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A
PRACTICAL VIEW
OF THE
PREVAILING RELIGIOUS SYSTEM
OF
PROFESSED CHKISTIANS,
IN THE
HIGHER AND MIDDLE CLASSES,
CONTRASTED ^VITH REAL CMRISTlAMTY*
—7^
BY WILLIAM WILBERFORCE, Esq.
FROM A LATE LONDOX EDtTIO^.
Search ihc Scriptures.— John, 5 : 39.
How charming is divine philosophy!
Not harsh and crabbed, as dull tools supposot
But musical as is Apollo's lute,
And a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweet",
Where ao crude surfeit reigiu. — Miltok.
PUBLISHED BY Tim
AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY
150 NASSAU-STREET, NETf-YORK.
D. r«nihaw PriRMTk
INTRODUCTION.
The main object which the writer has in
view is, not to convince the sceptic, or to an-
swer the arguments of persons who avow-
edly oppose the fundamental doctrines of our
religion ; but to point out the scanty and
erroneous system of the bulk of those who
belong to the class of orthodox Christians, and
to contrast their defective scheme with a re-
presentation of what the author apprehends
to be real Christianity. Often has it filled him
with deep concern to observe in this descrip-
tion of persons scarcely any distinct know-
ledge of the real nature and principles of the
religion which they profess. The subject is
of infinite importance ; let it not be driven out
of our minds by the bustle or dissipations of
life. This present scene, with all its cares and
all its gayeties, will soon be rolled away, and
IV INTRODUCTION.
*' we must stand before the judgment-seat of
Christ." This awful consideration will prompt
the writer to express himself with greater
freedom than he should otherwise be disposed
to use. This consideration, he trusts, also will
justify his frankness, and will secure him a
serious and patient perusal.
Let it only be further premised, that if
what shall be stated should to any appear
needlessly austere and rigid, the writer must
lay in his claim not to be condemned without
a fair inquiry whether or not his statements
accord with the language of the sacred writ-
ings. To that test he refers with confidence ;
and it must be conceded by those who admit
the authority of Scripture, that from the deci*
sion of the word of God there can be no
appeal.
CHAPTER r.
Inadequate conceptionM of the importance of Christicnitf,
Pag*
Popular notions of ihe importance of Christianity . 13
Scripture account of the same subject . . . .18
Two false maxims exposed 21
1. It signifies little what a man believes — look to his
practice 21
2. Sincerity is all in all 21
CHAPTER II.
Corruption of human nature.
Sect, I. — Inadequate conceptions of the corruption of
human nature 25
True account proved from reason and Scripture . 28
Sect. II.— Evil spirit 39
Natural state of man 40
Christianity affords hope to man in his lost and help-
less state 44
Practical importance and uses of the doctrine of hu-
man corruption 45
Practical advice respecting it, and its practical uses 46
Sect. III. — Corruption of human nature, — Objection . 47
Objection — That our corruption and weakness, be
ing natural to us, will be excused and allowed
for, stsiUd and considered 52
6 CONTENTS.
CHAPTER III.
Chief defects of the religious system of the bulk of professed Christians,
in what regards our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. — With
a dissertation concerning the use of the passions in religion.
Page
Sect. I. — Inadequate conceptions concerning our Savior
and the Holy Spirit 55
Scripture doctrines 55
Popular notions 57
Language of one who objects against the religious
affections towards our Savior — Also against the
operations of the Holy Spirit . . . .58
Objections discussed and replied to ... 64
Sect, II. — On the admission of the passions into religion 67
True test and measure of the religious affections . 71
The affections not merely allowable in religion, but
highly necessary 75
Christ the just object of our warm affections . . 79
Sect. III. — Considerations of the reasonableness of af-
fections towards an invisible Being . . .81
The affections denied to be possible towards an in-
visible Being 81
This position discussed and answered . , .81
Special grounds for the religious affections towards
our Savior 82
Unreasonable conduct of our objectors in the pre-
sent instance 85
Appeal to fact in proof of our former positions . 86
Sect. IV. — Inadequate conceptions entertained by no-
minal Christians of the terms of acceptance with
God 88
Prevailing fundamental misconception of the scheme
and essential principle of the Gospel . . .92
Some practical consequences of this fundamental
error 95
CONTENTS. 7
Condemnation of those who abuse the doctrine of
free grace 98
Believing in Christ, what it really implies . . 99
The atonement and grace of Christ pressed as the
subject of our habitual regard .... 104
CHAPTER IV.
Oh tht prevailing inadequate conceptions concerning the natvre and
»lrictne$$ of practical Christianity.
Skct. 1. — Strictness of true practical Christianity . 107
Its essential nature opened and stated . .114
Its precepts expressed in broad terms . . .119
Its precepts universal, because resulting from re-
lations common to all Christians . . . 120
Strong practical precepts, and other confirmations 123
Extreme importance of these considerations . 124
Sect. II.— General notion of practical Christianity
amongst the bulk of nominal Christians stated
and illustrated 125
General consequences 127
Appeal to various classes of nominal Christians . 128
The idle and dissipated 130
The votaries of sensual pleasures . . . 131
The votaries of pomp and parade . . . 133
The votaries of wealth and ambition . . . 133
Conclusion from the review — and general fault of
all the above classes 136
Effects of the fundamental error on our judgments
and practice in the case of others . . . 137
Further effects — Religion degraded mto a set of
statutes 139
Another effect — Religion placed in external actions 142
O CONTENTS
Page
Christian tempers not cultivated . . . .143
Most men forget that the Christian's life is a life of
faith, and the true Christian's character in this
respect . • 145
Sunday, and hints for its employment . . . 150
Other internal defects noticed .... 153
Sect, III. — On the desire of human estimation and ap-
plause. The generally prevailing opinions con-
trasted with those of the true Christian . . 156
Universality of the passion 158
The common notions asserted .... 159
The vindication of common notions questioned . 160
Opinions of pagan moralists 161
Scripture lessons stated and illustrated . . . 162
Generally prevailing notions opposed to those of
Scripture 162
Various proofs of the truth of our representations
of the opinions on this point of the bulk of nomi-
nal Christians 169
Proof from the House of Commons, and from dueling 169
Wherein the guilt of dueling chiefly consists . . 171
Real nature of inordinate love of human estimation 172
The true Christian's conduct in relation to this
principle 175
Parting counsel to those who wish to bring this
passion under due regulation .... 185
Sect, IV. — The generally prevailing error, of substitut-
ing amiable tempers and useful lives in the place
of religion, stated and confuted; with hints to
real Christians 189
Common language on this head .... 189
The worth of amiable tempers estimated by the
standard of unassisted reason .... 191
Many false pretenders to these tempers . . .191
CONTENTS. 9
P«g«
Real nature of amiable tempers when not grounded
in religion 192
Their short and precarious duration . . . 193
Worth of useful lives estimated by the standard of
unassisted reason 195
Real worth of amiable tempers and useful lives,
when not grounded in religion, estimated on
Christian principles 196
The true Christian really the most amiable and
useful 199
Admonition to true Christians .... 204
Admonition to the naturally sweet-tempered and
active 205
Admonition to the naturally rough and austere . 206
Their just praise given to amiable tempers and use-
ful lives 209
Our araiableness of temper and usefulness of life
apt to deceive and mislead us . . . .211
Danger to true Christians from mixing too much
in worldly business 213
Advice to such as suspect that they are growmg
indifferent to religion 212
Exquisite sensibility — School of Rousseau and
Sterne 217
Sect. V. — Some other grand defects in the practical
system of the bulk of nominal Christians . . 218
Inadequate ideas of the guilt and evil of sin . . 219
Inadequate fear of God 221
Inadequate sense of the difficulty of gelling to hea-
ven • . 227
Bulk of nominal Christians defective in the love of
God 233
Remarks on theatrical amusements . . . 235
Practical system of nominal Christians defective in
what regards the love of their fellow-creatures . 338
10 CONTENTS.
Pag«
True marks of benevolence 239
Sect. VI.— Grand defect— Neglect of the peculiar doc-
trines of Christianity — This evil pursued into its
eifects 245
Advice of modern religionists to such as are desi-
rous of repenting 248
Advice given by the Holy Scriptures . . . 249
Extreme importance of the point now under discus-
sion 250
The true Christian's practical use of the peculiar
doctrines of Christianity 252
Use of the peculiar doctrines in enforcing the im-
portance of Christianity 253
Unconditional surrender of ourselves to God . 255
The guilt of sin and the dread of its punishment 256
In promoting the love of God .... 256
In promoting the love of Christ . . . .258
In promoting the love of our fellow-creatures . 258
In promoting humility 260
In promoting a spirit of moderation in early pur-
suits, and cheerfulness in suffering . . . 261
In promoting courage and confidence in danger,
and heavenly mindedness .... 263
The place held by the peculiar doctrines of Chris-
tianity constitutes the grand distinction between
nominal and real Christians .... 266
CHAPTER V.
Om tke excellence of Christianity in certain important particulars. Ar
gument which results thence inproof of its divine origin
Consistency between the leading doctrines and practicai
precepts of Christianity . ; . . . .268
CONTEXTS. 11
Consistency betv\'een the leading doctrines of Chiisda-
nity amongst each other 269
Consistency between the practical precepts amongst
each other 269
A higher value set by Christianity on moral than on in-
tellectual attainments 274
Excellence of Christianity's practical precepts . . 277
CHAPTER VI.
Brief inquiry into the present state of Christianity in this country, vith
(tome of the canses which have led to its critical circumstances. Its
importance to uf, as a political community ; and practical hints for
Khich the foregoing considerations give occasion.
Preliminary consideration : general tone of moral prac-
tice . ' 279
Present state of Christianity among us . " . . . 283
Causes from which the peculiarities of Christianity
slide into disuse 285
Christianity reduced to a system of ethics, and a cause
assigned which has especially operated in produc-
ing this effect 290
Other bad symptoms as to the practical state of Chris-
tianity 294
The objection, that the author's system is too strict, and
that if it were to prevail the world could not go on,
considered and refuted 297
Good effects to us as a political community from the
prevalence of vital Christianity .... 300
Christianity not hostile to patriotism .... 302
We must either have vital Christianity or none at all . 310
Political good effects from the revival of Christianity ;
and bad ones from its further decline . . . 314
Practical hints for the conduct of men in power in the
case of religion 317
12 CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VII.
Practical hintg to variova descriptions ofper»on».
Sect. I. — Difference between nominal and real Chris-
tians of the first importance . . . .321
Helps in self-examination. Frequent sources of
self-deception pointed out 324
Outgrowing or merely changing our vices mistaken
for forsaking of all sin 326
Uncharitableness and true charity .... 328
Women naturally more disposed to religion than
men 330
Innocent young people — Term much abused . 332
Hints to such as, having been hitherto careless, wish
to become true Christians 336
Base nature of the religion of the bulk of nominal
Christians 343
Falsehood of the objection, that we make religion
a gloomy service 346
Sect. II. — Advice to some who profess their full assent
to thp fundamental doctrines of the Gospel . 359
Sect. III. — Brief observations addressed to sceptics and
unitarians 357
Progress of infidelity 358
Unitarianism a sort of half-way house in the course
to absolute infidelity 363
Advantage possessed by deists and unitarians in
contending with their opponents .... 365
Half unbelievers — their system grossly irrational 367
Sect. IV. — Advice suggested by the state of the times
to true Christians 370
PRUTCBTOU
TH<SfttTEfl!lCSL
TANCE OF CHRISTIANITY.
Popular notions.-^ Serif ture account. — Ignorance in thxs cati
criminal.-^ Two false maxims exposed.
Before we consider particular defects in the re-
ligious system of the bulk of professed Christians, it
may be proper to point out the very inadequate con-
ception which they entertain of the importance of
Christianity in general, of its peculiar nature, and
superior excellence. If we listen to their conversa-
tion, virtue is praised, and vice is censured ; piety,
perhaps, is applauded, and profaneness condemned.
So far is well. But let any one, who would not be
deceived by " barren generalities," examine more
closely, and he will find, that not to Christianity in
particular, but, at best, to religion in general, perhaps
to mere morality, their homage is paid. With Chris-
tianity, as distinct from these, they are little acquaint-
ed : their views of it have been so cursory and su-
perficial, that, far from discerning its characteristic
essence, they have little more than perceived those
2
14 INADEQUATE CONCEPllONS OF
exterior circumstances which distinguish it from
other forms of religion. There are some few facts,
and perhaps some leading doctrines and principles,
of which they cannot be wholly ignorant ; but of the
consequences, and relations, and practical uses of
these, they have few ideas, or none at all.
View their plan of life and their ordinary conduct ;
and, not to speak at present of general inattention to
things of a religious nature, let us ask, wherein can
M'e discern the points of discrimination between them
and professed unbelievers ? In an age wherein it is
confessed and lamented that infidelity abounds, do we
observe in them any remarkable care to instruct their
children in the principles of the faith which they pro-
fess, and to furnish them with arguments for the de-
fence of it ? They would blush, on their child's com-
ing out into the world, to think him defective in any
branch of that knowledge, or of those accomplish-
ments which belong to his station in life; accordingly
these are cultivated with assiduity. But the study of
Christianity has formed no part of his education ;
and his attachment to it, where any attachment to it
exists at all, is merely the result of his being born in
a Christian country. When such is the hereditary
religion handed down from generation to generation,
it cannot surprise us to observe young men shaken
by frivolous objections and profane cavils.
Let us beware before it be too late. No one can
say what may be the painful results, at a time when
IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 15
the free and unrestrained intercourse subsisting
amongst the several ranks and classes of society, so
much favors the general diffusion of the sentiments
of the higher orders.
It cannot be expected, that they who are so little
attentive to this great object in the education of their
children, should be more so in other parts of their
conduct, where less strongly stimulated by affection,
and less obviously loaded with responsibility. They
are of course, therefore, little regardful of the state of
Christianity in their own country ; and still more in-
aifferent about communicating the light of divine
truth to the nations which " sit in darkness."
But religion, it may be replied, is not noisy and
ostentatious ; it is modest and private in its nature ;
it resides in a man's own bosom, and shuns the ob-
servation of the multitude. Be it so.
From this transient and distant view, then, let us
approach a little nearer, and listen to the unreserved
conversation of their confidential hours. Here, if any
where, we may ascertain the true principles of their
regards and aversions; the scale by which they
measure the good and evil of life. Here, however,
you will discover few or no traces of Christianity.
She scarcely finds a place amidst the many objects
of their hopes and fears, and joys and sorrows.
Grateful, perhaps, as well indeed they may be grate-
ful, for health, and talents, and affluence, and other
blessings, they scarcely reckon in the number this
16 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
grand distinguishing mark of the bounty of Provi-
dence ; or if they mention it at all, it is noticed coldly
and formally, like one of those obsolete claims to
which, though but of small account in the estimate
of our wealth or power, we think it as well to put
in our title, from considerations of family decorum or
of national usage.
Let\heir conversation take a graver turn : here at
length their religion, modest and retired as it is,
must be expected to disclose itself; here, however,
you will look in vain for the religion of Jesus.
Their standard of right and wrong is not the stand-
ard of the Gospel: they approve and condemn by a
different rule ; they advance principles and maintain
opinions altogether opposite to the genius and cha-
racter of Christianity.
The truth is, their opinions on these subjects are
not formed from the perusal of the word of God.
The Bible lies unopened ; and they would be wholly
ignorant of its contents, except for what they hear
occasionally at church, or for some faint traces
which their memories may still retain of the lessons
of their earliest infancy.
How different, nay, in many respects, how con-
tradictory would be the two systems of mere morals,
of which the one should be formed from the com-
monly received maxims of the Christian world, and
the other from the study of the holy Scriptures I
It were a waste of time to multiply arg^raenti m
IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 17
order to prove how criminal the voluntary igno-
rance^ of which we have been speaking, must ap-
pear in the sight of God. It must be confessed by
all who believe that we are accountable, and to such
only the writer is addressing himself, that we shall
have to answer hereafter to the Almighty for all the
means and occasions we have here enjoyed of im-
proving ourselves, or of promoting the happiness of
others. And if, when summoned to give an account
of our stewardship, we shall be called upon to an-
swer for the use which we have made of our bodily
organs, and of the means of relieving the wants and
necessities of our fellow-creatures ; how much more
for the exercise of the nobler and more exalted fa-
culties of our nature — of invention, and judgment,
and memory ; and for our employment of all the in-
struments and opportunities of diligent application,
and serious reflection, and honest decision ! And to
what subject might we in all reason be expected to
apply more earnestly, than to that wherein our eter-
nal interests are at issue ? When God has of his
goodness vouchsafed to grant us such abundant
means of instruction in that which we are most con-
cerned to know, how great must be the guilt, and
how awful the punishment of voluntary ignorance !
And why, it may be asked, are we in this pursuit
alone to expect knowledge without inquiry, and
success without endeavor ? The whole analogy of
nature inculcate* on us a different lesson, and our
2*
18 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
own judgments, in matters of temporal interest and
worldly policy, confirm the truth of her suggestions.
Bountiful as is the hand of Providence, its gifts are
not so bestowed as to seduce us into indolence, but
to rouse us to exertion ; and no one expects to attain
to the height of learning, or arts, or power, or wealth,
without vigorous resolution, and strenuous diligence,
and steady perseverance. Yet we expect to be Chris-
tians without labor, study, or inquiry. This is the
more preposterous, because Christianity, being a
revelation from God, and not the invention of man,
discovering to us new relations, with their corres-
pondent duties ; containing also doctrines, and mo-
tives, and practical principles, and rules, peculiar to
itself, and almost as new in their nature as supreme
in their excellence, we cannot reasonably expect to
become proficients in it by the accidental intercour-
ses of life, as one might learn, insensibly, the maxims
of worldly policy, or a scheme of mere morals.
The diligent perusal of the holy Scriptures would
discover to us our past ignorance. We should cease
to be deceived by superficial appearances, and to
confound the Gospel of Christ with the systems of
philosophers ; we should become impressed with
that weighty truth, so much forgotten, and never to
be too strongly insisted on, that Christianity calls on
us, as we value our immortal souls, not merely in
general to be religious and moral, but specially to
believe the doctrines, and imbibe the principles, and
IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 19
practice the precepts of Christ. It would be to run
into too great length, and is quite unnecessary,
though not difficult, to confirm this position beyond
dispute, by express quotations from Scripture. And
it may be sufficient here to remark in general, that
Christianity is always represented in Scripture as
the grand, the unparalleled instance of God's bounty
to mankind. It was graciously held forth in the ori-
ginal promise to our first parents ; it was predicted
by a long continued 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 it approached — the desire of all nations —
a multitude of the heavenly host hailed its introduc-
tion, and proclaimed its character; " Glory to God
in the highest, on earth peace, good will towards
men." It is every where represented in Scripture by
such figures as may most deeply impress on us a sense
of its value. It is spoken of as light from darkness,
as release from prison, as deliverance from capti-
vity, as life from death. " Lord, now lettest thou thy
servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen
thy salvation," was the exclamation with which it
was welcomed by the pious Simeon ; and it was uni-
versally received and professed, among the early con-
verts, with thankfulness and joy. At one time, the
communication of it is promised as a reward ; at an-
other, the loss of it is threatened as a punishment.
20 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
And, short as is the form of prayer taught us by our
blessed Savior, the more general extension of the
kingdom of Christ constitutes one of its leading pe-
titions.
With what exalted conceptions of the importance
of Christianity ought we to be filled by such descrip-
tions as these ! Yet, in vain have we " line up-
on line, and precept upon precept." Thus pre-
dicted, thus prayed and longed for, thus announc-
ed and characterized and rejoiced in, we scarcely
accept this heavenly treasure poured into our lap
in rich abundance ! We turn from it coldly, or, at
best, possess it negligently, as a thing of no account
or estimation. But a due sense of its value would
be assuredly impressed on us by the diligent study
of the word of God, that blessed repository of divine
truth and consolation. Thence it is that we are to
learn our obligations and our duty — what we are to
believe, and what to practice. And surely, one would
think, it could not be required to press men to the
perusal of the sacred volume. Reason dictates, reve-
lation commands: " Faith comes by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God " — " Search the Scrip-
tures " — " Be ready to give to every one a reason of
the hope that is in you." Such are the declarations
and injunctions of the inspired writers; injunctions
confirmed by the commendations of those who obey
the admonition. Yet, is it not undeniable, that, with
the Bible in our houses, we are ignorant of its con-
IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 21
tents ; and that hence, in a great measure, it arises,
that the bulk of the Christian world know so little,
and mistake so greatly, in what regards the religion
which they profess ?
This is not the place for inquiring at large, whence
it is that those who assent to the position that the
Bible is the word of God, and who profess to rest
their hopes on the Christian basis, contentedly ac-
quiesce in a state of such lamentable ignorance.
But it may not be improper here to touch on two
kindred opinions, from which, in the minds of the
more thoughtful and serious, this acquiescence ap-
pears to derive much secret support. The one is, that
it signifies little what a man believes ; look to his
practice. The other, of the same family, that siw
cerity is all in all. Let a man's opinions and con-
duct be what they may, yet, provided he be sincerely
convinced that they are right, however the exigen-
cies of civil society may require him to be dealt with
amongst men, in the sight of God he cannot be cri-
minal !
It would detain us too long to set forth the vari-
ous merits of these favorite positions. The former
of them is founded altogether on that grossly falla-
cious assumption, that a man's opinions will not m-
fluence his practice. The latter proceeds on this
groundless supposition, that the Supreme Being has
not afforded us sufficient means for discriminating
^ruth from falsehood, right from wrong ; and it im-
22 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
plies, that be a man's opinions ov conduct ever so
wild and extravagant, we are to presume that they
are as much the result of impartial inquiry and hon-
est conviction, as if his sentiments and actions had
been strictly conformable to the rules of reason and
sobriety. Never, indeed, was there a principle more
general in its use, more sovereign in its potency.
How does its simplicity also, and brevity, give it
rank before the laborious subtleties of Bellarmin !
Clement, and Ravaillac, and other worthies of a simi-
lar stamp, from whose purity of intention the world
has Jiitherto withheld its due tribute of applause,
would here have found a ready plea, and full vindi-
cation ! "These, however," it may be replied, "are
excepted cases." Certainly they are cases of which
any one who maintains the opinion in question would
be glad to disencumber himself; because they clearly
expose the unsoundness of his principle. But it will
be incumbent on such a one, first to explain why
they are to be exempted from its operation ; and this
he will find an impossible task ; for sincerity in its
popular sense, so shamefully is the term misapplied,
can be made the criterion of guilt and innocence on
no grounds which will not equally serve to justify
the assassins who have been instanced. The conclu-
sion cannot be eluded ; no man was ever more fully
persuaded of the innocence of any action, than these
men were, that the horrid deed they w^ere about to
perpetrate was not lawful merely, but highly meri*
IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTIANITY. 23
torious. Thus Clement and Ravaillac being un-
questionably sincere, they were therefore indubita-
bly innocent ! Nay, the absurdity of this principle
might be shown to be even greater than what has
yet been stated. It would not be going too far to as-
sert, that whilst it scorns to defend petty villains, those
who still retain the sense of good and evil, it holds
forth a secure asylum to those more finished crimi-
nals, who, from long habits of wickedness, are lost
alike to the perception and the practice of virtue ;
and that it selects a seared conscience, and a heart
become callous to ail moral distinctions, as the
special objects of its care. Nor is it only in profane
history that instances like these are to be found, of
persons committing the greatest crimes with h
sincere conviction of the rectitude of their conduct.
Scripture will afford us parallels ; and it was surely
to guard us against this very error that our blessed
Savior forewarned his disciples : " The time com-
eth, that whosoever killeth you will think that ho
doeth God service.''
A principle like this must then be abandoned, and
the advocates for sincerity must be compelled to ac-
knowledge that it must imply honesty of mind, and
the faithful use of the means of knowledge and of im-
provement, the desire of being instructed, humble
inquiry, impartial consideration, and unprejudiced
judgment. It is to these we would earne&tly call
vou ; to these, ever to be accompanied with fervent
24 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS, &«.
prayers for the Divine blessing, Scripture every
where holds forth the most animating promises.
•* Ask, and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shall find ;
knock, and it shall be opened unto you. " — " Ho I
every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters."
Such are the comfortable assurances, such the gra*
cious encouragements to the truly sincere inquirer.
How deep will be our guilt, if we slight all these
merciful offers! How many prophets and king»
have desired to hear the things that we hear, and
have not heard them ! Great, indeed, are our op*
portunities, great also is our responsibility. Let us
awaken to a true sense of our situation. We have
every consideration to alarm our fears, or to animate
our industry. How soon may the brightness of our
meridian sun be darkened 1 Or, should the long-
suffering of God still continue to us the mercies
which we so much abuse, it will only aggravate our
crime, and in the end enhance our punishment*
The time of reckoning will at length arrive. And
when finally summoned to the bar of God, to give
an account of our stewardship, what plea can we
have to urge in our defence, if we remain willingly
and obstinately ignorant of the 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,
SECTION I.
Inadequate conceptions of the corruption of hwruin natnir^.
After considering the defective notions of the
importance of Christianity in general, which prevail
among the higher orders of the Christian world, the
particular misconceptions which first come under
our notice, respect the corruption and weakness of
human nature. This is a topic on which it is pos-
sible that many of those, into whose hands the pre-
sent work shall fall, may not have bestowed much
attention. The subject is of the deepest import. It
lies at the very root of all true religion : and, still
more, it is emmently the basis and ground-work of
Christianity.
The generality of professed Christians among the
higher classes, either altogether overlook or deny,
or, at least, greatly extenuate the corruption and
weakness here in question. They acknowledge.
3
26 CORRUPTION Off
indeed, that there is, and ever has been in the world,
a great portion of vice and wickedness ; that man-
kind have been ever prone to sensuality and selfish*
ness, in disobedience to the more refined and liberal
principles of their nature ; that, in all ages and coun-
tries, in public and in private life, innumerable in-
stances have been afforded of oppression, of rapacity,
of cruelty, of fraud, of envy, and of malice. They
own, that it is too often in 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 have forced them
to acknowledge that the path of virtue is that also
of real interest and of solid enjoyment.
These facts are certain ; they cannot be disputed ;
and they are at the same time so obvious, that one
would have thought that the celebrated apothem of
the Grecian sage, •' The majority are wicked," would
scarcely have established his claim to intellectual
superiority.
But though these effects of human depravity are
every where acknowledged and lamented, we must
not expect to find them traced to their true origin.
Prepare yourself to hear rather of frailty and infir-
mity, of petty transgressions, of occasional failings,
of sudden surprisals, and of such other qualifying
terms as may serve to keep out of view the true source
ofthe evil, and, without shocking the understanding.
HUMAN NATURE. 27
may administer consolation to the pride of human
nature. The bulk of professed Christians speak of
man as of a being who, naturally pure, and inclined
to all virtue, is sometimes, almost involuntarily,
drawn out of the right course, or is overpowered by
the violence of temptation. Vice, with them, is rather
an accidental and temporary, than a constitutional and,
habitual distemper ; a noxious plant, which, though
found to live, and even to thrive in the human mmd, is
not the natural growth and production of the soil.
Far different is the humiliating language of
Christianity. From it we learn that man is an
apostate creature, fallen from his high original, de-
graded in his nature, and depraved in his faculties ;
indisposed to good, and disposed to evil : prone to
vice, it is natural and easy to him ; disinclined to
virtue, it is difficult and laborious: that he is tainted
with sin, not slightly and superficially, but radically,
and to the very core. These are truths which, how-
ever mortifying to our pride, one would think (if
this very corruption itself did not warp the judg-
ment) none would be hardy enough to attempt to
controvert. I know not any thing which brings
them home so forcibly to my own feelings, as the
consideration of what still remains to us of our prim-
itive dignity, when contrasted with our present state
of moral degradation.
" Into what depth thou seest,
" From what height fallen 1"
28 CORRUPTION OF
Examine* first with attention the natural powers
and facuhies of man; invention, reason, judgment,
memory; a mind "of large discourse," "looking
before and after," reviewing the past, and thence de-
termining for the present, and anticipating the future ;
discerning, collecting, combining, comparing. A
mind capable not merely of apprehending, but of
admiring the beauty of moral excellence ; with fear
and hope to warm and animate : with joy and sor-
row to solace and soften : with love to attach, with
sympathy to harmonize, with courage to attempt,
with patience to endure, and with the power of con-
science, that faithful monitor within the breast, to
enforce the conclusions of reason, and direct and re-
gulate the passions of the soul. Truly we must pro-
nounce him " m.ajestic, though in ruin," " Happy,
happy world!" would be the exclamation of the
inhabitant of some other planet, on being told of
a globe like ours, peopled with such creatures as
these, and abounding with situations and occasions to
call forth the multiplied excellences of their nature.
But we have indulged too long in these delightful
speculations ; a sad reverse presents itself on our
survey of the actual state of man, when, from view-
ing his natural powers, we follow him into practice,
and see the uses to which he applies them. Take
in the whole of the prospect, view him in every age,
and climate, and nation, in every condition and pe-
riod of society. Where now do you discover the
HUMAN NATURE. 29
characters of his exalted nature ? •' How is the gold
become dim, and the fine gold changed!" How is
his reason clouded, his affections perverted, his con-
science stupified ! How do anger, and envy, and ha-
tred, and revenge, spring up in his wretched bosom !
How is he a slave to the meanest of his appetites !
What fatal propensities does he discover to evil
What inaptitude to good !
Dwell awhile on the state of the ancient world ;
not merely on that benighted part of it where all lay
buried in brutish ignoKince and barbarism, but on
the seats of civilized and polished nations, on the
empire of taste, and learning, and philosophy : )'et
in these chosen regions, with whatever luster the
sun of science poured forth its rays, the moral dark-
ness was so thick " that it might be felt." Behold
their sottish idolatries, their absurd superstitions,
their want of natural affection, their brutal excesses,
their unfeeling oppression, their savage cruelty !
Look not to the illiterate and the vulgar, but to the
learned and refined. Form not your ideas from the
conduct of the less restrained and more licentious ;
you will turn away with disgust and shame from the
allowed and familiar habits of the decent and the
moral. St. Paul best states the foots, and furnishes
the explanation; "Because they did not like to re-
tain God in their knowledge, he gave them over to
a reprobate mind."
Now direct your view to anothei quarter, to the
3»
30 CORRUPTION O*
aborigines of a new hemisphere, where the baneful
practices and contagious example of the old world
had never traveled. Surely, among these children
of nature we may expect to find those virtuous ten-
dencies for which we have hitherto looked in vain.
Alas ! our search will still be fruitless ! They are
represented by the historian of America, (whose ac-
count is more favorable than those of some other
great authorities,) as being a compound of pride, and
indolence, and selfishness, and cunning, and cruelty ;
fyll of a revenge which nothing could satiate, of a
ferocity which nothing could soften ; strangers to the
most amiable sensibilities of nature.* They appeared
incapable of conjugal affection, or parental fondness,
or filial reverence, or social attachments ; uniting, too,
with their state of barbarism, many of the vices and
weaknesses of polished society. Their horrid treat-
ment of captives taken in war, on whose bodies they
feasted, after putting them to death by the most cruel
tortures, is so well known that we may spare the
disgusting recital. No commendable qualities re-
lieve this gloomy picture, except fortitude and perse-
verance, and zeal for the welfare of their little com-
munity, if this last quality, exercised and directed
as it was, can be thought deserving of commendation.
But you give up the heathen nations as indefensi-
ble, and wish rather to form your estimate of man
♦ Reberlsoo, vol. u. pp. 130, 90, 91.
HUMAN NATURE. 31
from a view of countries which have been blessed
with the light of revelation. True it is, and with
joy let us record the concession, Christianity has
set the general tone of morals much higher than it
was ever found in the pagan world. She has every
where improved the character and multiplied the
comforts of society, particularly to the poor and the
weak, whom, from the beginning, she professed to
take under her special patronage. Like her Divine
Author, '• who sends his rain on the evil and on the
good," she showers down unnumbered blessings on
thousands who profit from her bounty, while they
forget or deny her power, and set at naught her au-
thority. Yet, even in this more favored situation,we
shall discover too many lamentable proofs of the
depravity of man. Nay, this depravity will now
become even more apparent and less deniable. For
what bars does it not now overleap? Over what
motives is it not now victorious ? Consider well the
superior light and advantages which we enjoy, and
then appreciate the superior obligations which are
imposed on us. Consider in how many cases our
evil propensities are now kept from breaking forth,
by the superior restraints under which vice is laid
among us by positive laws, and by the amended
standard of public opinion. Consider, then, the supe-
rior excellence of our moral code, the new principles
of obedience furnished by the Gospel; and above all,
the awful sanction which the dectrines and precepts
dxi CORRUPTION OF
of Christianity derive from the clear discovery of a
future state of retribution, and from the annunciation
of that tremendous day " when we shall stand be-
fore the judgment-seat of Christ." Yet, in spite of
all our knowledge, thus enforced and pressed home
by this solemn notice, how little has been our pro-
gress in virtue ! It has been by no means such as
to prevent the adoption, in our days, of various max-
ims of antiquity, which, when well considered, clearly
establish the depravity of man. It may not be amiss
to adduce a few instances in proof of this assertion.
It is now no less acknowledged than heretofore, that
prosperity hardens the heart ; that unlimited power
is ever abused, instead of being rendered the instru-
ment of diffusing happiness ; that habits of vice grow
up of themselves, whilst those of virtue, if to be ob-
tained at all, are of slow and difficult formation ; that
those who draw the finest pictures of virtue, and
seem most enamored of her charms, are often the
least under her influence, and by the merest trifles
are drawn aside from that line of conduct which
they most strongly and seriously recommend to
others; that all this takes place, though most of the
pleasures of vice are to be found with less alloy in
the paths of virtue ; whilst at the same time these
paths afford superior and more exquisite delights,
peculiar to themselves, and are free from the diseases
and bitter remorse, at the price of which vicious
gratifications are so often purchased.
HUMAN NATURE. 33
It may suffice to touch very slightly on some other
arguments ; one of these (the justice of which, how-
ever denied by superficial moralists, parents of strict
principles can abundantly testify,) may be drawn
from the perverse and fro ward dispositions perceiv-
able in children, which it is the business and some-
times the ineffectual attempt of education to reform.
Another may be drawn from the various deceits we
are apt to practice on ourselves, to which no one can
be a stranger who has ever contemplated the opera-
tions of his own mind with serious attention. To the
influence of this species of corruption it has been in
a great degree owing that Christianity itself has
been too often disgraced. It has been turned into
an engine of cruelty, and, amidst the bitterness of
persecution, every trace has disappeared of the mild
and beneficent spirit of the religion of Jesus. In
what degree must the taint have worked itself into
the frame, and have corrupted the habit, when the
most wholesome nutriment can be thus converted into
the deadliest poison ! Wishing always to argue from
such premises as are not only really sound, but from
such as cannot even be questioned by those to whom
this work is addressed, little was said in representing
the deplorable state of the heathen world, respecting
their defective and unworthy conceptions in what
regards the Supreme Being, who even then, how-
ever, " left not himself without witness, but gave
th«m rain and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts
84 CORRUPTION OF
with food and gladness." But surely to any who
call themselves Christians, it may be justly urged as
an astonishing instance of human depravity, that we
ourselves, who enjoy the full light of revelation; to
whom God has vouchsafed such clear discoveries
of what it concerns us to know of his being and
attributes ; who profess to believe " that in him we
live, and move, and have our being ;" that to him we
owe all the comforts we here enjoy, and the offer of
eternal glory, purchased for us by the atoning blood
of his own Son ; " thanks be to God for his unspeak-
able gift;" that we, thus loaded with mercies,
should, every one of us, be continually chargeable
with forgetting his authority, and being ungrateful
for his benefits : with slighting his gracious pro-
posals, or receiving them, at best, but heartlessly
and coldly.
But to put the question concerning the natural
depravity of man to the severest test ; take the best
of the human species, the watchful, diligent, self-de-
nying Christian, and let him decide the controversy ;
and that, not by inferences drawn from the practices
of a thoughtless and dissolute world, but by an ap-
peal to his personal experience. Go with him into
his closet, ask him his opinion of the corruption of
the heart, and he will tell you that he is deeply sen-
sible of its power, for that he has learned it from
much self-observation, and long acquaintance with
the workings of his own mind. He will tell you,
HUMAN NATrRS. 86
that every day strengthens this conviction ; yea, that
hourly he sees fresh reason to deplore his want of
simplicity in intention, his infirmity of purpose, his
low views, his selfish unworthy desires, his back-
wardness to set about his duty, his languor and cold-
ness in performing it : that he finds himself obliged
continually to confess that he feels within him two
opposite principles, and that " he cannot do the things
that he would." He cries out, in the language of the
excellent Hooker, " The little fruit which we have
in holiness, it is, God knoweth, corrupt and unsound :
we put no confidence at all in it, we challenge no-
thing in the world for it, we dare not call God to reck-
oning, as if we had him in our debt books ; our con-
tinual suit to him is, and must be, to bear with our
infirmities, and pardon our offences."
Such is the moral historj', such the condition of
man. The figures of the piece may vary, and the
coloring is sometimes of a darker, sometimes of a
lighter hue ; but the principles of the composition,
ihe grand outlines, are every where the same.
Wherever we direct our view, we discover the me-
lancholy proofs of our depravity ; whether we look
to ancient or modern times, to barbarous or civilized
nations, to the conduct of the world around us, or to
the monitor within the breast ; whether we read, or
hear, or act, or think, or feel, the same humiliating
Jesson is forced upon us.
Now when we look back to the picture which was
36 CORRUPTION Of
formerly drawn of the natural powers of man, and
compare this, his actual state, with that for which,
from a consideration of those powers, he seems to
have been originally calculated, how are we to ac-
count for the astonishing contrast ? Will frailty, or
infirmity, or occasional lapses, or sudden surprisals,
or any such qualifying terms, convey an adequate
idea of the nature, or point out the cause of the dis-
temper ? Hov/ can we account for it, hut by conceiv-
ing that man, since he came out of the hands of his
Creator, has contracted a taint, and that this subtle
poison has been communicated throughout the race
of Adam, every where exhibiting incontestable marks
of its fatal malignity ? Hence it has arisen, that the
appetites deriving new strength, and the powers of
reason and conscience being weakened, the latter
have feebly and impotently pleaded against those
forbidden indulgences which the former have soli-
cited. Sensual gratifications and illicit affections
have debased our nobler powers, and indisposed our
hearts to the discovery of God, and to the conside-
ration of his perfections ; to a constant, Avilling sub-
mission to his authority, and obedience to his laws.
By a repetition of vicious acts, evil habits have heen.
formed within us, and have riveted the fetters of sin.
Left to the consequences of our own folly, the under-
standing has grown darker, and the heart more ob-
durate ; reason has at length altogether betrayed her
trust, and even conscience herself has aided the
HUMAN NATURE. 37
delusion, till, instead of deploring our miserable
slavery, we have too often hugged, and even gloried
in our chains.
Such is the general account of the progress of
vice, where it is suffered to attain to its full growth
in the human heart. The circumstances of indi-
viduals will be found indeed to differ, but none are
ahogether free ; all, without exception, in a greater
or less degree, bear about them, more visible or more
concealed, the ignominious marks of their captivity.
Such, on a full and fair investigation, must be
confessed to be the state of facts ; and how can this
be accounted for on any other supposition, than that
of some original taint, some radical principle of cor-
ruption? All other solutions are unsatisfactory,
whilst the potent cause which has been assigned
does abundantly, and can alone sufficiently account
for the effect. Thus, then, it appears that the cor-
ruption of human nature is proved by the same mode
of reasoning as has been deemed conclusive in es-
tablishing the existence, and ascertaining the laws
of the principle of gravitation ; that the doctrine rests
on the same solid basis as the sublime philosophy
of Newton ; that it is not a mere speculation, and
therefore an uncertain, though perhaps an ingenious
theory, but the sure result of a large and actual ex-
periment, deduced from incontestable facts, and still
more fully approving its truth, by harmonizing with
the several parts, and accounting for the various phe-
4
38 CORRUPTION OF
nomena, jarring otherwise and inexplicable, of tho
great system of the universe.
Revelation, however, here comes in, and sustains
the fallible conjectures of our unassisted reason. The
holy Scriptures speak of us as fallen creatures ; in
almost every page we shall find something that is
calculated to abate the loftiness and silence the pre-
tensions 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 should be righteous?" Job, 15: 14. ''How
much more abominable and filthy is man, w^hich
drinketh iniquity like water!" Job, 15: 16. "The
Lord looked down from heaven upon the children
of men, to see if there were any that did understand,
and seek God. They are all gone aside ; they are
altogether become filthy ; there is none that doeth
good, no, not one." Ps. 14 : 2, 3. "Who can say, I
have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sinC^"
l^rov. 20 : 9. " The heart is deceitful above all things,
nud desperately wicked: who can know it?" "Be-
hold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my
mother conceive me " " We were by nature the chil-
dren of wrath, even as others, fulfilling the desires of
the flesh and of the mind." " O wretched man that
I am ! who shall deliver me from the body of this
death?" Passages might be multiplied upon pas-
sages, which speak the same language, and these
again might be illustrated and confirmed at large by
HUMAN NATURE. 39
various other considerations, drawn from the same
sacrea source: such as those which represent a
thorough change, a renovation of our nature, as be-
ing necessary to our becoming true Christians ; or
as those, also, which are suggested by observing
that holy men refer their good dispositions and af-
fections to the immediate agency of the Supreme
Being.
SECTION II.
Evil spirit. — Natural state of man.
In addition to all which has been yet stated, the
word of God instructs us, that we have to contend
not only with our own natural depravity, but with
the power of darkness, the evil spirit, who rules in
the hearts of the wicked, and whose dominion, we
learn from Scripture, is so general, as to entitle him
to the denomination of " the prince of this world."
There cannot be a stronger proof of the difference
^vhich exists between the religious system of the
Scriptures, and that of the bulk of nominal Chris-
tians, than the proof Avhich is afforded by the subject
now in question. The existence and agency of the
evil spirit, though so distinctly and repeatedly af-
firmed in Scripture, are regarded by many as a pre-
judice, which it w^ould now be a discredit to any man
of understanding to believe. But to be consistent with
ourselves, we might, on the same principle, deny the
40 CORRUPTION OF
reality of all other incorporeal beings. What is
there, in truth, in the doctrine, which is in itself im-
probable, or which is not confirmed by analogy ?
We see, in fact, that there are wicked men, enemies
to God, and malignant towards their fellow-creatures,
who take pleasure, and often succeed, in drawing in
others to the commission of evil. Why then should
it be deemed incredible that there may be one or
more spiritual intelligences of similar natures and
propensities, who may, in like manner, be permitted
to tempt men to the practice of sin ? Surely we may
retort upon our opponents the charge of absurdity,
and justly accuse them of gross inconsistency, in
admitting, without difficulty, the existence and ope-
ration of these qualities in a material being, and yet
denying them in an immaterial one, in direct con-
tradiction to the authority of Scripture, which they
allow to be conclusive, when they cannot, and will
not pretend, for a moment, that there is any thing be-
longing to the nature of matter, to which these quali-
ties naturally adhere.
But to dilate no farther on a topic which, however
it may excite the ridicule of the inconsiderate, will
suggest matter of serious apprehension to all who
form their opinions on the authority of the word of
God ; thus brought as we are into captivity, and ex-
posed to danger ; depraved and weakened within,
and tempted from without ; it might well fill our
hearts with anxiety to reflect, that the day will come,
HUMAN NATURE. 41
when " the heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved,
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat ;"
*' when the dead, small and great, shall stand before"
the tribunal of *' God," and we shall have to give
account of all things done in the body. We are na-
turally prompted to turn over the page of revelation
with solicitude, in order to discover the qualities and
character o*f our Judge, and the probable principles
of his determination ; but this only serves to turn
painful apprehension into fixed and certain terror.
First, of the qualities of our Judge. As all nature
bears witness to his irresistible power, so we read
in Scripture, that nothing can escape his observation,
or elude his discovery; not our actions only, but our
most secret cogitations are open to his view. " He
is about our path and about our bed, and spieth out
all our ways," Psalm 139 : 3. " The Lord search
eth all hearts, and understandeth all the imagina-
tions of the thoughts," 1 Chron. 28 : 9. " And he*
will bring to light the hidden things of darkness,
and will make inanifest the counsels of the heart."
Now, hear his description and character, and the
rule of his award : " The Lord our God is a con-
suming file, even a jealous God." *' He is of purer
eyes than to behold iniquity." " The soul that sin-
neth, it shall die." " The wages of sin is death."
These positive declarations are enforced by the ac-
counts which, for our warning, we read in sacred
history, of the terrible vengeance of the Almighty j
4*
42 CORRUPTION OF
his punishment of •' the angels who kept not their
first estate, and whom he hath reserved in everlasting
chains, under darkness, unto the judgment of the
great day:" the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah; the
sentence issued against the idolatrous nations of
Canaan, and of which the execution was assigned to
the Israelites, by the express commant^ of God, at
their own peril, in case of disobedience*: the ruin of
Babylon, and of Tyre, and of Nineveh, and of Jeru-
salem, prophetically denounced as the punishment
of their crimes, and taking place in an exact and
terrible accordance with the Divine predictions.
These are, indeed, matters of awful perusal, suffi-
cient, surely, to confound the fallacious confidence
of any who, on the ground that our Creator must be
aware of our natural weakness, and must be of course
disposed to allow for it, should allege that, though
unable, indeed, to justify ourselves in the sight of
God, we need not give way to such gloomy appre-
hensions, 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 many gracious
declarations of pardon, on repentance and thorough
amendment. But, alas! who of us is there, whose
conscience must not reproach him with having tri-
fled with the long-suffering of God, and with having
but ill kept the resolutions of amendment which he
had some lime or other formed in the seasons of re
HUMAN NATURE. 43
collection and remorse ? And how is the disquietude
naturally excited by such a retrospect, confirmed and
heightened by passages like these ! " Because I have
called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my
hand, and no man regarded ; but ye have set at
naught all my counsel, and would none of my re-
proof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will
mock when your fear cometh; when your fear
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 find me : for that they hated knowledge, and did
not choose the fear of the Lord." Prov. 1 : 24-29. The
apprehensions which must be excited by thus read-
ing the recorded judgments and awful language of
Scripture, are confirmed to the inquisitive and at-
tentive mind, by a close observation of the moral
constitution of the world. Such a one will find oc-
casion to remark, that all which has been suggested
of the final consequences of vice, is in strict analogy
to what we may observe in the ordinary course, of
human affairs, wherein God has established such an
order of causes and effects as loudly proclaims the
principles of his moral government, and strongly
suggests that vice and imprudence will finally ter-
minate in misery, however interrupted here below,
by hinderances and obstructions apparently of a tern*
44 CORRUPTION OF
porary nature.* Not that this species of proof was
wanted ; for that which we must acknowledge, on
weighing the evidence, to be a revelation from God,
requires not the aid of such a confirmation : but yet,
as this accordance might be expected between the
words and the w^orks, the past and the future ordi-
nations of the same Almighty Being, it is no idle
speculation to remark, that the visible constitution
of things in the world around us falls in with the
representations here given from Scripture, of the
dreadful consequences of vice, nay, even of what' is
commonly termed inconsideratenessand imprudence.
If such then be indeed our sad condition, what is
to be done ? Is there no hope ? nothing left for us
" but a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery in-
dignation, which shall devour the adversaries ?"
Heb. 10 : 27. Blessed be God ! we are not shut up
irrecoverably in this sad condition : " Turn you to
the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope ; " hear one
who proclaims his designation, " to heal the broken-
hearted, to preach liberty to the captives, and reco-
vering of sight to the blind. " Those who have
formed a true notion of their lost and helpless state,
will most gladly listen to the sound, and most justly
estimate the value of such a deliverance. And this
is the cause, which renders it of such pressing mo-
ment not to pass cursorily over those important tc
♦ Vide Butler's Analogy.
HUMAN NATURE. 45
pics of the original and superinduced corruption and
weakness of man ; a discussion painful and humili-
ating to the pride of human nature, to which the
mind lends itself with difficulty, and hearkens with
a mixture of anger and disgust ; but well suited to
our case, and, like the distasteful lessons of adversi-
ty, permanently useful in its consequences. It is
here, never let it be forgotten, that our foundation
must be laid ; otherwise our superstructure, what-
ever we may think of it, will one day or other prove
tottering and insecure. This is therefore no meta-
physical speculation, but a practical matter. Slight
and superficial conceptions of our state of natural
degradation, and of our insufficiency to recover from
it of ourselves, fall in too well with our natural in-
considerateness, and produce that fatal insensibility
to the Divine warning to " flee from the wrath to
come," which we cannot but observe to prevail so
generally. Having no due sense of the malignity of
our disease, and of its dreadful issue, 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 be carefully remembered, that this
deliverance is not forced on us, but offered to us ; w^e
ure furnished, indeed, with every help, and are always
to bear in mind that we are unable, of ourselves, to
will or to do rightly ; but we are plainly admonished
to '• work out our own salvation with fear and trem-
bling." Philippians, 2: 12. Watchful, for we are
46 CORRUPTION or
encorapassed with dangers ; " putting on the whole
armor of God," for " we are beset with enemies."
May we be enabled to shake off that lethargy
which is so apt to creep upon us ! For this end, a
deep practical conviction of our natural depravity
and weakness will be found of eminent advantage.
As it is by this we must at first be roused from our
fallacious security, so by this we must be kept wake-
ful and active unto the end. Let us therefore make
it our business to have this doctrine firmly seated in
our understandings, and radically worked into our
hearts. With a view to the former of these ob-
jects, we should often seriously and attentively con-
sider the firm ground on which it rests. It is plain-
ly made known to us by the light of nature, and ir-
resistibly enforced on us by the dictates of our un-
derstandings. But, lest there should be any so
obstinately dull as not to discern the force of the
evidence suggested to our reason and confirmed by
all experience, or rather so heedless as not to notice
it, the authoritative stamp of revelation is superad
ded, to complete the proof; and we must therefore
be altogether inexcusable, if we still remain un-
convinced by such an accumulated mass of argu-
ment.
But we must not only assent to the doctrine clear-
ly, but feel it strongly. To this end, let us accus-
tom ourselves to refer to our natural depravity, as
to their primary cause, the sad instances of vice and
HUMAN NATURE. 47
folly of which we read, or which we see around us,
or to which we feel the propensities in our own
hosoms ; ever vigilant and distrustful of ourselves,
and looking with an eye of kindness and pity on the
faults and infirmities of others, whom we should
learn to regard with the same tender concern as
that with which the sick are used to sympathize
with those who are suffering under the same dis-
temper as themselves. This lesson once well ac-
quired, we shall feel the benefit of it in all our future
progress ; and though it be a lesson which we are
slow to learn, it is one in which study and experi-
ence, the incidents of every day, and every fresh ob-
servation of the workings of our own hearts, will
gradually concur to perfect us. Let it not, after all,
then, be our reproach, and at length our ruin, that
these abundant means of instruction are possessed
in vain.
SECTION III.
Corruption of human nature. — Objection,
But there is one difficulty still behind, more for-
midable than all the rest. The pride of man is loth
to be humbled. Forced to abandon the plea of in-
nocAice, and pressed so closely that he can no long-
er escape from the conclusion to which we would
drive him, some more bold objector, endeavoring to
justify what he cannot deny, " Whatever I am," he
48 CORRUPTION OP
contends, " I am what my Creator made me. If this
plea cannot establish my innocence, it must excuse,
or at least extenuate my guilt. Frail and weak as I
am, a Being of infinite justice and goodness will
never try me by a rule which, however equitable
in the case of creatures of a higher nature, is alto-
gether disproportionate to mine."
Let not my readers be alarmed ! The writer is
not going to enter into the discussion of the grand
question concerning the origin of moral evil, or to
attempt at large to reconcile its existence, and con-
sequent punishment, with the acknowledged attri-
butes and perfections of God. These are questions,
of which, if one may judge from the little success
with which the acUtest and profoundest reasoners
have been ever laboring to solve the difficulties they
contain, the full and clear comprehension is above
the intellect of man. Yet, as such an objection as
that which has been stated is sometimes heard from
the mouths of professed Christians, it must not be
passed by without a few short observations.
Were the language in question to be addressed to
us by an avowed sceptic, though it might not be
very difficult to expose to him the futility of his rea-
sonings, we should almost despair of satisfying him
of the soundness of our own. We should perha?[)S
suggest impossibilities, which might stand in the
way of such a system as he would establish; we
might, indeed, point out wherein (arguing from con-
HTMAN' NATURE. 49
cessions which he would freely make) his precon-
ceptions concerning the conduct of the Supreme Be-
ing had been, in fact, already contradicted, particu-
larly by the existence at all of natural or moral evil ;
and if thus proved erroneous in one instance, why
might they not be so likewise in another? But
though, by these and similar arguments, we might at
length silence our objector, we could not much ex-
pect to bring him over to our opinions. We should
probably do better, if we were to endeavor rather to
draw him off from these dark and slippery regions,
and to contend with him on sure ground, and in tho
light of day. Then we might fairly lay before him
all the various arguments for the truth of our holy
religion ; arguments which have been sufficient to
satisfy the wisest, and the best, and the ablest of men.
We should afterwards, perhaps, insist on the abun-
dant confirmation Christianity receives from its being
exactly suited to the nature and wants of man ; and
we might conclude with fairly putting it to him,
whether all this weight of evidence were to be over-
balanced by this one difficulty, on a subject so con-
fessedly high and mysterious, considering that we
see 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 of his infinite
wisdom. This seems, at least in general, the best
mode, in the case of the objection now in question,
of dealing with unbelievers. To adopt the contrary
50 CORRUPTION OF
plan, seems somewhat like that of any oneAvho, hav-
ing to convince some untutored Indian of the truth
of the Copernican system, instead of beginning with
plain and simple propositions, and leading him on
to what is more abstruse and remote, should state to
him, at the outset, some astonishing problems, to
which the understanding can only yield its slow as-
sent, when constrained by the decisive force of de-
monstration. The novice, instead of lending him-
self to such a mistaken method of instruction, would
turn away in disgust, and be only hardened against
his preceptor. But it must be remembered that the
present work is addressed to those who acknowledge
the authority of the holy Scriptures. And in order
to convince all such that there is a fallacy in our
objector's reasoning, it will be sufficient to establish,
that though the word of God clearly asserts the jus-
lice and goodness of the Supreme Being, and also
the natural depravity of man, yet it no less clearly
lays down, that this natural depravity shall never be
admitted as an excuse for sin, but that " they which
have done evil, shall rise to the resurrection of dam-
uation,'* John, 5:29; ''That the wicked shall be
turned into hell, and all the people that forget God."
