to carnal believers, even as to babes in Christ. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not earnal, and walk as the men of the world? Examine yourselves therefore whether ye be in the faith: prove your own selves." Is Christ in you? Have ye the Spirit of power, or have ye obliged him to withdraw? And are ye shorn of your strength, as Samson was, when the Spirit of the Lord was departed from him? Alas! Who can say how many believers are in this deplorable case without suspecting it? The world knows that they are fallen, but they know it not themselves. They make sport for the Philistines by their idle contentions, and they dream that they are the champions of truth. O may they speedily "awake to righteousness," and see their need of " righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost!" And may "power from on high" rest again upon them! So shall they break the pillars of the temple of discord, rebuild the temple of peace, and be "continually in it, praising and blessing God," instead of accusing and provoking their brethren.

SECTION VIII.

Farther motives to a speedy reconciliation—An exhortation to it. I. "ABOVE all things," says St. Peter, "have fervent charity among yourselves." "Little children," says St. John, "love one another." Sweet precepts! but how far are we from regarding them, while we give to bitter zeal, or to indifference, the place allotted to the communion of saints, and to burning love! Had these apostolic injunctions a due effect upon us, how would the fervent charity which victorious faith kindles, set fire to the chaff of our idle contentions, and make us ashamed of having so departed from the Gospel as to give the world to understand (if men may judge of our doctrine by our conduct,) that the Scriptures exhort us to fall out one with another, and to mind charity less than every thing; whereas it enjoins us to mind it "above all things," above all honour, pleasure, and profit,-yea, above all knowledge, orthodoxy, and faith.

II. We are commanded to "glorify God with one heart and one mouth." Our lips should be instruments of praise, ever tuned to celebrate the Prince of Peace,-ever ready to invite all around us to the Gospel feast; the feast of Divine and brotherly love. To neglect this labour of love is bad: but how much worse is it to be as 66 sounding brass," as a "tinkling cymbal," as an infernal kettle drum, used by the accuser of the brethren, to call professors from the good fight of faith, to the detestable fight of needless or abusive controversy, and perhaps to the bloody work of persecution? Who can describe the injury done to religion by the champions of bigotry? An ingenious writer being one day desired to draw in proper colours the figure of uncharitableness, the monster which has so narrowed, disgraced, and murdered Christianity; "I will attempt it," said he "if you will furnish me with a sheet of large paper, and that of the fairest kind, to represent the Christian Church in this world. First, I will pare it round, and reduce it to a very small compass: then with much ink will I stain the whiteness of it, and

deform it with many a blot. At the next sitting I will stab it through rudely with an iron pen: and when I put the last hand to complete the likeness, it shall be besmeared with blood." And shall we lend our common enemy iron pens, or tongues sharpened like the murderer's swords, that he may continue to wound the members of Christ, and deform the Christian Church? God forbid! Let as many of us as have turned our pens and tongues into instruments of idle contention, apply them henceforth to the defence of peace and brotherly love.

III. If we refuse to do it, we practically renounce our baptism: for in that solemn ordinance we profess to take God for our common Father, Christ for our common Saviour, and the Spirit for our common Sanctifier. When we receive the Lord's Supper in faith, we solemnly bind this baptismal engagement upon ourselves, and tie faster the knot of brotherly love, by which we are joined to "all those who in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours." Now can any thing be more antichristian and diabolical, than for persons, who constantly communicate, to live in discord, and perhaps to insult one another in a manner contrary to the first rules of heathen civility? O ye, who surround our altars, and there "humbly beseech almighty God continually to inspire the universal Church with the spirit of unity and concord, that all who confess his holy name may live in unity and godly love;" can any thing equal your sacrilegious guilt, if, after such a solemn prayer, you not only refuse to live "in unity and godly love," with your pious Calvinian and Arminian brethren, but also breathe the spirit of discord, and live in variance and ungodly contentions with them, merely because they do not pronounce "Shibboleth" with all the em phasis which our party puts upon some favourite words and phrases? If we continue to offer so excellent a prayer, and to indulge so detestable a temper, are we not fit persons to fight under the banner of Judas? Do we not with a kiss betray the Son of man in his members? Do we not go to the Lord's table to say, " Hail, Master!" and to deliver him for less than thirty pieces of silver, for the poor satisfaction of pleasing the bigots of a party, or for the mischievous pleasure of breaking the balance of the Gospel axioms, and rending the doctrines of grace from those of justice?

