would earnestly recommend it tohim to weigh with the utmost seriousness those passages of Scripturewherein the peculiar doctrines of Christianity are expressly mentioned;and farther, to attend with due regard to the illustration andconfirmation, which the conclusions resulting from those passagesreceive incidentally from the word of God. They who maintain the opinionwhich we are combating, will hereby become convinced that their's isindeed an _unscriptural_ Religion; and will learn instead of turning offtheir eyes from the grand peculiarities of Christianity, to keep theseever in view, as the pregnant principles whence all the rest must derivetheir origin, and receive their best support[65]. 

Let us then each for himself solemnly ask ourselves, whether _we_ havefled for refuge to the appointed hope? And whether we are habituallylooking to it, as to the only source of consolation? "Other foundationcan no man lay:" there is no other ground of dependence, no other pleafor pardon; but _here_ there _is_ hope, even to the uttermost. Let uslabour then to affect our hearts with a deep conviction of our need of aRedeemer, and of the value of his offered mediation. Let us fall downhumbly before the throne of God, imploring pity and pardon in the nameof the Son of his love. Let us beseech him to give us a true spirit ofrepentance, and of hearty undivided faith in the Lord Jesus. Let us notbe satisfied till the cordiality of our belief be confirmed to us bythat character of the Apostle, "that to as many as believe Christ isprecious;" and let us strive to increase daily in _love_ towards ourblessed Saviour; and pray earnestly that "we may be filled with _Joy_and _Peace_ in believing, that we may abound in _Hope_ through the powerof the Holy Ghost. " Let us diligently put in practice the directionsformerly given for cherishing and cultivating the principle of the Loveof Christ. With this view let us labour assiduously to increase inknowledge, that ours may be a deeply rooted and rational affection. Byfrequent meditation on the incidents of our Saviour's life, and stillmore on the astonishing circumstances of his death; by often calling tomind the state from which he proposes to rescue us, and the glories ofhis heavenly kingdom; by continual intercourse with him of prayer andpraise, of dependence and confidence in dangers, of hope and joy in ourbrighter hours, let us endeavour to keep him constantly present to ourminds, and to render all our conceptions of him more distinct, lively, and intelligent. The title of Christian is a reproach to us, if weestrange ourselves from Him after whom we are denominated. The name ofJesus is not to be to _us_ like the Allah of the Mahometans, a talismanor an amulet to be worn on the arm, as an external badge merely andsymbol of our profession, and to preserve us from evil by somemysterious and unintelligible potency; but it is to be engraven deeplyon the heart, there written by the finger of God himself in everlastingcharacters. It is our title known and understood to present peace andfuture glory. The assurance which it conveys of a bright reversion, willlighten the burthens, and alleviate the sorrows of life; and in somehappier moments, it will impart to us somewhat of that fulness of joywhich is at God's right hand, enabling us to join even here in theheavenly Hosannah, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, andblessing[66]. " "Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto himthat sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever[67]. "

CHAPTER IV. 

_On the prevailing inadequate Conceptions concerning the Nature and theStrictness of_ PRACTICAL _Christianity. _

SECT. I. 

One part of this title may perhaps on the first view excite somesurprise in any one, who may have drawn a hasty inference from thecharges conveyed by the two preceding chapters. Such an one might bedisposed to expect, that they who have very low conceptions of thecorruption of human nature, would be proportionably less indulgent tohuman frailty; and that they who lay little stress on Christ'ssatisfaction for sin, or on the operations of the Holy Spirit, would bemore high and rigid in their demands of diligent endeavours afteruniversal holiness; since their scheme implies that we must dependchiefly on our own exertions and performances for our acceptance withGod. 

But any such expectations as these would be greatly disappointed. Thereis in fact a region of truth, and a region of errors. They who hold thefundamental doctrines of Scripture in their due force, hold also in itsdue degree of purity the practical system which Scripture inculcates. But they who explain away the former, soften down the latter also, andreduce it to the level of their own defective scheme. It is not from anyconfidence in the superior amount of their own performances, or in thegreater vigour of their own exertions, that they reconcile themselves totheir low views of the satisfaction of Christ, and of the influence ofthe Spirit; but it should rather seem their plan so to depress therequired standard of practice, that no man need fall short of it, thatno superior aid can be wanted for enabling us to attain to it. Ithappens however with respect to their simple method of morality, as inthe case of the short ways to knowledge, of which some vain pretendershave vaunted themselves to be possessed: despising the beaten track inwhich more sober and humble spirits have been content to tread, theyhave indignantly struck into new and untried paths; but these havefailed of conducting them to the right object, and have issued only inignorance and conceit. 

It seems in our days to be the commonly received opinion, that provideda man admit in general terms the truth of Christianity, though he knownot or consider not much concerning the particulars of the system; andif he be not habitually guilty of any of the grosser vices against hisfellow creatures, we have no great reason to be dissatisfied with him, or to question the validity of his claim to the name and consequentprivileges of a Christian. The title implies no more than a sort offormal, general assent to Christianity in the gross, and a degree ofmorality in practice, but little if at all superior to that for which welook in a good Deist, Mussulman, or Hindoo. 

If any one be disposed to deny that this is a fair representation of thereligion of the bulk of the Christian world, he might be asked, whetherif it were proved to them beyond dispute that Christianity is a mereforgery, would this occasion any great change in their conduct or habitsof mind? Would any alteration be made in consequence of this discovery, except in a few of their speculative opinions, which, when distinct frompractice, it is a part of their own system, as has been before remarked, to think of little consequence, and in their attendance on publicworship, which however (knowing the good effects of religion upon thelower orders of the people) they might still think it better to attendoccasionally for example's sake? Would not their regard for theircharacter, their health, their domestic and social comforts, stillcontinue to restrain them from vicious excesses, and to prompt them topersist in the discharge, according to their present measure, of thevarious duties of their stations? Would they find themselvesdispossessed of what had been to them hitherto the repository of counseland instruction, the rule of their conduct, their habitual source ofpeace, and hope, and consolation?

It were needless to put these questions. They are answered in factalready by the lives of many known unbelievers, between whom and theseprofessed Christians, even the familiar associates of both, though menof discernment and observation, would discover little difference eitherin conduct or temper of mind. How little then does Christianity deservethat title to novelty and superiority which has been almost universallyadmitted; that pre-eminence, as a practical code, over all other systemsof ethics! How unmerited are the praises which have been lavished uponit by its friends; praises, in which even its enemies (not in generaldisposed to make concessions in its favour) have so often been unwarilydrawn in to acquiesce!

Was it then for this, that the Son of God condescended to become ourinstructor and our pattern, leaving us an example that we might tread inhis steps? Was it for this that the apostles of Christ voluntarilysubmitted to hunger and nakedness and pain, and ignominy and death, whenforewarned too by their Master that such would be their treatment? That, after all, their disciples should attain to no higher a strain of virtuethan those who rejecting their Divine authority, should still adhere tothe old philosophy?

But it may perhaps be objected that we are forgetting an observationwhich we ourselves have made, that Christianity has raised the generalstandard of morals; to which therefore Infidelity herself now finds itprudent to conform, availing herself of the pure morality ofChristianity, and sometimes wishing to usurp to herself the credit ofit, while she stigmatizes the authors with the epithets of ignorantdupes or designing impostors!

But let it then be asked, are the motives of Christianity so littlenecessary to the practice of it, its principles to its conclusions, thatthe one may be spared and yet the other remain in undiminished force?Still then, its _Doctrines_ are no more than a barren and inapplicableor at least an unnecessary theory, the place of which, it may perhaps beadded, would be well supplied by a more simple and less costly scheme. 

But can it be? Is Christianity then reduced to a mere creed? Is itspractical influence bounded within a few external plausibilities? Doesits essence consist only in a few speculative opinions, and a fewuseless and unprofitable tenets? And can this be the ground of thatportentous distinction, which is so unequivocally made by the Evangelistbetween those who accept, and those who reject the Gospel: "He thatbelieveth on the Son, hath everlasting life: and he that believeth notthe Son, shall not see life: but the wrath of God abideth on him?" Thiswere to run into the very error which the bulk of professed Christianswould be most forward to condemn, of making an unproductive faith therule of God's future judgment, and the ground of an eternal separation. Thus not unlike the rival circumnavigators from Spain and Portugal, whosetting out in contrary directions, found themselves in company at thevery time they thought themselves farthest from each other; so the bulkof professed Christians arrive, though by a different course, almost atthe very same point, and occupy nearly the same station as a set ofenthusiasts, who also rest upon a barren faith, to whom on the firstview they might be thought the most nearly opposite, and whose tenetsthey with reason profess to hold in peculiar detestation. By whatpernicious courtesy of language is it, that this wretched system hasbeen flattered with the name of Christianity. 

The morality of the Gospel is not so slight a fabric. Christianitythroughout the whole extent exhibits proofs of its Divine original, andits practical precepts are no less pure than its doctrines are sublime. Can the compass of language furnish injunctions stricter in theirmeasure or larger in their comprehension, than those with which the wordof God abounds; "_Whatsoever_ ye do in _word_ or _deed_, do _all_ in thename of the Lord Jesus;"--"Be _ye_ holy, _for God is holy_:"--"Be ye_perfect_ as your Father which is in Heaven is _perfect_?" We arecommanded to _perfect_ holiness, to go on unto _perfection_. 

Such are the Scripture admonitions; and surely they to whom suchadmonitions are addressed, may not safely acquiesce in low attainments:a conclusion to which also we are led by the force of the expressions bywhich Christians are characterized in Scripture, and by the radical andthorough change, which is represented as taking place in any man on hisbecoming a real Christian. "Every one, " it is said, "that hath thishope, purifieth himself even as God is pure:" true Christians are saidto be "partakers of the Divine nature;"--"to be created anew in theimage of God;"--"to be temples of the Holy Ghost;" the effects of whichmust appear "in _all_ goodness and righteousness and truth. "

Great as was the progress which the apostle Paul had made in all virtue, he declares of himself that _he_ still presses forward, "forgetting thethings which are behind, and reaching forth unto the things which arebefore. " He prays for his beloved disciples, "that they may be _filled_with _all_ the fulness of God;" that they may be _filled_ "with thefruits of righteousness:" "that they might walk worthy of the Lord unto_all_ pleasing, being fruitful in _every_ good work. " Nor is it a lesspregnant and comprehensive petition, which, from our blessed Saviour'sinserting it in that form of prayer which he has given as a model forour imitation, we may infer ought to be the habitual sentiment of ourhearts; "Thy will be done in Earth _as it is in Heaven_. "

These few extracts from the word of God will serve abundantly tovindicate the _strictness_ of the Christian morality: but this pointwill however be still more fully established, when we proceed toinvestigate the _nature_, _essence_, and _governing principles_ of theChristian character. 

It is the grand essential practical characteristic of true Christians, that relying on the promises to repenting sinners of acceptance throughthe Redeemer, they have renounced and abjured all other masters, andhave cordially and unreservedly devoted themselves to God. This isindeed the very figure which baptism daily represents to us: like thefather of Hannibal, we there bring our infant to the altar, weconsecrate him to the service of _his proper owner_, and vow _in hisname_ eternal hostilities against all the enemies of his salvation. After the same manner Christians are become the sworn enemies of sin;they will henceforth hold no parley with it, they will allow it in noshape, they will admit it to no composition; the war which they havedenounced against it, is cordial, universal, irreconcilable. 

But this not all--It is now their determined purpose to yield themselveswithout reserve to the reasonable service of their rightful Sovereign. "They are not their own:"--their bodily and mental faculties, theirnatural and acquired endowments, their substance, their authority, theirtime, their influence; all these, they consider as belonging to them, not for their own gratification, but as so many instruments to beconsecrated to the honour and employed in the service of God. This mustbe the master principle to which every other must be subordinate. Whatever may have been hitherto their ruling passion; whatever hithertotheir leading pursuit; whether sensual, or intellectual, of science, oftaste, of fancy, or of feeling, it must now possess but a secondaryplace; or rather (to speak more correctly) it must exist only at thepleasure, and be put altogether under the controul and direction, of itstrue and legitimate superior. 

Thus it is the prerogative of Christianity "to bring into captivity_every thought_ to the obedience of Christ. " They who really feel itspower, are resolved (in the language of Scripture) "to live no longer tothemselves, but to him that died for them;" they know indeed their owninfirmities; they know, that the way on which they have entered isstrait and difficult, but they know too the encouraging assurance, "They who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;" and relying onthis animating declaration, they deliberately purpose that, so far asthey may be able, the grand governing maxim of their future lives shallbe, "_to do all to the glory of God_. "

Behold here the seminal principle, which contains within it, as in anembryo state, the rudiments of all true virtue; which, striking deep itsroots, though feeble perhaps and lowly in its beginnings, silentlyprogressive; and almost insensibly maturing, yet will shortly, even inthe bleak and churlish temperature of this world, lift up its head andspread abroad its branches, bearing abundant fruits; precious fruits ofrefreshment and consolation, of which the boasted products of philosophyare but sickly imitations, void of fragrance and of flavour. But, Igneus est ollis vigor & _coelestis_ origo. 

At length it shall be transplanted into its native region, and enjoy amore genial climate, and a kindlier soil; and, bursting forth into fullluxuriance, with unfading beauty and unexhausted odours, shall flourishfor ever in the paradise of God. 

But while the servants of Christ continue in this life, glorious as isthe issue of their labours, they receive but too many humiliatingmemorials of their remaining imperfections, and they daily find reasonto confess, that they cannot do the things that they would. Their_determination_, however, is still unshaken, and it is the fixed desireof their hearts to improve in _all holiness_--and this, let it beobserved, on many accounts. Various passions concur to push themforward; they are urged on by the dread of failure, in this arduous butnecessary work; they trust not, where their all is at stake, to livelyemotions, or to internal impressions however warm; the example of Christis their pattern, the word of God is their rule; there they read, that"without holiness no man shall see the Lord. " It is the description ofreal Christians, that "they are gradually changed into the image oftheir Divine Master;" and they dare not allow themselves to believetheir title sure, except so far as they can discern in themselves thegrowing traces of this blessed resemblance. 

It is not merely however the fear of misery, and the desire ofhappiness, by which they are actuated in their endeavours to excel inall holiness; they love it for its own sake: nor is it _solely_ by thesense of self-interest (this, though often unreasonably condemned, isbut it must be confessed a principle of an inferior order) that they areinfluenced in their determination to obey the will, and to cultivate thefavour of God. This determination has its foundations indeed in a deepand humiliating sense of his exalted Majesty and infinite power, and oftheir own extreme inferiority and littleness, attended with a settledconviction of its being their duty as his creatures, to submit in allthings to the will of their great Creator. But these awful impressionsare relieved and ennobled by an admiring sense of the infiniteperfections and infinite amiableness of the Divine Character; animatedby a confiding though humble hope of his fatherly kindness andprotection; and quickened by the grateful recollection of immense andcontinually increasing obligations. This is the Christian love of God! Alove compounded of admiration, of preference, of hope, of trust, ofjoy; chastised by reverential awe, and wakeful with continual gratitude. 

I would here express myself with caution, lest I should inadvertentlywound the heart of some weak but sincere believer. The elementaryprinciples which have been above enumerated, may exist in variousdegrees and proportions. A difference in natural disposition, in thecircumstances of the past life, and in numberless other particulars, mayoccasion a great difference in the predominant tempers of differentChristians. In one the love, in another the fear of God may have theascendency; trust in one, and in another gratitude; but in greater orless degrees, a cordial complacency in the sovereignty, an exalted senseof the perfections, a grateful impression of the goodness, and a humblehope of the favour of the Divine Being, are common to themall. --Common--the determination to devote themselves without exceptions, to the service and glory of God. --Common--the desire of holiness and ofcontinual progress towards perfection. --Common--an abasing consciousnessof their own unworthiness, and of their many remaining infirmities, which interpose so often to corrupt the simplicity of their intentions, to thwart the execution of their purer purposes, and frustrate theresolutions of their better hours. 

But some perhaps, who will not directly and in the gross oppose theconclusions for which we have been contending, may endeavour to eludethem. It may be urged, that to represent them as of general application, is going much too far; and however true in the case of some individualsof a higher order, it may be asserted they are not applicable toordinary Christians; from these so much will not surely be expected; andhere perhaps there may be a secret reference to that supposedmitigation of the requisitions of the divine Law under the Christiandispensation, which was formerly noticed. This is so important a pointthat it ought not to be passed over: let us call in the authority ofScripture; at the same time, not to tire the patience of our readers, but a few passages shall be cited, and we must refer to the word of Goditself those who wish for fuller satisfaction. The difficulty here isnot to find proofs, but to select with discretion from the multitudewhich pour in upon us. Here also, as in former instances, the positiveinjunctions of Scripture are confirmed and illustrated by variousconsiderations and inferences, suggested by other parts of the sacredWritings, all tending to the same infallible conclusion. 

In the first place, the precepts are expressed in the broadest and mostgeneral terms; there is no hint given, that any persons are at libertyto conceive themselves exempted from the obligation of them; and in anywho are disposed to urge such a plea of exemption, it may well excitethe most serious apprehension to consider how the plea would be receivedby an earthly tribunal: no weak argument this to any who are acquaintedwith the Scriptures, and who know how often God is there represented asreasoning with mankind on the principles, which they have establishedfor their dealings with each other. 

But in the next place the precepts in question contain within themselvesabundant proofs of their _universal_ application, inasmuch as they aregrounded on circumstances and relations common to _all_ Christians, andof the benefits of which, even our Objectors themselves (though theywould evade the practical deductions from them) would not be willing torelinquish their share. Christians "are not their own, " because "_theyare bought with a price_;" they are not "to live unto themselves, but_to him that died for them_;" they are commanded to do the mostdifficult duties, "that they may be the children of their Father whichis in heaven;" and "except a man _be born again of the Spirit_" (thusagain becoming one of the sons of God) "_he cannot enter into thekingdom of heaven_. " It is "_because they are sons_, " that God has giventhem what in Scripture language is styled _the Spirit of adoption_. Itis only of "as many _as are led by the Spirit of God_, " that it isdeclared that "they are the sons of God;" and we are expressly warned(in order as it were to prevent any such loose profession ofChristianity as that which we are here combating) "_If any man_ have notthe Spirit of Christ, _he is none of his_. " In short, Christians ingeneral are every where denominated _the servants and the children_ ofGod, and are required to serve him with that submissive obedience, andthat affectionate promptitude of duty, which belong to those endearingrelations. 

Estimate next, the force of that well known passage--"Thou shalt lovethe Lord thy God with _all_ thy heart, and with _all_ thy mind, and with_all_ thy soul, and with _all_ thy strength!" The injunction ismultiplied on us, as it were, to silence the sophistry of the caviller, and to fix the most inconsiderate mind. And though, for the sake ofargument, we should concede for the present, that, under _thequalifications formerly suggested_, an _ardent_ and _vigorous_ affectionwere not indispensably required of us; yet surely if the words have anymeaning at all, the least which can be intended by them is that settledpredominant esteem and cordial preference for which we are nowcontending. The conclusion which this passage forces on us, isstrikingly confirmed by other parts of Scripture, wherein the love ofGod is positively commended to the _whole_ of a Christian church[68]; orwherein the want of it[69], or wherein its not being the chief andruling affection, is charged on persons professing themselvesChristians, as being sufficient to disprove their claim to thatappellation, or as being equivalent to denying it[70]. Let not thereforeany deceive themselves by imagining, that only an absolute unqualifiedrenunciation of the desire of the favour of God is _here_ condemned. Godwill not accept of a _divided_ affection; a _single_ heart, and a_single_ eye are in express terms declared to be indispensably requiredof us. We are ordered, under the figure of amassing heavenly treasure, to make the favour and service of God our _chief_ pursuit, for this veryreason, because "_where our treasure is, there will our hearts bealso_. " It is on this principle that in speaking of particular vices, such phrases are often used in Scripture, as suggest that theircriminality mainly consists in drawing away the HEART from Him who isthe just object of its preference; and that sins, which we might thinkvery different in criminality, are classed together, because they allagree in this grand character. Nor is this preference asserted only overaffections which are vicious in themselves, and to which thereforeChristianity might well be supposed hostile; but over those also whichin their just measure are not only lawful, but even most stronglyenjoined on us. "He that loveth father and mother more than me, " saysour blessed Saviour, "is not worthy of me;" "and he that loveth son ordaughter more than me, is not worthy of me[71]. " The spirit of theseinjunctions harmonizes with many commendations in Scripture of zeal forthe honour of God; as well as with that strong expression of disgust andabhorrence with which the lukewarm, those that are neither cold nor hot, are spoken of as being more loathsome and offensive than even open andavowed enemies. 

Another class of instances tending to the same point is furnished bythose many passages of Scripture, wherein the promoting of _the glory_of God is commanded as our supreme and universal aim, and wherein thehonour due unto _Him_ is declared to be that in which He will allow nocompetitor to participate. On this head indeed the Holy Scriptures are, if possible, more peremptory than on the former; and at the same time sofull as to render particular citations unnecessary, in the case of anyone who has ever so little acquaintance with the word of God. 

To put the same thing therefore in another light. All who have read theScriptures must confess that idolatry is the crime against which God'shighest resentment is expressed, and his severest punishment denounced. But let us not deceive ourselves. It is not in bowing the knee to idolsthat idolatry consists, so much as in the internal homage of the heart;as in the feeling towards them of any of that supreme love, orreverence, or gratitude, which God reserves to himself as his ownexclusive prerogative. On the same principle, whatever else draws offthe heart from him, engrosses our prime regard, and holds the chiefplace in our esteem and affections, _that_, in the estimation of reason, is no less an idol to us, than an image of wood or stone would be;before which we should fall down and worship. Think not this a strainedanalogy; it is the very language and argument of inspiration. Theservant of God is commanded not to set up his idol in his _Heart_; andsensuality and covetousness are repeatedly termed _Idolatry_. The sameGod who declares--"My glory will I not give to another, neither mypraise _to graven images_, " declares also--"Let not the wise man gloryin his wisdom, neither let the mighty man _glory_ in his might; let notthe rich man _glory_ in his riches[72]. " "No flesh may _glory_ in hispresence;" "he that _glorieth_, let him glory in the Lord. " The suddenvengeance by which the vain-glorious ostentation of Herod was punished, when, acquiescing in the servile adulation of an admiring multitude, "hegave not God the _glory_, " is a dreadful comment on these injunctions. 

These awful declarations, it is to be feared, are little regarded. Letthe Great, and the Wise, and the Learned, and the Successful lay themseriously to heart, and labour habitually to consider their superiority, whether derived from nature, or study, or fortune, as the unmeritedbounty of God. This reflection will naturally tend to produce adisposition, instead of that proud self complacency so apt to grow uponthe human heart, in all respects opposite to it; a dispositionhonourable to God, and useful to man, a temper composed of reverence, humility, and gratitude, and delighting to be engaged in the praises, and employed in the benevolent service of the universal Benefactor. 

But, to return to our subject, it only remains to be remarked, that hereas in the former instances, the characters of the righteous and of thewicked, as delineated in Scripture, exactly correspond with therepresentations which have been given of the Scripture injunctions. 

The necessity of this cordial unreserved devotedness to the glory andservice of God, as being indispensable to the character of the trueChristian, has been insisted on at the greater length, not only onaccount of its own extreme importance, but also because it appears to bea duty too generally overlooked. Once well established, it will serve asa fundamental principle both for the government of the heart andregulation of the conduct; and will prove eminently useful in thedecision of many practical cases, which it might be difficult to bringunder the undisputed operation of any subordinate or appropriate rule. 

SECT. II. 

And now, having endeavoured to establish the strictness, and toascertain the essential character of true practical Christianity, let usinvestigate a little more in detail the practical system of the bulk ofprofessed Christians among ourselves[73]. 

It was formerly remarked, that the whole subject of Religion was oftenviewed from such a distance as to be seen only in the gross. We now, itis to be feared, shall find too much cause for believing that they whoapproach a little nearer, and do discover in Christianity somewhat of adistinct form, yet come not close enough to discern her peculiarlineaments and conformation. The writer must not be understood to meanthat the several misconceptions, which he shall have occasion to pointout, will be generally found to exist with any thing like precision, much less that they are regularly digested into a system; nor will it beexpected they all should meet in the same person, nor that they will notbe found in different people, and under different circumstances, variously blended, combined, and modified. It will be enough if wesucceed in tracing out great and general outlines. The human countenancemay be well described by its general characters, though infinitelyvaried by the peculiarities which belong to different individuals, andoften by such shades and minutenesses of difference, as thoughabundantly obvious to our perceptions, it would exceed the power ofdefinition to discriminate, or even of language to express. 

A very erroneous notion appears to prevail concerning the true nature ofReligion. Religion, agreeably to what has been already stated, (theimportance of the subject will excuse repetition) may be considered asthe implantation of a vigorous and active principle; it is seated inthe heart, where its authority is recognized as supreme, whence bydegrees it expels whatever is opposed to it, and where it graduallybrings all the affections and desires under its complete controul andregulation. 

But though the heart be its special residence, it may be said to possessin a degree the ubiquity of its Divine Author. Every endeavour andpursuit must acknowledge its presence; and whatever does not, or willnot, or cannot receive its sacred stamp, is to be condemned asinherently defective, and is to be at once abstained from or abandoned. It is like the principle of vitality, which, animating and informingevery part, lives throughout the whole of the human body, andcommunicates its kindly influence to the smallest and remotest fibres ofthe frame. But the notion of Religion entertained by many among us seemsaltogether different. They begin indeed, in submission to her clearprohibitions, by fencing off from the field of human action, a certaindistrict, which, though it in many parts bear fruits on which they casta longing eye, they cannot but confess to be forbidden ground. They nextassign to Religion a portion, larger or smaller according to whatevermay be their circumstances and views, in which however she is to possessmerely a qualified jurisdiction, and having so done, they conceive thatwithout let or hindrance they have a right to range at will over thespacious remainder. Religion can claim only a stated proportion of theirthoughts, and time, and fortune, and influence; and of these, or perhapsof any of them, if they make her any thing of a liberal allowance, shemay well be satisfied: the rest is now their own to do what they willwith; they have paid their tythes, say rather their composition, thedemands of the Church are satisfied, and they may surely be permitted toenjoy what she has left without molestation or interference. 

It is scarcely possible to state too strongly the mischief which resultsfrom this fundamental error. At the same time its consequences are sonatural and obvious, that one would think it scarcely possible not toforesee that they must infallibly follow. The greatest part of humanactions is considered as indifferent. If men are not chargeable withactual vices, and are decent in the discharge of their religious duties;if they do not stray into the forbidden ground, if they respect therights of the conceded allotment, what more can be expected from them?Instead of keeping at a distance from _all sin_, in which alone consistsour safety, they will be apt not to care how near they approach whatthey conceive to be the boundary line; if they have not actually passedit, there is no harm done, it is no trespass. Thus the free and activespirit of Religion is "cribbed and hemmed in;" she is checked in herdisposition to expand her territory, and enlarge the circle of herinfluence. She must keep to her prescribed confines, and every attemptto extend them will be resisted as an encroachment. 

But this is not all. Since whatever can be gained from her allotment, orwhatever can be taken in from the forbidden ground, will be so much ofaddition to that land of liberty, where men may roam at large, free fromrestraint or molestation, they will of course be constantly, and almostinsensibly, straitening and pressing upon the limits of the religiousallotment on the one hand; and on the other, will be removing back alittle farther and farther the fence which abridges them on the side ofthe forbidden ground. If Religion attempt for a time to defend herfrontier, she by degrees gives way. The space she occupies diminishestill it be scarcely discernible; whilst, her spirit extinguished, andher force destroyed, she is little more than the nominal possessor evenof the contracted limits to which she has been avowedly reduced. 

This it is to be feared is but too faithful a representation of thegeneral state of things among ourselves. The promotion of the glory ofGod, and the possession of his favour, are no longer recognized as theobjects of our highest regard, and most strenuous endeavours; asfurnishing to us, a vigorous, habitual, and universal principle ofaction. We set up for ourselves: we are become our own masters. Thesense of constant homage and continual service is irksome and galling tous; and we rejoice in being emancipated from it, as from a state of baseand servile villainage. Thus the very tenure and condition, by whichlife and all its possessions are held, undergo a total change: ourfaculties and powers are now our own: whatever we have is regardedrather as a property than as a trust; or if there still exist theremembrance of some paramount claim, we are satisfied with an occasionalacknowledgment of a nominal right; we pay our pepper corn, and take ourestates to ourselves in full and free enjoyment. 

Hence it is that so little sense of responsibility seems attached to thepossession of high rank, or splendid abilities, or affluent fortunes, orother means or instruments of usefulness. The instructive admonitions, "give an account of thy stewardship, "--"occupy till I come;" areforgotten. Or if it be acknowledged by some men of larger views thanordinary, that a reference is to be had to some principle superior tothat of our own gratification, it is, at best, to the good of society, or to the welfare of our families: and even then the obligationsresulting from these relations, are seldom enforced on us by any highersanctions than those of family comfort, and of worldly interest orestimation. Besides; what multitudes of persons are there, peoplewithout families, in private stations, or of a retired turn, to whomthey are scarcely held to apply! and what multitudes of cases to whichit would be thought unnecessary scrupulosity to extend them! Accordinglywe find _in fact_, that the generality of mankind among the higherorder, in the formation of their schemes, in the selection of theirstudies, in the choice of their place of residence, in the employmentand distribution of their time, in their thoughts, conversation, andamusements, are considered as being at liberty, if there be no actualvice, to consult in the main their own gratification. 

Thus the generous and wakeful spirit of Christian Benevolence, seekingand finding every where occasions for its exercise, is exploded, and asystem of _decent selfishness_ is avowedly established in its stead; asystem scarcely more to be abjured for its impiety, than to be abhorredfor its cold insensibility to the opportunities of diffusing happiness. "Have we no families, or are they provided for? Are we wealthy, and bredto no profession? Are we young and lively, and in the gaiety and vigourof youth? Surely we may be allowed to take our pleasure. We neglect noduty, we live in no vice, we do nobody any harm, and have a right toamuse ourselves. We have nothing better to do, we wish we had; our timehangs heavy on our hands for want of it. "

I pity the man who can travel from Dan to Beer-sheba, and cry "It is allbarren. " No man has a right to be idle--Not to speak of that great workwhich we all have to accomplish, and surely the _whole_ attention of ashort and precarious life is not more than an eternal interest may wellrequire; where is it that in such a world as this, health and leisureand affluence may not find some ignorance to instruct, some wrong toredress, some want to supply, some misery to alleviate? Shall Ambitionand Avarice never sleep? Shall they never want objects on which tofasten? Shall they be so observant to discover, so acute to discern, soeager, so patient to pursue, and shall the Benevolence of Christianswant employment?

Yet thus life rolls away with too many of us in a course of "shapelessidleness. " Its recreations constitute its chief business. Wateringplaces--the sports of the field--cards! never failing cards!--theassembly--the theatre--all contribute their aid--amusements aremultiplied, and combined, and varied, "to fill up the void of a listlessand languid life;" and by the judicious use of these differentresources, there is often a kind of sober settled plan of domesticdissipation, in which with all imaginable decency year after year wearsaway in unprofitable vacancy. Even old age often finds us pacing in thesame round of amusements, which our early youth had tracked out. Meanwhile, being conscious that we are not giving into any flagrantvice, perhaps that we are guilty of no irregularity, and it may be, thatwe are not neglecting the offices of Religion, we persuade ourselvesthat we need not be uneasy. In the main we do not fall below the generalstandard of morals, of the class and station to which we belong, we maytherefore allow ourselves to glide down the stream without apprehensionof the consequences. 

Some, of a character often hardly to be distinguished from the class wehave been just describing, take up with _sensual_ pleasures. The chiefhappiness of their lives consists in one species or another of animalgratification; and these persons perhaps will be found to compose apretty large description. It will be remembered, that it belongs not toour purpose to speak of the grossly and scandalously profligate, whorenounce all pretensions to the name of Christians; but of those who, maintaining a certain decency of character, and perhaps being tolerablyobservant of the forms of Religion, may yet be not improperly termed_sober sensualists_. These, though less impetuous and more measured, arenot less staunch and steady, than the professed votaries of licentiouspleasure, in the pursuit of their favourite objects. "Mortify the flesh, with its affections and lusts, " is the Christian _precept_; a softluxurious course of habitual indulgence, is the _practice_ of the bulkof modern Christians: and that constant moderation, that wholesomediscipline of restraint and self-denial, which are requisite to preventthe unperceived encroachments of the inferior appetites, seem altogetherdisused, as the exploded austerities of monkish superstition. 

Christianity calls her professors to a state of diligent watchfulnessand active services. But the persons of whom we are now speaking, forgetting alike the duties they owe to themselves and to theirfellow-creatures, often act as though their condition were meant to be astate of uniform indulgence, and vacant, unprofitable sloth. To multiplythe comforts of affluence, to provide for the gratification of appetite, to be luxurious without diseases, and indolent without lassitude, seemsthe chief study of their lives. Nor can they be clearly exempted fromthis class, who, by a common error, substituting the means for the end, make the preservation of health and spirits, not as instruments ofusefulness, but as sources of pleasure, their great business andcontinual care. 

Others again seem more to attach themselves to what have been welltermed the 'pomps and vanities of this world. ' Magnificent houses, grandequipages, numerous retinues, splendid entertainments, high andfashionable connections, appear to constitute, in their estimation, thesupreme happiness of life. This class too, if we mistake not, will befound numerous in our days; for it must be considered, _that it is theheart_, _set on these things_, which constitutes the essentialcharacter. It often happens, that persons, to whose rank and stationthese indulgences most properly belong, are most indifferent to them. The undue solicitude about them is more visible in persons of inferiorconditions and smaller fortunes, in whom it is not rarely detected bythe studious contrivances of a misapplied ingenuity to reconcile paradewith oeconomy, and glitter at a cheap rate. But this temper of displayand competition is a direct contrast to the lowly, modest, unassumingcarriage of the true Christian: and wherever there is an evident effortand struggle to excel in the particulars here in question, a manifestwish thus to rival superiors, to outstrip equals, to dazzle inferiors;it is manifest the great end of life, and of all its possessions, is toolittle kept in view, and it is to be feared that the gratification of avain ostentatious humour is the predominant disposition of the heart. 

As there is a sober sensuality, so is there also a sober avarice, and asober ambition. The commercial and the professional world compose thechief sphere of their influence. They are often recognized and openlyavowed as just master principles of action. But where this is not thecase, they assume such plausible shapes, are called by such speciousnames, and urge such powerful pleas, that they are received withcordiality, and suffered to gather strength without suspicion. Theseducing considerations of diligence in our callings, of success in ourprofession, of making handsome provisions for our children, beguile ourbetter judgments. "We rise early, and late take rest, and eat the breadof carefulness. " In our few intervals of leisure, our exhausted spiritsrequire refreshment; the serious concerns of our immortal souls, arematters of speculation too grave and gloomy to answer the purpose, andwe fly to something that may better deserve the name of relaxation, tillwe are again summoned to the daily labours of our employment. 

Meanwhile Religion seldom comes in our way, scarcely occurs to ourthoughts; and when some secret misgivings begin to be felt on this head, company soon drowns, amusements dissipate, or habitual occupationsinsensibly displace or smother the rising apprehension. Professional andcommercial men perhaps, especially when they happen to be persons ofmore than ordinary reflection, or of early habits of piety not quiteworn away, easily quiet their consciences by the plea, that necessaryattention to their business leaves them no time to think on theseserious subjects at present. "Men of leisure they confess shouldconsider them; they themselves will do it hereafter when they retire;meanwhile they are usefully or at least innocently employed. " Thusbusiness and pleasure fill up our time, and the "one thing needful, " isforgotten. Respected by others, and secretly applauding ourselves, (perhaps congratulating ourselves that we are not like such an one whois a spendthrift or a mere man of pleasure, or such another who is anotorious miser) the true principle of action is no less wanting in us, and personal advancement or the acquisition of wealth is the object ofour supreme desires and predominant pursuit. 

It would be to presume too much on the reader's patience to attempt adelineation of the characters of the politician, the metaphysician, thescholar, the poet, the virtuoso, the man of taste, in all theirvarieties. Of these and many other classes which might be enumerated, suffice it to remark, and to appeal to every man's own experience forthe truth of the observation, that they in like manner are oftencompletely engrossed by the objects of their several pursuits. In manyof these cases indeed a generous spirit surrenders itself wholly up withthe less reserve, and continues absorbed with the fuller confidence, from the consciousness of not being led to its object by self-interestedmotives. Here therefore these men are ardent, active, laborious, persevering, and they think, and speak, and act, as those, the wholehappiness of whose life turns on the success or failure of theirendeavours. When such, as we have seen it, is the undisturbed composureof mere triflers, it is less wonderful that the votaries of learning andof taste, when absorbed in their several pursuits, should be able tocheck still more easily any growing apprehension, silencing it by thesuggestion, that they are more than harmlessly, that they aremeritoriously employed. "Surely the thanks of mankind are justly paid tothose more refined spirits who, superior alike to the seductions ofease, and the temptations of avarice, devote their time and talents tothe less gainful labours of increasing the stores of learning orenlarging the boundaries of science; who are engaged in raising thecharacter and condition of society, by improving the liberal arts, andadding to the innocent pleasures or elegant accomplishments of life. "Let not the writer be so far misunderstood, as to be supposed toinsinuate that Religion is an enemy to the pursuits of taste, much lessto those of learning and of science. Let these have their _due_ place inthe estimation of mankind; but this must not be the _highest_ place. Letthem know their just _subordination_. They deserve not to be the_primary_ concern, for there is another, to which in importance theybear no more proportion than our span of existence to eternity. 

Thus the supreme desires of the heart, the center to which they shouldtend, losing its attractive force, are permitted without controul totake that course, whatever it may be, which best suits our naturaltemper, or to which they are impelled by our various situations andcircumstances. Sometimes they manifestly appear to be almost entirelyconfined to a single track; but perhaps more frequently the lines inwhich they move are so intermingled and diversified, that it becomes nota little difficult, even when we look into ourselves, to ascertain theobject by which they are chiefly attracted, or to estimate withprecision the amount of their several forces, in the differentdirections in which they move. "Know thyself, " is in truth an injunctionwith which the careless and the indolent cannot comply. For thiscompliance, it is requisite, in obedience to the Scripture precept, "tokeep the heart with all diligence. " Mankind are in general deplorablyignorant of their true state; and there are few perhaps who have anyadequate conception of the real strength of the ties, by which they arebound to the several objects of their attachment, or who are aware howsmall a share of their regard is possessed by those concerns on which itought to be supremely fixed. 

But if it be indeed true, that except the affections of the soul besupremely fixed on God; that unless it be _the leading and governingdesire and primary pursuit_ to possess his favour and promote his glory, we are considered as having transferred our fealty to an usurper, and asbeing in fact revolters from our lawful sovereign; if this be indeed theScripture doctrine, all the several attachments which have been latelyenumerated, of the different classes of society, wherever they interestthe affections, and possess the soul in any such measure of strength asdeserves to be called _predominance_, are but so many varied expressionsof _disloyalty_. God requires to set up his throne in the heart, and toreign in it without a rival: if he be kept out of his right, it mattersnot by what competitor. The revolt may be more avowed or more secret;it may be the treason of deliberate preference, or of inconsideratelevity; we may be the subjects of a more or of a less creditable master;we may be employed in services more gross or more refined: but whetherthe slaves of avarice, of sensuality, of dissipation, of sloth, or thevotaries of ambition, of taste, or of fashion; whether supremelygoverned by vanity and self-love, by the desire of literary fame or ofmilitary glory, we are alike estranged from the dominion of our rightfulsovereign. Let not this seem a harsh position; it can appear so onlyfrom not adverting to what was shewn to be the _essential nature_ oftrue Religion. He who bowed the knee to the god of medicine or ofeloquence, was no less an idolater than the worshipper of the deifiedpatrons of lewdness or of theft. In the several cases which have beenspecified, the _external acts_ indeed are different; but in _principle_the disaffection is the same; and unless we return to our allegiance, wemust expect the title, and prepare to meet the punishment, of rebels onthat tremendous day, when all false colours shall be done away, and(there being no longer any room for the evasions of worldly sophistry, or the smooth plausibilities of worldly language) "that which is oftenhighly esteemed amongst men, shall appear to have been abomination inthe sight of God. "

These fundamental truths seem vanished from the mind, and it follows ofcourse, that every thing is viewed less and less through a religiousmedium. To speak no longer of instances wherein _we ourselves_ areconcerned, and wherein the unconquerable power of indulged appetite maybe supposed to beguile our better judgment, or force us on in defianceof it; not to insist on the motives by which the conduct of men isdetermined, often avowedly, in what are to _themselves_ the mostimportant incidents of life; what are the judgments which they form inthe case of _others_? Idleness, profusion, thoughtlessness, anddissipation, the misapplication of time or of talents, the trifling awayof life in frivolous occupations or unprofitable studies; all thesethings we may regret in those around us, in the view of their temporaleffects; but they are not considered in a religious connection, orlamented as endangering everlasting happiness. Excessive vanity andinordinate ambition are spoken of as weaknesses rather than as sins;even covetousness itself, though a hateful passion, yet, if not extreme, scarcely presents the face of _Irreligion_. Is some friend, or even somecommon acquaintance sick, or has some accident befallen him? Howsolicitously do we inquire after him, how tenderly do we visit him, howmuch perhaps do we regret that he has not better advice, how apt are weto prescribe for him, and how should we reproach ourselves, if we wereto neglect any means in our power of contributing to his recovery! But"the mind diseased" is neglected and forgotten--"_that_ is not ouraffair; we hope (we do not perhaps really believe) that here it is wellwith him. " The truth is, we have no solicitude about his spiritualinterest. Here he is treated like the unfortunate traveller in theGospel; we look upon him; we see but too well his sad condition, but(Priest and Levite alike) we pass by on the other side, and leave him tothe officious tenderness of some poor despised Samaritan. 

Nay, take the case of our very children, when our hearts being mostinterested to promote their happiness, we must be supposed most desirousof determining on right principles, and where therefore the realstandard of our deliberate judgments may be indisputably ascertained: intheir education and marriage, in the choice of their professions, in ourcomparative consideration and judgment of the different parts of theirseveral characters, how little do we reflect that they are immortalbeings! Health, learning, credit, the amiable and agreeable qualities, above all, fortune and success in life, are taken, and not unjustlytaken, into the account; but how small a share in forming our opinionsis allowed to the probable effect which may be produced on their eternalinterests! Indeed the subjects of our mutual inquiries, andcongratulations, and condolences, prove but too plainly whatconsiderations are in these cases uppermost in our thoughts. 

Such are the fatal and widely spreading effects, which but too naturallyfollow from the admission of the grand fundamental error beforementioned, that of not considering Religion as a principle of universalapplication and command. Robbed of its best energies, Religion now takesthe form of a cold compilation of restraints and prohibitions. It islooked upon simply as a set of penal statutes; these, though wise andreasonable, are however, so far as they extend, abridgments of ournatural liberty, and nothing which comes to us in this shape isextremely acceptable:

 Atqui nolint occidere quemquam, posse volunt. 

Considering moreover, that the matter of them is not in general verypalatable, and that the partiality of every man where his own cause isin question, will be likely to make him construe them liberally in hisown favour, we might beforehand have formed a tolerable judgment of themanner in which they are actually treated. Sometimes we attend to thewords rather than to the spirit of Scripture injunctions, overlookingthe principle they involve, which a better acquaintance with the word ofGod would have clearly taught us to infer from them. At others, "thespirit of an injunction is all;" and this we contrive to collect sodexterously, as thereby to relax or annul the strictness of the terms. "Whatever is not expressly forbidden cannot be _very_ criminal; whateveris not positively enjoined, cannot be indispensably necessary--If we donot offend against the laws, what more can be expected from us?--Thepersons to whom the strict precepts of the Gospel were given, were invery different circumstances from those in which we are placed. Theinjunctions were drawn rather tighter than is quite necessary, in orderto allow for a little relaxation in practice. The expressions of thesacred Writers are figurative; the Eastern style is confessedlyhyperbolical. "

By these and other such dishonest shifts (by which however we seldomdeceive ourselves, except it be in thinking that we deceive others) thepure but strong morality of the word of God is explained away, and itstoo rigid canons are softened down, with as much dexterity as isexhibited by those who practise a logic of the same complexion, in orderto escape from the obligations of human statutes. Like Swift'sunfortunate Brothers[74], we are sometimes put to difficulties, but ouringenuity is little inferior to their's. If totidem verbis[75] will notserve our turn, try totidem syllabis; if totidem syllabis fail, trytotidem literis: then there is in our case, as well as in theirs, "anallegorical sense" to be adverted to; and if every other resource failus, we come at last to the same conclusion as the Brothers adopted, thatafter all, those rigorous clauses require some allowance, and afavourable interpretation, and ought to be understood "cum grano salis. "

But when the law both in its spirit and its letter is obstinate andincorrigible, what we cannot bend to our purpose we must break--"Oursins we hope are of the smaller order; a little harmless gallantry, alittle innocent jollity, a few foolish expletives which we use from themere force of habit, meaning nothing by them; a little warmth ofcolouring and licence of expression; a few freedoms of speech in thegaiety of our hearts, which, though not perhaps strictly correct, nonebut the over-rigid would think of treating any otherwise than as venialinfirmities, and in which very grave and religious men will often taketheir share, when they may throw off their state, and relax withoutimpropriety. We serve an all-merciful Being, who knows the frailty ofour nature, the number and strength of our temptations, and will not beextreme to mark what is done amiss. Even the less lenient judicatures ofhuman institution concede somewhat to the weakness of man. It is anestablished maxim--'De minimis non curat lex. ' We hope we are not worsethan the generality. All men are imperfect. We own we have ourinfirmities; we confess it is so; we wish we were better, and trust aswe grow older we shall become so; we are ready to acknowledge that wemust be indebted for our admission into a future state of happiness, notto our own merit, but to the clemency of God, and the mercy of ourRedeemer. "

But let not this language be mistaken for that of true Christianhumiliation, of which it is the very essence to feel the burden of sin, and to long to be released from it: nor let two things be confounded, than which none can be more fundamentally different, the allowed want ofuniversality in our determination, and our endeavour to obey the will ofGod, and that defective accomplishment of our purposes, which even thebest of men will too often find reason to deplore. In the persons ofwhom we have been now speaking, the unconcern with which they can amusethemselves upon the borders of sin, and the easy familiarity with whichthey can actually dally with it in its less offensive shapes, shewplainly that, distinctly from its consequences, it is by no means theobject of their aversion; that there is no love of holiness as such; noendeavour to acquire it, no care to prepare the soul for the receptionof this divine principle, and to expel or keep under whatever might belikely to obstruct its entrance, or dispute its sovereignty. 