Psa. 9:17. And it is worthy of remark, that, as if
for the very purpose of more effectually silencing
those unbelieving doubts which are ever springing
up in the human heart, our blessed Savior, though
the messenger of peace and good will to man, has
HUMAN NATURE. 51
ag-ain aiid again repeated these awful denunciations.
Nor, it must also be remarked, are the holy Scrip-
tures less clear and full in guarding us against sup-
posing our sins, or the dreadful consequences of them,
to be chargeable on God. " Let no man say, when
he is tempted, I am tempted of God : for God cannot
be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man."
James, 1 : 13. "The Lord is not willing that any
should perish." 3 Peter, 3 : 9. And again, where
the idea is repelled as injurious to his character ;
" Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should
die ? saith the Lord God ; and not that he should
return from his w^ays and live?" Ezek. 18:23.
" For I have no pleasure in the death of him that
dieth, saith the Lord God." Ezek. 18 : 32.' Indeed,
almost every page of the word of God contains some
warning or invitation to sinners ; and all these, to a
considerate mind, must unquestionably be proofs of
our present position. .
It has been the more necessary not to leave unno-
ticed the objection which we have been now refuting,
because, when not avowed in the daring language in
which it has been above stated, it may frequently be
observed in an inferior degree; and often, when not
distinctly formed into shape, it lurks in secret, dif-
fusing a general cloud of doubt or unbelief, or low-
ering our standard of right, or w^hispering fallacious
comfort, and producing a ruinous tranquillity. Let
us here remark, that though the holy Scriptures so
52 COPwRUPTION OF
clearly state the natural corruption and weakness of
man, they, throughout, directly oppose the supposi-
tion that this corruption and weakness will be ad-
mitted as lowering the demands of divine justice,
and in some sort palliating our transgressions of the
jaws of God. Such a notion is at war with the
whole scheme of redemption by the atonement of
Christ. But perhaps it may be enough, when any
such suo-o-estions, as those which we are condemn-
ing, force themselves into the imagination of a Chris-
tian, to recommend it to him to silence them by
what is their best practical answer : that if our na-
tural condition be depraved and weak, our tempta-
tions numerous, and our Almighty Judge infinitely
holy ; yet that the offers to penitent sinners of par-
don, and grace, and strength, are universal and un-
limited. Let it not however surprise us, if in all
this there seem to be involved difficulties which we
cannot fully comprehend. How many such every
where present themselves ! Scarcely is there an ob-
ject around us that does not afford endless matter of
doubt and argument. The meanest reptile which
crawls on the earth, nay, every herb and flower
which we behold, baffles the imbecility of our limit-
ed inquiries. All nature calls upon us to be hum-
ble. 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 the counsels and ways
of Him whose " understanding is infinite," Psalm
HUMAN NATURE. 53
147 : 5. " Whose judgments are declared to be un-
searchable, and his ways past finding out ?" Rom.
11:33. In this our ignorance, however, we may
calmly repose ourselves on his own declaration, that
though "clouds and darkness are round about him,"
yet " righteousness and judgment are the habitation
of his throne." Psalm 97 : 2. Let it also be remem-
bered, that if in Christianity some things are difficult,
that which it most concerns us to know, is plain and
obvious. To this it is true wisdom to attach our-
selves, assenting to what is revealed where above
our faculties, (we do not say contradictory to them,)
on the credit of what is clearly discerned and satis-
factorily established. 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 against this
very error, that the inspired writer, when he has
been threatening the people, whom God had selected
as the objects of his special favor, with the most
dreadful punishments, if they should forsake the law
of the Lord, and has introduced surrounding nations
as asking the meaning of the severe infliction, winds
up the whole with this instructive admonition : •' Se-
cret things belong unto the Lord our God ; but those
which are revealed belong unto us and to our chil-
dren for ever, that we may do all the words of this
law." Deut. 29:29.
To any one who is seriously impressed with a
sense of the critical state in which we are here
5*
54 CORRUPTION OF HUMAN NATURE.
placed, it is indeed an awful and an affecting specta-
cle, to see men thus busying themselves in these vain
speculations of arrogant curiosity, and trifling with
their dearest, their everlasting interests. It is but' a
feeble illustration of this exquisite folly, to compare
it to the conduct of some convicted rebel, who, when
brought into the presence of his sovereign, instead
of seizing the occasion to sue for mercy, should even
neglect and trifle with the pardon which should be
ofTered to him, and insolently employ himself in pry-
ing into his sovereign's designs and criticising his
counsels. Our case, indeed, is, in another point of
comparison, but too much like that of the convicted
rebel. But there is this grand difference — that, at
the best, 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 greater than that of
'duy rebel against an earthly monarch ; so, on the
other, we know that our Sovereign is " long-suffer-
ing, and easy to be entreated ;" more ready to grant,
than we to ask forgiveness.
CHAPTER III.
CHIEF DEFECTS OF THE RELIGIOUS SYSTEM OF
THE BULK OF PROFESSED CHRISTIANS, IN WHAT
REGARDS OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THE
HOLY SPIRIT WITH A DISSERTATION CONCERN-
ING THE USE OF THE PASSIONS IN RELIGION.
SECTION I.
Inadequate conceptions concerning ou/r Savior and the
Holy Spiri'.
That God so loved the world, as of his tender
mercy to give his only Son Jesus Christ for our
redemption :
That our blessed Lord willingly left the glory of
the Father, and was made man:
That " he was despised and rejected of men ; a
man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief:"
That " he was wounded for our transgressions ;"
and " was bruised for our iniquities :"
That " the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all ;"
That at length he humbled himself even to the
death of the cross, for us, miserable sinners; to the
56 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF OUR
end that all who, with heart)^ repentance and true
faith should come to him, might not perish, but
have everlasting life :
That he is now at the right hand of God, making
intercession for his people :
That, " being reconciled to God by the death of
his Son, we may come boldly unto the throne o\
grace, to obtain mercy and find grace to help in
time of need :"
That our heavenly Father " will surely give hiy
Holy Spirit to them that ask him :"
That "the Spirit of God must dwell in us :" and
that *' if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is
none of his :"
That by this Divine influence " we are to be re-
newed in knowledge after the image of Him who
created us," and "to be filled with the fruits of
righteousness, to the praise of the glory of his
grace ;" that, •' being thus made meet for the in-
heritance of the saints in light," we shall sleep in
the Lord ; and that, when the last trumpet shall
sound, this corruption shall put on incorruption ;
and that, being at length perfected after his likeness,
we shall be admitted into his heavenly kingdom : —
These are the leading doctrines concerning our
Savior, and the Holy Spirit, which are taught in the
holy Scriptures, and held by the church of England.
The truth of them, agreeably to our general plan,
will be taken for granted. Few of those who have
SAVIOR AND UOLY SPIRIT. 67
been used to join in the established form of worship,
can have been, it is hoped, so inattentive as to be
ignorant of these grand truths, which are to be found
everj'- where dispersed throughout our excellent
liturgy. AVould to God it could be presumed, with
equal confidence, that all who assent to them in
terms, discern their force and excellency in the un-
derstanding, and feel their power in the affections,
and their transforming influence in the heart ! What
lively emotions are they calculated to excite in us, of
deep self-abasement, and abhorrence of our sins ; and
of humble hope, and firm faith, and heavenly joy,
and ardent love, and active unceasing gratitude !
But here, it is to be feared, will be found the
grand defect of the religion of the bulk of professed
Christians : a defect, like the palsy at the heart, which,
while, in its first attack, it changes but little the ex-
terior appearance of the body, extinguishes the in-
ternal principle of heat and motion, and soon extends
its benumbing influence to the remotest fibers of .the
frame. This defect is closely connected with that
which was the chief subject of the last chapter:
" They that are whole need not a physician, but they
that are sick." Had we duly felt the burden of our
sins, that they are a load which our own strength is
wholly unable to support, and that the weight of
them must finally sink us into perdition, our hearts
would have rejoiced at the sound of the gracious in-
vitation, " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are
58 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF OUR
heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matt. 1 1 :
28. But in those who have scarcely felt their sins
as any incumbrance, it would be mere affectation to
pretend to very exalted conceptions of the value and
acceptableness of the proffered deliverance. This
pretence, accordingly, is seldom now kept up ; and
the most superficial observer, comparing the senti-
ments and views of the bulk of the christian world
with the articles still retained in their creed, and
with the strong language of Scripture, must be
struck with the amazing disproportion.
To pass over the throng from whose minds reli-
gion is altogether excluded by the business or the
vanities of life, how is it with the more decent and
moral ? To what criterion shall we appeal ? Are
their hearts really filled with these things, and
warmed by the love which they are adapted to in-
spire? Then surely their minds are apt to stray to
them almost unseasonably ; or at least to hasten back
to them with eagerness, when escaped from the
estrangement imposed by the necessary cares and
business of life.
" And how," it may be perhaps replied, '• do you
know but that the minds of these people are thus
occupied ?" Let us appeal to a test to which we re-
sorted in a former instance. •' Out of the abundance
of the heait the mouth speaketh." Take these per-
sons, and lead the conversation to the s'lbject of reli-
gion. The utmost which can be effected is, to bring
SAVIOR AND HOLY SPIRIT. 59
them to talk of things in generalities ; there is no-
thing precise and determinate, nothing which im-
plies a mind used to the contemplation of its object.
In vain you strive to bring them to speak on that to-
pic, which one might expect to be ever uppermost
in the hearts of redeemed sinners. They elude all
your endeavors ; and if you mention it yourself, it
is received wfth no very cordial welcome, if not
with unequivocal disgust ; it is, at the best, a forced
and formal discussion. The excellence of our Sa
vior's moral precepts, the kindness, and simplicity,
and self-denial, and unblemished purity of his life,
his patience and meekness in the hour of death, can-
not indeed be spoken of but with admiration, when
spoken of at all, as they have often extorted unwil-
ling praise from the most daring and malignant iu'
fidels. But are not these mentioned as qualities in
the abstract, rather than as the perfections and linea-
ments of our Patron, and Benefactor, and Friend,
" who loved us, and gave himself for us ;" of Him
" who died for our ofTences, and rose again for our
justification ;" " who is even now at the right hand
of God, making intercecsion for ws?" Who would
think that the kindness, and humanity, and self-de
nial, and patience in suffering, which we so dryly
commend, had been exerted towards ourselves, in
acts of more than finite benevolence, of which we
were to derive the benefit, in condescensions and la
bors submitted to for our sakes, in pain and igno-
miny endured for our deliverance ?
60 INADECIUAXE CONCEPTIONS OF OUR
The Unitarian and Socinian, who deny or explain
away the peculiar doctrines of the Gospel, may be
allowed to feel and talk of these grand truths with
little emotion. But in those who profess a sincere
belief in them, this coldness is insupportable. The
greatest possible services of man to man must appear
contemptible, when compared with " the unspeaka-
ble mercies of Christ :" mercies so dearly bought,
so freely bestowed — a deliverance from eternal mi-
sery— the gift of " a crown of glory, that fadeth not
away." Yet, what judgment should we form of such
conduct as is here censured, in the case of any one
who had received signal services from afellov/-crea-
ture ? True love is an ardent and active principle :
a cold, a dormant, a phlegmatic gratitude are con-
tradictions in terms. When these generous affections
really exist in vigor, are we not ever fond of dwell-
ing on the value and enumerating the merits of our
benefactor ? How are we moved when any thing is
asserted to his disparagement ! How do we delight
to tell of his kindness ! With what pious care do we
preserve any memorial of him which we may hap-
pen to possess ! How gladly do we seize any oppor-
tunity of rendering to him, or to those who are dear
to him, any little good offices, which, though in
,hemselves of small intrinsic worth, may testify the
sincerity of our thankfulness ! The very mention of
his name will cheer the heart, and light up the
countenance! And if he be now no more, and if he
SAVIOR AND HOLY SPIRIT. 61
had made it his dying request that, in a way of his
own appointment, we would occasionally meet to
keep the memory of his person and of his services
in lively exercise ; how should we resent the idea
of failing in the performance of so sacred an obliga-
tion!
Such are the genuine characters, such the natu-
ral workings of a lively gratitude. And can we be-
lieve, without doing violence to the most established
principles of human nature, that where the effects
are so different, 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. Here again
we find reason to remark, that there is nothing dis-
tinct, nothing specific, nothing which implies a mind
acquainted with the nature and familiarized with the
use of the Christian's privileges, habitually solacing
itself with the hopes held out by the Gospel, anima-
ted by the sense of its high relations and its glori-
ous reversion.
The doctrine of the sanctifying operations of the
Holy Spirit appears to have met with still worse
treatment. It would be to convey a very inadequate
idea of the scantiness of the conceptions, on this head,
of the bulk of the Christian world, to affirm merely
that they are too little conscious of the inefficacy of
their own unassisted endeavors after holiness of
6
62 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF OUR
heart and life, and that they are not daily employed
in humbly and diligently using the appointed means
for the reception and cultivation of the divine assist-
ance. It would hardly be to go beyond the truth to
assert, that for the most part their notions on this
subject are so confused and faint, that they can
scarcely be said to believe the doctrine at all.
The writer is prepared to hear it urged, that often
where there have been the strongest pretences to
religious affections, there has been little or nothing
of the reality of them ; and that even omitting the
instances of studied hypocrisy, what have assumed
to themselves the name of religious affections, have
been merely the flights of a lively imagination, or
the working of a heated brain : in particular, that
this love of our Savior dwells only in the disordered
mind of the enthusiast. That religion is of a more
steady nature ; and that she rejects with scorn the
support of a mere feeling, indeterminate, trivial, and
useless ; a feeling varying in different men, and even
in the same man at different times, according to the
accidental flow of the animal spirits ; a feeling of
which it may perhaps be said, we are, from our
very nature, hardly susceptible towards an invisible
Being.
"As to the operations of the Holy Spirit," it
may probably be further urged, that "it is perhaps
scarcely worth while to spend much time in inquir-
ing into tiie theory, when, in practice at least, it is
SAVIOR AND HOLY SPIRIT. 63
manifest that there is no sure criterion whereby any-
one can ascertain the reality of them, even in his
own case, much less in that of another. All we
know is, that pretenders to these extraordinary as-
sistances have never been wanting to abuse the
credulity of the vulgar, and to try the patience of the
wise. The doctrine, to say the best of it, can only
serve to favor the indolence of man. It is, therefore,
true wisdom to attach ourselves to Avhat is more solid
and practical ; to the work of rectifying the disorders
of the passions, and of implanting and cultivating
the virtues of the moral character. You are contend-
ing for that which not only is altogether unworthy
of our Divine Master, but which, with considerate
men, has ever brought his religion into suspicion
and disrepute, and, under a show of honoring him,
serves only to injure and discredit his cause." Our
objector, warming as he proceeds, will perhaps as-
sume a more impatient tone. " Have not these doc-
trines," he may exclaim, " been ever perverted to
purposes the most disgraceful to the religion of
Jesus ? If you want an instance, look to the standard
of the Inquisition, and behold the Dominicans tor-
turing their miserable victims for the love of Christ.*
Or would you rather see the effects of your prin-
ciples on a larger scale, and by wholesale, (if the
phrase may be pardoned,) cast your eyes across the
• This was the motto on their banner.
C4 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF OUR
Atlantic, and let your zeal be edified by the holy
activity of Cortez and Pizarro, and their apostles of
the western hemisphere. To what else have been
owing the national persecutions, and religious wars
and crusades ; whereby rapacity, and pride, and
cruelty, sheltering themselves under the mask of this
specious principle, have so often afflicted the world ?"
Objection discussed.
That the sacred name of religion has been too
often prostituted to the most detestable purposes;
that furious bigots, and bloody persecutors, and self-
interested hypocrites, of all qualities and dimensions,
have falsely called themselves Christians, are me-
lancholy and humiliating truths, which, as none so
deeply lament them, none will more readily admit,
than they who best understand the nature, and are
most concerned for the honor of Christianity. We
are ready to acknowledge, also, without dispute, that
the doctrines of religious affections and divine as-
sistances have almost, at all times, been more or less
disgraced by the false pretences and extravagant
conduct of fanatics and enthusiasts. Ali this, how-
ever, is only as it happens in other instances, wherein
the depravity of man perverts the bounty of God.
Why is it here only to be made an argument, that
there is danger of abuse? So is there, also, in the
case of all the potent and operative principles, whe-
SAVIOR AND HOLY SPIRIT. 65
ther in the natural or moral world. Take, for an
instance, the powers and properties of matter. These
were, doubtless, designed by Providence for our
comfort and well-being ; yet they are often misap-
plied to trifling purposes, and still more frequently
turned into so many agents of misery and death.
Suppose religion were discarded, then liberty re-
mains to plague the world ; a power which, though,
when well employed, the dispenser of light and hap-
piness, has been often proved, and eminently in
this very instance, to be capable, when abused, of
becoming infinitely mischievous. Well, then, ex-
tinguish liberty — blot out courage ; and so might
you proceed to extinguish, one by one, reason, and
speech, and memory, and all the discriminating
prerogatives of man. But, perhaps, more than
enough has already been urged in reply to an ob-
jection so indefensible as that which would equally
warrant our condemning any physical or moral
faculty altogether, on account of its being occasion-
ally abused.
As to the position, that there is no way whereby
the validity of pretensions to the religious affections
may be ascertained, it must partly be admitted.
Doubtless, we are not able always 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 and hypocritical pretences which are brought
forward so triumphantlv. But then these pretences
6*
66 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS, &c.
no more prove all similar claims to be founded in
falsehood and hypocrisy, than there having been
many false and interested pretenders to wisdom and
honesty would prove that there can be no such
thing as a wise or an honest man. We do not argue
thus but where our reason is under a corrupt bias.
It is no more than our blessed Master himself taught
us to expect ; and when the old difficulty is stated,
". Didst thou not sow good seed in thy field, whence
then hath it tares?" his own answer furnishes the
best solution, •* An enemy hath done this." Hypo-
crisy is indeed detestable, and enthusiasm sufficiently
mischievous to justify our guarding against its ap-
proaches with jealous care. Yet we are apt to draw
too unfavorable conclusions from unpleasant appear-
ances. The mode and language in which a vulgar
man will express himself on the subject of religion,
will probably be vulgar ; and it is difficult for peo-
ple of literature and refinement not to be unreason-
ably shocked by such vulgarities. But we should
at least endeavor to correct the rash judgments which
we may be disposed to form on these occasions, and
should learn to recognize and to prize a sound tex-
ture and just configuration, though disguised beneath
homely or uncouth drapery.
SECTION II.
On the admission of the passions into religion.
The objection, that by insisting on the obligation
of making our blessed Savior the object of our reli-
gious affections, we are degrading the worship of
ihe understanding, and are substituting a set of mere
feelings in its stead, deserves most serious conside-
ration. If it be just, it is decisive ; for ours must be
mquestionably a " reasonable service." Rom. 12: 1.
This notion of the affections being out of place in
religion, is indeed an opinion which appears to be
generally prevalent. Mankind are apt to be the
dupes of misapplied terms ; and the progress of the
persuasion now in question, has been considerably
aided by an abuse of language not sufficiently check-
ed in its first advances, whereby that species of reli-
gion which is opposite to the warm and affectionate
kind, has been suffered, almost without disturbance,
to usurp- to itself the epithet of rational. But let not
this claim be too hastily admitted. Let the position
in question be thoroughly and impartially discussed,
and it will appear, if I mistake not, to be a gross and
pernicious error.
It cannot but afford a considerable presumption
against the doctrine which we are about to com-
bat, that it proposes to exclude at once from the ser-
vice of religion, so grand a part of the composition
68 ON THE ADMISSION OF THE
of man ; that in this our noblest employment it con-
demns, as worse than useless, all the most active and
operative principles of our nature. One cannot but
suppose that, like the organs of the body, so the ele-
mentary qualities and original passions of the mind
were all given us for valuable purposes by our all-
wise Creator. It is indeed one of the sad evidences
of our fallen condition, that they are now perpetually
rebelling against the powers of reason and con-
science, 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 the
effect of a religion which should come from God,
completely to repair the consequences of our super-
induced depravity. The schemes of mere human
wisdom had indeed tacitly confessed that this was a
task beyond their strength. Of the two most celebra-
ted systems of philosophy, the one expressly confirm-
ed the usurpation of the passions ; while the other,
despairing of being able to regulate, saw nothing left
but to extinguish them. Christianity would not be
driven to any such wretched expedients ; it is her
peculiar glory and her main office to bring all the
faculties of our nature into their just subordination
and dependence ; that so the whole man, complete
in all his functions, may be restored to the true ends
of his being, and be devoted to the service and glory
of God. •' My son, give me thine heart ;" " Thou
shr't love the Lord thy God with all thy heart ."
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 69
such are the direct and comprehensive claims which
are made on us in the holy Scriptures. We can
scarcely indeed look into any part of the sacred vo-
lume without meeting abundant proofs that it is the
religion of the affections which God particularly re-
quires. Love, zeal, gratitude, joy, hope, trust, are
each of them specified ; and are not allowed to us
as weaknesses, but enjoined on us as our bounden du-
ty, and commended to us as our acceptable w'orship.
AVhere passages are so numerous, there would be
no end of particular citations. Let it be sufficient,
therefore, to refer the reader to the word of God.
There let him observe, too, that as the lively exer-
cise of the passions towards their legitimate object is
always spoken of with praise, so a cold, hard, unfeel-
ing heart, is represented as highly criminal. Luke-
warmness is stated to be the object of God's disgust
and aversion ; zeal and love, of his favor and de-
light; and the taking away of the heart of stone,
and the implanting of a warmer and more tender na-
ture in its stead, is specifically promised as the ef-
fect of his returning favor, and the work of his re-
newing grace. It is the prayer of an inspired teach-
er in behalf of those for whom he was most interest-
ed, " that their love " (already acknowledged to be
great) "might abound yet more and more." Those
modes of worship are set forth and prescribed, which
are best calculated to excite the dormant affections,
and to maintain them in lively exercise ; if we look
70 ON THE ADMISSION OF THE
to the most eminent of the Scripture characters, we
shall find them warm, zealous, and aflectionate.
When engaged in their favorite Avork of celebrating
the goodness of their Supreme Benefactor, their
souls appear to burn within them, their hearts kin-
dle into rapture : the powers of language are inade-
quate ; and they call on all nature to unite with
them in hallelujahs of gratitude, and joy, and praise.
The man after God's own heart most of all abounds
in these glowing effusions ; and his compositions
appear to have been given us in order to set the tone,
as it were, to all succeeding generations. Accord-
ingly, (to quote the words of a late excellent prelate,
who was himself warmed with the same heaven-
ly flame,) "in the language of this divine book, the
praises of the church 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 Gen-
tiles in his wild career, and to make him a monu-
ment of transforming grace, was the force of his af-
fections diminished, or was it not only that their di-
rection was changed ? He brought his affections
entire and unabated into the service of his blessec
Master. His zeal now burned even with an increase
of brightness; and no intenseness, no continuance
of suffering could allay its ardor, or damp the fer-
vors of his triumphant exultations. Finally: the
worship and service of the glorified spirits in hea-
ven is not represented to us as a cold, intellectua.
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 71
investigation, but as the worship and a3rvice of gra-
titude and love. And surely it will not be disputed
that it should be, even here, the humble endeavor of
those who are promised, \vhile on earth " to be made
meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints
in light," to bring their hearts into capacity for
joining in those everlasting praises.
But it may be advisable here to guard against a
mistaken supposition, that the force of the religious
affections is to be mainly estimated by the degree of
mere animal fervor, by ardors, and transports, and
raptures, of which, from constitutional temperament,
a person may be easily susceptible : or into which
daily experience must convince us that people of
strong conceptions and of warm passions may
work themselves without much difficulty, Avhere
their hearts are by no means truly or deeply inte-
rested. These high degrees of the passions bad men
may experience, good men may want. They may
be affected ; they may be genuine ; but, whether ge-
nuine or affected, they form not the true standard by
which the real nature or strength of the religious
affections is to be determined. To ascertain these
points, we must examine whether they appear to be
grounded Id knowledge, to have their root in strong
and just conceptions of the great, manifold excellen-
ces of their objects, or to be ignorant^ unmeaning, or
vague : whether they are natural and easy, or con-
strained and forced : wakeful and apt to fix on their
72 ON THE ADMISSION OF THE
great objects, delighting in their proper nutriment,
the exercises of prayer and praise, and religious
contemplation ; or voluntarily omitting offered occa-
sions of receiving it, looking forward to them with
little expectation, looking back on them with little
complacency, and being disappointed of them with
little regret. We must observe whether these reli-
gious affections are merely occasional visitants, or
the abiding inmates of the soul : whether they have
the mastery over the vicious passions and propensi-
ties, with which, in their origin, and nature, and ten-
dency, they are at open variance ; or whether, if the
victory be not yet complete, the war is at least con-
stant, and the breach irreconcilable. We must ob-
serve whether they moderate and regulate all the
inferior appetites and desires, which are culpable
only in their excess, thus striving to reign in the
bosom with a settled, undisputed predominance.
We must examine whether, above all, they manifest
themselves by prompting to the active discharge of
the duties of life: the personal, and domestic, and re-
lative, and professional, and social, and civil duties.
Here the wideness of their range and the universa-
lity of their influence will generally distinguish them
from those partial efforts of diligence and self-denial
to which mankind are prompted by subordinate mo-
tive«j. All proofs, other than this deduced from con-
duct, are in some degree ambiguous. This, this
only, whether we argue from reason or from Scrip-
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 73
ture, is a sure, infallible criterionf From the daily
incidents of conjugal and domestic life, we learn
that a warmth of affection, occasionally vehement,
but superficial and transitory, may consist with a
course of conduct exhibiting incontestable proofs of
neglect and unkindness. But the passion, which
alone the holy Scriptures dignify with the name of
love, is a deep, not a superficial feeling : a fixed and
permanent, not an occasional emotion. It proves the
validity of its title by actions corresponding with its
nature, by practical endeavors to gratify the wishes
and to promote the interests of the object of affection.
" If a man love me, he will keep my sayings."
" This is the love of God, that we keep his com-
mandments." This, therefore, _is the best standard
by which to try the quality ; qj-, the quality being as-
certained, to estimate the strength of the religious
affections. Without suffering ourselves to derive too
much complacency from transient fervors of devo-
tion, we should carefully and frequently prove our-
selves by this less dubitabie test ; impartially examin-
ing our daily conduct; and often comparing our ac-
tual with our possible services, the fair amount of
our exertions with our natural or acquired means
and opportunities of usefulness.
We are perfectly ready to concede to the objector,
whose arguments we have so long been considering,
that the religious affections must be expected to be
more or less lively in different men, and in the same
7
74 ON THE ADMISSION OF IHE
man at different times, in proportion to natural tem-
pers, ages, situations, and habits of life. But to
found an objection on this ground, would be as un-
reasonable as it were altogether to deny the obliga-
tion of the precepts which command us to relieve
the necessities of the indigent, because the infinitely
varying circumstances of mankind must render it
impossible to specify, beforehand, the sum which
each individual ought, on the whole, to allot to
this purpose, or to fix, in every particular instance,
on any determinate measure and mode of contribu-
tion. To the one case, no less than to the other, we
may apply the maxim of an eminent writer ; ''An
honest heart is the best casuist." He who every
where but in religion is warm and animated, there
only phlegmatic and cold, can hardly expect (espe-
cially if this coldness be not the subject of unfeigned
humiliation and sorrow) that his plea on the ground
of natural temper should be admitted; any more
than that of a person who should urge his poverty
as a justification of his not relieving the wants of the
necessitous, at the very time that he should bo
launching out into expense without restraint, on oc-
casions in which he should be really prompted by
his inclinations. In both cases, " it is the willing
mind which is required." Where that is found,
"every man will be judged according to what he
hath, and not according to what he hath not." 2 Cor.
8: 12.
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 75
After the decisive proofs already adduced from the
word of God, of the unreasonableness of the objec-
tion to the admission of the passions into religion, all
farther arguments may appear superfluous to any
one who is disposed to bow to scriptural authority.
Yet, the point is of so much importance, and, it is
to be feared, so little regarded, that it may not be
amiss to continue the discussion. The best results
of our understanding will be shown to fall in with
what clearly appears to be the authoritative lan-
guage of revelation ; and to call in the aid of the
affections to the service of religion will prove to be
not only what sober reason may permit, but to be
that which she clearly and strongly dictates to our
deliberate judgments, as being what the circumstan-
ces of our natural condition indispensably require.
We have every one of us a work to accomplish,
wherein our eternal interests are at stake ; a work
to which we are naturally indisposed. We live in
a world abounding with objects which distract our
attention and divert our endeavors ; and a deadly
enemy is ever at hand to seduce and beguile us. If
we persevere, indeed, success is certain ; but our
efforts must know no remission. There is a call on
us for vigorous and continual resolution, self-denial,
and activity. Now, man is not a being of mere in-
tellect.
Video meliora proboque, deteriora sequor,*
• I see W'bat is right, and approve it, but practice what ii wroof .
76 ON THE AD5HSSI0N OF THE
is a complaint which, alas ! we all of us might daily
utter. The slightest solicitation of appetite is often
able to draw us to act in opposition to our clearest
judgment, our highest interests, and most resolute
determinations. Sickness, poverty, disgrace, and even
eternal misery itself, sometimes in vain solicit our
regards ; they are all excluded from the view, and
thrust as it were beyond the sphere of vision, by some
poor, unsubstantial, transient object, so minute and
contemptible as almost to escape the notice of the
eye of reason.
These observations are more strikingly confirmed
in our religious concerns than in any other; because
in them the interests at stake are of transcendent im-
portance : but they hold equally in every instance,
according to its measure, wherein there is a call for
laborious, painful, and continued exertions, from
which any one is likely to be deterred by obstacles,
or seduced by the solicitations of pleasure. What
then is to be done in the case of any such arduous
and necessary undertaking? The answer is obvi-
ous : You should endeavor not only to convince the
understanding, but also to affect the heart : and for
this end, you must secure the reinforcement of the
passions. This is indeed the course which would
be naturally followed by every man of common un-
derstanding, who should know that some one for
whom he was deeply interested, a child, for instance,
or a brother, were about to enter on a long, difficult,
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 77
perilous, and critical adventure, wherein success was
to be honor and affluence, defeat was to he contempt
and ruin. And still more, if the parent were convinc-
ed that his child possessed faculties which, strenu-
ously and unremittingly exerted, would prove equal
to all the exigences of the enterprise, but knew him
also to be volatile and inconstant, and had reason to
doubt his resolution and his vigilance ; how would the
friendly monitor's endeavor be redoubled, so as to
possess his pupil's mind with the worth and dignity
of the undertaking, that there should be no opening
for the entrance of any inferior consideration ! "Weigh
well," he would say, " the value of the object for
which you are about to contend, and contemplate and
study its various excellencies, till your whole soul
be on fire for its acquisition. Consider too, that, if
you fail, misery and infamy are united in the alter-
native which awaits you. Let not the mistaken nq'-
tion of its being a safe and easy service, for a mo-
ment beguile you into the discontinuance or remis-
sion of your efforts. Be aware of your imminent
danger, and at the same time know your true secu-
rity. It is a service of labor and peril; but one
wherein the powers which you possess, strenuously
and perse veringly exerted, cannot but crown you
with victory. Accustom yourself to look first to the
dreadful consequences of failure ; then fix your eye
on the glorious prize which is before you ; and when
your strength begins to fail, and your spirits are well
7*
78 ON THE ADMISSION OF THE
nigh exhausted, let the animating view rekindle
your resolution, and call forth in renewed vigor the
fainting energies of your soul."
It was the remark of an unerring Observer, "the
children of this world are wiser in their generation
than the children of light." And it is indisputably
true, that in religion we have to argue and plead
with men for principles of action, the Avisdom and
expediency of which are universally acknowledged
in matters of worldly concern. So it is in the in-
stance before us. The case which has been just de-
scribed, is an exact but a faint representation of our
condition in this life. Frail and •' infirm of pur-
pose," we have a business to executeof supreme and
indispensable necessity. Solicitations to neglect it
every where abound : the difficulties and dangers are
numerous and urgent ; and the night of death com-
eth, how soon we know not, " when no man can w^ork."
All this is granted. It seems to be a state of things
wherein one should look out with solicitude for some
powerful stimulants. Mere knowledge is confess-
edly too weak. The affections alone remain to
supply the deficiency. They precisely meet the oc-
casion, and suit the purposes intended. Yet, when
we propose to fit ourselves for our great undertak-
ing, by calling them in to our help, we are to be
tOM that we are acting contrary to reason. Is this
reasonable, to strip us first of our armor of proof,
and then to send us to the sharpest of encounter ?
PASSIONS INTO RELIGION. 79
To summon us to the severest labors, but first to
rob us of the precious cordials which should brace
our sinews and recruit our strength ?
Let these pretended advocates for reason then con-
fess their folly, and do justice to the superior wis-
dom as well as goodness of our heavenly Instructor,
Avho, better understanding our true condition, and
knowing our frowardness and inadvertency, has
most reasonably, as well as kindly pointed out and
enjoined on us the use of those aids which may coun-
teract our infirmities ; who commanding the effect,
has commanded also the means whereby it may be
accomplished.
And now, if the use of the affections in religion^
in general, be at length shown to be conformable to
reason, it will not require many words to prove that
our blessed Savior is the proper object of them. We
know that love, gratitude, joy, hope, trust, (the affec-
tions in question,) all have their appropriate objects.
Now it must be at once conceded, that if these ap-
propriate objects be not exhibited, it is perfectly un-
reasonable to expect that the correspondent passions
should be excited. If we ask for love, in the case
of an object which has no excellence or desirable-
ness ; for gratitude, where no obligation has been
conferred ; for joy, where there is no just cause ot
self-congratulation ; for hope, where nothing is ex-
pected ; for trust, where there exists no ground of
reliance ; then, indeed, we must kiss the rod, and
80 ON THE ADMISSION, &c.
patiently submit to correction. This would be in-
deed Egyptian bondage, to demand the effects with-
out the means of producing them. Is the case then
so? Are we ready to adopt the language of the
avowed enemies of our adorable Savior ; and again
to say of him " in whom dwelleth all the fullness of
the Godhead bodily," that " he hath no form nor
comeliness ; and when we shall see him, there is
no beauty that we should desire him ?" Isa. 53 : 2.
Is it no obligation, that he who " thought it not rob-
bery to be equal with God," should yet, for our
sakes, " make himself of no reputation, and take upon
him the form of a servant, and be made in the like-
ness of men ; and humble himself, and become obe-
dient unto death, even the death of the cross ?" Phil.
2 : 6-8. Is it no cause of "joy, that to us is born
a Savior," Luke, 2 : 10, 11, by whom we may "be
delivered from the power of darkness, and be made
meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints
in light?" Col. 1 : 12, 13. Can there be a "hope
comparable to that of our calling," Eph. 1:18,
" which is Christ in us, the hope of glory ?" Col. 1 :
27. Can there be a trust to be preferred to the reli-
ance on "Christ Jesus, who is the same yester-
day, to-day, and for ever?" Heb. 13 : 8. Surely, if
our opponent be not dead to every generous emo-
tion, he cannot look his own objection in the face
without a blush of shame and indignation.
SECTION III.
Consideration of the Teasonabkness of affections towards an
invisible Being.
Forced at last to retreat from his favorite position,
and compelled to acknowledge that the religious af-
fections towards our blessed Savior are not unrea-
sonable ; he still, however, maintains the combat,
suggesting that, by the very constitution of our na-
ture, we are not susceptible of them towards an in-
visible Being ; in whose case, it will be added, we
are shut out from all those means of communication
and intercourse which knit and cement the union
between man and man.
We mean not to deny that there is something in
this objection. It might even seem to plead the au-
thority of Scripture in its favor — " He that loveth
not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love
God whom he hath not seen ?" 1 John, 4 : 20. We
receive impressions more readily from visible ob-
jects, we feel them more strongly, and retain them
more durably. But though it must be granted that
this circumstance makes it a more difficult task to
preserve the affections in question in a heahhful and
vigorous state, is it thereby rendered impossible?
This Avere indeed a most precipitate conclusion :
and any one who should be disposed to admit the
truth of it, might at least hesitate, when he should
82 REASONABLENESS OF AFFECTIONS
reflect that the argument applies equally against the
possibility of the love of God, a duty of which the
most cursory reader of Scripture, if he admits its
divine authority, cannot but acknowledge the indis-
pensable obligation. But we need only look back
to the Scripture proofs which have been lately ad-
duced, to be convinced that the religious affections
are therein inculcated on us, as a matter of high and
serious obligation.
If the principles of love, and gratitude, and joy,
and hope, and trust, are not utterly extinct within
us, they cannot but be called forth by the various
corresponding objects which the contemplation of
our blessed Redeemer would gradually bring forth
to our view. Well might the language of the apos-
tle be addressed to Christians, " Whom having not
seen, ye love ; in whom, though now ye see him not,
yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and
full of glory." 1 Pet. 1 : 8.
Our blessed Savior, if we may be permitted so to
say, is not removed far from us ; and the various re-
lations in which we stand towards him seem pur-
posely made known to us, in order to furnish so
many different bonds of connexion with him, and
consequent occasions of continual intercourse. He
exhibits not himself to us " dark with excessive
brightness," but is let down as it were to the possi-
bilities of human converse. We may not think that
he is incapable of entering into our little concerns,
TOWARDS AN* INVISIBLE BEING. 83
and sj'mpathizing with them; for we are graciously
assured that he is not one " wlno cannot be touched
with the feeling of our infirmities, having been in
all points tempted like as we are." Heb. 4 : 15. The
figures under which he is represented, are such as
convey ideas of the utmost tenderness. " He shall
feed his flock like a shepherd ; he shall g^aher the
lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and
shall gently lead those that are with young." Isaiah,
40 : 11. *' They shall not hunger nor thirst, neithtr
shall the heat nor sun smite them ; for he that hath
mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs
of water shall he guide them." Isaiah, 49 : 10. "I
will not leave you orphans,"* was one of his last
consolatory declarations. John, 14: 18. The children
of Christ are here separated indeed from the per-
sonal view of him ; but not from his paternal affec-
tion and paternal care. Meanwhile let them quicken
their regards by the animating anticipation of that
blessed day, when he " who is gone to prepare a
place for them, will come again to receive them unto
himself." Then shall they be admitted to his more
immediate presence : " Now we see through a glass,
darkly ; but then face to face : now I know in part ;
bit then shall I know even as also I am known."
1 Cor. 13:12.
Surely more than enough has been now said to
♦ The word ''comfortless" is rendered in the margin,
orphans.
84 REASONABLENESS OF AFFECTIONS
prove that this particular case, from its very nature
furnishes the most abundant and powerful conside-
rations and mean« for exciting the feelings ; and it
might be contended, without fear of refutation, that
by the diligent and habitual use of those considera-
tions and means, we might, with confident expecta-
tion of success, engage in the work of raising our
affections towards our blessed Savior to a state of
due force and activity. But, blessed be God, we have
A still better reliance ; for the grand circumstance of
all yet remains behind, which the writer has been
led to defer, from his wish to contend with his op-
ponents on their own ground. This circumstance
is, that here, no less than in other particulars, the
Christian's hope is founded, not on the speculations
or the strength of man, but on the declaration of
Him who cannot lie — on the power of Omnipotence.
We learn from the Scriptures that it is one main
part of the operations of the Holy Spirit, to implant
these heavenly principles in the human mind, and
to cherish their growth. We are encouraged to be-
lieve that, in answer to our prayers, this aid from
above will give efficacy to our earnest endeavors,
if used in humble dependence on divine grace.
We may, therefore, with confidence take the mesns
which have been suggested. But let us, in our tarn,
be permitted to ask our opponents, have they humbly
and perseveringly applied for this divine strength ?-
or, disclaiming that assistance, perhaps as tempting
TOWARDS AN INVISIBLE BEING. 85
them to indolence, have they been so much the more
strenuous and unwearied in the use of their own
unaided endeavors ? or rather, have they not been
equally negligent of both 1 Renouncing the one, they
have wholly omitted the other. But this is far from
being all. They even reverse all the methods which
we have recommended as being calculated to in-
crease regard ; and exactly follow that course which
would be pursued by any one who should wish to
reduce an excessive affection. Yet thus leaving un-
tried all the means which, whether from reason or
Scripture, we maintain to be necessary to the pro-
duction of the end, nay, using such as are of a di-
rectly opposite nature, these men presume to talk to
us of impossibilities ! We may rather contend that
they furnish a fresh proof of the soundness of our
reasonings. We lay it down as a fundamental posi-
tion, that speculative knowledge alone, that mere
superficial, cursory considerations, will be of no avail.
Nothing is to be done without the diligentjcontinued
use of the appointed method. They themselves af-
ford an instance of the truth of our assertions ; and
while they 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 those who have actually proved the
truth of our reasonings ; who have not only assumed
the name, but v/ho have possessed the substance, and
8
86 REASONABLENESS <)F AFFECTIONS
felt the power of Christianity ; who, though often
foiled by their remaining corruptions, and shamed
and cast down under a sense of their many imper
fections, have known in their better seasons what it
was to experience its firm hope, its dignified joy, its
unshaken trust, its more than human consolations.
In their hearts, love also towards their Redeemer
has glowed ; a love not superficial and unmeaning,
(think not that this would be the subject of our
praise,) but constant and rational, resulting from a
strong impression of the worth of its object, and
heightened by an abiding sense of great, unmerited^
and continually accumulating obligations ; ever mani-
festing itself in acts of diligent obedience or of patient
suffering. Such was the religion of the holy martyrs
of the sixteenth century, the illustrious ornaments of
the Christian church. They realized the theory
which we have now been faintly tracing. Look to
their writings, and you will find that their thoughts
and aflfections had been much exercised in habitual
views of the blessed Jesus. Thus they used the re-
quired means. What were the effects ? Persecution
and distress, degradation and contempt, assailed them
in vain : all these evils served but to bring their af-
fections into closer contact with their object ; and not
only did their love feel no diminution or abatement,
but it rose to all the exigencies of the occasion, and
burned with an increase of ardor ; and when brought
forth at last to a cruel and ignominious death, they
TOWARDS AN INVISIBLE BEING. 87
repined not at their fate; but rather rejoiced that
they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of
Christ. By the blessing- of God the writer might
refer to still more recent times. But lest his authori-
ties should be disputed, let us go to the apostles of
our Lord ; and while, on a very cursory perusal of
their writings, we must acknowledge that they com-
mend and even prescribe to us the love of Christ, as
one of the chief of the Christian graces ; so, on a
more attentive inspection of those writings, we shall
discover abundant proofs that they were themselves
bright examples of their own precept ; that our
blessed Savior was really the object of their warmest
affection, and what he had done and suffered for
them the continual matter of their grateful remem-
brance.
The disposition so prevalent in the bulk of nomi-
nal Christians, to form a religious sj^-stem for them-
selves, instead of taking it from the word of God, is
strikingly observable in their scarcely admitting,
except in the most vague and general sense, the
doctrine of the influences of the Holy Spirit. If we
look into the Scriptures for information on this par-
ticular, we learn a very different lesson. We are in
them distinctly taught, that " of ourselves we can do
nothing;" that "we are by nature children of wrath,"
and under the power of the evil spirit, our under-
standings being naturally dark, and our hearts averse
from spiritual things ; and we are directed to pray
88 REASONABLENESS OF AFFECTIONS drc.
for the influences of the Holy Spirit to enlighten our
understandings, to dissipate our prejudices, to purify
our corrupt minds, and to renew us after the image
of our heavenly Father. It is this influence which
is represented as originally awakening us from
slumber, as enlightening us in darkness, as " quick-
ening us when dead," Eph. 2 : 1-5, as " delivering
us from the power of the devil," as drawing us to
God, as " translating us into the kingdom of his
dear Son," Col, 1 : 13, as creating us anew in Christ
Jesus," Eph. 2 : 10, as " dwelling in us, and walk-
ing in us;" 2 Cor. 6: 16; so that "putting off the
old man with his deeds," we are to consider our-
selves as •• having put on the new man, which is
renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that
created him;" Col. 3 : 9-10, and as those who are
to be •' an habitation of God through the ,Spirit,"
Eph. 2 : 22. It is by this divine assistance only that
we can grow in grace, and improve in all holiness.
So expressly, particularly, and repeatedly does the
word of God inculcate these lessons, that one would
think there were scarcely room for any difference
of opinion among those who admit its authority.
Sometimes* the whole of a Christian's repentance
and faith, and consequent holiness, are ascribed
generally to the Divine influence ; sometimes these
* See Dr. Doddridge's Eight Sermons on Regeneration, a
most valuable compilation; and M'Laurin's Essay on Di-
vine Grace.
INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS, Jcc. 89
are spoken of separately, and ascribed to the same
Almighty power. Sometimes different, particular
graces of the christian character, those which res-
pect our duties and tempers towards our fellow-crea-
tures, no less than those which have reference to the
Supreme Being, are particularly traced to this source.
Sometimes they are all referred collectively to this
common root, being comprehended under the com-
pendious denomination of "the fruits of the Spirit."
In exact correspondence with these representations,
this aid from above is promised, in other parts of
Scripture, for the production of those effects ; and the
withholding or withdrawing of it is occasionally
threatened as a punishment for the sins of men, and
as one of the most fatal consequences of the Divine
displeasure.
SECTION IV.
Inadequate conceptions entertained by nominal Christians of
the terms of acceptance with God.
If then it be indeed as now stated — that, in con-
tradiction to the plainest dictates of Scripture, the
sanctifying operations of the Holy Spirit, the first
fruits of our reconciliation to God, the purchase of
our Redeemer's death, and his best gift to his true
disciples, are too generally undervalued and slight-
ed ; if it be also true, as was formerly proved, that
>ur thoughts of the blessed Savior are confused and
8*
90 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
faint, our afTections towards him languid and luke-
warm, little proportioned to what those who at such
a price have been rescued from ruin, and endowed
with a title to eternal glory, might be justly expect-
ed to feel towards the Author of their deliverance ;
little proportioned to what has been felt by others, ran-
somed from the same ruin, and partakers of the same
inheritance : — if this, let it be repeated, be indeed so,
let us not shut our eyes against the perception of our
real state ; but rather endeavor to trace the evil to its
source. We are loudly called on to examine well
our foundations. If any thing be there unsound and
hollow, the superstructure could not be safe, though
its exterior were less suspicious. Let the question
then be asked, and let the answer be returned with
all the consideration and solemnity which a ques-
tion so important may justly demand, whether, in the
grand concern of all, the means of a sinner's accep-
tance with God, there is not reason to apprehend,
that the nominal Christians whom we have been
addressing, too generally entertain very superficial
and confused, and (to speak in the softest terms) high-
ly dangerous notions ? Is there not reason to fear,
that with little more than an indistinct and nominal
reference to Him who "bore our sins in his own body
on the tree," they really rest their eternal hopes on
a vague, general persuasion of the unqualified mer-
cy of the Supreme Being ; or that, still more errone-
ously, they rely in the main on their own negative
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 91
or positive merits ? " They can look upon their lives
with an impartial eye, and congratulate themselves
on their inoffensiveness in society ; on their having
been exempt at least from any gross vice, or if
sometimes accidentally betrayed into it, on its never
having been indulged habitually ; or if not even so,"
(for there are but few who can say this, if the term
vice be explained according to the strict requisitions
of the Gospel,) "yet on the balance being in their
favor, or, on the whole, not much against them, .
when their good and bad actions are fairly weigh
ed, and due allowance is made for human frailty."
These considerations are sufficient for the most part
to compose their apprehensions ; these are the cor-
dials which they find most at 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 unbounded mercy and pity
of God. Yet persons of this description by no
means disclaim a Savior, or avowedly relinquish
their title to a share in the benefits of his death.
They close their petitions with the name of Christ;
but if not chiefly from the effect of habit, or out of
decent conformity to the established faith, yet surely
with something of the same ambiguity of principle
which influenced the expiring philosopher, when he
ordered the customary mark of homage to be paid
to the god of medicine.
92 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Others go farther than this ; for there are many
shades of difference between those who flatly re-
nounce, and those who cordially embrace the doc-
trine of redemption by Christ. This class has a sort
of general, indeterminate, and ill understood depen-
dence on our blessed Savior. But their hopes, so
far as they can be distinctly made out, (for their
views also are very obscure,) appear ultimately to
be founded on the persuasion that they are now,
through Christ, become members of a new dispen-
sation, wherein they will be tried by a more leni-
ent rule than that to which they must have been other-
wise subject. Their reasoning is this : " God will
not now be extreme to mark what is done amiss ;
but will dispense with the rigorous exactions of his
law, too strict, indeed, for such frail creatures as we
are to hope that we can fulfill it. Christianity has
moderated the requisitions of Divine justice ; and
all which is now required of us, is thankfully to trust
to the merits of Christ for the pardon of our sins, and
the acceptance of our sincere though imperfect obe-
dience. The frailties and infirmities to which our
nature is liable, or to which our situation in life ex-
poses us, will not be severely judged ; and as it is
practice that really determines the character, we
may rest satisfied, that if, on the whole, our lives be
tolerably good, we shall escape with little or no pun-
ishment, and, through Jesus Christ our Lord, shall
be finally partakers of heavenly felicity."
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 93
We cannot dive into the human heart, and there-
fore should always speak with caution and diffi-
dence, when from external appearances or declara-
tions we are affirming the existence of any internal
principles and feelings ; especially as we are liable
to be misled by the ambiguities of language, or by
the inaccuracy with which others may express
themselves. But it is sometimes not difficult to any
one who is accustomed (if the phrase may be allow-
ed) to the anatomy of the human mind, to discern,
that generally speaking, the persons who use the
above language rely not so much on the merits of
Christ, and on the agency of Divine grace, as on
their own power of fulfilling the moderated requisi-
tions of Divine justice. He wi]l hence therefore
discover in them a disposition rather to extenuate
the malignity of their disease, than to magnify the
excellence of the proffered remedy. He will find
them apt to palliate in themselves what they cannot
fully justify, to enhance the merit of what they be-
lieve to be their good qualities and commendable ac-
tions, to set, as it were, in an account the good against
the bad ; and if the result be not very unfavorable,
they conceive that they shall be entitled to claim the
benefits of our Savior's sufferings as a thing of
course. They have little idea, so little, that it might
almost be affirmed that they have no idea at all, of
the importance or difficulty of the duty of what the
Scripture calls "submitting ourselves to the righ-
94 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OP
teousness of God ;" or of our proneness rather to jus-
tify ourselves in his sight, than in the language of
imploring penitents to acknowledge ourselves guilty
and helpless sinners. They have never summoned
themselves to this entire and unqualified renuncia-
tion of their own merits and their own strength ;
and therefore they remain strangers to the natural
loftiness of the human heart, which such a call
would have awakened into action, and roused to re-
sistance. All these their several errors naturally
result from the mistaken conception entertained cf
the fundamental principles of Christianity. They
consider not that Christianity is a scheme for "jus-
tifying the ungodly," Rom. 4 : 5, by Christ's dying
for them " when yet sinners,"* Rom. 5 : 6, 8 ; a
scheme "for reconciling us to God, when enemies;"
* The writer trusts he cannot be misunderstood to mean
that any, continuing sinners and ungodly, can, by believing,
be accepted or finally saved. The following chapter, par-
ticularly the latter part of it, (section vi.) would abundantly
vindicate him from any such misconstruction. Meanwhile,
he will only remark, that true faith (in which repentance
is considered as involved) is in Scripture regarded as the
radical principle of holiness. If the root exist, the proper
fruits will be brought forth. An attention to this considera-
tion would have easily explained and reconciled those pas-
sages of St. Paul's and St, James' epistles, which have fui-
nished so much argument and 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, 2 : 14, &c. &c.
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 95
and for making the /ruits of holiness the effects,*
not the cause of our being justified and reconciled :
that, in short, it opens freely the door of mercy to
the greatest and vilest of penitent sinners; that
obeying the blessed impulse of the grace of God,
whereby they had been awakened from the sleep of
death, and moved lo seek for pardon, they might
enter in, and through the regenerating influences of
the Holy Spirit might be enabled to bring forth the
fruits of righteousness. They rather conceive of
Christianity as opening the door of mercy, that
those who on the ground of their own merits could
not have hoped to justify themselves before God,
may yet be admitted, for Christ's sake, on condition
of their having previously satisfied the moderated
requisitions of Divine justice. In speaking to others
also of the Gospel scheme, they are apt to talk too
much of terms and performances on our part, on
which we become entitled to an interest in the suf-
ferings of Christ ; instead of stating the benefits of
Christ's satisfaction as extended to us freely, "with-
out money and without price."
The practical consequences of these errors are
such as might be expected. They tend to prevent
that sense which we ought to entertain of our own
natural misery and helplessness ; and that deep feel-
ing of gratitude for the sufferings, merits, and inter-
cession of Christ, to which we are wholly indebted
*Vide note, ch. 4, sec, 6.
