any man beguile them of their reward; leaft being led afide by the error of the wicked, they fall from their own fted faftnefs; leaft fin fhould reign in their mortal bodies. Nay, they are told, if ye live after the flesh, ye fhall die. He that foweth to the flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption. If we deny Chrift, he will alfo deny us. Election therefore, adoption, vocation, falvation, juftification, fanctification, &c. are antecedent bleffings, belonging at prefent to all Chriftians, even thofe, who for their wickedness do perifh eternally; and do not import any thing neceffarily and abfolutely connected with a right temper and behaviour, with ftedfaftnefs in religion, and with the enjoyment of the heavenly blifs. Key, ch. x. xi. xii.

I acknowledge this reafoning is plaufible, and merits a very particular and critical review: from which I think it will appear, that more than one link in the chain is faulty. The fact he alledges, cannot be difputed, that in the infcriptions of Paul's epiftles, and other places of facred writ, whole churches are termed holy, tho' doubtless there lurked in them many hypocrites. But in the inference from that fact, there is an evident mistake. In thefe very epiftles characters peculiar to good men, are afcribed to the members of these churches, and is it not plain from this, that the apofles addreffed them upon a charitable fuppofition, that they were inwardly. pious. They did not confider hypocrites, tho'. mingled with the church, as conftituting any part of it: and therefore to have regarded them, in their defcriptions of churches or addreffes to them, would have been abfurd. What has been advanced, Sect. i. § 3. feems fufficient to convince

the

the impartial, that thofe only are true members of the church, who are endued with the fpirit and temper of Chrift, and thereby fecured againft total and final apoftacy. Yet as a further proof of what I affert, it may not be improper minutely to confider, what the apoftles fay, of the character and privileges of thofe, whom they addrefs as members of the church of Chrift.

§ 4. Paul addreffes the members of the church at Rome, as men beloved of God, Rom. i. 7. who rejoiced in hope of the glory of God, v. 2. who had received the fpirit of adoption, the fpirit of God witneffing with their fpirits that they were the children of God, yea heirs of God, and joint heirs with Chrift, who as they now fuffered should hereafter be glorified with him, viii. 15, 16, 17. He thanks God, that they had obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine that had been delivered them, and were made free from fin, and become the fervants of righteousness, vi. 17, 18. He affures them, tho' their fentiments about rites and ceremonies differed, yet that both parties acted from an honeft and truly gracious principle, and as they lived to the Lord, fo fhould die to him, xiv. 6, 7, 8. Nothing can be ftronger than that expreffion, xv. 14. I myself alfo am perfuaded of you, my brethren, that you are full of goodnefs.

Many things are faid to the Corinthians, plainly implying, that they were inwardly holy, and that their eternal happiness was fecure: 1 Cor. i. 8. Who fhall confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Chrift. Ver. 30. Of him are ye in Chrift Jefus, who of God is made to us wifdom, righteousness,

fancti

fanctification, and redemption. iii. 16. Know you not that ye are the temple of God, and that the fpirit of God dwelleth in you. Ver. 21-23. All things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things prefent, or things to come. All are vi. 2. yours, and ye are Chrift's. Do ye not know that the faints fhall judge the world, and if the world fhall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the fmalleft matter? Ver. 11. Ye are washed, ye are fanctified, ye are juftified, in the name of the Lord Jefus, and by the fpirit of our God. He urges their certain profpect of a glorious refurrection as an argument to ftedfaftness and vigour in the work of the Lord, xv. 49-58. In the 2d epiftle, he writes in the fame manner. 2 Cor. i. 7. Our hope of you is ftedfast, knowing that as ye are partakers of the fuffering, fo fhall you be alfo of the confolation. Ver. 14, 15. We are your rejoicing, even as ye alfo are ours in the day of Jefus. And in this confidence I was minded to come unto you. Ver. 21, 22. Now he which eftablifhed us with you in Chrift, and hath anointed us, is God, who hath alfo fealed us, and given the earnest of the spirit into our hearts. iii. 3. For as much as ye are manifeftly declared to be the epiftle of Chrift, miniftered by us, written not with ink, but by the spirit of the living God, not in tables of ftone, but in fleshly ta bles of the heart. vi. 14. Be ye not unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what fellowship hath righteoufnefs with unrighteousness ?

It were easy to cite a multitude of fimilar paffages from Paul's other epiftles. Thus Gal. iv. 6. 7. Because ye are fons, God hath fent forth

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the fpirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore, thou art no more a fervant, but a fon; and if a fon, then an heir of God thro' Chrift. vi. 1. Erethren, if a man be overtaken with a fault, ye which are spiritual, reftore fuch an one in the spirit of meekness. Compare Gal. v. 22, 23. The fruit of the fpirit is meeknefs. Eph. i. 13, 14, 15. In whom alfo, after that ye believed, ye were fealed with that holy spirit of promife, which is the earneft of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchafed poffeffion. Wherefore I alfo, after that I heard of your faith in the Lord Jefus, and love unto all the faints, cease not to give thanks for you. Phil. i. 6. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you, will perform it unto the day of Jefus Chrift. ii. 12, 13. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, as ye have always obeyed not as in my prefence only, but now much more in my abfence, work out your own falvation with fear and trem bling. For it is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleafure. iv. 19, My God fhall supply all your need, according to his riches in glory by Chrift Jefus.

Paul addreffing the Coloffians, i. 4, 5, 6. fpeaks of their faith in Chrift, their love to all faints, the hope laid up for them in heaven, and the gofpel's bringing forth fruit in them, fince the day they knew the grace of God in truth; and tells them, iii. 3, 4. Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Chrift in God. When Chrift who is our life fhall appear, then fhall ye alfo appear with him in glory.

1 Theff. i. 3-10. Remembring without ceafing your work of faith, and labour of love, and

patience

patience of hope in our Lord Jefus Chrift, in the fight of God and our Father. ii. 13. For this caufe also thank we God without ceafing, because when ye received the word of God that ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of man, but as it is in truth the word of God, which effectually worketh in you that believe. Ver. 19. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the prefence of our Lord Jefus Chrift, at his coming? v. 4. Ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day fhould overtake you as a thief. v. 23, 24. The very God of peace fanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole fpirit and foul and body be preferved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jefus Chrift. Faithful is he that calleth you, who alfo will do it. 2 Theff. i. 3-7. he speaks of the great increase of their faith and charity, and their patience in perfecution and tribulation, as manifest tokens of their intereft in the heavenly reft. 2 Theff. iii. 3. But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.

The other apoftles wrote in the fame ftrain, acknowledging the truly godly alone, as members of the chriftian Church. Peter, 1 epift. i. 5, 8, 22. addreffes the difperfed strangers, as perfons who were kept by the power of God thro' faith unto falvation: who loved Chrift, and believing, rejoiced in him, with joy unspeakable and full of glory and as having purified their fouls in obeying the truth thro' the fpirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren. ii. 5. Ye alfo as lively ftones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up fpiritual facrifices acceptable to God by Jefus Chrift. Ver. 7. Un

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