It is indeed a most lamentable consequence of the practice of regardingReligion as a compilation of statutes, and not as an internal principle, that it soon comes to be considered as being conversant about _externalactions_ rather than about _habits of mind_. This sentiment sometimeshas even the hardiness to insinuate and maintain itself under the guiseof extraordinary concern for _practical Religion_; but it soon discoversthe falsehood of this pretension, and betrays its real nature. Theexpedient indeed of attaining to superiority in practice, by not wastingany of the attention on the internal principles from which alonepractice can flow, is about as reasonable, and will answer about aswell, as the oeconomy of the architect, who should account it mereprodigality to expend any of his materials in laying foundations, froman idea that they might be more usefully applied to the raising of thesuperstructure. We know what would be the fate of such an edifice. 

It is indeed true, and a truth never to be forgotten, that allpretensions to internal principles of holiness are vain when they arecontradicted by the conduct; but it is no less true, that the onlyeffectual way of improving the latter, is by a vigilant attention to theformer. It was therefore our blessed Saviour's injunction, "Make thetree good" as the necessary means of obtaining good fruit; and the holyScriptures abound in admonitions, to let it be our chief business tocultivate our hearts with all diligence, to examine into their statewith impartiality, and watch over them with continual care. Indeed it isthe _Heart_ which constitutes the _Man_; and external actions derivetheir whole character and meaning from the motives and dispositions ofwhich they are the indications. Human judicatures, it is true, arechiefly conversant about the former, but this is only because to ourlimited perceptions the latter can seldom be any otherwise clearlyascertained. The real object of inquiry to human judicatures is the_internal_ disposition; it is to this that they adapt the nature, andproportion the degree, of their punishments. 

Yet though this be a truth so obvious, so established, that to haveinsisted on it may seem almost needless; it is a truth of which we areapt to lose sight in the review of our religious Character, and withwhich the _habit_, of considering Religion as consisting rather inexternal actions, than internal principles, is at direct and open war. This mode of judging may well be termed _habitual_: for though by somepersons it is advisedly adopted, and openly avowed, yet in many casesfor want of due watchfulness, it has stolen insensibly upon the mind; itexists unsuspected, and is practised, like other habits, withoutconsciousness or observation. 

In what degree soever this pernicious principle prevails, in that degreeis the mischief it produces. The vicious affections, like noxious weeds, sprout up and increase of themselves but too naturally; while the gracesof the Christian temper, exotics in the soil of the human heart, likethe more tender productions of the vegetable world, though the light andbreath of Heaven must quicken them, require on our part also, in orderto their being preserved in health and vigour, constant superintendenceand assiduous care. But so far from their being earnestly sought for, orwatchfully reared, with unremitted prayers for that Divine Grace, without which all our labours must be ineffectual; such is the result ofthe principle we are here condemning, that no endeavours are used fortheir attainment, or they are suffered to droop and die almost withoutan effort to preserve them. The culture of the mind is less and lessattended to, and at length perhaps is almost wholly neglected. Waybeing thus made for the unobstructed growth of other tempers, thequalities of which are very different, and often directly opposite, these naturally overspread and quietly possess the mind; theircontrariety to the Christian spirit not being discerned, and evenperhaps their presence being scarcely acknowledged, except when theirexistence and their nature are manifested in the conduct by marks tooplain to be overlooked or mistaken. 

Some of the most important branches of the Christian temper, wherein thebulk of nominal Christians appear eminently and allowedly defective, have been already noticed in this and in the preceding chapter. Manyothers still remain to be particularized. 

First then, it is the comprehensive compendium of the character of trueChristians, that "they are walking by faith, and not by sight. " By thisdescription is meant, not merely that they so firmly believe in thedoctrine of future rewards and punishments, as to be influenced by thatpersuasion to adhere in the main to the path of duty, though tempted toforsake it by present interest, and present gratification; but farther, that the great truths revealed in Scripture concerning the unseen world, are the ideas for the most part uppermost in their thoughts, and aboutwhich habitually their hearts are most interested. This state of mindcontributes, if the expression may be allowed, to rectify the illusionsof vision, to bring forward into nearer view those eternal things whichfrom their remoteness are apt to be either wholly overlooked, or toappear but faintly in the utmost bounds of the horizon; and to removebackward, and reduce to their true comparative dimensions, the objectsof the present life, which are apt to fill the human eye, assuming afalse magnitude from their vicinity. The true Christian knows fromexperience however, that the former are apt to fade from the sight, andthe latter again to swell on it. He makes it therefore his continualcare to preserve those just and enlightened views, which through Divinemercy he has obtained. Not that he will retire from that station in theworld which Providence seems to have appointed him to fill: he will beactive in the business of life, and enjoy its comforts with moderationand thankfulness; but he will not be "totus in illis, " he will not giveup his whole soul to them, they will be habitually subordinate in hisestimation to objects of more importance. The awful truth has sunk deepinto his mind, "the things which are seen are temporal, but the thingswhich are not seen are eternal;" and in the tumult and bustle of life, he is sobered by the still small voice which whispers to him "thefashion of this world passes away. " This circumstance alone must, it isobvious, constitute a vast difference between the habitual temper of hismind, and that of the generality of nominal Christians, who are almostentirely taken up with the concerns of the present world. They _know_indeed that they are mortal, but they do not _feel_ it. The truth restsin their understandings, and cannot gain admission into their hearts. This speculative persuasion is altogether different from that strong_practical_ impression of the infinite importance of eternal things, which attended with a proportionate sense of the shortness anduncertainty of all below, while it prompts to activity from a convictionthat "the night cometh when no man can work, " produces a certainfirmness of texture, which hardens us against the buffets of fortune, and prevents our being very deeply penetrated by the cares andinterests, the goods or evils, of this transitory state. Thus this justimpression of the relative value of temporal and eternal things, maintains in the soul a dignified composure through all the vicissitudesof life. It quickens our diligence, yet moderates our ardour; urges usto just pursuits, yet checks any undue solicitude about the success ofthem, and thereby enables us, in the language of Scripture, "to use thisworld as not abusing it, " rendering us at once beneficial to others andcomfortable to ourselves. 

But this is not all--besides the distinction between the nominal and thereal Christian, which results from the impressions produced on themrespectively by the _eternal duration_ of heavenly things, there isanother grounded on their _nature_, no less marked, nor less important. They are stated in Scripture, not only as entitling themselves to thenotice of the true Christian from considerations of interest, but asapproving themselves to his judgment from a conviction of theirexcellence, and yet farther, as recommending themselves to his feelings, by their being suited to the renewed dispositions of his heart. Indeedwere the case otherwise, did not their qualities correspond with hisinclinations; however he might endure them on principles of duty, and becoldly conscious of their superior worth, he could not lend himself tothem with cordial complacency, much less look to them as the surestsource of pleasure. But this is the light in which they are habituallyregarded by the true Christian. He walks in the ways of Religion, notby constraint, but willingly; they are to him not only safe, butcomfortable; "ways of pleasantness as well as of peace. " Not but thathere also he is from experience aware of the necessity of constantsupport, and continual watchfulness; without these, his old estimate ofthings is apt to return on him, and the former objects of his affectionsto resume their influence. With earnest prayers, therefore, for theDivine Help, with jealous circumspection, and resolute self-denial, heguards against, and abstains from, whatever might be likely again todarken his _enlightened judgment_, or to vitiate his reformed taste;thus making it his unwearied endeavour to grow in the knowledge and loveof heavenly things, and to obtain a warmer admiration, and a morecordial relish of their excellence. 

That this is a just representation of the habitual judgment, and of theleading disposition of true Christians, will be abundantly evident, if, endeavouring to form ourselves after our proper model, we consult thesacred Scripture. But in vain are Christians there represented as havingset their _affections_ on things above, as _cordially rejoicing_ in theservice, and delighting in the worship of God. Pleasure and Religion arecontradictory terms with the bulk of nominal Christians. They may lookback indeed on their religious offices with something of a secretsatisfaction, and even feel it during the performance of them, from theidea of being engaged in the discharge of a duty; but this is altogetherdifferent from the pleasure which attends an employment in itselfacceptable and grateful to us. The writer must here again guard againstbeing understood to speak of a deficiency in the _warmth_ and_vehemence_ merely of religious affections. Are the service and worshipof God _pleasant_ to these persons? it is not asked whether they are_delightful_. Do they diffuse over the soul any thing of that calmcomplacency, that mild and grateful composure, which bespeaks a mind ingood humour with itself and all around it, and engaged in a servicesuited to its taste, and congenial with its feelings?

Let us appeal to that Day which is especially devoted to the offices ofReligion: Do they joyfully avail themselves of this blessed opportunityof withdrawing from the business and cares of life; when, without beingdisquieted by any doubt whether they are not neglecting the duties oftheir proper callings, they may be allowed to detach their minds fromearthly things, that by a fuller knowledge of heavenly objects, and amore habitual acquaintance with them, their hope may grow more "full ofimmortality?" Is the day cheerfully devoted to those holy exercises forwhich it was appointed? Do they indeed "come into the courts of God withgladness?" And how are they employed when not engaged in the publicservices of the day? Are they busied in studying the word of God, inmeditating on his perfections, in tracing his providentialdispensations, in admiring his works, in revolving his mercies, (aboveall, the transcendent mercies of redeeming love) in singing his praises, "and speaking good of his name?" Do their secret retirements witness theearnestness of their prayers and the warmth of their thanksgivings, their diligence and impartiality in the necessary work ofself-examination, their mindfulness of the benevolent duty ofintercession? Is the kind purpose of the institution of a Sabbathanswered by them, in its being made to their servants and dependents aseason of rest and comfort? Does the instruction of their families, orof the more poor and ignorant of their neighbours, possess its due shareof their time? If blessed with talents or with affluence, are theysedulously employing a part of this interval of leisure in relieving theindigent, and visiting the sick, and comforting the sorrowful, informing plans for the good of their fellow-creatures, in considering howthey may promote both the temporal and spiritual benefit of theirfriends and acquaintance: or if their's be a larger sphere, in devisingmeasures whereby through the Divine blessing, they may become thehonoured instruments of the more extended diffusion of religious truth?In the hours of domestic or social intercourse, does their conversationmanifest the subject of which their hearts are full? Do their languageand demeanor shew them to be more than commonly gentle, and kind, andfriendly, free from rough and irritating passions?

Surely an entire day should not seem long amidst these variousemployments. It might well be deemed a privilege thus to spend it, inthe more immediate presence of our Heavenly Father, in the exercises ofhumble admiration and grateful homage; of the benevolent, and domestic, and social feelings, and of all the best affections of our nature, prompted by their true motives, conversant about their proper objects, and directed to their noblest end; all sorrows mitigated, all caressuspended, all fears repressed, every angry emotion softened, everyenvious or revengeful or malignant passion expelled; and the bosom, thusquieted, purified, enlarged, ennobled, partaking almost of a measure ofthe Heavenly happiness, and become for a while the seat of love, andjoy, and confidence, and harmony. 

The nature, and uses, and proper employments of a Christian Sabbath, have been pointed out more particularly, not only because the day willbe found, when thus employed, eminently conducive, through the Divineblessing, to the maintenance of the religious principle in activity andvigour; but also because we must all have had occasion often to remark, that many persons, of the graver and more decent sort, seem not seldomto be nearly destitute of religious resources. The Sunday is with them, to say the best of it, a _heavy_ day; and that larger part of it, whichis not claimed by the public offices of the church, dully drawls on incomfortless vacuity, or without improvement is trifled away in vain andunprofitable discourse. Not to speak of those who by their more daringprofanation of this sacred season, openly violate the laws and insultthe religion of their country, how little do many seem to enter into the_spirit_ of the institution, who are not wholly inattentive to itsexterior decorums! How glad are they to qualify the rigor of theirreligious labours! How hardly do they plead against being compelled todevote the _whole_ of the day to Religion, claiming to themselves nosmall merit for giving up to it a part, and purchasing therefore, asthey hope, a right to spend the remainder more agreeably! Howdexterously do they avail themselves of any plausible plea forintroducing some weekday employment into the Sunday, whilst they havenot the same propensity to introduce any of the Sunday's peculiaremployment into the rest of the week! How often do they find excusesfor taking journeys, writing letters, balancing accounts; or in shortdoing something, which by a little management might probably have beenanticipated, or which, without any material inconvenience, might bepostponed! Even business itself is recreation, compared with Religion, and from the drudgery of this day of Sacred Rest they fly for relief totheir ordinary occupations. 

Others again who would consider business as a prophanation, and whostill hold out against the encroachments of the card table, get overmuch of the day, and gladly seek for an innocent resource, in the socialcircle or in family visits, where it is not even pretended that theconversation turns on such topics as might render it in any wayconducive to religious instruction, or improvement. Their familiesmeanwhile are neglected, their servants robbed of Christian privileges, and their example quoted by others, who cannot see that they arethemselves less religiously employed, while playing an innocent game atcards, or relaxing in the concert room. 

But all these several artifices, _whatever they may be_, _to unhallow_the Sunday and to change its character (it might be almost said "torelax its horrors, ") prove but too plainly, however we may be glad totake refuge in Religion, when driven to it by the loss of every othercomfort, and to retain as it were a reversionary interest in an asylum, which may receive us when we are forced from the transitory enjoymentsof our present state; that _in itself_ it wears to us a gloomy andforbidding aspect, and not a face of consolation and joy; that theworship of God is with us a _constrained_ and not a _willing_ service, which we are glad therefore to abridge though we dare not omit it. 

Some indeed there are who with concern and grief will confess this to betheir uncomfortable and melancholy state; who humbly pray, anddiligently endeavour, for an imagination less distracted at devotionalseasons, for a heart more capable of relishing the excellence of divinethings; and who carefully guard against whatever has a tendency to chaindown their affections to earthly enjoyments. Let not such bediscouraged. It is not they whom we are condemning: but such as knowingand even acknowledging this to be their case, yet proceed in a waydirectly contrary: who, scarcely seeming to suspect that any thing iswrong with them, voluntarily acquiesce in a state of mind which isdirectly contrary to the positive commands of God, which forms a perfectcontrast to the representations given us in Scripture of the Christiancharacter, and accords but too faithfully in one leading feature withthe character of those, who are stated to be the objects of Divinedispleasure in this life, and of Divine punishment in the next. 

It is not however only in these essential constituents of a devotionalframe that the bulk of nominal Christians are defective. This theyfreely declare (secretly feeling perhaps some complacency from thefrankness of the avowal) to be a higher strain of piety than that towhich they aspire. Their forgetfulness also of some of the leadingdispositions of Christianity, is undeniably apparent in their allowedwant of the spirit of kindness, and meekness, and gentleness, andpatience, and long suffering; and above all, of that which is the stockon which alone these dispositions can grow and flourish, that_humility_ and _lowliness of mind_, in which perhaps more than in anyother quality may be said to consist the true essence and vitalprinciple of the Christian temper. These dispositions are not onlyneglected, but even disavowed and exploded, and their opposites, if notrising to any great height, are acknowledged and applauded. _A justpride, a proper and becoming pride_, are terms which we daily hear fromChristian lips. To possess _a high spirit_, to behave with _a properspirit_ when used ill, --by which is meant a quick feeling of injuries, and a promptness in resenting them, --entitles to commendation; and ameek-spirited disposition, the highest Scripture eulogium, expressesideas of disapprobation and contempt. Vanity and vain glory are sufferedwithout interruption to retain their natural possession of the heart. But here a topic opens upon us of such importance, and on which so manymistakes are to be found both in the writings of respectable authors, and in the commonly prevailing opinions of the world, that it may beallowed us to discuss it more at large, and for this purpose to treat ofit in a separate section. 

SECTION III. 

_On the Desire of human Estimation and Applause--The generallyprevailing Opinions contrasted with those of the true Christian. _

The desire of human estimation, and distinction, and honour, of theadmiration and applause of our fellow creatures, if we take it in itsfull comprehension, and in all its various modifications, from thethirst of glory to the dread of shame, is the passion of which theempire is by far the most general, and perhaps the authority the mostcommanding. Though its power be most conspicuous and least controulablein the higher classes of society, it seems, like some resistlessconqueror, to spare neither age, nor sex, nor condition; and taking tenthousand shapes, insinuating itself under the most specious pretexts, and sheltering itself when necessary under the most artful disguises, itwinds its way in secret, when it dares not openly avow itself, and mixesin all we think, and speak, and do. It is in some instances thedetermined and declared pursuit, and confessedly the main practicalprinciple; but where this is not the case, it is not seldom the grandspring of action, and in the Beauty and the Author, no less than in theSoldier, it is often the master passion of the soul. 

This is the principle which parents recognize with joy in their infantoffspring, which is diligently instilled and nurtured in advancingyears, which, under the names of honourable ambition and of laudableemulation, it is the professed aim of schools and colleges to excite andcherish. The writer is well aware that it will be thought he is pushinghis opinions much too far, when he ventures to assail this greatprinciple of human action; "a principle, " its advocates might perhapsexclaim, "the extinction of which, if you could succeed in your rashattempt, would be like the annihilation in the material world of theprinciple of motion; without it all were torpid and cold andcomfortless. We grant, " they might go on to observe, "that we neverought to deviate from the paths of duty in order to procure the applauseor to avoid the reproaches of men, and we allow that this is a rule toolittle attended to in practice. We grant that the love of praise is insome instances a ridiculous, and in others a mischievous passion; thatto it we owe the breed of coquettes and coxcombs, and, a more seriousevil, the noxious race of heroes and conquerors. We too are ready, whenit appears in the shape of vanity, to smile at it as a foible, or inthat of false glory, to condemn it as a crime. But all these are onlyits perversions; and on account of them to contend against its trueforms, and its legitimate exercise, were to give into the very errorwhich you formerly yourself condemned, of arguing against the use of asalutary principle altogether, on account of its being liable tooccasional abuse. When turned into the right direction, and applied toits true purposes, it prompts to every dignified and generousenterprise. It is erudition in the portico, skill in the lycæum, eloquence in the senate, victory in the field. It forces indolence intoactivity, and extorts from vice itself the deeds of generosity andvirtue. When once the soul is warmed by its generous ardor, nodifficulties deter, no dangers terrify, no labours tire. It is thiswhich, giving by its stamp to what is virtuous and honourable its justsuperiority over the gifts of birth and fortune, rescues the rich from abase subjection to the pleasures of sense, and makes them prefer acourse of toil and hardship to a life of indulgence and ease. Itprevents the man of rank from acquiescing in his hereditary greatness, and spurs him forward in pursuit of _personal_ distinction, and of anobility which he may justly term his own. It moderates and qualifiesthe over-great inequalities of human conditions; and reaching to thosewho are above the sphere of laws, and extending to cases which fall notwithin their province, it limits and circumscribes the power of thetyrant on his throne, and gives gentleness to war, and to pride, humility. 

"Nor is its influence confined to public life, nor is it known only inthe great and the splendid. To it is to be ascribed a large portion ofthat courtesy and disposition to please, which naturally producing amutual appearance of good will, and a reciprocation of good offices, constitute much of the comfort of private life, and give their choicestsweets to social and domestic intercourse. Nay, from the force of habit, it follows us even into solitude, and in our most secret retirements weoften act as if our conduct were subject to human observation, and wederive no small complacency from the imaginary applauses of an idealspectator. "

So far of the _effects_ of the love of praise and distinction: and ifafter enumerating some of these, you should proceed to investigate its_nature_, "We admit, " it might be added, "that a hasty and misjudgingworld often misapplies commendations and censures: and whilst wetherefore confess, that the praises of the discerning few are alonetruly valuable; we acknowledge that it were better if mankind werealways to act from the sense of right and the love of virtue, withoutreference to the opinions of their fellow-creatures. We even allow, that independently of consequences, this were perhaps in itself a higherstrain of virtue; but it is a degree of purity which it would be vain toexpect from the bulk of mankind. When the _intrinsic excellence_ of thisprinciple however is called in question, let it be remembered, that inits higher degrees it was styled, by one who meant rather to detractfrom its merits than to aggravate them, 'the infirmity of _noble_minds;' and surely, that in such a soil it most naturally springs up, and flourishes, is no mean proof of its exalted origin and generousnature. 

"But were these more dubious, and were it no more than a splendid error;yet considering that it works so often in the right direction, it wereenough to urge in its behalf, that it is a principle of real _action_, and approved energy. That, as much as practice is better than theory, and solid realties than empty speculation, so much is it to be preferredfor general use before those higher principles of morals, which howeverjust and excellent in themselves, you would in vain attempt to bringhome to the 'business and bosoms of mankind' at large. Reject not then aprinciple thus universal in its influence, thus valuable in its effects;a principle, which, by whatever name you may please to call it, acts bymotives and considerations suited to our condition; and which, puttingit at the very lowest, must be confessed, in our present infirm state, to be an habitual aid and an ever present support to the feebleness ofvirtue! In a selfish world it produces the effects of disinterestedness, and when public spirit is extinct, it supplies the want of patriotism. Let us therefore with gratitude avail ourselves of its help, and notrelinquish the good which it freely offers, from we know not what vaindreams of impracticable purity and unattainable perfection. "

All this and much more might be urged by the advocates of this favouriteprinciple. It would be however no difficult task to shew that it by nomeans merits this high eulogium. To say nothing of that larger part ofthe argument of our opponents, which betrays, and even proceeds upon, that mischievous notion of the innocence of error, against which we havealready entered our formal protest, the principle in question ismanifestly of a most inconstant and variable nature; as inconstant andvariable as the innumerably diversified modes of fashions, habits, andopinions in different periods and societies. What it tolerates in oneage, it forbids in another; what in one country it prescribes andapplauds, in another it condemns and stigmatizes! Obviously and openly, it often takes vice into its patronage, and sets itself in directopposition to virtue. It is calculated to produce rather the_appearance_ than the _reality_ of excellence; and at best not to checkthe _love_ but only the _commission_ of vice. Much of this indeed wasseen and acknowledged by the philosophers, and even by the poets, of thePagan world. They declaimed against it as a mutable and inconsistentprinciple; they lamented the fatal effects which, under the name offalse glory, it had produced on the peace and happiness of mankind. Theycondemned the pursuit of it when it led its followers out of the path ofvirtue, and taught that the praise of the wise and of the good only wasto be desired. 

But it was reserved for the page of Scripture to point out to usdistinctly, wherein it is apt to be essentially defective and vicious, and to discover to us more fully its encroaching nature and dangeroustendencies; teaching us at the same time, how, being purified from itscorrupt qualities, and reduced under just subordination, it may bebrought into legitimate exercise, and be directed to its true end. 

In the sacred volume we are throughout reminded, that we are originallythe creatures of God's formation, and continual dependents on hisbounty. There too we learn the painful lesson of man's degradation andunworthiness. We learn that humiliation and contrition are the tempersof mind best suited to our fallen condition, and most acceptable in thesight of our Creator. We learn that these (to the repression andextinction of that spirit of arrogance and self-importance, so naturalto the heart of man) it should be our habitual care to cherish andcultivate; studiously maintaining a continual sense, that, not only forall the _natural_ advantages over others which we may possess, but thatfor all our _moral_ superiority also, we are altogether indebted to theunmerited goodness of God. It might perhaps be said to be the great endand purpose of all revelation, and especially to be the design of theGospel, to reclaim us from our natural pride and selfishness, and theirfatal consequences; to bring us to a just sense of our weakness and_depravity_; and to dispose us, with unfeigned humiliation, to abaseourselves, and give glory to God. "No flesh may glory in his presence;he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord"--"The lofty looks of manshall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, andthe Lord alone shall be exalted[76]. "

These solemn admonitions are too generally disregarded, and theirintimate connection with the subject we are now considering, appears tohave been often entirely overlooked, even by Christian moralists. Theseauthors, without reference to the main spring, and internal principle ofconduct, are apt to speak of the love of human applause, as beingmeritorious or culpable, as being the desire of true or of false glory, accordingly as the external actions it produces, and the pursuits towhich it prompts, are beneficial or mischievous to mankind. But it isundeniably manifest, that in the judgment of the word of God, the loveof worldly admiration and applause is in its _nature_ essentially andradically corrupt; so far as it partakes of a disposition to exalt andaggrandize ourselves, to pride ourselves on our natural or acquiredendowments, or to assume to ourselves the merit and credit of our goodqualities, instead of ascribing all the honour and glory where only theyare due. Its _guilt_ therefore in these cases, is not to be measured byits effects on the happiness of mankind; nor is it to be denominated_true or false_ glory, accordingly as the ends to which it is directedare beneficial or mischievous, just or unjust objects of pursuit; but itis _false_, because it exalts that which ought to be abased, and_criminal_, because it encroaches on the prerogative of God. 

The Scriptures further instruct us, not merely that mankind are liableto error, and therefore that the world's commendations _may be_sometimes mistaken; but that their judgment being darkened and theirhearts depraved, its applauses and contempt will for the most part besystematically misplaced; that though the beneficent and disinterestedspirit of Christianity, and her obvious tendency to promote domesticcomfort and general happiness, cannot but extort applause; yet that heraspiring after more than ordinary excellence, by exciting secretmisgivings in others, or a painful sense of inferiority not unmixed withenvy, cannot fail often to disgust and offend. The word of God teachesus, that though such of the doctrines and precepts of Christianity, asare coincident with worldly interests and pursuits, and with worldlyprinciples and systems, may be professed without offence; yet, that whatis opposite to these, or even different from them, will be deemedneedlessly precise and strict, the indulgence of a morose and gloomyhumour, the symptoms of a contracted and superstitious spirit, the marksof a mean, enslaved, or distorted understanding. That for these andother reasons, the follower of Christ must not only make up his mind tothe _occasional relinquishment_ of worldly favour, but that it shouldeven afford him matter of holy jealousy and suspicion of himself, whenit is very lavishly and very generally bestowed. 

But though the standard of worldly estimation differed less from that ofthe Gospel; yet since our affections ought to be set on heavenly things, and conversant about heavenly objects; and since in particular the loveand favour of God ought to be the matter of our supreme and habitualdesire, to which every other should be subordinated; it follows, thatthe love of human applause must be manifestly injurious, so far as ittends to draw down our regards to earthly concerns, and to bound andcircumscribe our desires within the narrow limits of this world. Particularly, that it is _impure_, so far as it is tinctured with adisposition to estimate too highly, and love too well, the good opinionand commendations of man. 

But though, by these and other instructions and considerations, the HolyScripture warns us against the inordinate desire or earnest pursuit ofworldly estimation and honour; though it so greatly reduces their value, and prepares us for losing them without surprise, and for relinquishingthem with little reluctance: yet it teaches us, that Christians ingeneral are not only not called upon absolutely and voluntarily torenounce or forego them; but that when, without our having solicitouslysought them, they are bestowed on us for actions intrinsically good, weare to accept them as being intended by Providence, to be sometimes, even in this disorderly state of things, a present solace, and a rewardto virtue. Nay more, we are instructed, that in our general deportment, that in little particulars of conduct otherwise indifferent, that in the_circumstances_ and _manner_ of performing actions in themselves of adetermined character and indispensable obligation, (guarding howeveragainst the smallest degree of artifice or deceit) that by watching foropportunities of doing little kindnesses, that by avoidingsingularities, and even humouring prejudices, where it may be donewithout the slightest infringment on truth or duty, we ought to have adue respect and regard to the approbation and favour of men. Thesehowever we should not value, chiefly as they may administer to our owngratification, but rather as furnishing means and instruments ofinfluence, which we may turn to good account, by making them subservientto the improvement and happiness of our fellow creatures, and thusconducive to the _glory of God_. The remark is almost superfluous, thaton occasions like these we must even watch our hearts with the mostjealous care, lest pride and self love insensibly infuse themselves, andcorrupt the purity of principles so liable to contract a taint. 

Credit and reputation, in the judgment of the true Christian, stand onground not very different from riches; which he is not to prize highly, or to desire and pursue with solicitude; but which, when they areallotted to him by the hand of Providence, he is to accept withthankfulness, and use with moderation; relinquishing them when itbecomes necessary, without a murmur; guarding most circumspectly, solong as they remain with him, against that sensual and selfish temper, and no less against that pride and wantonness of heart, which they aretoo apt to produce and cherish; thus considering them as in themselvesacceptable, but, from the infirmity of his nature, as highly dangerouspossessions, and valuing them chiefly not as instruments of luxury orsplendour, but as affording the means of honouring his heavenlyBenefactor, and lessening the miseries of mankind. 

Christianity however, as was formerly observed, proposes not toextinguish our natural desires, but to bring them under just controul, and direct them to their true objects. In the case both of riches and ofhonour, she maintains the consistency of her character. While shecommands us not to set our hearts on _earthly_ treasures, she reminds usthat "we have in _Heaven_ a better and more enduring substance" thanthis world can bestow; and while she represses our solicitude respectingearthly credit, and moderates our attachment to it, she holds forth tous, and bids us habitually to aspire after, the splendours of thatbetter state, where is true glory, and honour, and immortality; thusexciting in us a just ambition, suited to our high origin, and worthy ofour large capacities, which the little, misplaced, and perishabledistinctions of this life would in vain attempt to satisfy. 

It would be mere waste of time to enter into any laboured argument toprove at large, that the light in which worldly credit and estimationare regarded, by the bulk of professed Christians, is extremelydifferent from that in which they are placed by the page of Scripture. The _inordinate_ love of _worldly glory_ indeed, implies a passion, which from the nature of things cannot be called into exercise in thegenerality of mankind, because, being conversant about great objects, itcan but rarely find that field which is requisite for its exertions. Butwe every where discover the same principle reduced to the dimensions ofcommon life, and modified and directed according to every one's sphereof action. We may discover it in a supreme love of distinction, andadmiration, and praise; in the universal acceptableness of flattery; andabove all in the excessive valuation of our worldly character, in thatwatchfulness with which it is guarded, in that jealousy when it isquestioned, in that solicitude when it is in danger, in that hotresentment when it is attacked, in that bitterness of suffering when itis impaired or lost. All these emotions, as they are too manifest to bedisputed, so are they too reputable to be denied. Dishonour, disgrace, and shame present images of horror too dreadful to be faced; they areevils, which it is thought the mark of a generous spirit to consider asexcluding every idea of comfort and enjoyment, and to feel, in short, astoo heavy to be borne. 

The consequences of all this are natural and obvious. Though it be notopenly avowed, that we are to follow after worldly estimation, or toescape from worldly disrepute, when they can only be pursued or avoidedby declining from the path of duty; nay though the contrary berecognized as being the just opinion; yet all the effect of thisspeculative concession is soon done away _in fact_. Estimating worldlycredit as of the highest intrinsic excellence, and worldly shame as thegreatest of all possible evils, we sometimes shape and turn the path ofduty itself from its true direction, so as it may favour our acquisitionof the one, and avoidance of the other; or when this cannot be done, weboldly and openly turn aside from it, declaring the temptation is toostrong to be resisted. 

It were easy to adduce numerous proofs of the truth of these assertions. It is proved, indeed, by that general tendency in Religion to concealherself from the view, (for we might hope that in these cases she oftenis by no means altogether extinct) by her being apt to vanish from ourconversations, and even to give place to a pretended licentiousness ofsentiments and conduct, and a false shew of infidelity. It is proved, bythat complying acquiescence and participation in the habits and mannersof this dissipated age, which, has almost confounded every externaldistinction between the Christian and the Infidel, and has made it sorare to find any one who dares incur the charge of Christiansingularity, or who can say with the Apostle that "he is not ashamed ofthe Gospel of Christ. " It is proved (how can this proof be omitted byone to whose lot it has so often fallen to witness and lament, sometimeshe fears to afford an instance of it?) by that quick resentment, thosebitter contentions, those angry retorts, those malicious triumphs, thatimpatience of inferiority, that wakeful sense of past defeats, andpromptness to revenge them, which too often change the character of aChristian deliberative Assembly, into that of a stage for prizefighters: violating at once the proprieties of public conduct, and therules of social decorum, and renouncing and chasing away all thecharities of the Religion of Jesus!

But from all lesser proofs, our attention is drawn to one of a stilllarger size, and more determined character. Surely the reader will hereanticipate our mention of the practice of Duelling: a practice which, tothe disgrace of a Christian society, has long been suffered to existwith little restraint or opposition. 

This practice, whilst it powerfully supports, mainly rests on, thatexcessive over-valuation of character, which teaches that worldly creditis to be preserved at _any_ rate, and disgrace at _any_ rate to beavoided. The _unreasonableness_ of duelling has been often proved, andit has often been shewn to be criminal on various principles: sometimesit has been opposed on grounds hardly tenable; particularly when it hasbeen considered as an indication of malice and revenge[77]. But itseems hardly to have been enough noticed in what chiefly consists its_essential_ guilt; that it is a deliberate preference of the favour ofman, before the favour and approbation of God, _in articulo mortis_, inan instance, wherein our own life, and that of a fellow creature are atstake, and wherein we run the risk of rushing into the presence of ourMaker in the very act of offending him. It would detain us too long, andit were somewhat beside our present purpose, to enumerate themischievous consequences which result from this practice. They are manyand great; and if regard be had merely to the temporal interests of men, and to the well being of society, they are but poorly counterbalanced bythe plea, which must be admitted in its behalf by a candid observer ofhuman nature, of a courtesy and refinement in our modern manners unknownto ancient times. 

But there is one observation which must not be omitted, and which seemsto have been too much overlooked: In the judgment of that Religion whichrequires purity of heart, and of that Being to whom, as was beforeremarked, "thought is action, " he cannot be esteemed innocent of thiscrime, who lives in a settled habitual determination to commit it, whencircumstances shall call upon him so to do[78]. This is a considerationwhich places the crime of duelling on a different footing from almostany other; indeed there is perhaps NO other, which mankind habituallyand deliberately resolve to practise whenever the temptation shalloccur. It shews also that the crime of duelling is far more general inthe higher classes than is commonly supposed, and that the whole sum ofthe guilt which the practice produces is great, beyond what has perhapsbeen ever conceived! It will be the writer's comfort to have solemnlysuggested this consideration, to the consciences of those by whom thisimpious practice might be suppressed: If such there be, which he isstrongly inclined to believe, their's is the crime, and their's theresponsibility of suffering it to continue[79]. 

In the foregoing observations, it has not been the writer's intention todiscuss completely that copious subject, the love of worldly estimation. It would be to exceed the limits of a work like this, fully toinvestigate so large, and at the same time so important a topic. Enoughhowever may have perhaps been said, to make it evident that thisprinciple is of a character highly _questionable_; that it should bebrought under absolute subjection, and watched with the most jealouscare: That, notwithstanding its lofty pretensions, it often can by nomeans justly boast that high origin and exalted nature, which itssuperficial admirers are disposed to concede to it. What real intrinsicessential value, it might be asked, does there appear to be in avirtue, which had wholly changed its nature and character, if publicopinion had been different? But it is in truth of base extraction, andungenerous qualities, springing from selfishness and vanity, and lowambition; by these it subsists, and thrives, and acts; and envy, andjealousy, and detraction, and hatred, and variance, are its too faithfuland natural associates. It is, to say the best of it, a root which bearsfruits of a poisonous as well as of a beneficial quality. If itsometimes stimulates to great and generous enterprises, if it urges toindustry, and sometimes to excellence, if in the more contracted sphereit produces courtesy and kindness; yet to its account we must place theambition which desolates nations, and many of the competitions andresentments which interrupt the harmony of social life. The formerindeed has been often laid to its charge, but the latter have not beensufficiently attended to; and still less has its _noxious_ influence onthe vital principle, and distinguishing graces of the Christiancharacter, been duly pointed out and enforced. 

To read indeed the writings of certain Christian moralists, [80] and toobserve how little they seem disposed to call it in question, exceptwhere it raves in the conqueror, one should be almost tempted tosuspect; that, considering it as a principle of such potency andprevalence, as that they must despair of bringing it into justsubjection, they were intent only on complimenting it into good humour(like those barbarous nations which worship the evil Spirit throughfear;) or rather, that they were making a sort of composition with anenemy they could not master, and were willing, on condition of itsgiving up the trade of war, to suffer it to rule undisturbed, and rangeat pleasure. 

But the truth is, that the reasonings of Christian moralists too oftenexhibit but few traces of the genius of Christian morality. Of thisposition, the case before us is an instance. This principle of thedesire of worldly distinction and applause, is often allowed, and evencommended, with too few qualifications, and too little reserve. To covetwealth is base and sordid, but to covet honour is treated as the mark ofa generous and exalted nature. These writers scarcely seem to bear inmind, that though the principle in question tends to prevent thecommission of those grosser acts of vice which would injure us in thegeneral estimation; yet that it not only stops there, but that it therebegins to exert almost an equal force in the opposite direction. They donot consider how apt this principle is, even in the case of those whomove in a contracted sphere, to fill us with vain conceits, and viciouspassions; and above all how it tends to fix the affections on earthlythings, and to steal away the heart from God. They acknowledge it to becriminal when it produces mischievous effects, but forget how apt it is, by the substitution of a false and corrupt motive, to vitiate the purityof our good actions, depriving them of all which rendered them truly andessentially valuable. That, not to be too hastily approved, because ittakes the side of virtue, it often works her ruin while it asserts hercause, and like some vile seducer, pretends affection only the moresurely to betray. 

It is the distinguishing glory of Christianity not to rest satisfiedwith superficial appearances, but to rectify the _motives_, and purifythe _heart_. The true Christian, in obedience to the lessons ofScripture, no where keeps over himself a more resolute and jealousguard, than where the desire of human estimation and distinction is inquestion. No where does he more deeply feel the insufficiency of hisunassisted strength, or more diligently and earnestly pray for divineassistance. He may well indeed watch and pray against the encroachmentsof a passion, which, when suffered to transgress its just limits, discovers a peculiar hostility to the distinguishing graces of theChristian temper; a passion which must insensibly acquire force, becauseit is in continual exercise; to which almost every thing _without_administers nutriment, and the growth of which _within_ is favoured andcherished by such powerful auxiliaries as pride and selfishness, thenatural and perhaps inexterminable inhabitants of the human heart; ofwhich the predominance, if established, is thus so pernicious, and whichpossesses so many advantages for effecting its establishment. 

Strongly impressed therefore with a sense of the indispensable necessityof guarding against the progress of this encroaching principle, inhumble reliance on superior aid, the true Christian thankfully uses themeans, and habitually exercises himself in the considerations andmotives, suggested to him for that purpose by the word of God. He ismuch occupied in searching out, and contemplating his own infirmities. He endeavours to acquire and maintain a just conviction of his greatunworthiness; and to keep in continual remembrance, that whateverdistinguishes himself from others, is not properly his own, but that heis altogether indebted for it to the undeserved bounty of Heaven. Hediligently endeavours also, habitually to preserve a _just_ sense of thereal worth of human distinction and applause, knowing that he shallcovet them less when he has learned not to over-rate their value. Helabours to bear in mind, how undeservedly they are often bestowed, howprecariously they are always possessed. The censures of good men justlyrender him suspicious of himself, and prompt him carefully andimpartially to examine into those parts of his character, or thoseparticulars of his conduct, which have drawn on him theiranimadversions. The favourable opinion and the praises of good men arejustly acceptable to him, where they accord with the testimony of hisown heart; that testimony being thereby confirmed and warranted. Thosepraises favour also and strengthen the growth of mutual confidence andaffection, where it is his delight to form friendships, rich not less inuse than comfort, and to establish connections which may last for ever. But even in the case of the commendations of good men, he suffers nothimself to be beguiled into an over-valuation of them, lest he should beled to substitute them in the place of conscience. He guards againstthis by reflecting how indistinctly we can discern each other's motives, how little enter into each other's circumstances, how mistaken thereforemay be the judgments formed of us, or of our actions, even by good men, and that it is far from improbable, that we may at some time becompelled to forfeit their esteem, by adhering to the dictates of ourown consciences. 

But if he endeavours thus to set loose to the favour and applause evenof good men, much more to those of the world at large; not but that heis sensible of their worth as means and instruments of usefulness andinfluence; and under the limitations and for the ends allowed inScripture (these it is needless to repeat) he is glad to possess, observant to acquire, and careful to retain them. He considers themhowever, if we may again introduce the metaphor, like the preciousmetals, as having rather an exchangeable than an intrinsic value, asdesirable not simply in their possession, but in their use. In thisview, he holds himself to be responsible for that share of them which heenjoys, and, to continue the figure, as bound not to let them lie by himunemployed, this were hoarding; not to lavish them prodigally, thiswould be waste; not imprudently to misapply them, this were folly andcaprice: but as under an obligation to regard them as conferred upon himthat they might be brought into action, and as what therefore he may byno means throw away, though ready, if it be required, to relinquish themwith cheerfulness; and never feeling himself at liberty, inconsideration of the use he intends to make of them, to acquire orretain them unlawfully. He holds it to be his bounden duty to seekdiligently for occasions of rendering them subservient to their truepurposes; and when any such occasion is found, to expend them cheerfullyand liberally, but with discretion and frugality; being no less prudentin determining the measure, than in selecting the objects of theirapplication, that they may go the farther by being thus managed withoeconomy. 

Acting therefore on these principles, he will studiously and diligentlyuse any degree of worldly credit he may enjoy, in removing or lesseningprejudices; in conciliating good-will, and thereby making way for theless obstructed progress of truth; and in providing for its beingentertained with candour, or even with favour, by those who would barall access against it in any rougher or more homely form. He will makeit his business to set on foot and forward benevolent and usefulschemes; and where they require united efforts, to obtain and preservefor them this co-operation. He will endeavour to discountenance vice, tobring modest merit into notice; to lend as it were his light to men ofreal worth, but of less creditable name, and perhaps of lessconciliating qualities and manners; that they may thus shine with areflected lustre, and be useful in their turn, when invested with theirjust estimation. But while by these and various other means he strivesto render his reputation, so long as he possesses it, subservient to thegreat ends of advancing the cause of Religion and Virtue, and ofpromoting the happiness and comfort of mankind, he will not transgressthe rule of the Scripture precepts in order to obtain, to cultivate, orto preserve it, resolutely disclaiming that dangerous sophistry of"doing evil that good may come. " Ready however to relinquish hisreputation when required so to do, he will not throw it away; and so faras he allowably may, he will cautiously avoid occasions of diminishingit, instead of studiously seeking, or needlessly multiplying them, asseems sometimes to have been the practice of worthy but imprudent men. There will be no capricious humours, no selfish tempers, no moroseness, no discourtesy, no affected severity of deportment, no peculiarity oflanguage, no indolent neglect, or wanton breach, of the ordinary formsor fashions of society. His reputation is a possession capable of usestoo important to be thus sported away; if sacrificed at all, it shall besacrificed at the call of duty. The world shall be constrained to allowhim to be amiable, as well as respectable in other parts of hischaracter; though in what regards Religion, they may account himunreasonably precise and strict. In this no less than in otherparticulars, he will endeavour to reduce the enemies of Religion toadopt the confession of the accusers of the Jewish ruler, "we shall notfind any fault or occasion against this Daniel--except concerning thelaw of his God:" and even there, if he give offence, it will only bewhere he dares not do otherwise; and if he fall into dis-esteem ordisgrace it shall not be chargeable to any conduct which is justlydishonourable, or even to any unnecessary singularities on his part, butto the false standard of estimation of a misjudging world. When hischaracter is thus mistaken, or his conduct thus misconstrued, he willnot wrap himself up in a mysterious sullenness; but will be ready, wherehe thinks any one will listen to him with patience and candour, to clearup what has been dubious, to explain what has been imperfectly known, and "speaking the truth in love" to correct, if it may be, the erroneousimpressions which have been conceived of him. He may sometimes feel ithis duty publicly to vindicate his character from unjust reproach, andto repel the false charges of his enemies; but he will carefully howeverwatch against being led away by pride, or being betrayed into somebreach of truth or of Christian charity, when he is treading in a pathso dangerous. At such a time he will also guard, with more than ordinarycircumspection, against any undue solicitude about his worldlyreputation for its own sake; and when he has done what duty requires forits vindication, he will sit down with a peaceable and quiet mind, andit will be matter of no very deep concern to him if his endeavoursshould have been ineffectual. If good men in every age and nation havebeen often unjustly calumniated and disgraced, and if, in suchcircumstances, even the darkness of paganism has been able contentedlyto repose itself on the consciousness of innocence, shall one who ischeered by the Christian's hope, who is assured also, that a day willshortly come in which whatever is secret shall be made manifest, and themistaken judgments of men, perhaps even of good men, being corrected, that "he shall then have praise of God;" shall such an one, I say, sink?shall he even bend or droop under such a trial? They might be moreexcusable in over-valuing human reputation to whom all beyond the gravewas dark and cheerless. They also might be more easily pardoned forpursuing with some degree of eagerness and solicitude that glory whichmight survive them, thus seeking as it were to extend the narrow span oftheir earthly existence: but far different is our case, to whom theseclouds are rolled away, and "life and immortality brought to light bythe Gospel. " Not but that worldly favour and distinction are amongst thebest things this world has to offer: but the Christian knows it is thevery condition of his calling, _not_ to have his portion here; and as inthe case of any other earthly enjoyments, so in that also of worldlyhonour, he dreads, lest his supreme affections being thereby gratified, it should be hereafter said to him "remember that thou in thy life timereceivedst thy good things. "

He is required by his holy calling to be victorious over the world; andto this victory, the conquest of the dread of its dis-esteem anddishonour is essentially and indispensably required. He reflects onthose holy men who "had trial of cruel mockings;" he remembers that ourblessed Saviour himself "was despised and rejected of men;" and what ishe, that he should be exempted from the common lot, or think it much tobear the scandal of his profession? If therefore he is creditable andpopular, he considers this, if the phrase may be pardoned, as somethingbeyond his bargain; and he watches himself, with double care, lest heshould grow over-fond of what he may be shortly called upon torelinquish. He meditates often on the probability of his being involvedin such circumstances, as may render it necessary for him to subjecthimself to disgrace and obloquy; thus familiarizing himself with thembetimes, and preparing himself, that when the trying hour arrives theymay not take him unawares. 