96 1NADE(1UATE CONCEPTIONS Of
for our reconciliation to God, and for the will and
the power, from first to last, to work out our own
salvation. They consider it too much in the light of
a contract between two parties, wherein each, inde-
pendently of the other, has his own distinct condi-
tion to perform ; man — to do what they account hia
duty ; God — to justify and accept for Christ's sake :
if they fail not in the discharge of their condition,
assuredly the condition on God's part will be faith-
fully fulfilled. Accordingly, we find in fact, that
those who represent the Gospel scheme in the man-
ner above described, give evidence of the subject
with which their hearts are most filled, by their
proneness to run into merely moral disquisitions,
either not mentioning at all, or at least but cursorily
touching on the sufferings and love of their Re-
deemer ; and are little apt to kindle at their Savior's
name, and, like the apostles, to be betrayed by their
fervor into what may be almost an untimely des-
cant on the riches of his unutterable mercy. In
addressing others also whom thej'' conceive to be
living in habits of sin, and under the wrath of God,
they rather advise them to amend their ways as a
preparation for their coming to Christ, than exhort
them to throw themselves with deep prostration oi
soul at the foot of the cross, there to obtain pardon
and find grace to help in time of need.
The great importance of the subject in question
will justify having been thus particular. On a ques-
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 97
tion of such mao^itude, to mistake our meaning
should be impossible. But after all which has been
said, let it also be remembered, that except so far as
the instruction of others is concerned, the point of
importance is, the internal disposition of the mind.
The great question is, where the dependence for par-
don, and for holiness, is really placed ; not what the
language is in which men express themselves.
If this so generally prevailing error concerning
the nature of the gospel offer be in any considerable
degree just, it will explain that so generally prevail-
ing languor in the affections towards our blessed
Savior which was formerly remarked, and that in-
adequate impression of the necessity and value of
the assistance of the Divine Spirit. According to
the soundest principles of reasoning, it may be also
adduced as an additional proof of the correctness of
our present statement, that it so exactly falls in with
those phenomena, and so naturally accounts for them.
For, even admitting that the persons above men-
tioned, particularly the last class, do at the bottom
rely on the atonement of Christ ; yet on their scheme,
it must necessarily happen, that the object to which
they are most accustomed to look, from which they
most habitually derive complacency, is rather their
own qualified merit and services, though confessed
to be inadequate, fhan the sufferings and atoning
death of a crucified Savior. The affections to-
wards our blessed Lord cannot be expected to flou*
9
'98 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
rish, because they receive not that which is necessary
to their nutriment and growth. If we would love
him as affectionately, and rejoice m him as triumph-
antly as the first Christians did, we must learn like
them to repose our entire trust in him, and to adopt
the language of the apostle, " God forbid that I
should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ." Gal. 6 : 14. "Who of God is made unto
us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification,
and redemption." 1 Cor. 1 : 30.
Doubtless there have been too many who, to their
eternal ruin, have abused the doctrine of salvation
by grace ; and have vainly trusted in Christ for par-
don and acceptance, when by their vicious lives they
have plainly proved the groundlessness of their pre-
tensions. The tree is to be known by its fruits ;
and there is too much reason to fear that there is no
principle of faith, when it does not decidedly evince
itself by the fruits of holiness. Dreadful indeed will
be the doom, above that of all others, of those loose
professors of Christianity, to whom at the last day
our blessed Savior will address those words, " I
never knew you ; depart from me, ye that work in-
iquity." But the danger of error on this side ought
not to render us insensible to the opposite error ; ; .
error against which in these days it seems particu-
larly necessary to guard. It is far from the inten-
tion of the writer of this work to enter into the
niceties of controversy ; but surely he may be per-
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. • 99
niitted to contend, that those who in the main be-
lieve the doctrines of the church of England, are
bound to allow that our dependence on our blessed
Savior, as alone the meritorious cause of our ac-
ceptance with God, and as the means of all its bless-
ed fruits and glorious consequences, must be not
merely formal and nominal, but real and substantial ;
not vague, qualified, and partial, but direct, cordial,
and entire. "Repentance towards God, and faith
towards our Lord Jesus Christ," was the sum of the
apostolical instructions. It is not an occasional in-
vocation of the name, or a transient recognition ot
the authority of Christ, that fills up the measure of
the term, believing in Jesus. This we shall find no
such easy task ; and if we trust that we do believe,
we should all perhaps do well to cry out in the
words of an imploring suppliant, (he supplicated
not in vain,) " Lord, help thou our unbelief." We
must be deeply conscious of our guilt and misery,
heartily repenting of our sins, and firmly resolving
to forsake them: and thus penitently "fleeing for
refuge to the hope set before us," we must found
altogether on the merit of the crucified 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 " be washed
m his blood," Rev. 1 : 5, to be sanctified by his
Spirit, resolving to receive him for our Lord and
100 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Master, to learn in his school, to obey all his com-
mandments.
We would still more particularly address our-
selves to others who are disposed to believe that
though, in some obscure and vague sense, the death
of Christ, as the satisfaction for our sins, and for the
purchase of our future happiness, and the sanctify-
ing influence of the Holy Spirit, are to be admitted
as fundamental articles of our creed, yet that these
are doctrines so much above us, that they are not
objects suited to our capacities ; and that, turning our
eyes from these difficult speculations, we should fix
them on the practical and moral precepts of the Gos-
pel. " These," they alledge, " it most concerns us to
know ; these therefore let us study. Such is the frailty
of our nature, such the strength and number of our
temptations to evil, that in reducing the gospel mo-
rality to practice we shall find full employment : and
by attending to these moral precepts, rather than to
those high mysterious doctrines which you are press-
ing on us, we shall best prepare to appear before
God on that tremendous day, when ' He shall judge
every man according to his works.'
" * Vain wisdom all, and false philosophy !' "
It will at once destroy this flimsy web, to reply in
the word? of our blessed Savior, and of his beloved
disciple — *' This is the work of God, that ye believe
on him whom he hath sent." John, 6 : 29. " This is
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 101
his commandment, That we should believe on the
name of his Son Jesus Christ," 1 John. 3 : 23. In
truth, if we consider but for a moment the opinions
of men who argue thus, we must be conscious of
their absurdity. This may be not inconsistently the
language of the modern Unitarian ; but surely it is
in the highest degree unreasonable to admit into our
scheme all the grand peculiarities of Christianity,
and having admitted, to neglect and think no more
of them ! " Wherefore," (might the Socinian say,)
" wherefore all this costly and complicated machine-
ry ? It is so little like the simplicity of nature, it is
so unworthy of the Divine hand, that it even offends
against those rules of propriety which we require to
be observed in the imperfect compositions of the
human intellect."*
Well may the Socinian assume this lofty tone with
those whom we are now addressing. If these are
indeed the doctrines of revelation, common sense
suggests to us that from their nature and their mag-
nitude they deserve our most serious regard. It is
the very theology of Epicurus to allow the existence
of these " heavenly things," but to deny their con-
nexion with human concerns, and their influence on
human actions. Besides the unreasonableness of this
conduct, we might strongly urge also in this con-
nexion the profaneness of thus treating as matters of
♦ Nee Dens intersit, &c.
102 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
subordinate consideration those parts of the system
of Christianity which are so strongly impressed on
our reverence by the dignity of the person to whom
they relate. This very argument is indeed repeatedly
and pointedly pressed by the sacred writers.*
Nor is the profane irreverence of this conduct
more striking than its ingratitude. When from read-
ing that our Savior was " the brightness of his Fa-
ther's glory, and the express image of his person,
upholding all things by the word of his power," we
go on to consider the purpose for which he came on
earth, and all that he did and suffered for us ; surely
if we have a spark of ingenuousness left we shall
condemn ourselves as guilty of the blackest ingrati-
tude, in rarely noticing, or coldly turning away, on
whatever shallow pretences, from the contemplation
of these miracles of mercy. For those minds, how-
ever, on which fear alone can operate, that motive is
superadded : and we are plainly forewarned, both
directly and indirectly, by the example of the Jewish
nation, that God will not hold them guiltless who
are thus unmindful of his most signal acts of con-
descension and kindness. But as this is a question
of pure revelation, reasonings from probability may
not be deemed decisive. To revelation therefore we
must appeal ; and as it might be to trespass on the
reader's patience fully to discuss this most important
♦ SeeHeb. 2:l,&c.
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 103
subject, we must refer him to the sacred writings
themselves for complete satisfaction. We would
earnestly recommend i-t to him to weigh with the ut-
most seriousness those passages of Scripture wherein
the peculiar doctrines of Christianity are expressly
mentioned * and farther, to attend with due regard to
the illustration and confirmation which the conclu-
sions resulting from those passages receive inci-
dentally from the word of God. Those who main-
tain the opinion which we are combating, will hereby
become convinced that theirs is indeed an unscrip-
tural religion; and will learn, instead of turning off
their eyes from the grand peculiarities of Chris-
tianity, to keep these ever in view, as the first prin-
ciples whence all the rest must derive their origin,
and receive their best support.*
* Any one who wishes to investigate this subject, will do
well to study attentively M'Laurin's Essay on Prejudiceij
against the Gospel. — It may not be amiss here to direct the
reader's attention to a few leading arguments, many of them
those of the work just recommended. Let him maturely
estimate the force of those terms, whereby the apostle in the
following passages designates and characterizes the whole
of the Christian system. " We preach Christ crucified."
" We determined to know nothing among you, sare Jesus
Christ, and him crucified." The value of this argument
will be acknowledged by all who consider that a system is
never designated by an immaterial or an inferior part of it,
but by that which constitutes its prime consideration and
essential distinction. The conclusion suggested by this re-
mark is confirmed by the Lord's supper being the rite by
104 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OP
Let us then, each for himself, solemnly ask our-
selves, whether ice have fled for refuge to the ap-
pointed hope ? And whether we are habitually look-
ing to it, as to the only source of consolation?
*' Other foundation can no man lay :" there is no
other ground of dependence, no other plea for pardon ;
bi'' ' ere there is hope, even to the uttermost. Let
u& ,^oor then to affect our hearts with a deep con-
which our Savior himself commanded his disciples to keep
him in remembrance ; and indeed a similar lesson is taught
by the ordinance of baptism, which shadows out our souls
being washed and purified by the blood of Christ. ObseiA'^e
next the frequency with which our Savior's death and suf-
ferings are introduced, and how often they are urged as
practical motives.
" The minds of the apostles seem full of this subject.
Every thing put them in mind of it ; they did not allow them-
selves to have it long out of their view, nor did any other
branch of spiritual instruction make them lose sight of it."
Consider next that part of the epistle to the Romans, where-
in St. Paul speaks of some who went about to establish their
owTi righteousness, and had not submitted themselves to
the righteousness of God. May not this charge be in some
degree urged, and even more strongly than in the case of
the Jews, against those who satisfy themselves with vague,
general, occasional thoughts of our Savior's mediation ; and
the source of whose habitual complacency, as we explained
above, is rather their being tolerably well satisfied with
their own characters and conduct *? Yet St. Paul declares
concerning those of whom he speaks, as concerning persons
%vho3« sad situation could not be too much lamented, that he
had Ifreat heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart.
TERMS OF ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD. 105
viction of our need of a Redeemer, and of the value
of his offered mediation. Let us fall down humbly
before the throne of God, imploring pity and pardon
in the name of the Son of his love. Let us beseech
him to give us a true spirit of repentance, and of
hearty undivided faith in the Lord Jesus. Let us not
be satisfied till the cordiality of our belief be con-
firmed to us by that character of the apostle, " that to
adding still more emphatical expressions of deep and bitter
regret.
Let the Epistle to theGalatians be also carefully examined
and considered ; and let it be fairly asked, what was the par-
ticular in which the Judaizing Christians were defective,
and the want of which is spoken of in such strong terms as
these ; that if frustrates the grace of God, and must debar
from all the benefits of the death of Jesus 1 The Judaizing
converts were not immoral. They seem to have admitted
the chief tenets concerning our Savior. But they appear to
have been disposed to trust, (not wholly, be it observed also,
but only in part,) for their acceptance with God, to the Mo'
saic institutions, instead of reposing wholly on the merits of
Christ, Here let it be remembered, that when a compliance
with these institutions was not regarded ajs conveying this
inference, the apostle showed by his own conduct that he
did not deem it criminal ; whence, no less than from the
words of the epistle, it is clear that the offence of the Ju.
daizing Christians whom he condemned, was what we have
stated ; not their obstinately continuing to adhere to a dis«
pensation, the ceremonial of which Christianity had abro-
gated, or their trusting to the sacrifices of the Levitical law,
which were in their own nature inefficacious for the blotting
out of sin. See Heb. 7, 8, 9, 10.
106 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS Of
as many as believe Christ is precious ;" and let us
strive to increase daily in love towards our blessed
Savior ; and pray earnestly that " we may be filled
with joy and peace in believing, that we may abound
in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost."
Let us diligently put in practice the directions for-
merly given for cherishing and cultivating the prin-
ciples of the love of Christ. With this view let us
labor assiduously to increase in knowledge, that
ours may be a deeply rooted and rational affection.
By frequent meditation on the incidents of our Sa-
vior's life, and still more on the astonishing circum-
stances of his death ; by often calling to mind the
state from which he proposes to rescue us, and the
glories of his heavenly kingdom ; by continual in-
tercourse with him of prayer and praise, of depend-
ence and confidence in dangers, of hope and joy in
our brighter hours ; let us endeavor to keep him
constantly present to our minds, and to render all
our conceptions of him more distinct, lively, and in
tclligent. The title of Christian is a reproach to us,
if we estrange ourselves from Him after whom we
are denominated. The name of Jesus is not to be
to us like the Allah of the Mohammedans, a talisman
or an amulet to be worn on the arm, as an external
badge merely, and symbol of our profession, and to
preserve us from evil by some mysterious and unin^
telligible potency ; but it is to be engraven deeply on
the heart, there written by the finger of God himself
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 107
in everlasting characters. It is our title known and
understood to present peace and future glory. The
assurance which it conveys of a bright reversion,
will lighten the burdens and alleviate the sorrows
of life; and in some happier moments it will impart
to us somewhat of that fullness of joy which is at
God's right hand, enabling us to join even here in
the heavenly hosanna, " Worthy is the Lamb that
was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom,
and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing."
" Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto
him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb*
^or ever and ever." Rev. 5 : 12, 13.
CHAPTER IV.
ON THE PREVAILING INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS
CONCERNING THE NATURE AND THE STRICT-
NESS OF PRACTICAL CHRISTIANITY.
SECTION 1»
One part of this title may, on the first view, excite
surprise in any who may have drawn a hasty in-
108 tNADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS Of
Terence from the charges conveyed by the two pre-
ceding chapters. Such a one might be disposed to
expect, that those who have very low conceptions
of the corruption of human nature, would be pro*
portionably less indulgent to human frailty • and
that those who lay little stress on Christ's satisfac-
tion for sin, or on the operations of the Holy Spirit,
would be more high and rigid in their demands of
diligent endeavors after universal holiness ; since
their scheme implies that we must depend chiefly
on our own exertions and performances for our ac-
ceptance with God.
But any such expectations as these would be
greatly disappointed. There is in fact a region of
truth, and a region of errors. Those who hold the
fundamental doctrines of Scripture in their due
force, hold also in its due degree of purity the practi-
cal system which Scripture inculcates. But those
who explain away the former, soften down the latter
also, and reduce it to the level of their own defective
scheme. It is not from any confidence in the supe-
rior amount of their own performances, or in the
greater vigor of their own exertions, that they re-
concile themselves to their low views of the satisfac-
tion of Christ, and of the influence of the Spirit ;
but i* should rather seem their plan so to depress
'ihe required standard of practice, that no man need
fall^short of it, that no superior aid can be wanted
for enabling us to attain to it It happens, however,
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 109
with respect to tlieir simple method of morality, as
in the case of the short ways to knowledge, of
which some vain pretenders have vaunted them-
selves to be possessed : despising the beaten track in
which more sober and humble spirits have been
content to tread, they have struck into new and un-
tried paths ; but these have failed of conducting them
to the right object, and have issued only in igno-
rance and conceit.
It seems in our days to be the commonly received
opinion, that provided a man admit in general terms
the truth of Christianity, though he know not or
consider not much concerning the particulars of the
system ; and if he be not habitually guilty of any of
the grosser vices against his fellow-creatures, we
have no great reason to be dissatisfied with him, or
to question the validity of his claim to the name and
consequent privileges of a Christian. The title im-
plies no more than a sort of formal, general assent
to Christianity in the gross, and a degree of morality
in practice, but little, if at all, superior to that for
which we look in a good Deist, Mussulman, or
Hindoo.
If any one be disposed to deny that this is a fair
representation of the religion of the bulk of the
Christian world, he might be asked, whether, if it
were proved to them beyond dispute that Christian-
ity is a mere forgery, would this occasion any great
change in their conduct or habits of mind ? Would
10
110 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OS
any alteration be made in consequence of this dia-
covery, except in a few of their speculative opinions,
which, when distinct from practice, it is a part of
their own system, as has been before remarked, to
think of little consequence ; and in their attendance
on public worship, which, however, knowing the
good effects of religion upon the lower orders of the
people, they might still think it better to attend oc-
casionally for example's sake ? Would not their re-
gard for their character, their health, their domestic
and social comforts, still continue to restrain them
from vicious excesses, and to prompt them to persist
in the discharge, according to their present measure,
of the various duties of their stations'? Would they
find themselves dispossessed of what had been to
them hitherto the repository of counsel and instruc-
tion, the rule of their conduct, their habitual source
of peace, and hope, and consolation ?
It were needless to put these questions. They are
answered in fact already by the lives of many known
unbelievers, between whom and these professed
Christians, even the familiar associates of both,
though men of discernment and observation, would
discover little difference either in conduct or temper
of mind. How little then does Christianity deserve
that title to novelty and superiority which has been
almost universally admitted ! that pre-eminence, as
a practical code, over all other systems of ethics !
How unmerited are the praises which have been
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. Ill
lavished upon it by its friends ! praises, in which
even its enemies, not in general disposed to make
concessions in its favor, have so often been unwarily
draAvn in to acquiesce !
Was it then for this that the Son of God conde-
scended to become our Instructor and our Pattern,
leaving us an example, that we might tread in his
steps ? Was it for this that the apostles of Christ
voluntarily submitted to hunger and nakedness, and
pain, and ignominy and death, when forewarned too
by their Master that such would be their treatment 1
That, after all, their disciples should attain to no
higher a strain of virtue than those who, rejecting
their divine authority, should still adhere to the old
philosophy ?
But it may perhaps be objected, that we are for-
getting an observation which we ourselves have
made, that Christianity has raised the general stand-
ard of morals : to which therefore infidelity herself
now finds it prudent to conform, availing herself of
the pure morality of Christianity, and sometimes
wishing to usurp to herself the credit of it, while
she stigmatizes the authors with the epithets of igno-
rant dupes or designing impostors !
But let it then be asked, are the motives of Chris-
tianity so little necessary to the practice of it, its
principles to its conclusions, that the one may be
epared and y«t the other remain in undiminished
force 7 Still, then, its doctrines are no more than a
112 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
barren and inapplicable, or at least an unnecessary-
theory, the place of which, it may perhaps be added,
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 its practical influence bounded with-
in a few external plausibilities 1 Does its essence
consist only in a few speculative opinions, and a few
useless and unprofitable tenets? And can this be
the ground of that portentous distinction, which is
so unequivocally made by the evangelist between
those who accept and those Avho reject the Gospel :
" He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life,
and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life ;
but the wrath of God abideth on him ?" This were
to run into the very error which the bulk of profess-
ed Christians would be most forward to condemn,
of making an unproductive faith the rule of God's
future judgment, and the ground of an eternal sepa-
ration. Thus not unlike the rival circumnavigators
from Spain and Portugal, who setting out in contra-
ry directions, found themselves in company at the
very time they thought themselves farthest from
each other ; so the bulk of professed Christians ar-
rive, though by a different course, almost at the very
same point, and occupy nearly the same station as a
set of enthusiasts, who also rest upon a barren faith,
to whom on the first view they might be thought the
most nearly opposite, and whose tenets they with
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 113
teason profess to hold in peculiar detestation. By
what pernicious courtesy of language is it, that this
wretched system has been flattered with the name
of Christianity ?
The morality of the Gospel is not so slight a fa-
bric. Christianity throughout exhibits proofs of its
Divine original, and its practical precepts are no
less pure than its doctrines are sublime. Can lan-
guage furnish injunctions stricter in their measure,
or larger in their comprehension, than those with
which the word of God abounds ? " Whatsoever ye
do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus " — "Be ye holy, for God is holy" — ''Be ye per-
fect, as your Father which is in heaven is perfect?"
We are commanded to ;?e?/£;c/ holiness, to go on un-
to perfectio?i.
Such are the Scripture admonitions ; and surely we
may not safely acquiesce in low attainments : a con-
clusion to which also we are led by the force of the
expressions by which Christians are characterized
in Scripture, and by the thorough change represent-
ed as taking place in any man on his becoming a
real Christian. " Every one," it is said, " that hath
this hope, purifieth himself even as God is pure :"
true Christians are said to be "partakers of the Di-
vine nature;" "to be created anew in the image of
God ;" " to be temples of the Holy Ghost." The
effects of which must appear "in all goodness an4
righteousness and truth."
10*
114 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Great as was the progress which the apostle Paul
had made in all virtue, he declares of himself that
he still presses forward, " forgetting the things which
are behind, and reaching forth unto the things which
are before." He prays for his beloved disciples,
" that they may be tilled with all the fullness of
God ;" " that they may be filled with the fruits of
righteousness ;" " that they might walk worthy oi
the Lord umo all pleasing, being fruitful in every
good work." Nor is it a less full and comprehen-
sive petition, which, from our blessed Savior's insert-
ing it in the prayer he has given as a model for out
imitation, we may infer ought to be the habitual
sentiment of our hearts ; " Thy will be done on
earth as it is in heaven."
These few extracts from the word of. God abun-
dantly vindicate the strictness of the christian moral-
ity ; but this point will be still more fully established
when we proceed to investigate the nature, essence,
and governing principles of the christian character.
It is the grand, essential, practical characteristic
of true Christians, that, relying on the promises
to repenting sinners, of acceptance through the Re-
deemer, they have renounced and abjured all other
masters, and have cordially and unreservedly de-
voted themselves to God. Christians have become
the sworn enemies of sin ; they will allow it in no
shape, they will admit it to no composition ; the war
they have denounced against it is universal, irre-
concilable.
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 115
But this is not all : it is now their determined
purpose to yield themselves without reserve to the
reasonable service of their rightful Sovereign. They
are not their own : their bodily and mental facul-
ties, their natural and acquired endowments, their
substance, their authority, their time, their influence ;
all these they consider as belonging to them, not for
their own gratification, but as so many instruments
to be consecrated to the honor and employed in the
service of God. This must be the master principle
to which every other must be subordinate. What-
ever may have been hitherto their ruling passion,
whatever hitherto their leading pursuit, whether sen-
sual, or intellectual, of science, of taste, of fancy, or
of feeling, it must now possess but a secondary
place ; or rather, to speak more correctly, it must
exist only at the pleasure, and be put altogether un-
der the control and direction of its true and legiti-
mate superior.
Thus it is the prerogative of Christianity " to
bring into captivity every thought to the obedience
of Christ." They who really feel its power, are re-
solved, in the language of Scripture, " to live no
longer to themselves, but to him that died for them :'*
♦Jiey know indeed their own infirmities ; they know
that the way on which they have entered is strait
and difficult, but they know too the encouraging as-
surance, " They that wait on the Lord shall renew
their strength ;" and, relying on this animating de-
116 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
claration, they deliberately purpose that the govern-
ing maxim of their future lives shall be, " to do all
to the glory of God."
Behold here the principle, which contains within
it the rudiments of all true virtue ; which, striking
deep its roots, though feeble perhaps and lowly in
its beginnings, silently progressive and almost insen-
sibly maturing, yet will shortly, even in the bleak
and churlish temperature of this world, lift up its
head and spread abroad its branches, bearing abun-
dant fruits, precious fruits of refreshment and consola-
tion, of which the boasted products of philosophy
are but sickly imitations, void of fragrance and of
flavor. But,
Igneus est ollis vigor et coelestis origo.
At length it will be transplanted into its native re-
gion, and enjoy a more genial climate and a kind-
lier soil; and, bursting forth into full luxuriance,,
with unfading beauty and unexhausted odors, shall
flourish for ever in the paradise of God.
While the servants of Christ continue in this life,
glorious as is the issue of their labors, they receive
many humiliating memorials of their remaining im-
perfections, and daily find reason to confess that
they cannot do the things that they would. Their
determination, however, is still unshaken, and it is
the fixed desire of their hearts to improve in all
holiness ; and this, let it be observed, on many ac
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 117
counts. They are urged on by the dread of failure ;
they trust not, where their all is at stake, to lively
emotions, or to internal impressions ; the example of
Christ is 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 of real Christians,
that they are gradually " changed into the image
of their Divine Master;" and they dare not allow
themselves to believe their title sure, except so far
as they can discern in themselves the growing
traces of this blessed resemblance.
It is not merely however the fear of misery, and
the desire of happiness, by which they are actuated
in their endeavors to excel in all holiness; they
love it for its own sake : nor is it solely by the sense
of self-interest (this, though often unreasonably con-
demned, is but a principle of an inferior order) that
they are influenced in their determination to obey
the will, and to cultivate the favor of God. This
determination has its foundations indeed in a deep
and humiliating sense of his exalted majesty and in-
finite power, and of their outi extreme inferiority
and littleness, attended with a settled conviction of
its being their duty as his creatures, to submit in all
things to the will of their great Creator. But these
awful impressions are relieved and ennobled by an
admiring sense of the infinite perfections and in-
finite amiableness of the Divine character ; animated
by a confiding though humble hope of his fatherly
118 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OP
kindness and protection, and quickened by the grate-
ful recollection of immense and continually increas-
ing obligations. This is the Christian love of God I
A love compounded of admiration, of preference, of
hope, of trust, of joy ; chastised by reverential awe,
and wakeful with continual gratitude.
The elementary principles which have been above
enumerated, however, exist in various degrees and
proportions. A difference in natural disposition, in
the circumstances of the past life, and in number-
less other particulars, may occasion a great difference
in the predominant tempers of different Christians.
In one the love, in another the fear of God may
have the ascendancy ; trust in one, and in another
gratitude ; but in greater or less degrees, a cordial
complacency in the sovereignty, an exalted sense of
the perfections, a grateful impression of the good-
ness, and a humble hope of the favor of the Divine
Being, are common to them all. Common — the
determination to devote themselves without excep-
tions, to the service and glory of God. Common
— the desire of holiness and of continual progress
towards perfection. Common — an abasing con-
sciousness of 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 the resolutions of their better hours.
But some perhaps, who will not directly and in
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 119
the gross oppose the conclusions for which we have
been contendin.g-, may endeavor to elude them. It
may be urged, that to represent them as of general
application, is going much too far ; and however
true in the <:ase of some individuals of a higher or-
der, it may be asserted they are not applicable to
ordinary Christians ; from these so much will not
surely be expected ; and here perhaps there may be
a secret reference to that supposed mitigation of the
requisitions of the Divine law under the Christian
dispensation, which was formerly noticed. This is
so important a point that it ought not to be passed
over : let us call in the authority of Scripture ; at the
same time only a few passages shall be cited, and
we refer to the word of God itself for those who
wish for fuller satisfaction. The difficulty here is
not to find proofs, but to select with discretion from
the mukitude which pour in upon us.
In the first place, the precepts are expressed in
the broadest and most general terms ; no persons are
at liberty to conceive themselves exempted from the
obligation of them ; and in any disposed to urge
such a plea of exemption, it may well excite the
most serious apprehension to consider how the
plea would be received by an earthly tribunal.
No weak argument this to any who are acquainted
with the Scriptures, and who know how often God
is there represented as reasoning with mankind on
the principles which they have established for their
dealing-s with each other.
120 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
In the next place, the precepts in question contain
within themselves abundant proofs of their universal
application, inasmuch as they are grounded on cir-
cumstances and relations common to all Christians,
and of the benefits of which, even our objectors
themselves, though they would evade the practical
deductions from them, would not be willing to re-
linquish their share. Christians "are not their
own," because " they are bought with a price;" they
are not " to live unto themselves, but to Him that
died for them ; they are commanded to do the most
difficult duties, " that they may be the children of
their Father which is in heaven;" and "except a
man be born again of the Spirit" (thus again be-
coming one of the sons of God) " he cannot enter
into the kingdom of heaven." It is " because they
are sons," that God has given them what in Scrip-
ture language is styled "the spirit of adoption." It
is only of '' as many as are led by the Spirit of God "
that it is declared " they are the sons of God ;" and
we are expressly warned, as it were to prevent anj''
such loose profession of Christianity as that which
we are here combating, " If any man have not the
Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." In short, Chris-
tians in general are every where denominated the
servants and the children of God, and are required to
serve him with that submissive obedience, and that
affectionate promptitude of duty, which belong to
ihose endearin? relations.
THE NATL'HE OF CHRISTIANITY. 121
Estimate next the force of that well known pas-
sage— " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thy heart, and with all thy mind, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy strength." The injunction is
multiplied on us, to silence the sophistry of the ca-
viller, and to fix the most inconsiderate mind. And
surely if the words have any meaning at all, the least
which can be intended by them is that settled, pre-
dominant esteem, and cordial preference, for which
we are now contending. The conclusion which this
passage forces on us, is strikingly confirmed by
other parts of Scripture, wherein the love of God is
positively commended to the whole of a Christian
church; 2 Cor. 13 : 14; or wherein the want of it,
(1 John, 3: 17, Rom. 16: 18. compared with Phil.
3 : 19,) or wherein its not being the chief and ruling
affection, is charged on persons professing them-
selves Christians, as being sufficient to disprove
their claim to that appellation, or as being equivalent
to denying it; 2 Tim. 3 : 4. Let not, therefore, any
deceive themselves by imagining that only an abso-
lute unqualified renunciation of the desire of the fa-
vor of God is here condemned. God will not accept
of a divided affection ; a single heart and a single
eye are in express terms declared to be indispensa-
bly required of us. We are ordered, under the figure
of amassing heavenly treasure, to make the favor
and service of God our chief pursuit, for this very
reason, because " where our treasure is, there will
U
122 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
our hearts be also." It is on this principle that, in
speaking- of particular vices, such phrases are often
used in Scripture as suggest that their criminality
mainly consists in drawing away the heart from
Him who is the just object of its preference ; and
sins which we might think very different in crimi-
nality, are classed together, because they all agree
in this grand character. Nor is this preference as-
serted only over affections vicious in themselves, and
to which therefore Christianity might well be sup-
posed hostile ; but over those also which in their
just measure are not only lawful, but even most
strongly enjoined on us. " He that loveth father and
mother more than me," says our blessed Savior,
'' is not worthy of me ; and he that loveth son or
daughter more than me, is not worthy of me." Matt.
10 : 37. The spirit of these injunctions harmonizes
with many commendations in Scripture of zeal for
the honor of God, as well as with that strong ex-
pression of disgust and abhorrence with which the
lukewarm, (those neither cold nor hot,) are spoken of
as being more loathsome and offensive than even
open and avowed enemies.
Another class of instances tending to the same
point, is furnished by those many passages of Scrip-
ture, wherein promoting of the glory of God is com-
manded as our supreme and universal aim, and
wherein the honor due unto him is declared to be
tlint in which he will allow no competitor to partici-
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITT. 123
pate. On this head indeed the holy Scriptures are,
if possible, more peremptory than on the former ;
and at the same time so full as to render particular
citations unnecessary in the case of any one who
has ever so little acquaintance with the word of God.
To pat the same thing therefore in another light.
All who have read the Scriptures must confess that
idolatry is the crime against which God's highest
resentment is expressed, and his severest punish-
ment denounced. But let us not deceive ourselves.
It is not in bowing the knee to idols that idolatry
consists, so much as in the internal homage of the
heart ; as in feeling towards them any of that su-
preme love, reverence, or gratitude, which God re-
serves to himself as his own exclusive prerogative.
On the same principle, whatever else draws off the
heart from him engrosses our prime regard, and
holds the chief place 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. This is
the language and argument of inspiration. The ser-
vant of God is commanded not to set up his ido4 in
his heart; and sensuality and covetousness are re-
peatedly termed idolatry. The same God who de-
clares— " My glory will I not give to another, nei-
ther my praise to graven images," declares also —
*' Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither
let the mighty man glory in his might ; let not the
124 TKADEQTTATE CONCEPTIONS OF
rich man glory in his riches." Jer. 9 : 23. " No
flesh may glory in his presence ;" " he that glorieth,
let him glory in the Lord." The sudden vengeance
by which the vain-glorious ostentation of Herod was
punished, when, acquiescing in the servile adulation
of an admiring multitude, " he gave not God the
glory," is a dreadful comment on these injunctions.
These awful declarations, it is to be feared, are
little regarded. Let the great, and the wise, and the
learned, and the successful, lay them seriously to
heart, and labor habitually to consider their supe-
riority, whether derived from nature, or study, oi
fortune, as the unmerited bounty of God. This re-
flection will naturally tend to produce a disposition,
instead of that proud self-complacency so apt to grow
upon the human heart, in all respects opposite to it ;
a disposition honorable to God and useful to man ;
a temper composed of reverence, humility, and grati-
tude, and delighting to be engaged in the praises,
and employed in the benevolent service of the uni-
versal Benefactor.
It only remains to be remarked, that here, as in
the former instances, the characters of the righteous
and of the wicked, as delineated in Scripture, exactly
correspond with the representations which have been
given of the Scripture injunctions.
The necessity of this cordial unreserved devoted-
ness to the glory and service of God, as indispen-
sable to the character of the true Christian, has been
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 125
insisted on at tlie greater length, not only on ac-
count of its own extreme importance, but also be-
cause it appears a duty too generally overlooked.
Once well established, it will serve as a fundamental
principle both for the government of the heart and
regulation of the conduct ; and will prove eminently
useful in the decision of many practical cases which
it might be difficult to bring under the undisputed
operation of any subordinate or appropriate rule.
SECTION II.
Having endeavored to establish the strictness,
and to ascertain the essential character of true prac-
tical Christianity, let us investigate more in detail
the practical system of the bulk of professed Chris-
tians among ourselves.*
It was formerly remarked, that the whole subject
of religion was often viewed from such a distance
as to be seen only in the gross. We now, it is to
be feared, shall find too much cause for believing
that those who approach nearer, and do discover in
♦ It will be remembered by the reader, that it is not the
object of this work to animadvert on the vices, defects, and
erroneous opinions of the times, except as they are received
iri-.o the prevailing religious system, or are tolerated by it,
and are not thought sufRcient to prevent a man from being
esteemed, on the whole, a very tolerable Christian.
11^
126 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Christianity somewhat of a distinct form, yet come
not close enough to discern her peculiar conforma-
tion.
A very erroneous notion prevails concerning the
true nature of religion. Religion, agreeably to
vv^hat has been already stated, may be considered as
the implantation of a vigorous and active principle ;
it is seated in the heart, where its authority is recog-
nized as supreme, whence by degrees it expels
whatever is opposed to it, and where it gradually
brings all the affections and desires under its com-
plete control.
But though the heart be its special residence, eve-
ry endeavor and pursuit must acknow^ledge its pre-
sence ; and whatever does not, or will not, or cannot
receive its sacred stamp, is to be condemned, and is
to be at once abstained from or abandoned. It is
like the principle of vitality, which communicates its
influence to the smallest and remotest fibers of the
frame. But the notion of religion entertained by
many among us seems altogether different. They
begin, indeed, in submission to her clear prohibitions,
by fencing off from the field of human action a cer-
tain district, which, though it in many parts bear
fruits on which they cast a longing eye, they cannot
but confess to be forbidden ground. They next as-
sign to religion a portion according to their circum-
stances and views, in which however she is to pos-
sess merely a qualified jurisdiction, and having so
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 127
done, they conceive that without hinderance they have
a right to range at will over the spacious remainder.
Religion can claim only a stated proportion of their
thoughts, and time, and fortune, and influence ; the
rest they think is now their own, to do what they
will with ; they have paid their tithes — say rather,
their composition ; the demands of the Church are
satisfied, and they may surely be permitted to enjoy
what she has left without molestation or interference.
It is scarcely possible to state too strongly the
mischief which results from this fundamental error.
At the same time its consequences are so natural
and obvious, that one would think it scarcely possi-
ble not to foresee that they must infallibly follow.
The greatest part of human actions is considered as
indifferent. If men are not chargeable with gross
vices, and are decent in the discharge of their reli-
gious duties ; if they do not stray into the forbidden
ground, what more can be expected from them ? In-
stead of keeping at a distance from all sin, in which
alone consists our safety, they will be apt not to care
how near they approach what they conceive to be
the boundary line ; if they have not actually passed
it, there is no harm done, it is no trespass. Thus
the free and active spirit of religion is checked. She
must keep to her prescribed confines, and every at-
tempt to extend them will be resisted.
This is not all. Since whatever can be gained
from her allotment, or whatever can be taken in
128 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
from the forbidden ground, will be so much of addition
to that land where men may roam at large, free
from restraint or molestation, they will of course be
constantly pressing upon the limits of the religious
allotment on the one hand, and on the other will
be removing back a little farther and farther the
fence which abridges them on the side of the for-
bidden ground. The space she occupies diminishes
till it is scarcely discernible ; whilst, her spirit ex-
tinguished and her force destroyed, she is little more
than the nominal possessor even of the contracted
limits to which she has been avowedly reduced.
This is but too faithful a representation of the gen-
eral state of things among ourselves. The promo-
tion of the glory of God, and the possession of his.
favor, are no longer recognized as the objects of our
highest regard, and most strenuous endeavors ; as
furnishing to us a vigorous, habitual, and univer-
sal principle of action. We set up for ourselves:
we are become our own masters. The sense of
continual service is irksome and galling to us ; and
we rejoice in being emancipated from it. Thus the
very tenure and condition by which life and all its
possessions are held, undergo a total change. What-
ever we have is regarded rather as a property than
as a trust ; or if there still exists the remembrance of
some paramount claim, we are satisfied with an
occasional acknowledgment, as of a nominal riglit.
Hence it is that so little sense of responsibility
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 129
seems attached to the possession of high rank, or
splendid abilities, or affluent fortunes, or other means
or instruments of usefulness. The instructive admo-
nitions, " Give an account of thy stewardship" —
" Occupy till I come," are forgotten. Or if it be ac-
knowledged by some men of larger views than ordi-
nary, that reference is to be had to some principle
superior to that of our own gratification, it is, at best,
to the good of society, or to the welfare of our fami-
lies: and even then the obligations resulting from.
these relations are seldom enforced on us by any
higher sanctions than those of family comfort, and of
worldly interest or estimation. Beside, what multi-
tudes of persons are there, people without families,
in private stations, or of a retired turn, to Vv-hom they
are scarcely held to apply! and what multitudes of
cases to which it would be thought unnecessary
scrupulosity to extend them ! Accordingly we find,
in fact, that the generality of mankind among the
higher order, in the formation of their schemes, in
the selection of their studies, in the choice of their
place of residence, in the employment and distribu-
tion of their time, in their thoughts, conversation and
amusements, are considered as being at liberty, if
there be no actual vice, to consult their own grati-
fication.
Thus the generous and wakeful spirit of Christian
benevolence, seeking and finding every where occa-
sions for its exercise, is exploded, and a system ofde-
130 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
cent selfishness is avowedly established in its stead ;
a system scarcely more to be abjured for its impiety,
than to be abhorred for its cold insensibility to the
opportunities of diffusing happiness. " Have we no
families, or are they provided for 1 Are we wealthy,
and bred to no profession ? Are we young and live-
ly, and in the gayety and vigor of youth? Surely w^e
may be allowed to take our pleasure. We neglect
no duty, we live in no vice, we do nobody any harm,
and have a right to amuse ourselves. We have no-
thing better to do ; we wish we had ; our time hangs
heavy on our hands for want of it."
But no man has a right to be idle. Not to speak
of that great work which we all have to accomplish,
and surely the whole attention of a short and precari-
ous life is not more than an eternal interest may well
require ; where is it that, in such a world as this,
health, and leisure, and affluence may not find some
ignorance to instruct, some wrong to redress, some
want to supply, some misery to alleviate? Shall am-
bition and avarice never sleep ? Shall they never
want objects on which to fasten ? Shall they be so
observant to discover, so acute to discern, so eager,
so patient to pursue, and shall the benevolence of
Christians want employment?
Yet thus life rolls away with too many of us, in a
course of " shapeless idleness." Its recreations con-
stitute its chief businsss. Watering-places, the sports
of the field, cards ! never-failing cards ! the assem-
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 131
biy, the theatre, all contribute their aid ; amusements
are multiplied, and combined, and varied, " to fill up
the void of a listless and languid life ;" and by the
regulated use of these different resources, there is
often a kind of sober settled plan of domestic dissipa-
tion, in which, with all imaginable decency, year
after year wears away in unprofitable vacancy.
Even old age often finds us pacing in the samo
round of amusements which our early youth had
tracked out. Meanwhile, beins: conscious that we
are not giving in to any flagrant vice, and it may be,
that we are not neglecting the offices of religion, we
persuade ourselves that we need not be uneasy. In
the main, we do not fall below the general standard
of morals of the class and station to which we
belong; we may therefore allow ourselves to glide
down the stream without apprehension of the con-
sequences.
Some, of a character often hardly to be distin-
guished from the class we have been just describing,
take up with sensual pleasures. The chief happi-
ness of their lives consists in one species or another
of animal gratification; and these persons perhaps
will be found to compose a large proportion. It be-
longs not to our purpose to speak of the grossly and
scandalously profligate, who renounce all pretensions
to the name of Christians; but of those who, main-
taining a certain decency of character, and perhaps
being tolerably observant of the forms of religion,
132 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
may yet be not improperly termed sober sensualists.
These, though less impetuous and more measured,
are not less stanch and steady than the professed
votaries of licentious pleasure, in the pursuit of their
favorite objects. " Mortify the flesh, with its affections
and lusts," is the Christian 'precept ; but a soft lux-
urious course of habitual indulgence is the practice
of the bulk of modern Christians : and that constant
moderation, that wholesome discipline of restraint
and self-denial, which are requisite to prevent the
unperccived encroachments of the inferior appetites,
seem altogether as disused as the exploded austeri-
ties of monkish superstition.
Christianity calls her professors to a state of dili-
gent watchfulness and active services. But the per-
sons of whom we are now speaking, forgetting alike
the duties they owe to themselves and to their fellow-
creatures, often act as' though their condition were
meant to be a state of uniform indulgence, and vacant,
unprofitable sloth. To multiply the comforts of afHu-
ence, to provide for the gratification of appetite, to be
luxurious without diseases, and indolent without
lassitude, seems the chief study of their lives. Nor
can they be clearly exempted from this class, who, by
a common error, substituting the means for the end,
make the preservation of health and spirits, not as
instruments of usefulness, but as sources of pleasure,
their great business and continual care.
Others aj^ain seem more to attach themselves to
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 133
what have been well termed the " pomps and vani-
ties of this world." Magnificent houses, grand equi-
pages, numerous retinues, splendid entertainments,
high and fashionable connexions, appear to consti-
tute, in their estimation, the supreme happiness of
life. This class, too, if we mistake not, will be found
numerous in our days; for it must be considered
that it is the heart, set on these things, which consti-
tutes the essential character. Persons to whose rank
and station these indulgences most properly belong,
often are the most indifferent to them. Undue soli-
citude about them is more visible in persons of in-
ferior conditions and smaller fortunes, in whom it is
detected by the studious contrivances of a misapplied
ingenuity to reconcile parade with economy, and to
glitter at a cheap rate. But this temper of display
and competition is a direct contrast to the lowly,
modest, unassuming carriage of the true Christian :
and wherever there is an evident effort and struggle
to excel in the particulars here in question, a mani-
fest wish thus to rival superiors, to outstrip equals, to
dazzle inferiors ; it is manifest the great end of life,
and of all its possessions, is too little kept in view,
and it is to be feared that the gratification of a vain
ostentatious humor is the predominant disposition of
the heart.
As there is a sober sensuality, so is there also a
sober avarice, and a sober ambition. The commer-
cial and the professional world compose the chief
12
134 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
sphere of their influence. They are often recog-
nised and openly avowed as just master principles
of action. But where this is not the case, they as-
sume such plausible shapes, are called by such
specious names, and urge such powerful pleas, that
they are received with cordiality, and suffered to
gather strength without suspicion. The seducing
considerations of diligence in our callings, of suc-
cess in our profession, of making handsome pro-
visions for our children, beguile our better judg-
ments. " We rise early, and late take rest, and eat
the bread of carefulness." In our few intervals of
leisure, our exhausted spirits require refreshment ;
the serious concerns of our immortal souls are matters
of speculation too grave and gloomy to answer the
purpose, and we fly to something that may better
deserve the name of relaxation, till we are again
summoned to the daily labors of our employment.
Meanwhile religion scarcely occurs to our
thoughts ; and when some secret misgivings begin
to be felt on this head, company soon drowns, amuse-
ments dissipate, or habitual occupations insensibly
displace or smother the rising apprehension. Pro-
fessional and commercial men often quiet their
consciences by the plea, that their business leaves
them no time to think on these serious subjects at
present. " Men of leisure they confess should con-
sider them ; they themselves will do it hereafter
when they retire; meanwhile they are usefully, or at
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 135
least innocently employed." Thus business and plea-
sure fill up our time, and the " one thing needful " is
forgotten. Respected by others, and secretly applaud-
ing ourselves, perhaps congratulating ourselves that
we are not like such a one who is a spendthrift or
a mere man of pleasure, or such another who is a
notorious miser, the true principle of action is no
less wanting in us, and personal advancement or the
acquisition of wealth is the object of our supreme
desires and predominant pursuit.
It would be too much to attempt the delineation of
the characters of the politician, the metaphysician,
the scholar, the poet, the virtuoso, the man of taste,
in all their varieties. Of these and many other
classes, suffice it to appeal to every man's own expe-
rience for the truth of the observation, that they in
like manner are often completely engrossed by their
several pursuits. In many cases, indeed, a generous
spirit surrenders itself wholly up with the less re-
serve, and continues absorbed with the fuller con-
fidence, from the consciousness of not being led by
self-interested motives. Here therefore these men are
ardent, active, laborious, persevering, and they think,
and speak, and act, as those the whole happiness of
whose life turns on the success or failure of their
endeavors. Let not the writer be supposed to in-
sinuate that religion is an enemy to the pursuits of
taste, much less to those of learning and of science.
Let these have their due place in the estimation of
136 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
mankind ; but this must not be the highest place.
Let them know their just subordination. They de-
serve not to be the primary concern, for there is
another, to which in importance they bear no more
proportion than our span of existence to eternity.
Thus the supreme desires of the heart are per-
mitted without control to take that course, whatever
it may be, which best suits our natural temper, or to
which they are impelled by our various situations
and circumstances. " Know thyself," is in truth an
injunction with which the careless and the indolent
cannot comply. For this compliance, it is requisite,
in obedience to the Scripture precept, " to keep the
heart with all diligence." Mankind are in general
deplorably ignorant of their true state ; and there are
few who have any adequate conception of the real
strength of the ties by which they are bound to the
several objects of their attachment, or who are aware
how small a share of their regard is possessed by
those concerns on which it ought to be supremely
fixed.
But God requires to set up his throne in the heart,
and to reign in it without a rival : if he be kept out of
his right, it matters not by what competitor. The
revolt may be more avowed or more secret ; it may
be the treason of deliberate preference, or of incon-
siderate levity ; 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 whether
THfi JfATtRE OF CHRISTIANITY. 137
the slaves of avarice, of sensuality, of dissipation, of
sloth, or the votaries of ambition, of taste, or of
fashion ; whether supremely governed by vanity and
self-love, by the desire of literary fame or of military
glory, we are alike estranged from the dominion of
our rightful Sovereign. Let not this seem a harsh
position ; it can appear so only from not adverting
to what was shown to be the essential nature of true
religion. He who bowed the knee to the god of
medicine or of eloquence, was no less an idolater
than the worshiper of the deified patrons of lewdness
or of theft. In the several cases which have been
specified, the external acts indeed are different, but
in principle the disaffection is the same ; and we
must prepare to meet the punishment of rebels on
that tremendous day, when all false colors 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
often highly esteemed amongst men, shall appear to
have been abomination in the sight of God."
These fundamental truths seem vanished from the
mind, and it follo\vs of course, that every thing is
viewed less and less through a religious medium.
To speak no longer 'of instances wherein we our-
selves are concerned, what are the judgments which
men form in the case of others ? Idleness, profusion,
thoughtlessness, and dissipation, the misapplication
of time or of talents, the trifling away of life in
12*
138 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
frivolous occupations or unprofitable studies; all
these thing^s we may regret in those around us, in
the view of their temporal effects ; but they are not
considered in a religious connexion, or lamented as
endangering everlasting happiness. Excessive vani-
ty and inordinate ambition are spoken of as weak-
nesses 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 some common acquaintance sick, or has some
accident befallen him ? How solicitously do we in-
quire after him, how tenderly do we visit him, how
much perhaps do we regret that he has not better
advice, and' how should we reproach ourselves if we
were to neglect any means in our power of contri-
buting to his recovery ! But " the mind is diseased,"
is neglected and forgotten — " that is not our affair ;
we hope, we do not perhaps really believe, that here
it is well with him." The truth is, we have no so-
licitude about his spiritual interest. Here he is
treated like the unfortunate traveler in the Gospel ;
we look upon him ; we see but too well his sad con-
dition, but (priest and Levite alike) we pass by on
the other side, and leave him to the officious tender-
ness of some poor despised Samaritan.
Nay, take the case of our very children, when our
hearts being most interested to promote their happi-
ness, we must bo supposed most desirous of deter-
mining on right principles, and where therefore the
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 139
real standard of our deliberate judgments may be
indisputably ascertained : in their education and mar-
riage, in the choice of their professions, in our com-
parative consideration and judgment of the different
parts of their several characters, how little do we
reflect that they are immortal beings ! Health, learn-
ing, credit ; the amiable and agreeable qualities ;
above all, fortune and success in life, are taken, and
not unjustly taken, into the account; but how small
a share in forming our opinions is allowed to the
probable effect which may be produced on their
eternal interests ! Indeed, the subjects of our mutual
inquiries, and congratulations, and condolences, prove
but too plainly what considerations are in these cases
uppermost in our thoughts.
Such are the fatal and widely spreading efiects
which follow from the admission of the grand funda-
mental error before mentioned, that of not consider-
ing religion as a principle of universal application
and command. Robbed of its best energies, religion
now takes the form of a cold compilation of restraints
and prohibitions. Considering, moreover, that the
matter of them is not in general very palatable, and
that the partiality of every man, where his own cause
is in question, will be likely to make him construe
them liberally in his own favor, we might before-
hand have formed a tolerable judgment of the man-
ner in which they are actually treated. Sometimes
we attend to the words rather than to the spirit of
140 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Scripture injunctions, overlooking the principle they
involve, which a better acquaintance with the word
of God would have clearly taught us to infer from
them. At others, " the spirit of an injunction is all ;"
and this we contrive to collect so dexterously, as
thereby to relax or annul the strictness of the terms.
They sa3^ "Whatever is not expressly forbidden
cannot be very criminal ; whatever is not positively
enjoined, cannot be indispensably necessary. If we
do not offend against the laws, what more can be
expected from us ? — The persons to whom the strict
precepts of the Gospel were given, were in very dif-
ferent circumstances from those in which we are
placed. The injunctions were drawn rather tighter
than is quite necessary, in order to allow for a little
relaxation in practice. The expressions of the sa-
cred writers are figurative ; the eastern style is con-
fessedly hyperbolical."
By these and other such dishonest shifts, by which
however we seldom deceive ourselves, except it be
in thinking that we deceive others, the pure but
strong morality of the word of God is explained
away, and its too rigid canons are softened down
with as much dexterity as is exhibited by those who
practice a logic of the same complexion, in order to
escape from the obligations of human statutes.
But when the law, both in its spirit and its letter,
is obstinate and incorrigible, what we cannot bend to
our purpose we must break. Hear excuses of this
THB NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 141
nature : " Our sins, we hope, are of the smaller order;
a little harmless gallantry, a little innocent jollity, a
few foolish expletives which we use from the mere
force of habit, meaning nothing by them ; a little
warmth of coloring and license of expression ; a
few freedoms of speech in the gayety of our hearts,
which, though not perhaps strictly correct, none but
the over-rigid would think of treating any otherwise
than as venial infirmities, and in which very grave
and religious men will often take their share, when
they may throw off their state, and relax without im-
propriety. We serve an all-merciful Being, who
knows the frailty of our nature, the number and
strength of our temptations, and will not be extreme
to mark what is done amiss. Even the less lenient
judicatures of human institution concede somewhat
to the weakness of man. It is an established maxim
— ' De minimis non curat lex.' We hope we are not
worse than the generality. All men are imperfect.
We own we have our infirmities ; we confess it is
so ; we wish we were better, and trust, as we grow
older, we shall become so ; we are ready to acknow-
ledge that we must be indebted for our admission
into a future state of happiness, not to our own merit,
but to the clemency of God, and the mercy of our
Redeemer."
But let not this language be mistaken for that of
true Christian humiliation, of which it is the very
essence to feel the burden of sin, and to long to be
142 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
released from it : nor let two things be confounded,
than which none can be more fundamentally differ-
ent— the allowed want of universality in our deter-
mination and our endeavor to obey the will of God,
and that defective accomplishment of our purposes,
which even the best of men will too often find reason
to deplore. In the persons of whom we now have been
speaking, the unconcern with which they can amuse
themselves upon the borders of sin, and the easy
familiarity with which they can actually dally with
it in its less offensive shapes, show plainly that, dis-
tinctly from its consequences, it is by no means the
object of their aversion ; that there is no love of ho-
liness as such: no endeavor to acquire it, no care to
prepare the soul for the reception of this divine
principle, and to expel or keep under whatever
might be likely to obstruct its entrance, or dispute
its sovereignty.
It is indeed a most lamentable consequence of the
practice . of regarding religion as a compilation of
statutes, and not as an internal principle, that it soon
comes to be considered as being conversant about
external actions, rather than about habits of mind.
