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not only from his mother's womb; but alfo from the time that he, who tafted death for every man, forbad all his wounds to pour forth one fingle drop of blood for them: Nay, they were from all eternity intentionally made to be neceffarily veffels of wrath to all eternity. -But in the name of wifdom I afk, What has Zelotes's conclufion to do with St. Paul's premifes? Has the one any more agreement with the other, than kindness with cruelty, Chrift with Moloch, and fenfe with non-fenfe? Again :

In Eph. 1, the apoftle makes known to the Ephefians the mystery of God's will, who purposed in himself, predeftinated, or refolved before the foundation of the world, that, in the difpenfation of the fulness of times, he would, gather together in one all things in Chrift, and call the Gentiles, as well as the Jews, to partake of นท. fearchable riches of Chrift by faith: But Zelotes, inftead of gladdening the heart of his countrymen by the gofpel-news of this extenfive grace, and general election of the Gentiles, takes occafion from it to con fine redemption, to preach narrow grace, and to infinuate the perfonal, calvinistic election of fome of his neighbours: Suppose Peter Penitent, Martha Forward, and Matthew Fulfome: an election this, which is infeparable from the perfonal, abfolute, eternal reprobation of his other neighbours, fuppofe John Endeavour, Thomas Doubter, Geo. Honeft, and James Worker, to say nothing of Mifs Wanton, Mr. Cheat, Sarah Cannibal, and Samuel Hottentot. For it is evident, that, if none of Zelotes's next neighbours are in the book of life but the three first-mentioned; if those three can never be put out of the book, fin they ever fo grievously; and not one of the others can poffibly be put in, live they ever fo righteoufly-it is evident, I fay, upon this footing, that the falvation of fome of Zelotes's neighbours, and the damnation of all the reft, are abfolutely neceffary; or, to fpeak his own language, abfolutely finished. Thus the gracious election of the Gentiles, which filled St. Paul's foul with transports of grateful joy, and would be a perpetual fpring of confolation to

as, European Gentiles, if it were preached in a scriptural manner :-This gracious election, I fay, becomes, by Zelotes's mistake, the fource of all the prefumptuous comforts which flow from Calvin's luscious, antinomian election; and of all the tormenting fears, which arife from his fevere, pharifaic reprobation.

Having juft mentioned the book of life, fo triumph. antly produced by Zelotes, it may not be amifs to hear what he, and his antagonist Honeftus think about it. Throw we then their partial fentiments into the fcripture-fcales, and by balancing them according to the method of the fanctuary, let us fee the meaning of that myfterious expreffion.

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THY BOOK

2. Another book was opened which is the BOOK OF LIFE: and the dead where JUDGED out of those things which were WRITTEN in the books, ACCORDING ΤΟ THEIR WORKS Rẹv. xx. 12.—If thou wilt not forgive, blot me I pray thee OUT OF which thou haft written [from the foundation of the world.] And the Lord faid to Mofes, WHOSOEVER HATH against me, HIM will I BLOT OUT of my book, [a Jure proof this, that he was before in the book] Ex. xxxii, 32, 33. -Let them [perfecutors] be BLOTTED OUT of the BOOK OF LIFE. Pf. lxix.

*

SINNED

WRITTEN

28.

I take the liberty to lay the book OF LIFE, and not the book of THE LIVING, becaufe our tranflators themselves, Gen. ii, 7. have rendered the very fame word the breath of LIFE, and not the breath

OF THE LIVING.

WRITTEN in the Lamb's | 28.-They that FEARED

BOOK OF LIFE, was caft into the lake of fire. Rev. xx. 15. At that time thy people fhall be delivered, EVERY ONE that fhall be found written IN THE BOOK. Dan. xii, I.

the Lord fpake often one to another, and the Lord heard it, and A BOOK Of remembrance was WRIT TEN before him, for THEM THAT FEARED the Lord : and THEY fhall be MINE, faith the Lord of Hofts, in

that day when I make up my jewels. Mal. iii, 16.— I will NOT BLOT OUT his name [the name of HIM THAT OVERCOMETH] out of the BOOK OF LIFE. Rev. iii, 5.—If any man fhall take away from the words of, &c. this prophecy, God fhall TAKE AWAY HIS PART out of the BOOK OF LIFE. Rev. xxii, 19.