But the cultivation of the desire of "that honour which cometh fromGod, " he finds the most effectual means of bringing his mind into aproper temper, in what regards the love of human approbation. Christian!would thou indeed reduce this affection under just controul--_sursumcorda!_ Rise on the wings of contemplation, until the praises and thecensures of men die away upon the ear, and the still small voice ofconscience is no longer drowned by the din of this nether world. Herethe sight is apt to be occupied with earthly objects, and the hearing tobe engrossed with earthly sounds; but there thou shalt come within theview of that resplendent and incorruptible crown, which is held forth tothy acceptance in the realms of light, and thine ear shall be regaledwith Heavenly melody! Here we dwell in a variable atmosphere--theprospect is at one time darkened by the gloom of disgrace, and atanother the eye is dazzled by the gleamings of glory: but thou hast nowascended above this inconstant region; no storms agitate, no cloudsobscure the air, and the lightnings play, and the thunders roll beneaththee. 

Thus, at chosen seasons, the Christian exercises himself; and when, fromthis elevated region he descends into the plain below, and mixes in thebustle of life, he still retains the impressions of his more retiredhours. By these he realizes to himself the unseen world; he accustomshimself to speak and act as in the presence of "an innumerable companyof angels, and of the spirits of just men made perfect, and of God theJudge of all;" the consciousness of _their_ approbation cheers andgladdens his soul, under the scoffs and reproaches of an undiscerningworld, and to his delighted ear, their united praises form a _harmony_which a few discordant earthly voices cannot interrupt. 

But though the Christian be sometimes enabled thus to triumph over theinordinate love of human applause, he does not therefore deem himselfsecure from its encroachments. On the contrary, he is aware, so strongand active is its principle of vitality, that even where it seemsextinct, let but circumstances favour its revival, and it will springforth again in renewed vigour. And as his watch must thus during lifeknow no termination, because the enemy will ever be at hand; so it mustbe the more close and vigilant, because he is no where free from danger, but is on every side open to attack. "Sume superbiam quæsitam meritis, "was the maxim of a worldly moralist: but the Christian is aware, that heis particularly assailable where he really excels; there he is inespecial danger, lest his motives, originally pure, being insensiblycorrupted, he should be betrayed into an anxiety about worldly favour, false in principle or excessive in degree, when he is endeavouring torender his virtue amiable and respected in the eyes of others, and inobedience to the Scripture injunction, is willing to let his "light soshine before men, that they may see his good works, and glorify hisFather which is in heaven. "

He watches himself also on small as well as on great occasions: thelatter indeed, in the case of many persons, can hardly ever be expectedto occur, whereas the former are continually presenting themselves: andthus, whilst on the one hand they may be rendered highly useful informing and strengthening a just habit of mind in the particular inquestion; so, on the other, they are the means most at hand for enablingus to discover our own real character. Let not this be slightly passedover. If any one finds himself shrinking from disrepute or dis-esteem inlittle instances; but apt to solace himself with the persuasion, thathis spirits being fully called forth to the encounter, he could boldlystand the brunt of sharper trials; let him be slow to give entertainmentto so beguiling a suggestion; and let him not forget that these littleinstances, where no credit is to be got, and the vainest can find smallroom for self-complacency, furnish perhaps the truest tests whether weare ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, and are willing, on principlesreally pure, to bear reproach for the name of Jesus. 

The Christian too is well aware that the excessive desire of humanapprobation is a passion of so subtile a nature, that there is nothinginto which it cannot penetrate; and from much experience, learning todiscover it where it would lurk unseen, and to detect it under its morespecious disguises, he finds, that elsewhere disallowed and excluded, itis apt to insinuate itself into his very religion, where it especiallydelights to dwell, and obstinately maintains its residence. Proud pietyand ostentatious charity, and all the more open effects it thereproduces, have been often condemned, and we may discover the tendenciesto them in ourselves, without difficulty. But where it appears not solarge in bulk, and in shape so unambiguous, let its operation be stillsuspected. Let not the Christian suffer himself to be deceived by anyexternal dissimilitudes between himself and the world around him, trusting perhaps to the sincerity of the principle to which theyoriginally owed their rise; but let him beware lest through theinsensible encroachments of the subtle usurper, his religion should atlength have "only a name to live, " being gradually robbed of itsvivifying principle; lest he should be mainly preserved in his religiouscourse by the dread of incurring the charge of levity, for quitting apath on which he had deliberately entered. Or where, on a strict andimpartial scrutiny of his governing motives, he may fairly concludethis not to be the case, let him beware lest he be influenced by thisprinciple in particular parts of his character, and especially where anyexternal singularities are in question; closely scrutinizing hisapparent motives, lest he should be prompted to his more than ordinaryreligious observances, and be kept from participating in the licentiouspleasures of a dissipated age, not so much by a vigorous principle ofinternal holiness, as by a fear of lessening himself in the good opinionof the stricter circle of his associates, or of suffering even in theestimation of the world at large, by violating the proprieties of hisassumed character. 

To those who, in the important particular which we have been so longdiscussing, wish to conform themselves to the injunctions of the word ofGod, we must advise a laborious watchfulness, a jealous guard, a closeand frequent scrutiny of their own hearts, that they may not mistaketheir real character, and too late find themselves to have beenmistaken, as to what they had conceived to be their governing motives. Above all, let them labour, with humble prayers for the Divineassistance, to fix in themselves a deep, habitual, and practical senseof the excellence of "that honour which cometh from God, " and of thecomparative worthlessness of all earthly estimation and pre-eminence. Intruth, unless the affections of the soul be thus predominantly engagedon the side of heavenly in preference to that of human honour, though wemay have relinquished the pursuit of fame, we shall not have acquiredthat firm contexture of mind, which can bear disgrace and shame, withoutyielding to the pressure. Between these two states there is a wideinterval, and he who, on a sober review of his conduct and motives, finds reason to believe he has arrived at the one, must not thereforeconclude he has reached the other. To the one, a little naturalmoderation and quietness of temper may be sufficient to conduct us: butto the other, we can only attain by much discipline and slow advances;and when we think we have made great way, we shall often find reason toconfess in the hour of trial, that we had greatly, far too greatly, over-rated our progress. 

When engaged too in the prosecution of this course, we must be aware ofthe snares which lie in our way, and of the deceits to which we areliable: and we must be provided against these impositions, by havingobtained a full and distinct conception of the temper of mind withregard to human favour, which is prescribed to us in Scripture; and bycontinually examining our hearts and lives to ascertain how far theycorrespond with it. This will prevent our substituting contemplation inthe place of action, and giving ourselves too much up to those religiousmeditations which were formerly recommended, in which we must notindulge to the neglect of the common _duties_ of life: this will preventour mistaking the gratification of an indolent temper for theChristian's disregard of fame; for, never let it be forgotten, we must_deserve_ estimation, though we may not _possess_ it, forcing men of the_world_ to acknowledge, that we do not want their boasted spring ofaction to set us in motion; but that its place is better supplied to usby another, which produces all the good of their's without its evil;thus demonstrating the superiority of the principle which animates us, by the superior utility and excellence of its effects. This principle, in order to be pure and genuine, though nerved with more than mortalfirmness, must be sweetened by love, and tempered with humility. Theformer of these qualities will render us kind, friendly, and beneficent, preventing our being no longer on the watch to promote the happiness orcomfort of others, than whilst we are stimulated by the desire of theirapplause; the produce of which passion, whatever may be vaunted of itseffects on social intercourse, is often nothing better than selfishness, but ill concealed under a superficial covering of exterior courtesy. 

Humility, again, reducing us in our own value, will moderate our claimson worldly estimation. It will check our tendency to ostentation anddisplay, prompting us rather to avoid, than to attract notice. It willdispose us to sit down in quiet obscurity, though, judging ourselvesimpartially, we believe ourselves better entitled to credit, than thoseon whom it is conferred; closing the entrance against a proud, painful, and malignant passion, from which, under such circumstances, we canotherwise be hardly free, the passion of "high disdain from sense ofinjured merit. "

Love and humility will concur in producing a frame of mind, not moredistinct from an ardent thirst of glory, than from that frigiddisregard, or insolent contempt, or ostentatious renunciation of humanfavour and distinction, which we have sometimes seen opposed to it. These latter qualities may not infrequently be traced to a slothful, sensual, and selfish temper; to the consciousness of being unequal toany great and generous attempts; to the disappointment of schemes ofambition or of glory; to a little personal experience of the world'scapricious and inconstant humour. The renunciation in these cases, however sententious, is often far from sincere; and it is even made notunfrequently, with a view to the attainment of that very distinctionwhich it affects to disclaim. In some other of these instances, theover-valuation and inordinate desire of worldly credit, howeverdisavowed, are abundantly evident, from the merit which is assumed forrelinquishing them; or from that sour and surly humour, which betrays agloomy and a corroded mind, galled and fretting under the irritatingsense of the want of that which it most wishes to possess. 

But the Christian's is a far different temper: not a temper of sordidsensuality, or lazy apathy, or dogmatizing pride, or disappointedambition: more truly independent of worldly estimation than philosophywith all her boasts, it forms a perfect contrast to Epicureanselfishness, and to Stoical pride, and to Cynical brutality. It is atemper compounded of firmness, and complacency, and peace, and love; andmanifesting itself in acts of kindness and of courtesy; a kindness, notpretended but genuine; a courtesy, not false and superficial, butcordial and sincere. In the hour of popularity it is not intoxicated, orinsolent; in the hour of unpopularity, it is not desponding or morose;unshaken in constancy, unwearied in benevolence, firm without roughness, and assiduous without servility. 

Notwithstanding the great importance of the topic which we have beeninvestigating, it will require much indulgence on the part of thereader, to excuse the disproportionate length into which the discussionhas been almost insensibly drawn out: yet this, it is hoped, may not bewithout its uses, if the writer have in any degree succeeded in hisendeavour, to point out the dangerous qualities and unchristiantendencies of a principle, of such general predominance throughout thehigher classes of society, and to suggest to the serious inquirer somepractical hints for its regulation and controul. Since the principletoo, of which we have been treating, is one of the most ordinarymodifications of pride; the discussion may also serve in some degree tosupply a manifest deficiency, a deficiency to be ascribed to the fear oftrespassing too far on the reader's patience, in having but slightlytouched on the allowed prevalence of that master passion, and on theallowed neglect of its opposite, humility. 

SECTION IV. 

_The generally prevailing Error, of substituting amiable Tempers anduseful Lives in the place of Religion, stated and confuted; with Hintsto real Christians. _

There is another practical error very generally prevalent, the effectsof which are highly injurious to the cause of Religion; and which inparticular is often brought forward when, upon Christian principles, anyadvocates for Christianity would press the practice of Christianvirtues. Before we proceed, therefore, to comment upon what remains tobe discussed, of the misconceptions and defects of the bulk of professedChristians, it may not be amiss to dispose of this objection to ourwhole scheme. 

The error in question is that of exaggerating the merit of certainamiable and useful qualities, and of considering them as of themselvessufficient to compensate for the want of the supreme love and fear ofGod. 

It seems to be an opinion pretty generally prevalent, that kindness andsweetness of temper; sympathizing, and benevolent, and generousaffections; attention to what in the world's estimation are thedomestic, relative, and social duties; and above all a life of generalactivity and usefulness, may well be allowed, in our imperfect state, tomake up for the defect of what in strict propriety of speech is termedReligion. 

Many indeed will unreservedly declare, and more will hint the opinion, that "the difference between the qualities above-mentioned and Religion, is rather a verbal or logical, than a real and essential difference; forin truth what are they but Religion in substance if not in name? Is itnot the great end of Religion, and in particular the glory ofChristianity, to extinguish the malignant passions; to curb theviolence, to controul the appetites, and to smooth the asperities ofman; to make us compassionate and kind, and forgiving one to another; tomake us good husbands, good fathers, good friends, and to render usactive and useful in the discharge of the relative, social, and civilduties? We do not deny that in the general mass of society, andparticularly in the lower orders, such conduct and tempers cannot bediffused and maintained by any other medium than that of Religion. Butif the end be effected, surely it is only unnecessary refinement todispute about the means. It is even to forget your own principles; andto refuse its just place to solid practical virtue, while you assign toohigh a value to speculative opinions. "

Thus a fatal distinction is admitted between Morality and Religion: agreat and desperate error, of which it is the more necessary to takenotice; because many who would condemn, as too strong, the language inwhich this opinion is sometimes openly avowed, are yet more or lesstinctured with the notion itself; and under the habitual and almostunperceived influence of this beguiling suggestion, are vainly solacingtheir imaginations, and repressing their well-grounded fears concerning_their own_ state; and are also quieting their just solicitudeconcerning the spiritual condition of _others_, and soothing themselvesin the neglect of friendly endeavours for their improvement. 

There can hardly be a stronger proof of the cursory and superficialviews, with which men are apt to satisfy themselves in religiousconcerns, than the prevalence of the opinion here in question; thefalsehood and sophistry of which must be acknowledged by any one who, admitting the authority of Scripture, will examine it with ever solittle seriousness and impartiality of mind. 

Appealing indeed to a less strict standard, it would not be difficult toshew that the moral worth of these sweet and benevolent tempers, and ofthese useful lives, is apt to be greatly over-rated. The formerinvoluntarily gain upon our affections and disarm our severer judgments, by their kindly, complying, and apparently disinterested nature; bytheir prompting men to flatter instead of mortifying our pride, tosympathize either with our joys or our sorrows, to abound in obligingattentions and offices of courtesy; by their obvious tendency to produceand maintain harmony and comfort in social and domestic life. It is nothowever unworthy of remark, that from the commendations which are sogenerally bestowed on these qualities, and their rendering menuniversally acceptable and popular, there is many a false pretender tothem, who gains a credit for them which he by no means deserves; in whomthey are no more than the proprieties of his assumed character, or evena mask which is worn in public, only the better to conceal an oppositetemper. Would you see this man of courtesy and sweetness stripped of hisfalse covering, follow him unobserved into his family; and you shallbehold, too plain to be mistaken, selfishness and spleen harassing andvexing the wretched subjects of their unmanly tyranny; as if beingreleased at length from their confinement, they were making up tothemselves for the restraint which had been imposed on them in theworld. 

But where the benevolent qualities are genuine, they often deserve thename rather of amiable instincts, than of moral virtues. In many cases, they imply no mental conflict, no previous discipline: they are apt toevaporate in barren sensibilities, and transitory sympathies, andindolent wishes, and unproductive declarations: they possess not thatstrength and energy of character, which, in contempt of difficulties anddangers, produce alacrity in service, vigour and perseverance in action. Destitute of proper firmness, they often encourage that vice and follywhich it is their especial duty to repress; and it is well if, fromtheir soft complying humour, they are not often drawn in to participatein what is wrong, as well as to connive at it. Thus their possessorsare frequently, in the eye of truth and reason, bad magistrates, badparents, bad friends; defective in those very qualities, which give toeach of those several relations its chief and appropriate value. Andthis, let it be also observed, is a defect which might well bring intoquestion that freedom from selfishness, which is so often claimed forthem; inasmuch as there is too great reason to fear, that it oftenarises in us chiefly from indisposition to submit to a painful effort, though real good-will commands the sacrifice, or from the fear oflessening the regard in which we are held, and the good opinion which isentertained of us. 

It should farther also be observed concerning these qualities, when theyare not grounded and rooted in religion, that they are of a sickly andshort-lived nature, and want that hardy and vigorous temperament, whichis requisite for enabling them to bear without injury, or even tosurvive, the rude shocks and the variable and churlish seasons, to whichin such a world as this they must ever be exposed. It is only a_Christian_ love of which it is the character, that "it suffereth long, and yet is kind;" "that it is not easily provoked, that it beareth allthings, and endureth all things. " In the spring of youth indeed, theblood flows freely through the veins; we are flushed with health andconfidence; hope is young and ardent, our desires are unsated, andwhatever we see has the grace of novelty; we are the more disposed to begood-natured because we are pleased; pleased, because universally wellreceived. Wherever we cast our eyes, we see some face of friendship, andlove, and gratulation: All nature smiles around us. Now the amiabletempers of which we have been speaking naturally spring up. The soilsuits, the climate favours them. They appear to shoot forth vigorouslyand blossom in gay luxuriance. To the superficial eye, all is fair andflourishing; we anticipate the fruits of Autumn, and promise ourselvesan ample produce. But by and by the sun scorches, the frost nips, thewinds rise, the rains descend; our golden dreams are blasted, all ourfond expectations are no more. Our youthful efforts let it be supposedhave been successful; and we rise to wealth or eminence. A kind flexibletemper and popular manners have produced in us, as they are too apt, ayouth of easy social dissipation, and unproductive idleness; and we areovertaken too late by the consciousness of having wasted that time whichcannot be recalled, and those opportunities which we cannot now recover. We sink into disregard and obscurity when, there being a call forqualities of more energy, indolent good nature must fall back. We arethrust out of notice by accident or misfortunes. We are left behind bythose with whom we started on equal terms, and who, originally perhapshaving less pretensions and fewer advantages, have greatly outstrippedus in the race of honour: and their having got before us is often themore galling, because it appears to us, and perhaps with reason, to havebeen chiefly owing to a generous easy good-natured humour on our part, which disposed us to allow them at first to pass by us without jealousy, and led us to give place without a struggle to their more loftypretensions. Thus we suffered them quietly to occupy a station to whichoriginally we had as fair a claim as they; but, this station being oncetamely surrendered, we have forfeited it for ever. Our aukward and vainendeavours meanwhile to recover it, while they shew that we wantself-knowledge and composure in our riper years, as much as in ouryounger we had been destitute of exertion, serve only to make ourinferiority more manifest, and to bring our discontent into the fullernotice of an ill-natured world, which however not unjustly condemns andridicules our misplaced ambition. 

It may be sufficient to have hinted at a few of the vicissitudes andchanges of advancing life; let the reader's own mind fill up thecatalogue. Now the bosom is no longer cheerful and placid; and if thecountenance preserve its exterior character, this is no longer thehonest expression of the heart. Prosperity and luxury, graduallyextinguishing sympathy, and puffing up with pride, harden and debase thesoul. In other instances, shame secretly clouds, and remorse begins tosting, and suspicion to corrode, and jealousy and envy to embitter. Disappointed hopes, unsuccessful competitions, and frustrated pursuits, sour and irritate the temper. A little personal experience of theselfishness of mankind, damps our generous warmth and kind affections;reproving the prompt sensibility and unsuspecting simplicity of ourearlier years. Above all, ingratitude sickens the heart, and chills andthickens the very life's-blood of benevolence: till at length ouryouthful Nero, soft and susceptible, becomes a hard and cruel tyrant;and our youthful Timon, the gay, the generous, the beneficent, ischanged into a cold, sour, silent misanthrope. 

And as in the case of amiable tempers, so in that also of what arecalled useful lives, it must be confessed that their intrinsic worth, arguing still merely on principles of reason, is apt to be greatlyover-rated. They are often the result of a disposition naturallybustling and active, which delights in motion, and finds its labour morethan repaid, either by the very pleasure which it takes in itsemployments, or by the credit which it derives from them. More thanthis; if it be granted that Religion tends in general to produceusefulness, particularly in the lower orders, who compose a vastmajority of every society; and therefore that these irreligious men ofuseful lives are rather exceptions to the general rule; it must at leastbe confessed that they are so far useless, or even positivelymischievous, as they either neglect to encourage or actually discouragethat principle, which is the great operative spring of usefulness in thebulk of mankind. 

Thus it might well perhaps be questioned, estimating these men by theirown standard, whether the _particular_ good in this case, is not morethan counterbalanced by the _general_ evil; still more, if their conductbeing brought to a strict account, they should be charged, as theyjustly ought, with the loss of the good which, if they had manifestlyand avowedly acted from a higher principle, might have been produced, not only directly in themselves, but indirectly and remotely in others, from the extended efficacy of a religious example. They may be compared, not unaptly, to persons whom some peculiarity of constitution enables toset at defiance those established rules of living, which must beobserved by the world at large. These healthy debauchees, however theymay plead in their defence that they do themselves no injury, wouldprobably, but for their excesses, have both enjoyed their healthbetter, and preserved it longer, as well as have turned it to betteraccount; and it may at least be urged against them, that they disparagethe laws of temperance, and fatally betray others into the breach ofthem, by affording an instance of their being transgressed withimpunity. 

But were the merit of the qualities in question greater than it is, andthough it were not liable to the exceptions which have been allegedagainst it, yet could they be in no degree admitted, as a compensationfor the want of the supreme love and fear of God, and of a predominantdesire to promote his glory. The observance of one commandment, howeverclearly and forcibly enjoined, cannot make up for the neglect ofanother, which is enjoined with equal clearness and equal force. Toallow this plea in the present instance, would be to permit men toabrogate the first table of the law on condition of their obeying thesecond. But Religion suffers not any such _composition_ of duties. It ison the very self same miserable principle, that some have thought toatone for a life of injustice and rapine by the strictness of theirreligious observances. If the former class of men can plead the diligentdischarge of their duties to their fellow-creatures, the latter willurge that of their's to God. We easily see the falsehood of the plea inthe latter case; and it is only self deceit and partiality which preventits being equally visible in the former. Yet so it is; such is theunequal measure, if I may be allowed the expression, which we deal outto God, and to each other. It would justly and universally be thoughtfalse confidence in the religious thief or the religious adulterer, (toadmit for the sake of argument such a solecism in terms) to solacehimself with the firm persuasion of the Divine favour: but it will, tomany, appear hard and precise, to deny this firm persuasion of Divineapprobation to the avowedly irreligious man of social and domesticusefulness. 

Will it here be urged, that the writer is not doing justice to hisopponent's argument; which is not, that irreligious men of useful livesmay be excused for neglecting their duties towards God, in considerationof their exemplary discharge of their duties towards theirfellow-creatures; but that in performing the latter they perform theformer _virtually_, and _substantially_, if not in name?

Can then our opponent deny, that the Holy Scriptures are in nothing morefull, frequent, strong, and unequivocal, than in their injunctions on ussupremely to love and fear God, and to worship and serve him continuallywith humble and grateful hearts; habitually regarding him as ourBenefactor, and Sovereign, and Father, and abounding in sentiments ofgratitude and loyalty, and respectful affection? Can he deny that thesepositive precepts are rendered, if possible, still more clear, and theirauthority still more binding, by illustrations and indirectconfirmations almost innumerable? And who then is that bold intruderinto the counsels of infinite wisdom, who, in palpable contempt of theseprecise commands, thus illustrated also and confirmed, will dare tomaintain that, knowing the intention with which they were primarilygiven and the ends they were ultimately designed to produce, he mayinnocently neglect or violate their plain obligations; on the plea thathe conforms himself, though in a different manner, to this primaryintention, and produces, though by different means, these real andultimate ends?

This mode of arguing is one, with which, to say nothing of its insolentprophaneness, the heart of man, prone to deceive himself and partial inhis own cause, is not fit to be trusted. Here again, more cautious andjealous in the case of our worldly, than of our religious interests, wereadily discern the fallacy of this reasoning and protest against it, when it is attempted to be introduced into the commerce of life. We seeclearly that it would afford the means of refining away by turns everymoral obligation. The adulterer might allow himself with a goodconscience, to violate the bed of his unsuspecting friend, whenever hecould assure himself that his crime would escape detection; for then, where would be the evil and misery, the prevention of which was the realultimate object of the prohibition of adultery? The thief, in likemanner, and even the murderer, might find abundant room for the_innocent_ exercise of their respective occupations, arguing from theprimary intention and real objects of the commands, by which theft andmurder were forbidden. There perhaps exists not a crime, to which thiscrooked morality would not furnish some convenient opening. 

But this miserable sophistry deserves not that we should spend so muchtime in the refutation of it. To discern its fallaciousness, requiresnot acuteness of understanding, so much as a little common honesty. "There is indeed no surer mark of a false and hollow heart, than adisposition thus to quibble away the clear injunctions of duty andconscience[81]:" It is the wretched resource of a disingenuous mind, endeavouring to escape from convictions before which it cannot stand, and to evade obligations which it dares not disavow. 

The arguments which have been adduced would surely be sufficient todisprove the extravagant pretensions of the qualities underconsideration, though those qualities were _perfect_ in their _nature_. But they are not perfect. On the contrary, they are radically defectiveand corrupt; they are a body without a soul; they want the vitalactuating principle, or rather they are animated and actuated by a falseone. Christianity, let me avail myself of the very words of a friend[82]in maintaining her argument, is "a Religion of Motives. " _That_ only isChristian practice, which flows from Christian principles; and none elsewill be admitted as such by Him, who will be obeyed as well asworshipped "in spirit and in truth. "

This also is a position of which, in our intercourse with ourfellow-creatures, we clearly discern the justice, and universally admitthe force. Though we have received a benefit at the hands of any one, wescarcely feel grateful, if we do not believe the intention towards us tohave been friendly. Have we served any one from motives of kindness, andis a return of service made to us? We hardly feel ourselves worthilyrequited, except that return be dictated by gratitude. We should thinkourselves rather injured than obliged by it, if it were merely promptedby a proud unwillingness to continue in our debt[83]. What husband, orwhat father, not absolutely dead to every generous feeling, would besatisfied with a wife or a child; who, though he could not charge themwith any actual breach of their respective obligations, should yetconfessedly perform them from a cold sense of duty, in place of thequickening energies of conjugal, and filial affection? What an insultwould it be to such an one, to tell him gravely that he had no reason tocomplain!

The unfairness, with which we suffer ourselves to reason in matters ofReligion, is no where more striking than in the instance before us. Itwere perhaps not unnatural to suppose that, as we cannot see into eachother's bosoms, and have no sure way of judging any one's internalprinciples but by his external actions, it would have grown into anestablished rule, that when the latter were unobjectionable, the formerwere not to be questioned; and on the other hand, that in reference to aBeing who searches the heart, our motives, rather than our externalactions, would be granted to be the just objects of inquiry. But weexactly reverse these natural principles of reasoning. In the case ofour fellow-creatures, the motive is that which we principally inquireafter and regard. But in the case of our Supreme Judge, from whom nosecrets are hid, we suffer ourselves to believe that internal principlesmay be dispensed with, if the external action be performed!

Let us not however be supposed ready to concede, in contradiction towhat has been formerly contended, that where the true motive is wanting, the external actions themselves will not generally betray the defect. Who is there that will not confess in the instance so lately put, of awife and a child who should discharge their respective obligationsmerely from a cold sense of duty, that the inferiority of theiractuating principle would not be confined to its _nature_, but would bediscoverable also in its _effects_? Who is there that does not feel thatthese domestic services, thus robbed of their vital spirit, would be sodebased and degraded in our estimation, as to become not barely lifelessand uninteresting, but even distasteful and loathsome? Who will denythat these would be performed in fuller measure, with more wakeful andunwearied attention, as well as with more _heart_; where with the samesense of duty the enlivening principle of affection should be alsoassociated?

The enemies of Religion are sometimes apt to compare the irreligiousman, of a temper naturally sweet and amiable, with the religious man ofnatural roughness and severity; the irreligious man of natural activity, with the religious man who is naturally indolent; and thence to drawtheir inferences. But this mode of reasoning is surely unjust. If theywould argue the question fairly, they should make their comparisonsbetween persons of similar natural qualities, and not in one or twoexamples, but in a mass of instances. They would then be compelled toconfess the efficacy of Religion, in heightening the benevolence andincreasing the usefulness of men: and to admit that, granting theoccasional but rare existence of genuine and persevering benevolence ofdisposition and usefulness of life, where the religious principle iswanting; yet that experience gives us reason to believe, that trueReligion, while it would have implanted these qualities in persons inwhom before they had no place, would in general have given, to thesevery characters in whom they do exist, additional force in the samedirection. It would have rendered the amiable more amiable, the usefulmore useful, with fewer inconsistencies, with less abatement. 

Let _true Christians_ meanwhile be ever mindful, that _they_ are loudlycalled upon to make this argument still more clear, these positionsstill less questionable. You are every where commanded to be tender andsympathetic, diligent and useful; and it is the character of that"wisdom from above, " in which you are to be proficients, that it "isgentle and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits. " Couldthe efficacy of Christianity in softening the heart be denied by those, who saw in the instance of the great Apostle of the Gentiles, that itwas able to transform a bigotted, furious, and cruel persecutor, into analmost unequalled example of candour, and gentleness, and universaltenderness and love? Could its spirit of active beneficence be denied bythose, who saw its Divine Author so diligent and unwearied in hisbenevolent labours, as to justify the compendious description which wasgiven of him by a personal witness of his exertions, that he "went aboutdoing good?" Imitate these blessed examples: so shall you vindicate thehonour of your profession, and "put to silence the ignorance of foolishmen:" so shall you obey those Divine injunctions of adorning thedoctrine of Christ, and of "letting your light shine before men, thatthey may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is inheaven. " Beat the world at its own best weapons. Let your love be moreaffectionate, your mildness less open to irritation, your diligence morelaborious, your activity more wakeful and persevering. Considersweetness of temper and activity of mind, if they naturally belong toyou, as talents of special worth and utility, for which you will have togive account. Carefully watch against whatever might impair them, cherish them with constant assiduity, keep them in continual exercise, and direct them to their noblest ends. The latter of these qualitiesrenders it less difficult, and therefore more incumbent on you, to beever abounding in the work of the Lord; and to be copious in theproduction of that species of good fruit, of which mankind in generalwill be most ready to allow the excellence, because they best understandits nature. In _your_ instance, the solid substance of Christianpractice is easily susceptible of that high and beautiful polish, whichmay attract the attention, and extort the admiration of a careless andundiscerning world, so slow to notice, and so backward to acknowledge, intrinsic worth, when concealed under a less sightly exterior. Knowthen, and value as ye ought, the honourable office which is especiallydevolved on you. Let it be your acceptable service to recommend thediscredited cause, and sustain the fainting interests of Religion, tofurnish to her friends matter of sound and obvious argument, and ofhonest triumph; and if your best endeavours cannot conciliate, to refuteat least, and confound her enemies. 

If on the other hand, you are conscious that you are naturally rough andaustere, that disappointments have soured, or prosperity has elated you, or that habits of command have rendered you quick in expression, andimpatient of contradiction; or if, from whatever other cause, you havecontracted an unhappy peevishness of temper, or asperity of manners, orharshness and severity of language, (remember that these defects are byno means incompatible with an aptness to perform services of substantialkindness); if nature has been confirmed by habit till at length yoursoul seems thoroughly tinctured with these evil dispositions, yet do notdespair. Remember that the Divine Agency is promised, "to take away theheart of stone, and give a heart of flesh, " of which it is the naturalproperty to be tender and susceptible. Pray then earnestly andperseveringly, that the blessed aid of Divine Grace may operateeffectually on your behalf. Beware of acquiescing in the evil tempers inquestion, under the idea that they are the ordinary imperfections of thebest of men; that they shew themselves only in little instances; thatthey are only occasional, hasty, and transient effusions, when you aretaken off your guard; the passing shade of your mind, and not thesettled colour. Beware of excusing or allowing them in yourself, underthe notion of warm zeal for the cause of Religion and virtue, which youperhaps own is now and then apt to carry you into somewhat over-greatseverity of judgment, or sharpness in reproof. Listen not to these, orany other such flattering excuses, which your own heart will be but tooready to suggest to you. Scrutinize yourself rather with rigorousstrictness; and where there is so much room for self-deceit, call in theaid of some faithful friend, and unbosoming yourself to him withoutconcealment, ask his impartial and unreserved opinion of your behaviourand condition. Our unwillingness to do this, often betrays to others, (not seldom it first discovers to ourselves) that we entertain a secretdistrust of our own character and conduct. Instead also of extenuatingto yourself the criminality of the vicious tempers under consideration, strive to impress your mind deeply with a sense of it. For this end, often consider seriously, that these rough and churlish tempers are adirect contrast to the "meekness and gentleness of Christ;" and thatChristians are strongly and repeatedly enjoined to copy after theirgreat Model in these particulars, and to be themselves patterns of"mercy and kindness, and humbleness of mind, and meekness, and longsuffering. " They are to "put away all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, " not only "being ready to every goodwork, but being _gentle_ unto _all_ men, " "shewing _all_ meekness unto_all_ men, " "forbearing, forgiving, " tender hearted. Remember theApostle's declaration, that "if any man bridleth not his tongue, he onlyseemeth to be religious, and deceiveth his own heart;" and that it isone of the characters of that love, without which all pretensions to thename of Christian are but vain, that "it doth not behave itselfunseemly. " Consider how much these acrimonious tempers must break inupon the peace, and destroy the comfort, of those around you. Rememberalso that the honour of your Christian profession is at stake, and besolicitous not to discredit it: justly dreading lest you should disgustthose whom you ought to conciliate; and by conveying an unfavourableimpression of your principles and character, should incur the guilt ofputting an "offence in your brother's way;" thereby "hindering theGospel of Christ, " the advancement of which should be your daily andassiduous care. 

Thus having come to the full knowledge of your disease, and to a justimpression of its malignity, strive against it with incessantwatchfulness. Guard with the most jealous circumspection against itsbreaking forth into act. Force yourself to abound in little offices ofcourtesy and kindness; and you shall gradually experience in theperformance of these a pleasure hitherto unknown, and awaken in yourselfthe dormant principles of sensibility. But take not up with externalamendment; guard against a false shew of sweetness of disposition; andremember that the Christian is not to be satisfied with the world'ssuperficial courtliness of demeanor, but that his "Love is to be withoutdissimulation. " Examine carefully, whether the unchristian tempers, which you would eradicate, are not maintained in vigour by selfishnessand pride; and strive to subdue them effectually, by extirpating theroots from which they derive their nutriment. Accustom yourself toendeavour to look attentively upon a careless and inconsiderate world, which, while it is in such imminent peril, is so ignorant of its danger. Dwell upon this affecting scene, till it has excited your pity; and thispity, while it melts the mind to Christian love, shall insensiblyproduce a temper of habitual sympathy and softness. By means like these, perseveringly used in constant dependence on Divine aid, you mayconfidentially hope to make continual progress. Among men of the world, a youth of softness and sweetness will often, as we formerly remarked, harden into insensibility, and sharpen into moroseness. But it is theoffice of Christianity to reverse this order. It is pleasing to witnessthis blessed renovation: to see, as life advances, asperities graduallysmoothing down, and roughnesses mellowing away: while the subject ofthis happy change experiences within, increasing measures of the comfortwhich he diffuses around him; and feeling the genial influences of thatheavenly flame which can thus give life, and warmth, and action, to whathad been hitherto rigid and insensible, looks up with gratitude to himwho has shed abroad this principle of love in his heart;

 Miraturque novas frondes et non sua poma. 

Let it not be thought that in the foregoing discussion, the amiable anduseful qualities, where they are not prompted and governed by aprinciple of religion, have been spoken of in too disparaging terms. Norwould I be understood as unwilling to concede to those who are living inthe exercise of them, their proper tribute of commendation: Inest suagratia. Of such persons it must be said, in the language of scripture, "they have their reward. " They have it in the inward complacency, whicha sweet temper seldom fails to inspire; in the comforts of the domesticor social circle; in the pleasure which from the constitution of ournature accompanies pursuit and action. They are always beloved inprivate, and generally respected in public life. But when devoid ofReligion, if the word of God be not a fable, "they cannot enter into thekingdom of Heaven. " True practical Christianity (never let it beforgotten) consists in devoting the heart and life to God; in beingsupremely and habitually governed by a desire to know, and a dispositionto fulfil his will, and in endeavouring under the influence of _thesemotives_ to "live to his glory. " Where these essential requisites arewanting, however amiable the character may be, however creditable andrespectable among men; yet as it possesses not the grand distinguishingessence, it must not be complimented with the name, of Christianity. This however, when the external decorums of Religion are not violated, must commonly be a matter between God and a man's own conscience; and weought never to forget how strongly we are enjoined to be candid andliberal in judging of the motives of others, while we are strict inscrutinizing and severe in questioning our own. And this strict scrutinyis no where more necessary, because there is no where more room for theoperation of self-deceit. We are all extremely prone to lend ourselvesto the good opinion which, however falsely, is entertained of us byothers; and though we at first confusedly suspect, or even indubitablyknow, that their esteem is unfounded, and their praises undeserved, andthat they would have thought and spoken of us very differently, if theyhad discerned our secret motives, or had been accurately acquainted withall the circumstances of our conduct; we gradually suffer ourselves toadopt their judgment of us, and at length feel that we are in some sortinjured or denied our due, when these false commendations arecontradicted or withheld. Without the most constant watchfulness, andthe most close and impartial self-examination, irreligious people ofamiable tempers, and still more those of useful lives, from the generalpopularity of their character, will be particularly liable to become thedupes of this propensity. Nor is it they only who have here need to beon their guard: men of real religion will also do well to watch againstthis delusion. There is however another danger to which these are stillmore exposed, and against which it is the rather necessary to warn them, because of our having insisted so strongly on their being bound to bediligent in the discharge of the active duties of life. In theirendeavours to fulfil this obligation, let them specially beware, lestsetting out on right principles, they insensibly lose them in the courseof their progress; lest engaging originally in the business and bustleof the world, from a sincere and earnest desire to promote the glory ofGod, their minds should become so heated and absorbed in the pursuit oftheir object, as that the true motive of action should either altogethercease to be an habitual principle, or should at least lose much of itslife and vigour; lest their thoughts and affections being engrossed bytemporal concerns, their sense of the reality of "unseen things" shouldfade away, and they should lose their relish for the employments andoffices of Religion. 

The Christian's path is beset with dangers--On the one hand, he justlydreads an inactive and unprofitable life; on the other, he no lessjustly trembles for the loss of that spiritual-mindedness, which is thevery essence and power of his profession. This is not quite the placefor the full discussion of the difficult topic here in question: and ifit were, the writer of these sheets is too conscious of his ownincompetencies, not to be desirous of asking rather than of givingadvice respecting it. Yet, as it is a matter which has often engaged hismost serious consideration, and has been the frequent subject of hisanxious inquiry into the writings and opinions of far betterinstructors, he will venture to deliver a few words on it, offeringthem with unaffected diffidence. 

Does then the Christian discover in himself, judging not from accidentaland occasional feelings, on which little stress is either way to belaid, but from the permanent and habitual temper of his mind, a settled, and still more a growing, coldness and indisposition towards theconsiderations and offices of Religion? And has he reason to apprehendthat this coldness and indisposition are owing to his being engaged toomuch or too earnestly in worldly business, or to his being too keen inthe pursuit of worldly objects? Let him carefully examine the state ofhis own heart, and seriously and impartially survey the circumstances ofhis situation in life; humbly praying to the Father of light and mercy, that he may be enabled to see his way clearly in this difficultemergency. If he finds himself pursuing wealth, or dignity, orreputation, with earnestness and solicitude; if these things engage manyof his thoughts; if his mind naturally and inadvertently runs out intocontemplations of them; if success in these respects greatly gladdens, and disappointments dispirit and distress his mind; he has but too plaingrounds for self-condemnation. "No man can serve two masters. " The worldis evidently in possession of his heart, and it is no wonder that hefinds himself dull, or rather dead, to the impression and enjoyment ofspiritual things. 

But though the marks of predominant estimation and regard for earthlythings be much less clear and determinate; yet if the object which he ispursuing be one which, by its attainment, would bring him a considerableaccession of riches, station, or honour, let him soberly and fairlyquestion and examine whether the pursuit be warrantable? here also, asking the advice of some judicious friend; his backwardness to dowhich, in instances like these, should justly lead him, as was beforeremarked, to distrust the reasonableness of the schemes which he isprosecuting. In such a case as this, we have good cause to distrustourselves. Though the inward hope, that we are chiefly prompted by adesire to promote the glory of our Maker, and the happiness of ourfellow-creatures, by increasing our means of usefulness, may suggestitself to allay, yet let it not altogether remove, our suspicions. It isnot improbable, that beneath this plausible mask we conceal, moresuccessfully perhaps from ourselves than from others, an inordinateattachment to the pomps and transitory distinctions of this life; and asthis attachment gains the ascendency, it will ever be found, that ourperception and feeling of the supreme excellence of heavenly things willproportionably subside. 

But when the consequences which would follow from the success of ourworldly pursuits do not render them so questionable, as in the case wehave been just considering; yet, having such good reason to believe thatthere is somewhere a flaw, could we but discover it, let us carefullyscrutinize the whole of our conduct, taking that word in its largestsense; in order to discover whether we may not be living either in thebreach or in the omission of some known duty, and whether it may nottherefore have pleased God to withdraw from us the influence of his HolySpirit; particularly inquiring, whether the duties of self-examination, of secret and public prayer, the reading of the Holy Scriptures, andthe other prescribed means of Grace, have not been either whollyintermitted at their proper seasons, or at least been performed withprecipitation or distraction? And if we find reason to believe, that theallotment of time, which it would be most for our spiritual improvementto assign to our religious offices, is often broken in upon andcurtailed; let us be extremely backward to admit excuses for suchinterruptions and abridgments. It is more than probable, for manyobvious reasons, that even our worldly affairs themselves will not onthe long run, go on the better for encroaching upon those hours, whichought to be dedicated to the more immediate service of God, and to thecultivation of the inward principles of Religion. Our hearts at leastand our conduct will soon exhibit proofs of the sad effects of thisfatal negligence. They who in a crazy vessel navigate a sea wherein areshoals and currents innumerable, if they would keep their course orreach their port in safety, must carefully repair the smallest injuries, and often throw out their line and take their observations. In thevoyage of life also the Christian who would not make shipwreck of hisfaith, while he is habitually watchful and provident, must often make ithis express business to look into his state, and ascertain his progress. 

But to resume my subject; let us when engaged in this importantscrutiny, impartially examine ourselves whether the worldly objectswhich engross us, are all of them such as properly belong to ourprofession, or station, or circumstances in life; which therefore wecould not neglect with a good conscience? If they be, let us considerwhether they do not consume a larger share of our time than they reallyrequire; and whether, by not trifling over our work, by deductingsomewhat which might be spared from our hours of relaxation, or by someother little management, we might not fully satisfy their just claims, and yet have an increased overplus of leisure, to be devoted to theoffices of Religion. 

But if we deliberately and honestly conclude that we ought not to givethese worldly objects less of our _time_, let us endeavour at least togive them less of our _hearts_: striving that the settled frame of our_desires_ and affections may be more spiritual; and that in the motleyintercourses of life we may constantly retain a more lively sense of theDivine presence, and a stronger impression of the reality of unseenthings; thus corresponding with the Scripture description of trueChristians, "walking by faith and not by sight, and having ourconversation in Heaven. "

Above all, let us guard against the temptation, to which we shallcertainly be exposed, of lowering down our views to our state, insteadof endeavouring to rise to the level of our views. Let us ratherdetermine to know the worst of our case, and strive to be suitablyaffected with it; not forward to speak peace to ourselves, but patientlycarrying about with us a deep conviction of our backwardness andinaptitude to religious duties, and a just sense of our great weaknessand numerous infirmities. This cannot be an unbecoming temper, in thosewho are commanded to "work out their salvation with fear and trembling. "It prompts to constant and earnest prayer. It produces that sobriety, and lowliness and tenderness of mind, that meekness of demeanor andcircumspection in conduct, which are such eminent characteristics ofthe true Christian. 