This sentiment sometimes has even the hardiness to
insinuate and maintain itself under the guise of ex-
traordinary concern for practical religion ; but it
soon discovers the falsehood of this pretension, and
betrays its real nature. The expedient indeed of
attaining to superiority in practice, by not wasting
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 143
any of the attention on the internal principles from
which alone practice can flow, is about as reasonable,
and will answer about as well, as the economy of
the architect Avho should account it mere prodigality
to expend any of his materials in laying foundations,
from an idea that they might be more usefully ap-
plied to the raising of the superstructure. We know
what would be the fate of such an edifice.
It is indeed true, and a truth never to be forgotten,
that all pretensions to internal principles of holiness
are vain, when they are contradicted by the conduct ;
but it is no less true, that the only effectual way of
improving the latter, is by a vigilant attention to the
former. It was therefore our blessed Savior's in-
junction, "Make the tree good" as the necessary
means of obtaining good fruit ; and the holy Scrip-
tures abound in admonitions, to let it be our chief
business to cultivate our hearts with all diligence,
to examine into their state with impartiality, and
vratch over them with continual care. Indeed it is
the heart which constitutes the man ; and external
actions derive their whole character and meaning
from the motives and dispositions of which they are
the indications. Human judicatures, it is true, are
chiefly conversant about the former ; but this is only
because, to our limited perceptions, the latter can sel-
dom be any otherwise clearly ascertained. The real
object of inquiry to human judicatures is the internal
disposition ; it is to this that they adapt the nature,
and proportion the degree of their punishments.
144 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS Of
Yet though this be a truth so obvious, so es-
tablished, that to have insisted on it may seem al-
most needless ; it is a truth of which we are apt to
lose sight in the review of our religious character,
and with which the habit of considering religion as
consisting rather in external actions than internal
principles, is at direct and open war. This mode of
judging may well be termed habitual ; for though by
some persons it is advisedly adopted and openly
avowed, yet in many cases, for want of due watch-
fulness, it has stolen insensibly upon the mind; it
exists unsuspected, and is practiced, like other habits,
without consciousness or observation.
In what degree soever this pernicious principle
prevails, in that degree is the mischief it produces.
The vicious affections, like noxious weeds, sprout
up and increase of themselves out too naturally ;
while the graces of the Christian temper, exotics in
the soil of the human heart, like the more tender
productions of the vegetable world, though the light
and breath of heaven must quicken them, require, on
our part also, constant and assiduous care. But so
far from their being earnestly sought for, or watch-
fully reared, with unremitted prayers for that divine
grace, without which all our labors must be ineffec-
tual ; such is the result of the principle we are here
condemning, that no endeavors are used for their at-
tainment, or they are suffered to droop and die al-
most without an effort to preserve them- Way being
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 145
thus made for the unobstructed growth of other tem-
pers, the qualities of which are very different, and
often directly opposite, these naturally overspread
and quietly possess the mind ; their contrariety to the
Christian spirit not being discerned, and even perhaps
their presence being scarcely acknowledged, except
when their existence and their nature are manifested
in the conduct, by marks too plain to be overlooked
or mistaken.
Some of the most important branches of the
Christian temper, wherein the bulk of nominal
Christians appear eminently and allowedly defective,
have been already noticed in this and in the pre-
ceding chapter. Many others still remain to be par-
ticularized.
First, then, it is the comprehensive compendium
of the character of true Christians, that " they are
walking by faith, and not by sight." By this de-
scription is meant, not merely that they so firmly
believe in the doctrine of future rewards and punish-
ments, as to be influenced by that persuasion to ad-
here in the main to the path of duty, though tempted
to forsake it by present interest and present gratifi-
cation ; 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 about which habitually their hearts are most in-
terested. This state of mind contributes, if the ex-
pression may be allowed, to rectify the illusions of
13
146 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
vision, to bring forward into nearer view those eter-
nal things which, from their remoteness, are apt to be
cither wholly overlooked, or to appear but faintly in
the utmost bounds of the horizon ; and to remove
backward, and reduce to their true comparative di-
mensions, the objects of the present life, which are
apt to fill the human eye, assuming a false magni-
tude from their vicinity. The true Christian knows
from experience, however, that the former are apt
to fade from the sight, and the latter again to swell
on it. He makes it therefore his continual care to
preserve those just and enlightened views which,
through divine mercy, he has obtained. Not that
he will retire from that station in the world which
Providence seems to have appointed him to fill : he
will be active in the business of life, and enjoy its
comforts with moderation and thankfulness ; but he
will not give up his whole soul to them, they will
be habitually subordinate in his estimation to objects
of .more importance. The awful truth has sunk
deep into his mind, "the things which are seen are
temporal, but the things which 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, " The fashion of this world passes away."
This circumstance alone must, it is obvious, consti-
tute a vast difference between the habitual temper of
his mind, and that of the generality of nominal
Christians, who are almost entirely taken up with
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 147
the concerns of the present world. They know in
deed that they are mortal, but they do not feel it
The truth rests in 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
etehial things, which, attended with a proportionate
sense of the shortness and uncertainty of all below,
while it prompts to activity from a conviction that
" the night cometh when no man can work," pro-
duces a certain firmness of texture, which hardens
us against the buffets of fortune, and prevents our
being very deeply penetrated by the cares and in-
terests, the goods or evils of this transitory state.
Thus this just impression of the relative value of
temporal and eternal things maintains in the soul
a dignified composure through all the vicissitudes
of life. It quickens our diligence, yet moderates our
ardor; urges us to just pursuits, yet checks any
undue solicitude about the success of them, and
thereby enables us, in the language of Scripture,
"to use this world as not abusing it," rendering us
at once beneficial to others and comfortable to our-
selves.
But this is not all: besides the distinction be-
tween the nominal and the real Christian, which
results from the impressions produced on them re-
spectively by the eternal duration of heavenly things,
there is another grounded on their nature, no less
148 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
marked nor less important. They are stated in
Scripture, not only as entitling themselves to the no-
tice of the true Christian from considerations of in-
terest, but as approving themselves to his judgment,
from a conviction of their excellence ; and yet farther,
as recommending themselves to his feelings by their
being suited to the renewed dispositions of his heart.
Indeed, v^^ere the case otherwise, did not their quali-
ties correspond with his inclinations, hovt'ever he
might endure them on principles of duty, and be
coldly conscious of their superior worth, he could
not lend himself to them with cordial complacency,
much less look to them as the surest source of
pleasure. But this is the light in which they are
habitually regarded by the true Christian. He
walks in the ways of religion, not by constraint, but
willingly ; they are to him not only safe, but com
fortable ; " ways of pleasantness as well as of peace."
Not but that here also he is, from experience, aware
of the necessity of constant support, and continual
watchfulness : without these, his old estimate of
things is apt to return on him, and the former ob-
jects of his affections to resume their influence.
With earnest prayers, therefore, for the Divine help,
with jealous circumspection and resolute self-denial
he guards against, and abstains from whatever
might be likely again to darken his enlightened
"udgment or to vitiate his reformed taste ; thus mak-
hig it his unwearied endeavor to grow in the know-
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 149
ledge and love of heavenly things, and to obtain a
warmer admiration and a more cordial relish of
their excellence.
That this is a just representation of the habitual
judgment, and of the leading disposition of true
Christians, will be abundantly evident, if, endeavor-
ing to "form ourselves after our proper model, we
consult the Sacred Scripture. But in vain are Chris-
tians there represented as having set their affections
on things above, as cordially rejoicing in the service
and delighting in the worship of God. Pleasure and
religion are contradictory terms with the buVtc of
nominal Christians. They may look back indeed
on their religious offices with something of secret
satisfaction, and even feel it during the performance
of them, from the idea of being engaged in the dis-
charge of a duty ; but this is altogether different
from the pleasure which attends an employment in
itself acceptable and grateful to us. The writer
must here again guard against being understood to
speak of a deficiency in the warmth and vehemence
merely of religious affections. Are the service and
worship of God pleasant to these persons ? it is not
asked whether they are delightful. Do they diffuse
over the soul any thing of that calm complacency,
that mild and grateful composure, which bespeaks
a mind in good humor with itself and all around,
and engaged in a service suited to its taste, and con-
genial with its feelings?
13*
150 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Let us appeal to the day especially devoted to the
offices of religion : Do they joyfully avail them-
selves of this blessed opportunity of withdrawing
from the business and cares of life ; when, without
being disquieted by any doubt whether they are not
neglecting the duties of their proper callings, they
may be allowed to detach their minds from earthly
things, that by a fuller knowledge of heavenly ob-
jects, and a more habitual acquaintance with them,
their hope may grow more "full of immortality?"
Is the day cheerfully devoted to those holy exercises
for which it was appointed ? Do they indeed " come
into the courts of God with gladness?'' And how
are they employed when not engaged in the public
services of the day ? Are they busied in studying the
word of God, in meditating on his perfection, in
tracing his providential dispensations, in admiring
his works, in revolving his mercies — above all, the
transcendent mercies of redeeming love — in singing
his praises, "and speaking good of his name?" Do
their secret retirements witness the earnestness of
their prayers and the warmth of their thanksgiv-
ings, their diligence and impartiality in the necessa-
ry work of self-examination, their mindfulness of
the benevolent duty of intercession ? Is the kind
purpose of the institution of a Sabbath answered by
them, in its being made to their servants and de-
pendants a season of rest and comfort ? Does the
instruction of their families, or of the more poor and
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 151
ignorant of their neighbors, possess its due share of
their time ? If blessed Avith talents or with affluence,
are they sedulously employing a part of this inter-
val of leisure in relieving the indigent, visiting the
sick, and comforting the sorrowful — in forming plans
for the good of their fellow-creatures, in considering
how they may promote both the temporal and spiri-
tual benefit of their friends and acquaintance ; or
if theirs is a larger sphere, in devising measures
whereby, through the Divine blessing, they may
become the honored instruments of the more extend-
ed diffusion of religious truth ? In the hours of do-
mestic or social intercourse, does their conversation
manifest the subject of which their hearts are full 1
Do their language and demeanor show them to be
more than commonly gentle, and kind, and friendly,
free from rough and irritating passions ?
Surely an entire day should not seem long amidst
these various employments. It might well be deem-
ed a privilege thus to spend it in the more imme-
diate presence of our heavenly Father, in the exer-
cises of humble 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 cares suspended, all fears repressed,
every angry emotion softened, every envious, or re-
vengeful, or malignant passion expelled ; and the
152 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
bosom thus quieted, purified, enlarged, ennobled, par-
taking almost of a measure of the heavenly happi
ness, and become for a while the seat of love, and
joy, 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 will be found,
when thus employed, eminently conducive, through
the Divine blessing, to the maintenance of the reli-
gious principle in activity and vigor ; but also be-
cause we must all have had occasion often to re-
mark, that many persons, of the graver and more
decent sort, seem not seldom to 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, which is not claimed by the public offices
of the church, dully drawls on in comfortless
vacuity, or without improvements, is trifled away
in vain and unprofitable discourse. Not to speak of
those who, by their more daring profanation of this
sacred season, openly -^^iolate the laws and insult the
religion of their country, how little do many seem
to enter into the spirit of the institution who are not
wholly inattentive to its exterior decorums ! How
glad are they to qualify the rigor of their religious
labors ! How hard do they plead against being com-
pelled to devote the whole of the day to religion,
claiming to themselves no small merit for giving up
to it a part, and purchasing therefore, as they hope,
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 153
a right to spend the remainder more agreeably !
How dextrously do they avail themselves of any
plausible plea for introducing some week-day em-
ployment into the Sunday, whilst they have not the
same propensity to introduce any of the Sunday's
peculiar employment into the rest of the week ! How
often do they find excuses for taking journeys, wri-
ting letters, balancing accounts ; or, in short, doing
something which, by a little management, might pro-
bably have been anticipated, or which, without any
material inconvenience, might be postponed ! Even
business itself is recreation, compared with religion,
and from the drudgery of this day of sacred rest
they fiy for relief to their ordinary occupations.
Others again, who would consider business as a
profanation, and who still hold out against the en-
croachments of the card-table, get over much of the
day, and gladly seek for an innocent resource in the
social circle or in family visits, where it is not even
pretended that the conversation turns on such topics
as might render it in any way conducive to reli-
gious instruction or improvement. Their families,
meanwhile, are neglected, their servants robbed of
Christian privileges, and their example quoted by
others, who cannot see that they are themselves less
religiously employed, while playing an innocent
game at cards or relaxing in the concert-room.
But all these several artifices, whatever they may
be, to unhallow the Sunday, and to change its cha-
154 INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF
Tacter, prove too plainly, however we may be glad
to take refuge in religion, when driven to it by the
loss of every other comfort, and to retain, as it were,
a reversionary interest in an asylum which may re-
ceive us when we are forced from the transitory en-
joyments of our present state ; that in itself it wears
to us a gloomy and forbidding aspect, and not a face
of consolation and joy ; that the worship 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 be their uncomfortable
and melancholy state ; who humbly pray, and dili-
gently endeavor, for an imagination less distracted
at devotional seasons, for a heart more capable of
relishing the excellence of divine things ; and who
carefully guard against whatever has a tendency to
chain down their affections to earthly enjoyments.
Let not such be discouraged. It is not these whom
we are condemning ; but such as know, and even
acknowledge this to be their case, yet proceed in a
way directly contrary ; who, scarcely seeming to sus-
pect that any thing is wrong with them, voluntarily
acquiesce in a state of mind directly contrary to the
positive commands of God, which forms a perfect con-
trast to the representations given us in Scripture of
the christian character, and accords but too faithful-
ly, in one leading feature, with the character of those
THE NATURE OF CHRISTIANITY. 155
who are stated to be the objects of Divine displea-
sure in this life, ard of Divine punishment in the next.
It is not, however, only in these essential constitu-
ents of a devotional frame that the bulk of nominal
Christians are defective. This they freely declare,
secretly feeling perhaps some complacency from the
frankness of the avowal, to be a higher strain of pi-
ety than that to which they aspire. Their forget-
fulness also of some of the leading dispositions of
Christianity, is undeniably apparent in their allow-
ed want of the spirit of kindness, and meekness, and
gentleness, and patience, and long-suffering ; and
above all, of that which is the stock on which alone
these dispositions can grow and flourish, that hu-
mility and lowliness of mind, in which perhaps,
more than in any other quality, may be said to con-
sist the true essence and vital principle of the chris-
tian temper. These dispositions are not only ne-
glected, but even disavowed and exploded ; and their
opposites, if not rising to any great height, are ac-
knowledged and applauded. A just pride, a pro-
per and becoming pride, are terms we daily hear.
To possess a high spirit, to behave with proper spi-
rit when used ill — by which is meant a quick feel-
mg of injuries, and a promptness in resenting them,
entitles to commendation ; and a meek-spirited dis-
position, the highest scripture eulogium, expresses
ideas of disapprobation and contempt. Vanity and
"ain-glory are suffered without interruption to retain
156 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
their natural possession of the heart. But here a
topic opens upon us of such importance, and on
which so many mistakes are to be found, both in the
writings of respectable authors and in the commonly
prevailing opinions of the world, that we must treat
of it in a separate section.
SECTION III.
071 the desire of human estiination and applause. — The gene-
rally prevailing opinions contrasted with those of the true
Christian.
The desire of human estimation, and distinction,
and honor, of the admiration and applause of our
fellow-creatures, if we take it in all its various modi-
fications, from the thirst of glory to the dread of
shame, is the passion of which the empire is by far
the most general, and perhaps the authority the most
commanding. Though its power be most conspicu-
ous in the higher classes of society, it seems to
spare neither age, nor sex, nor condition ; and taking
ten thousand shapes, insinuating itself, under the
most specious pretexts, and sheltering itself, when
necessary, under the most artful disguises, it winds
its way in secret, when it dares not openly avow
itself, and mixes in all we think, and speak, and do.
It is in some instances the determined and declared
pursuit, and confessedly the main practical principle ;
ESTIMATION' AND APPLAUSE. 157
but where this is not the case, it is not seldom the
grand spring of action, and in the beauty and the
author, no less than in the soldier, it is often the
master passion of the soul.
This is the principle Avhich parents recognize
with joy in their infant offspring, which is diligently
instilled and nurtured in advancing years, which,
under the names of honorable ambition and of laud-
able emulation, it is the professed aim of schools and
colleges to excite and cherish. The writer is well
aware that it will be thought he is pushing his
opinions much too far, when he assails this great
principle of human action ; " a principle," its advo-
cates might perhaps exclaim, " the extinction of
which would be like the annihilation in the material
world of the principle of motion ; without it all were
torpid, and cold, and comfortless. We grant," they
might go on to observe, "that we never ought to
deviate from the paths of duty in order to procure
the applause or to avoid the reproaches of men, and
we allow that this is a rule too little attended to in
practice. We grant that the love of praise is in some
instances a ridiculous, and in others a mischievous
passion ; that to it we owe coquettes and coxcombs,
and, a more serious evil, the noxious race of heroes
and conquerors. We too are ready, when it appears
in the shape of vanity, to smile at it as a foible, or
in that of false glory, to condemn it as a crime. But
all these are only its perversions ; and on account of
14
158 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
them to contend against it, were to give in to the error
of arguing against the use of a salutary principle
altogether, on account of its being liable to occasional
abuse. When turned into the right direction, and
applied to its true purposes, it prompts to every dig-
nified and generous enterprise. It forces indolence
into activity, and extorts from vice itself the deeds of
generosity and virtue. When once the soul is warm-
ed by its generous ardor, no difficulties deter, no
dangers terrify, no labors tire. It is this which,
giving by its stamp to what is virtuous and honora-
ble, its just superiority over the gifts of birth and
fortune, rescues the rich from base subjection to the
pleasures of sense, and makes them prefer a course
of toil and hardship to a life of indulgence and ease.
It prevents the man of rank from acquiescing in his
hereditary greatness, and spurs him forward in pur-
suit of personal distinction, and of a nobility which
he may justly term his own. It moderates and quali-
fies the over-great inequalities of human conditions ;
and reaching to those who are above the sphere ol
laws, and extending to cases which fall not within
their province, it limits and circumscribes the power
of the tyrant 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 in the great and the splendid. To
It is to be ascribed a large portion of that courtesy
and disposition to please,* which naturally producing
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 159
a mutual appearance of good will, and a reciproca-
tion of good offices, constitute much of the comfort
of private life. Nay, from the force of habit, it fol-
lows us even into solitude, and in our most secret
retirements we often act as if our conduct were sub-
ject to human observation, and we derive no small
complacency from the imaginary applauses of an
ideal spectator."
So far of the effects of the love of praise and dis-
tinction: and if, after enumerating some of these,
you should proceed to investigate its nature — " We
admit," it might be added, "that a hasty and mis-
judging world often misapplies commendations and
censures ; and whilst we therefore confess that the
praises of the discerning few are alone truly valua-
ble ; we acknowledge that it were better if mankind
were always to act from the sense of right and the
love of virtue, without reference to the opinions of
their fellow-creatures. We even allow that, inde-
pendently of consequences, this were perhaps in
itself a higher strain of virtue ; but it is a degree of
purity which it would be vain to expect from the
bulk of mankind. When the intrinsic excellence of
this principle, however, is called in question, let it be
remembered, that in its higher degrees it was styled,
by one who meant rather to detract from its merits
than to aggravate them, • the infirmity of noble
minds ;' and surely, that in such a soil it most na-
turally springs up and flourishes, is proof of its ex-
alted origin and generous nature.
160 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
*' 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 were enough
to urge in its behalf, that it is a principle of real
action and approved energy. That it is to be pre-
ferred for general use, before those higher principles
of morals which, however just and excellent in them-
selves, you would in vain attempt to bring home to
the ' business and bosoms of mankind/ at large.
Reject not then a principle thus universal in its in-
fluence, thus valuable in its effects; a principle
which, by whatever name you may please to call it,
acts by motives and considerations suited to our con-
dition ; and which, putting it at the very lowest, must
be confessed, in our present infirm state, to be an
habitual aid and an ever-present support to the fee-
bleness of virtue ! 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 not relinquish the good which it freely offers,
from we know not what vain dreams of impractica-
ble purity and unattainable perfection."
All this and much more might be urged by tho
advocates of this favorite principle. It would be,
however, no difficult task to show that it by no means
merits this high eulogium. To say nothing of that
larger part of the argument of our opponents, which
proceeds upon that mischievous notion of the inno-
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE 161
cence of error, the principle in question is manifestly
as inconstant and variable as the innumerably di-
versified modes of fashions, habits, and opinions in
different periods and societies. What it tolerates in
one age, it forbids in another ; what in one country
it prescribes and applauds, in another it condemns
and stigmatizes ! Obviously and openly it often
takes vice into its patronage, and sets itself in direct
opposition to virtue. It is calculated to produce rather
the a'p'pearance than the reality of excellence ; and,
at best, not to check the love, but only the commission
of vice. Much of this indeed was seen and acknow-
ledged by the philosophers, and even by the poets
of the pagan world. They declaimed against it as
a mutable and inconsistent principle ; they lamented
the fatal effects which, under the name of false glory,
it had produced on the peace and happiness of man-
kind. They condemned the pursuit of it when it
led its followers out of the path of virtue, and taught
that the praise of the wise and of the good only was
to be desired.
But it was reserved for the page of Scripture to
point out distinctly wherein this is essentially de-
fective and vicious, and to discover to us more fully
its encroaching nature and dangerous tendencies ;
teaching us at the same time, how, being purified
from its corrupt qualities, and reduced under just
subordination, it may be brought into legitimate
exercise, and be directed to its true end.
14*
162 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
In the sacred volume we are throughout reminded
that we are originally the creatures of God's forma-
tion, and continual dependants on his bounty. There
too we learn the painful lesson of man's degradation
and unworthiness. We learn that humiliation and
contrition are the tempers of mind best suited to our
fallen condition, and most acceptable in the sight of
our Creator. We learn that these it should be our
habitual care to cherish and cultivate, (to the repres-
sion and extinction of that spirit of arrogance and
self-importance which is so natural to the heart
of man,) studiously maintaining a continual sense
that, not only for all the natural advantages over
others which we may possess, but that for all our
moral superiority also, we are altogether indebted to
the unmerited goodness of God. It might perhaps
be said to be the great end and purpose of all reve-
lation, and especially to be the design of the Gospel,
to reclaim us from our natural pride and selfishness,
and their fatal consequences ; to bring us to a just
sense of our weakness and depravity; and to dispose
us, with unfeigned humiliation, to abase ourselves,
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 man shall be humbled,
and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down,
and the Lord alone shall be exalted." Isa. 2:11.
These solemn admonitions are too generally dis-
regarded, their mtimate connexion with this subject
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. L63
has been often entirely overlooked, even by Chris-
tian moralists. These authors, without reference to
the main -spring-, and internal principle of conduct,
are apt to speak of the love of human applause as
being meritorious or culpable, as being the desire of
true or of false glory, accordingly as the external
actions it produces, and the pursuits to which it
prompts, are beneficial or mischievous to mankind.
But it is undeniably manifest, that in the judgment
of the word of God, the love of worldly admiration
and applause is in its nature essentially and radically
corrupt ; so far as it partakes of a disposition to exalt
and aggrandize ourselves, to pride ourselves on our
natural or acquired endowments, or to assume to
ourselves the merit and credit of our good qualities,
instead of ascribing all the honor and glory where
only they are due. Its guilt therefore, in these cases,
is not to be measured by its effects on the happiness
of mankind : nor is it to be denominated true or false
glory, accordingly as the ends to which it is directed
are beneficial or mischievous, just or unjust objects
vi pursuit ; but it is false, because it exalts that which
jught to be abased; and criminal, because it en-
croaches on the prerogative of God.
The Scriptures further instruct us, not merely
that mankind are liable to error, and therefore that
the world's commendations may be sometimes mis-
taken : but that their judgment being darkened and
heir hearts depraved, its applauses and contempt
164 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
will for the most part be systematically misplaced ;
that though the beneficent and disinterested spirit of
Christianity, and her obvious tendency to promote
domestic comfort and general happiness, cannot but
extort applause ; yet that her aspiring after more
than ordinary excellence, by exciting secret mis-
givings in others, or a painful sense of inferiority
not unmixed with envy, cannot fail often to disgust
and offend. The word of God teaches us, that
though such of the doctrines and precepts of Chris-
tianity as are coincident with worldly interests and
pursuits, and with worldly principles and systems,
may be professed without offence ; yet, that what is
opposite to these, or even different from them, will
be deemed needlessly precise and strict, the indul-
gence of a morose and gloomy humor, the symptoms
of a contracted and superstitious spirit, the marks of
a mean, enslaved, or distorted understanding: that
for these and other reasons the follower of Christ
must not only make up his mind to the occasional
relinquishment of worldly favor, but that it should
even afford him matter of holy jealousy and sus-
picion of himself, when it is very lavishly and very
generally bestowed.
But though the standard of worldly estimation
differed less from that of the Gospel ; yet, since our
affections ought to be set on heavenly things, and
conversant about heavenly objects ; and since, in par.
dcular, the love and favor of God ought to be tha
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 165
matter of our supreme and habitual desire, to which
every other should be subordinated ; it follows that
the love of human applause must be manifestly in-
jurious, so far as it tends to bound and circumscribe
our desires within the narrow limits of this world;
particularly that it is impure, so far as it is tinctured
with a disposition to estimate too highly, and love
too well, the good opinion and commendations of
man.
But though the holy Scripture warns us against
the inordinate desire or earnest pursuit of worldly
estimation and honor, though it so greatly reduces
their value, and prepares us for losing them without
surprise, and for relinquishmg them with little re-
luctance ; yet it teaches us that Christians in general
are not only not called upon absolutely and volun-
tarily to renounce or forego them, but that when,
without our having solicitously sought them, they
are bestowed on us for actions intrinsically good, we
are to accept them as being intended by Providence,
to be sometimes, even in this disorderly state of
things, a present solace, and a reward to virtue.
Nay more, we are instructed, that in our general
deportment, that in little particulars of conduct other-
Avise indifferent, that in the circumstances and man-
ner of performing actions in themselves of a deter-
mined character and indispensable obligation, guard-
ing however against the smallest degree of artifice
or deceit ; that by watching for opportunities of doings
166 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
little kindnesses, that by avoiding singularities, and
even humoring prejudices, where it maybe done with-
out the slightest infringement on truth or duty, we
ought to have a due respect and regard to the ap-
probation and favor of men. These, however, we
should not value chiefly as they administer to our
own gratification, but as furnishing means and in-
struments of influence, which we may turn to good
account, by making them subservient to the im-
provement and happiness of our fellow-creatures,
and thus conducive to the glory of God. The re-
mark is almost superfluous, that on occasions like
these we must even watch our hearts with the most
jealous care, lest pride and self-love insensibly infuse
themselves, and corrupt the purity of principles so
liable to contract a taint.
Credit and reputation, in the judgment of the true
Christian, stand on ground not very difl^erent from
riches ; which he is not to prize highly, or to desire
and pursue with solicitude ; but which, when they
are allotted to him by the hand of Providence, he is
to accept with^ thankfulness, and to use with mode-
ration ; relinquishing them when it becomes neces-
sary, without a murmur ; guarding most circum-
spectly, so long as they remain with him, against
that sensual and selfish temper, and no less against
that pride and wantonness of heart which they are
too apt to produce and cherish ; thus considering
them as in themselves acceptable, but, from the in-
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 167
I
firmity of his nature, as highly dangerous posses-
sions ; and valuing them not as instruments of luxury
or splendor, but as affording the means of honoring
his heavenly Benefactor, and lessening the miseries
of mankind.
Christianity, however, proposes not to extinguish
our natural desires, but to bring them under just
control, and direct them to their true objects. Whilst
she commands us not to set our hearts on earthly
treasures, she reminds us that " we have in heaven
a better and more enduring substance" than this
world can bestow ; and while she represses our so-
licitude respecting earthly credit, and moderates
our attachment to it, she holds forth to us, and bids
us habitually to aspire after the splendors of that
better state, where is true glory, and honor, and im-
mortality ; thus exciting in us a just ambition, suited
to our high origin, and worthy of our large capaci-
ties, which the little, misplaced, and perishable dis-
tinctions of this life, would in vain attempt to satisfy.
It would be mere waste of time to enter into any
labored argument to prove at large, that the light in
which worldly credit and estimation are regarded,
by the bulk of professed Christians, is extremely
different 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 na-
ture of things cannot be called into exercise in the
generality of mankind ; because, being conversant
168 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
about great objects, it can but rarely find that field
which is requisite for its exertions. But we every
where discover the same principle reduced to the
dimensions of common life, and modified and directed
according to every one's sphere of action. We may
discover it in a supreme Jove of distinction, and ad-
miration, and praise; in the universal acceptableness
of flattery; and above all, in the excessive valuation
of our worldly character, in that watchfulness with
which it is guarded, in that jealousy when it is ques-
tioned, in that solicitude when it is in danger, in
that hot resentment when it is attacked, in that bit-
terness of suffering when it is impaired or lost. All
these emotions, as they are too manifest to be dis-
puted, so they are too reputable to be denied. Dis-
honor, disgrace, and shame present images of horror
too dreadful to be faced; they are evils, which it is
thought the mark of a generous spirit to consider as
excluding every idea of comfort and enjoyment, and
to feel, in short, as too heavy to be borne.
The consequences of all this are natural and ob-
vious. Though it be not openly avowed that we are
to follow after worldly estimation, or to escape from
disrepute, when they can only be pursued or avoided
by declining from the path of duty; nay, though the
contrary be recognised as being the just opinion ;
yet all the effect of this speculative concession is
soon done away in fact. Estimating worldly credit
as of the highest intrinsic excellence, and worldly
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 169
shame as the greatest of all possible evils, we some-
times shape and turn the path of duty itself from its
true direction, so as it may favor our acquisition of
the one and avoidance of the other ; or when this
cannot be done, we boldly and openly turn aside
from it, declaring the temptation is too strong 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 conceal herself
from the view; for we might hope that in these cases
she often is by no means altogether extinct ; by her
being apt to vanish from our conversations, and even
to give place to a pretended licentiousness of senti-
ments and conduct, and a false show of infidelity.
It is proved by that complying acquiescence and
participation in the habits and manners of this dis-
sipated age, which has almost confounded every ex-
ternal distinction between the Christian and the in-
fidel, and has made it so rare to find any one who
dares incur the charge of Christian singularity, or
who can say with the apostle that " he is not asham-
ed of the Gospel of Christ." It is proved (how can
this proof be omitted by one to whose lot it has so
often fallen to witness and lament, sometimes, he
fears, to afibrd an instance of it?) by that quick re-
sentment, those bitter contentions, those angry re-
torts, those malicious triumphs, that impatience of
inferiority, that wakeful sense of past defeats, and
15
170 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
promptness to revenge them, which too often change
the character of a christian deliberative assembly into
that of a stage for prize-fighters : violating at once
the proprieties of public conduct and the rules of
social decorum, and renouncing and chasing away-
all the charities of the religion of Jesus !
But from all lesser proofs our attention is drawn
to one of a still larger size, and more determined
character. Surely the reader will here anticipate
mention ofthe practice of duelling; a practice which,
to the disgrace of a christian society, has long been
sufl^ered to exist with little restraint or opposition.
This practice, whilst it powerfully supports, mainly
rests on that excessive over-valuation of character
which teaches that worldly credit is to be preserved
at any rate, and disgrace at any rate to be avoided.
The unreasonableness of duelling has been often
proved, and it has often been shown to be criminal,
on various principles. But it seems hardly to have
been enough noticed in what chiefly consists its es-
sential guilt ; that it is a deliberate preference of the
favor of man, before the favor and approbation of
God, in articulo mortis, in an instant, wherein our
own life and that of a fellow-creature are at stake,
and wherein we run the risk of rushing into the
presence of our Maker in the very act of offending
him. It would detain us too long, and it were some-
what beside our present purpose, to enumerate the
mischievous consequences which result from this
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 171
practice. They are many and great ; and if regard
be had merely to the temporal interests of men, and
to the well-being of society, they are but poorly met
by the plea, which must be admitted in its behalf by
a candid observer of human nature, of a courtesy and
refinement in our modern manners unknown to an-
cient times.
But there is one observation which has been too
much overlooked. In the judgment of that religion
which requires purity of heart, and of that Being to
whom, as was before remarked, "thought is action,"
he cannot be esteemed innocent of this crime who
lives in a settled habitual determination to commit it,
when circumstances shall call upon him so to do.*
This is a consideration which places the crime of
duelling on a different footing from almost any other;
indeed there is perhaps no other, which mankind
habitually and deliberately resolve to practice when-
ever the temptation shall occur. It shows also that
the crime of duelling is far more general in the
higher classes than is commonly supposed, and that
the whole sum of the guilt which the practice pro-
duces is great beyond what has perhaps been ever
conceived ! It will be the writer's comfort to have
solemnly suggested this consideration to the con-
sciences of those by whom this impious practice
iT_lght be suppressed : if such there be, which he is
* As, " Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her,
liath committed adultery with her/' &c. Matt. 5 : 28
172 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
Strongly inclined to believe, theirs is the crime, and
theirs the responsibility of suffering it to continue.
In the foregoing observations it has not been the
writer's intention to discuss completely that copious
subject, the love of worldly estimation. Enough
however may have been said, to make it evident
that this principle is of a character highly question-
able ; that it should be brought under subjection, and
watched with the most jealous care ; that, notwith-
standing its lofty pretensions, it often can by no
means justly boast that high origin and exalted na-
ture which its superficial admirers are disposed to
concede to it. What real, intrinsic, essential value,
it might be asked, does there appear to be in a virtue
which had wholly changed its nature and character,
if public opinion had been different? But it is, in
truth, of base extraction and ungenerous qualities,
springing from selfishness, and vanity, and low am-
bition ; by these it subsists, and thrives, and acts ; and
envy, and jealousy, and detraction, and hatred, and
variance, are its faithful and natural associates. If
it sometimes stimulates to great and generous enter-
prises ; if it urges to industry, and sometimes to ex-
cellence ; if in the more contracted sphere it produces
courtesy and kindness ; yet to its account we must
place the ambition which desolates nations, and many
of the competitions and resentments which interrupt
the harmony of social life. The former indeed has
been often laid to its charge, but the latter have not
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE, 173
Deen sufficiently attended to ; and still less has its
noxious influence on the vital principle and distin-
guishing graces of the christian character been duly
pointed out and enforced.
To read the writings of certain christian moral-
ists,* and to observe how little they seem disposed to
call it in question, except where it raves in the con-
queror, one should be almost tempted to suspect that,
considering it as a principle-of such potency and pre-
valence, as that they must despair of bringing it into
just subjection, they were intent only on compliment-
ing it into good humor, like those barbarous nations
which worship the evil spirit through fear ; or rather,
that they were making a sort of composition with an
enemy they could not master, and were willing, on
condition of its giving up the trade of war, to suffe:
It to rule undisturbed, and range at pleasure.
But the truth is, that the reasonings of christian
moralists too often exhibit but few traces of the genius
of christian morality. Of this position, the case be-
fore us is an instance. This principle of the desire
of worldly distinction and applause is often allowed,
and even commended, with too few qualifications, and
too little reserve. To covet wealth is base and sordid,
but to covet honor is treated as the mark of a ge-
nerous and exalted nature. These writers scarcely
seem to bear in mind, that though the principle in
* See in particular a paper in the Guardian, by Addison,
on Honor, vol. ii.
15*
174 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
question tends to prevent the commission of those
grosser acts of vice which would injure us in the
general estimation ; yet that it not only stops there,
but that it there begins to exert almost an equal force
in the opposite direction. They do not consider how
apt this principle is, even in the case of those who
move in a contracted sphere, to fill us with vain con-
ceits and vicious passions ; and above all, how it
tends to fix the afTections on earthly things, and to
steal away the heart from God. They acknowledge
it to be criminal when it produces mischievous ef-
fects, but forget how apt it is, by the substitution of
a false and corrupt motive, to vitiate the purity of
our good actions, depriving them of all which ren-
dered them truly and essentially valuable. Thai,
not to be too hastily approved, because it takes the
side of virtue, it often works her ruin while it as-
serts her cause, and like some vile seducer, pretends
affection, only the more surely to betray.
It is the distinguishing glory of Christianity not
to rest satisfied with superficial appearances, but to
rectify the motives and purify the heart. The true
Christian, in obedience to the lessons of Scripture,
no where keeps over himself a more resolute and
jealous guard, than where the desire of human esti-
mation and distinction is in question. No where
does he more deeply feel the insufficiency of his un-
assisted strength, or more diligently and earnestly
pray for Divine assistance. He may well indeed
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 175
watch and pray against the encroachments of a pas-
sion, which, when suffered to transgress its just
limits, discovers a peculiar hostility to the distin-
guishing graces of the Christian temper ; a passion
which must insensibly acquire force, because it is in
continual exercise ; to which almost every thing
without administers nutriment, and the growth of
which within is favored and cherished by such
powerful auxiliaries as pride and selfishness, the
natural and perhaps inexterminable inhabitants of
the human heart ; of which the predominance, if es-
tablished, is thus so pernicious, and which possesses
so many advantages for effecting its establishment.
Strongly impressed therefore with a sense of the
indispensable necessity of guarding against the pro-
gress of this encroaching principle, in humble reli-
ance on superior aid, the true Christian thankfully
uses the means, and habitually exercises himself in
the considerations and motives suggested to him for
that purpose by the word of God. He is much occu-
pied in searching out his own infirmities. He endea-
vors to acquire and maintain a just conviction of his
great unworthiness ; and to keep m-.continual re-
membrance, that whatever distinguishes himself from
others, is not properly his own, but that he is alto-
gether indebted for it to the undeserved bounty of
Heaven. He dili^ntly endeavors, also, habitually
to preserve a just sense of the real worth of human
distinction and applause, knowing that he shall covet
176 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
them less when he has learned not to overrate their
value. He labors to bear in mind how undeservedly
they are often bestowed, how precariously they are
always possessed. The censures of good men justly
render him suspicious of himself, and prompt him
carefully and impartially to examine into those parts
of his character, or those particulars of his conduct,
which have drawn on him their animadversions.
The favorable opinion and the praises of good men
are justly acceptable to him. But, even in the case
of their commendations, he suffers not himself to be
beguiled into an over-valuation of them, lest he should
be led to substitute them in the place of conscience.
He guards against this by reflecting how indistinctly
we can discern each other's motives, how little enter
into each other's circumstances ; how mistaken there-
fore may be the judgments formed of us, or of our ac-
tions, even by good men ; and that it is far from im-
probable that we may at some time be compelled to
forfeit their esteem, by adhering to the dictates of our
own consciences.
But if he endeavors thus to sit loose to the favor
and applause even of good men, much more does he
to those of the world at large: not but that he is sen-
sible of their worth as means and instruments of use-
fulness and influence ; and under the limitations and
for the ends allowed in Scripture, he is glad to pos-
sess, observant to acquire, and careful to retain them.
He considers them, however, as desirable, not simply
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 177
m their possession, but in their use. In this view, he
holds himself to be responsible for that share of them
which he enjoys, and as bound not to let them lie
unemployed ; not to lavish them ; not imprudently to
misapply them ; but as under an obligation to regard
them as conferred on him, that they might be brought
into action, and as what therefore he may by no means
throw away, though ready, if it be required, to re-
linquish them with cheerfulness ; and never feeling
himself at liberty, in consideration of the use he in-
tends to make of them, to acquire or retain them un-
lawfully.
Acting therefore on these principles, he will stu-
diously and diligently use any degree of worldly
credit he may enjoy, in removing or lessening pre-
judices ; in conciliating good will, and thereby mak-
ing v/ay for the less obstructed progress of truth ;
and in providing for its being entertained by those
who would bar all access against it in a rougher or
more homely form. He will make it his business
to set on foot and forward benevolent and useful
schemes ; and where they require united efforts, to
obtain and preserve for them this co-operation. He
will endeavor to discountenance vice, to bring mo-
dest merit into notice ; to lend as it were his light to
men of real worth, but of less creditable name, and
perhaps of less conciliating qualities and manners.
But while he strives to render his reputation, so long
as he possesses it, subservient to advancing the cause
178 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
of religion and virtue, and promoting the happiness
and comfort of mankind, he will not transgress the
rule of the scripture precepts in order to obtain, to
cultivate, or to preserve it, resolutely disclaiming that
dangerous sophistry of " doing evil that good may
come." Ready to relinquish his reputation when re
quired so to do, he will not throw it away ; and so
far as he allowably may, he will avoid occasions of
diminishing it, instead of studiously seeking, or need-
lessly multiplying them, as is sometimes the prac-
tice of worthy but imprudent men. There will be no
capricious humors, no selfish tempers, no morose-
ness, no discourtesy, no affected severity of deport-
ment, no peculiarity of language, no indolent neglect,
or wanton breach of the ordinary forms or fashions
of society. His reputation, if sacrificed at all, shall
be sacrificed at the call of duty. The world shall be
constrained to allow him to be amiable, as well as
respectable ; though, in what regards religion, they
may account him unreasonably precise and strict.
He will endeavor to reduce the enemies of religion,
to adopt the confession of the accusers of the Jewish
ruler, "We shall not find any fault or occasion against
this Daniel — except concerning the law of his God:"
and if he fall into disesteem, it shall not be chargeable
to any conduct which is justly dishonorable, but to the
false standard of estimation of a misjudgmg world.
When his character is thus mistaken, or his conduct
thus misconstrued, he will not wrap himself up in a
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 179
mysterious sullenness; but will be ready to clear up
what has been dubious, to explain what has been im-
perfectly known, and " speaking- the truth in love,"
to correct erroneous impressions. He may sometimes
feel it his duty publicly to vindicate his character
from unjust reproach, and to repel false charges ; but
he will carefully watch against being led away by
pride, or being betrayed into some breach of truth or
of christian charity, when he is treading in a path so
dangerous. At such a time he will also guard against
any undue solicitude about his worldly reputation for
its own sake ; and when he has done what duty re-
quires for its vindication, it will be matter of no very
deep concern to him if his endeavors should have
been ineffectual. If good men in every age and na-
tion have been often unjustly calumniated and dis-
graced, and if, in such circumstances, even the dark-
ness of paganism has been able contentedly to re-
pose itself on the consciousness of innocence, shall
one who is cheered by the Christian's hope, who is
assured, also, that a day will shortly come, in which
whatever is secret shall be made manifest, and the
mistaken judgments of men, perhaps even of good
men, being corrected, that " he shall then have praise
of God ;" shall such a one sink ?" shall he even bend
or droop under such a trial ? They might be more
excusable in over-valuing human reputation to whom
all beyond the grave was dark and cheerless.
They also might be more easily pardoned for pursu-
180 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
ing with eagerness and solicitude that glory which
might survive them, thus seeking as it were to ex
tend the narrow span of their earthly existence: but
far different is our case, to whom these clouds are
rolled away, and '* life and immortality brought to
light by the Gospel." Not but that worldly favor
and distinction are amongst the best things this
world has to offer : but the Christian knows it is the
very condition of his calling, not to have his portion
here ; and as in the case of any other earthly enjoy-
ments, so in that also of worldly honor, he dreads,
lest his supreme affections being thereby gratified, it
should be hereafter said to him, " Remember that
thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things."
He is required by his holy calling to be victorious
over the world ; and to this victory, the conquest of the
dread of its disesteem and dishonor is essentially and
indispensably required. He reflects on those holy men
who " had trial of cruel mockings ;" he remembers
that our blessed Savior himself "was despised and
rejected of men ;" and what is he, that he should be
exempted from the common lot, or think it much to
bear the scandal of his profession 1 If therefore he is
creditable and popular, he considers this, if the phrase
may be pardoned, as something beyond his bargain ;
and he watches himself with double care, lest he
should grow over-fond of what he may be shortly
called upon to relinquish. He meditates often on the
probability of his being involved in such circum-
ESTIMATION- AND APPLArSE. 181
Stances as may render it necessary for him to Bub-
ject himself to the disgrace and obloquy of the world ;
thus familiarizing himself with them betimes, and
preparmg himself, that when the trying hour arrives
they may not take him unawares.
But the cultivation of the desire of " that honor
which cometh from God," he finds the most effectual
means of bringing his mind into a proper temper, in
what regards the love of human approbation. Chris-
tian ! wouldst thou indeed reduce this affection un-
der just control — sursum cor da ! lift up your heart !
rise on the wings of contemplation, until the praises
and the censures of men die away upon the ear, and
the still small voice of conscience is no longer
drowned by the din of this nether world. Here the
sight is apt to be occupied with earthly objects, and
the hearing to be engrossed with earthly sounds ;
but there thou shalt come within the view of that re-
splendent and incorruptible crown which is held
forth to thy acceptance in the realms of light, and
thine ear shall be regaled with heavenly melody !
Here we dwell in a variable atmosphere — the pros-
pect is at one time darkened by the gloom of dis-
grace, and at another the eye is dazzled by the
gleamings of glory: but thou hast now ascended
above this inconstant region ; no storms agitate, no
clouds obscure the air, and the lightnings play and
the thunders roll beneath thee.
Thus, at chosen seasons, the Christian exercises
16
182 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
iiimself; and when, from this elevated region, he
descends into the plain below, and mixes in the bus-
tle of life, he still retains the impressions of his more
retired hours. By these he realizes to himself the
unseen world : he accustoms himself to speak and
act as in the presence of *' an innumerable company
of angels, and of the spirits of just men made perfect,
and of God the Judge of all ;" the consciousness of
their approbation cheers and gladdens his soul un-
der the scoffs and reproaches of a misjudging world,
and to his delighted ear their united praises form a
harmony which a few discordant earthly voices can-
not interrupt.
But though the Christian is sometimes enabled
thus to triumph over the inordinate love of hu-
man applause, he does not therefore deem him-
self secure from its encroachments. On the con-
trary, he is aware, so strong and active is its princi-
ple of vitality, that even where it seems extinct, let
but circumstances favor its revival, and it will spring
forth again in renewed vigor. And as his watch
must thus, during life, know no termination, because
the enemy will ever be at hand ; so it must be the
more close and vigilant, because he is nowhere free
from danger, but is on every side open to attack.
*• Sume superbiam qucesitam mentis^ was the maxim
of a worldly moralist : but the Christian is aware
that he is particularly assailable where he really ex-
cels ; there he is in especial danger lest his motives,
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 183
originally pure, being insensibly corrupted, he
should be betrayed into anxiety about worldly favor,
when he is endeavoring to render his virtue amiable
and respected in the eyes of others, and in obedience
to the Scripture injunction, is willing to let his " light
so shine before men, that they may see his good
works, and glorify his Father which is in heaven."
He watches himself also on small as well as on
great occasions: the latter indeed, in the case of
many persons, can hardly ever be expected to occur,
whereas the former are continually presenting them-
selves ; and thus, whilst they may be rendered highly
useful in forming and strengthening a just habit of
mind in the particular in question, so they are the
means most at hand for enabling us to discover our
own real character. Let not this be slightly passed
over. If any one finds himself shrinking from dis-
repute or disesteem in little instances, but apt to so-
lace himself with the persuasion that his spirits be-
ing fully called forth to the encounter, he could boldly
stand the brunt of sharper trials ; let him be slow to
give entertainment to so beguiling a suggestion; and
let him not forget that these little instances, where
no credit is to be got, and the vainest can find small
room for self-complacency, furnish perhaps the truest
tests whether we are ashamed of the Gospel of
Christ, and are willing, on principles really pure, to
bear reproach for the name of Jesus.
TJie Christian, too, i$ w^ll a»'are that the exce»«
184 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
sive desire of human approbation is a passion of so
subtile a nature that there is nothing into which it
cannot penetrate ; and from much experience, learn-
ing to discover it where it would lurk unseen, and
to detect it under its most specious disguises, he
finds that it is apt to insinuate itself into his very
religion. Proud piety and ostentatious charity, and
all the more open effects it there produces, have been
often condemned, and we may discover the tendencies
to them in ourselves, without difficulty. But let not
the Christian suffer himself to be deceived by any
external dissimilitudes between himself and the
world around him, trusting perhaps to the sincerity
of the principle to which they originally owed their
rise ; but let him beware lest, through the insensible
encroachments of the subtile usurper, his religion
should at length have "only a name to live;" lest
he should be mainly preserved in his religious
course by the dread of incurring the charge of levi-
ty for quitting a path on which he had deliberately
entered. Or where, on a strict and impartial scrutiny
of his governing motives, he may fairly conclude
this not to be the case, let him beware lest he be in
fluenced by this principle in particular parts of his
character, and especially where any external singu-
larities are in question ; closely scrutinizing his ap-
parent motives, lest he should be prompted to his
more than ordinary religious observances, and be
kept from participating in the licentious pleasures
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 185
of a dissipated age, not so much by a vigorous prin-
ciple of internal holiness, as by a fear of lessening
himself in the good opinion of the stricter circle of
his associates, or of suffering even in the estimation
of the world at large, by violating the proprieties of
his assumed character.
To those who, in this important particular, wish to
conform themselves to the injunctions of the word of
God, we must advise a laborious watchfulness, a
jealous guard, a close and frequent scrutiny of their
own hearts, that they may not too late find them-
selves to have been mistaken as to what they had
conceived to be their governing motives. Above all,
let them labor, with humble prayers for the Divine
assistance, to fix in themselves a deep, habitual, and
practical sense of the excellence of "that honor
which Cometh from God," and of the comparative
worthlessness of all earthly estimation and pre-emi-
nence. In truth, unless the affections of the soul be
thus predominantly engaged on the side of heaven-
ly, in preference to that of human honor, though we
may have relinquished the pursuit of fame, we shall
not have acquired that firm contexture of mind which
can bear disgrace and shame. Between these two
states there is a wide interval, and he who finds rea-
son to believe he has arrived at the one, must not
therefore conclude he has reached the other. To
the one, a little natural moderation and quietness of
temper may be sufficient to conduct us ; but to the
1$*
186 ON THE DESIRE OF HUMAN
Other we can only attain by much discipline and
slow advances ; and we shall often find reason to
confess, in the hour of trial, that we had greatly, far
too greatly, overrated our progress.
When engaged, too, in the prosecution of this
course, we must be aware of the snares which lie in
our way, and of the deceits to which we are liable ;
and we must be provided against these impositions,
by having obtained a full and distinct conception of
the temper of mind, with regard to human favor,
which is prescribed to us in Scripture ; and by con-
tinually examining our hearts and lives, to ascertain
how far they correspond with it. This will prevent
our substituting contemplation in the place of action,
to the neglect of the common duties of life ; this will
prevent our mistaking the gratification of an indo-
lent temper for the Christian's disregard of fame ;
for never let it be forgotten, we must deserve estima-
tion, though we may not possess it ; forcing men of
the world to acknowledge that we do not want their
boasted spring of action ; but that its place is better
supplied to us by another, which produces all the
good of theirs 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 mortal firmness, must
be sweetened by love, and tempered with humility.
The former of these qualities will render us kind,
ESTIMATION AND APPLAUSE. 187
friendly, and beneficent, preventing our being no
longer on the watch to promote the happiness or
comfort of others, than whilst we are stimulated by
the desire of their applause ; the produce of which
passion, whatever may be vaunted of its effects on
social intercourse, is often nothing better than selfish-
ness, ill concealed under a superficial covering of
exterior courtesy.
Humility, again, reducing us in our own value,
will moderate our claims on worldly estimation. It
will check our tendency to ostentation and display,
prompting us rather to avoid than to attract notice.
It will dispose us to sit down in quiet obscurity,
though, judging ourselves impartiallj% we believe
ourselves better entitled to credit than those on
whom it is conferred ; closing the entrance against
a proud, painful, and malignant passion; from which,
under such circumstances, we can otherwise be hard-
ly free, the passion of " high disdain from sense of
injured merit."
Love and humility will concur in producing a
frame of mind not more distinct from an ardent
thirst of glory, than from that frigid disregard, or in-
solent contempt, or ostentatious renunciation of hu-
man favor and distinction, which we have some-
times seen opposed to it. These latter qualities may
not unfrequently be traced to a slothful, sensual, and
selfish temper ; to the consciousness of being unequal
to any great and generous attempts ; to the disap-
188 ON THE DESIRE, &c.
pointment of schemes of ambition or of glory ; to a
little personal experience of the world's capricious
and inconstant humor. The renunciation in these
cases, however sententious, is often far from sincere ;
and it is even made not unfrequently with a view to
the attainment of that very distinction which it affects
to disclaim. In some other of these instances, the
over-valuation and inordinate desire of worldly
credit, however disavowed, are abundantly evident,
from the merit which is assumed for relinquishing
them ; or from that sour and surly humor, which
betrays a gloomy and a corroded mind, galled and
fretting under the irritating sense of the want of that
which it most wishes to possess.
But the Christian's is a far different temper : not
a temper of sordid sensuality, or lazy apathy, or dog-
matizing pride, or disappointed ambition : more truly
independent of worldly estimation than philosophy
with all her boasts, it forms a perfect contrast to epi-
curean selfishness, to stoical pride, and to cynical
brutality. It is a temper compounded of firmness, and
complacency, and peace, and love ; manifesting itself
in acts of kindness and of courtesy; a kindness not
pretended, but genuine ; a courtesy not false and su-
perficial, but cordial and sincere. In the hour of po-
pularity it is not intoxicated or insolent ; in the hour
of unpopularity it is not desponding or morose ; un-
shaken in constancy, unwearied in benevolence, firm
without roughness, and assiduous without servility.
AMIABLE TEMPERS, Ac. 189
SECTION IV.
l^he generally prevailing error, of substituting amiable tempers
and useful lives in the place of rcligio7i, stated and confuted ;
with hints to real Christians.
There is another practical error very generally
prevalent, the effects of which are highly injurious
to the cause of religion ; and which in particular is
often brought forward, when, upon Christian princi-
ples, any advocates for Christianity would press the
practice of Christian virtues.
The error in question is that of exaggerating the
merit of certain amiable and useful qualities, and of
considering them as sufficient to compensate for the
want of the supreme love and fear of God.
