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The natural man loves the world and himself too well to admit, whatever he may pretend or profefs, affections fo liberal, fublime, and difinterested. He loves MAMMON more than God; and as for the love of his fellow-creatures, he wears a false appearance of it, a ftudied politeness, courteoufnefs, and affability, for the fake of availing himfelf of their affiftance in gratifying avarice, ambition, and the love of pleasure; but he hates, envies, ór utterly neglects, all who contribute neither to his fordid gain, nor to his perfonal gratification. Grace alone can soften and liberalize his contracted bofom. Grace alone can render him fincerely, fecretly, and impartially virtuous; and the best Chriftian is the beft member of civil fociety.

Let him who doubts the excellence of Chriftian morality, read our Saviour's fermon on the mount, with the difcourfes formed upon it by Blair *, Blackall, and other great divines of the English church. He will be ftruck with its pre-eminent beauty and utility. Indeed the whole body of English fermons founded on the gospel, exhibits a fyftem of morality which the world never faw before, and which would never have exifted without the evangelical code. I earnestly recommend to general perufal Bishop Gaftrell's little book, intitled, Chriftian Inftitutes. Seneca, Epictetus, and all the pagan moralifts, muft hide their diminished. heads on the comparison with the Chriftian PhiloSophy there exhibited.

* James Blair, M. A. Prefident of William and Mary College in America. His fermons were first published by himself in 1722, and afterwards, in 1740, by the very learned Dr. Waterland. See parti. cularly the paraphrafe, in the first volume, on Matt. v. vi. vii.

SECTION XLVIII.

The true Genius and Spirit of Christianity productive of a certain Tendernefs of Confcience, or Feeling of Reftitude, more favourable to right Conduct, than any Deductions of unaffifted Reason, or heathen Morality.

A MAN, rightly difpofed by the influence of ge

A

nuine Christianity, becomes a law* unto himself, in all circumstances and fituations. DIVINE TEMPER, fuperinduced by divine energy on the heart, produces right conduct, juft as a tree grafted with a kindly scion, brings forth fruit both delicious and falutary, under the natural operation of fhowers and funfhine.

A true Chriftian has conftantly impreffed upon his mind a fenfe of God's prefence, and a conviction that he is refponfible to his Father in heaven for all his conduct. This keeps him in awe, mixed with love. He fears to do wrong, not with a fervile fear, but an affectionate reverence for his all-powerful friend, who has fhewn him great favour, and at the fame time required, in return for it, obedience to his injunctions, as a condition of its continuance. He loves God from his heart; an affection, which comprehends in it the love of every thing that is good in moral conduct, every

"God," fays Dr. John Jeffery, "might have delivered the "doctrine of our religion, in a body of laws, like that of Jus"TINIAN. He probably would have done fo, if he had intended the gospel to be a complete code of moral law; but he evidently intended that a LIVING TEACHER, even the SPIRIT, fhould accompany the hiftorical gofpel in all ages, and fupply all our wants of inftruction according to the occafion.

thing pure and holy in his own perfon, every thing beneficent to society.

The refidence of the Holy Ghost in the Christian's heart increases his moral fenfibility. He fees with greater acutenefs the good and beautiful * in behaviour; he feels with additional vivacity the emotions of benevolence. It gives him pain, it does violence to his very nature, thus fublimed, to act bafely, unjustly, unkindly. He knows that the divine principle within him will not inhabit a polluted fhrine; but will take offence† and depart, if the temple be profaned by immorality.

Cafuiftry, or long and abftrufe reafonings on the moral fitnefs or unfitnefs of actions, are totally unneceffary to the man whom the heavenly teacher has inftructed. His determinations admit not fuch cold delay or doubtful hesitation. His heart turns, like the needle to the pole, with tremulous, yet certain propenfity, to the point of rectitude. From the infirmity of human nature, and the violence of temptation, he may decline a little to the right or to the left; but the attraction to Heaven and virtue ftill acts upon and prevents his total aberration. Fouched by Heaven, he acquires a kind of polarity, which caufes him to point thither without any inclination to deviate.

Hence he is above the schools of the heathen moralifts. He difplays that fuperiority which.

* Καλοκαγαθίαν.