Nor is it a state devoid of consolation--"O tarry thou the Lord'sleisure, be strong and he shall comfort thy heart. "--"They that wait onthe Lord, shall renew their strength. "--"Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. " These Divine assurances sooth andencourage the Christian's disturbed and dejected mind, and insensiblydiffuse a holy composure. The tint may be solemn, nay even melancholy, but it is mild and grateful. The tumult of his soul has subsided, and heis possessed by complacency, and hope, and love. If a sense ofundeserved kindness fill his eyes with tears, they are tears ofreconciliation and joy: while a generous ardour springing up within himsends him forth to his worldly labours "fervent in spirit;" resolvingthrough the Divine aid to be henceforth more diligent and exemplary inliving to the Glory of God, and longing meanwhile for that blessed time, when, "being freed from the bondage of corruption, " he shall be enabledto render to his Heavenly Benefactor more pure and acceptable service. 

After having discussed so much at large the whole question concerningamiable tempers in general, it may be scarcely necessary to dwell uponthat particular class of them which belongs to the head of generousemotions, or of exquisite sensibility. To these almost all which hasbeen said above is strictly applicable; to which it may be added, thatthe persons in whom the latter qualities most abound, are often far fromconducing to the peace and comfort of their nearest connections. Thesequalities indeed may be rendered highly useful instruments, whenenlisted into the service of Religion. But we ought to except againstthem the more strongly, when not under her controul; because there isstill greater danger than in the former case, that persons in whom theyabound, may be flattered into a false opinion of themselves by theexcessive commendations often paid to them by others, and by thebeguiling complacencies of their own minds, which are apt to be puffedup with a proud though secret consciousness of their own superioracuteness and sensibility. But it is the less requisite to enlarge onthis topic, because it has been well discussed by many, who haveunfolded the real nature of those fascinating qualities; who have wellremarked, that though shewy and apt to catch the eye, they are of aflimsy and perishable fabric, not of that less gaudy but moresubstantial and durable texture, which, imparting permanent warmth andcomfort, will long preserve its more sober honours, and stand the wearand tear of life, and the vicissitudes of seasons. It has been shewn, that these qualities often fail us when most we want their aid; thattheir possessors can solace themselves with their imaginary exertions inbehalf of ideal misery, and yet shrink from the labours of activebenevolence, or retire with disgust from the homely forms of realpoverty and wretchedness. In fine, the superiority of true Christiancharity and of plain practical beneficence has been ably vindicated; andthe school of Rousseau has been forced to yield to the school of Christ, when the question has been concerning the best means of promoting thecomfort of family life, or the temporal well-being of society[84]. 

SECTION V. 

_Some other grand defects in the practical system of the Bulk of nominalChristians. _

In the imperfect sketch which has been drawn of the Religion of the bulkof nominal Christians, their fundamental error respecting the essentialnature of Christianity has been discussed, and traced into some of itsmany mischievous consequences. Several of their particularmisconceptions and allowed defects have also been pointed out andillustrated. It may not be improper to close the survey by noticingsome others, for the existence of which we may now appeal to almostevery part of the preceding delineation. 

In the first place, then, there appears throughout, both in theprinciples and allowed conduct of the bulk of nominal Christians, a mostinadequate idea of the _guilt and evil of sin_. We every where findreason to remark, that, as was formerly observed, Religion is sufferedto dwindle away into a mere matter of _police_. Hence the guilt ofactions is estimated, not by the proportion in which, according toScripture, they are offensive to God, but by that in which they areinjurious to society. Murder, theft, fraud in all its shapes, and somespecies of lying, are manifestly, and in an eminent degree, injurious tosocial happiness. How different accordingly, in the moral scale, is theplace they hold, from that which is assigned to idolatry, to generalirreligion, to swearing, drinking, fornication, lasciviousness, sensuality, excessive dissipation; and in particular circumstances, topride, wrath, malice, and revenge!

Indeed, several of the above-mentioned vices are held to be grosslycriminal in the lower ranks, because manifestly ruinous to theirtemporal interests: but in the higher, they are represented as "losinghalf their evil by losing all their grossness, " as flowing naturallyfrom great prosperity, from the excess of gaiety and good humour; andthey are accordingly "regarded with but a small degree ofdisapprobation, and censured very slightly or not at all[85]. "--"Nonmeus hic sermo est. " These are the remarks of authors, who havesurveyed the stage of human life with more than ordinary observation;one of whom in particular cannot be suspected of having been misled byreligious prejudices, to form a judgment of the superior orders toounfavourable and severe. 

Will these positions however be denied? Will it be maintained that thereis not the difference already stated, in the moral estimation of thesedifferent classes of vices? Will it be said, that the one class isindeed more generally restrained, and more severely punished by humanlaws, because more properly cognizable by human judicatures, and moredirectly at war with the well-being of society; but that when broughtbefore the tribunal of internal opinion they are condemned with equalrigour?

Facts may be denied, and charges laughed out of countenance: but wherethe general sentiment and feeling of mankind are in question, our commonlanguage is often the clearest and most impartial witness; and theconclusions thus furnished, are not to be parried by wit, or eluded bysophistry. In the present case, our ordinary modes of speech furnishsufficient matter for the determination of the argument; and abundantlyprove our disposition to consider as matters of small account, such sinsas are not held to be injurious to the community. We invent for themdiminutive and qualifying terms, which, if not, as in the common uses oflanguage[86], to be admitted as signs of approbation and good will, mustat least be confessed to be proofs of our tendency to regard them withpalliation and indulgence. Free-thinking, gallantry, jollity[87], and athousand similar phrases might be adduced as instances. But it is worthyof remark, that no such soft and qualifying terms are in use, forexpressing the smaller degrees of theft, or fraud, or forgery, or anyother of those offences, which are committed by men against theirfellow-creatures, and in the suppression of which we are interested byour regard to our temporal concerns. 

The charge which we are urging is indeed undeniable. In the case of anyquestion of honour, or of moral honesty, we are sagacious in discerningand inexorable in judging the offence. No allowance is made for thesuddenness of surprise, or the strength of temptations. One singlefailure is presumed to imply the absence of the moral or honourableprinciple. The memory is retentive on these occasions, and the man'scharacter is blasted for life. Here, even the mere suspicion of havingonce offended can scarcely be got over: "There is an aukward story aboutthat man, which must be explained before he and I can becomeacquainted. " But in the case of sins against God, there is no suchwatchful jealousy, none of this rigorous logic. A man may go on in thefrequent commission of known sins, yet no such inference is drawnrespecting the absence of the religious principle. On the contrary, wesay of him, that "though his _conduct_ be a little incorrect, his_principles_ are untouched;"--that he has _a good heart_: and such a manmay go quietly through life, with the titles of a _mighty worthycreature_, and a _very good Christian_. 

But in the Word of God actions are estimated by a far less accommodatingstandard. There we read of no little sins. Much of our Saviour's sermonon the mount, which many of the class we are condemning affect highly toadmire, is expressly pointed against so dangerous a misconception. _There_, no such distinction is made between the rich and the poor. Nonotices are to be traced of one scale of morals for the higher, and ofanother for the lower classes of society. Nay, the former are expresslyguarded against any such vain imagination; and are distinctly warned, that their condition in life is the more dangerous, because of the moreabundant temptations to which it exposes them. Idolatry, fornication, lasciviousness, drunkenness, revellings, inordinate affection, are, bythe apostle likewise classed with theft and murder, and with what wehold in even still greater abomination; and concerning them all it ispronounced alike, that "they which do such things shall not inherit thekingdom of God[88]. "

In truth, the instance which we have lately specified, of the loosesystem of these nominal Christians, betrays a fatal absence of theprinciple which is the very foundation of all Religion. Their slightnotions of the guilt and evil of sin discover an utter want of allsuitable reverence for the Divine Majesty. This principle is justlytermed in Scripture, "the beginning of wisdom, " and there is perhaps noone quality which it is so much the studious endeavour of the sacredwriters to impress upon the human heart[89]. 

Sin is considered in Scripture as rebellion against the sovereignty ofGod, and every different act of it equally violates his law, and, ifpersevered in, disclaims his supremacy. To the inconsiderate and the gaythis doctrine may seem harsh, while, vainly fluttering in the sunshineof worldly prosperity, they lull themselves into a fond security. "Butthe day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which theHeavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall meltwith fervent heat; the earth also and the works that are therein shallbe burnt up"--"Seeing then, that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought we to be in all holy conversation andGodliness?"[90] We are but an atom in the universe. --Worlds upon worldssurround us, all probably full of intelligent creatures, to whom, now orhereafter, we may be a spectacle, and afford an example of the Divineprocedure. Who then shall take upon him to pronounce what might be theissue, if sin were suffered to pass unpunished in one corner of thisuniversal empire? Who shall say what confusion might be the consequence, what disorder it might spread through the creation of God? Be thishowever as it may, the language of Scripture is clear anddecisive;--"The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the peoplethat forget God. "

It should be carefully observed too, that these awful denunciations ofthe future punishment of sin derive additional weight from thisconsideration, that they are represented, not merely as a judicialsentence which, without violence to the settled order of things, mightbe remitted through the mere mercy of our Almighty Governor, but asarising out of the established course of nature; as happening in the wayof natural consequence, just as a cause is necessarily connected withits effect; as resulting from certain connections and relations whichrendered them suitable and becoming. It is stated, that the kingdom ofGod and the kingdom of Satan are both set up in the world, and that tothe one or the other of these we must belong. "The righteous have_passed_ from death unto life"--"they are delivered from the power ofdarkness, and are translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son[91]. "They are become "the children, " and "the subjects of God. " While onearth, they love his day, his service, his people; they "speak good ofhis name;" they abound in his works. Even here they are in some degreepossessed of his image, by and by it shall be perfected; they shallawake up after his "likeness, " and being "heirs of eternal life, " theyshall receive "an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and thatfadeth not away. "

Of sinners, on the other hand, it is declared, that "they are of theirfather the devil;" while on earth, they are styled "his children, " "hisservants;" they are said "to do his works, " "to hold of his side, " tobe, "subjects of his kingdom:" at length "they shall partake hisportion, " when the merciful Saviour shall be changed into an avengingJudge, and shall pronounce that dreadful sentence, "depart from me, yecursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels. "

Is it possible that these declarations should not strike terror, or atleast excite serious and fearful apprehension in the lightest and mostinconsiderate mind? But the imaginations of men are fatally prone tosuggest to them fallacious hopes in the very face of these positivedeclarations. "We cannot persuade ourselves that God will in fact proveso severe. " It was the very delusion to which our first parentslistened; "Ye shall not surely die. "

Let me ask these rash men, who are thus disposed to trifle with theirimmortal interests, had they lived in the antediluvian world, would theyhave conceived it possible that God would then execute his predictedthreatening? Yet the event took place at the appointed time; the floodcame and swept them all away: and this awful instance of the anger ofGod against sin is related in the inspired writings for our instruction. Still more to rouse us to attention, the record is impressed inindelible characters on the solid substance of the very globe weinhabit; which thus, in every country upon earth, furnishes practicalattestations to the truth of the sacred writings, and to the actualaccomplishment of their awful predictions. For myself I must declare, that I never can read without awe the passage, in which our Saviour isspeaking of the state of the world at the time of this memorable event. The wickedness of men is represented to have been great and prevalent;yet not as we are ready to conceive, such as to interrupt the course, and shake the very frame of society. The general face of things was, perhaps, not very different from that which is exhibited in many of theEuropean nations. It was a selfish, a luxurious, an irreligious, and aninconsiderate world. They were called, but they would not hearken; theywere warned, but they would not believe--"They did eat, they drank, theymarried wives, they were given in marriage:" such is the account of oneof the Evangelists; in that of another it is stated nearly in the samewords; "They were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, and knew not until the flood came and swept them all away. "

Again, we see throughout, in the system which we have been describing amost inadequate conception of the difficulty of becoming trueChristians; and an utter forgetfulness of its being the great businessof life to secure our admission into Heaven, and to prepare our heartsfor its service and enjoyments. The general notion appears to be, that, if born in a country of which Christianity is the established religion, we are born Christians. We do not therefore look out for positiveevidence of our really being of that number; but putting the _onusprobandi_, (if it may be so expressed) on the wrong side, we conceiveourselves such _of course_, except our title be disproved by positiveevidence to the contrary. And we are so slow in giving ear to whatconscience urges to us on this side; so dexterous in justifying what isclearly wrong, in palliating what we cannot justify, in magnifying themerit of what is fairly commendable, in flattering ourselves that ourhabits of vice are only occasional acts, and in multiplying our singleacts into habits of virtue, that we must be bad indeed, to be compelledto give a verdict against ourselves. Besides, having no suspicion of ourstate, we do not set ourselves in earnest to the work ofself-examination; but only receive in a confused and hasty way someoccasional notices of our danger, when sickness, or the loss of afriend, or the recent commission of some act of vice of greater sizethan ordinary, has awakened in our consciences a more than usual degreeof sensibility. 

Thus, by the generality, it is altogether forgotten, that the Christianhas a great work to execute; that of forming himself after the patternof his Lord and Master, through the operation of the Holy Spirit of God, which is promised to our fervent prayers and diligent endeavours. Unconscious of the obstacles which impede, and of the enemies whichresist their advancement; they are naturally forgetful also of the ampleprovision which is in store, for enabling them to surmount the one, andto conquer the other. The scriptural representations of the state of theChristian on earth, by the images of "a race, " and "a warfare;" of itsbeing necessary to rid himself of every encumbrance which might retardhim in the one, and to furnish himself with the whole armour of God forbeing victorious in the other, are, so far as these nominal Christiansare concerned, figures of no propriety or meaning. As little (as wasformerly shewn) have they, in correspondence with the Scripturedescriptions of the feelings and language of real Christians, any ideaof acquiring a relish while on earth, for the worship and service ofHeaven. If the truth must be told, their notion is rather a confusedidea of future gratification in Heaven, in return for having put a forceupon their inclinations, and endured so much religion while on earth. 

But all this is only _nominal_ Christianity, which exhibits a moreinadequate image of her real excellencies, than the cold copyings, bysome insipid pencil, convey of the force and grace of Nature, or ofRaphael. In the language of Scripture, Christianity is not ageographical, but a moral term. It is not the being a native of aChristian country: it is _a condition, a state_; the possession of a_peculiar nature_, with the _qualities_ and _properties_ which belong toit. 

Farther than this, it is a state into which we are not _born_, but intowhich we must be _translated_; a nature which we do not _inherit_, butinto which we are to be _created anew_. To the undeserved grace of God, which is promised on our use of the appointed means, we must be indebtedfor the attainment of this nature; and, to acquire and make sure of it, is that great "work of our salvation, " which we are commanded to "workout with fear and trembling. " We are every where reminded, that this isa matter of labour and difficulty, requiring continual watchfulness, andunceasing effort, and unwearied patience. Even to the very last, towardsthe close of a long life consumed in active service, or in cheerfulsuffering, we find St. Paul himself declaring, that he conceived bodilyself-denial and mental discipline to be indispensably necessary to hisvery safety. Christians, who are really worthy of the name, arerepresented as being "made meet for the inheritance of the Saints inlight;" as "waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ;" as"looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God. " It isstated as being enough to make them happy, that "Christ should receivethem to himself;" and the songs of the blessed spirits in Heaven aredescribed to be the same, as those in which the servants of God on earthpour forth their gratitude and adoration. 

Conscious therefore of the indispensable necessity, and of the arduousnature of the service in which he is engaged, the true Christian setshimself to the work with vigour, and prosecutes it with diligence. Hismotto is that of the painter; "_nullus dies sine linea_. " Fled as itwere from a country in which the plague is raging, he thinks it notenough just to pass the boundary line, but would put out of doubt hisescape beyond the limbs of infection. Prepared to meet withdifficulties, he is not discouraged when they occur; warned of hisnumerous adversaries, he is not alarmed on their approach, or unprovidedfor encountering them. He knows that the beginnings of every new coursemay be expected to be rough and painful; but he is assured that thepaths on which he is entering will ere long seem smoother, and becomeindeed "paths of pleasantness and peace. "

Now of the state of such an one the expressions of Pilgrim and Strangerare a lively description; and all the other figures and images, by whichChristians are represented in Scripture, have in his case a determinatemeaning and a just application. There is indeed none, by which theChristian's state on earth is in the word of God more frequently imaged, or more happily illustrated, than by that of a journey: and it may notbe amiss to pause for a while in order to survey it under thatresemblance. The Christian is travelling on business through a strangecountry, in which he is commanded to execute his work with diligence, and pursue his course homeward with alacrity. The fruits which he seesby the way-side he gathers with caution; he drinks of the streams withmoderation; he is thankful when the sun shines, and his way ispleasant; but if it be rough and rainy, he cares not much, he is but atraveller. He is prepared for vicissitudes; he knows that he must expectto meet with them in the stormy and uncertain climate of this world. Buthe is travelling to "a better country, " a country of unclouded light andundisturbed serenity. He finds also by experience, that when he has hadthe least of external comforts, he has always been least disposed toloiter; and if for the time it be a little disagreeable, he can solacehimself with the idea of his being thereby forwarded in his course. In aless unfavourable season, he looks round him with an eye of observation;he admires what is beautiful; he examines what is curious; he receiveswith complacency the refreshments which are set before him, and enjoysthem with thankfulness. Nor does he churlishly refuse to associate withthe inhabitants of the country through which he is passing; nor, so faras he may, to speak their language, and adopt their fashions. But heneither suffers pleasure, nor curiosity, nor society, to take up toomuch of his time, and is still intent on transacting the business whichhe has to execute, and on prosecuting the journey which he is ordered topursue. He knows also that, to the very end of life, his journey will bethrough a country in which he has many enemies; that his way is besetwith snares; that temptations throng around him, to seduce him from hiscourse or check his advancement in it; that the very air disposes todrowsiness, and that therefore to the very last it will be requisite forhim to be circumspect and collected. Often therefore he examineswhereabouts he is, how he has got forward, and whether or not he istravelling in the right direction. Sometimes he seems to himself tomake considerable progress, sometimes he advances but slowly, too oftenhe finds reason to fear that he has fallen backward in his course. Nowhe is cheered with hope, and gladdened by success; now he is disquietedwith doubts, and damped by disappointments. Thus while in nominalChristians, Religion is a dull uniform thing, and they have noconception of the desires and disappointments, the hopes and fears, thejoys and sorrows, which it is calculated to bring into exercise; in thetrue Christian all is life and motion, and his great work calls forthalternately the various passions of the soul. Let it not therefore beimagined that his is a state of unenlivened toil and hardship. His verylabours are "the labours of love;" if "he has need of patience, " it is"the patience of hope;" and he is cheered in his work by the constantassurance of present support, and of final victory. Let it not beforgotten, that this is the very idea given us of happiness by one ofthe ablest examiners of the human mind; "a constant employment for adesired end, with the consciousness of continual progress. " So true isthe Scripture declaration, that "Godliness has the promise of the lifethat now is, as well as of that which is to come. "

Our review of the character of the bulk of nominal Christians hasexhibited abundant proofs of their allowed defectiveness in that greatconstituent of the true Christian character, _the love of God_. Manyinstances, in proof of this assertion, have been incidentally pointedout, and the charge is in itself so obvious, that it were superfluous tospend much time in endeavouring to establish it. Put the question fairlyto the test. Concerning the proper marks and evidences of affection, there can be little dispute. Let the most candid investigator examinethe character, and conduct, and language of the persons of whom we havebeen speaking; and he will be compelled to acknowledge, that so far aslove towards the Supreme Being is in question, these marks and evidencesare no where to be met with. It is in itself a decisive evidence of acontrary feeling in those nominal Christians, that they find no pleasurein the service and worship of God. Their devotional acts resemble lessthe free-will offerings of a grateful heart, than that constrained andreluctant homage, which is exacted by some hard master from hisoppressed dependents, and paid with cold sullenness, and slavishapprehension. It was the very charge brought by God against hisungrateful people of old, that, while they called him Sovereign andFather, they withheld from him the regards which severally belong tothose respected and endearing appellations. Thus we likewise think itenough to offer to the most excellent and amiable of Beings, to oursupreme and unwearied Benefactor, a dull, artificial, heartlessgratitude, of which we should be ashamed in the case of afellow-creature, who had ever so small a claim on our regard andthankfulness!

It may be of infinite use to establish in our minds a strong andhabitual sense of that first and great commandment--"Thou shalt love theLord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy mind, and with all thysoul, and with all thy strength. " This passion, operative and vigorousin its very nature, like a master spring, would put and maintain inaction all the complicated movements of the human soul. Soon also wouldit terminate many practical questions concerning the allowableness ofcertain compliances; questions which, with other similar difficulties, are often only the cold offspring of a spirit of reluctant submission, and cannot stand the encounter of this trying principle. If, forexample, it were disputed, whether or not the law of God were _so_strict as had been stated, in condemning the slightest infraction of itsprecepts; yet, when, from the precise demands of justice, the appealshould be made to the more generous principle of love, there would be atonce an end of the discussion. Fear will deter from acknowledged crimes, and self-interest will bribe to laborious services: but it is thepeculiar glory, and the very characteristic, of this more generouspassion, to shew itself in ten thousand little and undefinable acts ofsedulous attention, which love alone can pay, and of which, when paid, love alone can estimate the value. Love outruns the deductions ofreasoning; it scorns the refuge of casuistry; it requires not the slowprocess of laborious and undeniable proof that an action would beinjurious and offensive, or another beneficial or gratifying, to theobject of affection. The least hint, the slightest surmise, issufficient to make it start from the former, and fly with eagerness tothe latter. 

I am well aware that I am now about to tread on very tender ground; butit would be an improper deference to the opinions and manners of the agealtogether to avoid it. There has been much argument concerning thelawfulness of theatrical amusements[92]. Let it be sufficient toremark, that the controversy would be short indeed, if the question wereto be tried by this criterion of love to the Supreme Being. If therewere any thing of that sensibility for the honour of God, and of thatzeal in his service, which we shew in behalf of our earthly friends, orof our political connections, should we seek our pleasure in that placewhich the debauchee, inflamed with wine, or bent on the gratification ofother licentious appetites, finds most congenial to his state and temperof mind? In that place, from the neighbourhood of which, (how justlytermed a school of morals might hence alone be inferred) decorum, andmodesty, and regularity retire, while riot and lewdness are invited tothe spot, and invariably select it for their chosen residence! where thesacred name of God is often prophaned! where sentiments are often heardwith delight, and motions and gestures often applauded, which would notbe tolerated in private company, but which may far exceed the utmostlicence allowed in the social circle, without at all transgressing thelarge bounds of theatrical decorum! where, when moral principles areinculcated, they are not such as a Christian ought to cherish in hisbosom, but such as it must be his daily endeavour to extirpate; notthose which Scripture warrants, but those which it condemns as false andspurious, being founded in pride and ambition, and the over-valuation ofhuman favour! where surely, if a Christian should trust himself at all, it would be requisite for him to prepare himself with a double portionof watchfulness and seriousness of mind, instead of selecting it as theplace in which he may throw off his guard, and unbend without danger!The justness of this last remark, and the general tendency oftheatrical amusements, is attested by the same well instructed master inthe science of human life, to whom we had before occasion to refer. Byhim they are recommended as the most efficacious expedient for relaxing, among any people, that "_preciseness and austerity_ of morals, " to usehis own phrase, which, under the name of holiness, it is the business ofScripture to inculcate and enforce. Nor is this position merelytheoretical. The experiment was tried, and tried successfully, in a cityupon the continent[93], in which it was wished to corrupt the simplemorality of purer times. 

Let us try the question by a parallel instance. 

What judgment should we form of the warmth of that man's attachment tohis Sovereign, who, at seasons of recreation, should seek his pleasuresin scenes as ill accordant with the principle of loyalty, as those ofwhich we have been speaking are with the genius of religion? If for thispurpose he were to select the place, and frequent the amusements, towhich Democrats and Jacobins[94] should love to resort forentertainment, and in which they should find themselves so much at home, as invariably to select the spot for their abiding habitation; wheredialogue, and song, and the intelligible language of gesticulation, should be used to convey ideas and sentiments, not perhaps palpablytreasonable, or directly falling within the strict precision of anylegal limits, but yet palpably contrary to the spirit of monarchicalgovernment; which, further, the highest authorities had recommended assovereign specifics for cooling the warmth, and enlarging the narrownessof an excessive loyalty! What opinion should we form of the delicacy ofthat friendship, or of the fidelity of that love, which, in relation totheir respective objects, should exhibit the same contradictions?

In truth, the _hard measure_, if the phrase may be pardoned, which, ashas been before remarked, we give to God; and the very different way inwhich we allow ourselves to act, and speak, and feel, where he isconcerned, from that which we require, or even practise in the case ofour fellow-creatures, is in itself the most decisive proof that theprinciple of the love of God, if not altogether extinct in us, is atleast in the lowest possible degree of languor. 

From examining the degree in which the bulk of nominal Christians aredefective in the love of God, if we proceed to inquire concerning thestrength of their love towards their fellow-creatures, the writer iswell aware of its being generally held, that here at least they mayrather challenge praise than submit to censure. And the many beneficentinstitutions in which this country abounds, probably above every other, whether in ancient or modern times, may be perhaps appealed to in proofof the opinion. Much of what might have been otherwise urged in thediscussion of this topic, has been anticipated in the inquiry into thegrounds of the extravagant estimation, assigned to amiable tempers anduseful lives, when unconnected with religious principle. What was thenstated may serve in many cases to lower, in the present instance, theloftiness of the pretensions of these nominal Christians; and we shallhereafter have occasion to mention another consideration, of which theeffect must be, still further to reduce their claims. Meanwhile, let itsuffice to remark, that we must not rest satisfied with merelysuperficial appearances, if we would form a fair estimate of the degreeof purity and vigour, in which the principle of good will towards menwarms the bosoms of the generality of professed Christians in the higherand more opulent classes in this country. In a highly polished state ofsociety, for instance, we do not expect to find moroseness; and in anage of great profusion, though we may reflect with pleasure on thosenumerous charitable institutions, which are justly the honour of GreatBritain; we are not too hastily to infer a strong principle of internalbenevolence, from liberal contributions to the relief of indigence andmisery. When these contributions indeed are equally abundant in frugaltimes, or from individuals personally oeconomical, the source fromwhich they originate becomes less questionable. But a vigorous principleof philanthropy must not be at once conceded, on the ground of liberalbenefactions to the poor, in the case of one who by his liberality inthis respect is curtailed in no necessary, is abridged of no luxury, isput to no trouble either of thought or of action; who, not to impute adesire of being praised for his benevolence, is injured in no man'sestimation; in whom also familiarity with large sums has produced thatfreedom in the expenditure of money, which (thereby affording a freshillustration of the justice of the old proverb, "Familiarity breedscontempt, ") it never fails to operate, except in minds under theinfluence of a strong principle of avarice. 

Our conclusion, perhaps, would be less favourable, but not less fair, ifwe were to try the characters in question by those surer tests, whichare stated by the Apostle to be less ambiguous marks of a real spirit ofphilanthropy. The strength of every passion is to be estimated by itsvictory over passions of an opposite nature. What judgment then shall weform of the force of the benevolence of the age, when measured by thisstandard? How does it stand the shock, when it comes into encounter withour pride, our vanity, our self-love, our self-interest, our love ofease or of pleasure, with our ambition, with our desire of worldlyestimation? Does it make us self-denying, that we may be liberal inrelieving others? Does it make us persevere in doing good in spite ofingratitude; and only pity the ignorance, or prejudice, or malice, whichmisrepresents our conduct, or misconstrues our motives? Does it make usforbear from what we conceive may probably prove the occasion of harmto a fellow-creature; though the harm should not seem naturally or evenfairly to flow from our conduct, but to be the result only of his ownobstinacy or weakness? Are we slow to believe any thing to ourneighbour's disadvantage? and when we cannot but credit it, are wedisposed rather to cover, and as far as we justly can, to palliate, thanto divulge or aggravate it? Suppose an opportunity to occur ofperforming a kindness, to one who from pride or vanity should be loth toreceive, or to be known to receive, a favour from us; should we honestlyendeavour, so far as we could with truth, to lessen in his own mind andin that of others the merit of our good offices, and by so doing disposehim to receive them with diminished reluctance, and a less painfulweight of obligation? This end, however, must be accomplished, if to beaccomplished at all, by a simple and fair explanation of thecircumstances, which may render the action in no wise inconvenient toourselves, though highly beneficial to another; not by speeches ofaffected disparagement, which we might easily foresee, and in fact doforesee, must produce the contrary effect. Can we, from motives ofkindness, incur or risk the charge of being deficient in spirit, inpenetration, or in foresight? Do we tell another of his faults, when thecommunication, though probably beneficial to _him_, cannot be madewithout embarrassment or pain to ourselves, and may probably lessen hisregard for our person, or his opinion of our judgment? Can we stifle arepartee which would wound another; though the utterance of it wouldgratify our vanity, and the suppression of it may disparage ourcharacter for wit? If any one advance a mistaken proposition, in aninstance wherein the error may be mischievous to him; can we, to theprejudice perhaps of our credit for discernment, forbear to contradicthim in public, if it be probable that in so doing, by piquing his pridewe might only harden him in his error? and can we reserve our counselfor some more favourable season, the "mollia tempora fandi, " when it maybe communicated without offence? If we have recommended to any one aparticular line of conduct, or have pointed out the probable mischiefsof the opposite course, and if our admonitions have been neglected, arewe _really hurt_ when our predictions of evil are accomplished? Is ourlove superior to envy, and jealousy, and emulation? Are we acute todiscern and forward to embrace any fair opportunity of promoting theinterests of another; if it be in a line wherein we ourselves also aremoving, and in which we think our progress has not been proportioned toour desert? Can we take pleasure in bringing his merits into notice, andin obviating the prejudices which may have damped his efforts, or inremoving the obstacles which may have retarded his advancement? If evento this extent we should be able to stand the scrutiny, let it befarther asked how, in the case of our enemies, do we correspond with theScripture representations of love? Are we meek under provocations, readyto forgive, and apt to forget injuries? Can we, with sincerity, "blessthem that curse us, do good to them that hate us, and pray for themwhich despitefully use us, and persecute us?" Do we prove to theSearcher of hearts a real spirit of forgiveness, by our forbearing notonly from avenging an injury when it is in our power, but even fromtelling to any one how ill we have been used; and that too when we arenot kept silent by a consciousness that we should lose credit bydivulging the circumstance? And lastly, can we not only be content toreturn our enemies good for evil, (for this return, as has been remarkedby one of the greatest of uninspired authorities, [95] may be prompted bypride and repaid by self-complacency) but, when they are successful orunsuccessful without our having contributed to their good or illfortune, can we not only be content, but cordially rejoice in theirprosperity, or sympathize with their distresses?

These are but a few specimens of the characteristic marks which might bestated, of a true predominant benevolence; yet even these may serve toconvince us how far the bulk of nominal Christians fall short of therequisitions of Scripture, even in that particular, which exhibits theircharacter in the most favourable point of view. The truth is, we do notenough call to mind the exalted tone of Scripture morality; and aretherefore apt to value ourselves on the heights to which we attain, whena better acquaintance with our standard would have convinced us of ourfalling far short of the elevation prescribed to us. It is in the veryinstance of the most difficult of the duties lately specified, theforgiveness and love of enemies, that our Saviour points out to ourimitation the example of our Supreme Benefactor. After stating that, bybeing kind and courteous to those who, even in the world's opinion, hada title to our good offices and good will, we should in vain set up aclaim to _Christian_ benevolence, he emphatically adds, "Be yetherefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. "

We must here again resort to a topic which was lately touched on, thatof theatrical amusements; and recommend it to their advocates toconsider them in connection with the duty, of which we have now beenexhibiting some of the leading characters. 

It is an undeniable fact, for the truth of which we may safely appeal toevery age and nation, that the situation of the performers, particularlyof those of the female sex, is remarkably unfavourable to themaintenance and growth of the religious and moral principle, and ofcourse highly dangerous to their eternal interests. Might it not then befairly asked, how far, in all who confess the truth of this position, itis consistent with the sensibility of Christian benevolence, merely forthe entertainment of an idle hour, to encourage the continuance of anyof their fellow-creatures in such a way of life, and to take a part intempting any others to enter into it? how far, considering that, bytheir own concession, they are employing whatever they spend in thisway, in sustaining and advancing the cause of vice, and consequently inpromoting misery; they are herein bestowing this share of their wealthin a manner agreeable to the intentions of their holy and benevolentBenefactor? how far also they are not in this instance the rathercriminal, from there being so many sources of innocent pleasure open totheir enjoyment? how far they are acting conformably to that goldenprinciple of doing to others as we would they should do to us? how farthey harmonize with the spirit of the Apostle's affectionatedeclaration, that he would deny himself for his whole life the mostinnocent indulgence, nay, what might seem almost an absolute necessary, rather than cause his weak fellow Christian to offend? or lastly, howfar they are influenced by the solemn language of our Saviour himself;"It must needs be that offences come, but woe to that man by whom theoffence cometh; it were better for him that a mill-stone were hangedabout his neck, and that he were cast into the depths of the sea?" Thepresent instance is perhaps another example of our taking greaterconcern in the temporal, than in the spiritual interests of our fellowcreatures. That man would be deemed, and justly deemed, of an inhumantemper, who in these days were to seek his amusement in the combats ofgladiators and prize fighters: yet _Christians_ appear conscious of noinconsistency, in finding their pleasure in spectacles maintained at therisk at least, if not the ruin, of the eternal happiness of those whoperform in them!

SECT. VI. 

_Grand defect. --Neglect of the peculiar Doctrines of Christianity. _

But the grand radical defect in the practical system of these nominalChristians, is their forgetfulness of all the peculiar doctrines of theReligion which they profess--the corruption of human nature--theatonement of the Saviour--and the sanctifying influence of the HolySpirit. 

Here then we come again to the grand distinction, between the Religionof Christ and that of the bulk of nominal Christians in the presentday. The point is of the utmost _practical importance_, and we wouldtherefore trace it into its actual effects. 

There are, it is to be apprehended, not a few, who having been for sometime hurried down the stream of dissipation in the indulgence of alltheir natural appetites, (except, perhaps, that they were restrainedfrom very gross vice by a regard to character, or by the yet unsubduedvoice of conscience); and who, having all the while thought little, orscarcely at all about Religion, "living, " to use the emphatical languageof Scripture, "without God in the world, " become in some degreeimpressed with a sense of the infinite importance of Religion. A fit ofsickness, perhaps, or the loss of some friend or much loved relative, orsome other stroke of adverse fortune, damps their spirits, awakens themto a practical conviction of the precariousness of all human things, andturns them to seek for some more stable foundation of happiness thanthis world can afford. Looking into themselves ever so little, theybecome sensible that they must have offended God. They resolveaccordingly to set about the work of reformation. --Here it is that weshall recognize the fatal effects of the prevailing ignorance of thereal nature of Christianity, and the general forgetfulness of its grandpeculiarities. These men _wish_ to reform, but they know neither thereal _nature_ of their distemper nor its true remedy. They are aware, indeed, that they must "cease to do evil, and learn to do well;" thatthey must relinquish their habits of vice, and attend more or less tothe duties of Religion: but having no conception of the actualmalignity of the disease under which they labour, or of the perfect curewhich the Gospel has provided for it, or of the manner in which thatcure is to be effected, "They do but skin and film the ulcerous place, While rank corruption, mining all within, Infects unseen. "

It often happens therefore but too naturally in this case, that wherethey do not soon desist from their attempt at reformation, and relapseinto their old habits of sin; they take up with a partial and scantyamendment, and fondly flatter themselves that it is a thorough change. They now conceive that they have a right to take to themselves thecomforts of Christianity. Not being able to raise their practice up totheir standard of right, they lower their standard to their practice:they sit down for life contented with their present attainments, beguiled by the complacencies of their own minds, and by the favourabletestimony of surrounding friends; and it often happens, particularlywhere there is any degree of strictness in formal and ceremonialobservances, that there are no people more jealous of their characterfor Religion. 

Others perhaps go farther than this. The dread of the wrath to come hassunk deeper into their hearts; and for a while they strive with alltheir might to resist their evil propensities, and to walk withoutstumbling in the path of duty. Again and again they resolve; again andagain they break their resolutions[96]: All their endeavours arefoiled, and they become more and more convinced of their own moralweakness, and of the strength of their indwelling corruption. Thusgroaning under the enslaving power of sin, and experiencing the futilityof the utmost efforts which they can use for effecting theirdeliverance, they are tempted (sometimes it is to be feared they yieldto the temptation) to give up all in despair, and to acquiesce undertheir wretched captivity, conceiving it impossible to break theirchains. Sometimes, probably, it even happens that they are driven toseek for refuge from their disquietude in the suggestions of infidelity;and to quiet their troublesome consciences by arguments which theythemselves scarcely believe, at the very moment in which they sufferthemselves to be lulled asleep by them. In the mean time while thisconflict has been going on, their walk is sad and comfortless, and theircouch is nightly watered with tears. These men are pursuing the rightobject, but they mistake the way in which it is to be obtained. _Thepath in which they are now treading is not that which the Gospel hasprovided for conducting them to true holiness, nor will they find in itany solid peace. _

Persons under these circumstances naturally seek for religiousinstruction. They turn over the works of our modern Religionists, andas well as they can collect the advice addressed to men in theirsituation: the substance of it is, at the best, of this sort; "Be sorryindeed for your sins, and discontinue the practice of them, but do notmake yourselves so uneasy. Christ died for the sins of the whole world. Do your utmost; discharge with fidelity the duties of your stations, notneglecting your religious offices; and fear not but that in the end allwill go well; and that having thus performed the conditions required onyour part, you will at last obtain forgiveness of our merciful Creatorthrough the merits of Jesus Christ, and be aided, where your ownstrength shall be insufficient, by the assistance of his Holy Spirit. Meanwhile you cannot do better than read carefully such books ofpractical divinity, as will instruct you in the principles of aChristian life. We are excellently furnished with works of this nature;and it is by the diligent study of them that you will gradually become aproficient in the lessons of the Gospel. "

But the holy Scriptures, and with them the Church of England, call uponthose who are in the circumstances above-stated, to _lay afresh thewhole foundation of their Religion_. In concurrence with the Scripture, that Church calls upon them, in the first place, gratefully to adorethat undeserved goodness which has awakened them from the sleep ofdeath; to prostrate themselves before the Cross of Christ with humblepenitence and deep self-abhorrence; solemnly resolving to forsake alltheir sins, but relying on the Grace of God alone for power to keeptheir resolution. Thus, and thus only, she assures them that all theircrimes will be blotted out, and that they will receive from above a newliving principle of holiness. She produces from the Word of God theground and warrant of her counsel; "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. "--"No man, " says our blessed Saviour, "comethunto the Father but by me. "--"I am the true Vine. As the branch cannotbear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can ye exceptye abide in me. "--"He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringethforth much fruit; for without" (or severed from) "me ye can donothing, "--"By grace ye are saved through faith, and that not ofyourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man shouldboast: for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto goodworks. "

Let us not be thought tedious, or be accused of running into needlessrepetitions, in pressing this point with so much earnestness. It is infact a point which can never be too much insisted on. It is the cardinalpoint on which the whole of Christianity turns; on which it ispeculiarly proper in this place to be perfectly distinct. There havebeen some who have imagined that the wrath of God was to be deprecated, or his favour conciliated, by austerities and penances, or even by formsand ceremonies, and external observances. But all men of enlightenedunderstandings, who acknowledge the moral government of God, must alsoacknowledge, that vice must offend and virtue delight him. In short theymust, more or less, assent to the Scripture declaration, "withoutholiness no man shall see the Lord. " But the grand distinction, whichsubsists between the true Christian and all other Religionists, (theclass of persons in particular whom it is our object to address) isconcerning the _nature_ of this holiness, and the _way in which it is tobe obtained_. The views entertained by the latter, of the _nature_ ofholiness, are of all degrees of inadequateness; and they conceive it isto be _obtained_ by their own natural unassisted efforts: or if theyadmit some vague indistinct notion of the assistance of the Holy Spirit, it is unquestionably obvious, on conversing with them, that this doesnot constitute the _main practical_ ground of their dependence. _But thenature of the holiness, to which the desires of the true Christian aredirected, is no other than the restoration of the image of God: and asto the manner of acquiring it, disclaiming with indignation every ideaof attaining it by his own strength, all his hopes of possessing it restaltogether on the divine assurances of the operation of the Holy Spirit, in those who cordially embrace the Gospel of Christ. He knows thereforethat this holiness is not to_ PRECEDE _his reconciliation to God, and beits_ CAUSE; _but to_ FOLLOW _it, and be its_ EFFECT. _That in short itis by_ FAITH IN CHRIST _only[97] that he is to be justified in the sightof God; to be delivered from the condition of a child of wrath, and aslave of Satan; to be adopted into the family of God; to become an heirof God and a joint heir with Christ, entitled to all the privilegeswhich belong to this high relation; here, to the Spirit of Grace, and apartial renewal after the image of his Creator; hereafter, to the moreperfect possession of the Divine likeness, and an inheritance of eternalglory. _

And as it is in this way, that, in obedience to the dictates of theGospel, the true Christian must originally become possessed of the vitalspirit and living principle of universal holiness; so, in order to growin grace, he must also study in the same school; finding in theconsideration of the peculiar doctrines of the Gospel, and in thecontemplation of the life, and character, and sufferings of our blessedSaviour, the elements of all practical wisdom, and an inexhaustiblestorehouse of instructions and motives, no otherwise to be so wellsupplied. From the neglect of these peculiar doctrines arise the mainpractical errors of the bulk of professed Christians. These gigantictruths retained in view, would put to shame the littleness of theirdwarfish morality. It would be impossible for them to make theseharmonize with their low conceptions, of the wretchedness and danger oftheir natural state, which is represented in Scripture as having sopowerfully called forth the compassion of God, that he sent his onlybegotten Son to rescue us. Where _now_ are their low conceptions of theworth of the soul, when means like these were taken to redeem it? Where_now_ their inadequate conceptions of the guilt of sin, for which in thedivine counsels it seemed requisite that an atonement no less costlyshould be made, than that of the blood of the only begotten Son of God?How can they reconcile their low standard of Christian practice with therepresentation of our being "temples of the Holy Ghost?" Their coldsense of obligation, and scanty grudged returns of service, with theglowing gratitude of those who, having been "delivered from the power ofdarkness, and translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son, " may wellconceive that the labours of a whole life will be but an imperfectexpression of their thankfulness. 

The peculiar doctrines of the Gospel being once admitted, theconclusions which have been now suggested are clear and obviousdeductions of reason. But our neglect of these important truths is stillless pardonable, because they are distinctly and repeatedly applied inScripture to the very purposes in question, and the whole superstructureof Christian morals is grounded on their deep and ample basis. Sometimesthese truths are represented in Scripture, _generally_, as furnishingChristians with a vigorous and ever present principle of universalobedience. And our slowness in learning the lessons of heavenly wisdomis still further stimulated, by almost every particular Christian dutybeing occasionally traced to them as to its proper source. They areevery where represented as warming the hearts of the people of God onearth with continual admiration, and thankfulness, and love, and joy; astriumphing over the attack of the last great enemy, and as calling forthafresh in Heaven the ardent effusions of their unexhausted gratitude. 

If then we would indeed be "filled with wisdom and spiritualunderstanding;" if we would "walk worthy of the Lord unto all wellpleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in theknowledge of God;" here let us fix our eyes! "Laying aside every weight, and the sin that does so easily beset us; let us run with patience therace that is set before us, LOOKING UNTO JESUS, the Author and Finisherof our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured thecross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of thethrone of God[98]. "

Here best we may learn the infinite _importance_ of Christianity. Howlittle it can deserve to be treated in that slight and superficial way, in which it is in these days regarded by the bulk of nominal Christians, who are apt to think it may be enough, and almost equally pleasing toGod, to be religious _in any way_, and upon _any_ system. What exquisitefolly it must be to risk the soul on such a venture, in directcontradiction to the dictates of reason, and the express declaration ofthe word of God! "How shall we escape, if we neglect so greatsalvation?"

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

Here we shall best learn the duty and reasonableness of an absolute andunconditional surrender of soul and body to the will and service ofGod. --"We are not our own; for we are bought with a price, " and must"therefore" make it our grand concern to "glorify God with our bodiesand our spirits, which are God's. " Should we be base enough, even if wecould do it with safety, to make any reserves in our returns of serviceto that gracious Saviour, who "gave up _himself_ for us?" If we haveformerly talked of compounding by the performance of some commands forthe breach of others; can we now bear the mention of a _composition_ ofduties, or of retaining to ourselves the right of practising _little_sins! The very suggestion of such an idea fills us with indignation andshame, if our hearts be not dead to every sense of gratitude. 

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

Here we find displayed, in the most lively colours, the guilt of sin, and how hateful it must be to the perfect holiness of that Being, "whois of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. " When we see that, rather thansin should go unpunished, "God spared not his own Son, " but "was_pleased_[99], to bruise him and put him to grief" for our sakes; howvainly must impenitent sinners flatter themselves with the hope ofescaping the vengeance of Heaven, and buoy themselves up with I know notwhat desperate dreams of the Divine benignity!

Here too we may anticipate the dreadful sufferings of that state, "whereshall be weeping and gnashing of teeth;" when rather than that we shouldundergo them, "the Son of God" himself, who "thought it no robbery to beequal with God, " consented to take upon him our degraded nature with allits weaknesses and infirmities; to be "a man of sorrows, " "to hide nothis face from shame and spitting, " "to be wounded for ourtransgressions, and bruised for our iniquities, " and at length to endurethe sharpness of death, "even the death of the Cross, " that he might"deliver us from the wrath to come, " and open the kingdom of Heaven toall believers. 