It seems to be an opinion pretty generally preva-
lent, that kindness and sweetness of temper ; sym-
pathizing, and benevolent, and generous affections ;
attention to what, in the world's estimation, are the
domestic, relative and social duties ; and, above all, a
life of general activity and usefulness, may well be
allowed, in our imperfect state, to make up for the
defect of what in strict propriety of speech is termed
religion.
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 differ-
ence ; for in truth, what are they but religion in sub-
190 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
Stance, if not in name ? Is it not the great end of re-
ligion, and in particular the glory of Christianity, to
extinguish the malignant passions ; to curb the vio-
lence, to control the appetites, and to smooth the as-
perities of man ; to make us compassionate, and kind,
and forgiving, one to another ; to make us good hus-
bands, good fathers, good friends ; and to render us
active and useful in the discharge of the relative, so-
cial, and civil duties ? We do not deny, that in the
general mass of society, and particularly in the low-
er orders, such conduct and tempers cannot be dif-
fused and maintained by any other medium than
that of religion. But if the end be effected, surely it
is only unnecessary refinement to dispute about the
means. It is even to forget your own principles,
and to refuse its just place to solid, practical virtue,
while you assign too high a value to speculative
opinions."
Thus a fatal distinction is admitted between mo-
rality and religion — a great and desperate error, of
which it is the more necessary to take notice, be-
cause many who would condemn, as too strong, the
language in which this opinion is sometimes openly
avowed, are yet more or less tinctured with the no-
tion itself; and under the habitual and almost un-
perceived influence of this beguiling suggestion, are
vainly solacing their imaginations, and repressing
their well-grounded fears concerning their own state;
and are also quieting their just solicitude concerning
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 191
the spiritual condition of others, and soothing them-
selves in the neglect of friendly endeavors for their
improvement.
There can hardly be a stronger proof of the curso-
ry and superficial views with which men are apt to
satisfy themselves in religious concerns, than the
prevalence of the opinion here in question ; the false-
hood and sophistry of which must be acknowledged
by any one who, admitting the authority of Scripture,
will examine it with ever so little seriousness and
impartiality of mind.
Appealing even to a less strict standard, it would
not be difficult to show that the moral worth of these
sweet and benevolent tempers, and of these useful
lives, is greatly overrated. The former involuntarily
gain upon our affections, and disarm our severer
judgments, by their kindly complying, and apparent-
ly disinterested nature ; by their prompting men to
flatter instead of mortifying our pride, to sympathize
either with our joys or our sorrows, to abound in
obliging attentions and offices of courtesy ; by their
obvious tendency to produce and maintain harmony
and comfort in social and domestic life. It is not
however unworthy of remark, that from the commen-
dations generally bestowed on these qualities, and
their rendering men universally acceptable and po-
pular, there is many a false pretender to them, who
gains a credit for them which he by no means de-
serves • in whom they are no more than the proprie-
192 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
ties of his assumed character, or worn in public only
the belter to conceal an opposite temper. Would you
see this man of courtesy and sweetness stripped of
his false covering, follow him unobserved into his fa-
mily, and you shall behold, too plain to be mistaken,
selfishness and spleen harassing and vexing the
wretched subjects of their unmanly tyranny, as if
they were making up to themselves for the restraint
which had been imposed on them in the world.
But where the benevolent qualities are genuine,
they often deserve the name rather of amiable in-
stincts than of moral virtues. In many cases, they
imply no mental conflict, no previous discipline : they
are apt to evaporate in barren sensibilities, and tran-
sitory sympathies, and indolent wishes, and unpro-
ductive declarations : they possess not that strength
and energy of character which, in contempt of diffi-
culties and dangers, produce alacrity in service, vi-
gor and perseverance in action. Destitute of proper
firmness, they often encourage that vice and folly
which it is their especial duty to repress; and it is
well if, from their soft complying humor, they are not
often drawn in to participate in what is wrong, as well
as to connive at it. Thus their possessors are fre
quently, in the eye of truth and reason, bad magis-
trates, bad parents, bad friends ; defective in thoso
very qualities which give to each of those several
relations its chief and appropriate value. And this
is a defect v/hich might well bring into question that
fSEFtTL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 193
freedom from selfishness which is so often claimed;
inasmuch as there is too great reason to fear that it
often arises in us chiefly from indisposition to submit
to a painful effort, though real good-will commands
the sacrifice, or from the fear of lessening the good
opinion -which is entertained of us.
These qualities also, when they are not grounded
and rooted in religion, are of a sickly and short-lived
nature, and want that temperament which is requi-
site for enabling them to bear the rude shocks and
the variable and churlish seasons to which, in 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 all things, and en-
dureth all things." In the spring of youth, indeed,
we are flushed with health and confidence ; hope is
young and ardent, our desires are unsated, and what-
ever we see has the grace of novelty ; we are the
more disposed to be good-natured, because we are
pleased ; pleased, because universally well received.
Wherever we cast our eyes, we see some face of
friendship, and love, and gratulation: all nature
smiles around us. Now the amiable tempers of
which we have been speaking naturally spring up.
The soil suits, the climate favors them. They ap-
pear to shoot forth vigorously, and blossom in gay
luxuriance. To the superficial eye, all is fair and
flourishing ; we anticipate the fruits of autumn, and
17
194 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
promise ourselves an ample produce. But by and
by the sun scorches, the frost nips, the winds rise,
the rains descend; all our fond expectations are no
more. Our youthful efforts, let it be supposed, have
been successful ; and we rise to wealth or eminence.
A kind flexible temper and popular manners have
produced in us, as they are too apt, a youth of easy,
social dissipation and unproductive idleness ; and
we are overtaken too late by the consciousness of
having wasted that time which cannot be recalled,
and those opportunities which we cannot now reco-
ver. We sink into disregard and obscurity when,
there being a call for qualities of more energy, indo-
lent good nature must fall back. We ar€ thrust out
of notice by accident or misfortunes. We are left
behind by those with whom we started on equal
terms, and who, originally perhaps having less pre-
tensions and fewer advantages, have greatly out-
stripped us in the race of honor ; and their having
got before us is often the more galling, because it
appears to us, and perhaps with reason, to have been
chiefly owing to a generous, easy, good-natured hu-
mor on our part, which led us to give place, without
a struggle, to their more lofty pretensions. Thus we
suffered them quietly to occupy a station to which
originally we had as fair a claim as they ; but our
awkward and vain endeavors to recover it, while
they show that we want self knowledge and compo-
sure in our riper years, as much as in our younger
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 195
we had been destitute of exertion, serve only to make
our inferiority more manifest, and to bring our dis-
content into the fuller notice of an ill-natured world,
which, however, not unjustly condemns and ridicules
our misplaced ambition.
It may be sufficient to have hinted at a few of the
vicissitudes and changes of advancing life. Now the
bosom is no longer cheerful and placid ; and if the
countenance preserve its exterior character, this is
no longer the honest expression of the heart. Pros-
perity and luxury, gradually extinguishing sympa-
thy and puffing up with pride, harden and debase
the soul. In other instances, shame secretly clouds,
and remorse begins to sting, and suspicion to corrode,
and jealousy and envy to imbitter. Disappointed
hopes, unsuccessful competitions, and frustrated pur-
suits, sour and irritate the temper. A little personal
experience of the selfishness of mankind damps our
generous warmth and kind affections ; reproving the
prompt sensibility and unsuspecting simplicity of our
earlier years. Above all, ingratitude sickens the
heart, and chills and thickens the very life's-blood
of benevolence ; till at length our youthful Nero, soft
and susceptible, becomes a hard and cruel tyrant;
and our youthful Timon, the gay, the generous, the
beneficent, is changed into a cold, sour, silent mis-
anthrope.
And, as in the case of amiable tempers, so in that
also of what are called useful lives, it must be con-
196 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
fessed that their intrinsic worth, arguing still merely
on principles of reason, is apt to be greatly overrated.
They are often the result of a disposition naturally
bustling and active, which delights in motion, and
finds its labor more than repaid, either by the very
pleasure which it takes in its employments, or by the
credit which it derives from them. More than this:
if it be granted that religion tends in general to pro-
duce usefulness ; and therefore that these irreligious
men of useful lives are rather exceptions to the gene-
ral rule ; it must at least be confessed that they are
60 far useless, or even positively mischievous, as they
either neglect to encourage, or actually discourage
that principle which is the great operative spring of
usefulness in the bulk of mankind.
Thus it might well perhaps be questioned, esti-
mating these men by their own standard, whether
the particular good in this case, is not more than
counterbalanced by the general evil ; still more, if
their conduct being brought to a strict account, they
should be charged, as they justly ought, with the loss
of the good which, if they had manifestly and avow-
edly acted from a higher principle, might have been
produced, not only directly in themselves, but indi-
rectly and remotely in others, from the extended ef-
ficacy of a religious example. They may be com-
pared to persons whom some peculiarity of constitu-
tion enables to set at defiance those established rules
of living which must be observed by the world at
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 197
large. These healthy debauchees, however they may
plead in their defence that they do themselves no in-
jury, would probably, but for their excesses, have
both enjoyed their health better, and preserved it
longer, as well as have turned it to better account ;
and it may at least be urged against them, that they
disparage the laws of temperance, and fatally betray
others into the breach of them, by affording an in-
stance of their being transgressed with impunity.
But were the merit of the qualities in question
greater than it is, and though it were not liable to
the exceptions which have been alledged against it,
yet could they be in no degree admitted as a com-
pensation for the want of the supreme love and fear
of God, and of a predominant desire to promote his
glory. The observance of one commandment, how-
ever clearly and forcibly enjoined, cannot make up for
the neglect of another, which is enjoined with equal
clearness and equal force. To allow this plea in the
present instance, would be to permit men to abrogate
the first table of the law, on condition of their obey-
ing the second. But religion suffers not any such
composition of duties. It is on the very self-same
miserable principle that .some have thought to atone
for a life of injustice and rapine by the strictness of
their religious observances. If the former class of
men can plead the diligent discharge of their duties
to their fellow-creatures, the latter will urge that of
theirs to God. We easily see the falsehood of the
17*
198 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
plea in the latter case ; and it is only self-deceit and
partiality which prevent its being equally visible in
the former. Yet so it is ; such is the unequal mea-
sure, if I may be allowed the expression, which we
deal out to God, and to each other. It Avould justly
and universally be thought false confidence in the
religious thief, or the religious adulterer, (to admit for
the sake of argument such a solecism in terms,) to
solace himself with the firm persuasion of the Divine
favor ; but it will, to many, appear hard and over-
precise, to deny this firm persuasion of Divine ap-
probation to the avowedly irreligious man of social
and domestic usefulness.
Will it be urged here that the waiter is not doing
justice to his opponent's argument ; which is, not
that irreligious men of useful lives may be excused
for neglecting their duties towards God, in conside-
ration of their exemplary discharge of their duties
towards their fellow-creatures ; but that in perform-
ing the latter, they perform the former virtually and
substantially, if not in name ?
Can then our opponent deny that the Holy Scrip-
tures are in nothing more full, frequent, strong, and
unequivocal, than in their injunctions on us supreme-
ly to love and fear God, and to worship and serve
him continually with humble and grateful hearts ;
habitually regarding him as our Benefactor, and So-
vereign, and Father, and abounding in sentiments of
gratitude, and loyalty, and respectful affection ? Can
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 199
he deny that these positive precepts are rendered, if
possible, still more clear, and their authority still
more binding, by illustrations and indirect confir-
mations almost innumerable? And who then is that
bold intruder into the council of Infinite Wisdom,
who, in contempt of these precise commands, thus
illustrated also and confirmed, will dare to maintain
that, knowing the intention with which they were
primarily given, and the ends they were ultimately
designed to produce, he may innocently neglect or
violate their plain obligations, on the plea that he
conforms himself, though in a different manner, to
this primary intention, and produces, though by dif-
ferent means, these real and ultimate ends ?
This mode of arguing is one with which, to say
nothing of its insolent profaneness, the heart of man,
prone to deceive himself, and partial in his own cause,
is not fit to be trusted. Here, again, more cautious
and jealous in the case of our worldly than of our
religious interests, we readily discern the fallacy of
this reasoning, and protest against it, when it is at-
tempted to be introduced into the commerce of life.
We see clearly that it would afford the means of
refining away by turns every moral obligation.
The adulterer might allow himself, with a good
conscience, to violate the bed of his unsuspecting
friend, whenever he could assure himself that his
crime would escape detection ; for then, where would
be the evil and misery the prevention of which was
200 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
the real ultimate object of the prohibition of adultery?
The thief, in like manner, and even the murderer,
might find abundant room for the innocent exercise
of their respective occupations, arguing from the
primary intention and real objects of the commands
by which theft and murder were forbidden. There
perhaps exists not a crime to which this crooked
morality would not furnish some convenient opening.
But this miserable sophistry deserves not that we
should spend so much time in the refutation of it.
To discern its fallaciousness requires not acuteness
of understanding so much as a little common ho-
nesty. " There is indeed no surer mark of a false
and hollow heart, than a disposition thus to quibble
away the clear injunctions of duty and conscience."*
It is the wretched resource of a disingenuous mind,
endeavoring 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 to disprove the extravagant pre-
tensions of the qualities under consideration, though
those qualities were perfect in their nature. But
they are not perfect. On the contrary, they are
radically defective and corrupt; they are a body
without a soul ; they want the vital actuating prin-
ciple, or rather, they are animated and actuated by
a false one. Christianity — let me avail myself of
♦ Seo Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments.
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 201
the very words of a friend* in maintaining her ar
gument — is " a religion of motives." That only is
Christian practice which flows from Christian prin-
ciples ; and none else will be admitted as such by
Him who will be obeyed as well as worshiped " in
spirit and in truth,"
This also is a position of which, in our intercourse
with our fellow-creatures, we clearly discern the
justice, and universally admit the force. Though we
have received a benefit at the hands of any one, we
scarcely feel grateful if we do not believe the inten-
tion towards us to have been friendly. Have we
served any one from motives of kindness, and is a
return of service made to us ? We hardly feel our-
selves worthily requited, except that return be dic-
tated by gratitude. We should think ourselves rather
injured than obliged by it, if it were merely prompted
by a proud unwillingness to continue in our debt.f
What husband, or what father, not absolutely dead
to every generous feeling, would be satisfied with a
wife or a child, who, though he could not charge
them with any actual breach of their respective ob-
ligations, should yet confessedly perform them from
a cold sense of duty, in place of the quickening
energies of conjugal and filial aflJection? What an
♦ The writer hopes that the work to which he is referring
is so well known, that he needs scarcely name Mrs. H.
More.
t See Smitli's Theory of Moral Sentiments.
202 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
insult would it be to such a one, to tell him gravely
that he had no reason to complain !
The unfairness with which we suffer ourselves
to reason in matters of religion, is no where more
striking than in the instance before us. It were per-
naps not unnatural to suppose that, as we have no
sure way of judging any one's internal principles
but by his external actions, it would have grown
into an established rule, that when the latter were
unobjectionable, the former were not to be question-
ed ; and on the other hand, that in reference to a Be-
ing who searches the heart, our motives, rather than
our external actions, would be granted to be the just
objects of inquiry. But we exactly reverse these
natural principles of reasoning. In the case of our
fellow-creatures, the motive is that which we prin-
cipally inquire after and regard. But in the case of
our Supreme Judge, from whom no secrets are hid,
we suffer ourselves to believe that internal principles
may be dispensed with, if the external action be
performed !
Let us not however be supposed ready to concede,
in contradiction to what has been formerly contend-
ed, that where the true motive is wanting, the ex-
ternal actions themselves will not generally betray
the defect. Who will not confess in the instance so
lately put, of a wife and a child who should dis-
charge their respective obligations merely from a
cold sense of duty, that the inferiority of their ac-
rSEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 203
tuating principle would not be confined to its nature,
but would be discoverable also in its effects ? Who
does not feel that these domestic services, thus robbed
of their vital spirit, would be so debased and de-
graded in our estimation, as to become not barely
lifeless and uninteresting, but even distasteful and
loathsome ? Who will deny that these would be per-
formed in fuller measure, with more wakeful and
unwearied attention, as well as with more heart ;
where, with the same sense of duty, the enlivening
principle of affection should be also associated?
The enemies of religion are sometimes apt to
compare the irreligious man, of a temper naturally
sweet and amiable, with the religious man of natural
roughness and severity ; the irreligious man of na-
tural activity, with the religious man who is naturally
indolent; and thence to draw their inferences. But
this mode of reasoning is surely unjust. If they
would argue the question fairly, they should make
their comparisons between persons of similar natural
qualities, not in one or two examples, but in a mass
of instances. They would then be compelled to con-
fess the efficacy of religion in heightening the bene-
volence and increasing the usefulnesss of men ; and
to admit that, granting the occasional, but rare exist-
ence of genuine and persevering benevolence of dis-
position and usefulness of life \vhere the religious
principle is wanting, yet that experience gives us
reason to believe that true religion, while it would
204 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
have implanted these qualities in persons in whom
before they had no place, would have rendered the
amiable more amiable, the useful more useful, with
fewer inconsistencies, with less abatement.
Let true Christians meanwhile be ever mmdful
that they are loudly called upon to make this argu-
ment still more clear, these positions still less ques-
tionable. You are every where commanded to be
tender and sympathetic, diligent and useful ; and it
is the character of that '• wisdom from above," in
which you are to be proficients, that it " is gentle
and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good
ftuits," Could the efficacy of Christianity in soften-
ing the heart be denied by those who saw, in the
instance of the great apostle of the Gentiles, that it
was able to transform a bigoted, furious, and cruel
persecutor, into an almost unequalled example of
candor and gentleness, and universal tenderness and
love? Could its spirit of active beneficence be denied
by those who saw its Divine Author so diligent and
unwearied in his benevolent labors, as to justify the
compendious description which was given of him by
a personal witness of his exertions, that he " went
about doing good ? Imitate these blessed examples ;
60 shall you vindicate the honor of your profession,
and " put to silence the ignorance of foolish men ;"
so shall you obey those divine injunctions of adorn-
ing the doctrine of Christ, and of "letting your light
shine before men, that they may see your good works
tJSEFUL LIVES NOT RELIOIOK 205
and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Beat
the world at its own best weapons. Let your love
be more affectionate, your mildness less open to ir-
ritation, your diligence more laborious, your activity
more wakeful and persevering. Consider sweetness
of temper and activity of mind, if they naturally be-
long to you, as talents of special worth and utility,
for which you will have to give account. Care-
fully 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 qualities renders it less
difficult, and therefore more incumbent on you to be
ever abounding in the work of the Lord ; and to be
copious in the production of that species of good
fruit, of which mankind in general will be most
ready to allow the excellence, because they best un-
derstand its nature. In your instance, the solid sub-
stance of christian practice is easily susceptible ol
that high and beautiful polish, which may attract
the attention, and extort the admiration of a careless
and undiscerning world, so slow to notice, and so
backward to acknowledge intrinsic worth when con-
cealed under a less sightly exterior. Know, then,
and value as you ought, the honorable office which
is especially devolved on you. Let it be your ac-
ceptable service to recommend the discredited cause,
and sustain the fainting interests of religion, to fur-
nish to her friends matters of sound and obvious
IS
206 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
argument, and of honest triumph ; and if your best
endeavors cannot conciliate, to refute at least, and
confound her enemies.
If, on the other hand, you are conscious that you
are naturally rough and austere, that disappoint-
ments have soured, or prosperity has elated you, or
that habits of command have rendered you quick in
expression, and impatient of contradiction ; or if, from
whatever other cause, you have contracted an un-
happy peevishness of temper or asperity of manners,
or harshness and severity of language, remember
that these defects are by no means incompatible with
an aptness to perform services of substantial kind-
ness. If nature has been confirmed by habit till your
soul seems thoroughly tinctured with these evil dis-
positions, yet do not despair. Remember that the Di-
vine agency is promised "to take away the heart of
stone, and give a heart of flesh," of which it is the
natural property to be tender and susceptible. Pray
then earnestly and perseveringly, that the blessed aid
of Divine grace may operate efTectually on your be-
half Beware of acquiescing in evil tempers, under
the idea that they are the ordinary imperfections of
the best of men; that they show themselves only in
little instances ; that they are only occasional, hasty,
and transient effusions, when you are taken off your
guard ; the passing shade of your mind, and not the
.settled color. Beware of excusing or allowing them
in yourself, under the notion of warm zeal for the
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 207
cause of religion and virtue, which you perhaps own
is now and then apt to carry you into somewhat
over-great severity of judgment or sharpness of re-
proof. Listen not to these, or any other such flatter-
ing excuses, which your own heart will be but too
ready to suggest to you. Scrutinize yourself rather
with rigorous strictness ; and where there is so much
room for self-deceit, call in the aid of some faithful
friend, and unbosoming yourself to him without con-
cealment, ask his impartial and unreserved opinion
of your behavior and condition. Our unwillingness
to do this often betrays to others, not seldom it first
discovers to ourselves, that we entertain a secret dis-
trust of our own character and conduct. Instead also of
extenuating to 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 a direct contrast to the "meekness and
gentleness of Christ ;" and that Christians are strong-
ly and repeatedly enjoined to copy after their great
Model in these particulars, and to be themselves pat-
terns of " mercy and kindness, and humbleness of
mind, and meekness, and long-suffering." They are
to "put away all bitterness, and wrath, and anger,
and clamor, and evil-speaking ;" not only " being
ready to every good work, but being gentle unto all
men ;" " showing all meekness unto all men ;" " for-
bearing, forgiving," tender-hearted. Remember the
208 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
apostle's declaration, that " if any man bridleth not
his tongue, he only seemeth to be religious, and de-
ceiveth his own heart ;" and that it is one of the cha-
racters of that love, without which all pretensions
to the name of Christian are but vain, that " it doth
not behave itself unseemly." Consider how much
these acrimonious tempers must break in upon the
peace, and destroy the comfort of those around you.
Remember also that the honor of your Christian pro-
fession is at stake, and be solicitous not to discredit
it; justly dreading lest you should disgust those
whom you ought to conciliate, and by conveying
an unfavorable impression of your principles and
character, should incur the guilt of putting an " of-
fence in your brother's way ;" thereby " hindering
the Gospel of Christ," the advancement of which
should be your daily and assiduous care.
Thus having come to the full knowledge of your
disease, and to a just impression of its malignity,
strive against it with incessant watchfulness. Guard
against its breaking forth into act. Force yourself
to abound in little offices of courtesy and kindness ;
and you shall gradually experience in the perform-
ance of these a pleasure hitherto unknown. But
take not up with external amendment ; and remem-
ber that the Christian is not to be satisfied with the
world's superficial courtliness of demeanor, but that
his " love is to be without dissimulation." Examine
carefully whether the unchristian tempers which
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 209
you would eradicate, are not maintained by selfish-
ness and pride; and strive to subdue them effectually.
Accustom yourself to endeavor to look attentively up-
on a careless and inconsiderate world, which, while it
is in such eminent peril, is so ignorant of its danger.
Dwell upon this affecting scene, till it has excited
your pity ; and this pity, while it melts the mind to
Christian love, shall insensibly produce a temper of
habitual sympathy and softness. By means like
these, perseveringly used in constant dependence on
Divine aid, you may confidently hope to make con-
tinual 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 the office of Christianity to
reverse this order. It is pleasing to witness this
blessed renovation ; to see, as life advances, asperi-
ties gradually smoothing down, and roughnesses
mellowing away; while the subject of this happy
change experiences within, increasing measures of
the comfort which he diffuses around him ; and feel-
ing the genial influences of that heavenly flame,
which can thus give life, and warmth, and action to
what had been hitherto rigid and insensible, looks
up with gratitude to Him who 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 discua-
18»
210 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
sion the amiable and useful qualities, where they
are not prompted and governed by a principle of re-
ligion, have been spoken of in too disparaging terms.
Nor would I be understood as unwilling to concede
to those who are living in the exercise of them, their
proper tribute of commendation. Of such persons it
must be said, in the language of Scripture, " They
have their reward." They have it in the inward
complacency which a sweet temper seldom fails to
inspire ; in the comforts of the domestic or social
circle : in the pleasure which, from the constitution
of our nature, accompanies pursuit and action. They
are always beloved in private, and generally respect-
ed in public life. But when devoid of religion, if
the word of God be not a fable, •' they cannot enter
into the kingdom of heaven." True practical Chris-
tianity, never let it be forgotten, consists in devoting
the heart and life to God ; in being supremely and
habitually governed by a desire to know, and a dis-
position to fulfill his will, and in endeavoring, under
the influence of these motives, to " live to his glory.''
Where these essential requisites are wanting, how-
ever amiable the character may be, however credit-
able and respectable among men ; yet, as it possesses
not the grand distinguishing essence, it must not be
complimented with the name of Christianity. This,
however, must commonly be a matter between God
and a man's own conscience ; and we ought never
to forget how strongly we are enjoined to be liberal
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 211
in judging the motives of others, while we are strict
in scrutinizing and severe in questioning our own.
And this strict scrutiny is no where more necessary,
because there is no where more room for the opera-
tion of self-deceit. We are all extremely prone to lend
ourselves to the good opinion which, however falsely,
is entertained of us by others ; and though we at first
suspect, or even indubitably know, that their esteem
is unfounded and their praises undeserved, and that
they would have thought and spoken of us very dif-
ferently if they had discerned our secret motives, or
had been accurately acquainted with all the circum-
stances of our conduct; we gradually suffer our-
selves to adopt their judgment of us, and at length
feel that we are in some sort injured or denied our
due, when these false commendations are contradict-
ed or withheld. Without the most constant watch-
fulness, and the most close and impartial self-exami-
nation, irreligious people of amiable tempers, and
still more those of useful lives, from the general po-
pularity of their character, will be particularly liable
to become the dupes of this propensity. Men of real
religion will also do well to watch against this delu-
sion. There is, however, another danger against
which it is necessary to warn them. In their en-
deavors to fulfill this obligation, let them specially be-
ware lest, setting out on right principles, they insen-
sibly lose them in the course of their progress — lest,
engaging originally in the business and bustle of the
212 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
world, from a sincere and earnest desire to promote
the glory of God, their minds should become so heat-
ed and absorbed in the pursuit of their object, that
the true motive of action should either altogether
cease to be an habitual principle, or should at least
lose much of its life and vigor — lest their thoughts
and affections being engrossed by temporal concerns,
their sense of the reality of " unseen things" should
fade away, and they should lose their relish for the
employments and offices of religion.
The Christian's path is beset with dangers. On
the one hand, he justly dreads an inactive and un-
profitable life ; on the other, he no less justly trem-
bles for the loss of spirrtual-mindedness. Does then
the Christian discover in himself (judging not from
accidental or occasional feelings, on which little
stress is either way to be laid, but from the perma-
nent and habitual temper of his mind) a settled, and,
still mor,e, a growing coldness and indisposition to-
wards the considerations and offices of religion ; and
has he reason to apprehend that this coldness and in-
disposition are owing to his being engaged too much
or too earnestly in worldly business, or to his being
too keen in the pursuit of worldly objects ? Let him
carefully examine the state of his own heart, and se-
riously and impartially survey the circumstances of
his situation in life ; humbly praying to the Father
of light and mercy, that he may be enabled to seel
hi9 way cl«arly in this difficult emergency. If he
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 213
finds himself pursuing wealth, or dignity, or reputa-
tion, with earnestness and solicitude ; if these things
engage many of his thoughts ; if his mind naturally
and inadvertently runs out into contemplations of
them ; if success in these respects greatly gladdens,
and disappointments dispirit and distress his mind;
he has but too plain grounds for self-condemnation.
" No man can serve two masters." The world is
evidently in possession of his heart, and it is no won-
der that he finds himself dull, or rather dead, to the
impression and enjoyment of spiritual things.
But though the marks of predominant estimation
and regard for earthly things are much less clear
and determinate, yet, if the object he is pursuing be
one which, by its attainment, would bring him a con-
siderable accession of riches, station and honor, let
him soberly and fairly question and examine whe-
ther the pursuit be warrantable? here, also, asking
the advice of some judicious friend ; his backward-
ness to do which, in instances like these, should justly
lead him to distrust the reasonableness of the schemes
which he is prosecuting. In such a case as this, we
have good cause to distrust ourselves. Though the
inward hope, that we are chiefly promoted by a de-
sire to promote the glory of our Maker and the happi-
ness of our fellow-creatures, by increasing our means
of usefulness, may suggest itself to allay, yet let it
not altogether remove our suspicions. It is not im-
probable, that beneath this plausible mask we con-
214 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
eeal, more successfully perhaps from ourselves than
from others, an inordinate attachment to the pomps
and transitory distinctions of this life ; and as this at-
tachment gains the ascendency, it will ever be found
that our perception and feeling of the supreme excel-
lence of heavenly things will proportionably subside.
But when the consequences which would follow
from the success of our worldly pursuits do not ren-
der them so questionable as in the case we have
been just considering ; yet, having such good reason
to believe that there is somewhere a flaw, let us care-
fully scrutinize the whole of our conduct, in order
to discover whether we may not be living either in
the breach or in the omission of some known duty,
and whether it may not therefore have pleased God
to withdraw from us the influence of his Holy Spirit ;
particularly inquiring whether the duties of self-
examination, of secret and public prayer, the reading
of the Holy Scriptures, and the other prescribed
means of grace, have not been intermitted at their
proper seasons, or performed with precipitation or
distraction ? And if we find reason to believe that
the allotment of time which it would be most for
our spiritual improvement to assign to our religious
offices is often broken in upon and curtailed, let us
be extremely backward to admit excuses for such
interruptions and abridgments. It is more than pro-
bable, for many obvious reasons, that even our world-
ly affairs will ^ot go on the better for encroaching
USEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 215
Upon those hours which ought to be dedicated to the
more immediate service of God, and to the cultivation
of the inward principles of religion. Our hearts, at
least, and our conduct will soon exhibit proofs of the
sad effects of this fatal negligence.
Let us, when engaged in this important scrutiny,
impartially examine ourselves whether the worldly
objects which engross us, are all of them such as
properly belong to our profession, or station, or cir-
cumstances in life, Avhich therefore we could not
neglect with a good conscience ? If they are, let us
consider whether they do not consume a larger
share of our time than they really require; and
whether, by not trifling over our work, by deducting
somewhat which might be spared from our hours of re-
1 axation, or by some other little management, we might
not fully satisfy their just claims, and yet have an in-
creased leisure to be devoted to the offices of religion.
But if we deliberately and honestly conclude that
we ought not to give these worldly objects less of
our time, let us endeavor at least to give them less
of our hearts ; striving that the settled frame of our
desires and affections may be more spiritual, and
that, in the motley intercourses of life, we may con-
stantly retain a more lively sense of the divine pre-
sence, and a stronger impression of the reality of
unseen things ; thus corresponding with the scrip-
t jre description of true Christians, "walking by faith
and not by sight, and having our conversation in
heaven."
216 AMIABLE TEMPERS AND
Above all, let us guard against the temptation, to
which we shall certainly be exposed, of lowering
down our views to our state, instead of endeavoring
to rise to the level of our views. Let us rather de-
termine to know the worst of our case, and strive to
be suitably affected with it ; not forward to speak
peace to ourselves, but patiently carrying about with
us a deep conviction of our backwardness and inap-
titude to religious duties, and a just sense of our great
'weakness and numerous infirmities. This cannot be
an unbecoming temper in those who are command,
ed to " work out their salvation with fear and trem-
bling." It prompts to constant and earnest prayer.
It produces that sobriety, and lowliness, and tender-
ness of mind, that meekness of demeanor and cir-
cumspection in conduct, which are such eminent
characteristics of the true Christian.
Nor is it a state devoid of consolation : " They
that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength •"
•' Be strong, and he shall comfort thy heart :"
** Blessed are they that mourn ; for they shall bo
comforted." These divine assurances soothe and en-
courage the Christian's disturbed and dejected mind,
and insensibly diffuse 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 he is possessed by complacency, and hope, and
love. If a sense of undeserved kindness fill his eyes
with tears, they are tears of reconciliation and joy ;
tSEFUL LIVES NOT RELIGION. 217
while a generous ardor springing up within him,
sends him forth to his worldly labors "fervent in
spirit," resolving, through the divine aid, to be hence-
forth more diligent and exemplary in living to the
glory of God, and longing meanwhile for that bless-
ed time, when, "being freed from the bondage of
corruption," he shall be enabled to render to his
heavenly Benefactor more pure and acceptable ser-
vice.
After having discussed so much the whole ques-
tion concerning amiable tempers in general, it may
be scarcely necessary to dwell upon that particular
class of them which belongs to the head of generous
emotions, or of exquisite sensibility. To these al-
most all which has been said is strictly applicable ;
to which it may be added, that the persons in whom
the latter qualities most abound, are often far from
conducing to the peace and comfort of their nearest
connections. These qualities indeed may be render-
ed highly useful instruments, when in the service Oi
religion. But we ought to except against them the
more strongly, when not under her control ; because
there is still greater danger than in the former case,
that persons in whom they abound may be flattered
into a false opinion of themselves by the excessive
commendations often paid to them by others, and by
the beguiling complacencies of their own minds,
which are apt to be puffed up with a proud though
secret consciousness of their own superior acuteness
19
218 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
and sensibility. But it is the less requisite to eiv
large on this topic, because it has been well discussed
by many who have shown that these qualities often
fail us when most we want their aid ; that their pos-
sessors can solace themselves with their imaginary
exertions in behalf of ideal misery, and yet shrink
from the labors of active benevolence, or retire with
disgust from the homely forms of real poverty and
wretchedness. In fine, the superiority of Christian
charity and of plain practical beneficence has been
ably vindicated ; and the school of Rousseau or ot
Sterne has been forced to yield to the school ol
Christ, when the question has been concerning the
best means of promoting the comfort of family life,
or the temporal well-being of society.
SECTION V.
iiome other grand defects in the practical system of the bulk of
nominal Christians.
In the imperfect sketch which has been drawn of
the religion of the bulk of nominal Christians, their
fundamental error respecting the nature of Chris-
tianity has been traced into some of its many mis-
chievous consequences. Several of their particular
misconceptions and allowed defects have also been
pointed out and illustrated. It may not be improper
to close the survey by noticing some others, for the
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 219
existence of which we may now appeal to aUnost
every part of the precea'ing- delineation.
In the first place, then, there appears throughout,
both in the principles and allowed conduct of the
bulk of Tiominal Christians, a most inadequate idea of
the guilt and evil of sin. We every where find rea-
son to remark, that, as was formerly observed, reli-
gion is suffered to dwindle away into a mere matter
of police. Hence the guilt of actions is estimated,
not by the proportion in which, according to Scrip-
ture, they are offensive to God, but by that in which
they are injurious to societ}^ Murder, theft, fraud in
all its shapes, and some species of lying, are mani-
festly, and in an eminent degree, injurious to social
happiness. How difTerent, accordingly, in the moral
scale, is the place they hold; from that which is as-
signed to idolatry, to general irreligion, to swearing,
drinking, fornication, lasciviousness, sensuality, exces-
sive dissipation ; and, in particular circumstances, to
pride, wrath, malice, and revenge !
Indeed, several of the abovementioned vices are
held to be grossly criminal in the lower ranks, be-
cause manifestly ruinous to their temporal interests ;
but in the higher, they are represented as " losing
half their evil by losing all their grossness," as flow-
mg naturally from great prosperity, from the excess
of gayety and good humor : and they are accordingly
•* regarded with but a small degree of disapproba
220 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
tion, and censured very slightly, or not at all."*
These are the remarks of authors who have survey-
ed the stage of human life with more than ordinary
observation ; one of whom, in particular, cannot be
suspected of having been misled by religious pre-
judices to form a judgment of the superior orders
too unfavorable and severe.
Will these positions however be denied? Will it
be maintained that there is not the difference already
stated, in the moral estimation of these different
classes of vices ? Will it be said that the one class
is indeed more generally restrained, and more se-
verely punished by human laws, because more pro-
perly cognizable by human judicatures, and more
directly at war with the well-being of society; but
that, when brought before the tribunal of internal
opinion, they are condemned with equal rigor ?
Facts may be denied, but where the general senti-
ment and feeling of mankind are in question, our
common language is often the clearest and most
impartial witness; and the conclusions thus furnish-
ed, are not to be parried by wit, or eluded by sophis-
try. In the present case, our ordinary modes of
speech furnish sufficient matter for the determination
of the argument, and abundantly prove our disposi-
tion to consider as matters of small account, such
sins as are not held to be injurious to the commu-
• Vide Smith on the Wealth of Nations, vol. iil
ststl:m of nominal cht^istians. 2-2 1
tiity. Wo invent for them diminutive and qnalifying:
terms, which, if not to be admitted as signs of ap-
probation and goodwill, must at least be confessed
to be proofs of our tendency to regard them with
palliation and indulgence. Free-thinking, gallantry,
jollity,* and a thousand similar phrases, might be
adduced as instances. But it is worthy of remark,
that no such soft and qualifying terms are in use for
expressing the smaller degrees of theft, or fraud, or
forgery, or any other of those offences which are
committed by men against their fellow-creatures, and
in the suppression of which we are interested by our
regard to our temporal concerns.
The charge which we are urgmg is indeed unde-
niable. In the case of any question of honor, or of
moral honesty, we are sagacious in discerning and
inexorable in judging the offence. No allowance is
made for the suddenness of surprise, or the strength
of temptations. One single failure is presumed to im-
ply the absence of the moral or honorable princi-
ple. The memory is retentive on these occasions,
and the man's character is blasted for life. Here
even mere suspicion of having once offended can
scarcely be got over: " There is an awkward story
about that man, which must be explained before he
* Many more might be added, such as, a good fellow, a
good companion, a libertine, a little free, a little loose in
lalk, wild, gay, jovial, being no man's enemy but his own,
&.C. &c. &c. &c. above all, having a good heart.
19*^
222 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
and I can become acquainted." But in the case ol
sins against God, there is no such watchful jealousy,
none of this rigorous logic. A man may go on in
the frequent commission of known sins, yet no such
inference is drawn respecting the absence of the reli-
gious principle. On the contrary, we say of him, that
"though his conduct be a little incorrect, his princi-
ples are untouched ;" — "that he has a good heart:
and such a man may go quietly through life, with the
titles of a mighty worthy creature, and a very good
Christian."
But in the word of God, actions are estimated by a
far less accommodating standard. There we read of no
little sins. Much of our Savior's sermon on the mount,
which many of the class we are condemning affect
highly to admire, is expressly pointed against so dan-
gerous a misconception. There, no such distinction
is made between the rich and the poor. No notices
are to be traced of one scale of morals for the high-
er, and of another for the lower classes of society.
Nay, the former are distinctly warned, that their
condition in life is the more dangerous, because of the
more abundant temptations to which it exposes them.
Idolatry, fornication, lasciviousness, drunkenness,
revellings, inordinate affection, are, by the apostle,
likewise classed with theft and murder, and with
what we hold in even still greater abomination ; and
concerning them all, it is pronounced alike, that
" they which do such things shall not inherit the
kingdom of God." Gal. 5 : 19-21. Col. 3 : 5-9.
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 223
Tn truth, the instance which we have lately speci-
fied, of the loose system of these nominal Christians,
betrays a fatal absence of the principle which is the
very foundation of all religion. Their slight notions
of the guilt and evil of sin discover an utter want of
all suitable reverence for the Divine majesty. This
principle is justly termed in Scripture, *'the begin-
ning of wisdom," and there is perhaps no one quality
which it is so much the studious endeavor of the sa-
cred writers to impress upon the human heart. Job,
28: 28. Psalm 111 : 10. Prov. 1: 7. 9: 10.
Sin is considered in Scripture as rebellion against
the sovereignty of God, and every different act of it
equally violates his law, and if persevered in, dis-
claims his supremacy. To the inconsiderate and the
gay this doctrine may seem harsh, while, vainly
fluttering in the sunshine of worldly prosperity, they
lull themselves into a fond security. " But the day
of the Lord will come as a thief in the night ; in
which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise,
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat ; the
earth also and the works that are therein shall be
burnt up. Seeing, then, that all these things shall be
dissolved, what manner of persons ought we to be
in all holy conversation and godliness ?" 2 Peter, 3 :
10,11. We are but an atom in the universe. Worlds
upon worlds surround us, all probably full of intelli-
gent creatures, to whom, now or hereafter, we may
be a spectacle, and afford an example of the Divine
224 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
procedure. Who then shall take upon him to pro
nounce what might be the issue, if sin were sufferea
to pass unpunished in one corner of this universal
empire ? Who shall say what confusion might be the
consequence, what disorder it might spread through
the creation of God ? Be this however as it may, the
language of Scripture is clear and decisive: " The
wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations
that forget God."
It should be carefully observed, too, that these aw-
ful denunciations of the future punishment of sin de-
rive additional weight from this consideration, that
they are represented, not merely as a judicial sen-
tence which, without violence to the settled order of
things, might be remitted through the mere mercy
of our Almighty Governor, but as arising out of the
established course of nature: as happening in the
way of natural consequence, just as a cause is ne-
cessarily connected with its effect ; as resulting from
certain connections and relations which rendered
them suhable and becoming. It is stated that the king-
dom of God and the kingdom of Satan are both set
up in the w^orld, and that to the one or the other of
these we must belong. " The righteous have pas-
sed from death unto life ;" " they are delivered from
the power of darkness, and are translated into the
kingdom of God's dear Son." Col. 1 : 13. They
are become "the children" and *' the subjects of
God " While on earth, they love his day, his ser-
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 225
vice, his people ; they " speak good of his name ;"
they abound in his works. Even here they are in
some degree possessed of his image : by and by it
shall be perfected; they shall awake up after his
" likeness," and being " heirs of eternal life," they
shall receive " an inheritance incorruptible and un-
defiled, and that fadeth not away."
Of sinners, on the other hand, it is declared that
" they are of their father the devil;" while on earth,
they are styled " his children," " his servants ;" they
are said " to do his works," to be " subjects of his
kingdom :" at length " they shall partake his por-
tion," when the merciful Savior shall be changed
into an avenging Judge, and shall pronounce that
dreadful sentence, " Depart from me, ye cursed, into
everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his
angels."
Is it possible that these declarations should not
strike terror, or at least excite serious and fearful ap-
prehension in the lightest and most inconsiderate
mind ? But the imaginations of men are fatally prone
to suggest to them fallacious hopes, in the very face
of these positive declarations. " We cannot persuade
ourselves that God will, in fact, prove so severe." It
was the very delusion to which our first parents
listened ; " Ye shall not surely die."
Let me ask these rash men, who are thus disposed
to trifle with their immortal interests, had they lived
in the antediluvian world, would they have conceiv-
226 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
ed it possible that God would then execute his pre-
dicted threatening? Yet the event took place at the
appointed time: the flood came and swept them all
away ; and this awful instance of the anger of God
against sin is related in the inspired writings for our
instruction. Still more to rouse us to attention, the
record is impressed in indelible characters on the
solid substance of the very globe we inhabit ; which
thus, in every country upon earth, furnishes practi-
cal attestations to the truth of the sacred writings,
and to the actual accomplishment of their awful pre-
dictions. For myself I must declare that I never
can read without awe the passage in which our Sa-
vior is speaking 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 dif-
ferent from that which is exhibited in many of the
European nations. It was a selfish, a luxurious, an
irreligious, and an inconsiderate world. They were
called, but they would not hearken : they were warn-
ed, but they would not believe — " They did cat, they
drank, they married wives, they were given in mar-
riage :" such is the account of one of the evangelists ;
in that of another it is stated nearly in the same
words; " They were eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, and knew not until the
Hood came, and swept them all away."
SYSTEM OF ^0.'MI^AL CHRISTIANS. ^17
Again, we see throughout, in the system which
we have been describing, a most inadequate concep-
tion of the difficulty of becoming true Christians;
and an utter forgetfulness of its being the great bu-
siness of life to secure our admission into heaven,
and to prepare our hearts for its service and enjoy-
ments. 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 there-
fore look out for positive evidence of our really being
of that number; but putting the onus probandi, if it
may be so expressed, on the wrong side, we con-
ceive ourselves such of course, except our title be
disproved by positive evidence to the contrary. And
we are so slow in givins: ear to what conscience
urges to us on this side; so dexterous in justifying
what is clearly wrong, in palliating what we cannot
justify, in magnifying the merit of what is fairly com-
mendable, in flattering ourselves that our habits of
vice are only occasional acts, and in multiplying our
single acts into habits of virtue, that we must be bad
indeed, to be compelled to give a verdict against
ourselves. Besides, having no suspicion of our state,
we do not set ourselves in earnest to the work of
self-examination : but only receive in a confused and
hasty way some occasional notices of our danger,
Avhen sickness, or the loss of a friend, or the recent
commission of some act of vice of greater size than
ordinary, has awakened in our consciences a more
than usual dei^ree of sen-:ibi1i!v.
223 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
Thus, by the generality, it is altogether forgotten
that the Christian has a great work to execute — that
of forming himself after the pattern of his Lord and
Master, through the operation of the Holy Spirit of
God, which is promised to our fervent prayers and
diligent endeavors. Unconscious of the obstacles
which impede, and of the enemies which resist their
advancement, they are naturally forgetful also of the
ample provision which is in store for enabling them
to surmount the one, and to conquer the other. The
scriptural representations of the state of the Christian
on earth, by the images of "a race," and ''a war-
fare ;" of its being necessary to rid himself of every
encumbrance which might retard him in the one,
and to furnish himself with the whole armor of
God for being victorious in the other, are, so far as
these nominal Christians are concerned, figures of
no propriety or meaning. As little, as was formerly
shown, have they, in correspondence with the scrip-
ture descriptions of the feelings and language of real
Christians, any idea of acquiring a relish, while on
earth, for the worship and service of heaven. If the
truth must be told, their notion is rather a confused
idea of future gratification in heaven, in return for
having put a force upon their inclinations, and en-
dured so much religion while on earth.
But all this is only nominal Christianit}^ which
exhibits an infinitely more inadequate image of her
real excellences, than the cold copyings, by some
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 22?
insipid pencil, convey of the force and grace of na-
ture, or of Raphael. In the language of Scripture,
Christianity is not a geographical, but a moral term.
It is not the being a native of a Christian country :
it is a condition, a state ; the possession of a peculiar
nature, with the qualities and properties which be-
long to it.
Farther than this ; it is a state into which we are
not born, but into which we must be translated ; a
nature which we do not inherit, but into 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 indebted for the attainment of this
nature; and to acquire and make sure of it is that
great "work of our salvation" which we are com-
manded to " work out with fear and trembling." We
are every where reminded, that this is a matter of
labor and difficulty, requiring continual Avatchfulness,
and unceasing effort, and unwearied patience. Even
to the very last, towards the close of a long life con-
sumed in active service or in cheerful suffering, we
find St. Paul himself declaring that he conceived
bodily self-denial and mental discipline to be indis-
pensably necessary to his very safety. Christians,
who are really worthy of the name, are represented
as being "made meet for the inheritance of the saints
in light ;" as " waiting for the coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ ;" as " looking for and hastening unto
the coming of the day of God." It is stated as being
20
230 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
enough to make them happy, that " Christ should rd«
ceive them to himself;" and the songs of the blessed
spirits in heaven are described to be the same as
those in which the servants of God on earth pour
forth their gratitude and adoration.
Conscious therefore of the indispensable necessity
and of the arduous nature of the service in which he
is engaged, the true Christian sets himself to the
work with vigor, and prosecutes it with diligence ;
his motto is that of the painter — " Nullus dies sine
linea." Fled as it were from a country in which the
plague is raging, he thinks it not enough just to pass
the boundary line, but would put out of doubt his es-
cape beyond the limits of infection. Prepared to
meet with difficulties, he is not discouraged when
they occur ; warned of his numerous adversaries,
he is not alarmed on their approach, or unprovided
for encountering them. He knows that the begin-
ning of every new course may be expected to be
rough and painful ; but he is assured that the paths
on which he is entering will ere long seem smooth-
er, and become indeed " paths of pleasantness and
peace."
Now of the state of such an one the expressions
of pilgrim and stranger are a lively description ; and
all the other figures and images, by which Christians
are represented in Scripture, have in his case a de-
terminate meaning and a just application. There is
indeed none by which the Christian's state on earth
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 231
is in the word of God more frequently imaged, or
more happily illustrated, than by that of a journey :
and it may not be amiss to pause for a while in order
to survey it under that resemblance. The Christian
is traveling on business through a strange country,
in which he is commanded to execute his work with
diligence, and pursue his course homeward with
alacrity. The fruits which he sees by the way-side
he gathers with caution ; he drinks of the streams
with moderation ; he is thankful when the sun shines,
and his way is pleasant ; but if it be rough and rainy,
he cares not much, he is but a traveler. He is pre-
pared for vicissitudes ; he knows that he must expect
to meet with them in the stormy and uncertain cli-
mate of this world. But he is traveling to a " better
country," a country of unclouded light and undis-
turbed serenity. He finds also, by experience, that
when he has had the least of external comforts, he
has always been least disposed to loiter ; and if for
the time it be a little disagreeable, he can solace him-
self with the idea of his being thereby forwarded in
his course. In a less unfavorable season, he looks
round with an eye of observation ; he admires what
is beautiful ; he examines what is curious ; he re-
ceives with complacency the refreshments set before
him, and enjoys them with thankfulness. Nor
does he churlishly refuse to associate with the in-
habitants of the country through which he is pass-
ing. But he neither suffers pleasure, nor curiosity,
232 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
nor society to take up his time; and is still intent
on transacting the business he has to execute, and
on prosecuting- the journey he is ordered to pursue.
He knows that to the very end of life his journey will
be through a country in which he has many ene-
mies; that his way is beset with snares; that temp-
tations throng around him, to seduce him from his
course, or check his advancement in it ; that the
very air disposes to drowsiness, and that therefore
to the very last it will be requisite for him to be cir-
cumspect and collected. Often therefore he examines
w^hereabouts he is, how he has got forward, and
whether or not he is traveling in the right direction.
Sometimes he seems to himself to make considera-
ble progress; sometimes he advances but slowly;
too often he finds reason to fear that he has fallen
backward in his course. Now he is cheered w-ith
hope, and gladdened by success ; now he is disqui-
eted by doubts, and damped by disappointments.
Thus, while to nominal Christians religion is a dull
uniform thing, and they have no conception of the
desires and disappointments, the hopes and fears, the
joys and sorrows which it is calculated to bring into
exercise ; in the true Christian all is life and motion,
and his great work calls forth the various passions
of the soul. Let it not therefore be imagined that
his is a state of unenlivened toil and hardship. His
very labors are " the labors of love ;" if " ho has
need of patience," it is "the patience of hope ;" and
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 233
he is cheered in his work by the constant assurance
of present support and of final victory. Let it not be
forgotten, that this is the very idea given us of hap-
piness by one of the ablest examiners of the human
mind ; " a constant employment for a desired end,
with the consciousness of continual progress." So
true is the scripture declaration, that " godliness has
the promise of the life that now is, as well as of that
which is to come."
Our review of the character of the bulk of nomi-
nal Christians has exhibited abundant proofs of
their defectiveness in that great constituent of the
true Christian character, the love of God. Many in-
stances, in proof of this assertion, have been pointed
out ; and the charge is in itself so obvious, that it
were superfluous to spend much time in endeavoring
to establish it. Put the question fairly to the test.
Concerning the proper marks and evidences of af-
fection there can be little dispute. Let the most can-
did investigator examine the character, and conduct,
and language of the persons of whom we have been
speaking, and he will be compelled to acknowledge
that, so far as love towards the Supreme Being is in
question, these marks and evidences are no where to
be met with. It is in itself a decisive evidence of a
contrary feeling in those nominal Christians, that
they find no pleasure in the service and worship oi
(iod. Their devotional acts resemble less the free-
will offerings of a grateful heart, than that constrain-
20*
234 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
ed and reluctant homage exacted by some hard mas-
ter from his oppressed dependents, and paid with
cold suUenness and slavish apprehension. It was
the very charge brought by God against his ungrate-
ful people of old, that, while they called him Sove-
reign and Father, they withheld from him the re-
gards which severally belong to those respected and
endearing appellations. Thus we likewise think it
enough to offer to the most excellent and amiable of
beings, to our supreme and unwearied Benefactor,
a dull, artificial, heartless gratitude, of which we
should be ashamed in the case of a fellow-creature
who had ever so small a claim on our regard and
thankfulness !
It may be of infinite use to establish in our minds
a strong and habitual sense of that first and great
commandment, •' Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy mind, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy strength." This mo-
tive, operative and vigorous in its very nature, like
a master spring, would put and maintain in action
all the complicated movements of the human soul.
Soon also would it terminate many questions con-
cerning certain compliances ; questions which, with
other similar difficulties, are often only the cold off-
spring of a spirit of reluctant submission, and cannot
stand the encounter of this trying principle. If, for
example, it were disputed whether or not the law of
God were so strict as had been stated, in condemn-
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 235
ing the slightest infraction of its precepts ; yet when,
from the precise demands of justice, the appeal
should be made to the more generous principle of
love, there would be at once an end of the discus-
sion. Fear will deter from acknowledged crimes, and
self-interest will bribe to laborious services ; but it
is the peculiar glory and the very characteristic of
this more generous passion, to show itself in ten
thousand little and undefinable acts of sedulous at-
tention, Avhich love alone can pay, and of which,
when paid, love alone can estimate the value. Love
outruns the deductions of reasoning; it scorns the
refuge of casuistry; it requires not the slow process
of laborious and undeniable proof that an action
would be injurious and offensive, or another benefi-
cial or gratifying, to the object of affection. The
least hint, the slightest surmise is sufficient to make
it start from the former, and fly with eagerness to
the latter.
There has been much argument concerning the
lawfulness of theatrical amusements.* Let it be
sufficient to remark, that the controversy would be
short indeed, if the question were to be tried by this
criterion of love to the Supreme Being. If there
were any thing of that sensibility for the honor of
God, and of that zeal in his service which we show
♦ It is almost unnecessary to remark, that the word is tc
be understood in a large sense as including the opera, &c.