The balance of thefe fcriptures evidently fhows: (1) That from the foundation of the world, God decreed to reward the righteous with eternal life:-(2) That, to show us the certainty of this decree, the facred writers by a striking, oriental metaphor reprefent it as written in a book, which they call the book of life.(3) That, to carry on the allegory, the names of the righteous are faid to be written in that book, and the names of the wicked, not to be found in it; while the names of apoftates are faid to be blotted out of it :(4) That the NAMES written in this metaphorical book of life (if I may ufe the expreffion) are to be underfood of natures, properties, and characters; in the sense in which Isaiah fays of Chrift, His NAME shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, and Prince of peace; or in the fenfe in which God proclaimed his NAME to Mofes ; calling himself Merciful, Gracious, and Long-fuffering. Whence it follows, that the NAMES WRITTEN in the BOOK OF LIFE from the foundation of the world, are not Matthew Fulfome, Sarah Forward, or William Fanciful; but True Penitent, Obedient Believer, Good Servant, or Faithful unto death.-And lastly, that it is as abfurd to make the metaphor of the book of Life go upon all four, as to fuppofe that all David's hairs fhall be glo

rified,

rified, and his tears literally bottled up in heaven, because it is faid, The very HAIRS of your head are NUMBERED.-All my members were WRITTEN in THY BOOK.--Put thou my TEARS into thy bottle: are they not WRITTEN IN THY BOOK?

If Zelotes and Honeftus condefcend to weigh the preceding obfervations, their prejudices will, I hope, gradually fubfide; and while the one fends back to Geneva the falfe, intoxicating election recommended by Calvin, the other will bring us over from Ephefus the true comfortable election maintained by St. Paul. That in the mean time we may all be thankful for our evangelical calling, improve our gofpel-priv leges, make our fcriptural election fure, and as the apostle writes to the Ephefians, walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called, is the ardent wish of my foul, which I cannot exprefs in words more proper than those, which I have just used in " receiving a "child into the congregation of Chrift's flock-and "incorporating him into God's holy church.

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Heavenly Father, we give thee humble thanks, that "thou haft vouchfafed to CALL us" [and of confe quence to choose us firft] "to the knowledge of thy grace and faith in thee. Increase this knowledge, " and confirm this faith in us evermore :-that we 66 may receive the fulness of thy grace,-live the rest "of our life according to this beginning,-CONTI66 NUE Chrift's faithful foldiers to our lives end,"and EVER REMAIN in the number of God's FAITH"FUL and ELECT children, through Jefus Christ our "Lord." Office of Baptifm.

This truly chriftian prayer fhall conclude this Section, and the first part of the Scripture-scales. Zelotes and Honestus have at this time, given one another as much truth as they can well ftand under. In a few days their ftrength will be recovered; they will meet again to fight it out, each from his fcale: and when they fhall have spent all their amunition, they will, I hope, fhake hands and be friends: But if they were obftinate, and will still juftle, inftead of embracing

each

each other; we will charge the peace. When we are for a fcriptural peace, if they still prepare themselves for battle, we will bind them with all the cords we can borrow from reafon, revelation, and experience, And if then, they will not be quiet and agree, by a new kind of metamorphofe we will change them into fcales; we will tie them to the folid beam of truth, and expofe them in bookfellers fhops, where they shall hang in logical chains, an eyefore to bigots-a terror to doctrinal clippers, who openly diminish the coin of the church-a comfort to thofe who are perfecuted for truth and righteousness fake-an encouragement to thofe who, like their master, equally hate the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, and that of the Pharifees-a new CHECK to those, who fpoil all by overdoing-and a contrivance useful, I hope, to novices, and to unwary profeffors, who through an excefs of fimplicity, or for want of fcales, frequently take of Mafters in Ifrael a bare half-fhekel for the full shekel of the fanctuary.

END OF THE SECTION XIII, AND OF THE FIRST PART OF THE SCALES.

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