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

_Here_ best we may learn to grow in the love of God! The certainty ofhis pity and love towards repenting sinners, thus irrefragablydemonstrated, chases away the sense of tormenting fear, and best laysthe ground in us of a reciprocal affection. And while we steadilycontemplate this wonderful transaction, and consider in its severalrelations the amazing truth, that "God spared not his own Son, butdelivered him up for us all;" if our minds be not utterly dead to everyimpulse of sensibility, the emotions of admiration, of preference, ofhope, and trust, and joy, cannot but spring up within us, chastened withreverential fear, and softened and quickened by overflowinggratitude[100]. _Here_ we shall become animated by an abidingdisposition to endeavour to please our great Benefactor; and by a humblepersuasion, that the weakest endeavours of this nature will not bedespised by a Being, who has already proved himself so kindly affectedtowards us[101]. _Here_ we cannot fail to imbibe an earnest desire ofpossessing his favour, and a conviction, founded on his own declarationsthus unquestionably confirmed, that the desire shall not bedisappointed. Whenever we are conscious that we have offended thisgracious Being, a single thought of the great work of Redemption will beenough to fill us with compunction. We shall feel a deep concern, griefmingled with indignant shame, for having conducted ourselves sounworthily towards one who to us has been infinite in kindness: we shallnot rest till we have reason to hope that he is reconciled to us; and weshall watch over our hearts and conduct in future with a renewedjealousy, lest we should again offend him. To those who are ever solittle acquainted with the nature of the human mind, it were superfluousto remark, that the affections and tempers which have been enumerated, are the infallible marks and the constituent properties of Love. Let_him_ then who would abound and grow in this Christian principle, bemuch conversant with the great doctrines of the Gospel. 

It is obvious, that the attentive and frequent consideration of thesegreat doctrines, must have a still more direct tendency to produce andcherish in our minds the principle of the love of Christ. But on thishead, so much was said in a former chapter, as to render any fartherobservations unnecessary. 

Much also has been already observed concerning the love of ourfellow-creatures, and it has been distinctly stated to be theindispensable, and indeed the characteristic duty of Christians. Itremains, however to be here farther remarked, that this grace can nowhere be cultivated with more advantage than at the foot of the cross. No where can our Saviour's dying injunction to the exercise of thisvirtue be recollected with more effect; "This is my commandment, that yelove one another as I have loved you. " No where can the admonition ofthe Apostle more powerfully affect us; "Be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven you. " The view of mankind which is here presented to us, as having been all involved in one common ruin; and the offer ofdeliverance held out to all, by the Son of God's giving of himself up topay the price of our reconciliation, produce that sympathy towards ourfellow-creatures, which, by the constitution of our nature, seldomfails to result from the consciousness of an identity of interests and asimilarity of fortunes. Pity for an unthinking world assists thisimpression. Our enmities soften and melt away: we are ashamed ofthinking much of the _petty injuries_ which we may have suffered, whenwe consider what the Son of God, "who did no wrong, neither was guilefound in his mouth, " patiently underwent. Our hearts become tender whilewe contemplate this signal act of loving-kindness. We grow desirous ofimitating what we cannot but admire. A vigorous principle of enlargedand active charity springs up within us; and we go forth with alacrity, desirous of treading in the steps of our blessed Master, and ofmanifesting our gratitude for his unmerited goodness, by bearing eachothers burdens, and abounding in the disinterested labours ofbenevolence. 

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

_He_ was meek and lowly of heart, and from the study of _his_ characterwe shall best learn the lessons of humility. Contemplating the work ofRedemption, we become more and more impressed with the sense of ournatural darkness, and helplessness, and misery, from which it wasrequisite to ransom us at such a price; more and more conscious that weare utterly unworthy of all the amazing condescension and love whichhave been manifested towards us; ashamed of the callousness of ourtenderest sensibility, and of the poor returns of our most activeservices. Considerations like these, abating our pride and reducing ouropinion of _ourselves_, naturally moderate our pretensions towards_others_. We become less disposed to exact that respect for our persons, and that deference for our authority, which we naturally covet; we lesssensibly feel a slight, and less hotly resent it; we grow lessirritable, less prone to be dissatisfied; more soft, and meek, andcourteous, and placable, and condescending. We are not literallyrequired to practise the same humiliating submissions, to which ourblessed Saviour himself was not ashamed to stoop[102]; but the _spirit_of the remark applies to us, "the servant is not greater than his Lord:"and we should especially bear this truth in mind, when the occasioncalls upon us to discharge some duty, or patiently to suffer some illtreatment, whereby our pride will be wounded, and we are likely to be insome degree degraded from the rank we had possessed in the world'sestimation. At the same time the Sacred Scriptures assuring us, that tothe powerful operations of the Holy Spirit, purchased for us by thedeath of Christ, we must be indebted for the success of all ourendeavours after improvement in virtue; the conviction of this truthtends to render us diffident of our own powers, and to suppress thefirst risings of vanity. Thus, while we are conducted to heights ofvirtue no otherwise attainable, due care is taken to prevent ourbecoming giddy from our elevation[103]. It is the Scripturecharacteristic of the Gospel system, that by it all disposition toexalt ourselves is excluded; and if we really grow in grace, we shallgrow also in humility. 

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

"He endured the cross, despising the shame. "--While we steadilycontemplate this solemn scene, that sober frame of spirit is producedwithin us, which best befits the Christian, militant here on earth. Webecome impressed with a sense of the shortness and uncertainty of time, and that it behoves us to be diligent in making provision for eternity. In such a temper of mind, the pomps and vanities of life are cast behindus as the baubles of children. --We lose our relish for the frolics ofgaiety, the race of ambition, or the grosser gratifications ofvoluptuousness. In the case even of those objects, which may more justlyclaim the attention of reasonable and immortal beings; in our familyarrangements, in our plans of life, in our schemes of business, webecome, without relinquishing the path of duty, more moderate inpursuit, and more indifferent about the issue. Here also we learn tocorrect the world's false estimate of things, and to "look through theshallowness of earthly grandeur[104];" to venerate what is trulyexcellent and noble, though under a despised and degraded form; and tocultivate within ourselves that true magnanimity, which can make us risesuperior to the smiles or frowns of this world; that dignified composureof soul which no earthly incidents can destroy or ruffle. Instead ofrepining at any of the little occasional inconveniences we may meet within our passage through life; we are almost ashamed of the multipliedcomforts and enjoyments of our condition, when we think of him, who, though "the Lord of glory, " "had not where to lay his head. " And if itbe our lot to undergo evils of more than ordinary magnitude, we areanimated under them by reflecting, that we are hereby more conformed tothe example of our blessed Master: though we must ever recollect oneimportant difference, that the sufferings of Christ were voluntarilyborne for _our_ benefit, and were probably far more exquisitelyagonizing than any which we are called upon to undergo. Besides, it mustbe a solid support to us amidst all our troubles to know, that they donot happen to us by chance; that they are not even merely the punishmentof sin; but that they are the dispensations of a kind Providence, andsent on messages of mercy. --"The cup that our Father hath given us, shall we not drink it?"--"Blessed Saviour! by the bitterness of thypains we may estimate the force of thy love; we are _sure_ of thykindness and compassion; thou wouldst not willingly call on us tosuffer; thou hast declared unto us, that all things shall finally worktogether for good to them that love thee; and therefore, if thou soordainest it, welcome disappointment and poverty, welcome sickness andpain, welcome even shame, and contempt, and calumny. If this be a roughand thorny path, it is one in which thou hast gone before us. Where wesee thy footsteps we cannot repine. Meanwhile, thou wilt support us withthe consolations of thy grace; and even here thou canst more thancompensate to us for any temporal sufferings, by the possession of thatpeace, which the world can neither give nor take away. "

LOOKING UNTO JESUS!

"The Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was setbefore him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down atthe right hand of God. " From the scene of our Saviour's weakness anddegradation, we follow him, in idea, into the realms of glory, where "heis on the right hand of God; angels, and principalities, and powersbeing made subject unto him. "--But though changed in place, yet not innature, he is still full of sympathy and love; and having died "to savehis people from their sins, " "he ever _liveth_ to make intercession forthem. " Cheered by this animating view, the Christian's fainting spiritsrevive. Under the heaviest burdens he feels his strength recruited; andwhen all around him is dark and stormy, he can lift up an eye to Heaven, radiant with hope, and glistening with gratitude. At such a season, nodangers can alarm, no opposition can move, no provocations can irritate. He may almost adopt, as the language of his sober exultation, what inthe philosopher was but an idle rant: and, considering that it is onlythe garment of mortality which is subject to the rents of fortune; whilehis spirit, cheered with the divine support, keeps its place within, secure and unassailable, he can sometimes almost triumph at the stake, or on the scaffold, and cry out amidst the severest buffets ofadversity, "Thou beatest but the case of Anaxarchus. " But it is rarelythat the Christian is elevated with this "joy unspeakable and full ofglory:" he even lends himself to these views with moderation andreserve. Often, alas! emotions of another kind fill him with grief andconfusion: and conscious of having acted unworthy of his high calling, perhaps of having exposed himself to the just censure of a world readyenough to spy out his infirmities, he seems to himself almost "to havecrucified the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. " But letneither his joys intoxicate, nor his sorrows too much depress him. Lethim still remember that his _chief_ business while on earth is not tomeditate, but to act; that the seeds of moral corruption are apt tospring up within him, and that it is requisite for him to watch over hisown heart with incessant care; that he is to discharge with fidelity theduties of his particular station, and to conduct himself, according tohis measure, after the example of his blessed Master, whose meat anddrink it was to do the work of his heavenly Father; that he isdiligently to cultivate the talents with which God has entrusted him, and assiduously to employ them in doing justice and shewing mercy, whilehe guards against the assaults of any internal enemy. In short, he is todemean himself, in all the common affairs of life, like an _accountable_creature, who, in correspondence with the Scripture character ofChristians, is "waiting for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. " Oftentherefore he questions himself, "Am I employing my time, my fortune, mybodily and mental powers, so as to be able to 'render up my account withjoy, and not with grief?' Am I 'adorning the doctrine of God my Saviourin all things;' and proving that the servants of Christ, animated by aprinciple of filial affection, which renders their work a service ofperfect freedom, are capable of as active and as persevering exertions, as the votaries of fame, or the slaves of ambition, or the drudges ofavarice?"

Thus, without interruption to his labours, he may interpose occasionalthoughts of things unseen; and amidst the many little intervals ofbusiness, may calmly look upwards to the heavenly Advocate, who is everpleading the cause of his people, and obtaining for them needfulsupplies of grace and consolation. It is these realizing views, whichgive the Christian a relish for the worship and service of the heavenlyworld. And if these blessed images, "seen but through a glass darkly, "can thus refresh the soul: what must be its state, when on the morningof the resurrection it shall awake to the unclouded vision of celestialglory! when, "to them that look for him, the Son of God shall appear asecond time without sin unto salvation!" when "sighing and sorrow beingfled away;" when doubts and fears no more disquieting, and the painfulconsciousness of remaining imperfections no longer weighing down thespirit, they shall enter upon the fruition of "those joys, which eyehath not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart ofman to conceive;" and shall bear their part in that blessedanthem--"Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and untothe Lamb, " for ever and ever!

Thus (never let it be forgotten) the main distinction between realChristianity, and the system of the bulk of nominal Christians, chieflyconsists in the different place which is assigned in the two schemes tothe peculiar doctrines of the Gospel. These, in the scheme of nominalChristians, if admitted at all, appear but like the stars of thefirmament to the ordinary eye. Those splendid luminaries draw forthperhaps occasionally a transient expression of admiration, when webehold their beauty, or hear of their distances, magnitudes, orproperties: now and then too we are led, perhaps, to muse upon theirpossible uses: but however curious as subjects of speculation, afterall, it must be confessed, they twinkle to the common observer with avain and "idle" lustre; and except in the dreams of the astrologer, haveno influence on human happiness, or any concern with the course andorder of the world. But to the _real_ Christian, on the contrary, THESE_peculiar doctrines constitute the center to which he gravitates! thevery sun of his system! the soul of the world! the origin of all that isexcellent and lovely! the source of light, and life, and motion, andgenial warmth, and plastic energy!_ Dim is the light of reason, and coldand comfortless our state, while left to her unassisted guidance. Eventhe Old Testament itself, though a revelation from Heaven, shines butwith feeble and scanty rays. But the blessed truths of the Gospel arenow unveiled to _our_ eyes, and _we_ are called upon to behold, and toenjoy "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face ofJesus Christ, " in the full radiance of its meridian splendor. The wordsof inspiration best express our highly favoured state: "We all, withopen face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changedinto the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of theLord. "

 Thou art the source and center of all minds, Their only point of rest, ETERNAL WORD From thee departing, they are lost, and rove At random, without honour, hope, or peace: From thee is all that soothes the life of man; His high endeavour, and his glad success; His strength to suffer, and his will to serve. But O! thou bounteous Giver of all good! Thou art of all thy gifts thyself the crown: Give what thou canst, without thee we are poor, And with thee rich, take what thou wilt away. 

CHAPTER V. 

_On the Excellence of Christianity in certain important Particulars. Argument which results thence in Proof of its divine Origin. _

The writer of the present work, having now completed a faint delineationof the leading features of real Christianity, may be permitted tosuspend for a few moments the farther execution of his plan, for thepurpose of pointing out some excellences which she really possesses; butwhich, as they are not to be found in that superficial system which sounworthily usurps her name, appear scarcely to have attracted sufficientnotice. If he should seem to be deviating from the plan which heproposed to himself, he would suggest as his excuse; that theobservations which he is about to offer will furnish a strong argument, in favour of the correctness of his preceding delineation ofChristianity, since she will _now_ appear to exhibit more clearly, thanas she is usually drawn, the characters of her Divine original. 

It holds true, indeed, in the case of Christianity, as in that of allthe works of God, that though a superficial and cursory view cannotfail to discover to us somewhat of their beauty; yet, when on a morecareful and accurate scrutiny we become better acquainted with theirproperties, we become also more deeply impressed by a conviction oftheir excellence. We may begin by referring to the last chapter for aninstance of the truth of this assertion. Therein was pointed out thatintimate connection, that perfect harmony, between the leading doctrinesand the practical precepts of Christianity, which is apt to escape theattention of the ordinary eye. 

It may not be improper also to remark, though the position be so obviousas almost to render the statement of it needless, that there is the sameclose connection and perfect harmony in the leading doctrines ofChristianity among each other. It is self-evident, that the corruptionof human nature, that our reconciliation to God by the atonement ofChrist, and that the restoration of our primitive dignity by thesanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit, are all parts of one whole, united in close dependence and mutual congruity. 

Perhaps, however, it has not been sufficiently noticed, that in thechief practical precepts of Christianity, there is the same essentialagreement, the same mutual dependency of one upon another. Let us surveythis fresh instance of the wisdom of that system, which is the onlysolid foundation of our present or future happiness. 

The virtues most strongly and repeatedly enjoined in Scripture, and byour progress in which we may best measure our advancement in holiness, are the fear and love of God and of Christ; love, kindness, and meeknesstowards our fellow-creatures; indifference to the possessions andevents of this life, in comparison with our concern about eternalthings; self-denial, and humility. 

It has been already pointed out in many particulars, how essentiallysuch of these Christian graces as respect the Divine Being are connectedwith those, which have more directly for their objects ourfellow-creatures and ourselves. But in the case of these two lastdescriptions of Christian graces; the more attentively we consider themwith reference to the acknowledged principles of human nature, and toindisputable facts, the more we shall be convinced that they affordmutual aid towards the acquisition of each other; and that whenacquired, they all harmonize with each other in perfect and essentialunion. This truth may perhaps be sufficiently apparent from what hasbeen already remarked; but it may not be useless to dwell on it a littlemore in detail. Take then the instances of loving-kindness and meeknesstowards others; and observe the solid foundation which is laid for themin self-denial, in moderation as to the good things of this life, and inhumility. The chief causes of enmity among men are, pride andself-importance, the high opinion which men entertain of themselves, andthe consequent deference which they exact from others: theover-valuation of worldly possessions and of worldly honours, and inconsequence, a too eager competition for them. The rough edges of oneman rub against those of another, if the expression may be allowed; andthe friction is often such as to injure the works, and disturb the justarrangements and regular motions of the social machine. But byChristianity all these roughnesses are filed down: every wheel rollsround smoothly in the performance of its appointed function, and thereis nothing to retard the several movements, or break in upon the generalorder. The religious system indeed of the bulk of nominal Christians issatisfied with some tolerable appearances of virtue: and accordingly, while it recommends love and beneficence, it tolerates, as has beenshewn, pride and vanity in many cases; it even countenances and commendsthe excessive valuation of character; and at least allows a man's wholesoul to be absorbed in the pursuit of the object which he is following, be it what it may of personal or professional success. But though theselatter qualities may, for the most part, fairly enough consist with asoft exterior and courtly demeanor, they cannot so well accord with thegenuine internal principle of love. Some cause of discontent, someground of jealousy or of envy will arise, some suspicion will corrode, some disappointment will sour, some slight or calumny will irritate andprovoke reprisals. In the higher walks of life, indeed, we learn todisguise our emotions; but such will be the real inward feelings of thesoul, and they will frequently betray themselves when we are off ourguard, or when we are not likely to be disparaged by the discovery. Thisstate of the higher orders, in which men are scuffling eagerly for thesame objects, and wearing all the while such an appearance of sweetnessand complacency, has often appeared to me to be not ill illustrated bythe image of a gaming table. There, every man is intent only on his ownprofit; the good success of one is the ill success of another, andtherefore the general state of mind of the parties engaged may be prettywell conjectured. All this, however, does not prevent, in well-bredsocieties, an exterior of perfect gentleness and good humour. But letthe same employment be carried on among the lower orders, who are not sowell schooled in the art of disguising their feelings; or in placeswhere, by general connivance, people are allowed to give vent to theirreal emotions; and every passion will display itself, by which the"human face divine" can be distorted and deformed. For those who neverhave been present at so humiliating a scene, the pencil of Hogarth hasprovided a representation of it, which is scarcely exaggerated; and thehorrid name[105], by which it is familiarly known among its frequenters, sufficiently attests the fidelity of its resemblance. 

But Christianity is not satisfied with producing merely the speciousguise of virtue. She requires the substantial reality, which may standthe scrutinizing eye of that Being "who searches the heart. " Meaningtherefore that the Christian should live and breathe; in an atmosphere, as it were, of benevolence, she forbids whatever can tend to obstructits diffusion or vitiate its purity. It is on this principle thatEmulation is forbidden: for, besides that this passion almost insensiblydegenerates into envy, and that it derives its origin chiefly from prideand a desire of self-exaltation; how can we easily love our neighbour asourselves, if we consider him at the same time our rival, and are intentupon surpassing him in the pursuit of whatever is the subject of ourcompetition?

Christianity, again, teaches us not to set our hearts on earthlypossessions and earthly honours; and thereby provides for our reallyloving, or even cordially forgiving, those who have been more successfulthan ourselves in the attainment of them, or who have even designedlythwarted us in the pursuit. "Let the rich, " says the Apostle, "rejoicein that he is brought low. " How can he who means to attempt, in anydegree, to obey this precept, be irreconcilably hostile towards any onewho may have been instrumental in his depression?

Christianity also teaches us not to prize human estimation at a veryhigh rate; and thereby provides for the practice of her injunction, tolove from the heart those who, justly or unjustly, may have attacked ourreputation, and wounded our character. She commands not the shew, butthe reality of meekness and gentleness; and by thus taking away thealiment of anger and the fomenters of discord, she provides for themaintenance of peace, and the restoration of good temper among men, whenit may have sustained a temporary interruption. 

It is another capital excellence of Christianity, that she values moralattainments at a far higher rate than intellectual acquisitions, andproposes to conduct her followers to the heights of virtue rather thanof knowledge. On the contrary, most of the false religious systems whichhave prevailed in the world, have proposed to reward the labour of theirvotary, by drawing aside the veil which concealed from the vulgar eyetheir hidden mysteries, and by introducing him to the knowledge of theirdeeper and more sacred doctrines. 

This is eminently the case in the Hindoo, and in the Mahometan Religion, in that of China, and, for the most part, in the various modificationsof ancient Paganism. In systems which proceed on this principle, it isobvious that the bulk of mankind can never make any great proficiency. There was accordingly, among the nations of antiquity, one system, whatever it was, for the learned, and another for the illiterate. Manyof the philosophers spoke out, and professed to keep the lower orders inignorance for the general good; plainly suggesting that the bulk ofmankind was to be considered as almost of an inferior species. Aristotlehimself countenanced this opinion. An opposite mode of proceedingnaturally belongs to Christianity, which without distinction professesan equal regard for all human beings, and which was characterized by herfirst Promulgator as the messenger of "glad tidings to the poor. "

But her preference of moral to intellectual excellence is not to bepraised, only because it is congenial with her general character, andsuitable to the ends which she professes to have in view. It is the partof true wisdom to endeavour to excel there, where we may really attainto excellence. This consideration might be alone sufficient to directour efforts to the acquisition of virtue rather than of knowledge. --Howlimited is the range of the greatest human abilities! how scanty thestores of the richest human knowledge! Those who undeniably have heldthe first rank, both for natural and acquired endowments, instead ofthinking their pre-eminence a just ground of self-exaltation, havecommonly been the most forward to confess that their views were boundedand their attainments moderate. Had they indeed been less candid, thisis a discovery which we could not have failed to make of ourselves. Experience daily furnishes us with examples of weakness, andshort-sightedness, and error, in the wisest and the most learned of men, which might serve to confound the pride of human wisdom. 

Not so in morals. --Made at first in the likeness of God, and stillbearing about us some faint traces of our high original, we are offeredby our blessed Redeemer the means of purifying ourselves from ourcorruptions, and of once more regaining the image of our HeavenlyFather[106]. In love, the compendious expression for almost everyvirtue, in fortitude under all its forms, in justice, in humility, andin all the other graces of the Christian character, we are made capableof attaining to heights of real elevation: and were we but faithful inthe use of the means of grace which we enjoy; the operations of the HolySpirit, prompting and aiding our diligent endeavours, would infalliblycrown our labours with success, and make us partakers of a Divinenature. The writer has himself known some who have been instances of thetruth of this remark. To the memory of one, [107] now no more, may he bepermitted to offer the last tribute of respectful friendship? Hiscourse, short but laborious, has at length terminated in a better world;and his luminous tract still shines in the sight, and animates theefforts of all who knew him, and "marshals them the way" to Heavenlyglory. Let me not be thought to undervalue any of the gifts of God, orof the fruits of human exertion: but let not these be prized beyondtheir proper worth. If one of those little industrious reptiles, towhich we have been well sent for a lesson of diligence and foresight, were to pride itself upon its strength, because it could carry off alarger grain of wheat than any other of its fellow-ants; should we notlaugh at the vanity which could be highly gratified with such acontemptible pre-eminence? And is it far different to the eye of reason, when man, weak, short-sighted man, is vain of surpassing others inknowledge, in which at best his progress must be so limited; forgettingthe true dignity of his nature, and the path which would conduct him toreal excellence?

The unparalleled value of the precepts of Christianity ought not bepassed over altogether unnoticed in this place, though it be needless todwell on it; since it has been often justly recognized and asserted, andhas in some points been ably illustrated, and powerfully enforced by themasterly pen of a late writer. It is by no means however the design ofthis little work to attempt to trace the various excellencies ofChristianity; but it may not have been improper to point out a fewparticulars, which, in the course of investigation, have naturallyfallen under our notice, and hitherto perhaps may scarcely have beenenough regarded. Every such instance, it should always be remembered, isa fresh proof of Christianity being a revelation from God. 

It is still less, however, the intention of the writer to attempt tovindicate the Divine origin of our Holy Religion. This task has oftenbeen executed by far abler advocates. In particular, every Christian, with whatever reserves his commendations must be disqualified, should beforward to confess his obligations _on this head_ to the author beforealluded to; whose uncommon acuteness has enabled him, in a field alreadyso much trodden, to discover arguments which had eluded the observationof all by whom he was preceded, and whose unequalled perspicuity putshis reader in complete possession of the fruits of his sagacity. Anxious, however, in my little measure, to contribute to the support ofthis great cause, may it be permitted me to state one argument, whichimpresses my mind with particular force. This is, the great variety ofthe _kinds_ of evidence which have been adduced in proof ofChristianity, and the confirmation thereby afforded of its truth:--theproof from prophecy--from miracles--from the character of Christ--fromthat of his Apostles--from the nature of the doctrines ofChristianity--from the nature and excellence of her _practicalprecepts_--from the accordance we have lately pointed out between thedoctrinal and practical system of Christianity, whether considered eachin itself or in their mutual relation to each other--from other speciesof internal evidence, afforded in the more abundance in proportion asthe sacred records have been scrutinized with greater care--from theaccount of co-temporary or nearly co-temporary writers--from theimpossibility of accounting on any other supposition, than that of thetruth of Christianity, for its promulgation and early prevalence: theseand other lines of argument have all been brought forward and ably urgedby different writers, in proportion as they have struck the minds ofdifferent observers more or less forcibly. Now, granting that someobscure and illiterate men, residing in a distant province of the Romanempire, had plotted to impose a forgery upon the world; though somefoundation for the imposture might, and indeed must, have been attemptedto be laid; it seems, at least to my understanding, morally impossiblethat _so many different species of proofs_, and all so strong, shouldhave lent their _concurrent_ aid, and have united their _joint_ force inthe establishment of the falsehood. It may assist the reader inestimating the value of this argument, to consider upon how different afooting, in this respect, has rested every other religious system, without exception, which was ever proposed to the world; and, indeed, every other historical fact, of which the truth has been at allcontested. 

CHAPTER VI. 

_Brief Inquiry into the present State of Christianity in this Country, with some of the Causes which have led to its critical Circumstances. Its Importance to us as a political Community, and practical Hints forwhich the foregoing considerations give occasion. _

It may not be altogether improper to remind the reader, that hithertoour discussion has been concerning the prevailing Religious opinionsmerely of _professed Christians_: no longer confining ourselves topersons of this description, let us now extend our inquiry, and brieflyinvestigate the _general_ state of Christianity in this country. 

The tendency of Religion in general to promote the temporal well-beingof political communities, is a fact which depends on such obvious andundeniable principles, and which is so forcibly inculcated by thehistory of all ages, that there can be no necessity for entering into aformal proof of its truth. It has indeed been maintained, not merely bySchoolmen and Divines, but by the most celebrated philosophers, andmoralists, and politicians of every age. 

The peculiar excellence in this respect also of Christianity, consideredindependently of its truth or falsehood, has been recognized by manywriters, who, to say the least, were not disposed to exaggerate itsmerits. Either or both of these propositions being admitted, the stateof Religion in a country at any given period, not to mention itsconnection with the eternal happiness of the inhabitants, immediatelybecomes a question of great _political_ importance: and in particular itmust be material to ascertain whether Religion be in an advancing or ina declining state; and if the latter be the case, whether there be anypracticable means for preventing at least its farther declension. 

If the representations contained in the preceding chapters, of the stateof Christianity among the bulk of professed Christians, be not veryerroneous; they may well excite serious apprehension in the mind ofevery reader, when considered merely in a political view. And thisapprehension would be encreased, if there should appear reason tobelieve that, for some time past, Religion has been on the declineamongst us, and that it continues to decline at the present moment. 

When it is proposed, however, to inquire into the actual state ofReligion in any country, and in particular to compare that state withits condition at any former period; there is one preliminary observationto be made, if we would not be liable to gross error. There exists, established by tacit content, in every country, what may be called ageneral standard or tone of morals, varying in the same community atdifferent periods, and different at the same period in different ranksand situations in society. Whoever falls below this standard, and, notunfrequently, whoever also rises above it, offending against thisgeneral rule, suffers proportionably in the general estimation. Thus aregard for character, which, as was formerly remarked, is commonly thegrand governing principle among men, becomes to a certain degree, thoughno farther, an incitement to morality and virtue. It follows of course, that where the practice does no more than come up to the required level, it will be no sufficient evidence of the existence, much less will itfurnish any just measure of the force, of a real internal principle ofReligion. Christians, Jews, Turks, Infidels, and Heretics, persons often thousand different sorts of passions and opinions, being members atthe same time of the same community, and all conscious that they will beexamined by this same standard, will regulate their conduct accordingly, and, with no great difference, will all adjust themselves to therequired measure. 

It must also be remarked, that the causes which tend to raise or todepress this standard, commonly produce their effects by slow and almostinsensible degrees; and that it often continues for some time nearly thesame, when the circumstances, by which it was fixed, have materiallyaltered. 

It is a truth which will hardly be contested, that Christianity, whenever it has at all prevailed, has raised the general standard ofmorals to a height before unknown. Some actions, which among theancients were scarcely held to be blemishes in the most excellentcharacters, have been justly considered by the laws of every Christiancommunity, as meriting the severest punishments. In other instances, virtues formerly rare have become common; and in particular a mercifuland courteous temper has softened the rugged manners, and humanized thebrutal ferocity prevalent among the most polished nations of the heathenworld. But from what has been recently observed, it is manifest, that, so far as external appearances are concerned, these effects, when onceproduced by Christianity, are produced alike in those who deny and inthose who admit her divine original; I had almost said in those whoreject and those who cordially embrace the doctrines of the Gospel: andthese effects might and probably would remain for a while, without anygreat apparent alteration, however her spirit might languish, or evenher authority decline. The form of the temple, as was once beautifullyremarked, may continue, when the _dii tutelares_ have left it. When weare inquiring therefore into the real state of Christianity at anyperiod; if we would not be deceived in this important investigation, itbecomes us to be so much the more careful not to take up withsuperficial appearances. 

It may perhaps help us to ascertain the advancing or declining state ofChristianity in Great Britain at the present moment; and still more todiscover some of the causes by which that state has been produced, toemploy a little time in considering what might naturally be expected tobe its actual situation; what advantages or disadvantages such areligion might be expected to derive, from the circumstances in whichit has been placed among us, and from those in which it still continues. 

Experience warrants, and reason justifies and explains the assertion, that Persecution generally tends to quicken the vigour and extend theprevalence of the opinions which she would eradicate. For the peace ofmankind, it has grown, at length almost into an axiom, that "herdevilish engine back recoils upon herself. " Christianity especially hasalways thriven under persecution. At such a season she has no lukewarmprofessors; no adherents concerning whom it is doubtful to what partythey belong. The Christian is then reminded at every turn, that hisMaster's kingdom is not of this world. When all on earth wears a blackand threatening aspect, he looks up to heaven for consolation; he learnspractically to consider himself as a pilgrim and stranger. He thencleaves to fundamentals, and examines well his foundation, as at thehour of death. When Religion is in a state of external quiet andprosperity, the contrary of all this naturally takes place. The soldiersof the church militant then forget that they are in a state of warfare. Their ardour slackens, their zeal languishes. Like a colony long settledin a strange country[108], they are gradually assimilated in features, and demeanour, and language, to the native inhabitants, till at lengthalmost every vestige of peculiarity dies away. 

If, in general, persecution and prosperity be productive respectively ofthese opposite effects; this circumstance alone might teach us whatexpectations to form concerning the state of Christianity in thiscountry, where she has long been embodied in an establishment, which isintimately blended, and is generally and justly believed to have acommon interest with our civil institutions; which is liberally, thoughby no means too liberally, endowed, and, not more favoured in wealththan dignity, has been allowed "to exalt her mitred front in courts andparliaments:" an establishment--the offices in which are extremelynumerous, and these, not like the priesthood of the Jews, filled up froma particular race, or, like that of the Hindoos, held by a separate castin entailed succession; but supplied from every class, and branching byits widely extended ramifications into almost every individual family inthe community: an establishment--of which the ministers are not, likethe Roman Catholic clergy, debarred from forming matrimonial ties, butare allowed to unite themselves, and multiply their holdings to thegeneral mass of the community by the close bonds of family connection;not like some of the severer of the religious orders, immured incolleges and monasteries, but, both by law and custom, permitted to mixwithout restraint in all the intercourses of society. 

Such being the circumstances of the pastors of the church, let thecommunity in general be supposed to have been for some time in a rapidlyimproving state of commercial prosperity; let it also be supposed tohave been making no unequal progress in all those arts, and sciences, and literary productions, which have ever been the growth of a polishedage, and are the sure marks of a highly finished condition of society. It is not difficult to anticipate the effects likely to be produced on_vital_ Religion, both in the clergy and the laity, by such a state ofexternal prosperity as has been assigned to them respectively. And theseeffects would be infallibly furthered, where the country in questionshould enjoy a free constitution of government. We formerly had occasionto quote the remark of an accurate observer of the stage of human life, that a much looser system of morals commonly prevails in the higher, than in the middling and lower orders of society. Now, in every country, of which the middling classes are daily growing in wealth andconsequence, by the success of their commercial speculations; and, mostof all, in a country having such a constitution as our own, where theacquisition of riches is the possession also of rank and power; with thecomforts and refinements, the vices also of the higher orders arecontinually descending, and a mischievous uniformity of sentiments, andmanners, and morals, gradually diffuses itself throughout the wholecommunity. The multiplication of great cities also, and above all, thehabit, ever increasing with the increasing wealth of the country, offrequenting a splendid and luxurious metropolis, would powerfully tendto accelerate the discontinuance of the religious habits of a purer age, and to accomplish the substitution of a more relaxed morality. And itmust even be confessed, that the commercial spirit, much as we areindebted to it, is not naturally favourable to the maintenance of thereligious principle in a vigorous and lively state. 

In times like these, therefore, the strict precepts and self-denyinghabits of Christianity naturally slide into disuse; and even among thebetter sort of Christians, are likely to be softened, so far at leastas to be rendered less abhorrent from the general disposition torelaxation and indulgence. In such prosperous circumstances, men, intruth, are apt to think very little about religion. Christianity, therefore, seldom occupying the attention of the bulk of nominalChristians, and being scarcely at all the object of their study, weshould expect, of course, to find them extremely unacquainted with itstenets. Those doctrines and principles indeed, which it contains incommon with the law of the land, or which are sanctioned by the generalstandard of morals formerly described, being brought into continualnotice and mention by the common occurrences of life, might continue tobe recognized. But whatever she contains peculiar to herself, and whichshould not be habitually brought into recollection by the incidents ofevery day, might be expected to be less and less thought of, till atlength it should be almost wholly forgotten. Still more might this benaturally expected to become the case, if the peculiarities in questionshould be, from their very nature, at war with pride, and luxury, andworldly mindedness, the too general concomitants of rapidly increasingwealth: and this would particularly happen among the laity; if thecircumstance of their having been at any time abused to purposes ofhypocrisy or fanaticism, should have prompted even some of the betterdisposed of the clergy, perhaps from well intentioned though erroneousmotives, to bring them forward less frequently in their discourses onReligion. 

When so many should thus have been straying out of the right path, somebold reformer might, from time to time, be likely to arise, who shouldnot unjustly charge them with their deviation: but, though right perhapsin the main; yet deviating himself also in an opposite direction, andcreating disgust by his violence, or vulgarity, or absurdities, he mightfail, except in a few instances, to produce the effect of recalling themfrom their wanderings. 

Still, however, the Divine Original of Christianity would not beprofessedly disavowed; partly from a real, and more commonly from apolitical, deference for the established faith, but most of all, fromthe bulk of mankind being not yet prepared, as it were, to throw awaythe scabbard, and to venture their eternal happiness on the issue of itsfalsehood. Some bolder spirits, indeed, might be expected to despise thecautious moderation of these timid reasoners, and to pronouncedecisively, that the Bible was a forgery: while the generality, professing to believe it genuine, should, less consistently, besatisfied with remaining ignorant of its contents; and when pressed, should discover themselves by no means to believe many of the mostimportant particulars contained in it. 

When, by the operation of causes like these, any country has at lengthgrown into the condition which has been here stated; it is but tooobvious, that, in the bulk of the community, Religion, already sunk verylow, must be hastening fast to her entire dissolution. Causes, energeticand active like these, though accidental hindrances may occasionallythwart their operation, will not at once become sluggish andunproductive. Their effect is sure; and the time is fast approaching, when Christianity will be almost as openly disavowed in the language, asin fact it is already supposed to have disappeared from the conduct ofmen; when infidelity will be held to be the necessary appendage of a manof fashion, and _to believe_ will be deemed the indication of a feeblemind and a contracted understanding. 

Something like what have been here premised are the conjectures which weshould naturally be led to form, concerning the state of Christianity inthis country, and its probable issue, from considering her own nature, and the peculiar circumstances in which she has been placed. That herreal condition differs not much from the result of this reasoning fromprobability, must, with whatever regret, be confessed by all who take acareful and impartial survey of the actual situation of things among us. But our hypothetical delineation, if just, will have approved itself tothe reader's conviction, as we have gone along, by suggesting itsarchetypes; and we may therefore be spared the painful and invidioustask of pointing out, in detail, the several particulars wherein ourstatements are justified by facts. Every where we may actually trace theeffects of increasing wealth and luxury, in banishing one by one thehabits, and new-modelling the phraseology, of stricter times; and indiffusing throughout the middle ranks those relaxed morals anddissipated manners, which were formerly confined to the higher classesof society. We meet, indeed, with more refinement, and more generallywith those amiable courtesies which are its proper fruits: those vicesalso have become less frequent, which naturally infest the darkness of aruder and less polished age, and which recede on the approach of lightand civilization:

 Defluxit numerus Saturnius, & grave virus Munditiæ pepulere:

But with these grossnesses, Religion, on the other hand, has alsodeclined; God is forgotten; his providence is exploded; his hand islifted up, but we see it not; he multiplies our comforts, but we are notgrateful; he visits us with chastisements, but we are not contrite. Theportion of the week set apart to the service of Religion we give up, without reluctance, to vanity and dissipation. And it is much if, on theperiodical return of a day of national humiliation, having availedourselves of the certainty of an interval from public business to securea meeting for convivial purposes; we do not insult the Majesty of Heavenby feasting and jollity, and thus deliberately disclaim our beingincluded in the solemn services of this season of penitence andrecollection[109]. 

But when there is not this open and shameless disavowal of Religion, fewtraces of it are to be found. Improving in almost every other branch ofknowledge, we have become less and less acquainted with Christianity. The preceding chapters have pointed out, among those who believethemselves to be orthodox Christians, a deplorable ignorance of theReligion they profess, an utter forgetfulness of the peculiar doctrinesby which it is characterized, a disposition to regard it as a meresystem of ethics, and, what might seem an inconsistency, at the sametime a most inadequate idea of the nature and strictness of itspractical principles. This declension of Christianity into a mere systemof ethics, may partly be accounted for, as has been lately suggested; byconsidering the corruption of our nature, what Christianity is, and inwhat circumstances she has been placed in this country. But it has alsobeen considerably promoted by one peculiar cause, on which, for manyreasons, it may not be improper to dwell a little more particularly. 

Christianity in its best days (for the credit of our representations letthis be remembered, by those who object to our statement as austere andcontracted) was such as it has been delineated in the present work. Thiswas the Religion of the most eminent Reformers, of those brightornaments of our country who suffered martyrdom under queen Mary; oftheir successors in the times of Elizabeth; in short of all the pillarsof our Protestant church; of many of its highest dignitaries; ofDavenant, of Hall, of Reynolds, of Beveridge, of Hooker, of Andrews, ofSmith, of Leighton, of Usher, of Hopkins, of Baxter[110], and of manyothers of scarcely inferior note. In their pages the peculiar doctrinesof Christianity were every where visible, and on the deep and solidbasis of these doctrinal truths were laid the foundations of asuperstructure of morals proportionably broad and exalted. Of this facttheir writings still extant are a decisive proof: and they who may wantleisure, or opportunity, or inclination, for the perusal of thesevaluable records, may satisfy themselves of the truth of the assertion, that, such as we have stated it, was the Christianity of those times, byconsulting our Articles and Homilies, or even by carefully examining ourexcellent Liturgy. But from that tendency to deterioration latelynoticed, these great fundamental truths began to be somewhat lessprominent in the compositions of many of the leading divines before thetime of the civil wars. During that period, however, the peculiardoctrines of Christianity were grievously abused by many of thesectaries, who were foremost in the commotions of those unhappy days;who, while they talked copiously of the free grace of Christ, and theoperations of the Holy Spirit, were by their lives an open scandal tothe name of Christian[111]. 

Towards the close of the last century, the divines of the establishedChurch (whether it arose from the obscurity of their own views, or froma strong impression of former abuses, and of the evils which hadresulted from them) began to run into a different error. They professedto make it their chief object to inculcate the moral and practicalprecepts of Christianity, which they conceived to have been before toomuch neglected; but without sufficiently maintaining, often even withoutjustly laying the grand foundation, of a sinner's acceptance with God;or pointing out how the practical precepts of Christianity grow out ofher peculiar doctrines, and are inseparably connected with them[112]. By this fatal error, the very genius and essential nature ofChristianity imperceptibly underwent a change. She no longer retainedher peculiar characters, or produced that appropriate frame of spirit bywhich her followers had been characterized. Facilis descensus. Theexample thus set was followed during the present century, and its effectwas aided by various causes already pointed out. In addition to these, it may be proper to mention as a cause of powerful operation; that forthe last fifty years the press has teemed with moral essays, many ofthem published periodically, and most extensively circulated; which, being considered either as works of mere entertainment, or, in which atleast entertainment was to be blended with instruction, rather than asreligious pieces, were kept free from whatever might give them the airof sermons, or cause them to wear an appearance of seriousness, inconsistent with the idea of relaxation. But in this way the fatalhabit, of considering Christian morals as distinct from Christiandoctrines, insensibly gained strength. Thus the peculiar doctrines ofChristianity went more and more out of sight; and, as might naturallyhave been expected, the moral system itself also began to wither anddecay, being robbed of that which should have supplied it with life andnutriment. At length, in our own days, these peculiar doctrines havealmost altogether vanished from the view. Even in many sermons, as wehave formerly noticed, scarcely any traces of them are to be found. 

But the degree of neglect into which they are really fallen, may perhapsbe rendered still more manifest by appealing to another criterion. Thereis a certain class of publications, of which it is the object to giveus exact delineations of life and manners: and when these are written byauthors of accurate observation and deep knowledge of human nature; (andmany such there have been in our times) they furnish a more faithfulpicture, than can be obtained in any other way, of the prevalentopinions and feelings of mankind. It must be obvious that novels arehere alluded to. A careful perusal of the most celebrated of thesepieces would furnish a strong confirmation of the apprehension, suggested from other considerations, concerning the very low state ofReligion in this country; but they would still more strikinglyillustrate the truth of the remark, that the grand peculiarities ofChristianity are almost vanished from the view. In a sermon, althoughthroughout the whole of it there may have been no traces of thesepeculiarities, either directly or indirectly, the preacher closes withan ordinary form; which, if one were to assert that they were absolutelyomitted, would immediately be alledged in contradiction of theassertion, and may just serve to protect them from falling into entireoblivion. But in novels, the writer is not so tied down. In these, people of Religion, and clergymen too, are placed in all possiblesituations, and the sentiments and language deemed suitable to theoccasion are assigned to them. They are introduced instructing, reproving, counselling, comforting. It is often the author's intentionto represent them in a favourable point of view, and accordingly hemakes them as well informed and as good Christians as he knows how. Theyare painted amiable, benevolent, and forgiving; but it is not too muchto say, that if all the peculiarities of Christianity had neverexisted, or had been proved to be false, the circumstance would scarcelycreate the necessity of altering a single syllable in any of the mostcelebrated of these performances. It is striking to observe thedifference which there is in this respect in similar works of Mahometanauthors, wherein the characters, which they mean to represent in afavourable light, are drawn vastly more observant of the peculiaritiesof their religion[113]. 

But to make an end of this discussion, concerning the degree in whichthe peculiarities of Christianity have fallen into neglect, andconcerning one of the principal of the causes which have produced it: ifthis be the state of things even in the case of sermons, and of thecompositions of those, whose sphere of information must be supposedlarger than that of the bulk of mankind; it must excite less wonder, that in the world in general, though Christianity be not formallydenied, people know little about it; and that in fact you find, when youcome to converse with them, that, admitting in terms the DivineRevelation of Scripture, they are far from believing the propositionswhich it contains. 

It has also been a melancholy prognostic of the state to which we areprogressive, that many of the most eminent of the literati of moderntimes have been professed unbelievers: and that others of them havediscovered such lukewarmness in the cause of Christ, as to treat withespecial good will, and attention, and respect, those men, who, by theiravowed publications, were openly assailing, or insidiously underminingthe very foundations of the Christian hope; considering themselves asmore closely united to them, by literature, than severed from them bythe widest religious differences[114]. Can it then occasion surprise, that under all these circumstances, one of the most acute and mostforward of the professed unbelievers[115] should appear to anticipate, as at no great distance, the more complete triumph of his scepticalprinciples; and that another author of distinguished name[116], not soopenly professing those infidel opinions, should declare of the writerabove alluded to, whose great abilities had been systematicallyprostituted to the open attack of every principle of Religion, bothnatural and revealed, "that he had always considered him, both in hislife-time and since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea of aperfectly wise and virtuous man, as perhaps the nature of human frailtywill permit?"