236 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
in behalf of our earthly friends, or of our political
connections, should we seek our pleasure in that
place which the debauchee, inflamed with wine, or
bent on the gratification of other licentious appetites,
finds most congenial to his state and temper of mind 1
In that place, from the neighborhood of which (how
justly termed a school of morals might hence alone
be inferred) decorum, and modesty, and regularity
retire, while riot and lewdness are invited to the spot,
and invariably select it for their chosen residence !
where the sacred name of God is often profaned !
where sentiments are often heard with delight, and
motions and gestures often applauded, which would
not be tolerated in private company, but which may
far exceed the utmost license allowed in the social
circle, without at all transgressing theatrical deco-
rum ! where, when moral principles are inculcated,
they are not such as a Christian ought to cherish in
his bosom, but such as it must be his daily endeavor
to extirpate; not those which Scripture warrants,
but those which it condemns as false and spurious,
being founded in pride and ambition, and the over-
valuation of human favor! where surely, if a Chris-
tian should trust himself at all, it would be requisite
for him to prepare himself with a double portion of
watchfulness and seriousness of mind, instead of se-
lecting it as the place in which he may throw off
his guard, and unbend without danger ! The just-
ness of this last remark, and the general tendency of
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 237
theatrical amusements, is attested by the same well-
instructed master in the science of human life, to
whom we had before occasion to refer. By him
they are recommended as the most efficacious expe-
dient for relaxing, among any people, that " precise-
ness and austerity of morals," to use his own phrase,
which, under the name of holiness, it is the business
of Scripture to inculcate and enforce. Nor is this
position merely theoretical. The experiment was
tried, and tried successfully, in a city upon the conti-
nent, Geneva, in which it was wished to corrupt the
simple morality 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 to his sovereign, who, at sea-
sons of recreation, should seek his pleasures in
scenes as ill accordant with the principle of loyalty
as those of which we have been speaking are with
the genius of religion? If for this purpose he were
to select the place and frequent the amusements to
which rebels should love to resort for entertainment,
and in which they should find themselves so much
at home as invariably to select the spot for their
abiding habitation ; where dialogue, and song, and
the intelligible language of gesticulation should be
used to convey ideas and sentiments, not perhaps
palpably treasonable, or directly falling within the
strict precision of any legal limits, but yet palpably
contrary to the spirit of the government! What
238 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
opinion should we form of the delicacy of that friend-
ship, or of the fidelity of that love, which, in relation
to their respective objects, should exhibit the same
contradictions ?
In truth, the very different way in which we allow
ourselves to act, and speak, and feel, where God is
concerned, from that which we require, or even prac-
tice in the case of our fellow-creatures, is in itself the
most decisive proof that the principle of the love of
God, if not altogether extinct in us, is at least in
the lowest possible degree of languor.
From examining the degree in which the bulk of
nominal Christians are defective in the love of God,
if we proceed to inquire concerning the strength of
their love towards their fellow-creatures, the writer
is well aware of its being generally held, that here
at least they may rather challenge praise than sub-
mit to censure. And the many beneficent institu-
tions in which this country abounds, probably above
every other, whether in ancient or modern times,
may be perhaps appealed to in proof of the opinion.
Much of what might have been otherwise urged in
the discussion of this topic, has been anticipated in
the inquiry into the grounds of the extravagant esti-
mation assigned to amiable tempers and useful lives,
when unconnected with religious principle. What
was then stated may serve in many cases to lower,
in the present instance, the loftiness of the preten-
sions of these nominal.Christians; and we shall here-
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 239
after have occasion to mention another consideration,
of which the effect must be, still further to reduce
their claims. Meanwhile let it suffice to remark,
that a vigorous principle of philanthropy must not
be at once conceded, on the ground of liberal bene-
factions to the poor, in the case of one who, by his
liberality in this respect, is curtailed in no necessary,
is abridged of no luxury, is put to no trouble either
of thought or of action ; who, not to impute a desire
of being praised for his benevolence, is injured in
no man's estimation ; in whom also familiarity with
large sums has produced that freedom in the ex-
penditure of money, which, thereby affording a fresh
illustration of the justice of the old proverb, " Fa-
miliarity breeds contempt," never fails to operate,
except in minds under the influence of a strong prin-
ciple of avarice.
Our conclusion, perhaps, would be less favora-
ble, but not less fair, if we were to try the characters
in question by those surer tests, which are stated
by the apostle to be less ambiguous marks of a real
spirit of philanthropy. The strength of every pas-
sion is to be estimated by its victory over passions of
an opposite nature. What judgment then shall we
form of the force of the benevolence of the age, when
measured by this standard ? How does it stand the
shock, when i: comes into encounter with our pride,
our vanity, our self-love, our self-interest, our love of
ease or of pleasure, with our ambition, with our ds-
240 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
sire of worldly estimaijon ? Does it make us self-d6»
nying, that we may be liberal in relieving others?
Does it make us persevere in doing good in spite of
ingratitude; and only pity the ignorance, or preju-
dice, or malice which misrepresents our conduct, or
misconstrues our motives'? Does it make us forbear
from what we conceive may probably prove the occa-
sion of harm to a fellow-creature ; though the harm
should not seem naturally or even fairly to flow from
our conduct, but to be the result only of his own ob-
stinacy or weakness ? Are we slow to believe any
thing to our neighbor's disadvantage? and when we
cannot but credit it, are we disposed to cover, and as
iar as we justly can, rather to palliate than to divulge
or aggravate it? Suppose an opportunity to occur of
performing a kindness to one who, from pride or
vanity, should be loth to receive, or to be known to
receive a favor from us ; should we honestly endea-
vor, so far as we could with truth, to lessen in his
own mind and in that of others the merit of our good
offices, and by so doing dispose him to receive them
with diminished reluctance ? This end, however,
must be accomplished, if to be accomplished at all, by
a simple and fair explanation of the circumstances,
which may render the action in no wise inconveni-
ent to ourselves, though highly beneficial to another ;
not by speeches of affected disparagement, which we
might easily foresee, and in fact do foresee, must pro-
duce the contrary effect. Can we, from motives of
SYSTEM OF NOMliNAL CHRISTIANS. 241
kindness, incur or risk the charge of being defi-
cient in spirit, in penetration, or in foresight 1 Do we
tell another of his faults, when the communication,
though probably beneficial to him, cannot be made
without embarrassment or pain to ourselves, and may
probably lessen his regard for our person, or his
opinion of our judgment? Can we stifle a repartee
which would wound another ; though the utterance of
it would gratify our vanity, and the suppression of it
may disparage our character for wit ? If any one ad-
vance a mistaken proposition, in an instance wherein
the error may be mischievous to him ; can we, to the
prejudice perhaps of our credit for discernment, for-
bear to contradict him in public, if it be probable that
in so doing, by piquing his pride, we might only
harden him in his error ? and can we reserve our
counsel for some more favorable season, Avhen it
may be communicated without offence? If we have
recommended to any one a particular line of conduct,
or have pointed out the probable mischiefs of the op-
posite course, and if our admonitions have been neg-
lected, are we really hurt when our predictions of
evil are accomplished? Is our love superior to envy,
and jealousy, and emulation ? Are we acute to dis-
cern and forward to embrace any fair opportunity of
promoting the interest of another ; if it be in a line
v/herein we ourselves also are moving, and in which
we think our progress has not been proportioned to
our desert? Can we take pleasure in bringing his
2i
242 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
merits into notice, and in obviating the prejudices
which may have damped his efforts, or in removing
the obstacles which may have retarded his advance-
ment 1 If even to this extent we should be able to
stand the scrutiny, let it be farther asked how, in the
case of our enemies, do we correspond with the scrip-
ture representations of love ? Are we meek under
provocations, ready to forgive, and apt to forget inju-
ries? Can we, with sincerity, " bless them that curse
us, do good to them that hate us, and pray for them
which despitefully use us, and persecute us ?" Do
we prove to the Searcher of hearts a real spirit of for-
giveness, by our forbearing not only from avenging
an injury when it is in our power, but even from tell-
ing to any one how ill we have been used; and that too
when we are not kept silent by a consciousness that
we should lose credit by divulging the circumstance?
And lastly, can we not only be content to return our
enemies good for evil, (for this return, as has been
remarked by one of the greatest of uninspired au-
thorities,* may be prompted by pride and repaid by
self-complacency,) but, when they are successful or
unsuccessful without our having contributed to their
good or ill fortune, can we not only be content, but
cordially rejoice in their prosperity, or sympathize
with their distresses?
These are but a few specimens of the characteris-
tic marks which might be staled of a true predomi-
♦ Lord Bacon
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CURISTIANS. 243
nant benevolence : yet even these may serve to con-
vince us how far the bulk of nominal Christians fall
short of the requisitions of Scripture, even in that par-
ticular which exhibits their character in the most
favorable point of view. The truth is, we do not
enough call to mind the exalted tone of scripture mo-
rality, and are therefore apt to value ourselves on the
heights to which we attain, when a better acquaint-
ance with our standard would have convinced us of
our falling far short of the elevation prescribed to us.
It is in the very instance of the most difficult of the
duties lately specified, the forgiveness and love of
enemies, that our Savior points out to our imitation
the example of our Supreme Benefactor. After stat-
ing that, by being kind and courteous to those who,
even in the world's opinion, had a title to our good of-
fices and good will, we should in vain set up a claim
to christian benevolence, he emphatically adds, "Be
ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is
in heaven is perfect."
We must here again resort to the topic of theatri-
cal amusements ; and recommend their advocates to
consider them in connection with the duty of which
we have now been exhibiting some of the leading
characters.
It is an undeniable fact, for the truth of which we
may safely appeal to every age and nation, that the
situation of the performers is remarkably unfavora-
ble to the maintenance and growth of religious and
244 DEFECTS IN THE PRACTICAL
moral principle, and of course highly dangerous ta
their eternal interests. Might it not then be fairly
asked, how far, in all who confess the truth of this
position, it is consistent with the sensibility of cTiris-
tian benevolence, merely for the entertainment of an
idle hour, to encourage the continuance of any of
their fellow-creatures in such a way of life, and to
take a part in tempting any others to enter into it?
how far, considering that, by their own concession,
they are employing Avhatever they spend in this way
in sustaining and advancing the cause of vice, and
consequently in promoting misery, they are herein
bestowing this share of their wealth in a manner
agreeable to the intentions of their holy and benevo-
lent Benefactor ? how far also they are not in this in-
stance the rather criminal, from there being so many
sources of innocent pleasure open to their enjoyment?
how far they are acting conformably to that golden
principle of doing to others as we would they should
do to us ? how far they harmonize with the spirit of
the apostle's declaration, that he would deny himself
for his whole life the most innocent indulgence, nay,
what might seem almost an absolute necessary, ra-
ther than cause his weak fellow-christian to offend?
or, lastly, how far they are influenced by the solemn
language of our Savior himself; " It needs must b(i
that offences come, but wo to that man by whom
the offence cometh ; it were better for him that a mill-
stone were hanged about his neck, and that he were
SYSTEM OF NOMINAL CHRISTIANS. 245
cast into the depths of the sea?" The present in-
stance is perhaps another example of our taking
greater concern in the temporal than in the spiritual
interests of our fellow-creatures. That man would be
deemed, and justly deemed, of an inhuman temper,
who in these days were to seek his amusement in the
combat of gladiators and prize-fighters ; yet Chris-
tians appear conscious of no inconsistency in finding
their pleasure in spectacles maintained at the risk, at
least, if not the ruin of the eternal happiness of those
who perform in them !
SECTION VI.
Grand defect. — Neglect of the peculiar doctrines of
Chrislianity.
But the grand radical defect in the practical system
of these nominal Christians, is their forgetfulness
of all the peculiar doctrines of the religion which
they profess — the corruption of human nature ; the
atonement of the Savior ; and the sanctifying influ-
ence of the Holy Spirit.
Here then we come again to the grand distinction
between the religion of Christ and that of the bulk
of nominal Christians in the present day. The point
is of the utmost practical importance, and we would
therefore trace it into its actual effects.
There are, it is to be apprehended, not a few who
having been for some time hurried down the stream
21»
246 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
of dissipation in the indulgence of all their natural
appetites, except, perhaps, that they were restrained
from very gross vice by a regard to character, or by
the yet unsubdued voice of conscience ; and who,
having al] the while thought little, or scarcely at all,
about religion, " living," to use the emphalical lan-
guage of Scripture, " without God in the world,"
become in some degree impressed with a sense of
the infinite importance of religion. A fit of sickness,
perhaps, or the loss of some friend or much loved
relative, or some other stroke of adverse fortune,
damps their spirits, awakens them to a practical con-
viction of the precariousness of all human things, and
turns them to seek for some more stable foundation
of happiness than this world can afford. Looking
into themselves ever so little, they become sensible
that they must have offended God. They resolve ac-
cordingly to set about the work of reformation. Here
it is that we shall recognize the fatal effects of the
prevailing ignorance of the real nature of Christiani-
ty, and the general forgetfulness of its grand pecu-
liarities. These men wish to reform, but they know
neither the real nature of their distemper nor its
true remedy. They are aware, indeed, that they
must " cease to do evil, and learn to do well ;" that
they must relinquish their habits of vice, and attend
more or less to the duties of religion ; but having no
conception of the actual malignity of the disease un-
der which they labor, or of the perfect cure which
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 247
the Gospel has provided for it, or of the manner in
which that cure is lo be effected,
" They do but skim and film the ulcerous place,
••' While rank corruption, mining all within,
'•Infects unseen."
It often happens therefore but too naturally in this
case, that where they do not soon desist from their
attempt at reformation, and relapse into their old
habits of sin, they take up with a partial and scanty
amendment, and fondly flatter themselves that it is
a thorough change. They now conceive that they
have a right to take to themselves the comforts of
Christianity. Not being able to raise their practice
up to their standard of right, they lower their stan-
dard to their practice : they sit down for life con-
tented with their present attainments, beguiled by the
complacencies of their own minds, and by the favor-
able testimony of surrounding friends ; and it often
happens, particularly where there is any degree of
strictness in formal and ceremonial observances, that
there are no people more jealous of their character
for religion.
Others, perhaps, go farther than this. The dread
of the wrath to come has sunk deeper into their
hearts ; and for a while they strive with all their
might to resist their evil propensities, and to walk
without stumbling in the path of duty. Again and
again they resolve again and again they break
248 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
their resolutions.* All their endeavors are foiled,
and they become more and more convinced of their
own moral weakness, and of the strength of their in-
dwelling corruption. Thus groaning under the en-
slaving power of sin, and experiencing the futility
of the utmost efforts which they can use for effecting
their deliverance, they are tempted to give up all in
despair, and to acquiesce under their wretched cap-
tivity, conceiving it impossible to break their chains.
Sometimes, probably, it even happens that they are
driven to seek for refuge from their disquietude in
the suggestions of infidelity, and to quiet their trou-
blesome consciences by arguments which they them-
selves scarcely believe, at the very moment in which
they suffer themselves to be lulled asleep by them.
In the mean time, while this conflict has been going
on, their walk is sad and comfortless, and their couch
is nightly watered with tears. These men are pur-
suing the right object, but they mistake the way in
which it is to be obtained. The path in which they
are now treading is not that which the Gospel has
provided for conducting them to true holiness, nor
will they find in it any solid peace.
Persons under these circumstances naturally seek
for religious instruction. They turn over the works
* If any one would read a description of this process, en-
livened and enforced by the powers of the most exquisite
poetry, let him peruse the middle and latter part of the fifth
book of Cowper's Task.
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 249
of our modern religionists, and as well as they can
collect the advice addressed to men in their situation,
the substance of it is, at the best, of this sort: " Be
sorry indeed for your sins, and discontinue the
practice of them, but do not make yourselves so un-
easy. Christ died for the sins of the whole world.
Do your utmost ; discharge with fidelity the duties
of your stations, not neglecting your religious offi-
ces ; and fear not but that in the end all will go well ;
and that having thus performed the conditions re-
quired on your part, you will at last obtain forgive-
ness of our merciful Creator, through the merits of
Jesus Christ, and be aided, where your own strength
shall be insufficient, by the assistance of his Holy
Spirit. Meanwhile you cannot do better than read
carefully such books of practical divinity as will in-
struct you in the principles of a Christian life. We
are excellently furnished with works of this nature;
and it is by the diligent study of them that you will
gradually become a proficient in the lessons of the
Gospel."
But the holy Scriptures call upon those who art
in the circumstances above stated, to lay afresh the
whole foundation of their religion ; gratefully to
adore that undeserved goodness which has awaken-
ed them from the sleep of death ; to prostrate them-
selves before the cross of Christ with humble peni-
tence and deep self-abhorrence ; solemnly resolving
to forsake all their sins, but relying on the grace of
250 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
God alone for power to keep their resolution. Thus,
and thus only, do they assure them that all their
crimes Avill be blotted out, and that they will receive
from above a new living principle of holiness. " Be-
lieve in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt b«
saved." " JAo man," says our blessed Savior, " Com-
eth unto '.he Father but by me." " I am the true
vine. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself ex-
cept it abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye
abide in me." " He that abideth in me and I in him,
the same bringeth forth much fruit ; for without,"
or severed from "me, ye can do nothing." " by
grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of
yourselves, it is the gift of God ; not of works, lest
any man should boast : for we are his workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus unto good works."
Let us not be thought tedious, or be accused of
running into needless repetitions, in pressing this
point with so much earnestness. It is in fact a
point which can never be too much insisted on. It
is the cardinal point, on which the whole of Chris-
tianity turns ; on which it is peculiarly proper in
this place to be perfectly distinct. There have been
some who have imagined that the wrath of God
was to be deprecated, or his favor conciliated by
austerities and penances, or even by forms and cere-
monies, and external observances. But all men of
enlightened understandings, who acknowledge the
moral government of God, must also acknowledge
DOCTRINES OF CHRIIfTIANlTY. 151
that vice must offend and virtue delight him. In
short they must, more or less, assent to the scripture
declaration, " Without holiness no man shall see the
Lord." But the grand distinction which subsists
between the true Christian and all other religionists,
is concerning the nature of this holiness, and the
way in which it is to be obtained. The views en-
tertained by the latter of the nature of holiness,
are of all degrees of inadequateness : and they con-
ceive it is to be obtained by their own natural unas-
sisted efforts : or if they admit some vague indistinct
notion of the assistance of the Holy Spirit, it is un-
questionably obvious, on conversing with them, that
this does not constitute the main practical ground of
their dependence. But the nature of the holiness to
which the desires of the true Christian are directed,
is no other than the restoration of the image of God ;
and as to the manner of acquiring it, disclaiming
with indignation every idea of attaining it by his
own strength, all his hopes of possessing it rest al-
together on the divine assurances of the operation of
the Holy Spirit in those who cordially embrace the
Gospel of Christ. lie knows therefore that this
holiness is not to precede his reconciliation to God,
and be its cause ; but to folloio it, and be its effect.
That, in short, it is by faith in Christ only* that
he is to be justified in the sight of God ; to be
♦ Here again let it be remarked, that faith, where genu-
ine at^v'ays supposes repentance, abhorrence of sin, &c, ,^^
^52 NEGLECf OF THE PECULIAR
delivered from the condition of a child of wrath and
a slave or Satan ; to be adopted into the family of
God ; to become an heir of God and a joint heir
with Christ, entitled to all the privileges which be-
long to this high relation; here, to the Spirit of
grace, and a partial renewal after the image of his
Creator ; hereafter, to the more perfect possession of
the Divine likeness, and an inheritance of eternal
glory.
And as it is in this way that in obedience to the
dictates of the Gospel, the true Christian must origi-
nally become possessed of the vital spirit and living
principle of universal holiness ; so, in order to grow
in grace, he must also study in the sanle school ;
finding in the consideration of the peculiar doctrines
of the Gospel, and in the contemplation of the life,
and character, and sufferings of our blessed Savior*
the elements of all practical wisdom, and an inex-
haustible storehouse of instructions and motives, no
otherwise to be so well supplied. From the neglect
of these peculiar doctrines arise the main practical
errors of the bulk of professed Christians. These
gigantic truths, retained in view, would put to shame
the littlenes.s of iheir dwarfish morality. It would
be impossible for them to make these harmonize
with their low conceptions of the wretchedness and
danger of their natural state, which is represented
in Scripture as having so powerfully called forth the
ompassion of God, that he sent his only-begotten
^
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 253
Son to rescue us. Where now are their low con-
ceptions of the worth 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 the Divine counsels it seemed requisite that an
atonement no less costly should 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 the representation of our being "tem-
ples of the Holy Ghost ?" their cold sense of obli-
gation, and scanty grudged returns of service, with
the glowing gratitude of those who, having been
'* delivered from the power of darkness, and trans-
lated into the kingdom of God's dear Son," may
well conceive that the labors of a whole life will be
but an imperfect expression of their thankfulness ?
The peculiar doctrines of the Gospel being once
admitted, the conclusions which have been now sug-
gested are clear and obvious deductions of reason.
But our neglect of these important truths is still less
pardonable, because they are distinctly and repeat-
edly applied in Scripture to the very purposes in
question, and the whole superstructure of christian
morals is grounded on their deep and ample basis.
Sometimes these truths are represented in Scrip-
ture, generally, as furnishing Christians Avith a vigo-
rous and ever-present principle of universal obedi-
ence. And our learning the lessons of heavenly
wisdom is still further stimulated, by almost every
22
254 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
particular christian duty being occasionally traced
to them as to its proper source. They are every
where represented as warming the hearts of the
people of God on earth with continual admiration,
and thankfulness, and love, and joy; as triumphing
over the attack of the last great enemy, and as call-
ing forth afresh in heaven the ardent effusions of
their unexhausted gratitude.
If then we would indeed be •' filled with wisdom
and spiritual understanding ;" if we would " walk
worthy of the Lord unto all well pleasing, being
fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the
knowledge of God ;" here let us fix our eyes ! " Let
us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth
so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the
race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the
Author and Finisher of our faith; who, for the joy
that was set before him, endured the cross, des-
pising the shame, and is set down at the right hand
of the throne of God." Heb. 12 : 1, 2.
Here best we may learn the infinite importance
of Christianity. How little it can deserve to be treat-
ed in that slight and superficial way in which it is
in these days regarded by the bulk of nominal Chris-
tians, who are apt to think it may be enough, and
almost pleasing to God, to be religious in any way,
and upon any system. What exquishe folly it must
be to risk the soul on such a venture, in direct con-
tradiction to the dictates of reason and the express
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 255
declaration of the word of God ! " How shall wf»
escape, if we neglect so great salvation ?"
LOOKING UNTO JESUS 1
Here we shall best karn the duty and reasonable-
ness of an absolute and unconditional surrender of
soul and body to the will and service of God. " 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 bodies and our spirits, which
are God's." Should we be base enough, even if we
could do it with safety, to make any reserves in our
returns of service to that gracious Savior who " gave
up himself for us ?" If we have formerly talked of
compounding, by the performance of some commands
for the breach of others, can we now bear the mention
of a composition of duties, or of retaining to ourselves
the right of practicing little sins ? The very sugges-
tion of such an idea fills us with indignation and
shame, if our hearts be not dead to every sense of
gratitude.
LOOKING UNTO JESUS !
Here we find displayed, in the most lively colors,
the guilt of sin, and how hateful it must be to the per-
fect holiness of that Being who is of " purer eyes
than to behold iniquity." When we see that, rather
256 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
than sin should go unpunished, " God spared not his
own Son," but " was pleased* to bruise and put him
to grief" for our sakes ; how vainly must impeni-
tent sinners flatter themselves with the hope of escap-
ing the vengeance of heaven, and buoy themselves
up with the desperate dreams of the Divine benigityl
Here too we may anticipate the dreadful suffer-
ings of that state " where shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth ;" when, rather than that we should
undergo them, "the Son of God himself, who
" thought it not robbery to be equal Avith God," con-
sented to take upon him our degraded nature, with
all its weaknesses and infirmities ; to be •' a man of
sorrows ;" " to hide not his face from shame and spit-
ting ;" " to be wounded for our transgressions, and
bruised for our iniquities ;" and at length to endure
the 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 to all believers.
LOOKING UNTO JESUS.
Here best we may learn to grow in the love ot
God ! The certainty of his pity and love towards
* It has been well remarked ihat the word used, where it is
said that God " was pleased to bruise," and put to grief his
only Son for us, is the same word as that wherein it was de-
clared by a voice from heaven, " This is my beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased."
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY, 257
repentinof sinners, thus irrefragably demonstrated,
chases away the sense of tormenting fear, and best
lays the ground in us of a reciprocal affection. And
while we steadily contemplate this wonderful trans-
action, and consider in its several relations the amaz-
ing truth, that " God spared not his own, but deliv-
ered him up for us all ;" if our minds be not utterly
dead to every impulse of sensibility, the emotions of
admiration, of preference, of hope, and trust, and joy
cannot but spring up within us, chastened with rev-
erential fear, and softened and quickened by overflow
ing gratitude.* Here we shall become animated by
an abiding disposition to endeavor to please our great
Benefactor ; and by a humble persuasion, that the
weakest endeavors of this nature will not be despised
by a Being who has already proved himself so
kindly affected towards us. Rom. 5 : 9, 10. Here we
cannot fail to imbibe an earnest desire of possessing
his favor, and a conviction, founded on his own de-
clarations thus unquestionably confirmed, that the
desire shall not be disappointed. Whenever we are
conscious that we have offended this gracious Be-
ing, a single thought of the great work of redemp-
tion will be enough to fill us with compunction.
We shall feel a deep concern, grief mingled with in-
dignant shame, for having conducted ourselves so
unworthily towards one who to us has been infinite
♦ Vide Chap. 3: where these -were shown to be the ele-
mentarv principles of the passion of love.
22*
258 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
in kindness ; we shall not rest till we have reason
to hope that he is reconciled to us ; and we shall
watch over our hearts and conduct in future with a
renewed jealousy, lest we should again offend him.
To those who are ever &o little acquainted with the
nature of the human mind, it were superfluous to re-
mark that the affections and tempers which have
been enumerated, are the infallible marks and the
constituent properties of love. Let him then, who
Avould abound and grow in this Christian principle,
be much conversant with the great doctrines of the
Gospel.
It is obvious that the attentive and frequent con-
sideration of these great doctrines must have a still
more direct tendency to produce and cherish in our
minds the principle of the love of Christ. But on
this head so much was said in a former chapter, as
to render any further observations unnecessary.
Much also has been already observed concerning-
the love of our fellow-creatures, and it has been dis-
tinctly stated to be the indispensable, and indeed the
characteristic duty of Christians. It remains, how-
ever, to be here further remarked, that this grace
can no where be cultivated with more advantage
than at the foot of the cross. No where can our Sa-
vior's dying injunction to the exercise of this virtue
be recollected with more effect ; " This is my com-
mandment, that ye love one another as I have loved
you." No where can the admonition of the apostle
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 259
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 of deliverance held out to all, by the Son oi
God giving himself up to pay the price of our
reconciliation, produce that sympathy towards our fel-
low creatures which, by the constitution of our nature,
seldom fails to result from the consciousness of an
identity of interests and a similarity of fortunes. Pity
for an unthinking world assists this impression. Our
enmities soften and melt away: we are ashamed of
thinking much of the petty injuries which we may
have suffered, when we consider what the Son of
God, "who did no wrong, neither was guile found
in his mouth," patiently underwent. Our hearts be-
come tender while we contemplate this signal act ol
loving-kindness. We grow desirous of imitating
what we cannot but admire. A vigorous principle
of enlarged and active charity springs up within us ;
and we go forth with alacrity, desirous of treading in
the steps of our blessed Master, and of manifesting
our gratitude for his unmerited goodness, by bearing
each other's burdens, and abounding in the disinte
rested labors of benevolence.
LOOKING UNTO JESUS!
He was meek and lowly of heart, and from the
260 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
Study of his character we shall best learn the lessons
of humility. Contemplating the Avork of redemption,
we become more and more impressed with the sense
of our natural darkness, and helplessness, and mi-
sery, from which it was requisite to ransom us at
such a price ; more and more conscious that we arp
"Utterly unworthy of all the amazing condescension
and love which have been manifested towards us ;
ashamed of the callousness of our tenderest sensi-
bility, and of the poor returns of our most active ser-
vices. Considerations like these, abating our pride
and reducing our opinion of ourselves, naturally mo-
derate our pretensions towards others. We become
less disposed to exact that respect for our persons,
and that deference for our authority, which we na-
turally covet ; we less sensibly feel a slight, and less
hotly resent it ; we grow less irritable, less prone to
be dissatisfied; more soft, and meek, and courteous,
and placable, and condescending. We are not lite-
rally required to practice the same humiliating sub-
missions to which our blessed Savior himself was
not ashamed to stoop;* 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 occasion calls upon us to discharge
some duty, or patiently to suffer some ill treatment,
* John, 13 : 13-17. *' If I 'chen, your Lord and Master, have
washed vour feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet,"
&c.
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 261
whereby our pride will be wounded, and we are
likely lo be in some degree degraded from the rank
we had possessed in the world's estimation. At the
same time the sacred Scriptures assuring us, that to
the powerful operations of the Holy Spirit, purchased
for us by the death of Christ, we must be indebted
for the success of all our endeavors after improve-
ment in virtue ; the conviction of this truth tends to
render us diffident of our own powers, and to sup-
press the first risings of vanity. Thus, while we are
conducted to heights of virtue no otherwise attaina-
ble, due care is taken to prevent our becoming giddy
from our elevation.* It is the Scripture characteris-
tic of the Gospel system, that by it all disposition to
exalt ourselves is excluded ; and if we really grow
in grace, we shall grow also in humility.
LOOKING UNTO JESUS !
•' He endured the cross, despising the shame."
While we steadily contemplate this solemn scene,
that sober frame of spirit is produced within us
which best befits the Christian militant here on earth.
We become impressed with a sense of the shortness
and uncertainty of time, and that it behoves us to be di-
ligent in making provision for eternity. In such a
temper of mind, the pomps and vanities of life are cast
behind us as the baubles of children. We lose our re-
* See Pascal's Thoughts on Religion: a book abounding
in the deepest views of practical Christianity.
262 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
lish for the frolics of gayety, the race of ambition, or
the grosser gratifications, of voluptuousness. In the
case even of those objects which may more justly
claim the attention of reasonable and immortal be-
ings ; in our family arrangements, in our plans of life,
in our schemes of business, we become, without re-
linquishing the path of duty, more moderate in pur-
suit, and more indifferent about the issue. Here also
we learn to correct the world's false estimate of
things, and to " look through the shallowness of
earthly grandeur;"* to venerate what is truly ex-
cellent and noble, though under a despised and de-
graded form ; and to cultivate within ourselves that
true magnanimity which can make us rise superior
to the smiles or frowns of this world ; that dignified
composure of soul which no earthly incidents can
destroy or ruffle. Instead of repining at any of the
little occasional inconveniences we may meet with
in our passage through life, we are almost ashamed
of the multiplied comforts 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 it be our lot to undergo evils of more than or-
dinary magnitude, we are animated under them by
reflecting that we are hereby more conformed to
the example of our blessed Master : though we must
ever recollect one important difference, that the suf-
fermgs of Christ w^ere voluntarily borne for our be-
♦ Pope.
DOCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 263
nefit, and were probably far more exquisitely agoniz-
ing than any which we are called upon to undergo.
Besides, it must be a solid support to us amidst all
our troubles to know that they do not happen to
us by chance ; that they are not even merely the
punishment of sin ; but that they are the dispensa-
tions of a kind Providence, and sent on messages of
meicy. "The cup that our Father hath given us,
shall we not drink it ?" " Blessed Savior ! by the
bitterness of thy pains we may estimate the force of
hy love ; we are sure of thy kmdness and compas-
sion ; thou wouldst not willingly call on us to suffer ;
thou hast declared unto us, that all things shall final-
ly work together for good to them that love thee ;
and therefore, if thou so ordainest it, welcome disap-
pointment and poverty, welcome sickness and pain,
welcome even shame, and contempt, and calumny.
If this be a rough and thorny path, it is one in which
thou hast gone before us. Where we see thy foot-
steps we cannot repine. Meanwhile thou wilt sup-
port us with the consolations of thy grace ; and even
here thou canst more than compensate to us for any
temporal sufferings, by the possession of that peac©
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 set before him, endured the cros8»
'254 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
despising the shame, and is set down at the right
hand of God." From the scene of our Savior's weak-
ness and degradation we follow him, in idea, into the
realms of glory, where "he is on the right hand of
God; angels, and principalities, and powers being
made subject unto him." But though changed in
place, j'-et not in nature, he is still full of sympathy
and love; and having died " to save his people from
their sins," "he ever liveth to make intercession for
them." Cheered by this animating view, the Chris-
tian's fainting spirits revive. Under the heaviest bur-
dens he feels his strength recruited : and when 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 no dangers can alarm,
no opposition can move, no provocations can irritate.
He may almost adopt, as the language of his sober
exultation, what in the philosopher was but idle rant :
and, considering that it is only the garment of mor-
tality which is subject to the rents of fortune, while
his spirit, cheered with the Divine support, keeps
its place within, secure and unassailable, he can
sometimes almost triumph at the stake. But it is
rarely that the Christian is elevated with this "joy
unspeakable and full of glory :" he even lends him-
self to these views with moderation and reserve. Of-
ten, alas ! emotions of another kind fill him with grief
and confusion ; and conscious of having acted unwor-
thy of his high calling, perhaps of having exposed
DOCTKINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 265
himself to the just censure of a world ready enough to
spy out his infirmities, he seems to himself almost "to
have crucified the Son of God afresh, and pat him tG
an open shame." But neither his joys intoxicate, nor
his sorrows too much depress him. Let him still re-
member that his c/u'e/ business while on earth is not
to meditate, but to act : that the seeds of moral cor-
ruption are apt to spring up within him, and that it
is requisite for him to watch over his own heart with
incessant care: that he is to discharge with fidelity
the duties of his particular station, and to conduct
himself, according to his measure, after the example
of his blessed Master, whose meat and drink it was
to do the work of his heavenly Father ; that he is di-
ligently to cultivate the talents with which God has
intrusted him, and assiduously to employ them in
doing justice and showing mercy, while he guards
against the assaults of an internal enemy. In short,
he is to demean himself, in all the common affairs
of life, like an accountable creature, who, in corres-
pondence with the Scripture character of Christians,
is " waiting for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.^'
Often therefore he questions him.self, " Am I employ-
ing my time, my fortune, my bodily and mental pow-
ers, so as to be able to ' render up my account with
joy, and not with grief?' Am I ' adorning the doctrine
of God my Savior in all things ;' and proving that
the servants of Christ, animated by a principle of
filial affection, which renders their work a service
23
266 NEGLECT OF THE PECULIAR
of perfect freedom, are' capable of as active and as
persevering exertions as the votaries of fame, or the
slaves of ambition, or the drudges of avarice?"
Thus, without interruption to his labors, he may
interpose occasional thoughts of things unseen: and
amidst the many little intervals of business, may
calmly look upwards to the heavenly Advocate, who
is ever pleading the cause of his people, and obtain-
ing for them needful supplies of grace and consola-
tion. It is these realizing views which give the
Christian a relish for the worship and service of the
heavenly world. And if these blessed images, "seen
but through a glass darkly," can thus refresh the
soul ; what must be its state, when on the morning
of the resurrection it shall awake to the unclouded
vision of celestial glory ? when " to them that look
for him, the Son of God shall appear a second time
without sin unto salvation ?" when " sighing and sor-
row being fled avv'ay," when doubts and fears no
more disquieting, and the painful consciousness of
remaining imperfections no longer weighing down
the spirit, they shall enter upon the fruition of " those
joys which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither
hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive ;"
and shall bear their part in that blessed anihem —
•' Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne,
and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever ?"
Thus, never let it be forgotten, the main distinc-
ion betu-een real Christianity and the system of the
POCTRINES OF CHRISTIANITY. 267
bulk of nominal Christians, chiefly consists in the
different place which is assigned in the two schemes
to the peculiar doctrines of the Gospel. These, in
the scheme of nominal Christians, if admitted at all,
appear but like the stars of the firmament to the or-
dinary eye. Those splendid luminaries draw forth
perhaps occasionally a transient expression of admi-
ration, when we behold their beauty, or hear their
distances, magnitudes, or properties: now and then
too we are led, perhaps, to muse upon their possible
uses : but however curious as subjects of speculation,
after all, it must be confessed they twinkle to the
common observer with a vain and "idle" luster ; and
except in the dreams of the astrologer, have no in-
fluence on human happiness, or any concern with
the course and order of the world. But to the real
Christian, on the contrary, these peculiar doctrines
constitute the center to which he gravitates ! the very
sun of his system ! the soul of the world ! the ori-
gin of all that is excellent and lovely ! the source of
light, and life, and motion, and genial warmth, and
plastic energy ! Dim is the light of reason, and cold
and comfortless our state, while left to her unassisted
guidance. Even the Old Testament itself, though a
revelation from heaven, shines but with feeble and
scanty rays. But the blessed truths of the Gospel
are now unveiled to our eyes, and we are called upon
to behold, and to enjoy "the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus Christ," in
2G8 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY.
the full radiance of its meridian splendor. The words
of inspiration best express our highly favored state:
" We all, with open face beholding as in a glass the
glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image,
from glory to glory, even as by the Sph'it of the
Lord."
Thou art the source and centre of all minds,
Their only point of rest, Eternal Word ;
From thee departing, they are lost, and rove
At random, without honor, hope, or peace:
From thee is all that soothes the life of man ;
His high endeavor, 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 CER-
TAIN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS. ARGUMENT
WHICH RESULTS THENCE IN PROOF OF ITS VI
VINE ORIGIN.
Having now completed a faint delineation of the
leading features of real Christianity, we may point
IN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS. 269
out some excellences which she really possesses;
but which, as they are not to be found in that super-
ficial system which so unworthily usurps her name,
appear scarcely to have attracted sufficient notice;
but by which she will appear to exhibit more clearly,
than as she is usually drawn, the characters of her
divine original.
It holds true, indeed, in the case of Christianity,
as in that of all the works of God, that though a su-
perficial and cursory view cannot fail to discover to
us somewhat of their beauty; yet when, on a more
careful and accurate scrutiny, we become better ac-
quainted with their properties, we become also more
deeply impressed by a conviction of their excellence.
We may begin by referring to the last chapter for
an instance of the truth of this assertion. Therein
was pointed out that intimate connection, that perfect
harmony, between the leading doctrines and the
practical precepts of Christianity, which is apt to
escape the attention of the ordinary eye.
It may not be improper also to remark, though
the position be so obvious as almost to render the
statement of it needless, that there is the same close
connection and perfect harmony in the leading doc-
trines of Christianity among each other. It is self-
evident that the corruption of human nature, that
our reconciliation to God by the atonement of Christ,
and thai the restoration of our primitive dignity by
the sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit, are al
23*
270 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY
parts of one whole, united in close dependence and
mutual congruity.
Perhaps, however, it has not been sufficiently no-
ticed, that in the chief practical precepts of Christiani-
ty, there is the same essential agreement, the same
mutual dependency of one upon another. Let us
survey this fresh instance of the wisdom of that sys-
tem which IS the only solid foundation of our pre-
sent or future happiness.
The virtues most strongly and repeatedly enjoin-
ed in Scripture, and by our progress in which we
may best measure our advancement in holiness, are
the fear and love of God and of Christ : love, kind-
ness, and meekness towards our fellow-creatures ,
indifference to the possessions and events of this life,
in comparison with our concern about eternal things;
self-denial, and humility.
It has been already pointed out in many particu-
lars, how essentially such of these Christian graces
as respect the Divine Being are connected with those
which have more directly for their objects our fel-
low-creatures and ourselves. But in the case of these
two last descriptions of Christian graces, the mors
attentively we consider them with reference to the
acknowledged principles of human nature and to
indisputable facts, the more we shall be convinced
that they afford mutual aid towards the acquisition
of each other ; and that, when acquired, they all
harmonize with each other in perfect and essential
IN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS. 271
union. This truth may perhaps be sufficiently ap-
parent from what has been already remarked ; but
it may not be useless to dwell on it a little more in
detail. Take then the instances of loving-kindness
and meekness towards others, and observe the solid
foundation which is laid for them in self-denial, in
moderation as to the good things of this life, and in
humility. The chief causes of enmity among men,
are pride and self-importance, the high opinion Avhich
men entertain of themselves, and the consequent de-
ference which they exact from other.s ; the over-va-
luation of worldly possessions and of worldly honors,
and in consequence, a too eager competition for
them. The rough edges of one man rub against
those of another, if the expression may be allowed;
and the friction is often such as to injure the works,
and disturb the just arrangements and regular mo-
tions of the social machine. But by Christianity all
these roughnesses are filed down ; every wheel rolls
round smoothly in the performance of its appointed
function, and there is nothing to retard the several
movements, or break in upon the general order.
The religious sj^stem indeed of the bulk of nominal
Christians is satisfied with some appearances of vir-
tue ; and accordingly, while it recommends love and
beneficence, it tolerates, as has been shown, pride
and vanity in many cases ; it even countenances and
commends the excessive valuation of character, and
at least allows a man's whole soul to be absorbed in
272 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY
the pursuit of the object he is following, be it what
it may, of personal or professional success. But
though these latter qualities may, for the most part,
consist with a soft exterior and courtly demeanor,
they cannot accord with the genuine internal prin-
ciple of love. Some cause of discontent, some ground
of jealousy or of envy will arise, some suspicion will
corrode, some disappointment will sour, some slight
or calumny will irritate, and provoke reprisals. In the
higher walks of life, indeed, we learn to disguise our
emotions; but such will be the real inward feelings
of the soul, and they will frequently betray them-
selves when we are off our guard, or when we are
not likely to be disparaged by the discovery. This
state of the higher orders, in which men are scuf-
fling eagerly for the same objects, and wearing all
the while such an appearance of sweetness and com-
placency, has often appeared to me to be not ill il-
lustrated by a gaming-table. There, every man is
intent only on his own profit ; the good success of
one is the ill success of another, and therefore the
general state of mind of the parties engaged may be
pretty well conjectured. All this, however, does not
prevent, in well-bred societies, an exterior of perfect
gentleness and good humor. But let the same em-
ployment be carried on among those who are not so
well schooled in the art of disguising their feelings;
or in places where, by general connivance, people
are allowed to give vent to their real emotions j and
IN I3IP0RTANT PARTICULARS. 273
every passion will display itself, by which the " hu-
man face divine" can be distorted and deformed
The horrid name,* by which it is familiarly known
among its frequenters, sufficiently attests the fidelity
of its resemblance.
But Christianity requires the substantial reality,
which may stand the scrutinizing eye of that Being
" who searches the heart." Meaning therefore that
the Christian should live and breathe in an atmos-
phere of benevolence, she forbids whatever can tend
to obstruct its diffusion or vitiate its purity. It is on
this principle that emulation is forbidden : for, be-
sid(;3 that this passion almost insensibly degenerates
into envy, and that it derives its origin chiefly from
pride and a desire of self-exaltation; how can we
easily love our neighbor as ourselves if we consider
him at the same time as our rival, and are intent upon
surpassing him in the pursuit of whatever is the sub-
ject of our competition 1
Christianity, again, teacher us not to set our
hearts on earthl)'- possessions and earthly honors ,
and thereby provides for our really loving, or even
cordially forgiving those who have been more suc-
cessful than our3elves in the attainment of them, or
who have even designedly thwarted us in the pur-
suit. "Let the rich," says the apostle, "rejoice in
that he is brought low." How can he who means
* The Hell, so called, be it observed, not by way of re-
proach, but familiarity, by those who frequent it.
274 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY
to attempt, in any degree, to obey this prerept, be ir-
reconcilably hostile towards any one who may have
been instrumental in his depression?
Christianity also teaches us not to prize human
estimation at a very high rate; and thereby provides
for the practice of her injunction, to love from the
heart those who, justly or unjustly, may have at-
tacked our reputation and wounded our character.
She commands not the show, but the reality of meek-
ness and gentleness ; and by thus taking away the
aliment of anger and the fomenters of discord, she
provides for the maintenance of peace, and the resto-
ration of good temper among men, when it may
have sustained a temporary interruption.
It is another capital excellence of Christianity,
that she values moral attainments at a far higher
rate than intellectual acquisitions, and proposes to
conduct her followers to the height of virtue rather
than of knowledge. On the contrar}'-, most of the
false religious systems which have prevailed in the
■world, have proposed to reward the labor of their
votary by drawing aside the veil which concealed
from the vulgar eye their hidden mysteries, and by
introducing him to the knowledge of their deeper
and more sacred doctrines.
This is eminently the case in the Hindoo, and in
the Mohammedan religion, in that of China, and, for
the most part, in the various modifications of ancient
paganism. In systems which proceed on this prin-
IN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS, 275
ciple, it is obvious that the bulk of mankind can
never make any great proficiency. There was ac
cordingly, among the nations of antiquity, one sys
tern, whatever it was, for the learned, and another
for the illiterate. Many of the philosophers spoke
out, and professed to keep the lower orders in igno-
rance for the general good ; plainly suggesting that
the bulk of mankind was to be considered as almost
of an inferior species. Aristotle himself counte-
nanced this opinion. An opposite mode of proceed-
ing naturally belongs to Christianity, which, with-
out distinction, professes an equal regard for all hu-
man beings, and which was characterized by her
first Promulgator as the messenger of "glad tidings
to the poor."
But her preference of moral to intellectual excel-
lence is not to be praised, only because it is conge-
nial with her general character, and suitable to the
ends which she professes to have in view. It is the
part of true wisdom to endeavor to excel, where we
may really attain to excellence. This consideration
might be alone sufficient to direct our efl^orts to the
acquisition of virtue rather than of knowledge. How
limited is the range of the greatest human abilities I
how scanty the stores of the richest human know-
ledge ! Those who undeniably have held the first
rank, both for natural and acquired endowments, in-
stead of thinking their pre-eminence a just ground
of self-exaltation, have commonly been the most for»
276 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY
ward to confess that their views were bounded and
their attainments moderate. Had they indeed been
less candid, this is a discovery which we would not
have failed to make for ourselves. Experience daily
furnishes us with examples of weakness and error,
m 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 still bearing about us some faint traces
of our high original, we are offered by our blessed
Redeemer the means of purification from our cor-
ruptions, and of once more regaining the image of
our heavenly Father. Eph. 2. In love, the com-
pendious expression for almost every virtue ; in for-
titude under all its forms; in justice, in humility,
and in all the other graces of the Christian charac-
ter, we are made capable of attaining to heights of
real elevation : and were we but faithful in the use
of the means of grace which we enjoy, the opera-
tions of the Holy Spirit, prompting and aiding our
diligent endeavors, would infallibly crown our la-
bors with success, and make us partakers of a Di-
vine nature. Let me not be thought to undervalue
any of the gifts of God, or of the fruits of human
exertion ; but let not these be prized beyond their
proper worth. If one of those little industrious in-
sects, to which we have been well sent for a lesson
of diligence and foresight, were to pride itself upon
Us strength, because it could carry off a larger grain
IN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS. 277
of wheat than any other of its fellow-ants, should
we not laugh at the vanity which could be highly
gratified with such a contemptible pre-eminence?
And is it far different to the eye of reason, when
man, weak, short-sighted man, is vain of surpassing
others in knowledge, in which, at best, his progress
must be so limited; forgetting the true dignity of his
nature, and the path which would conduct him to
real excellence?
The unparalleled value of the precepts of Chris-
tianity ought not to be passed over altogether unno-
ticed in this place. It is by no means, however, the
design of this little work to attempt to trace the va-
rious excellences of Christianity; but it may not
have been improper to point out a few particulars
which have fallen under our notice, and hitherto
perhaps may scarcely have been enough regarded.
Every such instance, it should always be remem-
bered, is a fresh proof of Christianity being a reve-
lation from God.
It is still less, however, the intention of the writer
to attempt to vindicate the Divine origin of our holy
religion. This task has often been executed by far
abler advocates. Anxious, however, in my little
measure, to contribute to the support of this great
cause, may it be permitted me to istate one argument
which impresses my mind with particular force.
This is, the great variety of the kinds of evidence
Avhich have been adduced in proof of Christianity,
24
278 EXCELLENCE OF CHRISTIANITY
and the confirmation thereby afforded of its truth:
the proof from prophecy — from miracles — from the
character of Christ — from that of his apostles — from
the nature of the doctrines of Christianity — from the
nature and excellence of her practical precepts — from
the accordance we have lately pointed out between
the doctrinal and practical system of Christianity,
whether considered each in itself or in their mutual
relation to each other — from other species of internal
evidence, afforded in the more abundance in propor-
tion as the sacred records have been scrutinized with
greater care — from the accounts of contemporary or
nearly contemporary writers — from the impossibility
of accounting, on any other supposition than that of
the truth of Christianit)'-, for its promulgation and
early prevalence : these and other lines of argument
have all been brought forward, and ably urged by
different writers, in proportion as they have struck
the minds of different observers more or less forcibly ,
Now, granting that some obscure and illiterate men,
residing in a distant province of the Roman empire,
had plotted to impose a forgery upon the world;
though some foundation for the imposture might,
and indeed must have been attempted to be laid ; it
seems, at least to my understanding, morally impos-
sible that so many different species of proofs, and all
so strong, should have lent their concurrent aid, and
have united \\ieu joint force in the establishment of
the falsehood. ., It may assist the reader in estimating
IN IMPORTANT PARTICULARS. 279
the value of this argument, to consider upon how
different a footing, 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
all contested.
CHAPTER VI.
BRIEF INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF CHRISTIANI-
TY IN THIS COUNTRY. ITS IMPORTANCE TO
US AS A POLITICAL COMMUNITY, AND PRACTI-
CAL HINTS FOR WHICH THE FOREGOING CON-
SIDERATIONS GIVE OCCASION.
It may not be altogether improper to remind the
reader, that hitherto our discussion has been con-
cerning the prevailing religious opinions merely of
professed Christians; no longer confining ourselves
to persons of this description, let us now extend our
inquiry, and briefly investigate the general state of
Christianity in this country.
The tendency of religion to promote the temporal
well-being of political communities, is a fact which
280 INdtriRY INTO THE STATE
depends on such obvious and undeniable principles,
and which is so forcibly inculcated by the history of
all ages, that there can be no necessity for entering
into a formal proof of its truth. It has indeed been
maintained, not merely by schoolmen and divines,
but by the most celebrated philosophers, and mora-
lists, and politicians of every age.
The peculiar excellence in this respect also of
Christianity, considered independently of its truth or
falsehood, has been recognized by many writers,
who, to say the least, were not disposed to exagge-
rate its merits. Either or both of these propositions
being admitted, the state of religion in a country at
any given period, not to mention its connection with
the eternal happiness of the inhabitants, immediately
becomes a question of great political importance :
and in particular, it must be materia] to ascertain
whether religion be in an advancing or in a declining
state ; and if the latter be the case, whether there be
any practicable means for preventing at least its far-
ther declension.
If the representations contained in the preceding
chapters, of the state of Christianity among the bulk
of professed Christians, be not very erroneous, they
may well excite serious apprehension in the mind of
every reader, when considered merely in a political
view.
When it is proposed, however, to inquire into the
actual state of religion in any country, and in parti-
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 281
cular to compare that state with its condition at any
former period, there is one preliminary observation
to be made. There exists, established by tacit consent,
in every country, what may be called a general
standard or tone of morals, varying in the same com-
munity at different periods, and different at the same
period in different ranks and situations in societ3\
Whoever falls below this standard, and, not unfre-
quently, whoever also rises above it, offending against
this general rule, suffers proportionably in the ge-
neral estimation. Thus a regard for character,
which, as was formerly remarked, is commonly the
grand governing principle among men, becomes to
a certain degree, though no farther, an incitement to
morality and virtue. It follows of course, that where
the practice does no more than come up to the re-
quired level, it will be no sufficient evidence of the
existence, much less will it furnish any just measure
of the force of a real internal principle of religion.
Christians, Jews, Turks, infidels, and heretics, per-
sons of ten thousand different sorts of passions and
opinions, being members at the same time of the
same community, and all conscious that they will
be examined by this same standard, will regulate
their conduct accordingly, and, Avith no great differ-
ence, w^ill all adjust themselves to the required mea-
sure.
It must also be remarked, that the causes which
tend to raise or to depress this standard, commonly
24*
282 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
produce their effects by slow and almost insensible
degrees; and that it often continues for some time
nearly the same, when the circumstances by which it
was fixed have materially altered.
It is a truth which will hardly be contested, that
Christianity, whenever it has at all prevailed, has
raised the general standard of morals to a height be-
fore unknown. Some actions, which among the an-
cients were scarcely held to be blemishes in the most
excellent characters, have been justly considered by
the laws of every christian community as meriting
the severest punishments. In other instances, virtues
formerly rare have become common ; and in particu-
lar, a merciful and courteous temper has softened the
rugged manners, and humanized the brutal ferocity
prevalent among the most polished nations of the
heathen world. But from what has been recently
observed, it is manifest, that, so far as external ap-
pearances are concerned, these effects, when once
produced by Christianity, are produced alike in those
who deny and in those who admit her Divine origi-
nal ; I had almost said, in those who reject and those
who cordially embrace the doctrines of the Gospel :
and these effects might, and probably would remain
for a while, without any great apparent alteration,
however her spirit might languish, or even her au-
thority decline. The form of the temple, as was once
beautifully remarked, may continue when the dii
iutelares — the tutelary deities — have left it. When
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 283
we iire inquiring therefore into the real state of Chris-
tianity at any period, if we would not be deceived
in this important investigation, it becomes us to be
the more careful not to take up with superficial ap-
pearances.
It may perhaps help us to ascertain the advancing
or declining state of Christianity in this nation at
the present moment, and still more to discover some
of the causes by which that state has been produced,
to employ a little time in considering what might
naturally be expected to be its actual situation ; what
advantages or disadvantages such a religion might
be expected to derive from the circumstances in
which it has been placed among us, and from those
in which it still continues.