+ Res delicata eft Dei Spiritus."-The Spirit of God is delicate, i. e. eafily difgufted with moral impurity. TERTULL.

"As Chriftianity has all that is good in morality, so it far ex❝ceeds it, and accordingly our preaching should be above the rate of "moral philofophy. Our divine orator fhould fetch not only his 4 fpeculations and notions, but his materials for practice from the ❝evangelical writings. This he must do, or else he is NO MINISTER "OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. There is plenty of excellent "moral difcourfes from the pulpit, urged with great art and vigour; "but notwithstanding this, there never was leis morality in men's "lives and actions." Dr. EDWARDS's Preacher, vol. i. p. 82.

Jefus

Jefus Chrift moft juftly claims over Socrates. Yet he may enjoy the beautiful compofitions of the ancients, if his education has enabled him to underftand them. He may be pleased and inftructed with their fine obfervations on life and manners, and the great advances they made in ethics, by the light of nature. But though he may derive great benefit from them, though he may be both informed and advifed by them, yet he fees them defective, and finds that they are not abfolutely neceffary to accomplish the Chriftian, who, by the written word of fcripture, accompanied by the Spirit's miniftration, becomes fufficiently enlightened for the practice of the pureft morality, and wife unto falvation. By Chriftian Philofophy, he experiences not only illumination, but affiftance: he is taught the way that he fhould go, and led by the hand in his journey.

I conclude, then, from this tender fenfibility to right and wrong, and this propensity to kindness, which the fupernatural agency of the Spirit caufes in the heart, that true Chriftianity, fuch as is founded on the vital influence of the Spirit, makes the best moralifts, the moft ufeful and worthiest members of fociety. And as Chriftian Philofophy is attainable by ALL, and not confined to the rich or the learned, it appears to me, that even politicians, who confider only the profperity and peace of nations, would evince the highest wisdom, in firft cultivating it themfelves, and then encouraging it, by all prudent modes, among the people. What a feeble fyftem is that of the French Theophilanthropists divefted, as they pretend it is, of evangelical authority!

* Life and immortality are brought to light by the gospel. There is alfo in the gospel, the perfect example of Jefus Christ; and example teaches better than precept. They who preach merely in the manner of Cicero and Antoninus are the apoftles of DEISM.

When

When a whole community fhall become, by the preaching* of evangelical doctrines, and the example of the great, fubject to the power of confcience, warmed with the love of God, and all mankind, “ just and good, true and fincere, meek, "humble, tender-hearted, and compaffionate, " content, temperate, pure, and heavenly-minded, "then will men become each a law to himself,” and all civil government will be greatly facilitated, while the general happiness is fecured without wars and fightings, without tumult and difcord, without capital punishments, without any of that fevere coercion, which creates partial evil for the fake of the general fecurity.

Such a ftate, it will be faid, is chimerical and Utopian. I fear, in the prefent corruptions of Christianity, it may be vifionary. But every approach to it is defirable, as it is an approach to the happiness and perfection to which man is formed to afpire; and therefore, it will behove all those who possess power, not for fordid purposes, but the general good, to haften and extend the reign of grace. They fhould fay with heart as well. as voice, looking ùnto Jefus, THY KINGDOM COME.

"How feldom," fays Dr. John Edwards, " are the people in"formed about the true nature of regeneration, or the new birth? "How feldom is the abfolute neceffity of the knowledge of Christ "as a mediator, infifted upon? It is rare to hear the preacher speak "of and maintain the abfolute neceffity of being fupernaturally en

lightened, in order to the right and faving understanding of the "things of God? Nay, how often do we hear the CONTRARY? ce ****. I have known that when some of those doctrines have been "difcourfed of by one in the pulpit, it hath been said that he preached "like a Prefbyterian. But if this be to preach like a Presbyterian, I 66 pray heartily that the number of Prefbyterians may increafe more " and more; and if this be to preach like a Presbyterian, then all "Our BISHOPS and our UNIVERSITIES, and all our DIVINES were "Presbyterians, in Queen Elizabeth and King James the First's days, "and afterwards; for no man can have the face to deny that these "were the doctrines that they openly profeffed and maintained."

EDWARDS'S Preacher, vol. 1. p. 44.

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