Can there then be a doubt, whither tends the path in which we aretravelling, and whither at length it must conduct us? If any shouldhesitate, let them take a lesson from experience. In a neighbouringcountry, several of the same causes have been in action; and they haveat length produced their full effect. Manners corrupted, moralsdepraved, dissipation predominant, above all, Religion discredited, andinfidelity grown into repute and fashion[117], terminated in the publicdisavowal of every religious principle, which had been used to attractthe veneration of mankind. The representatives of a whole nationpublicly witnessing, not only without horror, but, to say the least, without disapprobation, an open unqualified denial of the very existenceof God; and at length, as a body, withdrawing their allegiance from theMajesty of Heaven. 

There are not a few, perhaps, who may have witnessed with apprehension, and may be ready to confess with pain, the gradual declension ofReligion; but who at the same time may conceive that the writer of thistract is disposed to carry things too far. They may even allege, thatthe degree of Religion for which he contends is inconsistent with theordinary business of life, and with the well-being of society; that ifit were generally to prevail, people would be wholly engrossed byReligion, and all their time occupied by prayer and preaching. Men notbeing sufficiently interested in the pursuit of temporal objects, agriculture and commerce would decline, the arts would languish, thevery duties of common life would be neglected; and, in short, the wholemachine of civil society would be obstructed, and speedily stopped. Anopening for this charge is given by an ingenious writer[118] alluded toin an early period of our work; and is even somewhat countenanced by anauthor since referred to, from whom such a sentiment justly excites moresurprise[119]. 

In reply to this objection it might be urged, that though we shouldallow it for a moment to be in a considerable degree well founded, yetthis admission would not warrant the conclusion intended to be drawnfrom it. The question would still remain, whether our representation ofwhat Christianity requires be agreeable to the word of God? For if itbe, surely it must be confessed to be a matter of small account tosacrifice a little worldly comfort and prosperity, during the short spanof our existence in this life, in order to secure a crown of eternalglory, and the enjoyment of those pleasures which are at God's righthand for evermore! It might be added also, that our blessed Saviour hadfairly declared, that it would often be required of Christians to makesuch a sacrifice; and had forewarned us, that, in order to be able to doit with cheerfulness whenever the occasion should arrive, we musthabitually sit loose to all worldly possessions and enjoyments. And itmight farther be remarked, that though it were even admitted, that the_general prevalence of vital Christianity_ should somewhat interferewith the views of national wealth and aggrandisement; yet that there istoo much reason to believe that, do all we can, this general prevalenceneeds not to be apprehended, or, to speak more justly, could not behoped for. But indeed the objection on which we have now beencommenting, is not only groundless, but the very contrary to it is thetruth. If Christianity, such as we have represented it, were generallyto prevail; the world, from being such as it is, would become a scene ofgeneral peace and prosperity; and abating the chances and calamities"which flesh is inseparably heir to, " would wear one unwearied face ofcomplacency and joy. 

On the first promulgation of Christianity, it is true, some of her earlyconverts seem to have been in danger of so far mistaking the genius ofthe new Religion, as to imagine that in future they were to bedischarged from an active attendance on their secular affairs. But theApostle most pointedly guarded them against so gross an error, andexpressly and repeatedly enjoined them to perform the particular dutiesof their several stations with increased alacrity and fidelity, thatthey might thereby do credit to their Christian profession. This he did, at the same time that he prescribed to them that predominant love of Godand of Christ, that heavenly-mindedness, that comparative indifferenceto the things of this world, that earnest endeavour after growth ingrace and perfection in holiness, which have already been stated as theessential characteristics of real Christianity. It cannot therefore besupposed by any who allow to the Apostle even the claim of a consistentinstructor, much less by any who admit his Divine authority, that theselatter precepts are incompatible with the former. Let it be remembered, that the grand characteristic mark of the true Christian, which has beeninsisted on, is _his desiring to please God in all his thoughts, andwords, and actions; to take the revealed word to be the rule of hisbelief and practice; to "let his light shine before men;" and in allthings to adorn the doctrine which he professes_. No calling isproscribed, no pursuit is forbidden, no science or art, no pleasure isdisallowed, which is reconcilable with this principle. It must indeed beconfessed that Christianity would not favour that vehement andinordinate ardour in the pursuit of temporal objects, which tends to theacquisition of immense wealth, or of widely spread renown: nor is itcalculated to gratify the extravagant views of those mistakenpoliticians, the chief object of whose admiration, and the main scope ofwhose endeavours for their country, are, extended dominion, andcommanding power, and unrivalled affluence, rather than those more solidadvantages of peace, and comfort, and security. These men would bartercomfort for greatness. In their vain reveries they forget that a nationconsists of individuals, and that true national prosperity is no otherthan the multiplication of particular happiness. 

But in fact, so far is it from being true that the prevalence of _real_Religion would produce a stagnation in life; that a man, whatever mightbe his employment or pursuit, would be furnished with a new motive toprosecute it with alacrity, a motive far more constant and vigorous thanany human prospects can supply: at the same time, his solicitude beingnot so much to succeed in whatever he might be engaged in, as to actfrom a pure principle and leave the event to God; he would not be liableto the same disappointments, as men who are active and laborious from adesire of worldly gain or of human estimation. Thus he would possess thetrue secret of a life at the same time useful and happy. Following peacealso with all men, and looking upon them as members of the same family, entitled not only to the debts of justice, but to the less definite andmore liberal claims of fraternal kindness; he would naturally berespected and beloved by others, and be in himself free from theannoyance of those bad passions, by which they who are actuated byworldly principles are so commonly corroded. If any country were indeedfilled with men, each thus diligently discharging the duties of his ownstation without breaking in upon the rights of others, but on thecontrary endeavouring, so far as he might be able, to forward theirviews and promote their happiness; all would be active and harmonious inthe goodly frame of human society. There would be no jarrings, nodiscord. The whole machine of civil life would work without obstructionor disorder, and the course of its movements would be like the harmonyof the spheres. 

Such would be the happy state of a truly Christian nation within itself. Nor would its condition with regard to foreign countries form a contrastto this its internal comfort. Such a community, on the contrary, peaceful at home, would be respected and beloved abroad. Generalintegrity in all its dealings would inspire universal confidence:differences between nations commonly arise from mutual injuries, andstill more from mutual jealousy and distrust. Of the former there wouldbe no longer any ground for complaint; the latter would find nothing toattach upon. But if, in spite of all its justice and forbearance, theviolence of some neighbouring state should force it to resist anunprovoked attack, (for hostilities strictly defensive are those only inwhich it would be engaged) its domestic union would double its nationalforce; while the consciousness of a good cause, and of the generalfavour of Heaven, would invigorate its arm, and inspirit its efforts. 

It is indeed the position of an author, to whom we have had frequentoccasion to refer, and whose love of paradox has not seldom led him intoerror, that true Christianity is an enemy to patriotism. If bypatriotism be meant that mischievous and domineering quality, whichrenders men ardent to promote, not the happiness, but the aggrandisementof their own country, by the oppression and conquest of every other; tosuch patriotism, so generally applauded in the Heathen world, thatReligion must be indeed an enemy, whose foundation is justice, and whosecompendious character is "peace, --and good will towards men. " But if bypatriotism be understood that quality which, without shutting up ourphilanthropy within the narrow bounds of a single kingdom, yet attachesus in particular to the country to which we belong; of this truepatriotism, Christianity is the most copious source, and the surestpreservative. The contrary opinion can indeed only have arisen from notconsidering the fulness and universality of our Saviour's precepts. Notlike the puny productions of human workmanship, which at the best cancommonly serve but the particular purpose that they are speciallydesigned to answer; the moral, as well as the physical, principles ofthe great Author of all things are capable of being applied at once toten thousand different uses; thus, amidst infinite complication, preserving a grand simplicity, and therein bearing the unambiguous stampof their Divine Original. Thus, to specify one out of the numberlessinstances which might be adduced; the principle of gravitation, while itis subservient to all the mechanical purposes of common life, keeps atthe same time the stars in their courses, and sustains the harmony ofworlds. 

Thus also in the case before us: society consists of a number ofdifferent circles of various magnitudes and uses; and that circumstance, wherein the principle of patriotism chiefly consists, whereby the dutyof patriotism is best practised, and the happiest effects to the generalweal produced, is, that it should be the desire and aim of everyindividual to fill well his own proper circle, as a part and member ofthe whole, with a view to the production of general happiness. This ourSaviour enjoined when he prescribed the duty of universal love, which isbut another term for the most exalted patriotism. Benevolence, indeed, when not originating from Religion, dispenses but from a scanty andprecarious fund; and therefore, if it be liberal in the case of someobjects, it is generally found to be contracted towards others. Men who, acting from worldly principles, make the greatest stir about generalphilanthropy or zealous patriotism, are often very deficient in theirconduct in domestic life; and very neglectful of the opportunities, fully within their reach, of promoting the comfort of those with whomthey are immediately connected. But true Christian benevolence is alwaysoccupied in producing happiness to the utmost of its power, andaccording to the extent of its sphere, be it larger or more limited; itcontracts itself to the measure of the smallest; it can expand itself tothe amplitude of the largest. It resembles majestic rivers, which arepoured from an unfailing and abundant source. Silent and peaceful intheir outset, they begin with dispensing beauty and comfort to everycottage by which they pass. In their further progress they fertilizeprovinces and enrich kingdoms. At length they pour themselves into theocean; where, changing their names but not their nature, they visitdistant nations and other hemispheres, and spread throughout the worldthe expansive tide of their beneficence. 

It must be confessed, that many of the good effects, of which Religionis productive to political societies, would be produced even by a falseReligion, which should prescribe good morals, and should be able toenforce its precepts by sufficient sanctions. Of this nature are thoseeffects, which depend on our calling in the aid of a Being who sees theheart, in order to assist the weakness, and in various ways to supplythe inherent defects of all human jurisprudence. But the superiorexcellence of Christianity in this respect must be acknowledged, both inthe superiority of her moral code, and in the powerful motives andefficacious means which she furnishes for enabling us to practise it;and in the tendency of her doctrines to provide for the observance ofher precepts, by producing tempers of mind which correspond with them. 

But, more than all this; it has not perhaps been enough remarked, thattrue Christianity, from her essential nature, appears peculiarly andpowerfully adapted to promote the preservation and healthfulness ofpolitical communities. What is in truth their grand malady? The answeris short; Selfishness. This is that young disease received at the momentof their birth, "which grows with their growth, and strengthens withtheir strength;" and through which they at length expire, if not cut offprematurely by some external shock or intestine convulsion. 

The disease of selfishness, indeed, assumes different forms in thedifferent classes of society. In the great and the wealthy, it displaysitself in luxury, in pomp and parade; and in all the frivolities of asickly and depraved imagination, which seeks in vain its owngratification, and is dead to the generous and energetic pursuits of anenlarged heart. In the lower orders, when not motionless under theweight of a superincumbent despotism, it manifests itself in pride, andits natural offspring, insubordination in all its modes. But though theexternal effects may vary, the internal principle is the same; adisposition in each individual to make self the grand center and end ofhis desires and enjoyments; to over-rate his own merits and importance, and of course to magnify his claims on others, and in return tounder-rate their's on him; a disposition to undervalue the advantages, and over-state the disadvantages, of his condition in life. Thencespring rapacity and venality, and sensuality. Thence imperious nobles, and factious leaders; and an unruly commonalty, bearing with difficultythe inconveniences of a lower station, and imputing to the nature oradministration of their government the evils which necessarily flow fromthe very constitution of our species, or which perhaps are chiefly theresult of their own vices and follies. The opposite to selfishness ispublic spirit; which may be termed, not unjustly, the grand principle ofpolitical vitality, the very _life's breath_ of states, which tends tokeep them active and vigorous, and to carry them to greatness and glory. 

The tendency of public spirit, and the opposite tendency of selfishness, have not escaped the observation of the founders of states, or of thewriters on government; and various expedients have been resorted to andextolled, for cherishing the one, and for repressing the other. Sometimes a principle of internal agitation and dissension, resultingfrom the very frame of the government, has been productive of theeffect. Sparta flourished for more than seven hundred years under thecivil institutions of Lycurgus; which guarded against the selfishprinciple, by prohibiting commerce, and imposing universal poverty andhardship. The Roman commonwealth, in which public spirit was cherished, and selfishness checked, by the principle of the love of glory, was alsoof long continuance. This passion naturally operates to produce anunbounded spirit of conquest, which, like the ambition of the greatestof its own heroes, was never satiated while any other kingdom was leftit to subdue. The principle of political vitality, when kept alive onlyby means like these, merits the description once given of eloquence:"Sicut flamma, materia alitur, & motibus excitatur, & urendo clarescit. "But like eloquence, when no longer called into action by externalcauses, or fomented by civil broils, it gradually languishes. Wealth andluxury produce stagnation, and stagnation terminates in death. 

To provide, however, for the continuance of a state, by the admission ofinternal dissensions, or even by the chilling influence of poverty, seems to be in some sort sacrificing the end to the means. Happiness isthe end for which men unite in civil society; but in societies thusconstituted, little happiness, comparatively speaking, is to be found. The expedient, again, of preserving a state by the spirit of conquest, though even this has not wanted its admirers[120], is not to betolerated for a moment, when considered on principles of universaljustice. Such a state lives, and grows, and thrives, by the misery ofothers, and becomes professedly the general enemy of its neighbours, andthe scourge of the human race. All these devices are in truth but toomuch like the fabrications of man, when compared with the works of theSupreme Being; clumsy, yet weak in the execution of their purpose, andfull of contradictory principles and jarring movements. 

I might here enlarge with pleasure on the unrivalled excellence, in thisvery view, of the constitution under which we live in this happycountry; and point out how, more perhaps than any which ever existedupon earth, it is so framed, as to provide at the same time for keepingup a due degree of public spirit, and yet for preserving unimpaired thequietness, and comfort, and charities of private life; how it evenextracts from selfishness itself many of the advantages which, underless happily constructed forms of government, public spirit only cansupply. But such a political discussion, however grateful to a Britishmind, would here be out of place. It is rather our business to remark, how much Christianity in every way sets herself in direct hostility toselfishness, the mortal distemper of political communities; andconsequently, how their welfare must be inseparable from her prevalence. It might indeed, be almost stated as the main object and chief concernof Christianity, to root out our natural selfishness, and to rectify thefalse standard which it imposes on us; with views, however, far higherthan any which concern merely our temporal and social well-being; tobring us to a just estimate of ourselves, and of all around us, and to adue impression of the various claims and obligations resulting from thedifferent relations in which we stand. Benevolence, enlarged, vigorous, operative benevolence, is her master principle. Moderation in temporalpursuits and enjoyments, comparative indifference to the issue ofworldly projects, diligence in the discharge of personal and civilduties, resignation to the will of God, and patience under all thedispensations of his Providence, are among her daily lessons. Humilityis one of the essential qualities, which her precepts most directly andstrongly enjoin, and which all her various doctrines tend to call forthand cultivate; and humility, as has been before suggested, lays thedeepest and surest grounds for benevolence. In whatever class or orderof society Christianity prevails, she sets herself to rectify theparticular faults, or, if we would speak more distinctly, to counteractthe particular mode of selfishness, to which that class is liable. Affluence she teaches to be liberal and beneficent; authority, to bearits faculties with meekness, and to consider the various cares andobligations belonging to its elevated station, as being conditions onwhich that station is conferred. Thus, softening the glare of wealth, and moderating the insolence of power, she renders the inequalities ofthe social state less galling to the lower orders, whom also sheinstructs, in their turn, to be diligent, humble, patient: remindingthem that their more lowly path has been allotted to them by the hand ofGod; that it is their part faithfully to discharge its duties, andcontentedly to bear its inconveniences; that the present state of thingsis very short; that the objects, about which worldly men conflict soeagerly, are not worth the contest; that the peace of mind, whichReligion offers to all ranks indiscriminately, affords more truesatisfaction than all the expensive pleasures which are beyond the poorman's reach; that in this view, however, the poor have the advantage, and that if their superiors enjoy more abundant comforts, they are alsoexposed to many temptations from which the inferior classes are happilyexempted; that "having, food and raiment, they should be therewithcontent, " for that their situation in life, with all its evils, isbetter than they have deserved at the hand of God; finally, that allhuman distinctions will soon be done away, and the true followers ofChrist will all, as children of the same Father, be alike admitted tothe possession of the same heavenly inheritance. Such are the blessedeffects of Christianity on the temporal well-being of politicalcommunities. 

But the Christianity which can produce effects like these, must be real, not nominal, deep, not superficial. Such then is the Religion we shouldcultivate, if we would realize these pleasing speculations, and arrestthe progress of political decay. But in the present circumstances ofthis country, it is a farther reason for endeavouring to cultivate thisvital Christianity, still considering its effects merely in a politicalview, that, according to all human appearance, we must either have thisor none: unless the prevalence of this be in some degree restored, weare likely, not only to lose all the advantages which we might havederived from true Christianity, but to incur all the manifold evilswhich would result from the absence of all religion. 

In the first place, let it be remarked, that a weakly principle ofReligion, and even such an one, in a political view, is productive ofmany advantages; though its existence may be prolonged if all externalcircumstances favour its continuance, can hardly be kept alive, when thestate of things is so unfavourable to vital Religion, as it must beconfessed to be in our condition of society. Nor is it merely theordinary effects of a state of wealth and prosperity to which we hereallude. Much also may justly be apprehended, from that change which hastaken place in our general habits of thinking and feeling, concerningthe systems and opinions of former times. At a less advanced period ofsociety, indeed, the Religion of the state will be generally accepted, though it be not felt in its vital power. It was the Religion of ourforefathers: with the bulk it is on that account entitled to reverence, and its authority is admitted without question. The establishment inwhich it subsists pleads the same prescription, and obtains the samerespect. But in our days, things are very differently circumstanced. Notmerely the blind prejudice in favour of former times, but even theproper respect for them, and the reasonable presumption in their favour, has abated. Still less will the idea be endured, of any system beingkept up, when the imposture is seen through by the higher orders, forthe sake of retaining the common people in subjection. A system, if notsupported by a real persuasion of its truth, will fall to the ground. Thus it not unfrequently happens, that in a more advanced state ofsociety, a religious establishment must be indebted for its support tothat very Religion, which in earlier times it fostered and protected; asthe weakness of some aged mother is sustained, and her existencelengthened, by the tender assiduities of the child whom she had rearedin the helplessness of infancy. So in the present instance, unless therebe reinfused into the mass of our society, something of that principle, which animated our ecclesiastical system in its earlier days, it is vainfor us to hope that the establishment will very long continue: for theanomaly will not much longer be borne, of an establishment, the _actual_principles of the bulk of whose members, and even teachers, are soextremely different from those which it professes. But in proportion asvital Christianity can be revived, in that same proportion the churchestablishment is strengthened; for the revival of vital Christianity isthe very reinfusion of which we have been speaking. This is the veryChristianity on which our establishment is founded; and that which herArticles, and Homilies, and Liturgy, teach throughout. 

But if, when the reign of prejudice, and even of honest prepossession, and of grateful veneration, is no more (for by these almost any systemmay generally be supported, before a state, having passed the period ofits maturity, is verging to its decline); if there are any who thinkthat a dry, unanimated Religion, like that which is now professed bynominal Christians, can hold its place; much more that it can be revivedamong the general mass of mankind, it may be affirmed, that, arguingmerely on human principles, they know little of human nature. The kindof Religion which we have recommended, whatever opinion may beentertained concerning its truth, and to say nothing of the agency ofDivine Grace, must at least be conceded to be the only one which is atall suited to make impression upon the lower orders, by stronglyinteresting the passions of the human mind. If it be thought that asystem of ethics may regulate the conduct of the higher classes; such anone is altogether unsuitable to the lower, who must be worked upon bytheir affections, or they will not be worked upon at all. The antientswere wiser than ourselves, and never thought of governing the communityin general by their lessons of philosophy. These lessons were confinedto the schools of the learned; while for the million, a system ofReligion, such as it was, was kept up, as alone adapted to their grossernatures. If this reasoning fail to convince, we may safely appeal toexperience. Let the Socinian and the moral teacher of Christianity comeforth, and tell us what effects _they_ have produced on the lowerorders. They themselves will hardly deny the inefficacy of theirinstructions. But, blessed be God, the Religion which we recommend, hasproved its correspondence with the character originally given ofChristianity, that it was calculated for the poor; by changing the wholecondition of the mass of society in many of the most populous districtsin this and other countries; and by bringing them from being scenes ofalmost unexampled wickedness and barbarism, to be eminent for sobriety, decency, industry, and, in short, for whatever can render men usefulmembers of civil society. 

If indeed, through the blessing of Providence, a principle of trueReligion should in any considerable degree gain ground, there is noestimating the effects on public morals, and the consequent influence onour political welfare. These effects are not merely negative: though itwould be much, merely to check the farther progress of a gangrene, whichis eating out the very vital principles of our social and politicalexistence. The general standard of morality formerly described, would beraised, it would at least be sustained and kept for a while from fartherdepression. The esteem which religious characters would personallyattract, would extend to the system which they should hold, and to theestablishment of which they should be members. These are all merelynatural consequences. But to those who believe in a superintendingProvidence, it may be added, that the blessing of God might be drawndown upon our country, and the stroke of his anger be for a whilesuspended. 

Let us be spared the painful task of tracing, on the contrary, the fatalconsequences of the extinction of Religion among us. They are indeedsuch as no man, who is ever so little interested for the welfare of hiscountry, can contemplate without the deepest concern. The very loss ofour church establishment, though, as in all human institutions, somedefects may be found in it, would in itself be attended with the mostfatal consequences. No prudent man dares hastily pronounce how far itsdestruction might not greatly endanger our civil institutions. It wouldnot be difficult to prove, that the want of it would also be in thehighest degree injurious to the cause of Christianity; and still more, that it would take away what appears from experience to be one of themost probable means of its revival. To what a degree might even theavowed principles of men, not altogether without Religion, decline, whenour inestimable Liturgy should no longer remain in use! a Liturgy justlyinestimable, which continually sets before us a faithful model of theChristian's belief, and practice, and language; restraining us, as faras restraint is possible, from excessive deviations; furnishing us withabundant instruction when we would return into the right path; affordingan advantageous ground of no little value, to such instructors as stilladhere to the good old principles of the Church of England; in short, daily shaming us, by preserving a living representation of the opinionsand habits of better times, as some historical record, which reproachesa degenerate posterity, by exhibiting the worthier deeds of theirprogenitors. In such a state of things, to what a depth public moralsmight sink, may be anticipated by those who consider what would then bethe condition of society; who reflect how bad principles and viciousconduct mutually aid each other's operation, and how, in particular, theformer make sure the ground which the latter may have gained; whoremember, that in the lower orders, the system of honour, and theresponsibility of character, are wanting, which in the superior classes, in some poor degree, supply the place of higher principles. It is wellfor the happiness of mankind, that such a community could not longsubsist. The cement of society being no more, the slate would soon bedissolved into individuality. 

Let it not be vainly imagined, that our state of civilization mustprevent the moral degeneracy here threatened. A neighbouring nation haslately furnished a lamentable proof, that superior polish and refinementmay well consist with a very large measure of depravity. But to appealto a still more decisive instance: it may be seen in the history of thelatter years of the most celebrated of the Pagan nations, that thehighest degrees of civilization and refinement are by no meansinseparable from the most shocking depravity of morals. The fact iscertain, and the obvious inference with regard to ourselves cannot bedenied. The cause of this strange phænomenon, (such it really appears toour view) for which the natural corruption of man might hardly seem toaccount sufficiently, has been explained by an inspired writer. Speakingof the most polished nations of antiquity, he observes; "Because whenthey knew God, they glorified him not as God, and were not_solicitous_[121] to retain him in their knowledge, he gave them over toa reprobate mind. " Let us then beware, and take warning from theirexample: let us not suffer our self-love to beguile us: let us notvainly persuade ourselves, that although prosperity and wealth may havecaused us to relax a little too much, in those more serious duties whichregard our Maker, yet that we shall stop where we are; or, at least, that we can never sink into the same state of moral depravation. Doubtless we should sink as low, if God were to give us up also to ourown imaginations. And what ground have we to think he will not? If wewould reason justly, we should not compare ourselves with the state ofthe Heathen world when at its worst; but with its state at that period, when, for its forgetfulness of God, and its ingratitude towards him, itwas suffered to fall, till at length it reached that worst, its ultimatepoint of depression. The Heathens had only reason and natural conscienceto direct them: we enjoy, superadded to these, the clear light of Gospelrevelation, and a distinct declaration of God's dealings with them, tobe a lesson for our instruction. How then can we but believe that if we, enjoying advantages so much superior to their's, are alike forgetful ofour kind Benefactor, we also shall be left to ourselves? and if so left, what reason can be assigned why we should not fall into the sameenormities?

What then is to be done? The inquiry is of the first importance, and thegeneral answer to it is not difficult. --The causes and nature of thedecay of Religion and morals among us sufficiently indicate the course, which, on principles of sound policy, it is in the highest degreeexpedient for us to pursue. The distemper of which, as a community, weare sick, should be considered rather as a moral than a politicalmalady. How much has this been forgotten by the disputants of moderntimes! and accordingly, how transient may be expected to be the goodeffects of the best of their publications! We should endeavour to treadback our steps. Every effort should be used to raise the depressed toneof public morals. This is a duty particularly incumbent on all who arein the higher walks of life; and it is impossible not to acknowledge theobligations, which in this respect we owe as a nation, to those exaltedcharacters, whom God in his undeserved mercy to us, still suffers tocontinue on the throne, and who set to their subjects a pattern ofdecency and moderation rarely seen in their elevated station. 

But every person of rank, and fortune, and abilities, should endeavourin like manner to exhibit a similar example, and recommend it to theimitation of the circle in which he moves. It has been the opinion ofsome well-meaning people, that by giving, as far as they possibly couldwith innocence, into the customs and practices of irreligious men, theymight soften the prejudices too frequently taken up against Religion, ofits being an austere gloomy service; and thus secure a previousfavourable impression against any time, when they might have anopportunity of explaining or enforcing their sentiments. This is alwaysa questionable, and, it is to be feared, a dangerous policy. Manymischievous consequences necessarily resulting from it might easily beenumerated. But it is a policy particularly unsuitable to ourinconsiderate and dissipated times, and to the lengths at which we arearrived. In these circumstances, the most likely means of producing the_revulsion_ which is required, must be boldly to proclaim thedistinction between the adherents of "God and Baal. " The expediency ofthis conduct in our present situation is confirmed by anotherconsideration, to which we have before had occasion to refer. It isthis--that when men are aware that something of difficulty is to beeffected, their spirits rise to the level of the encounter; they make uptheir minds to bear hardships and brave dangers, and to persevere inspite of fatigue and opposition: whereas in a matter which is regardedas of easy and ordinary operation, they are apt to slumber over theirwork, and to fail in what a small effort might have been sufficient toaccomplish, for want of having called up the requisite degree of energyand spirit. Conformably to the principle which is hereby suggested, inthe circumstances in which we are placed, the line of demarcationbetween the friends and the enemies of Religion should now be madeclear; the separation should be broad and obvious. Let him then, whowishes well to his country, no longer hesitate what course of conduct topursue. The question now is not, in what liberties he might warrantablyindulge himself in another situation? but what are the restraints onhimself which the exigencies of the present times render it adviseablefor him to impose? Circumstanced as we now are, it is more than everobvious, that _the best man is the truest patriot_. 

Nor is it only by their personal conduct, (though this mode will alwaysbe the most efficacious) that men of authority and influence may promotethe cause of good morals. Let them in their several stations encouragevirtue and discountenance vice in others. Let them enforce the laws bywhich the wisdom of our forefathers has guarded against the grosserinfractions of morals; and congratulate themselves, that in a leadingsituation on the bench of justice there is placed a man who, to hishonour be it spoken, is well disposed to assist their efforts[122]. Letthem favour and take part in any plans which may be formed for theadvancement of morality. Above all things, let them endeavour toinstruct and improve the rising generation; that, if it be possible, anantidote may be provided for the malignity of that venom, which isstoring up in a neighbouring country. This has long been to my mind themost formidable feature of the present state of things in France; where, it is to be feared, a brood of moral vipers, as it were, is nowhatching, which, when they shall have attained to their mischievousmaturity, will go forth to poison the world. But fruitless will be allattempts to sustain, much more to revive, the fainting cause of morals, unless you can in some degree restore the prevalence of EvangelicalChristianity. It is in morals as in physics; unless the source ofpractical principles be elevated, it will be in vain to attempt to makethem flow on a high level in their future course. You may force them fora while into some constrained position, but they will soon drop totheir natural point of depression. By all, therefore, who are studiousof their country's welfare, more particularly by all who desire tosupport our ecclesiastical establishment, every effort should be used torevive the Christianity of our better days. The attempt shouldespecially be made in the case of the pastors of the Church, whosesituation must render the principles which they hold a matter ofsupereminent importance. Wherever these teachers have steadily andzealously inculcated the true doctrines of the Church of England, thehappiest effects have commonly rewarded their labours. And it is worthobserving, in the view which we are now taking, that these men, as mightnaturally be expected, are, perhaps without exception, friendly to ourecclesiastical and civil establishments[123]; and consequently, thattheir instructions and influence tend _directly_, as well as_indirectly_, to the maintenance of the cause of order and goodgovernment. Nor should it be forgotten by any who, judging with theabstract coldness of mere politicians, might doubt whether, by adoptingthe measures here recommended, a religious warmth would not be calledinto action, which might break out into mischievous irregularities; thatexperience proves that an establishment affords, from its very nature, the happy means of exciting a considerable degree of fervour andanimation, and at the same time of restraining them within due bounds. The duty of encouraging vital Religion in the Church particularlydevolves on all who have the disposal of ecclesiastical preferment, andmore especially on the dignitaries of the sacred order. Some of thesehave already sounded the alarm; justly censuring the practice ofsuffering Christianity to degenerate into a mere system of ethics, andrecommending more attention to the peculiar doctrines of our Religion. In our schools, in our universities, let the study be encouraged of thewritings of those venerable divines, who flourished in the purer timesof Christianity. Let even a considerable proficiency in their writingsbe required of candidates for ordination. Let our churches no longerwitness that unseemly discordance, which has too much prevailed, betweenthe prayers which precede, and the sermon which follows. 

But it may be enough to have briefly hinted at the course of conduct, which, in the present circumstances of this country, motives merelypolitical should prompt us to pursue. To all who have at heart thenational welfare, the above suggestions are solemnly submitted. Theyhave not been urged altogether without misgivings, lest it shouldappear, as though the concern of Eternity were melted down into a merematter of temporal advantage, or political expediency. But since it hasgraciously pleased the Supreme Being so to arrange the constitution ofthings, as to render the prevalence of true Religion and of puremorality conducive to the well-being of states, and the preservation ofcivil order; and since these subordinate inducements are notunfrequently held forth, even by the sacred writers; it seemed notimproper, and scarcely liable to misconstruction, to suggest inferiormotives to readers, who might be less disposed to listen toconsiderations of a higher order. 

Would to God that the course of conduct here suggested might be fairlypursued! Would to God that the happy consequences, which would resultfrom the principles we have recommended, could be realized; and aboveall, that the influence of true Religion could be extensively diffused!It is the best wish which can be formed for his country, by one who isdeeply anxious for its welfare:--

 Lucem redde tuam, dux bone, patriæ! Instar veris enim vultus ubi tuus Affulsit populo, gratior it dies, Et soles melius nitent. 

CHAPTER VII. 

_Practical Hints to various Descriptions of Persons. _

Thus have we endeavoured to trace the chief defects of the religioussystem of the bulk of professed Christians in this country. We havepointed out their low idea of the importance of Christianity in general;their inadequate conceptions of all its leading doctrines, and theeffect hereby naturally produced in relaxing the strictness of itspractical system; more than all, we have remarked their grandfundamental misconception of its genius and essential nature. Let nottherefore the difference between them and true believers be consideredas a minute difference; as a question of forms or opinions. The questionis of the very substance of Religion; the difference is of the mostserious and momentous amount. We must speak out. _Their Christianity isnot Christianity. _ It wants the radical principle. It is mainlydefective in all the grand constituents. Let them no longer then bedeceived by names in a matter of infinite importance: but with humbleprayer to the Source of all wisdom, that he would enlighten theirunderstandings, and clear their hearts from prejudice; let themseriously examine by the Scripture standard their real belief andallowed practice, and they will become sensible of the shallowness oftheir scanty system. 

If through the blessing of Providence on any thing which may have beenhere written, there should be any whom it has disposed to this importantduty of self-inquiry; let me previously warn them to be well aware ofour natural proneness to think too favourably of ourselves. Selfishnessis one of the principal fruits of the corruption of human nature; and itis obvious that selfishness disposes us to over-rate our good qualities, and to overlook or extenuate our defects. The corruption of human naturetherefore being admitted, it follows undeniably, that in all ourreckonings, if we would form a just estimate of our character, we mustmake an allowance for the effects of selfishness. It is also anothereffect of the corruption of human nature, to cloud our moral sight, andblunt our moral sensibility. Something must therefore be allowed forthis effect likewise. Doubtless, the perfect purity of the Supreme Beingmakes him see in us stains, far more in number and deeper in dye; thanwe ourselves can discover. Nor should another awful consideration beforgotten. When we look into ourselves, those sins only, into which wehave lately fallen, are commonly apt to excite any lively impression. Many individual acts of vice, or a continued course of vicious ordissipated conduct, which, when recent, may have smitten us with deepremorse, after a few months or years leave but very faint traces in ourrecollection; at least, those acts alone continue to strike us strongly, which were of very extraordinary magnitude. But the strong impressionswhich they at first excited, not the faded images which theysubsequently present to us, furnish the true measure of their guilt: andto the pure eyes of God, this guilt must always have appeared fargreater than to us. Now to the Supreme Being we must believe that thereis no past or future; as whatever _will be_, so whatever _has been_, isretained by him in present and unvarying contemplation, continuingalways to appear just the same as at the first moment of its happening. Well may it then humble us in the sight of that Being "who is of purereyes than to behold iniquity;" to call to mind that, unless our offenceshave been blotted out by our obtaining an interest in the satisfactionof Christ, through true repentance and lively faith, we appear beforehim clothed with the sins of our whole lives, in all their originaldepth of colouring, and with all the aggravations which we no longerparticularly remember, but which, in general, we, perhaps, may recollectto have once filled us with shame and confusion of face. The writer isthe rather desirous of enforcing this reflection; because he can trulydeclare, that he has found no consideration so efficacious in producingin his own mind the deepest self-abasement. 

In treating of the sources of the erroneous estimates which we form ofour religious and moral character, it may not, perhaps, be without itsuses to take this occasion of pointing out some other common springs ofself-deception. Many persons, as was formerly hinted, are misled by thefavourable opinions entertained of them by others; many, it is to befeared, mistake a hot zeal for orthodoxy, for a cordial acceptance ofthe great truths of the Gospel; and almost all of us, at one time orother, are more or less misled by confounding the suggestions of theunderstanding with the impulses of the will, the assent which ourjudgment gives to religious and moral truths, with a hearty belief andapprobation of them. 

There is another frequent source of self-deception, which is productiveof so much mischief in life, that, though it may appear to lead to somedegree of repetition, it would be highly improper to omit the mention ofit in this place. That we may be the better understood, it may be properto premise, that certain particular vices, and likewise that certainparticular good and amiable qualities, seem naturally to belong tocertain particular periods and conditions of life. Now, if we wouldreason fairly in estimating our moral character, we ought to examineourselves with reference to that particular "sin which does most easilybeset us, " not to some other sin to which we are not nearly so muchliable. And in like manner, on the other hand, we ought not to accountit matter of much self-complacency, if we find in ourselves that goodand amiable quality which naturally belongs to our period or condition;but rather look for some less ambiguous sign of a real internalprinciple of virtue. But we are very apt to reverse these rules ofjudging: we are very apt, on the one hand, both in ourselves and inothers, to excuse "the besetting sin, " taking and giving credit forbeing exempt from others, to which we or they are less liable; and onthe other hand, to value ourselves extremely on our possession of thegood or amiable quality which naturally belongs to us, and to require nomore satisfactory evidence of the _sufficiency_ at least of our moralcharacter. The bad effects of this partiality are aggravated by thepractice, to which we are sadly prone, of being contented, when we takea hasty view of ourselves, with negative evidences of our state;thinking it very well if we are not shocked by some great actualtransgression, instead of looking for the positive signs of a trueChristian, as laid down in the holy Scripture. 

But the source of self-deception, which it is more particularly ourpresent object to point out, is a disposition to consider as a conquestof any particular vice, our merely forsaking it on our quitting theperiod or condition of life to which that vice belongs; when perhapsalso we substitute for it the vice of the new period or condition onwhich we are entering. We thus mistake our merely outgrowing our vices, or our relinquishing them from some change in our worldly circumstances, for a thorough, or at least for a sufficient, reformation. 

But this topic deserves to be viewed a little more closely. Young peoplemay, without much offence, be inconsiderate and dissipated; the youth ofone sex may indulge occasionally in licentious excesses; those of theother may be supremely given up to vanity and pleasure: yet, providedthat they are sweet tempered, and open, and not disobedient to theirparents or other superiors, the former are deemed _good hearted_ youngmen, the latter, _innocent_ young women. Those who love them best haveno solicitude about their spiritual interests: and it would be deemedstrangely strict in themselves, or in others, to doubt of their becomingmore religious as they advance in life; to speak of them as beingactually under the divine displeasure; or, if their lives should be indanger, to entertain any apprehensions concerning their future destiny. 

They grow older, and marry. The same licentiousness, which was formerlyconsidered in young men as a venial frailty, is now no longer regardedin the husband and the father as compatible with the character of adecently religious man. The language is of this sort; "they have sowntheir wild oats, they must now reform, and be regular. " Nor perhaps isthe same manifest predominance of vanity and dissipation deemed innocentin the matron: but if they are kind respectively in their conjugal andparental relations, and are tolerably regular and decent, they pass for_mighty good sort of people_; and it would be altogether unnecessaryscrupulosity in them to doubt of their coming up to the requisitions ofthe divine law, as far as in the present state of the world can beexpected from human frailty. Their hearts, however, are perhaps no morethan before supremely set on the great work of their salvation, but arechiefly bent on increasing their fortunes, or raising their families. Meanwhile they congratulate themselves on their having amended fromvices, which they are no longer strongly tempted to commit, or theirabstaining from which ought not to be too confidently assumed as a testof the strength of the religious principle, since the commission of themwould prejudice their characters, and perhaps injure their fortune inlife. 

Old age has at length made its advances. Now, if ever, we might expectthat it would be deemed high time to make eternal things the _main_object of attention. No such thing! There is still an appropriate goodquality, the presence of which calms the disquietude, and satisfies therequisitions both of themselves and of those around them. It is nowrequired of them that they should be good natured and cheerful, indulgent to the frailties and follies of the young; remembering, thatwhen young themselves they gave into the same practices. How oppositethis to that dread of sin, which is the sure characteristic of the trueChristian; which causes him to look back upon the vices of his ownyouthful days with shame and sorrow; and which, instead of conceding toyoung people to be wild and thoughtless, as a privilege belonging totheir age and circumstances, prompts him to warn them against what hadproved to himself matter of such bitter retrospection! Thus, throughoutthe whole of life, some means or other are devised for stifling thevoice of conscience. "We cry peace while there is no peace;" and both toourselves and others that complacency is furnished, which ought only toproceed from a consciousness of being reconciled to God, and a humblehope of our possessing his favour. 

I know that these sentiments will be termed uncharitable; but I must notbe deterred by such an imputation. It is time to have done with thatsenseless cant of charity, which insults the understandings, and trifleswith the feelings, of those who are really concerned for the happinessof their fellow-creatures. What matter of keen remorse and of bitterself-reproaches are they storing up for their future torment, who arethemselves its miserable dupes; or who, being charged with the office ofwatching over the eternal interests of their children or relations, suffer themselves to be lulled asleep, or beguiled by such shallowreasonings into sparing themselves the momentary pain of executing theirimportant duty! Charity, indeed, is partial to the object of her regard;and where actions are of a doubtful quality, this partiality disposesher to refer them to a good, rather than to a bad, motive. She is aptalso somewhat to exaggerate merits, and to see amiable qualities in alight more favourable than that which strictly belongs to them. But truecharity is wakeful, fervent, full of solicitude, full of good offices, not so easily satisfied, not so ready to believe that every thing isgoing on well as a matter of course; but jealous of mischief, apt tosuspect danger, and prompt to extend relief. These are the symptoms bywhich genuine regard will manifest itself in a wife or a mother, in thecase of the _bodily_ health of the object of her affections. And wherethere is any real concern for the _spiritual_ interests of others, it ischaracterized by the same infallible marks. That wretched quality, bywhich the sacred name of charity is now so generally and so falselyusurped, is no other than indifference; which, against the plainestevidence, or at least where there is strong ground of apprehension, iseasily contented to believe that all goes well, because it has noanxieties to allay, no fears to repress. It undergoes no alternation ofpassions; it is not at one time flushed with hope, nor at anotherchilled by disappointment. 

To a considerate and feeling mind, there is something deeply afflicting, in seeing the engaging cheerfulness and cloudless gaiety incident toyouth, welcomed as a sufficient indication of internal purity by thedelighted parents; who, knowing the deceitfulness of these flatteringappearances, should eagerly avail themselves of this period, when oncewasted never to be regained, of good humoured acquiescence and dutifuldocility: a period when the soft and ductile temper of the mind rendersit more easily susceptible of the impressions we desire; and when, therefore, habits should be formed, which may assist our naturalweakness to resist the temptations to which we shall be exposed in thecommerce of maturer life. This is more especially affecting in thefemale sex, because that sex seems, by the very constitution of itsnature, to be more favourably disposed than ours to the feelings andoffices of Religion; being thus fitted by the bounty of Providence, thebetter to execute the important task which devolves on it, of theeducation of our earliest youth. Doubtless, this more favourabledisposition to Religion in the female sex, was graciously designed alsoto make women doubly valuable in the wedded state: and it seems toafford to the married man the means of rendering an active share in thebusiness of life more compatible, than it would otherwise be, with theliveliest devotional feelings; that when the husband should return tohis family, worn and harassed by worldly cares or professional labours, the wife, habitually preserving a warmer and more unimpaired spirit ofdevotion, than is perhaps consistent with being immersed in the bustleof life, might revive his languid piety; and that the religiousimpressions of both might derive new force and tenderness from theanimating sympathies of conjugal affection. Can a more pleasing image bepresented to a considerate mind, than that of a couple, happy in eachother and in the pledges of their mutual love, uniting in an act ofgrateful adoration to the author of all their mercies; recommending eachother, and the objects of their common care, to the divine protection;and repressing the solicitude of conjugal and parental tenderness by aconfiding hope, that, through all the changes of this uncertain life, the Disposer of all things will assuredly cause all to work together forthe good of them that love and put their trust in him; and that, afterthis uncertain state shall have passed away, they shall be admitted to ajoint participation of never ending happiness. It is surely no mean orignoble office which we would allot to the female sex, when we wouldthus commit to them the charge of maintaining in lively exercisewhatever emotions most dignify and adorn human nature; when we wouldmake them as it were the medium of our intercourse with the heavenlyworld, the faithful repositories of the religious principle, for thebenefit both of the present and of the rising generation. Must it notthen excite our grief and indignation, when we behold mothers, forgetfulat once of their own peculiar duties, and of the high office whichProvidence designed their daughters to fulfil; exciting, instead ofendeavoring to moderate in them, the natural sanguineness andinconsiderateness of youth; hurrying them night after night to theresorts of dissipation; thus teaching them to despise the _common_comforts of the family circle; and, instead of striving to raise theirviews, and to direct their affections to their true object, acting as ifwith the express design studiously to extinguish every spark of adevotional spirit, and to kindle in its stead an excessive love ofpleasure, and, perhaps, a principle of extravagant vanity, and ardentemulation!

_Innocent young women! Good hearted young men!_ Wherein does this_goodness of heart_ and this _innocence_ appear? Remember that we arefallen creatures, born in sin, and naturally depraved. Christianityrecognises no _innocence_ or _goodness of heart_, but in the remissionof sin, and in the effects of the operation of divine grace. Do we findin these young persons the characters, which the holy Scriptures laydown as the only satisfactory evidences of a safe state? Do we not onthe other hand discover the specified marks of a state of alienationfrom God? Can the blindest partiality persuade itself that _they_ areloving, or striving "to love God with all their hearts, and minds, andsouls, and strength?" Are _they_ "seeking first the kingdom of God, andhis righteousness?" Are _they_ "working out their salvation with fearand trembling?" Are _they_ "clothed with humility?" Are _they_ not, onthe contrary, supremely given up to self-indulgence? Are _they_ not atleast "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God?" Are the offices ofReligion _their_ solace or _their_ task? Do _they_ not come to thesesacred services with reluctance, continue in them by constraint, andquit them with gladness? And of how many of _these_ persons may it notbe affirmed in the spirit of the prophet's language: "The harp, and theviol, the tabret and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but theyregard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of hishands?" Are not the youth of one sex often actually committing, andstill more often wishing for the opportunity to commit, those sins ofwhich the Scripture says expressly, "that they which do such things_shall not_ inherit the kingdom of God?" Are not the youth of the othermainly intent on the gratification of vanity; and looking for theirchief happiness to the resorts of gaiety and fashion, to all themultiplied pleasures which public places, or the still highergratifications of more refined circles, can supply?

