so very inconsistent with all the common excitements to courage in resisting them. And had they found themselves unable to attain such exalted virtue, to which none almost before them had even made pretensions, they would have concealed or dropt his precept, or explained it away. But on the contrary, they professed it to its full extent. Though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, that is, universal love to all men, it profiteth me nothing*. And they practised it, as they professed it. Being reviled, we bless: being persecuted, we suffer it: being defamed, we intreat +. They expressed all the kindness, they made all the excuses, for their persecutors, which they possibly could. Thus the same St. Paul: I have great heaviness, and continual sorrow in my heart, for my brethren who are Israelites. My heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record, that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge§. Nor was this their manner of speaking, only when at ease, or when they could hope to obtain favour by it: but, as the case of St. Stephen shews, their sentiments were the same, under the certainty, under the actual pains, of death itself, even when suddenly and tumultuously inflicted on them. For he prayed at once to the Lord Jesus, with his last breath, to receive his spirit, and to forgive them that stoned him. Such was the blessed temper of the first witnesses to the Christian faith: and their successors inherited a noble degree of it. They could not indeed give an equally strong testimony to the original facts, on which it was built; but they attested many subsequent ones of great importance. And not only their embracing it, as they did, contrary to all the prejudices of common opinion, and all the dictates of every wrong inclination, makes it necessary to presume, that they must have had powerful evidence for it: but their perseverance in professing it, amidst every thing terrible in life or death, fully proves them to have been thoroughly sincere, and singularly magnanimous. Indeed it proves further, that more than ordinary strength was vouchsafed to them from above. For though natural constancy and bravery have in some instances performed wonders, yet the performers have been few in proportion: whereas the primitive Christians in general of both sexes, all ages, all ranks, underwent the most grievous inflictions with the calmest patience. Observe too: they could have little hope of distinguishing themselves in the opinion of their fellow-Christians by suffering. For, though a few of the principal martyrs were highly honoured, yet the rest were too numerous, either to be remembered after their death, or have notice taken of them at the time of it. Nor did their intrepidity arise from being trained up to the resolution of martyrdom. For this would have often failed: and besides, new converts, just made, as boldly suffered death, as any others; nay, sometimes persecutors themselves became converts on the spot, and died with those whom they had brought to execution. Still it was not merely a sudden vehemence, which they catched one of another. For not only particular persons had often the leisure of long imprisonments to cool in: but the whole Church had many and considerable intervals of peace. Yet, whenever persecution began again, it found the generality of Christians in the same spirit, which they shewed before: respectful in the highest degree to civil authority; but unmoveable to an equal degree from their duty to God: where they were ever so few, not to be forced or persuaded into the slightest. acts of idolatry; where they were ever so many, not to be provoked into a single attempt of rebellion; or into making or joining any party or faction for their own security; though the frequent changes in the state gave them inviting opportunities for it. In the comfortless exercise (for so it must appear to common spectators,) of this cool passive courage, infinitely more difficult than the active and enterprising sort, they patiently persevered for three hundred years. The wonderfulness of the behaviour moved men to inquire into the grounds of it: they found them good; they came over; and the empire was become in effect Christian, before the emperors ceased to persecute. The unjustifiable veneration addressed by the church of Rome to saints and martyrs hath deterred almost all the reformed Churches, except our own, from paying them even due honours. And now amongst ourselves, prejudice against religion in some, and indifference to it in others, hath made these excellent persons be regarded commonly, either with a malignant or a negligent eye. But if they, who have acted or suffered gallantly, for the liberties or other interests of a single nation, have been reverenced by distant ages, and all their faults hid under that one virtue; how much higher esteem do such patriots deserve, as have borne testimony with their blood against the tyranny of idolatry and immoral superstition; who have lived in misery and died in torment, to assert the faith of one wise and good Maker and Ruler of all, of pardon for sin, and assistance in virtue, derived to us by methods of in finite, though mysterious goodness; who have given to mankind, both by their doctrine and example, the justest rules of worthy and prudent conduct in this life; and spread through the world an assurance, founded on God's express promise, (which alone could support it,) of endless felicity in a life to come! Should our accounts of them be ever so imperfect, or meanly written: should any of them appear no otherwise great, than as they were admirably good men should their zeal have sometimes transported them beyond discretion; (though such transports were few, and always condemned by the body of Christians :) or should other and even considerable frailties be found mixed with the excellencies of some of them yet, so long as we know, that they were and did what hath now been mentioned; we have surely cause to hold them for ever in most honourable estimation, and respect the Gospel of Christ much the more highly on account of such witnesses to its truth and efficacy. But admiring them is nothing, unless we also imitate them, in their solicitude for its advancement, in their steady adherence to God and their duty, in their contempt of worldly advantages and pleasures, losses and punishments; in their meekness under injuries, in their resignation under pains and afflictions, in their love to their fellow-Christians and fellowcreatures, in their lively faith of a future recompence We are not called, as they were, to take joyfully the spoiling of our goods*, to suffer trouble even unto bonds, as evil doers †, to undergo shame and torture, and to die for the name of the Lord Jesus. No temptation hath taken us, but such as is common to man§. Ordinarily speaking, we have nothing to perform, but what conduces on the whole to every one's present benefit and we have nothing to bear on account of our religion, but perhaps a little trifling ridicule from the vain and the vicious. Even such persecution indeed is very wicked in them; but needs not in the least be formidable to us. And if for that alone, we are ashamed to confess our Saviour before men, well may we expect that he should deny us before his Father which is in Heaven *. Let us therefore hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering † never do any thing inconsistent with it for temporal prospects or fears: never pay court to the irreligious, by mean compliances with their talk or behaviour, in hopes of better quarter from them; for it will be much harder to stop afterwards, than to maintain our present ground: yet never be moved either to passion against them, or uncharitableness towards them; but freely own their good qualities, while we carefully preserve an abhorrence of their bad ones; pity their unhappiness, while we condemn their sins; and earnestly pray, that they may repent and be forgiven. For thus shall we adorn the doctrines of God our Saviour in all things; and be followers of them, who through faith and patience inherit the promises §. Matth. x. 32, 33. + Heb. x. 23. Heb. vi. 12. |