Experience warrants, and reason justifies and ex-
plains the assertion, that persecution generally tends
to quicken the vigor and extend the prevalence of
the opinions which she would eradicate. For the
peace of mankind, it has grown at length almost into
an axiom, that " her devilish engine recoils back upon
herself." Christianity especially has always thriven
under persecution. At such a season she has no luke-
warm professors; no adherents concerning whom it
is doubtful to what party they belong. The Chris-
tian is then reminded at every turn, that his Mas-
ter's kingdom is not of this world. When all on
earth wears a black and threatening aspect, he looks
up to hea ren for consolation ; he learns practically
284 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
to consider himself as a pilgrim and a stranger. He
then cleaves to fundamentals, and examines well his
foundation., as at the hour i death. When religion
is m a state of external quiet and prosperity, the con-
trary of all this naturally takes place. The soldiers
of the church militant then forget that they are in a
state of warfare. Their ardor slackens ; their zeal
languishes. Like a colony long settled in a strange
country, they are gradually assimilated in features,
and demeanor, and language, to the native inhabi-
tants, till at length almost every vestige of peculiari-
ty dies away.
If, in general, persecution and prosperity be pro-
ductive respectively of these opposite effects, this cir-
cumstance alone might teach us what expectations
to form concerning the state of Christianity in a
country where her institutions have long been amply
endowed, and the community long been enjoying
great commercial prosperity. Let it also be sup-
posed that they have been making no unequal pro-
gress in all those arts, and sciences, and literary pro-
ductions, which have ever been |;he growth of a
polished age, 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 of external prosperity. And these effects must
be infallibly furthered where the country in question
enjoys a free constitution of government. We for
CHRISTIANITY IK THIS COUNTRY. 285
merly had occasion to quote the remark of an accu-
rate 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 so-
ciety. Now, in every country, of which the middling
classes are daily growing in wealth and consequence
by the success of their commercial speculations; and,
most of all, in a country having such a constitution
as our own, where the acquisition of riches is the
possession also of rank and power ; with the com-
forts and refinements, the vices also of the higher
orders are continually descending, and a mischiev-
ous uniformity of sentiments, and manners, and mo-
rals, gradually diffuses itself throughout the whole
community. The multiplication of great cities also,
and above all, the habit, ever increasing with the
mcreasing wealth of the country, of frequenting a
splendid and luxurious metropolis, would power-
fully tend to accelerate the discontinuance of the re-
ligious habits of a purer age, and to accomplish the
substitution of a more relaxed morality. And it must
even be confessed, that the commercial spirit, much
as we are indebted to it, is not naturally favorable to
the maintenance of the religious principle in a vigo-
rous and lively state.
In times like these, therefore, the strict precepts
and self-denying habits of Christianity naturally
slide into disuse ; and, even among the better sort of
Christians, are likely to be softened, so far at least
286 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
as to be rendered less abhorrent from the general
disposition to relaxation and indulgence. In such
prosperous circumstances, men, in truth, are apt to
think very little about religion. Christianity, there-
fore, seldom occupying the attention of the bulk of
nominal Christians, and being scarcely at all the ob-
ject of their study, we should expect, of course, to
find them extremely unacquainted with its tenets.
Those doctrines and principles, indeed, which it con-
tains in common with the law of the land, or which
are sanctioned by the general standard of morals
formerly described, being brought into continual no-
tice and mention by the common occurrences of life,
might continue to be recognized. But whatever she
contains peculiar to herself, and which should not be
habitually brought into recollection by the incidents
of every day, might be expected to be less and less
thought of, till at length it should be almost wholly
forgotten. Still more might this be naturally expect-
ed to become the case, if the peculiarities in question
should be, from their very nature, at war with pride,
and luxury, and worldly-mindedness, the too general
concomitants of rapidly increasing wealth : and this
would particularly happen among the laity, if the
circumstances of their having been at any time abus-
ed to purposes of hypocrisy or fanaticism, should
have prompted even some of the better disposed of
the clergy, perhaps from well intentioned though
erroneous motives, to bring them forward less fre-
quently in their discourses on religion.
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 287
When so many should thus have been straying
out of the right path, some bold reformer might,
from time to time, be likely to arise, who should not
unjustly charge them with their deviation : but,
though right perhaps in the main, yet deviating
himself also in an opposite direction, and creating
disgust by his violence, or vulgarity, or absurdities,
he might fail, except in a few instances, to produce
the effect of recalling them from their wanderings.
Still, however, the Divine original of Christianity
would not be professedl}'- disavowed ; partly from a
real, and more commonly from a political deference
for the established faith ; but most of all, from the
bulk of mankind being not yet prepared, as it were,
to throw away the scabbard, and to venture their
eternal happiness on the issue of its falsehood. Some
bolder spirits, indeed, might be expected to despise
the cautious moderation of these timid reasoners,
and to pronounce decisively, that the Bible was a
forgery : while the generality, professing to believe
it genuine, should, less consistently, be satisfied with
remaining ignorant of its contents; and when press-
ed, should discover themselves by no means to be-
lieve many of the most important particulars con-
tained in it.
When, by the operation of causes like these, any
country has at length grown into the condition which
has been here stated, it is but too obvious, that, in
the bulk of the community, religion, already sunk
288 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE 07
■very low, must be hastening fast to her entire disso-
lution. Causes, energetic and active like these^
though accidental hinderances may occasionally
thwart their operation, will not at once become slug-
gish and unproductive. Their effect is sure; and
the time is fast approaching, when Christianity will
be almost as openly disavowed in the language, as
in fact it is already supposed to have disappeared
from the conduct of men ; when infidelity will be
held to be the necessary appendage of a man of fa-
shion, and to believe will be deemed the indication
of a feeble mind and a contracted understanding.
Something like what have been here premised are
the conjectures which we should naturally be led to
form concerning the state of Christianity in this
country, and its probable issue, from considering her
own nature, and the peculiar circumstances in which
she has been placed. That her real condition differs
not much from the result of this reasoning from pro-
bability, must, with whatever regret, be confessed by
all who take a careful and impartial survey of the
actual situation of things among us. But our hypo-
thetical delineation, if just, will have approved itself
to the reader's conviction as we have gone along ;
and we may therefore be spared the painful and in-
vidious task of pointing out in detail the several
particulars wherein our statements are justified by
facts. Every where we may actually trace the ef-
fects of increasing wealth and luxury, in banishing^
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 289
one by one the habits, and new-modeling the phra-
seology of stricter times ; and in diffusing through-
out the middle ranks those relaxed morals and dissi-
pated manners which were formerly confined to the
higher classes of society. We meet, indeed, with
more refinement, and more generally with those
amiable courtesies which are its proper fruits : those
vices also have become less frequent which natural-
ly infest the darkness of a ruder and less polished
age, and which recede on the approach of light and
civilization: but with these grossnesses, religion, on
the other hand, has also declined ; God is forgotten ;
his providence is exploded ; his hand is lifted up, but
we see it not ; he multiplies our comforts, but we are
not grateful ; he visits us with chastisements, but we
are not contrite. The portion of the week set apart
to the service of religion we give up, without re-
luctance, to vanity and dissipation.
But when there is not this open and shameless
disavowal of religion, few traces of it are to be found.
Improving in almost every other branch of know-
ledge, we have become less and less acquainted with
Christianity. The preceding chapters have pointed
out, among those who believe themselves to be or-
thodox Christians, a deplorable ignorance of the re-
ligion they profess, an utter forgetfulness of the pe-
culiar doctrines by which it is characterized, a dis
position to regard it as a mere system of ethics, and,
what might seem an inconsistency, at the same tirao
25
590 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE 6t
II most inadequate idea of the nature and strictness
of its practical principles. This declension of Chris-
tianity into a mere system of ethics, may partly be
accounted for, as has been lately suggested, by con-
sideffing the corruption of our nature, what Chris-
tianity is, and in what circumstances she has been
placed in this country. But it has also been consi-
derably promoted by one peculiar cause, on which,
for many reasons, it may not be improper to dwell a
little more particularly.
Christianity in its best days (for the credit of our
representations let this be remembered by those who
object to our statement as austere and contracted)
was such as it has been delineated in the present
work. This was the religion of the most eminent
reformers, of those bright ornaments of our country
who suffered martyrdom under queen Mary ; of
their successors in the times of Elizabeth ; in short,
of all the pillars of our Protestant church ; of many
of its highest dignitaries ; of Davenant, of Jewell, of
Hall, of Reynolds, of Beveridge, of Hooker, of An-
drews, of Smith, of Leighton, of Usher, of Hopkins,
of Baxter, and of many others of scarcely inferior
note. In their pages the peculiar doctrines of Chris-
tianity were every where visible, and on the. deep
antl solid basis of these doctrinal truths were laid
the foundations of a superstructure of morals propor-
tionably broad and exalted. Of this fact their writings^
■still extant, are a decisive proof; and those who may
CHRISTIANITY IX THIS COUNTRY. 29 J
want leisure, or opportunity, or inclination, for the
perusal of these valuable records, may satisfy them-
selves of the truth of the assertion, that, such as we
have stated it, was the Christianity of those times,
by consulting our articles and homilies, or even by
carefully examining our excellent liturgy. But from
that tendency to deterioration lately noticed, these
great fundamental truths began to be somewhat less
prominent in the compositions of many of the lead-
ing divines before the time of the civil wars. Dur-
ing that period, however, the peculiar doctrines of
Christianity were grievously abused by many who
were foremost in the commotions of those unhappy
^ays ; who, while they talked copiously of the free
grace of Christ, and the operations of the Holy
Spirit, were by their lives an open scandal to the
name of Christian.
Towards the close of the eighteenth century the
divines of the established church began to run into
a different error. They professed to make it their
chief object to inculcate the moral and practical pre-
cepts of Christianity ; but without sufficiently main-
taining, often even without justly laying the grand
foundation of a sinner's acceptance with God, or
jpointing out how the practical precepts of Christian-
ity grow out of her peculiar doctrines, and are in-
separably connected with them.* By this fatal er-
* See chap. iv. sect. vi. where this most important truth is
expressly and fully treated.
292 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
ror the very genius and essential nature of Chris,
tianity imperceptibly underwent a change. She no
longer retained her peculiar character, or produced
that appropriate frame of spirit by which her follow-
ers had been characterized. The example thus set
was followed during the present century, and its ef-
fect was aided by various causes already pointed out.
In addition to these, it may be proper to mention as
a cause of powerful operation, that for the last fifty
years the press has teemed with moral essays, m-any
of them published periodically, and most extensively
circulated ; which, being considered either as works
of mere entertainment, or in which at least enter-
tainment was to be blended with instruction, rather
than as religious pieces, were kept clear from what-
ever might give them the air of sermons, or cause
them to wear an appearance of seriousness incon-
sistent with the idea of relaxation. But in this way
the fatal habit of considering christian morals as dis-
distinct from christian doctrines, insensibly gained
strength. Thus the peculiar doctrines of Christianity
went more and more out of sight ; and, as might na-
turally have been expected, the moral system itself
also began to wither and decay, being robbed of that
which should have supplied it with life and nutri-
ment. At length, in our own days, these peculiar
doctrines have almost altogether vanished from the
view. Even in many sermons scarcely any traces
of them are to be found.
CHRISTIANITi' IN THIS COUNTRY. ^93
'But the degree of neglect into which they are re-
■-aily fallen may perhaps be rendered still more mani-
fest by appealing to another criterion. There is a
certain class of publications, of which it is the object
to give us exact delineations of life and manners;
and when these are written by authors of accurate
observation and deep knowledge of human nature,
and many such there have been in our times, they
furnish a more faithful picture than can be obtained
in any other way, of the prevalent opinions and feel-
ings of mankind. It must be obvious that novels
are here alluded to. A careful perusal of the most
celebrated of these pieces would furnish a strong con-
firmation of the apprehension, suggested from other
considerations, concerning the very low state of reli-
gion in this country ; but they would still more strik-
ingly illustrate the truth of the remark, that the grand
peculiarities of Christianity are almost vanished from
the view. In a sermon, although throughout the
whole of it there may have been no traces of these
peculiarities, either directly or indirectly, the preach-
er closes with an ordinary form, which, if one were
to assert that they were absolutely omitted, would
immediately be alledged in contradiction of the as-
sertion, and may just serve to protect them from fall-
ing into entire oblivion. But in novels, the writer is
not so tied down. In these, people of religion, and
clergymen too, are placed in all possible situations,
and the sentiments and language deemed suitable IQ
25*
294 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
the occasion are assigned to them. They are intro-
duced instructing-, reproving, counseling, comfort-
ing. It is often the author's intention to represent
them in a favorable point of view, and accordingly
he makes them as well-informed and as good Chris-
tians as he knows how. They are painted amiable,
benevolent, and forgiving ; but it is not too much to
say, that if all the peculiarities of Christianity had
never existed, or had been proved to be false, the cir-
cumstance would scarcely create the necessity of al-
tering a single syllable in any of the most celebrated
of these performances. It is striking to observe the
difference which there is in this respect in similar
works of Mohammedan authors, wherein the charac-
ters, which they mean to represent in a favorable
light, are drawn far more observant of the peculiari-
ties of their religion.
If this be the state of things even in the case of
sermons, and of the compositions of those whose
sphere of information must be supposed larger than
that of the bulk of mankind ; it must excite less
wonder, that in the world in general, though Chris-
tianity be not formally denied, people know little
about it ; and that in fact you find, when you come
to converse with them, that, admitting in terms the
Divine revelation of Scripture, they are far from be-
lieving the propositions it contains.
It has also been a melancholy prognostic of the
state to which we are progressive, that many of the
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 295
most eminent literary characters of modern times
have been professed unbelievers ; and that others
have discovered such lukewarmness in the cause ol
Christ, as to treat with especial good will, attention,
and respect, those who, by their avowed publica-
tions, were openly assailing-, or insidiously under-
mining the very foundations of the Christian hope;
considering themselves as more closely united to
them by literature, than severed from them bj?- the
widest religious differences.* Can it then occasion
surprise, that, under all these circumstances, one ol
the most acute and most forward of the professed
unbelieversf should appear to anticipate, as at no
great distance, the more complete triumph of his
* It is with pain that the author finds himself compelled
to place so great a writer as Dr. Robertson in this class. But,
to say nothing of his phlegmatic account of the Reformation,
(a subject which we should have thought likel}'- to excite ih
any one, who united the character of a Christiai divine with
that of an historian, some warmth of pious gratitude for the
good providence of God,) to pass over also other points, his
letters to Mr. Gibbon cannot but excite emotions of regret in
every sincere Christian. The author must be understood
decidedly to condemn a hot, a contentious, much more an
abusive manner of opposing or of speaking of the assailants
of Christianity. The apostle's direction in this respect can-
not be too much attended to. " The servant of the Lord
must not strive ; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, pa-
tient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves ;
if God peradventure will give them repentance to the ac«
jmowledging of the truth." 2 Tim. 2 : 24, 25.
t Hume.
296 INdrlRY INTO THE STATE OF
sceptical principles j and that another author of dis-
tinguished name,* not so openly professing those
infidel opinions, should declare of the writer above
alluded to, whose great abilities had been systemati-
cally prostituted to the open attack of every principle
of religion, both natural and revealed, '• that he
had always considered him, both in his life-time and
since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea
of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, as perhaps the
nature of human frailty will permit ?"t
Can there then be a doubt whither tends the path
in \vhich we are traveling, and whither at length it
must conduct us ? If any should hesitate, let them
take a lesson from experience. In a neighboring
country, several of the same causes have been in ac-
tion; and they have at length produced their full ef-
fect : manners corrupted, morals depraved, dissipa-
tion predominant, above all, religion discredited, and
infidelity grown into repute and fashion, J terminated
in the public disavowal of every religious principle
which had been used to attract the veneration ot
♦ Dr. A Smith.
+ See, however, Bishop Home's letter to Dr. A. Smith re-
specting Hume, under the signature of " One of the people
called Christians."
t What is here stated must be acknowledged by all, be
their political opinions concerning French events what they
may ; and it makes no difference in the writer's view of the
subject, whether the state of morals was or was not quite,
or nearly as bad, before the French revolution.
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 297
mankind: the representatives of a whole nation
publicly witnessing, not only without horror, but, to
say the least, without disapprobation, an open un-
qualified denial of the very existence of God, and at
length, as a body, withdrawing their allegiance from
the Majesty of Heaven !
There are not a few, perhaps, who may have wit-
nessed with apprehension, and may be ready to con-
fess with pain, the gradual declension, but who at
the time may conceive that the writer of this tract is
disposed to carry things too far. They may even al-
ledge, that the degree of religion for which he con-
tends is inconsistent with the ordinary business of
life, and with the well-being of society ; that if it
were generally to prevail, people would be wholly
engrossed by religion, and all their time occupied
by prayer and preaching. Agriculture and com-
merce would decline, the arts would languish, the
very duties of common life would be neglected ; and,
m short, the whole machine of civil society would
be obstructed, and speedily stopped.
In reply to this objection it might be urged, that
though we should allow it for a moment to be in a
considerable degree well founded, yet this admission
would not warrant the conclusion intended to be
drawn from it. The question would still remain,
whether our representation of what Christianity re-
quires be agreeable to the word of God? for if it
be, surely it must be confessed to be a matter of small
29S INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
account to sacrifice a little worldly comfort and
prosperity, during the short span of our existence in
this life, in order to secure a crown of eternal glory,
and the enjoyment of those pleasures which are at
God's right hand for evermore ! It might be added
also, that our blessed Savior had fairly declared, that
it would often be required of Christians to make
such a sacrifice ; and had forewarned us, that, in or-
der to be able to do it with cheerfulness whenever
the occasion should arrive, we must habitually sit
loose to all worldly possessions and enjoyments.
And it might further be remarked, that though it
were even admitted, that the general prevalence of
vital Christianity should somewhat interfere with
the views of national wealth and aggrandizement,
yet that there is too much reason to believe that this
general prevalence, to speak justly, could not be
hoped for. But indeed the objection on which wo
have now been commenting, is not only groundless,
but the very contrary to it is the truth. If Chris-
tianity, such as we have represented it, were gene-
rally to prevail, the world, from being such as it is,
would become a scene of general peace and pros-
perity; and abating the chances and calamities
•• which flesh is inseparably heir to," would wear
one unwearied face of complacency and joy.
On the first promulgation of Christianity, it is true,
some of her early converts seem to have been in
danger of so far mistaking the principles of the new
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 299
religion, as to imagine that in future they were to
be discharged from an active attendance on their se-
cular affairs. But the apostle most pointedly guarded
them against so gross an error, and expressly and
repeatedly enjoined them to perform the particular
duties of their several stations with increased alacrity
and fidelity, that they might thereby do credit to
their Christian profession. This he did, at the same
time that he prescribed to them that predominant
love of God and of Christ, that heavenly-mindedness,
that comparative indifference to the things of this
world, that earnest endeavor after growth in grace
and perfection in holiness, which have already been
stated as the essential characteristics of real Christiani-
ty. It cannot therefore be supposed by any who allow
to the apostle even the claim of a consistent instructor,
much less by any who admit his Divine authority,
that these latter precepts are incompatible with the
former. Let it be remembered, that the grand cha-
racteristic mark of the trlie Christian which has been
insisted on, is his desiring to please God in all his
thoughts, and words, and actions; to take the re-
vealed word to be the rule of his belief and practice ;
to " let his light shine before men ;" and in all things
to adorn the doctrine which he professes. No calling
is proscribed, no pursuit is forbidden, no science or
art, no pleasure is disallowed, which is reconcilable
with this prmciple. Christianity indeed will not favor
that vehement and inordinate ardor in the pursuit of
200 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
temporal objects, which tends to the acquisition of
immense wealth, or of widely spread renown : nor is
it calculated to gratify the extravagant views of those
mistaken politicians, the chief object of whose admi-
ration, and the main scope of whose endeavors for
their country, are extended dominion, and command-
ing power, and unrivaled affluence, rather than the
more solid advantages of peace, and comfort, and se-
curity. These men would barter comfort for great-
ness. In their vain reveries they forget that a nation
consists of individuals, and that true national pros-
perity is no other than the multiplication of particu-
lar happiness.
But in fact, so far is it from being true that the
prevalence of real religion would produce a stagna-
tion in life ; that a man, whatever might be his em-
ployment or pursuit, would be furnished with a new
motive to prosecute it with alacrity, a motive far more
constant and vigorous than any human prospects can
supply : at the same time, his solicitude being not so
much to succeed in whatever he might be engaged
in, as to act from a pure principle, and leave the
eve»nt to God, he would not be liable to the same
disappointments as men who are active and labori-
ous from a desire of worldly gain or of human esti-
mation. Thus he would possess the true secret of
a life at the same time useful and happy. Following
peace also with all men, and looking upon them as
members of the same family, entitled not only to the
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 301
debts of justice, but to the less definite and more libe-
ral claims of fraternal kindness, he would naturally
be respected and beloved by others, and be in him-
self free from the tnnoyance of those bad passions
by which those who are actuated by worldly princi-
ples are so commonly corroded. If any country
were indeed filled with men, each thus diligently
discharging the duties of his own station without
breaking in upon the rights of others, but on the con-
trary endeavoring, so far as he might be able, to
forward their views and promote their happiness, all
would be active and harmonious in the goodly frame
of human society. There would be no jarrings, no
discord. The whole machine of civil life would
work without obstruction or disorder.
Such would be the happy state of a truly Chris-
tian nation within itself Nor would its condition
with regard to foreign countries form a contrast to
this its internal comfort. Such a community on
the contrary, peaceable at home, would be respected
and beloved abroad. General integrity in all its deal-
ings would inspire universal confidence: difl^erences
between nations commonly arises from mutual inju-
ries, and still more from mutual jealousy and dis-
trust. Of the former there would be no longer any
ground for complaint; the latter would find nothing
to attach upon. But if, in spite of all its justice and
forbearance, the violence of some neighboring state
should force it to resist an unprovoked attack, hosti-
26
o02 INQTTIRY INTO THE STATE OF
lities strictly defensive are those only in whicli it
would be engaged, its domestic union would double
its national force, while the consciousness of a good
cause, and of the general favor of God, Avould invi-
gorate its arm. and inspirit its efforts.
It is indeed the position of an author whose love
of paradox has not seldom led him into error, that
true Christianity is an enemy to patriotism. If by
patriotism be meant that mischievous and domineer-
ing quality which renders men ardent to promote,
not the happiness, but the aggrandizement of their
own country, by the oppression and conquest of every
ocher ; to such patriotism, so generally applauded in
the heathen world, that religion must be indeed an
enemy, whose foundation is justice, and whose com-
pendious character is ''peace, and good-will toward
men." But if by patriotism be understood that quali-
ty which, without shutting up our philanthropy with-
in the narrow bounds of a single kingdom, yet at-
taches us in particular to the country to which we
belong; of this true patriotism, Christianity is the
most copious source, and the surest preservative.
The contrary opinion can indeed only have arisen
from not considering the fullness and universality of
our Savior's precepts. Not like the puny produc-
tions of human workmanship, which, at the best, can
commonly serve but the particular purpose that they
are specially designed to answer, the moral as well
as the physical principles of the great Author of all
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 303
things are capable of being applied at once to ten
thousand different uses ; thus, amidst infinite compli-
cation, preserving a grand simplicity, and therein
bearing the unambiguous stamp of their divine ori-
ginal. Thus, to specify one out of the numberless
instances which might be adduced — the principle of
gravitation, while it is subservient to all the mecha-
nical purposes of common life, keeps at the same
time the stars in their courses, and sustains the har-
mony of worlds.
Thus also in the case before us ; society consists
of a numberof different circles of various magnitudes
and uses ; and that circumstance, wherein the prin-
ciple of patriotism chiefly consists, whereby the duty
of patriotism is best practiced, and the happiest ef-
fects to the general weal produced, is, that it should
be the desire and aim of every individual to fill well
his own proper circle, as a part and member of the
whole, with a view to the production of general hap-
piness. This our Savior enjoined when he prescrib-
ed the duty of universal love, which is but another
term for the most exalted patriotism. Benevolence, in-
deed, when not originating from religion, dispenses
but from a scanty and precarious fund ; and there-
fore if it be liberal in the case of some objects, it is
generally found to be contracted towards others.
Men who, acting from worldly principles, make the
greatest stir about general philanthrophy or zealous
patriotism, are often very deficient in their conduct
304 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
in domestic life ; and very neglectful of the opportu-
nities, fully within their reach, of promoting the com-
fort of those with whom they are immediately con-
nected. But true Christian benevolence is always
occupied in producing happiness to the utmost of its
power, and according to the extent of its sphere, be
it larger or more limited ; it contracts itself to the
measure of the smallest; it can expand itself to thj
amplitude of the largest. It resembles majestic
rivers, which are poured from an unfailing and abun-
dant source. Silent and peaceful in their outset, they
begin with dispensing beauty and comfort to every
cottage by which they pass. In their further pro-
gress they fertilize provinces and enrich kingdoms.
At length they pour themselves into the ocean,
where, changing their names, but not their nature,
they visit distant nations and other hemispheres, and
spread throughout the world the expansive tide of
their beneficence.
It must be confessed that many of the good effects
of which religion is productive to political societies,
would be produced even by a false religion, which
should prescribe good morals, and should be able
to enforce its precepts by sufficient sanctions. Of
this nature are those effects which depend on our
calling in the aid of a Being who sees the heart, in
order to assist the weakness and in various ways to
supply the inherent defects of all human jurispru-
dence. But the superior excellence of Christianity in
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRT. 305
this respect must be acknowledged, both in the su-
periority of her moral code, and in the powerful mo-
tives and efficacious means which she furnishes for
enabling us to practice it, and in the tendency of
her doctrines to provide for the observance of her
precepts, by producing tempers of mind which cor-
respond with them.
But, more than all this, it has not perhaps been
enough remarked, that true Christianity, from her
essential nature, appears peculiarly and powerfully
adapted to promote the preservation and healthful-
ness of political communities. What is in truth their
grand malady? The answer is short, selfishness.
This is that young disease received at the moment
of their birth, " which grows with their growth, and
strengthens with their strength ;" and through which
they at length expire, if not cut off prematurely by
some external shock or intestine convulsion.
The disease of selfishness, indeed, assumes differ-
ent forms in the different classes of society. In the
great and the wealthy it displays itself in luxury, in
pomp and parade, and in all the frivolities of a sick-
ly and depraved imagination, which seeks in vain
its own gratification, and is dead to the generous and
energetic pursuits of an enlarged heart. In the lower
orders, when not motionless under the weight of a
superincumbent despotism, it manifests itself in pride,
and its natural offspring, insubordination in all its
modes. But though the external effects may vary,
26*
S06 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
the internal principle is the same ; a disposition in
each individual to make self the grand centre and
end of his desires and enjoyments ; to overrate his
own merits and importance, and of course to magni-
fy his claims on others, and in return to underrate
theirs on him ; a disposition to undervalue the advan-
tages, and overstate the disadvantages of his con-
dition in life. Thence spring rapacity, and venality,
and sensuality. Thence imperious nobles and fac-
tious leaders, and an unruly commonalty, bearing
with difficulty the inconveniences of a lower station,
and imputing to the nature or administration of their
government the evils which necessarily flow from
the very constitution of our species, or which per-
haps are chiefly the result of their own vices and
follies. The opposite to selfishness is public spirit ;
which may be termed, not unjustly, the grand prin-
ciple of political vitality, the very life's-breath of
states, which tends to keep them active and vigo-
rous, and to carry them to greatness and glory.
The tendency of public spirit, and the opposite
tendency of selfishness, have not escaped the obser-
vation of the founders of states, or of the writers on
government ; and various expedients have been re-
sorted to and extolled for cherishing the one, and for
repressing the other. Sometimes a principle of inter-
nal agitation and dissension, resulting from the very
frame of the government, has been productive of the
effect. Sparta flourished for more than seven hundred
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 307
years under the civil institutions of Lycurorus ; which
guarded against the selfish principle, by prohibiting
commerce, and imposing universal poverty and hard-
ship. The Roman commonwealth, in which public
spirit was cherished, and selfishness checked, by the
principle of the love of glory, was also of long con-
tinuance. This passion naturally operates to pro-
duce an unbounded spirit of conquest, which, like
the ambition of the greatest of its own heroes, was
never satiated while any other kingdom was left it
to subdue. The principle of political vitality, when
kept alive only by means like these, merits the de-
scription once given of eloquence: "Sicut fiamma,
materia alitur, et motibus excitatur, et urendo clares-
cit." But, like eloquence, when no longer called
into action by external causes, or fomented by civil
broils, it gradually languishes. Wealth and luxu-
ry produce stagnation, and stagnation terminates in
death.
To provide, however, for the continuance of a
state, by the admission of internal dissensions, or
even by the chilling influence of poverty, seems to
be in some sort sacrificing the end to the means.
Happiness is the end for which men unite in civil
society ; but in societies thus constituted, little happi-
ness, 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 ad-
mirers, is not to be tolerated for a moment, when
303 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
considered on principles of universal justice. Such
a state lives, and grows, and thrives by the misery
of others, and becomes professedly the general ene-
my of its neighbors, and the scourge of the human
race. All these devices are in truth but too much
like the fabrications of man, when compared with
the works of the Supreme Being; clumsy, yet weak
in the execution of their purpose, and full of contra-
dictory principles and jarring movements.
I might here enlarge with pleasure on the unri-
valled excellence, in this very view, of the constitu-
tion under which we live in this happy country ;
and point out how, more perhaps than any which
ever existed upon earth, it is so framed as to provide
at the same time for keeping up a due degree of
public spirit, and yet for preserving unimpaired the
quietness, and comfort, and charities of private life;
how it even extracts from selfishness itself many of
the advantages which, under less happily constructed
forms of government, public spirit only can supply.
But such a political discussion would here be out of
place. It is rather our business to remark, how
much Christianity in every way sets herself in direct
hostility to selfishness, the mortal distemper of poli-
tical communities ; and consequently how their wel-
fare must be inseparable from her prevalence. It
might indeed be almost stated as the main object and
chief concern of Christianity, to root out our natural
selfishness, and to rectify the false standard which it
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 309
imposes on us ; with views, however, far higher than
any which concern merely our temporal and social
well-being ; to bring us to a just estimate of ourselves,
and of all around us, and to a due impression of the
various claims and obligations resuUing from the
different relations in which we stand. Benevolence,
enlarged, vigorous, operative benevolence, is her
master principle. Moderation in temporal pursuits
and enjoyments, comparative indifference to the issue
of worldly projects, diligence in the discharge of per-
sonal and civil duties, resignation to the will of God,
and patience under all the dispensations of his pro-
vidence, are among her daily lessons. Humility is
one of the essential qualities which her precepts
most directly and strongly enjoin, and which all her
various doctrines tend to call forth and cultivate : and
humility, as has been before suggested, lays the
deepest and surest grounds for benevolence. In
whatever class or order of society Christianity pre-
vails, she sets herself to rectify the particular faults,
or, if we would speak more distinctly, to counteract
khe particular mode of selfishness to which that class
IS liable. Affluence she teaches to be liberal and be-
aeficent ; authority to bear its facukies with meek-
ness, and to consider the various cares and obliga-
ions belonging to its elevated station as being con-
iitions on which that station is conferred. Thus,
>oftening the glare of wealth and moderating the
insolence of power, she renders the inequalities of
SIO INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
the social state less galling to those in the humbler
walks of life, whom also she instructs, in their turn,
to be diligent, humble, patient: reminding them that
their more lowly path has been allotted to them by
the hand of God ; that it is their part faithfully to
discharge its duties, and contentedly to bear its in-
conveniences ; that the present state of things is very
short ; that the objects about which worldly men
conflict so eagerly, are not worth the contest; that
the peace of mind which religion offers to all ranks
indiscriir.inately, affords more true satisfaction than
all the expensive pleasures which are beyond the
poor man's reach. Also, that in this view the poor
have the advantage, and that if their superiors enjoy
more abundant comforts, they are likewise exposed
to many temptations from which the inferior classes
are happily exempted ; that "having food and rai-
ment, they should be therewith content," for that
their situation in life, with all its evils, is better than
they have deserved at the hand of God ; finally, that
all human distinctions will soon be done away, and
the true followers of Christ will all, as children of
the same Father, be alike admitted to the possession
of the same heavenly inheritance. Such are the
blessed effects of Christianity on the temporal well-
being of political communities.
The Christianity which can produce effects like
these must be real, not nominal ; deep, not superficiah
Such then is the religion we should cultivate, if we
CTiniSTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. SIl
would realize these pleasing speculations, and arrest
the progress of political deray. But in the present
circumstances of this country, it is a farther reason
for endeavoring to cultivate this vital Christianit}-,
still considering its effects merely in a political vieu-,
that, according to all human appearance, we must
either have this or none: unless the prevalence of
this be in some degree restored, we are likely not
only to lose all the advantages which we might
have derived from true Christianity, but to incur ail
the manifold evils which would result from the ab-
sence of all religion.
In the first place, let it be remarked that a weakly
principle of religion, (and even such a one, in a
political viev.-, is productive of many advantages,)
though its existence may be prolonged if all external
circumstances favor its continuance, can hardly be
kept alive when the state of things is so unfavorable
to vital religion as it is in our condition of society.
Nor is it merely the ordinary effects of a state of
wealth and prosperity to which we here allude.
Much also may justly be apprehended from that
change which has taken place in our general habits
of thinking and feeling concerning the systems and
opinions of former times. At a less advanced period
of society, indeed, the religion of the state will be
generally accepted, though it be not felt in its vital
power. It was the religion of our forefathers: with
the bulk it is on that account entitled to reve-
312 lNQ.riRY INTO THE STATE OF "
rence, and its authority is admitted without question.
The establishment in which it subsists pleads the
same prescription, and obtains the same respect.
But in our days things are very differently cir-
cumstanced. Not merely the blind prejudice in fa-
vor of former limes, but even the proper respect for
them, and the reasonable presumption in their favor,
has abated. Still less will the idea be endured of
any system beinq- kept up, when the imposture is
seen through by the higher orders, for the sake of
retaining the common people in subjection. A sys-
tem, if not supported by a real persuasion of its
truth, will fall to the ground. Thus it not unfre-
quently happens that, in a more advanced state of
society, a religious establishment must be indebted
for its support to that very religion which in earlier
limes it fostered and protected, as the Aveakness of
some aged mother is sustained, and her existence
lengthened, by the tender assiduities of the child
whom she had reared in the helplessness of infancy.
So in the present instance, unless there be reinfused
into the mass of our society something of that prin-
ciple which animated our ecclesiastical system in its
earlier days, it is vain for us to hope that the es-
tablishment will very long continue ; for the anomaly
will not much longer be borne, of an establishment,
the actual principles of the bulk of whose members,
and even teachers, are so extremely different from
those which it professes.
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. Sl3
If when the reign of prejudice and even of honest
prepossession and of grateful veneration is no more,
(for by these almost any system may generally be
supported, before a state, having passed the period
of its maturity, is verging to its decline,) if there
are any who think that a dry, unanimated religion,
like that which is now professed by nominal Chris-
tians, can hold its place, much more, that it can be re-
vived among the general mass of mankind, it may be
affirmed, that, arguing merely on human principles,
Liey know little of human nature. The kind of reli-
gion which we have recommended, whatever opinion
may be entertained concerning its truth, and to say
nothing of the agency of Divine grace, must at least
be conceded to be the only one at all suited to make
impression upon the mass of the community, by
strongly interesting the passions of the human mind.
If it be thought that a system of ethics may regulate
the conduct of the higher classes, such a one is al-
together unsuitable to the lower, who must be work-
ed upon by their affections, or they will not be work-
ed upon at all. The ancients were wiser than our-
selves, and never thought of governing the communi-
ty in general by their lessons of philosophy. These
lessons were confined to the schools of the learned ;
while for the million, a system of religion, such as
it was, was kept up as alone adapted to their gross-
er natures. If this reasoning fail to convince, we
may safely appeal to experience Let the Socinian
27
314 INQUir.Y INTO THE STATE OF
and the moral teacher of Christianity come forth,
and tell us what efiects they have produced on the
lower orders. They themselves will hardly deny the
inefficacy of their instructions. But, blessed be God,
the religion which we recommend has proved its
correspondence with the character originally given
of Christianity, that it was calculated for the poor;
by changing the whole condition of the mass of so-
ciety in many of the most populous districts in this
and other countries, and by bringing them from
being scenes of almost unexampled wickedness and
barbarism, to be eminent for sobriety, decency, in-
dustr}^ and, in short, for whatever can render men
useful members of civil society.
If indeed, through the blessing of Providence, a
principle of true religion should in any considera-
ble degree gain ground, there is no estimating the
effects on public morals, and the consequent influ-
ence on our political welfare. These effects are not
merely negative: though it would be much, merely
to check the farther progress of a gangrene which
is eating out the very vital principles of our social
and political existence. The general standard of mo-
rality formerly described, would be raised: it would
at least be sustained and kept for a while from fur-
ther depression. The esteem which religious cha-
racters would personally attract, would extend to the
system which they should hold, and to the church of
which they should be members. These are all mere-
CIir.ISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 215
ly natural consequences. But to those who believe
in a superintending Providence, it may be added,
that the blessing of God might be drawn down upon
our country, and the strokes of his anger be for a
while suspended.
Let it not be vainly imagined, that our state of
civilization must prevent moral degeneracy. A
neighboring nation has lately furnished a lamenta-
ble proof, that superior polish and refinement may
well consist with a very large measure of depravity.
But to appeal to a stiil more decisive instance; it
maybe seen in the history of the latter years of the
most celebrated of the pagan nations, that the high-
est degrees of civilization and refinement are by no
means inseparable from the most shocking depravity
of morals. The fact is certain, and the obvious in-
ference with regard to ourselves cannot be denied.
The cause of this strange phenomenon (such it
really appears to our view, for Avhich the natural
corruption of man might hardly seem to account suf
ficiently) has been explained by an inspired writer.
Speaking of the most polished nations of antiquity,
he observes : " Because when they knew God, they
glorified him not as God, and were not solicitous* to
retain him in their knowledge, he gave them over
to a reprobate mind." Let us then beware, and take
warning from their example : let us not sufl!er our
* Such seems to be the just rendering of the word which
our Testament translates, " did not like to retain God in their
Iniovviedge,"
316 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
self-love to beguile us: let us not vainly persuade
ourselves, that although prosperity and wealth may
have caused us to relax a little too much in those
more serious duties which regard our Maker, yet
that we shall stop where we are, or at least that we
can never sink into the same state of moral deprava-
tion. Doubtless we should sink as low if God were
to give us up also to our own imaginations. And
what ground have we to think he will not? If we
would reason justly, we should not compare our-
selves with the state of the heathen world when at
its worst, but with its state at that period, when, for
its forgetfulness of God, and its ingratitude towards
him, it was suffered to fall, till at length it reached
that worst, its ultimate point of depression. The
heathen had only reason and natural conscience to
direct them : we enjoy, superadded to these, the
clear light of gospel revelation, and a distinct de-
claration of God's dealings with them, to be a lesson
for our instruction. How then can we but believe
that if we, enjoying advantages so much superior to
theirs, are alike forgetful of our 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 same enormities ?
What then is to be done ? The inquiry is of the
first importance, and the general answer to it is not
difficult. The causes and nature of the decay of re-
ligion an^ morals among us sufficiently indicate the
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 317
course which, on principles of sound policy, it is
in the highest degree expedient for us to pursue.
The distemper of which, as a community we are
sick, should be considered rather as a moral than
a political malady. How much has this been
forgotten by the disputants of modern times ! and
accordingly, how transient may be expected to be
the good effects of the best of their publications !
We should endeavor to tread back our steps. Every
effort should be used to raise the depressed tone of
public morals. This is a duty particularly incum-
bent on all who are in the higher walks of life.
Every person of rank, and fortune, and abilities,
should endeavor to exhibit a good example, and to
recommend it to the imitation of the circle in which
he moves. It has been the opinion of some well-
meaning people, that by giving, as far as they pos-
sibly could with innocence, into the customs and
practices of irreligious men, they might soften the
prejudices frequently taken up against religion, of
its being an austere, gloomy service ; and thus secure
a previous favorable impression against any time
when they might have an opportunity of explaining
or enforcing their sentiments. This is always a
questionable, and, it is to be feared, a dangerous po-
licy. Many mischievous consequences necessarily
resulting from it might easily be enumerated. But
it is a policy particularly unsuitable to our inconsi-
derate and dissipated times, and to the lengths at
27*
31 S INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
which we are arrived. \n these circumstances, the
most likely means of producing the revulsion which
is required, must be boldly to proclaim the distinc-
tion between the adherents of " God and Baal." The
expediency of this conduct in our present situation
is confirmed by another consideration. It is this —
that when men are aware that something of difficulty
is to be effected, their spirits rise to the level of the
encounter ; they make up their minds to bear hard-
ships and brave dangers, and to persevere in spite of
fatigue and opposition : whereas in a matter which
is regarded as of easy and ordinary operation, they
are apt to slumber over their work, and to fail, in
what a small effort might have been sufficient to ac-
complish, for want of having called up the requisite
degree of energy and spirit. Conformably to the
principle hereby suggested, in the circumstances in
which we are placed, the line of demarcation be-
tween the friends and the enemies of religion should
now be made clear ; the separation would be broad
and obvious. Let him, then, who wishes well to his
country, no longer hesitate what course of conduct to
pursue. The question now is not, in what liberties
he might warrantably indulge himself in another
situation ? but what are the restraints on himself
which the exigencies of the present times render it
advisable for him to impose ? Circumstanced as we
now are, it is more than ever obvious that the best
man is the truest patriot.
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 319
Nor is it only by their personal conduct, though
this mode will always be the most efficacious, that
men of authority and influence may promote the
cause of good morals. Let them in their several sta-
tions encourage virtue and discountenance vice in
others. Let them enforce the laws by which the wis-
dom of our forefathers has guarded against the gross-
er infractions of morals. Let them favor and take
part in any plans which may be formed for the ad-
vancement of morality. Above all things, let them
endeavor to instruct and improve the rising genera-
tion. But fruitless will be all attempts to sustain,
much more to revive, the fainting cause of morals,
unless you can restore the prevalence of evangelical
Christianity. It is in morals as in physic, unless the
source of practical principles be elevated, it will be
in vain to attempt to make them flow on a high level
in their future course. You may force them for a
while into some constrained position, but they will
soon drop to their natural point of depression. By
all, therefore, who are studious of their country's
welfare, every effort should be used to revive the
Christianity of our better days. The attempt should
especially be made in the case of the pastors of the
church, whose situation must render the principles
which they hold a matter of supereminent impor-
tance. Wherever these teachers have steadily and
zealously inculcated the true doctrines of the church
of England, the happiest effects have commonly re-
320 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF
warded their labors. The diit^r of encouraging vital
religion in the church particularly devolves on all
who have the disposal of ecclesiastical preferment,
and more especially on the dignitaries of the sacred
order. Some of these have already sounded the
alarm, justly censuring the practice of suffering
Christianity to degenerate into a mere system of
ethics, and recommending more attention to the pecu-
liar doctrines of our religion. In our schools, in
our universities, let the study be encouraged of the
writings of those venerable divines who flourished
in the purer times of Christianity. Let even a con-
siderable proficiency in their writings be required of
candidates for ordination. Let our churches no long-
er witness that unseemljr discordance which has
prevailed between the prayers and the sermon which
follows.
To all who have at heart the national welfare, the
above suggestions are solemnly submitted. They
have not been urged without misgivings lest it should
appear, as though the concern of eternity were melt-
ed down into a mere matter of temporal advantage
or political expediency. But since it has graciously
pleased the Supreme Being so to arrange the con-
stitution of things as to render the prevalence of true
religion and of pure morality conducive to the well-
being of states and the preservation of civil order,
and since these subordinate inducements are not un-
frequently held forth, even by the sacred writers, it
CHRISTIANITY IN THIS COUNTRY. 321
seemed proper to suggest inferior motives to readers
who might be less disposed to listen to considerations
of a higher order.
Would to God that the course of conduct here
suggested might be fairly pursued ! Would to God
that the happy consequences which would result
from the principles we have recommended could be
realized; and, above all, that the influence of true
religion could be extensively diff'used ! It is the best
wish which can be formed for his country, by one
who is deeply anxious for its welfare :
Lucem redde tuam, dax bone, patria)
Instar veris enim vultus ubi tuns
Afiulsit populo, gratior it dies,
Et soles melius nitent.
CHAPTER VII.
PRACTICAL HINTS TO VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS OP
PERSONS.
Thus have we endeavored to trace the chief de-
lects of the religious system of the bulk of professed
Christians in this country. We have pointed out
S22 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
their low idea of tlie importance of Christianity in
general, their inadequate conceptions of all its leading
doctrines, and the effect hereby naturally produced
in relaxing the strictness of its practical system ;
more than all, we have remarked their grand funda-
mental misconception of its genius and essential na-
ture. Let not therefore the difference between them
and true believers be considered as a minute differ-
ence, as a question of forms or opinions. The ques-
tion is of the very substance of religion ; the differ-
ence is of the most serious and momentous amount.
We must speak out. Their Christianity is not Chris-
tianity. It wants the radical principle. It is mainly
defective in all the grand constituents. Let them no
longer then be deceived by names in a matter of in-
finite importance ; but with humble prayer to the
Source of all wisdom, that he would enlighten their
understandings and clear their hearts from prejudice,
let them seriously examine by the Scripture stand-
ard their real belief and allowed practice, and they
will become sensible of the shallowness of their scanty
system.
If through the blessing of Providence on any thing
here written, there should be any whom it has dis-
posed, to this important duty of self-inquiry, let me
previously warn them to be well aware of our natu-
ral proneness to think too favorably of ourselves.
Selfishness is one of the principal fruits of the cor-
ruDtion of human nature: and it is obvious that sel-
VARIOUS PERSON'S.
fishness disposes us to overrate our good qualities,
and to overlook or extenuate our defects. The cor-
ruption of human nature therefore being admitted, it
follows undeniably, that in all our reckonings, if we
would form a just estimate of our character, we must
make allowance for the effects of selfishness. It is also
another effect of the corruption of human nature, to
cloud our moral sight and blunt our moral sensibility.
Something must therefore be allowed for this effect
likewise. Doubtles^%the perfect parity of the Supreme
Being makes him see in us stains far more in num-
ber and deeper in dye than we ourselves can discover.
Nor should another awful consideration be forgotten.
When we look into ourselves, those sins only into
which we have lately fallen are commonly apt to
excite any lively impression. Many individual acts
of vice, or a continued course of vicious or dissipated
conduct, which, v^rhen recent, may have smitten us
with deep remorse, after a few months or years leave
very faint traces in our recollection. But the strong
impressions which they at first excited, not the faded
images which they subsequently present to us, fur-
nish the true measure of their guilt ; and to the pure
eyes of God this guilt must always have appeared
far greater than to us. Now to the Supreme Being
there is no past or future; as whatever will be, so
whatever has been, is retained by him in present and
unvarying contemplation, continuing always to ap-
pear just the same as at the first moment of its hap-
324 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
pening. Well may it then humble us in the sight of
that Being " who is of purer eyes than to behold
iniquity," to call to mind that unless our offences
have been blotted out by our obtaining an interest in
the satisfaction of Christ, through true repentance
and lively faith, we appear before him clothed with
the sins of our whole lives, in all their original depth
of coloring, and with all the aggravations which we
no longer particularly remember, but which, in gen-
eral, we perhaps may recollect to have once filled
us with shame and confusion of face. The writer is
the rather desirous of enforcing this reflection, be-
cause he can truly declare that he has found no
consideration so efficacious in producing in his own
mind the deepest self-abasement.
In treating of the sources ofthe erroneous estimates
which we form of our religious and moral character,
it may not, perhaps, be without its uses to take this
occasion of pointing out some other common springs
of self-deception. Many persons, as was formerly
hinted, are misled by the favorable opinions enter*
tained of them by others ; many, it is to be feared,
mistake a hot zeal for orthodoxy, for a cordial ac-
ceptance of the great truths of the Gospel ; and al-
most all of us, at one time or other, are more or less
misled by confounding the suggestions of the under-
standing with the impulses of the will, the assent
which our judgment gives to religious and moral
truths with a hearty belief and approbation of them.
VARIOUS PERSONS. 325
There is another frequent source of seU'-deception,
productive of so much mischief in life that it would
be highly improper to omit the mention of it in this
place. That we may be the better understood, it may
be proper to premise that certain particular vices,
and likewise that certain particular good and amia-
ble qualities, seem naturally to belong to certain par-
ticular periods and conditions of life. Now, if we
would reason fairly in estimating our moral charac-
ter, we ought to examine ourselves with reference
to that particular " sin which does most easily beset
us," not to some other sin to which we are not so
much liable. And in like manner, on the other hand,
we ought not to account it matter of self-complacen-
cy if we find in ourselves that good and amiable
quality which naturally belongs to our period or
condition ; but rather look for some less ambiguous
sign of a real internal principle of virtue. But we
are very apt to reverse these lules of judging : we
are very apt, on the one hand, both in ourselves and
in others, to excuse *' the besetting sin," taking and
giving credit for being exempt from others, to which
we or they are less liable ; and on the other hand, to
value ourselves extremely on our possession of the
good or amiable quality which naturally belongs to
us, and to require no more satisfactory evidence of
the sufficiency at least of our moral character. The
bad effects of this partiality are aggravated by the
practice, to which we are sadly prone, of being con-
28
326 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
tented, when we take a hasty view of ourselves, with
negative evidences of our state ; thinking it very well
if we are not shocked by some great actual trans-
gression, instead of looking for the positive signs of
a true Ch*-istian, as laid down in the holy Scripture.
But the «;ource of self-deception, which it is more
particularly our present object to point out, is a dis-
position to consider as a conquest of any particular
vice, our merely forsaking it on our quitting the pe-
riod or condition of life to which that vice belongs,
when perhaps also we substitute for it the vice of
the new period or condition on which we are enter-
ing. We thus mistake merely outgrowing our vices,
or 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 people may, without much offence,
be inconsiderate and dissipated ; the youth of one sex
may indulge occasionally in licentious excesses; those
of the other may be supremely given up to vanity
and pleasure : yet, provided that they are sweet tem-
pered, and open, and not disobedient to their parents
or other superiors, the former are deemed good
hearted young men, the latter, innocent young wo-
men. Those who love them best have no solicitude
about their spiritual interests : ajid it would be deem-
ed strangely sirict in themselves, or in others, to
aoubt of their becoming more religious as they ad
VARIOUS PERSONS. 327
vance in life ; to speak of them as being actually un-
der the Divine displeasure ; or, if their lives should
be in danger, to entertain any apprehensions con-
cerning their future destiny.
They grow older, and marry. The same licen-
tiousness which was formerly considered in young
men as a venial frailty, is now no longer regarded
in the husband and the father as compatible with the
character of a decently religious man. The language
is of this sort ; " they have sown their wild oats, they
must now reform, and be regular." Nor perhaps is
the same manifest predominance of vanity and dissi-
pation deemed innocent in the matron : but if they
are kind respectively in their conjugal and parental
relations, and are tolerably regular and decent, they
pass for mighty good sort of people ; and it would be
altogether unnecessary scrupulosity in them to doubt
of their coming up to the requisitions of the Divine
law, as far as in the present state of the world can be
expected from human frailty. Their hearts, how-
ever, are no more than before supremely set on the
great work of their salvation, but are chiefly bent on
increasing their fortunes or raising their families.
Meanwhile they congratulate themselves on having
amended from vices they are no longer strongly
tempted to commit, or abstaining from which ought
not to be assumed as a test of the strength of the re-
ligious principle, since the commission of them
would prejudice their characters, and perhaps injure
their fortune in life.
328 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
Old age has at length made its advances. Now,
if ever, we might expect that it would be deemed
high time to make eternal things the main object
of attention. No such thing ! There is still an ap-
propriate good quality, the presence of which calms
the disquietude and satisfies the requisitions both of
themselves and of those around them. It is now re-
quired of them that they should be good natured and
cheerful, indulgent to the frailties and follies of the
young ; remembering that when young themselves
the)'- gave in to the same practices. How opposite
this to that dread of sin which is the sure characte-
ristic of the true Christian ! which causes him to look
back upon the vices of his own youthful days with
shame and sorrow, and which, instead of conceding
to young people to he wild and thoughtless, as a pri-
vilege belonging to their age and circumstances,
prompts him to warn them against what has proved
to himself matter of such bitter retrospection ! Thus,
throughout the whole of life some means or other
are devised for stifling the voice of conscience. " We
cry peace, while there is no peace ;" and both to our-
selves and others that complacency is furnished
which ought only to proceed from a consciousness
of being reconciled to God, and a humble hope of
our possessing his favor.
These sentiments will be termed uncharitable;
but we must not be deterred by such an imputation.
It is time to have done with that senseless cant of
VARIOUS PERSONS. 829
charity, which insults the understandings and trifles
with the feelings of those who are really concerned
for the happiness of their fellow-creatures. What
matter of keen remorse and of bitter self-reproaches
are they storing up for their future torment, who are
themselves its miserable dupes ; or who, being charg-
ed with the office of watching over the eternal inte-
rests of their children or relations, suffer themselves
to be lulled asleep, or beguiled by such shallow rea-
sonings into sparing themselves the momentary pain
of executing their important duty! Charity, indeed,
is partial to the object of her regard ; and where ac-
tions are of a doubtful quality, this partiality disposes
her to refer them to a good, rather than to a bad mo-
tive. She is apt also somewhat to exaggerate merits,
and to see amiable qualities in a light more favora-
ble than that which strictly belongs to them. But
true charity is wakeful, fervent, full of solicitude,
full of good offices, not so easily satisfied, not so
ready to believe that every thing is going on well
as a matter of course ; but jealous of mischief, apt to
suspect danger, and prompt to extend relief These
are the symptoms by which genuine regard will
manifest itself in a wife or a mother, in the case of
the bodily health of the object of her affections. And
where there is any real concern for the spiritual in-
terests of others, it is characterized by the same in-
fallible marks. That wretched quality, by which the
sacred name of charity is now so generally and so
28*
330 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
falsely usurped, is no other than indifference ; which,
against the plainest evidence, or at least where there
is strong- ground of apprehension, is easily contented
to believe that all goes well, because it has no anxie-
ties to allay, no fears to repress. It undergoes no al-
ternation of passions ; it is not at one time flushed
with hope, nor at another chilled by disappointment.