And then, when the first ebullitions of youthful warmth are over, whatis their boasted reformation? They may be decent, sober, useful, respectable, as members of the community, or amiable in the relations ofdomestic life. But is _this_ the change of which the Scripture speaks?Hear the expressions which it uses, and judge for yourselves--"Except aman be _born again_, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. "--"The_old man_--is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;" an expressionbut too descriptive of the vain delirium of youthful dissipation, and ofthe false dreams of pleasure which it inspires; but "the _new man_" isawakened from this fallacious estimate of happiness; "_he_ is renewed inknowledge after the image of him that created him"--"He is created_after God_ in righteousness and true holiness. " The persons of whom weare speaking are no longer, indeed, so thoughtless, and wild, anddissipated, as formerly; so negligent in their attention to objects ofreal value; so eager in the pursuit of pleasure; so prone to yield tothe impulse of appetite. But this is no more than the change of which awriter of no very strict cast speaks, as naturally belonging to theirriper age:

 Conversis studiis, ætas animusque virilis Quærit opus, & amicitias: inservit honori: Commisisse cavet, quod mox mutare laboret. HOR. 

This is a point of infinite importance: let it not be thought tedious tospend even yet a few more moments in the discussion of it. Put thequestion to another issue, and try it, by appealing to the principle oflife being a state of probation; (a proposition, indeed, true in acertain sense, though not exactly in that which is sometimes assigned toit, ) and you will still be led to no very different conclusion. Probation implies resisting, in obedience to the dictates of Religion, appetites which we are naturally prompted to gratify. Young people arenot tempted to be churlish, interested, covetous; but to beinconsiderate and dissipated, "lovers of pleasure more than lovers ofGod. " People again in middle age are not so strongly tempted to bethoughtless, and idle, and licentious. From excesses of this sort theyare sufficiently withheld, particularly when happily settled in domesticlife, by a regard to their characters, by the restraints of familyconnections, and by a sense of what is due to the decencies of themarried state. _Their_ probation is of another sort; _they_ are temptedto be supremely engrossed by worldly cares, by family interests, byprofessional objects, by the pursuit of wealth or of ambition. Thusoccupied, they are tempted to "mind earthly rather than heavenlythings, " forgetting "the one thing needful;" to "set their affections"on temporal rather than eternal concerns, and to take up with "a form ofgodliness, " instead of seeking to experience the power thereof: thefoundations of this nominal Religion being laid, as was formerlyexplained more at large, in the forgetfulness, if not in the ignorance, of the peculiar doctrines of Christianity. These are the _ready-made_Christians formerly spoken of, who consider Christianity as ageographical term, properly applicable to all those who have been bornand educated in a country wherein Christianity is professed; not asindicating a renewed nature, as expressive of a peculiar character, withits appropriate desires and aversions, and hopes, and fears, and joys, and sorrows. To people of this description, the solemn admonition ofChrist is addressed; "I know thy works; that thou hast a name that thoulivest, and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things whichremain that are ready to die; for I have not found thy works perfectbefore God. "

If there be any who is inclined to listen to this solemn warning, who isawakened from his dream of false security, and is disposed to be notonly _almost_ but _altogether_ a Christian--O! let him not stifle ordissipate these beginnings of seriousness, but sedulously cherish themas the "workings of the Divine Spirit, " which would draw him from the"broad" and crowded "road of destruction into the narrow" and thinlypeopled path "that leadeth to life. " Let him retire from themultitude--Let him enter into his closet, and on his bended kneesimplore, for Christ's sake and in reliance on his mediation, that Godwould "take away from him the heart of stone, and give him a heart offlesh;" that the Father of light would open his eyes to his truecondition, and clear his heart from the clouds of prejudice, anddissipate the deceitful medium of self-love. Then let him carefullyexamine his past life, and his present course of conduct, comparinghimself with God's word: and considering how any one might reasonablyhave been expected to conduct himself, to whom the Holy Scriptures hadbeen always open, and who had been used to acknowledge them to be therevelation of the will of his Creator, and Governor, and SupremeBenefactor; let him there peruse the awful denunciations againstimpenitent sinners; let him labour to become more and more deeplyimpressed with a sense of his own radical blindness and corruption;above all, let him steadily contemplate, in all its bearings andconnections, that stupendous truth, _the incarnation and crucifixion ofthe only begotten Son of God, and the message of mercy proclaimed fromthe cross to repenting sinners_. --"Be ye reconciled unto God. "--"Believein the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. "

When he fairly estimates the guilt of sin by the costly satisfactionwhich was required to atone for it, and the worth of his soul by theprice which was paid for its redemption, and contrasts both of thesewith his own sottish inconsiderateness; when he reflects on the amazinglove and pity of Christ, and on the cold and formal acknowledgments withwhich he has hitherto returned this infinite obligation, making light ofthe precious blood of the Son of God, and trifling with the graciousinvitations of his Redeemer: surely, if he be not lost to sensibility, mixed emotions of guilt, and fear, and shame, and remorse, and sorrow, will nearly overwhelm his soul; he will smite upon his breast, and cryout in the language of the publican, "God be merciful to me a sinner. "But, blessed be God, such an one needs not despair--it is to persons inthis very situation, and with these very feelings, that the offers ofthe Gospel are held forth, and its promises assured; "to the weary andheavy laden" under the burden of their sins; to them who thirst for thewater of life; to them who feel themselves "tied and bound by the chainof their sins;" who abhor their captivity, and long earnestly fordeliverance. Happy, happy souls! which the grace of God has visited, "has brought out of darkness into his marvellous light, " and "from thepower of Satan unto God. " Cast yourselves then on his undeserved mercy;he is full of love, and will not spurn you: surrender yourselves intohis hands, and solemnly resolve, through his Grace, to dedicatehenceforth all your faculties and powers to his service. 

It is your's now "to work out your own salvation with fear andtrembling, " relying on the fidelity of him who has promised to "work inyou both to will and to do of his good pleasure. " Ever look to him forhelp: your only safety consists in a deep and abiding sense of your ownweakness, and in a firm reliance on his strength. If you "give alldiligence, " his power is armed for your protection, his truth is pledgedfor your security. You are enlisted under the banner of Christ--Fearnot, though the world, and the flesh, and the devil are set in arrayagainst you. --"Faithful is he that hath promised;"--"be ye also faithfulunto death, and he will give you a crown of life. "--"He that endurethto the end, the same shall be saved. " In such a world as this, in such astate of society as ours, especially if in the higher walks of life, youmust be prepared to meet with many difficulties:--arm yourselves, therefore, in the first place, with a determined resolution not to ratehuman estimation beyond its true value; not to dread the charge ofparticularity, when it shall be necessary to incur it; but as was beforerecommended, let it be your constant endeavour to retain before yourmental eye, that bright assemblage of invisible spectators, who are thewitnesses of your daily conduct, and "to seek that honour which comethfrom God. " You cannot advance a single step, till you are in some goodmeasure possessed of this comparative indifference to the favour of men. We have before explained ourselves too clearly to render it necessary todeclare, that no one should needlessly affect singularity: but to aim atincompatible advantages, to seek to please God and the world, wheretheir commands are really at variance, is the way to be neitherrespectable, nor good, nor happy. Continue to be ever aware of your ownradical corruption and habitual weakness. Indeed, if your eyes be reallyopened, and your heart truly softened, "hungering and thirsting afterrighteousness, " rising in your ideas of true holiness, and proving thegenuineness of your hope by desiring "to purify yourself even as God ispure;" you will become daily more and more sensible of your own defeats, and wants, and weaknesses; and more and more impressed by a sense of themercy and long suffering of that gracious Saviour, "who forgiveth allyour sin, and healeth all your infirmities. "

This is the solution of what to a man of the world might seem a strangeparadox, that in proportion as the Christian grows in grace, he growsalso in humility. Humility is indeed the vital principle ofChristianity; that principle by which from first to last she lives andthrives, and in proportion to the growth or decline of which she mustdecay or flourish. _This_ first disposes the sinner in deepself-abasement to accept the others of the Gospel; _this_, during hiswhole progress, is the very ground and basis of his feelings andconduct, both in relation to God, his fellow creatures, and himself; andwhen at length he shall be translated into the realms of glory, _this_principle shall still subsist in undiminished force: He shall "falldown; and cast his crown before the Lamb; and ascribe blessing, andhonour, and glory, and power, to him that sitteth upon the throne, andto the Lamb for ever and ever. " The _practical_ benefits of thishabitual lowliness of spirit are too numerous, and at the same time tooobvious; to require enumeration. It will lead you to dread thebeginnings, and fly from the occasions of sin; as that man would shunsome infectious distemper, who should know that he was pre-disposed totake the contagion. It will prevent a thousand difficulties, and decidea thousand questions, concerning worldly compliances; by which thosepersons are apt to be embarrassed, who are not duly sensible of theirown exceeding frailty, whose views of the Christian character are notsufficiently elevated, and who are not enough possessed with a continualfear of "grieving the Holy Spirit of God, " and of thus provoking him towithdraw his gracious influence. But if you are really such as we havebeen describing, you need not be urged to set the standard of practicehigh, and to strive after universal holiness. It is the desire of yourhearts to act in all things with a single eye to the favour of God, andthus the most ordinary actions of life are raised into offices ofReligion. This is the purifying, the transmuting principle, whichrealizes the fabled touch, which changes all to gold. But it belongs tothis desire of pleasing God, that we should be continually solicitous todiscover the path of duty; that we should not indolently wait, satisfiedwith not refusing occasions of glorifying God, when they are forced uponus; but that we should pray to God for wisdom and spiritualunderstanding, that we may be, acute in discerning opportunities ofserving him in the world, and judicious in selecting and wise inimproving them. Guard indeed against the distraction of worldly cares;and cultivate heavenly mindedness, and a spirit of continual prayer, andneglect not to watch incessantly over the workings of your deceitfulheart: but be active also, and useful. Let not your precious time bewasted "in shapeless idleness;" an admonition which, in our days, isrendered but too necessary by the relaxed habits of persons even of realpiety: but wisely husband and improve this fleeting treasure. Never besatisfied with your present attainments; but "forgetting the thingswhich are behind, " labour still to "press forward" with undiminishedenergy, and to run the race that is set before you without flagging inyour course. 

Above all, measure your progress by your improvement in love to God andman. "God is Love. " This is the sacred principle, which warms andenlightens the heavenly world, that blessed feat of God's visiblepresence. There it shines with unclouded radiance. Some scattered beamsof it are graciously lent to us on earth, or we had been benighted andleft in darkness and misery; but a larger portion of it is infused intothe hearts of the servants of God, who thus "are renewed in the divinelikeness, " and even here exhibit some faint traces of the image of theirheavenly Father. It is the principle of love which disposes them toyield themselves up without reserve to the service of him, "who hasbought them with the price of his own blood. "

Servile, and base, and mercenary, is the notion of Christian practiceamong the bulk of nominal Christians. They give no more than they _dare_not with-hold; they abstain from nothing but what they _must_ notpractise. When you state to them the doubtful quality of any action, andthe consequent obligation to desist from it, they reply to you in thevery spirit of Shylock, "they cannot find it in the bond. " In short, they know Christianity only as a system of restraints. She is despoiledof every liberal and generous principle: she is rendered almost unfitfor the social intercourses of life, and is only suited to the gloomywalls of that cloister, in which they would confine her. But _trueChristians_ consider themselves not as satisfying some rigorouscreditor, but as discharging a debt of gratitude. Their's is accordinglynot the stinted return of a constrained obedience, but the large andliberal measure of a voluntary service. This principle, therefore, aswas formerly remarked, and has been recently observed of true Christianhumility, prevents a thousand _practical_ embarrassments, by which theyare continually harassed, who act from a less generous motive; and whorequire it to be clearly ascertained to them, that any gratification orworldly compliance, which may be in question, is beyond the allowedboundary line of Christian practice[124]. _This_ principle regulates thetrue Christian's choice of companions and friends, where he is atliberty to make an option; _this_ fills him with the desire of promotingthe temporal well-being of all around him, and still more with pity andlove, and anxious solicitude for their spiritual welfare. Indifferenceindeed in this respect is one of the surest signs of a low or decliningstate in Religion. _This_ animating principle it is, which in the trueChristian's happier hour inspirits his devotions, and causes him todelight in the worship of God; which fills him with consolation, andpeace, and gladness, and sometimes even enables him "to rejoice with joyunspeakable and full of glory. "

But this world is not his resting place: here, to the very last, he mustbe a pilgrim and a stranger; a soldier, whose warfare ends only withlife, ever struggling and combating with the powers of darkness, andwith the temptations of the world around him, and the still moredangerous hostilities of internal depravity. The perpetual vicissitudesof this uncertain state, the peculiar trials and difficulties with whichthe life of a Christian is chequered, and still more, the painful andhumiliating remembrance of his own infirmities, teach him to lookforward, almost with outstretched neck, to that promised day, when heshall be completely delivered from the bondage of corruption, and sorrowand sighing shall flee away. In the anticipation of that blessed period, and comparing this churlish and turbulent world, where competition, andenvy, and anger, and revenge, so vex and agitate the sons of men, withthat blissful region where Love shall reign without disturbance, andwhere all being knit together in bonds of indissoluble friendship, shallunite in one harmonious song of praise to the Author of their commonhappiness, the true Christian triumphs over the fear of death: he longsto realize these cheering images, and to obtain admission into thatblessed company. --With far more justice than it was originally used, hemay adopt the beautiful exclamation--"O præclarum illum diem, cum adillud divinum animorum concilium coetumque proficiscar, atque ex hacturba et colluvione discedam!"

What has been now as well as formerly remarked, concerning the habitualfeelings of the real believer, may suggest a reply to an objectioncommon in the mouths of nominal Christians, that we would deny men theinnocent amusements and gratifications of life; thus causing ourReligion to wear a gloomy forbidding aspect, instead of her true andnatural face of cheerfulness and joy. This is a charge of so serious anature, that although it lead into a digression, it may not be improperto take some notice of it. 

In the first place, Religion prohibits no amusement or gratificationwhich is _really_ innocent. The question, however, of its innocence, must not be tried by the loose maxims of worldly morality, but by thespirit of the injunctions of the word of God; and by the indulgencebeing conformable or not conformable to the genius of Christianity, andto the tempers and dispositions of mind enjoined on its professors. There can be no dispute concerning the true end of recreations. They areintended to refresh our exhausted bodily or mental powers, and torestore us, with renewed vigour, to the more serious occupations oflife. Whatever, therefore, fatigues either body or mind, instead ofrefreshing them, is not fitted to answer the designed purpose. Whateverconsumes more time, or money, or thought, than it is expedient (I mightsay _necessary_) to allot to mere amusement, can hardly be approved byany one who considers these talents as precious deposits for theexpenditure of which he will have to give account. Whatever directly orindirectly must be likely to injure the welfare of a fellow creature, can scarcely be a suitable _recreation_ for a Christian, who is "to lovehis neighbour as himself;" or a very consistent _diversion_ for any one, the business of whose life is to diffuse happiness. 

But does a Christian never relax? Let us not so wrong and vilify thebounty of Providence, as to allow for a moment that the sources ofinnocent amusement are so rare, that men must be driven, almost byconstraint, to such as are of a doubtful quality. On the contrary, suchhas been the Creator's goodness, that almost every one, both of ourphysical and intellectual, and moral faculties (and the same may be saidof the whole creation which we see around us) is not only calculated toanswer the proper end of its being, by its subserviency to some purposeof solid usefulness, but to be the instrument of administering pleasure. 

 Not content With every food of life to nourish man, Thou mak'st all nature beauty to his eye And music to his ear. 

Our Maker also, in his kindness, has so constructed us, that even merevicissitude is grateful and refreshing--a consideration which shouldprompt us often to seek, from a prudent _variation_ of _usefulpursuits_, that recreation, for which we are apt to resort to what isaltogether, _unproductive_ and _unfruitful_. 

Yet rich and multiplied are the springs of innocent relaxation. TheChristian relaxes in the temperate use of all the gifts of Providence. Imagination, and taste, and genius, and the beauties of creation, andthe works of art, lie open to him. He relaxes in the feast of reason, inthe intercourses of society, in the sweets of friendship, in theendearments of love, in the exercise of hope, of confidence, of joy, ofgratitude, of universal good will, of all the benevolent and generousaffections; which, by the gracious ordination of our Creator, whilethey disinterestedly intend only happiness to others, are most surelyproductive to ourselves of complacency and peace. O! little do they knowof the true measure of enjoyment, who can compare these delightfulcomplacencies with the frivolous pleasures of dissipation, or the coarsegratifications of sensuality. It is no wonder, however, that the nominalChristian should reluctantly give up, one by one, the pleasures of theworld; and look back upon them, when relinquished, with eyes ofwistfulness and regret: because he knows not the sweetness of thedelights with which true Christianity repays those trifling sacrifices, and is greatly unacquainted with the _nature_ of that pleasantness whichis to be found in the ways of Religion. 

It is indeed true, that when any one, who has long been going on in thegross and unrestrained practice of vice, is checked in his career, andenters at first on a religious course, he has much to undergo. Fear, guilt, remorse, shame, and various other passions, struggle and conflictwithin him. His appetites are clamorous for their accustomedgratification, and inveterate habits are scarcely to be denied. He isweighed down by a load of guilt, and almost overwhelmed by the sense ofhis unworthiness. But all this ought in fairness to be charged to theaccount of his past sins, and not to that of his present repentance. Itrarely happens, however, that this state of suffering continues verylong. When the mental gloom is the blackest, a ray of heavenly lightoccasionally breaks in, and suggests the hope of better days. Even inthis life it commonly holds true, "They that sow in tears shall reap injoy. "

Neither, when we maintain, that the ways of Religion are ways ofpleasantness, do we mean to deny that the Christian's internal state is, through the whole of his life, a state of discipline and warfare. Several of the causes which contribute to render it such have beenalready pointed out, together with the workings of his mind in relationto them: but if he has solicitudes and griefs peculiar to himself, hehas "joys also with which a stranger intermeddles not. "

"Drink deep, " however, "or taste not, " is a direction full as applicableto Religion, if we would find it a source of pleasure, as it is toknowledge. A little Religion is, it must be confessed, apt to make mengloomy, as a little knowledge to render them vain: hence the unjustimputation often brought upon Religion by those, whose degree ofReligion is just sufficient, by condemning their course of conduct, torender them uneasy: enough merely to impair the sweetness of thepleasures of sin, and not enough to compensate for the relinquishment ofthem by its own peculiar comforts. Thus these men bring up, as it were, an ill report of that land of promise, which, in truth, abounds withwhatever, in our journey through life, can best refresh and strengthenus. 

We have enumerated some sources of pleasure which men of the world mayunderstand, and must acknowledge to belong to the true Christian; butthere are others, and those of a still higher class, to which they mustconfess themselves strangers. To say nothing of a qualified, I dare notsay an entire, exemption from those distracting passions and corrodingcares, by which he must naturally be harassed, whose treasure is withinthe reach of mortal accidents; there is the humble quiet-giving hope ofbeing reconciled to God, and of enjoying his favour; with that solidpeace of mind, which the world can neither give nor take away, thatresults from a firm confidence in the infinite wisdom and goodness ofGod, and in the unceasing care and kindness of a generous Saviour: andthere is the persuasion of the truth of the divine assurance, that allthings shall work together for good. 

When the pulse indeed beats high, and we are flushed with youth, andhealth, and vigour; when all goes on prosperously, and success seemsalmost to anticipate our wishes; then we feel not the want of theconsolations of Religion: but when fortune frowns, or friends forsakeus; when sorrow, or sickness, or old age, comes upon us, then it is, that the superiority of the pleasures of Religion is established overthose of dissipation and vanity, which are ever apt to fly from us whenwe are most in want of their aid. There is scarcely a more melancholysight to a considerate mind, than that of an old man, who is a strangerto those only true sources of satisfaction. How affecting, and at thesame time how disgusting, is it to see such an one awkwardly catching atthe pleasures of his younger years, which are now beyond his reach; orfeebly attempting to retain them, while they mock his endeavours andelude his grasp! To such an one, _gloomily_ indeed does the evening oflife set in! All is sour and cheerless. He can neither look backwardwith complacency nor forward with hope: while the aged Christian, relying on the assured mercy of his Redeemer, can calmly reflect thathis dismission is at hand; that his redemption draweth nigh: while hisstrength declines, and his faculties decay, he can quietly reposehimself on the fidelity of God: and at the very entrance of the valleyof the shadow of death, he can lift up an eye, dim, perhaps, and feeble, yet occasionally sparkling with hope, and confidently looking forward tothe near possession of his heavenly inheritance, "to those joys whicheye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heartof man to conceive. "

Never were there times which inculcated more forcibly than those inwhich we live, the wisdom of seeking a happiness beyond the reach ofhuman vicissitudes. What striking lessons have _we_ had of theprecarious tenure of all sublunary possessions! Wealth, and power, andprosperity, how peculiarly transitory and uncertain! But Religiondispenses her choicest cordials in the seasons of exigence, in poverty, in exile, in sickness, and in death. The essential superiority of thatsupport which is derived from Religion is less felt, at least it is lessapparent, when the Christian is in full possession of riches, andsplendour, and rank, and all the gifts of nature and fortune. But whenall these are swept away by the rude hand of time, or the rough blastsof adversity, the true Christian stands, like the glory of the forest, erect and vigorous; stripped indeed of his summer foliage, but more thanever discovering to the observing eye the solid strength of hissubstantial texture:

 Pondere fixa suo est, nudosque per aera ramos Attollens, trunco non frondibus efficit umbram. 

SECTION II. 

_Advice to some who profess their full Assent to the fundamentalDoctrines of the Gospel. _

In a former chapter we largely insisted on what may be termed thefundamental practical error of the bulk of professed Christians in ourdays; their either overlooking or misconceiving the peculiar method, which the Gospel has provided for the renovation of our corruptednature, and for the attainment of every Christian grace. 

But there are mistakes on the right hand and on the left; and ourgeneral proneness, when we are flying from one extreme to run into anopposite error, renders it necessary to superadd another admonition. Thegenerally prevailing error of the present day, indeed, is thatfundamental one which was formerly pointed out. But while we attend, inthe first place, to this; and, on the warrant both of Scripture andexperience, prescribe hearty repentance and lively faith, as the onlyroot and foundation of all true holiness; we must at the same time guardagainst a practical mistake of another kind. They who, with penitenthearts, have humbled themselves before the cross of Christ; and who, pleading his merits as their only ground of pardon and acceptance withGod, have resolved henceforth, through the help of his Spirit, to bringforth the fruits of righteousness, are sometimes apt to conductthemselves as if they considered their work as now done; or at least asif this were the whole they had to do, as often as, by falling afreshinto sin, another act of repentance and faith may seem to have becomenecessary. There are not a few in our relaxed age, who thus satisfythemselves with what may be termed _general_ Christianity; who feel_general_ penitence and humiliation from a sense of their sinfulness _ingeneral_, and _general_ desires of universal holiness; but who neglectthat vigilant and jealous care, with which they should labour toextirpate every _particular_ corruption, by studying its nature, itsroot, its ramifications, and thus becoming acquainted with its secretmovements, with the means whereby it gains strength, and with the mosteffectual methods of resisting it. In like manner, they are far fromstriving with persevering alacrity for the acquisition and improvementof every Christian grace. Nor is it unusual for ministers, who preachthe truths of the Gospel with fidelity, ability, and success, to bethemselves also liable to the charge of dwelling altogether in theirinstructions on this _general_ Religion: instead of tracing and layingopen all the secret motions of inward corruption, and instructing theirhearers how best to conduct themselves in every distinct part of theChristian warfare; how best to strive against each particular vice, andto cultivate each grace of the Christian character. Hence it is, that intoo many persons, concerning the sincerity of whose general professionsof Religion we should be sorry to entertain a doubt, we yet see littleprogress made in the regulation of their tempers, in the improvement oftheir time, in the reform of their plan of life, or inability to resistthe temptation to which they are particularly exposed. They will confessthemselves, in general terms, to be "_miserable sinners_:" this is atenet of their creed, and they feel even proud in avowing it. They willoccasionally also lament particular failings: but this confession issometimes obviously made, in order to draw forth a compliment for thevery opposite virtue: and where this is not the case, it is often notdifficult to detect, under this false guise of contrition, a secretself-complacency, arising from the manifestations which they haveafforded of their acuteness or candour in discovering the infirmity inquestion, or of their frankness or humility in acknowledging it. Thiswill scarcely seem an illiberal suspicion to any one, who either watchesthe workings of his own heart, or who observes, that the faultsconfessed in these instances are very seldom those, with which theperson is most clearly and strongly chargeable. 

_We must plainly warn these men_, and the consideration is seriouslypressed on their instructors also, _that they are in danger of deceivingthemselves. Let them beware lest they be nominal Christians of anothersort. _ These persons require to be reminded, that there is no _shortcompendious method of holiness_: but that it must be the business oftheir whole lives to grow in grace, and continually adding one virtue toanother, as far as may be, "to go on towards perfection. " "He only thatdoeth righteousness is righteous. " Unless "they bring forth the fruitsof the Spirit, " they can have no sufficient evidence that they havereceived that "Spirit of Christ, without which they are none of his. "But where, on the whole, our unwillingness to pass an unfavourablejudgment may lead us to indulge a hope, that "the root of the matter isfound in them;" yet we must at least declare to them, that instead ofadorning the doctrine of Christ, they disparage and discredit it. Theworld sees not their secret humiliation, not the exercises of theirclosets, but it is acute in discerning practical weaknesses: and if itobserve that they have the same eagerness in the pursuit of wealth orambition, the same vain taste for ostentation and display, the sameungoverned tempers, which are found in the generality of mankind; itwill treat with contempt their pretences to superior sanctity andindifference to worldly things, and will be hardened in its prejudicesagainst the only mode, which God has provided for our escaping the wrathto come, and obtaining eternal happiness. 

Let him then, who would be indeed a Christian, watch over his ways andover his heart with unceasing circumspection. Let him endeavour tolearn, both from men and books, particularly from the lives of eminentChristians[125], what methods have been actually found most effectualfor the conquest of every particular vice, and for improvement in everybranch of holiness. Thus studying his own character, and observing themost secret workings of his own mind, and of our common nature; theknowledge which he will acquire of the human heart in general, andespecially of his own, will be of the highest utility, in enabling himto avoid or to guard against the occasions of evil: and it will alsotend, above all things, to the growth of humility, and to themaintenance of that sobriety of spirit and tenderness of conscience, which are eminently characteristic of the true Christian. It is by thisunceasing diligence, as the Apostle declares, that the servants ofChrist must make their calling sure. Their labour will not be thrownaway; for "an entrance shall" at length "be ministered unto themabundantly, into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour JesusChrist. "

SECT. III. 

_Brief Observations addressed to Sceptics and Unitarians. _

There is another class of men, an increasing class, it is to be feared, in this country, that of absolute unbelievers, with which this littlework has properly no concern: but may the writer, sincerely pityingtheir melancholy state, be permitted to ask them one plain question? IfChristianity be not in their estimation true, yet is there not at leasta presumption in its favour, sufficient to entitle it to a seriousexamination; from its having been embraced, and that not blindly andimplicitly, but upon full inquiry and deep consideration, by Bacon, andMilton, and Locke, and Newton, and much the greater part of those, who, by the reach of their understandings, or the extent of their knowledge, and by the freedom too of their minds, and their daring to combatexisting prejudices, have called forth the respect and admiration ofmankind? It might be deemed scarcely fair to insist on Churchmen, thoughsome of them are among the greatest names this country has ever known. Can the sceptic in general say with truth, that he has either prosecutedan examination into the evidences of Revelation at all, or at least witha seriousness and diligence in any degree proportioned to the importanceof the subject? The fact is, and it is a fact which redounds to thehonour of Christianity, that infidelity is not the result of soberinquiry and deliberate preference. It is rather the slow production of acareless and irreligious life, operating together with prejudices anderroneous conceptions, concerning the nature of the leading doctrinesand fundamental tenets of Christianity. 

Take the case of young men of condition, bred up by what we have termednominal Christians. When children, they are carried to church, andthence they become acquainted with such parts of Scripture as arecontained in our public service. If their parents preserve still more ofthe customs of better times, they are taught their Catechism, andfurnished with a little farther religious knowledge. After a while, theygo from under the eyes of their parents; they enter into the world, andmove forward in the path of life, whatever it may be, which has beenassigned to them. They yield to the temptations which assail them, andbecome, more or less, dissipated and licentious. At least they neglectto look into their Bible; they do not enlarge the sphere of theirreligious acquisitions; they do not even endeavour, by reflection andstudy, to turn into what may deserve the name of knowledge and rationalconviction, the opinions which, in their childhood, they had taken ontrust. 

They travel, perhaps, into foreign countries; a proceeding whichnaturally tends to weaken their nursery, prejudice in favour of theReligion in which they were bred, and by removing them from all means ofpublic worship, to relax their practical habits of Religion. They returnhome, and commonly are either hurried round in the vortex ofdissipation, or engage with the ardour of youthful minds in some publicor professional pursuit. If they read or hear any thing aboutChristianity, it is commonly only about those tenets which are subjectsof controversy: and what reaches their ears of the Bible, from theiroccasional attendance at church; though it may sometimes impress themwith an idea of the purity of Christian morality, contains much which, coming thus detached, perplexes and offends them, and suggests variousdoubts and startling objections, which a farther acquaintance with theScripture would remove. Thus growing more and more to know Christianityonly by the difficulties it contains; sometimes tempted by the ambitionof shewing themselves superior to vulgar prejudice, and always promptedby the natural pride of the human heart to cast off their subjection todogmas imposed on them; disgusted, perhaps, by the immoral lives of someprofessed Christians, by the weaknesses and absurdities of others, andby what they observe to be the implicit belief of numbers, whom they seeand know to be equally ignorant with themselves, many doubts andsuspicions of greater or less extent spring up within them. These doubtsenter into the mind at first almost imperceptibly: they exist only asvague indistinct surmises, and by no means take the precise shape orthe substance of a formed opinion. At first, probably, they even offendand startle by their intrusion: but by degrees the unpleasant sensationswhich they once excited wear off: the mind grows more familiar withthem. A confused sense (for such it is, rather than a formed idea) ofits being desirable that their doubts should prove well founded, and ofthe comfort and enlargement which would be afforded by that proof, lendsthem much secret aid. The impression becomes deeper; not in consequenceof being reinforced by fresh arguments, but merely by dint of havinglonger rested in the mind; and as they increase in force, they creep onand extend themselves. At length they diffuse themselves over the wholeof Religion, and possess the mind in undisturbed occupancy. 

It is by no means meant that this is universally the process. But, speaking generally, this might be termed, perhaps not unjustly, the_natural history_ of scepticism. It approves itself to the experience ofthose who have with any care watched the progress of infidelity inpersons around them; and it is confirmed by the written lives of some ofthe most eminent unbelievers. It is curious to read their own accountsof themselves, the rather as they accord so exactly with the result ofour own observation. --We find that they once perhaps gave a sort ofimplicit hereditary assent to the truth of Christianity, and were what, by a mischievous perversion of language, the world denominates_believers_. How were they then awakened from their sleep of ignorance?At what moment did the light of truth beam in upon them, and dissipatethe darkness in which they had been involved? The period of theirinfidelity is marked by no such determinate boundary. Reason, andthought, and inquiry had little or nothing to do with it. Having formany years lived careless and irreligious lives, and associated withcompanions equally careless and irreligious; not by force of study andreflection, but rather by the lapse of time, they at length attained totheir infidel maturity. It is worthy of remark, that where any arereclaimed from infidelity, it is generally by a process much morerational than that which has been here described. Something awakens themto reflection. They examine, they consider, and at length yield theirassent to Christianity on what they deem sufficient grounds. 

From the account here given, it appears plainly that infidelity isgenerally the offspring of prejudice, and that its success is mainly tobe ascribed to the depravity of the moral character. This fact isconfirmed by the undeniable truth, that in _societies_, which consist ofindividuals, infidelity is the natural fruit, not so much of a studiousand disputatious, as of a dissipated and vicious age. It diffuses itselfin proportion as the general morals decline; and it is embraced withless apprehension, when every infidel is kept in spirits, by seeing manyaround him who are sharing fortunes with himself. 

To any fair mind this consideration alone might be offered, assuggesting a strong argument against infidelity, and in favour ofRevelation. And the friends of Christianity might justly retort thecharge, which their opponents often urge with no little affectation ofsuperior wisdom; that we implicitly surrender ourselves to the influenceof prejudice, instead of examining dispassionately the ground of ourfaith, and yielding our assent only according to the degree of evidence. 

In our own days, when it is but too clear that infidelity increases, itis not in consequence of the reasonings of the infidel writers havingbeen much studied, but from the progress of luxury, and the decay ofmorals: and, so far as this increase may be traced at all to the worksof sceptical writers; it has been produced, not by argument anddiscussion, but by sarcasms and points of wit, which have operated onweak minds, or on nominal Christians, by bringing gradually intocontempt, opinions which, in their case, had only rested on the basis ofblind respect and the prejudices of education. It may therefore be laiddown as an axiom, that _infidelity is in general a disease of the heartmore than of the understanding_. If Revelation were assailed only byreason and argument, it would have little to fear. The literary opposersof Christianity, from Herbert to Hume, have been seldom read. They madesome stir in their day: during their span of existence they were noisyand noxious; but like the locusts of the east, which for a while obscurethe air, and destroy the verdure, they were soon swept away andforgotten. Their very names would be scarcely found, if Leland had notpreserved them from oblivion. 

The account which has been given, of the secret, but grand, source ofinfidelity, may perhaps justly be extended, as being not seldom true inthe case of those who deny the fundamental doctrines of the Gospel. 

In the course which we lately traced from nominal orthodoxy to absoluteinfidelity, Unitarianism[126] is indeed, a sort of half-way house, ifthe expression may be pardoned; a stage on the journey, where sometimesa person indeed finally stops, but where, not unfrequently, he onlypauses for a while, and then pursues his progress. 

The Unitarian teachers by no means profess to absolve their followersfrom the unbending strictness of Christian morality. They prescribe thepredominant love of God, and an habitual spirit of devotion: but it isan unquestionable fact; a fact which they themselves almost admit, thatthis class of religionists is not in general distinguished for superiorpurity of life; and still less for that frame of mind, which, by theinjunction "to be spiritually, not carnally, minded, " the word of Godprescribes to us, as one of the surest tests of our experiencing thevital power of Christianity. On the contrary, in point of fact, _Unitarianism_ seems to be resorted to, not merely by those who aredisgusted with the peculiar doctrines of Christianity; but by those alsowho are seeking a refuge from the strictness of her practical precepts;and who, more particularly, would escape from the obligation which sheimposes on her adherents, rather to incur the dreaded charge ofsingularity, than fall in with the declining manners of a dissipatedage. 

Unitarianism, where it may be supposed to proceed from the understandingrather than from the heart, is not unfrequently produced by a confusedidea of the difficulties, or, as they are termed, the impossibilitieswhich orthodox Christianity is supposed to involve. It is not ourintention to enter into the controversy:[127] but it may not be improperto make one remark as a guard to persons in whose way the arguments ofthe Unitarians may be likely to fall; namely, that one great advantagepossessed by Deists, and perhaps in a still greater degree byUnitarians, in their warfare with the Christian system, results from thevery circumstances of their being the assailants. They urge what theystate to be powerful arguments against the truth of the fundamentaldoctrines of Christianity, and then call upon men to abandon them asposts no longer tenable. But they, who are disposed to yield to thisassault, should call to mind, that it has pleased God so to establishthe constitution of all things, that perplexing difficulties andplausible objections may be adduced against the most established truths;such, for instance, as the being of a God, and many others both physicaland moral. In all cases, therefore, it becomes us, not on a partial viewto reject any proposition, because it is attended with difficulties; butto compare the difficulties which it involves, with those which attendthe alternative proposition which must be embraced on its rejection. Weshould put to the proof the alternative proposition in its turn, and seewhether it be not still less tenable than that which we are summoned toabandon. In short, we should examine circumspectly on all sides; andabide by that opinion which, on carefully balancing all considerations, appears fairly entitled to our preference. Experience, however, willhave convinced the attentive observer of those around him, that it hasbeen for want of adverting to this just and obvious principle, that theUnitarians in particular have gained most of their proselytes from theChurch, so far as argument has contributed to their success. If theUnitarians, or even the Deists, were considered in their turn as mastersof the field; and were in their turn attacked, both by arguments tendingto disprove their system directly, and to disprove it indirectly, byshewing the high probability of the truth of Christianity, and of itsleading and peculiar doctrines, it is most likely that they would soonappear wholly unable to keep their ground. In short, reasoning fairly, there is no medium between absolute _Pyrrhonism_ and true Christianity:and if we reject the latter on account of its difficulties, we shall bestill more loudly called upon to reject every other system which hasbeen offered to the acceptance of mankind. This consideration might, perhaps, with advantage be more attended to than it has been, by thosewho take upon them to vindicate the truth of our holy religion: as many, who from inconsideration, or any other cause, are disposed to give upthe great fundamentals of Christianity, would be startled by the idea, that on the same principle on which they did this, they must give up thehope of finding any rest for the sole of their foot on any ground ofReligion, and not stop short of unqualified Atheism. 

Besides the class of those who professedly reject revelation, there isanother, and that also, it is to be feared, an increasing one, which maybe called the class of half-unbelievers, who are to be found in variousdegrees of approximation to a state of absolute infidelity. The system, if it deserve the name, of these men, is grossly irrational. Hearingmany who assert and many who deny the truth of Christianity, and notreflecting seriously enough to consider that it must be either true orfalse, they take up a strange sort of middle opinion of its qualifiedtruth. They conceive that there must be something in it, though by nomeans to the extent to which it is pushed by orthodox Christians. Theygrant the reality of future punishment, and even that they themselvescannot altogether expect to escape it; yet, "they trust it will not goso hard with them as the churchmen state:" and, as was formerly hinted, though disbelieving almost every material doctrine which Christianitycontains; yet, even in their own minds, they by no means conceivethemselves to be inlisted under the banners of infidelity, or to havemuch cause for any great apprehension lest Christianity should provetrue. 

But let these men be reminded, that there is no middle way. If they canbe prevailed on to look into their Bible, and do not make up their mindsabsolutely to reject its authority; they must admit that there is noground whatever for this vain hope, which they suffer themselves toindulge, of escaping but with a slight measure of punishment. Nor letthem think their guilt inconsiderable. Is it not grossly criminal totrifle with the long-suffering of God, to despise alike his invitationsand his threatenings, and the offer of his Spirit of grace, and theprecious blood of the Redeemer? Far different is the Scripture estimate;"How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?" "It shall bemore tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah, in the day of judgment, " than forthem, who voluntarily shut their eyes against that full light, which thebounty of Heaven has poured out upon them. These half-unbelievers areeven more reprehensible than downright sceptics, for remaining in thisstate of careless uncertainty, without endeavouring to ascertain thetruth or falsehood of revelation. The probability which they admit, thatit may be true, imposes on them an additional and an undeniableobligation to inquiry. But both to them and to decided sceptics it mustbe plainly declared, that they are in these days less excusable thanever, for not looking into the grounds and proofs on which is rested thetruth of Christianity; for never before were these proofs so _plainly, and at so easy a rate_, offered to the consideration of mankind. Throughthe bounty of Providence, the more widely spreading poison of infidelityhas in our days been met with more numerous and more powerful antidotes. One of these has been already pointed out: and it should be matter offarther gratitude to every real Christian, that in the very place onwhich modern infidelity had displayed the standard of victory, a warriorin the service of Religion, a man of the most acute discernment andprofound research, has been raised up by Providence to quell theirtriumph[128]. He was soon taken from us; but happily for him and forourselves, not till he had announced, that, like the Magi of old, he hadseen the star of Christ in the East, and had fallen down and worshippedhim. Another should be mentioned with honour, who is pursuing the trackwhich that great man had pointed out[129]. Henceforth let all objectorsagainst Christianity, on the ground of its being disproved by theoriental records, be put to silence. The strength of their causeconsisted in their ignorance, and in our own, of oriental learning. Theyavailed themselves for a while of our being in a state of darkness; butthe light of day has at length broken in and exposed to deservedcontempt their superficial speculations. 

The infatuation of these unbelievers upon trust would be less striking, if they were able altogether to decline Christianity; and were atliberty to relinquish their pretensions to its rewards, on condition ofbeing exempted from its punishments. But that is not the case; they muststand the risk of the encounter, and their eternal happiness or miseryis suspended upon the issue[130]. What must be the emotions of thesemen, on first opening their eyes in the world of spirits, and beingconvinced, too late, of the awful reality of their impending ruin? Maythe mercy and the power of God awaken them from their desperate slumber, while life is yet spared, and there is yet space for repentance!

SECTION IV. 

_Advice suggested by the state of the times to true Christians. _

To those, who really deserve the appellation of true Christians, muchhas been said incidentally in the course of the present work. It hasbeen maintained, and the proposition will not be disputed by any soundor experienced politician, that they are always most important membersof the community. But we may boldly assert, that there never was aperiod wherein, more justly than in the present, this could be affirmedof them; whether the situation, in all its circumstances, of our owncountry be attentively considered, or the general state of society inEurope. Let them on their part seriously weigh the important stationwhich they fill, and the various duties which it now peculiarly enforceson them. If we consult the most intelligent accounts of foreigncountries, which have been recently published, and compare them with thereports of former travellers; we must be convinced, that Religion andthe standard of morals are every where declining, abroad even morerapidly than in our own country. But still, the progress of irreligion, and the decay of morals at home, are such as to alarm every consideratemind, and to forebode the worst consequences, unless some remedy can beapplied to the growing evil. We can depend only upon true _Christians_for effecting, in any degree, this important service. Their system, aswas formerly stated, is that of our national church: and in proportion, therefore, as their system prevails, or as it increases in respect andestimation, from the manifest good conduct of its followers; in thatvery proportion the church is strengthened in the foundations, on whichalone it can be much longer supported, the esteem and attachment of itsmembers, and of the nation at large. Zeal is required in the cause ofReligion; they only can feel it. The charge of singularity must beincurred; they only will dare to encounter it. Uniformity of conduct, and perseverance in exertion, will be requisite; among no others can welook for those qualities. 

Let true Christians then, with becoming earnestness, strive in allthings to recommend their profession, and to put to silence the vainscoffs of ignorant objectors. Let them boldly assert the cause of Christin an age when so many, who bear the name of Christians, are ashamed ofHim: and let them consider as devolved on Them the important duty ofsuspending for a while the fall of their country, and, perhaps, ofperforming a still more extensive service to society at large; not bybusy interference in politics, in which it cannot but be confessed thereis much uncertainty; but rather by that sure and radical benefit ofrestoring the influence of Religion, and of raising the standard ofmorality. 

Let them be active, useful, generous towards others; manifestly moderateand self-denying in themselves. Let them be ashamed of idleness, asthey would be of the most acknowledged sin. When Providence blesses themwith affluence, let them withdraw from the competition of vanity; and, without sordidness or absurdity, shew by their modest demeanour, and bytheir retiring from display, that, without affecting singularity, theyare not slaves to fashion; that they consider it as their duty to set anexample of moderation and sobriety, and to reserve for nobler and moredisinterested purposes, that money, which others selfishly waste inparade, and dress, and equipage. Let them evince, in short, a manifestmoderation in all temporal things; as becomes those whose affections areset on higher objects than any which this world affords, and whopossess, within their own bosoms, a fund of satisfaction and comfort, which the world seeks in vanity and dissipation. Let them cultivate acatholic spirit of universal good will, and of amicable fellowshiptowards all those, of whatever sect or denomination, who, differing fromthem in non-essentials, agree with them in the grand fundamentals ofReligion. Let them countenance men of real piety wherever they arefound; and encourage in others every attempt to repress the progress ofvice, and to revive and diffuse the influence of Religion and virtue. Let their earnest prayers be constantly offered, that such endeavoursmay be successful, and that the abused long-suffering of God may stillcontinue to us the invaluable privilege of vital Christianity. 

Let them pray continually for their country in this season of nationaldifficulty. We bear upon us but too plainly the marks of a decliningempire. Who can say but that the Governor of the universe, who declareshimself to be a God who hears the prayers of his servants, may, inanswer to their intercessions, for a while avert our ruin, and continueto us the fulness of those temporal blessings, which in such abundantmeasure we have hitherto enjoyed[131]. Men of the world, indeed, howeverthey may admit the natural operation of natural causes, and maytherefore confess the effects of Religion and morality in promoting thewell being of the community; may yet, according to their humour, with asmile of complacent pity, or a sneer of supercilious contempt, read ofthe service which real Christians may render to their country, byconciliating the favour and calling down the blessing of Providence. Itmay appear in their eyes an instance of the same superstitious weakness, as that which prompts the terrified inhabitant of Sicily to bring forthe image of his tutelar saint, in order to stop the destructive ravagesof Ætna. We are, however, sure, if we believe the Scripture, that Godwill be disposed to favour the nation to which his servants belong; andthat, in fact, such as They, have often been the unknown and unhonouredinstruments of drawing down on their country the blessings of safety andprosperity. 

But it would be an instance in myself of that very false shame which Ihave condemned in others, if I were not boldly to avow my firmpersuasion, that _to the decline of Religion and morality our nationaldifficulties must both directly and indirectly be chiefly ascribed; andthat my only solid hopes for the well-being of my country depend not somuch on her fleets and armies, not so much on the wisdom of her rulers, or the spirit of her people, as on the persuasion that she stillcontains many, who, in a degenerate age, love and obey the Gospel ofChrist; on the humble trust that the intercession of these may still beprevalent, that for the sake of these, Heaven may still look upon uswith an eye of favour. _

Let the prayers of the Christian reader be also offered up for thesuccess of this feeble endeavour in the service of true Religion. Godcan give effect to the weakest effort; and the writer will feel himselftoo much honoured, if by that which he has now been making, but a singlefellow creature should be awakened from a false security, or a singleChristian, who deserves the name, be animated to more extensiveusefulness. He may seem to have assumed to himself a task which he wasill qualified to execute. He fears he may be reproached with arroganceand presumption for taking upon him the office of a teacher. Yet, as heformerly suggested, it cannot be denied, that it belongs to his publicsituation to investigate the state of the national Religion and morals;and that it is the part of a real patriot to endeavour to retard theirdecline, and promote their revival. But if the office, in which he hasbeen engaged, were less intimately connected with the duties of hisparticular station, the candid and the liberal mind would not beindisposed to pardon him. Let him be allowed to offer in his excuse adesire not only to discharge a duty to his country, but to acquithimself of what he deems a solemn and indispensable obligation to hisacquaintance and his friends. Let him allege the unaffected solicitudewhich he feels for the welfare of his fellow creatures. Let him urge thefond wish he gladly would encourage; that, while, in so large a part ofEurope, a false philosophy having been preferred before the lessons ofrevelation, Infidelity has lifted up her head without shame, and walkedabroad boldly and in the face of day; while the practical consequencesare such as might be expected, and licentiousness and vice prevailwithout restraint: here at least there might be a sanctuary, a land ofReligion and piety, where the blessings of Christianity might be stillenjoyed, where the name of the Redeemer might still be honoured; wheremankind might be able to see what is, in truth, the Religion of Jesus, and what are its blessed effects; and whence, if the mercy of God shouldso ordain it, the means of religious instruction and consolation mightbe again extended to surrounding countries and to the world at large. 

FINIS. 

INDEX. 

A

_Abuse_ of things, unfairness of arguing from it against their use, 53. 

_Acceptance_ with God, commonly prevailing notions respecting it, 85-88. --Scripture, and Church of England, doctrine respecting it, 88-92. --practical consequences, of common notions respecting it, 89. --true doctrine vindicated from objection, 93-94. 

_Addison_, quoted, 162. 

_Affections_, of their admission into Religion, 57, 58. --their admission into Religion reasonable, 59-62. --true test and measure of them in Religion, 62-65. --in Religion, not barely allowable, but highly necessary, 66-69. --our Saviour the just object of them, 69, 70. --objection, that they are impossible towards an invisible Being, discussed, 71-77. --little excited by public misfortunes, and why, 75, 76. --towards our Saviour, special grounds for them, 77, 78. --divine aid promised for exciting them, 79, 80. --our statements respecting them in Religion verified by facts, 80, 81. --religious, St. Paul a striking instance of them, 61. 

_Ambition_, votaries of, 125, 126. 

_Amiable_ tempers, discussion respecting, 178-198. --substituted for Religion, 179, 180. --value of, estimated by the standard of mere reason, 180. --false pretenders to them, 181. --real nature, when not grounded on Religion, 181, 182. --precarious nature, 182-184. --value of, on Christian principles, 186. --life, Christian's most so, 190, 191. --Christians urged to this, 192-196. --its just praise, 197, 198. --apt to deceive us, 198. 

_Applause_, desire of, universal, 146, 147. 

B. 

_Babington_, the reverend Matthew, 259. 

_Benevolence_, true Christian, its exalted nature, 287, 288. 

_Bacon_, Lord, quoted, 229. 

C. 

_Calumny_, considerations which reconcile the Christian to it, 169, 170. 

_Charity_, true, what, and its marks, 311, 312. 

_Christianity_, vital revival of, would invigorate church establishment, 294. --vital, alone suited to lower orders, 295, 296. --the common system, falsely so called, 305. --the truest patriotism, 287-292. --of the world, its base nature, 324. --not a gloomy service, 326-332. --relaxations compatible with, 327, 328. --its solid texture, 332. --general, what so called, 334, 335. --true, requires incessant watchfulness and care, 336. --state in which it finds us, 30-33. --its present critical circumstances, 265-272. --reduced to a system of ethics, proofs of this, 273, 277, 278. --causes, which have tended to produce neglect of her peculiar doctrines, 269, 270, 274-276. --peculiar doctrines of, taught by the oldest divines and highest dignitaries of the English church, 273, 274. --peculiar doctrines gradually fallen into neglect, 276-278. --sad symptoms of its low state among us, 278-280. --objection, that our system of it too strict, stated and answered, 280-283. --vital, its happy influence on temporal well-being of communities, 283-285. --not hostile to patriotism, 285-287. --from its essential nature, peculiarly adapted to well-being of communities, 290-292. --vital, can alone produce these effects, 293. --excellence of it, in some particulars not commonly noticed, 252-259. --general state of, in England, 262. --its tendency to promote the well-being of political communities, 262-288, 292, 293. --has raised the general standard of practice, 264, 265. --sickens in prosperity and flourishes under persecution, 266, 267. --peculiarities of, naturally slide into disuse, 269. 

_Christians_, true, duties especially incumbent on them in these times, 350-353. --should pray for their country, 351. --their prayers intreated for the success of this work, 353. --ready made, who esteemed such, 318. --real, how different from nominal, 214, 215. --life, illustrated by figure of a traveller, 217-219. 

_Commons_, House of, proves inordinate love of worldly glory, 159. 

_Consistency_ between Christianity's leading doctrines and practical precepts, 231-252, 253. --between Christianity's leading doctrines amongst each other, 253. --between Christianity's practical precepts amongst each other, 253-257. 

_Contact_, necessary to produce any interest in our affections, 73-78, 81. 

_Corruption_ of human nature, common notions of it, 14-16. --of human nature, Scripture account of it, 16, 26, 27. --of human nature, arguments suggested in proof of it, 16-26. --of Heathen world, and striking instance of it, 18, 19. --of savage life, 19, 20. --proof of it, furnished by the state of the Christian world, 20-24. --by the experience of the true Christian, 24, 25. --human, its general effects, when suffered to operate without restraint, 25, 26. --human, firm grounds on which it rests, 35. --human, practical uses of the doctrine, 36. 

_Cowper's Task_, recommended, 234-352. --quoted, 251. 

D. 

_Defective_, conceptions generally prevailing concerning importance of Christianity, 1-5. --conceptions concerning human corruption, 15, 16. --conceptions concerning the evil spirit, 28. --conceptions concerning the doctrines, which respect our Saviour and the Holy Spirit, 70, 71, 45, 46, 48, 49, 50. --conceptions concerning the means of acceptance with God, 84-91. --conceptions prevailing concerning practical Christianity, 102-104, 117-205. --conceptions of guilt and evil of sin, 206-210. --fear of God, 210. --sense of the difficulty of getting to heaven, 214, 215. --love of God in nominal Christians, 219-221. --love of God, proofs of it in nominal Christians, 221-224. --conceptions general, concerning peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 231. --conceptions of peculiarities of Christianity, practical mischiefs from them, 232. 

_Depths_, of the things of God; and our proneness to plunge into them, 41-43. 

_Devotedness_ to God, duty of it, 107-110, 113, 116, 118. 

_Dissipated_ and indolent, class of, 121, 122. 

_Dissipation_, seems to have prevailed in the antediluvian world, 213. 

_Doddridge's_ Sermons on Regeneration, referred to, note, 83. 

_Duelling_, its guilt, &c. 159-161. 

E. 

_Error_, innocence of, considered, 10-12. 

_Establishment_, religious, in England, how circumstanced, 267. 

_Estimation_, desire of, universal, 146, 147. -- common language concerning it, the effects of the love of it, and the nature of the passion, 148-150. -- commendations of it questioned, 151. -- essential defects of inordinate love of it, explained, 152, 153. -- love of, Scripture lessons concerning, 152-156. -- value of, analogous to riches, 156. -- love of, common notions respecting it, 157, 158. -- proofs of our statements respecting it from House of Commons, 159. -- proofs of our statements respecting it from duelling, 159-161. -- real nature of inordinate love of it, 162, 163. -- true Christian's conduct respecting love of it, 164-173. -- true modes of guarding against excessive love of it, 171, 172. -- advice to the true Christian respecting love of it, 174-178. -- love of, best moderated by humility and charity, 176. -- true Christian's temper respecting it, 177. 

_Evil_ spirit, the existence and agency not contrary to reason, 28, 29. 

_External_ actions substituted for habits of mind, 134, 135. 

F. 

_Faith_, Christian's life, a life of, 137, 138. 

_Families_, two, the righteous and the wicked, 212. 

_Ferguson_, the historian, 290. 

_Fuller's_ Calvinism and Socinianism compared, 344. 

_Fundamental_ practical distinction between systems of nominal and real Christians, 237, 250, 251. 

G. 

_General_ tone of morals, Christianity has raised it, 104. --established by consent in every country, 263, 264. 

_Geneva_, the effect of theatres, 223. 

_Gloomy_ service, false charge that we make Christianity such, 327. 

_Glory_, true and false, what properly so called, 153. --Mistakes concerning it, 153. 

_Good hearted_ young men, term misapplied, 310. 

_Good hearted_ young men, the title disproved, 315. 

_Gratitude_, true signs of, 49. 

H. 

_Habits_, of mind forgotten in Religion, 134-146. 

_Heavenly mindedness_, best promoted by being much conversant with peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 250. 

_Holy Spirit_, Scripture doctrine concerning, 44, 82, 83. --popular notions concerning, 50-53. 

_Honour_, false notions respecting it, 162, 163. 

_Horne_, Dr. Quoted, 61. 

_Humility_, best enforced by peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 244, 245. --the ground of Christian graces, 146. --excellent practical effects of, 176. 

I. 

_Ignorance_ of Christianity, common, 5, 6. --criminal, 6, 7. 

_Importance_ of Christianity, inadequate conceptions generally entertained of it, 1-13. --of Christianity, proofs of the inadequate ideas generally entertained of it, 2-5. --of Christianity, ideas of it given by the Holy Scriptures, 8-10. --of Christianity, best enforced by peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 240. 

_Inconsistency_ of the world's practical system, 255, 256. 

_Indifference_ about Christianity generally prevalent, 9. --general towards our Saviour, proofs of, 46-48. 

_Infidelity_, common progress of it, 338-342. --a disease of the heart more than of the understanding, 342. 

_Innocent_ young women, term how misapplied, 310. --young women, the title disproved, 315. 

_Intellectual_ attainments, rated below moral by Christianity, 257-260. --low degree of excellence within our reach, 258. 

J. 

_Jones_, Sir William, a champion for Christianity, 348. 

K. 

_Kenyon_, Lord Chief Justice, commendations of, 302. 

L. 

_Language_, common, concerning the importance of Christianity, 5. --concerning human corruption, 15. --concerning affections towards our Saviour, and Holy Spirit's operations, 51, 52. --concerning terms of acceptance with God, 85-87. --concerning mode of relaxing the strictness of Christian precept, 132, 133. --concerning human judicatures, 133. --concerning amiable tempers and useful lives, 179. --common to people desirous of repenting, 235. 

_Learning_, votaries of, 127. 

_Life_, Christian, illustrated under figure of a traveller, 217-219. --Christian's, a life of faith, 137-140. 

_Liturgy_, bad effects to be feared from its disuse, 297. 

_Lives_, several mentioned, 336. 

_Love_, true signs of it, 46, 47. --of God, its essential characters, 110. --of Christ, justly to be expected of us, 69, 70, 77, 78, 107, 108. --means of exciting it, 99, 100. --of God, defective in nominal Christians, 219, 220. --of God, proofs of its being defective, 220-224. --of fellow-creatures, nominal Christians defective in, 225. --of fellow-creatures, true marks of, 226-229. --of God, best enforced by Christianity's peculiarities, 242. --Christians to cultivate this grace above all others, 324. --its excellent effects in the true Christian, 325. --of fellow-creatures best enforced by peculiar doctrines, 243, 244. 

_Low_ standard of practice generally prevailing, 102, 103, 117-135. 

_Lower_ classes, not unfit that true doctrine of acceptance should be stated to them, 93, 94. 

M. 

_McLaurin_, his essays and sermons referred to, 83, 97. 

_Maurice_, Mr. A defender of Christianity, 348. 

_Maxims_, which prove human corruption, 21. 

_Medium_, religious, almost lost, 130. 

_Milton_, quoted, 43. 

_Moral_, attainments rated above intellectual, by Christianity, 257. --attainments, how much more we can excel in them than in intellectual ones, 259. 

_Moravians_, commendation of, 56. 

N. 

_Natural_ condition of man without Christianity, 31-33. 

_Nature_, essential, of true practical Christianity, 129. 

_Necessity_, excuse on the plea of, stated, and answered, 36-42. --opponent on the ground of, how best opposed, 37, 38. 

_Nominal_ and real Christian, distinction between them most important, 306. 

_Novels_, prove how peculiarities of Christianity have fallen into neglect, 277, 278. 

O. 

_Objections_ against the religious affections towards Christ, and against the operations of the Holy Spirit, 50-53. --against human accountableness, discussed, 36-42. --against the religious affections towards Christ, and against the operations of the Holy Spirit, discussed, 53-83. 

_Outgrowing_ vices mistaken for forsaking them, 308, 318. 

_Owen_, Dr. Referred to, 275. 

P. 

_Paley_, Mr. His defence of Christianity noticed, 260, 281. 

_Partiality_ in the religious views of nominal Christians, 119-121. 

_Particular_, Christians must not fear to be so when required by duty, 167. 

_Pascal's_ thoughts referred to, 245. --thoughts recommended, 348. 

_Peculiar_, doctrines, use, in promoting humility, 244, 245. --in promoting moderation in earthly pursuits, 246. --in promoting cheerfulness in suffering, 247. --in promoting confidence in danger, and patience in suffering, 248, 249. --in promoting heavenly mindedness, 250. --doctrines, demand our utmost attention, 94-97. --doctrines, use of, 239. --doctrines, use of, in enforcing importance of Christianity, 240. --doctrines, use of, in enforcing entire surrender to God, 240. --doctrines, use of, in enforcing guilt of sin, and dread of punishment, 241. --in promoting love of God, 241, 242. --in promoting love of fellow-creatures, 243, 244. 

_Philosophy_, epicurism and stoicism, 59. 

_Pitt_, Mr. Slander respecting him refuted--Note 272. 

_Pleasure_, the true Christian finds in Religion, 139, 140. 

_Pleasures_ of true Religion, 325-332. 

_Policy_, mistaken, of compromise with immorality, 301. 

_Polished_ state of society no security against progress of immorality, 298, 299. 

_Political_, good effects from the prevalence of Christianity, as above described, 283-295. --good effects from revival of vital Christianity, 296. --bad effects from its farther decline, 297, 298. --happiness of a Christian nation, 283-287. 

_Pomp_ and parade, votaries of, 124. 

_Poor_ the, more favourably circumstanced as to Religion, 93, 292. 

_Pope_, the Poet, referred to, 246. 

_Popular_ notions concerning our Saviour and the Holy Spirit, 46-48. 

_Practical_ hints, on importance of Christianity, 13. --on human corruption, 35. --on mode of dealing with a certain description of infidels, 37, 38. --on the means of exciting our affections towards our Saviour, 99, 100. --respecting love of estimation, 174-178. --respecting amiable tempers and useful lives, 192. --to naturally sweet tempered, 193. --to naturally rough and austere, 194-199. --to true Christian, when engaged in hurry of worldly affairs, 199-204. --to persons desirous of repenting, 235. --respecting uses of peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 240-251. --for revival of Religion, 300-304. --to various descriptions, 305-318. --to such as, having been hitherto careless, wish to become true Christians, 318-332. --to some who profess their full assent to fundamental doctrines of Christianity, 333-336. --to Sceptics and Unitarians, 337-345. --to half-unbelievers, 346-348. --to true Christians, from state of times, 349-354. --Christianity, chapter on, 100-251. --prevailing low views of it, 102-104. --Christianity, its real strictness, 105, 106. --its true nature, 107-110. --charged on all without exception in its full strictness, 111-115. --mischiefs of neglect of peculiarities of Christianity, 232. --distinction, fundamental, between systems of nominal and real Christians, 231-234. --precepts of Christianity, most excellent, 260. --use of peculiar doctrines of Christianity, 238. 

_Prevailing_, low views of practical Christianity, proofs of them, 104. --inadequate sense of peculiar doctrines of Christians, 231, &c. 

_Probation_, notion of, disproves prevailing system of Religion, 317. 

_Proof_ of Christianity's divine origin, 260-262. 

_Puritans_, many of their writings commended, 275. 

R. 

_Religion_, practical hints for its revival, 300-305. -- the only true support in trouble and peril, 332. 

_Repentance_, advice for such as are disposed to, 318-324. 

_Reputation_, true Christian's conduct respecting it, 164-178. -- true Christian preserves, without over-valuing it, 167-170. 

_Richardson_, mentioned, 278. 

_Robertson_, Dr. Censured, 279. 

_Rousseau_, school of, 204, 205. 

S. 

_Scepticism_, natural history of it, 338-340. 

_Sceptics_ and Unitarians, advantage they have in attacking Christianity, 344, 345. 

_Scripture_ doctrine, importance of, to Christianity, 8-10. -- doctrine, concerning human corruption, 14-27. -- doctrine, concerning Christ and the Holy Spirit, 43, 44. 

_Self-deception_, frequent sources of, 306-318. -- another common kind, 333-335. 

_Self-examination_, helps in, 306. 

_Selfishness_ of common practical Religion, 121-127. -- the disease of political societies, 288. -- peculiarly counteracted by Christianity, 291, 292. 

_Sensibility_, exquisite, how little truly valuable, and how different from true practical benevolence, 204, 205. 

_Sensualists_ class of, 123. 

_Sin_, how spoken of in Scripture, 211. -- defective conceptions of, 207. 

_Sincerity_, false notion of it, 10-12. -- true what, 13. 

_Sins_, no little ones, 210, 211. -- little, what accounted such, 208. 

_Smith_, Dr. _Adam_, 76. 188, 189. 279. 

_Soame Jenyns_, his View of the Internal Evidence of Christianity referred to, 6. 281. 

_Sophistry_, with which Religion is explained away, 133. 

_Stage_ the, proof from its being frequented by nominal Christians of their defective love of God, 221-224. 230, 231. -- proof from, illustrated by political analogy, 223. 

_Statutes_, Religion made a set of, 131, 132. 

_Sterne_ strongly censured, 206. 

_Strictness_ of true practical Christianity, 105, 106. -- of our system, objected to, as not suited to the state of the world, 280, 281. -- the charge refuted, 281, 282. 

_Sunday_, hints for its employment, 141, 142. -- common modes of unhallowing it, 143-145. 

_Supreme_ regard to be set on God, 60. 112-129. 

_Swift's_ Tale of a Tub, quoted, 132, 133. 

T. 

_Taste_, votaries of, 127. 

_Tempers_, Christian, not cultivated, 136-146. -- respecting human estimation, 165-168. -- respecting calumny and disgrace, 170. -- when too much immersed in worldly business, 201-204. 

_Theatres_, Parisian, 223. 

_Theatrical_ entertainments prove defective love of God, 222. 

_Theatrical_ entertainments prove defective love of our neighbour, 230, 231. -- entertainments, illustrated by political analogy, 223. 

U. 

_Unbelievers, half_; a class of them, 346. 

_Uncharitableness_, what falsely so called, 312. 

_Unitarianism_ often results from same causes as absolute scepticism, 343. 

_Useful_ lives, discussion concerning, 178. -- substituted for Religion, 179. -- value of, estimated by standard of mere reason, 185. -- real worth of, on Christian principles, 186-188. -- life, the Christian's life the most so, 191. -- Christians urged to, 192. -- its just praise given to, 197. -- apt to mislead us, 198. 

V. 

_Vice_, some one always excused, 308-310. 

_Vices_, outgrowing or changing them, mistaken for forsaking all sin, 308-310. 

_Vulgarity_ in Religion, as to language, to be expected from vulgar men, 56. 

W. 

_Wealth_, votaries of, 125, 126. 

_Women_, more disposed than men to Religion, and uses to be made of this, 313. -- exalted office assigned to them, 314. 

_Witherspoon_, 275. 

Y. 

_Youth_, simplicity of, mistaken for Religion, 313. 

FOOTNOTES

[Footnote 1: It is almost superfluous to name Mr. SOAME JENYNS. ]

[Footnote 2: Exempla duo, quæ pravitatis humanæ vim animo meo luculenterexhibent, non proferre non possum. Alterum decens ille Virgilius, alterum Cicero, probus idem verique studiosus, suppeditat. Virgilius, innocuam certe pastorum vitam depicturus, ita incipit. 

 "Formosum pastor Corydon ardebat Alexim. "

Cicero in libro de Officiis primo, ubi de actionibus prout inter se apte& convenientes sint, loci, temporis, & agentis ratione habita, disserit, argumentum sic illustrat: "Turpe est enim, valdeque vitiosum, in resevera, convivio dignum, aut delicatum aliquem inferre sermonem. BenePericles, quum haberet collegam in prætura Sophoclem poetam, hique decommuni officio convenissent, & casu formosus puer præteriret, dixissetque Sophocles, O pueram pulchrum Pericle! At enim, inquitPericles, prætorem Sophoclem decet non solum manus, sed etiam oculusabstinentes habere. Atqui hoc idem Sophocles, si in athletarumprobatione dixisset, _justa reprehensione caruisset, tanta vis est, &loci & temporis_. "

Quomodo sese res habuisse necesse est, cum vir antiquorumprestantissimis adscribendus, philosophiam, immo mores & officiatractans, talia doceret! Qualem sibi ipse virtutis normam proposuerat, satis liquet. Vide inter alia, _justa reprehensione_, &c. &c; & _tantavis est_, &c. &c. ]

[Footnote 3: Robertson, Vol. II. P. 130. ]

[Footnote 4: Robertson, Book IV. Sect. 2. Head, Condition of Women, vol. Ii. 8vo. 90, 91. ]

[Footnote 5: Job xv. 14. ]

[Footnote 6: Job xv. 16. ]

[Footnote 7: Psalm xiv. 2, 3. ]

[Footnote 8: Prov. Xx. 9. ]

[Footnote 9: Psalm cxxxix. 3. ]

[Footnote 10: I Chron. Xxviii. 9. ]

[Footnote 11: Prov. I. 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. ]

[Footnote 12: Vide Butler's Analogy. ]

[Footnote 13: Heb. X. 27. ]

[Footnote 14: Philippians, ii. 12. ]

[Footnote 15: John, v. 29. ]

[Footnote 16: James, i. 13. ]

[Footnote 17: 2 Peter, iii. 9. ]

[Footnote 18: Ezek. Xviii. 23. ]

[Footnote 19: Ezek. Xviii. 32. ]

[Footnote 20: Psalm cxlvii. 5. ]

[Footnote 21: Rom. Xi. 33. ]

[Footnote 22: Psalm xcvii. 2. ]

[Footnote 23: Deut. Xxix. 29. ]

[Footnote 24: Matt. Xi. 28]

[Footnote 25: This was the motto on their banner. ]

[Footnote 26: Title of Attila king of the Huns, whose desolating ravagesare well known. ]

[Footnote 27: Vide the testimony of West India merchants to theMoravians, in the Report of the Privy Council on the Slave Trade. ]

[Footnote 28: Rom. Xii. 1. ]

[Footnote 29: Dr. HORNE. ]

[Footnote 30: 2 Cor. Viii. 12. ]

[Footnote 31: Isaiah, liii. 2. ]

[Footnote 32: Philip. Ii. 6, 7, 8. ]

[Footnote 33: Luke, ii. 10, 11. ]

[Footnote 34: Col. I. 12, 13. ]

[Footnote 35: Ephes. I. 18. ]

[Footnote 36: Col. I. 27. ]

[Footnote 37: Heb. Xiii. 8. ]

[Footnote 38: 1 John, iv. 20. ]

[Footnote 39: Dr. ADAM SMITH. Vide Theory of Moral Sentiments. ]

[Footnote 40: 1 Pet. I. 8. ]

[Footnote 41: Heb. Iv. 15. ]

[Footnote 42: Isaiah, xl. 11. ]

[Footnote 43: Isaiah, xlix. 10. ]

[Footnote 44: The word Comfortless is rendered in the margin Orphans. ]

[Footnote 45: John, xiv. 18. ]

[Footnote 46: 1 Cor. Xiii. 12. ]

[Footnote 47: Eph. Ii. 1. 5. ]

[Footnote 48: Col. I. 13. ]

[Footnote 49: Ephes. Ii. 10. ]

[Footnote 50: 2 Cor. Vi. 16. ]

[Footnote 51: Col. Iii. 9, 10. ]

[Footnote 52: Ephes. Ii. 22. ]

[Footnote 53: Vide DR. DODDRIDGE's eight Sermons on Regeneration, a mostvaluable compilation; and McLAURIN's Essay on Divine Grace. ]

[Footnote 54: Rom. Iv. 5. ]

[Footnote 55: Ibid. V. 6-8. ]

[Footnote 56: The Writer trusts he cannot be misunderstood to mean thatany, continuing sinners and ungodly, can, by believing, be accepted orfinally saved. The following chapter, particularly the latter part ofit, (Section vi. ) would abundantly vindicate him from any suchmisconstruction. Meanwhile, he will only remark, that true faith (inwhich repentance is considered as involved) is in Scripture regarded as_the radical principle of holiness_. If the root exist, the properfruits will be brought forth. An attention to this consideration wouldhave easily explained and reconciled those passages of St. Paul's andSt. James's Epistles, which have furnished so much matter of argumentand criticism. St. James, it may be observed, all along speaks of a man, not who _has_ faith, but who _says_ that he has faith. Vide James ii. 14. &c. &c. ]

[Footnote 57: Vide Note Ch. Iv. Sect. Vi. ]

[Footnote 58: Gal. Vi. 14. ]

[Footnote 59: I Cor. I. 30. ]

[Footnote 60: Rev. I. 5. ]

[Footnote 61: John, vi. 29. ]

[Footnote 62: 1 John, iii. 23. ]

[Footnote 63: Nec Deus intersit, &c. ]

[Footnote 64: Vide Heb. Ii. 1, &c. ]

[Footnote 65: Any one who wishes to investigate this subject will dowell to study attentively McLAURIN's Essay on Prejudices against theGospel. --It may not be amiss here to direct the reader's attention to afew leading arguments, many of them those of the work just recommended. Let him maturely estimate the force of those terms, whereby the Apostlein the following passages designates and characterizes the whole of theChristian system. "We preach Christ crucified"--"We determined to knownothing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. " The value ofthis argument will be acknowledged by all who consider, that a system isnever designated by an immaterial or an inferior part of it, but by thatwhich constitutes its prime consideration and essential distinction. Theconclusion suggested by this remark is confirmed by the Lord's Supperbeing the rite by which our Saviour himself commanded his Disciples tokeep him in remembrance; and indeed a similar lesson is taught by theSacrament of Baptism, which shadows out our souls being washed andpurified by the blood of Christ. Observe next the frequency with whichour Saviour's death and sufferings are introduced, and how often theyare urged as practical motives. 

"The minds of the Apostles seem full of this subject. Every thing putthem in mind of it; they did not allow themselves to have it long out oftheir view, nor did any other branch of spiritual instruction make themlose sight of it. " Consider next that part of the Epistle to the Romans, wherein St. Paul speaks of some who went about to establish their ownrighteousness, and had not submitted themselves to the righteousness ofGod. May not this charge be in some degree urged, and even more stronglythan in the case of the Jews, against those who satisfy themselves withvague, general, occasional thoughts of our Saviour's mediation; and thesource of whose habitual complacency, as we explained above, is rathertheir being tolerably well satisfied with their own characters andconduct? Yet St. Paul declares concerning those of whom he speaks, asconcerning persons whose sad situation could not be too much lamented, that he had great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart, addingstill more emphatical expressions of deep and bitter regret. 

Let the Epistle to the Galatians be also carefully examined andconsidered; and let it be fairly asked, what was the particular in whichthe Judaizing Christians were defective, and the want of which is spokenof in such strong terms as these; that it frustrates the grace of God, and must debar from all the benefits of the death of Jesus? TheJudaizing converts were not immoral. They seem to have admitted thechief tenets concerning our Saviour. But they appear to have beendisposed to trust (_not wholly, be it observed also, but only in part_)for their acceptance with God, to the Mosaic institutions, instead ofreposing wholly on the merits of Christ. Here let it be remembered, thatwhen a compliance with these institutions was not regarded as conveyingthis inference, the Apostle shewed by his own conduct, that he did notdeem it criminal; whence, no less than from the words of the Epistle, itis clear that the offence of the Judaizing Christians whom he condemned, was what we have stated; not their obstinately continuing to adhere to adispensation the ceremonial of which Christianity had abrogated, ortheir trusting to the sacrifices of the Levitical Law, which were intheir own nature inefficacious for the blotting out of sin. --Vide Heb. Vii. Viii. Ix. X. ]

[Footnote 66: Rev. V. 12. ]

[Footnote 67: ib. 13. ]

[Footnote 68: 2 Cor. Xiii. 14. ]

[Footnote 69: 1 John, iii. 17. --Rom. Xvi. 18. --Compared withPhilippians, iii. 19. ]

[Footnote 70: 2 Tim. Iii. 4. ]

[Footnote 71: Matt. X. 37. ]

[Footnote 72: Jerem. Ix. 23. ]

[Footnote 73: It will be remembered by the reader, that it is not theobject of this work to animadvert on the vices, defects, and erroneousopinions of the times, except so far as they are received into theprevailing religious system, or are tolerated by it, and are not thoughtsufficient to prevent a man from being esteemed on the whole a verytolerable Christian. ]

[Footnote 74: Vide Tale of a Tub. ]

[Footnote 75: Vide Tale of a Tub. ]

[Footnote 76: Isaiah, ii. 11. ]

[Footnote 77: Vide Hey's Tract, Rousseau's Eloisa, and many periodicalEssays and Sermons. ]

[Footnote 78: Vide "Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hathcommitted adultery with her, &c. " Matt. V. 28. ]

[Footnote 79: The writer cannot omit this opportunity of declaring, thathe should long ago have brought this subject before the notice ofParliament, but for a perfect conviction that he should probably therebyonly give encouragement to a system he wishes to see at an end. Thepractice has been at different periods nearly stopped by positive laws, in various nations on the Continent; and there can be little doubt ofthe efficacy of what has been more than once suggested--a Court ofHonour; to take cognizance of such offences as would naturally fallwithin its province. The effects of this establishment would doubtlessrequire to be enforced by legislative provisions, directly punishing thepractice; and by discouraging at court, and in the military and navalsituations, all who should directly or indirectly be guilty of it. ]

[Footnote 80: Vide, in particular a paper in the Guardian, by ADDISON, on Honour, Vol. Ii. ]

[Footnote 81: Vide SMITH'S Theory of Moral Sentiments. ]

[Footnote 82: The writer hopes that the work to which he is referring isso well known, that he needs scarcely name Mrs. H. More. ]

[Footnote 83: See SMITH'S Theory of Moral Sentiments. ]

[Footnote 84: While all are worthy of blame, who, to qualities likethese, have assigned a more exalted place than to religious and moralprinciple; there is one writer who, eminently culpable in this respect, deserves, on another account, still severer reprehension. Reallypossessed of powers to explore and touch the finest strings of the humanheart, and bound by his sacred profession to devote those powers to theservice of religion and virtue, he every where discovers a studioussolicitude to excite indecent ideas. We turn away our eyes with disgustfrom open immodesty: but even this is less mischievous than that moremeasured style, which excites impure images, without shocking us by thegrossnesses of the language. Never was delicate sensibility proved to bemore distinct from plain practical benevolence, than in the writings ofthe author to whom I allude. Instead of employing his talents for thebenefit of his fellow-creatures, they were applied to the perniciouspurposes of corrupting the national taste, and of lowering the standardof manners and morals. The tendency of his writings is to vitiate thatpurity of mind, intended by Providence as the companion and preservativeof youthful virtue; and to produce, if the expression may be permitted, _a morbid sensibility in the perception of indecency_. An imaginationexercised in this discipline is never _clean_, but seeks for anddiscovers something indelicate in the most common phrases and actions ofordinary life. If the general style of writing and conversation were tobe formed on that model, to which Sterne used his utmost endeavours toconciliate the minds of men, there is no estimating the effects whichwould soon be produced on the manners and morals of the age. ]

[Footnote 85: Vide SMITH on the Wealth of Nations, Vol. Iii. ]

[Footnote 86: Vide the Grammarians and Dialecticians on the Diminutivesof the Italian and other languages. ]

[Footnote 87: Many more might be added, such as a good fellow, a goodcompanion, a libertine, a little free, a little loose in talk, wild, gay, jovial, being no man's enemy but his own, &c. &c. &c. &c; aboveall, _having a good heart_. ]

[Footnote 88: Gal. V. 19-21. Col. Iii. 5-9. ]

[Footnote 89: Job, xxviii. 28. Psalm, cxi. 10. Prov. I. 7. --ix. 10. ]

[Footnote 90: 2 Peter, iii. 10, 11. ]

[Footnote 91: Col. I. 13. ]

[Footnote 92: It is almost unnecessary to remark, that the word is to beunderstood in a large sense, as including the Opera, &c. ]

[Footnote 93: Geneva--It is worthy of remark, that the play houses havemultiplied extremely in Paris since the revolution; and that last winterthere were twenty open every night, and all crowded. It should not beleft unobserved, and it is seriously submitted to the consideration ofthose who regard the stage as a school of morals, that the pieces whichwere best composed, best acted, and most warmly and generally applauded, were such as abounded in touches of delicate sensibility. The people ofParis have never been imagined to be more susceptible, than thegenerality of mankind, of these emotions, and this is not the particularperiod when the Parisians have been commonly conceived most under theirinfluence. Vide Journal d'un Voyageur Neutre. The author of the workexpresses himself as astonished by the phænomenon, and as unable toaccount for it. ]

[Footnote 94: The author is almost afraid of using the terms, lest theyshould convey an impression of party feelings, of which he wishes thisbook to exhibit no traces; but he here means by Democrats and Jacobins, not persons on whom party violence fastens the epithet, but persons whoare really and avowedly such. ]

[Footnote 95: LORD BACON. ]

[Footnote 96: If any one would read a description of this process, enlivened and enforced by the powers of the most exquisite poetry, lethim peruse the middle and latter part of the fifth Book of COWPER'STask. My warm attachment to the exquisitely natural compositions of thistruly Christian poet may perhaps bias my judgment; but the part of thework to which I refer appears to me scarcely surpassed by any thing inour language. The honourable epithet of _Christian_ may justly beassigned to a poet, whose writings, while they fascinate the reader bytheir manifestly coming from the heart, breathe throughout the spirit ofthat character of Christianity, with which she was announced to theworld; "Glory to God, peace on earth, good will towards men. "]

[Footnote 97: Here again let it be remarked, that faith, where genuine, always supposes repentance, abhorrence of sin, &c. ]

[Footnote 98: Heb. Xii. 1, 2. ]

[Footnote 99: It has been well remarked that the word used, where it issaid, that God "was PLEASED to bruise" and put to grief his only Son forus, is the same word as that wherein it was declared by a voice fromHeaven, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. "]

[Footnote 100: Vide Chap. Iii. Where these were shewn to be theelementary principles of the passion of love. ]

[Footnote 101: Rom. V. 9. 10. ]

[Footnote 102: John xiii. 13-17. If I then, your Lord and Master, havewashed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet, &c. ]

[Footnote 103: Vide Pascal's Thoughts on Religion--A book abounding inthe deepest views of practical Christianity. ]

[Footnote 104: Pope. ]

[Footnote 105: The _Hell_, so called, be it observed, not by way ofreproach, but familiarity, by those who frequent it. ]

[Footnote 106: Eph. Ii. ]

[Footnote 107: The Rev. Matthew Babington of Temple Rothley, inLeicestershire, who died lately at Lisbon. ]

[Footnote 108: The author must acknowledge himself indebted to Dr. OWENfor this illustration. ]

[Footnote 109: The author here alludes to what happened within his ownknowledge; and he has been assured by others, on whose testimony he canrely, of several similar instances. But to prevent misconstruction as tothe incident which mainly gives rise to the remark, he thinks itnecessary to declare, that the account, which appeared in some of thenews-papers, of an entertainment having been given by Mr. Pitt on theFast Day, is untrue; and he is glad of the opportunity, which themention of this subject affords him, of contradicting a statement whichhe can positively affirm to have been false. This is one of the manyinstances which should enforce on the readers of news-papers, the _duty_of not _hastily_ giving credit to reports to the disadvantage of _any_man, of _any_ party. A person in a public station must often acquiesceunder the grossest calumnies; unless he will undertake the vain andendless task of contradicting all the falsehoods which prejudice mayconceive, and malignity propagate against him. --The writer may perhapsexpress himself with the more feeling on this subject; because he hasoften been, and, indeed, at this very moment is, in the circumstanceswhich he has stated. ]

[Footnote 110: I must beg leave to class among the brightest ornamentsof the Church of England, this great man, who with his brethren was soshamefully ejected from the church in 1666, in violation of the royalword, as well as of the clear principles of justice. With hiscontroversial pieces I am little acquainted: but his practical writings, in four massy folios, are a treasury of Christian wisdom; and it wouldbe a most valuable service to mankind to revise them, and perhaps toabridge them, so as to render them more suited to the taste of modernreaders. This has been already done in the case of his Dying Thoughts, abeautiful little piece, and of his Saints' Rest. His Life also, writtenby himself, and in a separate volume, contains much useful matter, andmany valuable particulars of the history of the times of Charles I. Cromwell, &c. &c. ]

[Footnote 111: Let me by no means be understood to censure all thesectaries without discrimination. Many of them, and some who by theunhappy circumstances of the times became objects of notice in apolitical view, were men of great erudition, deep views of Religion, andunquestionable piety: and though the writings of the puritans areprolix; and according to the fashion of their age, rendered ratherperplexed than clear by multiplied divisions and subdivisions; yet theyare a mine of wealth, in which any one who will submit to some degree oflabour will find himself well rewarded for his pains. In particular thewritings of Dr. OWEN, Mr. HOWE, and Mr. FLAVELL, well deserve thischaracter: of the first mentioned author, there are two pieces which Iwould especially recommend to the reader's perusal, one, on HeavenlyMindedness, abridged by Dr. MAYO; the other, on the Mortification of Sinin Believers. While I have been speaking in terms of such high, and, Itrust, such just eulogium of many of the teachers of the Church ofEngland; this may not be an improper place to express the highobligations which we owe to the Dissenters, for many excellentpublications. Of this number are Dr. EVANS'S Sermons on the ChristianTemper; and that most useful book, the Rise and Progress of Religion inthe Soul, by Dr. DODDRIDGE; also, his Life, by ORTON, and Letters; andtwo volumes of Sermons, one on Regeneration, the other on the Power andGrace of Christ: May the writer be permitted to embrace this opportunityof recommending two volumes, published separately, of Sermons, by thelate Dr. WITHERSPOON, President of the College of New Jersey. ]

[Footnote 112: Vide Section vi. Of the ivth Chapter, where we haveexpressly and fully treated of this most important truth. ]

[Footnote 113: No exceptions have fallen within my own reading, but thewritings of RICHARDSON. ]

[Footnote 114: It is with pain that the author finds himself compelledto place so great a writer as Dr. ROBERTSON in this class. But, to saynothing of his phlegmatic account of the reformation; a subject which weshould have thought likely to excite in any one, who united thecharacter of a Christian Divine with that of an Historian, some warmthof pious gratitude for the good providence of God; to pass over also theambiguity, in which he leaves his readers as to his opinion of theauthenticity of the Mosaic chronology, in his disquisitions on the tradeof India; his letters to Mr. GIBBON, lately published, cannot but exciteemotions of regret and shame in every sincere Christian. The authorhopes, that he has so far explained his sentiments as to render italmost unnecessary to remark, what, however, to prevent misconstruction, he must here declare, that so far from approving, he must be understooddecidedly to condemn, a hot, a contentious, much more an abusive mannerof opposing or of speaking of the assailants of Christianity. TheApostle's direction in this respect cannot be too much attended to. "Theservant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt toteach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; ifGod peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of thetruth. " (2 Timothy, ii. 24, 25. )]

[Footnote 115: Mr. HUME. ]

[Footnote 116: Vide Dr. A. Smith's Letter to W. Strahan, Esq. ]

[Footnote 117: What is here stated must be acknowledged by all, be theirpolitical opinions concerning French events what they may; and it makesno difference in the writer's view of the subject, whether the state ofmorals was or was not, quite, or nearly, as bad, before the Frenchrevolution. ]

[Footnote 118: SOAME JENYNS. ]

[Footnote 119: PALEY'S Evidence. ]

[Footnote 120: See especially that great historian, FERGUSON, who, inhis Essay on Civil Society, endeavours to vindicate the cause of heroismfrom the censure conveyed by the poet:

 "From Macedonia's madman to the Swede. "

]

[Footnote 121: Such seems to be the just rendering of the word which ourTestament translates, "did not like to retain God in their knowledge. "]

[Footnote 122: It is a gratification to the writer's personal, as wellas public feelings, to pay this tribute of respect to the character ofLord Chief Justice KENYON. ]

[Footnote 123: This is not thrown out rashly, but asserted on thewriter's own knowledge. ]

[Footnote 124: "Neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the Lord myGod, " (says David) "of that which doth cost me nothing. "2 Sam. Xxiv. 24. 

"They, " (the Apostles) "departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for the name ofJesus. " Acts v. 41. See also 1 Thess. I. 6. Heb. X. 34. James i. 2. 1 Peter iv. 13, 14. 

Such are the marks exhibited in Scripture of a true love to God: andthough our regard for our common Lord is not put to the same severetest, as that of the Apostles and first Christians was; yet, if the sameprinciple existed in us also, it would surely dispose us to act in the_spirit_ of that conduct; and prompt us rather to be willing to exceedin self denials and labours for Christ's sake, than to be so forward aswe are to complain, whenever we are called upon to perform or to abstainfrom any thing, though in an instance ever so little contrary to ourinclinations. ]

[Footnote 125: It may not be amiss to mention a few useful publicationsof this sort. Walton's Lives, particularly the last edition by Mr. Zouch; Gilpin's Lives; the Lives of Bishop Bedell and Bishop Bull; ofArchbishop Usher; some extracts from Burnet of the Life of theincomparable Leighton, prefixed to a volume of the latter's Sermons;Passages of the Life of Lord Rochester, by Burnet; the Life of SirMatthew Hale; of the excellent Doddridge, by Orton; of Henry, father andson; of Mather; of Halyburton; Hampson's and Whitehead's Life of Wesley;Life of Baxter, by himself, &c. &c. &c. ]

[Footnote 126: The author is aware, that he may perhaps be censured forconceding this term to the class of persons now in question, sinceorthodox Christians equally contend for the unity of the Divine Nature:and it perhaps may hardly be a sufficient excuse, that, it not being hisobject particularly to refute the errors of Unitarianism, he uses theterm in its popular sense rather than give needless offence. He thusguards, however, against any false construction being drawn from his useof it. ]

[Footnote 127: The author of this treatise has, since its completion, perused a work entitled, Calvinism and Socinianism compared, by A. FULLER, &c; and, without reference to the peculiarities of Calvinism, heis happy to embrace this opportunity of confessing the high obligationwhich, in common with all the friends of true Religion, he owes to theauthor of that highly valuable publication for his masterly defence ofthe doctrines of Christianity, and his acute refutation of the oppositeerrors. ]

[Footnote 128: It is almost superfluous to state, that Sir WILLIAM JONESis here meant, who, from the testimony borne to his extraordinarytalents by Sir John Shore, in his first address to the Asiatic Societyof Calcutta, appears to have been a man of most extraordinary genius andastonishing erudition. ]

[Footnote 129: Mr. MAURICE. ]

[Footnote 130: This argument is pressed with uncommon force in PASCAL'SThoughts on Religion, a work highly valuable, though not in every partto be approved; abounding in particular with those deep views ofReligion, which the name of its author prepares us to expect. ]

[Footnote 131: Vide, some exquisitely beautiful lines in the last bookof Cowper's Task, wherein this sentiment is introduced. ]

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TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES

Page numbers refer to the original text. Footnote numbers refer to this transcribed version. 

p54: Repeated "a" has been removed. 

p83: Comma has been changed to full stop after "Almighty power". 

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p106: Omitted word "in" has been added to "as it is Heaven". 

p350: "the only can feel it" has been changed to "they only can feelit". 

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Fn 131: "Some" has been changed to "some". 

Index-Affections, religious: - Repeated word "of" has been removed. 

Index section "V" preceded "U" in the original. This has been corrected. 

All footnotes have been moved to the end of the text and numberedsequentially. 

Some words were spelt, hyphenated, or had apostrophes placed, inconsistently within the text. These have been silently corrected tomatch the form most frequently used in the text. 

Where scanned text was unclear, the 1834 edition has been consulted. 

Unless due to a clear typographic error, consistent differences frommodern usage have been retained, such as spellings (e. G. Prophane), hyphenation (e. G. To-day), and punctuation (e. G. Omission of commasfollowing full stops in lists and the Index).