To a considerate and feeling mind there is some-
thing deeply afflicting in seeing the engaging cheer-
fulness and cloudless gayety incident to youth wel-
comed as a sufficient indication of internal purity by
the delighted parents ; who, knowing the deceitful-
ness of these flattering appearances, should eagerly
avail themselves of this period, when once wasted
never to be regained, of good humored acquiescence
and dutiful docility : a period when the soft and duc-
tile temper of the mind renders it more easily sus-
ceptible of the impressions we desire ; and when,
therefore, habits should be formed which may assist
our natural weakness to resist the temptations to
which we shall be exposed in the commerce of ma-
turer life. This is more especially affecting in the
female sex, because that sex seems to be more favora-
bly disposed than ours to the feelings and offices of
religion ; being thus fitted by the bounty of Provi-
dence, the better to execute the important task which
devolves on it, of the education of cur earliest youth.
Doubtless, this more favorable disposition to religion
in the female sex, was graciously designed also to
VARIOUS PERSONS. 331
make women donbly valuable in the wedded state:
and it seems to niTord to the married man the means
of rendering an active share in the business of life
more compatible than it would otherwise be with
the liveliest devotional feelings; that when the hus-
band should return to his family, worn and harassed
by worldly cares or professional labors, the wife, ha-
bitually preserving a warmer and more unimpaired
spirit of devotion than is perhaps consistent with
being immersed in the bustle of life, might revive his
languid piety, and that the religious impressions ot
both might derive new force and tenderness from the
animating sympathies of conjugal affection. Can a
more pleasing image be presented to a considerate
mind, than that of a couple, happy in each other and
in the pledges of their mutual love, uniting in an act
of grateful adoration to the Author of all their mer-
cies: recommending each other, and the objects of
their common care, to the Divine protection ; and
repressing the solicitude of conjugal and parental
tenderness by a confiding hope, that through all the
changes of this uncertain life, the Disposer of all
things will assuredly cause all to work together for
the good of them that love and put their trust in him ;
and that after this uncertain state shall have passed
away, they shall be admitted to a joint participation
of never-ending happiness. It is surely no mean or
ignoble office which we would allot to the female
sex, when we would thus commit to them the charge
332 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
of maintaining m lively exercise whatever emotions
most dignify and adorn human nature; when we
would make them as it were the medium of our in-
tercourse with the heavenly world, the faithful repo-
sitories of the religious principle for the benefit both
of the present and of the rising generation. Must it
not then excite our grief and indignation, when we
behold mothers forgetful at once of their own pecu-
liar duties, and of the high office which Providence
designed their daughters to fulfill ; exciting instead
of endeavoring to moderate in them the natural san-
guineness and inconsiderateness of youth; hurrying
them night after night to the resorts of dissipation :
thus teaching them to despise the common comforts
of the family circle; and, instead of striving to raise
their views, and to direct their afl^ections to their true
object, acting as if with the express design studiously
to extinguish every spark of a devotional spirit, and
to kindle in its stead an excessive love of pleasure,
and perhaps a principle of extravagant vanity and
ardent emulation !
Innocent young women ! Good hearted young
men ! Wherein does this goodness of heart and this
innocence appear ? Remember that we are fallen
creatures, born in sin, and naturally depraved.
Christianity recognizes no innocence or goodness of
heart but in the remission of sin, and in the effects
of the operation of divine grace. Do we find in these
young persons the characters which the.holy Scrip-
VARIOUS PERSONS. 333
tures lay down as the only satisfactory evidences of
a safe state ? Do we not, on the other hand, discover
the specified marks of a state of alienation from
God ? Can the blindest partiality persuade itself that
they ?iTQ loving, or striving "to love God with all
their hearts, and minds, and souls, and strength ?"
Are they " seeking first the kingdom of God, and
his righteousness ?" Are they " working out their
salvation with fear and trembling?" Are they
" clothed with humility ?" Are they not, on the con-
trary, supremely given up to self-indulgence ? Are
they not at least " lovers of pleasure more than lovers
of God ?" Are the offices of religion their solace or
their task ? Do they not come to these sacred ser-
vices with reluctance, continue in them by constraint,
and quit them with gladness ? And of how many of
these persons may it not be affirmed in the spirit of
the prophet's language : " The harp and the viol, the
tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts ; but
they regard not the work of the Lord, neither con-
sider the operation of his hands ?" Are not the youth
of one sex often actually committing, and still more
often wishing for the opportunity to commit those
sins of which the Scripture says expressly, *' that
they which do such things shall not inherit the
kingdom of God?" Are not the youth of the other
mainly intent on the gratification of vanity ; and
looking for their chief happiness to the resorts of
gayety and fashion, to all the multiplied pleasures
334 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
which public places, or the still higher gratifications
of more refined circles can supply?
And then, when the first ebullitions of youthful
warmth are over, what is their boasted reformation ?
They may be decent, sober, useful, respectable, as
members of the community, or amiable in the rela-
tions of domestic life. But is this the change of
which the Scripture speaks ? Hear the expressions
which it uses, and judge for yourselves — " Except a
man be born again, he cannot enter into the king-
dom of God." " The old man — is corrupt according
to the deceitful lusts;" an expression but too de-
scriptive of the vain delirium of youthful dissipation,
and of the false dreams of pleasure which it in-
spires ; but " the new man" is awakened from this
fallacious estimate of happiness; "he is renewed in
knowledge after the image of Him that created him"
— " He is created after God in righteousness and
true holiness." The persons of whom we are speak-
ing are no longer, indeed, so thoughtless, and wild,
and dissipated as formerly ; so negligent in their at-
tention to objects of real value ; so eager in the pur-
suit of pleasure ; so prone to yield to the impulse of
appetite. But this is no more than the change of
which a writer of no very strict cast speaks, as na-
turally belonging to their riper age:
Conversis sludiis, aetas, animusque virilis
Cluserit opes, et amicitias : inservit honori:
Commisisse cavet, quod mox mutare laboret. HoR.
VARIOUS PERSONS. 335
This is a point of infinite importance ; let it not
be thought tedious to spend even yet a few more
moments in the discussion of it. Put the question to
another issue, and try it by appealing to the princi-
ple of life being a state of probation ; a proposition,
indeed, true, in a certain sense, though not exactly
in that which is sometimes assigned to it ; and you
will still be led to no very different conclusion. Pro-
bation implies resisting, in obedience to the dictates of
religion, appetites which we are naturally prompted to
gratify. Young people are not tempted to be churlish,
interested, covetous ; but to be inconsiderate and dissi-
pated, " lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God."
People in middle age are not so strongly tempted to be
thoughtless, and idle, and licentious. From excesses of
this sort they are sufficiently withheld, particularly
when happily settled in domestic life, by a regard to
their characters, by the restraints of family connec-
tions, and by a sense of what is due to the decencies of
the married state. Their probation is of another
sort; they are tempted to be supremely engrossed
by worldly cares, by family interests, by professional
objects, by the pursuit of wealth or of ambition. Thus
occupied, they are tempted to " mind earthly rather
than heavenly things," forgetting " the one thing
needful ;" to " set their affections " on temporal ra-
ther than eternal concerns, and to take up with "a
form of godliness," instead of seeking to experience
the power thereof: the foundations of this nominal
S36 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
religion being laid, as was formerly explained 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 a geographical term, proper-
ly applicable to all those who have been born and
educated in a country wherein Christianity is pro-
fessed; not as indicating a renewed nature, as ex-
pressive of a peculiar character, with its appropriate
desires and aversions, and hopes, and fears, and joys,
and sorrows. To people of this description, the so-
lemn admonition of Christ is addressed : " I know
thy works ; that thou hast a name that thou livest,
and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things
which remain that are ready to die : for I have not
found thy works perfect before God."
If there be any one who is inclined to listen to this
solemn warning, who is awakened from his dream
of false security, and is disposed to be not only al-
most but altogether a Christian — O ! let him not
stifle or dissipate these beginnings of seriousness,
but sedulously cherish them as the " workings of the
Divine Spirit," which would draw him from the
•' broad " and crowded " road of destruction, into the
narrow " and thinly peopled path " that leadeth to
life." Let him retire from the multitude — let him
enter into his closet, and on his bended knees im-
plore, for Christ's sake, and in reliance on his media-
tion, that God would " take away from him the heart
VARIOUS PERSONS. 337
of Stone, and give him a heart of flesh ; that the
Father of light would open his eyes to his true con-
dition, and clear his heart from the clouds of preju-
dice, and dissipate the deceitful medium of self-love.
Then let him carefully examine his past life, and his
present course of conduct, comparing himself with
God's word, and considering how any one might
reasonably have been expected to conduct himself
to whom the holy Scriptures had been always open,
and who had been used to acknowledge them to be
the revelation of the will of his Creator, and Go-
vernor, and Supreme Benefactor ; let him there pe-
ruse the awful denunciations against impenitent sin-
ners ; let him labor to become more and more deeply
impressed with a sense of his own radical blindness
and corruption ; above all, let him steadily contem-
plate, in all its bearings and connections, that stupen-
dous truth, the incarnation and crucifixion of the only
begotten Son of God, and the message of mercy pro-
claimed from the cross to repenting sinners. " Be
ye reconciled unto God." " Believe in the Lord
Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved."
When he fairly estimates the guilt of sin by the
costly satisfaction which was required to atone for it,
and the worth of his soul by the price which was
paid for its redemption, and contrasts both of these
with his own sottish inconsiderateness ; when he re-
flects on the amazing love and pity of Christ, and on
the cold and formal acknowledgments with which he
29
338 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
has hitherto returned this infinite obligation, making
light of the precious blood of the Son of God, and
trifling with the gracious invitations of his Redeem-
er ; surely, if he be not lost to sensibility, mixed emo-
tions of guilt, and fear,^nd sharr.e, and remorse, and
sorrow nearly overwhelm his soul ; he will smite
upon his breast, and cry out 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 in this very situation, and with these
very feelings, that the offers of the Gospel are held
forth, and its promises assured ; " to the weary and
heavy laden " under the burden of their sins ; to those
who thirst for the water of life ; to those who feel
themselves "tied and bound by the chain of their
sins ;" who abhor their captivity, and long earnestly
for deliverance. Happy, happy souls ! whom the
grace of God has visited, '' has brought out of dark-
ness into his marvellous light," and "from the power
of Satan unto God." Cast yourselves then on his un-
deserved mercy; he is full of love, and will not
spurn you : surrender yourselves into his hands, and
solemnly resolve, through his grace, to dedicate
henceforth all your faculties and powers to his service.
It is yours now " to work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling," relying on the fidelity of
Him who has promised to "work in you both to
will and to do of his good pleasure." Ever look to
him for help : your own safety consists in a deep and
VARIOUS PERSONS. 339
abiding sense of your own weakness, and in a firm
reliance on his strength. If you " give all diligence,"
his power is armed for your protection, his truth is
pledged for your security. You are enlisted under
the banner of Christ — fear not, though the world,
and the flesh, and the devil are set in array against
you. " Faithful is he that hath promised ;" " be ye
also faithful unto death, and he will give you a crown
of life." " He that endureth to the end, the same
shall be saved." In such a world as this, in such a
state of society as ours, especially if in the higher
walks of life, you must be prepared to meet with
many difficulties : arm yourselves, therefore, in the
first place, with a determined resolution not to rate
human estimation beyond its true value ; not to dread
the charge of particularity, when it shall be necessa-
ry to incur it; but, as was before recommended, let
it be your constant endeavor to retain before your
mental eye that bright assemblage of invisible spec-
tators who are the witnesses of your daily conduct,
and " to seek that honor which cometh from God."
You cannot advance a single step till you are in
some good measure prepossessed of this comparative
indifference to the favor of men. We have before
explained ourselves too clearly to render it necessa-
ry to declare that no one should needlessly affect
singularity ; but to aim at incompatible advantages,
to seek to please God and the world, where their
commands are really at variance, is the way to be
340 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
neither respectable, nor good, nor happy. Continue
to be ever aware of your own radical corruption and
habitual weakness. Indeed, if your eyes are really
opened, and your heart truly softened, " hungering
and thirsting after righteousness," rising in your
ideas of true holiness, and proving the genuineness
of your hope by desiring " to purify yourself even as
God is pure :" you will become daily more and
more sensible of your own defects, and wants, and
weaknesses; and more and more impressed by a
sense of the mercy and long-suffering of that gra-
cious Savior, " who forgiveth all your sins, and heal-
eth all your infirmities."
This is the solution of what to a man of the world
might seem a strange paradox, that in proportion as
the Christian grows in grace, he grows also in humi-
lity. Humility is indeed the vital principle of Chris-
tianity ; that principle by which from first to last she
lives and thrives, and in proportion to the growth or
decline of which she must decay or flourish. This
first disposes the sinner in deep self-abasement to ac-
cept the offers of the Gospel ; this, during his whole
progress, is the very ground and basis of his feel-
ings and conduct, both in relation to God, his fellow-
creatures, and himself; and when at length he shall
be translated into the realms of glory, this principle
shall still subsist in undiminished force; he shall
•' fall down, and cast his crown before the Lamb ;
and ascribe blessing, and honor, and glory and
VARIOUS PERSONS. 341
power to Him that sitteth upon the throne, and to the
Lamb, for ever and ever." The practical benefits of
this habitual lowliness of spirit are too numerous,
and at the same time too obvious, to require enume-
ration. It will lead you to dread the beginnings, and
fly from the occasions of sin ; as that man would
shun some infectious distemper who should know
that he was predisposed to take the contagion. It will
prevent a thousand difficulties, and decide a thousand
questions concerning worldly compliances, by which
those persons are apt to be embarrassed who are
not duly sensible of their own exceeding frailty,
whose views of the christian character are not suffi-
ciently elevated, and who are not enough possessed
with a continual fear of " grieving the Holy Spirit
of God," and of thus provoking him to withdraw his
gracious influence. But if you are really such as
we have been describing, you need not be urged to
set the standard of practice high, and to strive after
universal holiness. It is the desire of your hearts to
act in all things with a single eye to the favor of
God, and thus the most ordinary actions of life are
raised into offices of religion. This is the purifying,
the transmuting principle, which realizes the fabled
touch which changes all to gold. But it belongs to
this desire of pleasing God that we should be con-
tinually solicitous to discover the path of duty ; that
we should not indolently wait, satisfied with not re-
fusing occasions of glorifying God when they are
29*
342 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
forced upon us ; but that we should pray to God for
wisdom and spiritual understanding, that we may be
acute in discerning opportunities of serving him in
the world, and judicious in selecting and wise in im-
proving them. Guard indeed against the distraction
of worldly cares ; and cultivate heavenly mindedness
and a spirit of continual prayer, and neglect not to
watch incessantly over the workings of your deceit-
ful heart ; but be active also, and useful. Let not
your precious time be wasted " in shapeless idle-
ness :" an admonition which, in our days, is rendered
but too necessary by the relaxed habits of persons
even of real piety ; but wisely husband and improve
this fleeting treasure. Never be satisfied with your
present attainments ; but " forgetting the things which
are behind," labor still to "press forward" with un-
diminished energy, and to run the race that is set
before you without flagging in your course.
Above all, measure your progress by your im-
provement in love to God and man. '' God is love."
This is the sacred principle which warms and en-
lightens the heavenly world, that blessed seat of
God's visible presence. There it shmes with un-
clouded radiance. Some scattered beams are gra-
ciously lent to us on earth, or we had been benighted
and lost in darkness and misery ; but a larger por-
tion of it is infused into the hearts of the servants of
God, who thus " are renewed in the Divine like-
ness" and even here exhibit some faint traces of the
VARIOUS PERSONS. 343
image of their heavenly Father. It is the principle
of love which disposes them to yield themselves up
without reserve to the service of him " who has
bought them with the price of his own blood."
Servile, and base, and mercenary is the notion of
Christian practice among the bulk of nominal Chris-
tians. They give no more than they dare not with-
hold ; they abstain from nothing but what they must
not practice. In short, they know Christianity only
as a system of restraints. She is despoiled of every
liberal and generous principle : she is rendered al-
most unfit for the social intercourses of life. But
true Christians consider themselves not as satisfying
some rigorous creditor, but as discharging a debt of
gratitude. Theirs is accordingly not the stinted re-
turn of a constrained obedience, but the large and
liberal measure of a voluntary service. This prin
ciple, therefore, as was formerly remarked, and as
has been recently observed of true Christian hu-
mility, prevents a thousand practical embarrass-
ments by which they are continually harassed who
act from a less generous motive, and who require it
to be clearly ascertained to them that any gratification
or worldly compliance which may be in question, is
beyond the allowed boundary line of Christian prac-
tice.* This principle regulates the true Christian's
* Neither will I offer burnt-offerings unto the Lord my
God," says David, "of that which doth cost me nothing."
2 Sam. 24 : 24.
344 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
choice of companions and friends, where he is at li-
berty to make an option ; this fills him with the de-
sire of promoting the temporal well-being of all
around him, and still more, with pity, and love, and
anxious solicitude for their spiritual welfare. Indif-
ference indeed in this respect is one of the surest
signs of a low or declining state in religion. This
animating principle it is, which in the true Chris-
tian's happier hour inspirits his devotions, and
causes him to delight in the worship of God ; which
fills him with consolation, and peace, and gladness,
and sometimes even enables him "to rejoice with
joy unspeakable and full of glory."
But this world is not his resting-place: here, to
the very last, he must be a pilgrim and a stranger :
a soldier whose warfare ends only with life, ever
struggling and combating with the powers of
*' They " (the apostles) "departed from the presence of the
council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suflfer
shame for the name of Jesus." Acts, 5 : 41. See also 1 Thess.
1 : 6. Heb. 10 : 34. James, 1 : 2. 1 Peter, 4 .13, 14.
Such are the marks exhibited in Scripture of a true love
to God : and though our regard for our common Lord is not
put to the same severe test as that of the apostles and first
Christians was, yet, if the same principle existed in us also,
it would surely dispose us to act in the spirit of that con-
duct, and prompt us rather to be willing to exceed in self-
denials and labors for Christ's sake, than to be so forward as
we are to complain, whenever we are called upon to per-
form or to abstain from any thing, though in an instance ever
so little contrarv to our inclinations.
VARIOUS PERSONS. 345
darkness, and with the temptations of the world
around him, and the still more dangerous hostilities
of internal depravity. The perpetual vicissitudes
of this uncertain state; the peculiar trials and dif-
ficulties with w^hich the life of a Christian is che-
quered; and still more, the painful and humiliating
remembrance of his own infirmities teach him to
look forward, almost with outstretched neck, to
that promised day, when he shall be completely de-
livered from the bondage of corruption, and sorrow
and sighing shall flee away. In the anticipation of
that blessed period, and comparing this churlish and
turbulent world, where competition, and envy, and
ange>r, and revenge, so vex and agitate the sons of
men, with that blissful region where love shall reign
without disturbance, and where all being knit to-
gether in bonds of indissoluble friendship, shall
unite in one harmonious song of praise to the
Author of their common happiness, the true Chris-
tian triumphs over the fear of death: he longs to
realize these cheering images, and to obtain admis-
sion into that blessed company. With far more
justice than it was originally used, he may adopt the
beautiful exclamation — " O prseclarum ilium diem,
cum ad illud divinum animorum concilium cc&tum-
que proficiscar, atque ex hae turb^ et colluvione
discedam!"
What has been now as well as formerly remarked
concerning- the habitual feeling's of the real believer,
346 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
may suggest a reply to an objection common in the
mouths of the nominal Christians, that we would
deny men the innocent amusements and gratifica-
tions of life; thus causing our religion to wear a
gloomy, forbidding aspect, instead of her true and na-
tural face of cheerfulness and joy. This is a charge
of so serious a nature, that although it lead into a di-
gression, it may not be improper to take some notice
of it.
In the first place, religion prohibits no amusement
or gratification which is really innocent. The ques-
tion, however, of its innocence, must not be tried by
the loose maxims of worldly morality, but by the
spirit of the injunctions of the word of God, and
by the indulgence being conformable or not conform-
able to the genius of Christianity, and to the tempers
and dispositions of mind enjoined on its professors.
There can be no dispute concerning the true end of
recreations. They are intended to refresh our ex-
hausted bodily or mental powers, and to restore us,
with renewed vigor, to the more serious occupations
of life. Whatever, therefore, fatigues either body or
mind, instead of refreshing them, is not fitted to
answer the designed purpose. Whatever consumes
more time, or money, or thought, than it is expe-
dient, or rather necessary, to allot to mere amuse-
ment, can hardly be approved by any one who con-
siders these talents as precious deposits, for the
expenditure of which he will have to give account.
VARIOUS PERSONS. 347
Whatever directly or indirectly must be likely to
injure the welfare of a fellow creature, can scarcely
be a suitable recreation for a Christian, who is " to
love his neighbor 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 the bounty of Providence, as to al-
low for a moment that the sources of innocent amuse-
ment are so rare that men must be driven, almost by
constraint, to such as are of a doubtful quality. On the
contrary, such has been the Creator's goodness, that
almost every one, both of our physical, and intellec-
tual, and moral faculties, and the same may be said
of the whole creation which we see around us, is not
only calculated to answer the proper end of its being,
by its subserviency to some purpose of solid use-
fulness, but to be the instrument of administering
pleasure.
Not content
With every food of life to nourish man,
Thou makest all nature beauty to his eye
And music to his ear.
Our Maker also, in his kindness, has so constructed
us that even mere vicissitude is grateful and refresh-
ing— a consideration which should prompt us often
to seek, from a prudent variation of useful pursuits,
that recreation for which we are apt to resort to
what is altogether unproductive and unfruitful.
348 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
Yet rich and multiplied are the springs of inno-
cent relaxation. The Christian relaxes in the tem-
perate use of all the gifts of Providence. Imagina-
tion, and taste, and genius, and the beauties of cre-
ation, and the works of art, lie open to him. He re-
laxes in the feast of reason, in the intercourses of so-
ciety, in the sweets of friendship, in the endearments
of love, in the exercise of hope, of confidence, of joy,
of gratitude, of universal good will, of all the bene-
volent and generous affections : which, by the gra-
cious ordination of our Creator, while they disin-
terestedly intend only happiness to others, are most
surely productive to ourselves of complacency and
peace. O ! little do they know of the true measure
of enjoyment, who can compare these delightful
complacencies with the frivolous pleasures of dissipa-
tion, or the coarse gratifications of sensuality. It is
no wonder, however, that the nominal Christian
should reluctantly give up, one by one, the pleasures
of the world ; and look back upon them, when relin-
quished, with eyes of wistfulness and regret ; because
he knows not the sweetness of the delights with which
true Christianity repays those trifling sacrifices, and
is greatly unacquainted with the nature of that plea-
santness which is to be found in the ways of religion.
It is indeed true, that when any one who has long
been going on in the gross and unrestrained practice
of vice is checked in his career, and enters at first
on a religious course, he has much to undergo.
VARIOUS PERSONS. 849
Fear, guilt, remorse, shame, and various other pas-
sions, struggle and conflict within him. His appetites
are clamorous for their accustomed gratification, and
inveterate habits are scarcely to be denied. He is
weighed down by a load of guilt, and almost over-
whelmed by the sense of his un worthiness. But all
this ought in fairness to be charged to the account of
his past sins, and not to that of his present repen ■
tance. It rarely happens, however, that this state of
suffering continues very long. When the mental
gloom IS the blackest, a ray of heavenly light occa-
sionally breaks in, and suggests the hope of better
days. Even in this life it commonly holds true,
" They that sow in tears shall reap in joy."
Neither, when we maintain that the ways of re-
ligion are ways of pleasantness, 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 been already pointed out, together with
the workings of his mind in relation to them: but if
he has solicitudes and griefs peculiar to himself, he
has "joys also with which a stranger intermeddles
not."
A little religion is, it must be confessed, apt to
make men gloomy, as a little knowledge to render
them vain : hence the unjust imputation often brought
upon religion by those whose degree of religion is
just sufficient, by condemning their course of con-
30
350 PRACTICAL HINTS TO
duct, to render them uneasy; enough merely to
impair the sweetness of the pleasures of sin, and not
enough to compensate for the relinquishment of
them by its own peculiar comforts. Thus these men
bring up an ill report of that land of promise which
in truth abounds with whatever, in our journey
through life, can best refresh and strengthen us.
We have enumerated some sources of pleasure
which men of the world may understand, and must
acknowledge to belong to the true Christian ; but
there are others, and those of a still higher class,
to which they must confess themselves strangers.
To say nothing of a degree of exemption from
those distracting passions and corroding cares, by
which he must naturally be harassed whose trea-
sure is within the reach of mortal accidents ; there
is the humble,quiet-giving hope of being reconciled
to God, and of enjoying his favor; with that solid
peace of mind which the world can neither give nor
take away, which results from a firm confidence in
the infinite wisdom and goodness of God, and in
the unceasing care and kindness of a gracious Sa-
vior : and there is the persuasion of the truth of
the Divine assurance, that all things shall work to-
gether for good.
When flushed with youth, and health, and vigor ;
when all goes on prosperously, and success seems
almost to anticipate our wishes; then we feel not
the want of the consolations of religion : but when
VARIOUS PERSONS. 351
fortune frowns, or friends forsake us, when sorrow,
or sickness, or old age comes upon us, then it is
that the superiority of the pleasures of religion is
established over those of dissipation and vanity,
which are ever apt to fly from us when we are most
in want of their aid. There is scarcely a more
melancholy sight to a considerate mind, than that of
an old man who is a stranger to those only true
sources of satisfaction. How afTecting, and at the
same time how disgusting is it to see such a one
awkwardly catching at the pleasures of his younger
years, which are now beyond his reach ; or feebly
attempting to retain them, while they mock his endea-
vors and elude his grasp ! To such a one, gloomily
indeed does the evening of life set in. All is sour and
cheerless. He can neither look backward with com-
placency, nor forward with hope: while the aged
Christian, relying on the assured mercy of his Re-
deemer, can calmly reflect that his dismission is at
hand ; that his redemption draweth nigh : while his
strength declines and his faculties decay, he can
quietly repose himself on the fidelity of God : and
at the very entrance of the valley of the shadow
of death he can lift up an eye, dim, perhaps, and
feeble, yet occasionally sparkling with hope, and
confidently looking forward to the near possession of
his heavenly inheritance, "to those joys which eye
hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered
into the heart of man to conceive."
3$2 ADVICE TO PROFESSORS
Never were there times which inculcated more
forcibly, than those in which we live, the wisdom of
seeking happiness beyond the reach of human vicis-
situdes. What striking lessons have we had of the
precarious tenure of all sublunary possessions!
Wealth, and power, and prosperity, how peculiarly
transitory and uncertain ! But religion dispenses her
choicest cordials in the seasons of exigence, in po-
verty, in exile, in sickness, and in death. The essen-
tial superiority of that support which is derived from
religion is less felt, at least it is less apparent, when
the Christian is in full possession of riches, and
splendor, and rank, and all the gifts of nature and
fortune. But when all these are swept away by the
rude hand of time, or the rough blasts of adversity,
the true Christian stands, like the glory of the forest,
erect and vigorous ; stripped indeed of his summer
foliage, but more than ever discovering to the observ-
ing eye the solid strength of his substantial texture :
Pondere fixa suo est, nudosque per aera ramos
Attollens, trunco non frondibus efficit umbram.
SECTION II.
Advice to some who profess full assent to the fimdamental doe-
triTicsofthe Gospel.
In a former chapter wo largely insisted on what
may be termed the fundamental practical error of
OF THE GOSPEL, 358
the bulk of professed Christians in our days; their
either overlooking or misconceiving the peculiar
method which the Gospel has provided for the reno-
vation of our corrupted nature, and for the attainment
of every Christian grace.
But there are mistakes on the right hand and on
the left; and our general proneness, when flying
from one extreme to run into an opposite error, ren-
ders it necessary to superadd another admonition.
The generally prevailing error of the present day,
indeed, is that fundamental one which was formerly
pointed out. But while we attend, in the first place,
to this ; and, on the warrant both of Scripture and
experience, prescribe hearty repentance and lively
faith as the only root and foundation of all true ho-
liness ; we must at the same time guard against a
practical mistake of another kind. Those who, with
penitent hearts, have humbled themselves before the
cross of Christ; and who, pleading his merits as their
only ground of pardon and acceptance, have resolv-
ed henceforth, through the influences of the Holy
Spirit, to bring forth the fruits of righteousness, are
sometimes apt to conduct themselves as if they con-
sidered their work as done ; or at least as if this were
the whole they had to do, as often as, by falling afresh
into sin, another act of repentance and faith may seenri
to have become necessary. There are not a few in
our relaxed age, who thus satisfy themselves with
what may be termed general Christianity ; who feel
30*
354 ADVICE TO PROFESSORS
general penitence and humiliation from a sense of
their sinfulness in general, and general desires of
universal holiness ; but who neglect that vigilant and
jealous care with which they s-hould labor to extir-
pate every particular corruption, by studying its na-
ture, its root, its ramifications, and thus becoming
acquainted with its secret movements, with the means
whereby it gains strength, and with the most effectual
methods of resisting it. In like manner, they are far
from striving with persevering alacrity for the ac-
quisition and improvement of every Christian grace.
Nor is it unusual for ministers, who preach the truths
of the Gospel with fidelity, ability, and success, to be
themselves also liable to the charge of dwelling al-
together in their instructions on this general reli-
gion : instead of tracing and laying open the secret
motions of inward corruption, and instructing their
hearers how best to conduct themselves in every dis-
tinct part of the Christian warfare ; how best to strive
against each particular vice, and to cultivate each
grace of the Christian character. In too many per-
sons, concerning the sincerity of whose general pro-
fessions of religion we should be sorry to entertain
a doubt, we see little progress made in the regulation
of their tempers, in the improvement of their time,
in the reform of their plan of life, or in ability to re-
sist the temptation to which they are particularly
exposed. They will confess themselves, in general
terms, to be "miserable sinners:" this is a tenet of
OF THE GOSPEL. 355
their creeJ, and they feel even proud in avowing it»
They will occasionally also lament particular fail-
ings : but this confession is sometimes obviously
made in order to draw forth a compliment for the
very opposite virtue: and where this is not the case,
it is often not difficult to detect, under this false guise
of contrition, a secret self-complacency, arising from
the manifestations they have afforded of their acute-
ness or candor in discovering the ihnrmity in ques-
tion, or of their frankness or humility in acknowledg-
ing it. This will scarcely seem an illiberal suspicion
to any one who either watches the workings of his
own heart, or who observes that the faults confessed
in these instances are very seldom those with which
the person is most clearly and strongly chargeable.
We must plainly warn these men, and the consi-
deration is seriously pressed on their instructors also,
that they are in danger of deceiving themselves Let
them beware lest they be nominal Christians of
another sort. These persons require to be reminded
that there is no short compendious method of holi-
ness; but that it must be the business of their whole
lives to grow in grace, and continually adding one
virtue to another, as far as may be, "to go on towards
perfection." He only "that doeth righteousness is
righteous." Unless "they bring forth the fruits of
the Spirit," they can have no sufficient evidence that
they have received that Spirit of Christ, without
which thev are none of his. But where, on th«
356 ADVICE TO PROFESSORS
whole, our unwillingness to pass an unfavorable
judgment may lead us to indulge a hope that " the
root of the matter is found in them," yet we must de-
clare to them, that instead of adorning the doctrine
of Christ, they disparage and discredit it. The world
sees not their secret humiliation, nor the exercises of
their closets, but it is acute in discerning practical
weaknesses; and if it observe that they have the
same eagerness in the pursuit of weahh or ambition,
the same vain taste for ostentation and display, the
same ungoverned tempers which are found in the
generality of mankind, it will treat with contempt
their pretences to superior sanctity and indifference
to worldly things, and will be hardened in its preju-
dices against the only mode which God has provided
for our escaping the wrath to come, and obtaining
eternal happiness.
Let him, then, who would be indeed a Christian,
watch over his ways and over his heart with unceas-
ing circumspection. Let him endeavor to learn, both
from men and books, particularly from the lives of
eminent Christians, what methods have been actual-
ly found most effectual for the conquest of every par-
ticular vice, and for improvement in every branch of
holiness. Thus studying his own character, and ob-
serving the most secret workings of his own mind,
and of our common nature ; the knowledge which
he will acquire of the human heart in general, and
especially of his own, will be of the highest utility
OF THE GOSPEL. 857
in enabling him to avoid or to guard against the oc-
casions of evil ; and it will also tend, above all things,
to the growth of humility, and to the maintenance
of that sobriety of spirit and tenderness of conscience
which are eminently characteristic of the true Chris-
tian. It is by this unceasing diligence, as the apostle
declares, that the servants of Christ must make their
calling sure. Their labor will not be thrown away;
for *' an entrance shall" at length "be ministered
unto them abundantly, into the everlasting kingdom
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
SECTION 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 un-
believers, with which this little work has properly no
concern : but may the writer, sincerely pitying their
melancholy state, be permitted to ask them one plain
question ? If Christianity be not in their estimation
true, yet is there not at least a presumption in its fa-
vor sufficient to entitle it to a serious examination ;
from its having been embraced, and that not blindly
and implicitly, but upon full inquiry and deep con-
sideration, by Bacon, and Milton, and Locke, and
Newton, and much the greater part of those, who,
by the reach of their understandings, or the extent
358 BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
of their knowledge, and by the freedom of their
minds, and their daring to combat existing preju-
dices, have called forth the respect and admiration
of mankind ? It might be deemed scarcely fair to in-
stance clergymen, though some of them are among
the greatest names this country has ever known.
Can the sceptic in general say with truth that he has
either prosecuted an examination into the evidences
of revelation at all, or at least with a seriousness and
diligence in any degree proportioned to the impor-
tance of the subject? The fact is, and it is a fact
which redounds to the honor of Christianity, that
infidelity is not the result of sober inquiry and deli-
berate preference. It is rather the slow production
of a careless and irreligious life, operating together
with prejudices and erroneous conceptions concern-
ing the nature of the leading doctrines and funda-
mental tenets of Christianity.
Take the case of young men of condition, bred up
by what we have termed nominal Christians. When
children, they are carried to church, and there they
become acquainted with such parts of Scripture as
are contained in our public service. If their parents
preserve still more of the customs of better times,
they are taught their catechism, and furnished with
a little further religious knowledge. After a while
they go from under the eyes of their parents ; they
enter into the world, and move forward in the path
of life, whstever it may be, which has been assigned
SCEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. 359
to them. They yield to the temptations which assail
them, and become more or less dissipated and licen-
tious. At least they neglect to look into their Bible ;
they do not enlarge the sphere of their religious ac-
quisitions ; they do not even endeavor, by reflection
and study, to turn into what may deserve the name
of knowledge and rational conviction, the opinions
which, in their childhood, they had taken on trust.
They travel, perhaps, into foreign countries ; a
proceeding w^hich naturally tends to weaken their
nursery prejudice in favor of the religion in which
they were bred, and by removing them from all
means of public worship, to relax their practical
habits of religion. They return home, and common-
ly are either hurried round in the vortex of dissipa-
tion, or engage with the ardor of youthful minds in
some public or professional pursuit. If they read or
hear any thing about Christianity, it is commonly
only about those tenets which are subjects of con-
troversy ; and what reaches their ears from the Bible,
in their occasional attendance at church, though it
may sometimes impress them with an idea of the
purity of christian morality, contains much which,
coming thus detached, perplexes and offends them,
and suggests various doubts and startling objections
which a further acquaintance with the Scripture
would remove. Thus growing more and m.ore to
know Christianity only by the difficulties it contains ;
sometimes tempted by an ambition of showing them-
360 BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
selves superior to what they think vulgar prejudice,
and always prompted by the natural pride of the
human heart to cast off subjection to dogmas imposed
on them ; disgusted, perhaps, by the immoral lives
of some professed Christians, by the weaknesses and
absurdities of others, and by what they observe to be
the implicit belief of numbers whom they see and
know to be equally ignorant with themselves ; many
doubts and suspicions of greater or less extent spring
up within them. These doubts enter into the mind at
first almost imperceptibly : they exist only as vague
indistinct surmises, and by no means take the precise
shape or the substance of a formed opinion. At first,
probably, they even offend and startle by their intru-
sion ; but by degrees the unpleasant sensations they
once excited wear off; the mind grows more familiar
with them. A confused sense, for such it is, rather
than a formed idea of its being desirable that their
doubts should prove well founded, lends them much
secret aid. The impression becomes deeper ; not in
consequence of being reinforced by fresh arguments,
but merely by dint of having longer rested in the
mind ; and as they increase in force, they creep on
and extend themselves. At length they diffuse them-
selves over the whole of 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
SCEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. 361
scepticism. It approves itself to the experience of
those who have with any care watched the progress
of infidelity in persons around them ; and it is con-
firmed by the written lives of some of the most eminent
unbelievers. It is curious to read their own accounts
of themselves, the rather as they accord so exactly
with the result of our own observation. We find
that they once perhaps gave a sort of implicit heredi-
tary assent to the truth of Christianity, and were what
by a mischievous perversion of language the world
denominates believers. How were they then awa-
kened from their sleep of ignorance ? At what mo-
ment did the light of truth beam in upon them, and
dissipate the darkness in which they had been involv-
ed t The period of their infidelity is marked by no
such determinate boundary. Reason, and thought,
and inquiry had little or nothing to do with it. Ha-
ving for many years lived careless and irreligious
lives, and associated with companions equally care-
less and irreligious ; not by force of study and re-
flection, but rather by the lapse of time, they at
length attained to their infidel maturity. It is
worthy of remark, that where any are reclaimed
from infidelity, it is generally by a process much
more rational than that which has been here de-
scribed. Something awakens them to reflection.
They examine, they consider, and at length yield
their assent to Christianity on what they deem suffi-
cient grounds.
31
362. BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
From the account here given, it appears plainly
that infidelity is generally the offspring of prejudice,
and that its success is mainly to be ascribed to the
depravity of the moral character. This fact is con-
firmed by the undeniable truth, that in societies,
which consist of individuals, infidelity is the natural
fruit, not so much of a studious and disputatious, as
of a dissipated and vicious age. It diffuses itself in
proportion as the general morals decline ; and it is
embraced with less apprehension, when every infi-
del is kept in spirits by seeing many around him
who are sharing fortunes with himself.
To anjr fair mind this consideration alone might be
offered, as suggesting a strong argument against in-
fidelity, and in favor of revelation. And the friends
of Christianity might justly retort the charge which
their opponents often urge with no little affectation
of superior wisdom, that we implicitly surrender
ourselves to the influence of prejudice, instead of
examining dispassionately the ground of our faith,,
and yielding our assent only according to the degree
of evidence.
In our own days, when it is but too clear that in-
fidelity increases, it is not in consequence of the rea-
sonings of the infidel writers having been much stu-
died, but from the progress of luxury and the decay
of morals ; and, so far as this increase may be traced
at all to the works of sceptical writers, it has been
produced, not by argument and discussion, but by
SCEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. 363
f?arcasms and points of wit, which have operated on
weak minds, or on nominal Christians, by bringing
gradually into contempt opinions which, in their
case, had only rested on the basis of blind respect
and the prejudices of education. It may therefore be
laid down as an axiom, that infidelity is in general a
disease of the heart more than of the understanding.
If revelation were assailed only by reason and argu-
ment, it would have little to fear. The literary op-
posers of Christianity, from Herbert to Hume, have
been seldom read. They made some stir in their
day; during their brief span of existence they were
noisy and noxious ; but, like the locusts of the east,
which for a w^hile obscure the air and destroy the
verdure, they were soon swept away and forgotten.
Their very names would be scarcely found if Leland
had not preserved them from oblivion.
The account which has been given of the secret
but grand source of infidelity, may perhaps justly be
extended, as being not seldom true in the case of
those who deny the fundamental doctrines of the
Gospel.
In the course which we lately traced from nomi-
nal orthodoxy to absolute infidelity, Unitarianism* is,
* The author is aware that he may perhaps be censured
for conceding this term to the class of persons now in ques-
tion, since orthodox Christians equally contend for the uni-
ty of the Divine nature ; and it perhaps may hardly be a
sufficient excuse, that, it not being- his object particularly
S64 BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
indeed, a sort of half-way house, if the expression
may be pardoned ; a stage on the journey, where
sometimes a person indeed finally stops, but where,
not unfrequently, he only pauses for a while, and
then pursues his progress.
The unitarian teachers by no means profess to ab-
solve their followers from the unbending strictness
of Christian morality. They prescribe the predomi-
nant love of God, and an habitual spirit of devotion :
but it is an unquestionable fact, a fact which they
themselves almost admit, that this class of religion-
ist is not in general distinguished for superior purity
of life; and still less for that frame of mind which,
by the injunction '* to be spiritually, not carnally
minded," the word of God prescribes to us, as one of
the surest tests of our experiencing the vital power of
Christianity. On the contrary, in point of fact, Uni-
tarianism seems to be resorted to, not merely by
those who are disgusted with the peculiar doctrines
of Christianity, but by those also who are seeking
a refuge from the strictness of her practical precepts,
and who more particularly would escape from the
obligation which she imposes on her adherents ra-
ther to incur the dreaded charge of singularity, than
fall in with the declining manners of a dissipated age.
to refute the errors of Unitarianism, he uses the term in its
popular sense rather than give needless offence. He thus
guards, however, against any false construction being drawti
from his use of it.
SCEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. 365
Unitarianism, where it may be supposed to pro-
ceed from the understanding- rather than from the
heart, is not unfrequently produced by a confused
idea of the difficulties, or, as they are termed, the
impossibilities which orthodox Christianity is sup-
posed to involve. It is notour intention to enter into
the controversy :* but it may not be improper to
make one remark, as a guard to persons in whose
way the arguments of the Unitarians maybe likely
to fall: namely, that one great advantage possessed
by deists, and perhaps in a still greater degree by
Unitarians, in their warfare with the Christian sys-
tem, results from the very circumstances of their
being the assailants. They urge what they state to
be powerful arguments against the truth of the fun-
damental doctrines of Christianity, and then call
upon men to abandon them as posts no longer ten-
able. But those who are disposed to yield to this
assault, should call to mind, that it has pleased God
so to establish the constitution of all things, that per-
plexing difficulties and plausible objections may be
* The author of this treatise has, since its completion, pe-
rused a work, entitled, Calvinism and Socinianisra com-
pared, by A. Fuller ; and, without reference to the pecu-
liarities of calvanism, he is happy to embrace this opportu-
nity of Calvanism, the high obligation which, in common
with all the friends of true religion, he owes to the author
of that highly valuable publication for his masterly defence
of the doctrines of Christianity, and his acute refutation of
the opposite errors.
31*
366 BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
adduced against the most established truths; such,
for instance, as the being of a God, and many others
both physical and moral. In all cases, therefore,
it becomes us, not on a partial view to reject any
proposition, because it is attended with difficulties;
but to compare the difficulties which it involves, with
those that attend the alternative proposition which
must be embraced on its rejection. We should put
to the proof the alternative proposition in its turn,
and see whether it be not still less tenable than that
which we are summoned to abandon. In short, we
should examine circumspectly on all sides ; and
abide by that opinion which, on carefully balancing
all considerations, appears fairly entitled to our pre-
ference. Experience, however, will have convinced
the attentive observer of those around him, that it
has been for want of adverting to this just and ob-
vious principle, that the Unitarians in particular have
gained most of their proselytes from the church, so
far as argument has contributed to their success.
If the Unitarians, or even the deists, were considered
in their turn as masters of the field, and were in
their turn attacked, both by arguments tending to
disprove their system directly, and to disprove it indi-
rectly, by showing the high probability of the truth
of Christianity, and of its leading and peculiar doc-
trines, it is most likely that they would soon ap-
pear wholly unable to keep their ground. In short,
reasoning fairly, there is no medium between abso-
SCEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. 367
lute Pyrrhonism and Christianity ; and if we reject
the latter on account of its difficulties, we shall be
still more loudly called upon to reject every other
system which has been offered to the acceptance of
mankind. This consideration might, perhaps, with
advantage be more attended to than it has been,
by those who take upon them to vindicate the truth
of our holy religion: as many, who, from inconside-
ration, or any other cause, are disposed to give up
the great fundamentals of Christianity, would be
startled by the idea, that on the same principle on
which they did this, they must give up the hope of
finding any rest for the sole of their foot on any
ground of religion, and not stop short of unqualified
atheism.
Besides the class of those who professedly reject
revelation, there is another, and that also, it is to be
feared, an increasing one, which may be called the
class of half-unbelievers, who are to be found in va-
rious degrees of approximation to a state of absolute
infidelity. The system, if it deserve the name, of
these men, is grossly irrational. Hearing many who
assert, and many who deny the truth of Christianity,
and not reflecting seriously enough to consider that
it must be either true or false, they take up a strange
sort of middle opinion of its qualified truth. They
conceive that there must be something in it, though
by no means to the extent to which it is pushed by or-
thodox Christians. They grant the reality of future
368 BRIEF OBSERVATIONS TO
punishment, and even that they themselves cannot
akogether expect to escape it ; yet " they trust it
will not go so hard with them as the churchmen
state ;" and, as was formerly hinted, though disbe-
lieving almost every material doctrine which Chris-
tianity contains ; yet, even in their own minds, they
by no means conceive themselves to be enlisted under
the banners of infidelity, or to have much cause
for any great apprehension lest Christianity phould
prove true.
But let these men be reminded that there is no
middle way. If they can be prevailed on to look
into their Bible, and do not make up their minds
absolutely to reject its authority, they must admit
that there is no ground whatever for this vain hope
of escaping with a slight measure of punishment.
Nor let them think their guilt inconsiderable. Is
it not grossly criminal to trifle with the long-suf-
fering of God, to despise alike his invitations and
his threatenings, and the offer of his Spirit of grace,
and the precious blood of the Redeemer ? Far dif-
ferent is the scripture estimate ; "how shall we escape
if we neglect so great salvation ? " It shall be more
tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah, in the day of
judgment," than for those who voluntarily shut their
eyes against that full light which the bounty of
Heaven has poured out upon them. These half-un-
believers are even more reprehensible than down-
right sceptics, for remaining in this state of careless
8CEPTICS AND UNITARIANS. S69
uncertainty, without endeavoring to ascertain the
truth or falsehood of revelation. The probability
which they admit, that it may be true, imposes on
them an additional and undeniable obligation to in-
quiry. But both to them and to decided sceptics it
must be plainly declared that they are in these days
less excusable than ever, for not looking into the
grounds and proofs on which is rested the truth ot
Christianity; for never before were these proofs so
plainly, and at so easy a rate offered to the conside-
ration of mankind. Through the bounty of Provi-
dence the more widely spread poison of infidelity
has in our days been met with more numerous and
more powerful antidotes.
The infatuation of these unbelievers upon trust
would be less striking, if they were able altogether
to decline Christianity; and were at liberty to re-
linquish their pretensions to its rewards, on condition
of being exempted from its punishments. But that
is not the case ; they must stand the risk of the en-
counter, and their eternal happiness or misery is
suspended upon the issue.* What must be the emo-
tions of these men, on first opening their eyes in the
world of spirits, and being convinced, too late, of the
awful reality of their impending ruin ? May the
* This argument is pressed with uncommon force in Pas-
cal's Thoughts on Religion, a work highly valuable, though
not in every part to be approved ; abounding in particular
with those deep views of religion which the name of its
author prepares us to expecL
370 ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS.
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, much has been said incidentally in
the course of the present work. It has been main
tained, and the proposition will not be disputed by
any sound or experienced politician, that they are
always most important members of the community.
But we may boldly assert, that there never was a
period wherein, more justly than in the present, this
could be affirmed of them ; whether the situation, in
all its circumstances, of our own country be atten
lively considered, or the general state of society in
Europe. Let them, on their part, seriously weigh
the important station which they fill, and the various
duties it now peculiarly enforces on them. If we
consult the most intelligent accounts of foreign coun-
tries which have been recently published, and com-
pare them with the reports of former travelers, we
must be convinced that religion and the standard of
morals are every where declining, abroad even more
rapidly than in our own country. But still the pro-
gress of irreligion and the decay of morals at home
are such as to alarm every considerate mind, and to
ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS. 371
forebode the worst consequences, unless some remedy-
can be applied to the growing evil. We can depend
only upon true Christians for effecting, in any de-
gree, this important service. Zeal is required in
the cause of religion; they only can feel it. The
charge of singularity must be incurred ; they only
will dare to encounter it. Uniformity of conduct
and perseverance in exertion will be requisite;
among no others can we look for those qualities.
Let true Christians then, with becoming earnest-
ness, strive in all things to recommend their profes-
sion, and to put to silence the vain scoffs of ignorant
objectors. Let them boldly assert the cause of Christ
in an age when so many who bear the name of
Christians are ashamed of him : and let them con-
sider as devolved on them the important duty of sus-
pending for a while the fall of their country, and,
perhaps, of performing a still more extensive service
to society at large ; not by busy interference in poli-
tics, in which it cannot but be confessed there is
much uncertainty, but rather by that sure and radi-
cal benefit of restoring the influence of religion, and
of raising the standard of morality.
Let them be active, useful, generous towards
others ; manifestly moderate and self-denying in
themselves. Let them be ashamed of idleness, as
they would be of the most acknowledged sin. When
Providence blesses them with affluence, let them
withdraw from the competition of vanity ; and, with-
372 ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS.
out sordidness or absurdity, show, by their modest
demeanor and by their retiring from display, that,
without affecting singularity, they are not slaves to
fashion ; that they consider it as their duty to set an
example of moderation and sobriety, and to reserve
for nobler and more disinterested purposes that mo-
ney Avhich others selfishly waste in parade, and
dress, and equipage. Let them evince, in short, a
manifest moderation in all temporal things ; as be-
comes those whose affections are set on higher ob-
jects than any which this world afibrds, and who
possess, within their own bosoms, a fund of satisfac-
tion and comfort which the world seeks in vanity
and dissipation. Let them cultivate a catholic spirit
of universal good will, and of amicable fellowship
towards all those, of whatever sect or denomination,
Avho, differing from them in non-essentials, agree
with them in the grand fundamentals of religion.
Let them countenance men of real piety wherever
they are found, and encourage in others every at-
tempt to repress the progress of vice, and to revive
and diffijse the influence of religion and virtue. Let
their earnest prayers be constantly offered that such
endeavors may be successful, and that the abused
long-suffering of God may still continue to us the
invaluable privilege of vital Christianity.
Let them pray continually for their countjy. Who
can say but that the Governor of the universe, who
declares himself to be a God who hears the prayers
ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS. 373
of his servants, may, in answer to their intercessions,
for a while avert our ruin, and continue to us the
fullness of those temporal blessings which in such
abundant measure we have hitherto enjoyed?* Men
of the world, indeed, however they may admit the
natural operation of natural causes, and may therefore
confess the effects of religion and morality in promot-
ing the well-being of the community; may yet, accord-
ing to their humor, with a smile of complacent pity,
or a sneer of supercilious contempt, read of the ser-
vice which real Christians may render to their coun-
try, by conciliating the favor and calling down the
blessing of Providence. It may appear in their eyes
an instance of the same superstitious weakness as
that which prompts the terrified inhabitant of Sicily
to bring forth the image of his tutelar saint, in order
to stop the destructive ravages of ^tna. We are,
however, sure, if we believe the Scripture, that God
will be disposed to favor the nation to which his ser-
vants belong ; and that, in fact, such as they have
often been the unknown and unhonored instruments
of drawing down on their country the blessings of
safety and prosperity.
It would be an instance in myself of that very false
shame which I have condemned in others, if I were
not boldly to avow my firm persuasion, that to the
decline of religion and morality our national difii-
♦ See some exquisitely beautiful lines in the last book of
Cowper's Task, wherein this sentiment is introduced.
32
374 ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS.
culties must both directly and indirectly be chiefly
ascribed ; and that the only solid hopes for the well-
being of our country depend not so much on her
fleets and armies, not so much on the wisdom of her
rulers or the spirit of her people, as on the persua-
sion that she still contains many, who, in a degene-
rate age, love and obey the Gospel of Christ ; on the
humble trust that the intercession of these may still
be prevalent, that for the sake of these God may still
look upon us with an eye of favor.
Let the prayers of the Christian reader be also of
fered up for the success of this feeble endeavor in the
service of true religion. God can give effect to the
weakest effort ; and the writer will feel himself too
much honored, if by that which he has now been
making, but a single fellow-creature should be
awakened from a false security, or a single Chris-
tian, who deserves the name, be animated to more
extensive usefulness. And if the office in which he
has been engaged were less intimately connected
Avith the duties of his particular station, the candid
and the liberal mind would not be indisposed to par-
don him. Let him be allowed to ofl^er in his "ex-
cuse a desire not only to discharge a duty to his
country, but to acquit himself of what he deems a
solemn and indispensable obligation to his- acquaint-
ance and his friends. Let him alledge the unafl^ected
solicitude which he feels for the welfare of his fel-
ADVICE TO TRUE CHRISTIANS. 375
low-creatures. Let him urge the fond wish he glad-
ly would encourage — that while, in so large a part
of Europe, a false philosophy having been preferred
before the lessons of revelation, infidelity has lifted
up her head without shame, and walked abroad
boldly and in the face of day; while the practical
consequences are such as might be expected, and
licentiousness and vice prevail without restraint —
here at least there might be a sanctuary, a land of
religion and piety, where the blessings of Christia-
nity might be still enjoyed, where the name of the
Redeemer might still be honored ; where mankind
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 should so ordain it, the means
of religious instruction and consolation might be
again extended to surrounding countries, and to the
world at large
THE END.