IV. "God is love." Let us be like "our Father who is in heaven." Satan is uncharitableness and variance: detest we his likeness, and let not the faithful and true Witness be obliged to say to us one day, "Ye are of your father the devil, whose works ye do," when you keep up divisions. "The devil," says Archbishop Leighton, "being an apostate spirit, revolted and separated from God, doth naturally project and work division." This was his first exploit, and is still his grand design and business in the world. He first divided our first parents from God, and the next we read of in their first child, was enmity against his brother. The tempter wounded truth, in order to destroy love, and therefore he is justly called by our Saviour "a liar, and a murderer from the beginning." He murdered our first parents by lying, and made them mur. derers by drawing them into his uncharitableness. God forbid that we should any longer do the work of the father of lies and murders! Heaven prevent our committing again two so great evils as those of wounding truth and preventing love! of wounding truth by attacking the

Scripture doctrines of free grace and free agency! and of preventing love, by hindering the union of two such large bodies of professors, as the Calvinists and the Arminians! Nor let any lover of peace say, "I will not hinder the reconciliation you speak of;" for it is our bounden duty to farther it by a speedy, constant exertion of all our interest with God, and influence with men otherwise we shall be found "unprofitable, slothful" servants, and shall be judged according to this declaration of our Lord, "He that gathereth not with me scattereth." For he who, in so noble a cause as that of truth and love, is "neither cold nor hot," pulls down upon his own head the curse denounced against the lukewarm Laodiceans.

V. The sin of the want of union with our pious Calvinian or Arminian brethren, is attended with peculiar aggravations. We are not only fellow creatures, but fellow subjects, fellow Christians, fellow Protestants, and fellow sufferers (in reputation at least) for maintaining the capital doctrines of salvation by faith in Christ, and of regeneration by the Spirit of God. How absurd is it for persons who thus share in the reproach, patience, and kingdom of Christ, to imbitter each other's comforts, and add to the load of contempt, which the men of the world cast upon them! Let Pagans, Mohammedans, Jews, Papists, and Deists, do this work. We may reasonably expect it from them. But for such Calvinists and Arminians as the world lumps together under the name of Methodists on account of their peculiar profession of godliness, for such" companions in tribulation," I say, to "bite and devour" each other, is highly unreasonable, and peculiarly scandalous.

VI. The great apostle of modern infidels, Mr. Voltaire, has, it is supposed, caused myriads of men to be ashamed of their baptism, and to renounce the profession of Christianity. His profane witticisms have slain their thousands; but the too cogent argument, which he draws from our divisions, has destroyed its myriads. With what exultation does he sing,—

Des Chretiens divises les infames querelles

Ont, au nom du Seigneur, apporte plus de maux, fe.

"The shameful quarrels of divided Christians have done more mischief under religious pretences, made more bad blood, and shed more human blood, than all the political contentions which have laid waste France and Germany under pretence of maintaining the balance of Europe." And shall we still make good his argument by our ridiculous quarrels ? Shall we help him to make the world believe that the Gospel is an apple of discord thrown among men, to make them dispute with an acrimony and an obstinacy which have few precedents among men of the most corrupt and detestable religions in the world? Shall we continue to point the dagger with which that keen author stabs Christianity? Shall we furnish him with new nails to crucify Christ afresh in the sight of all Europe or shall we continue to clinch those with which he has already done the direful deed? How will he triumph if he hears that the men who distinguish themselves by their zeal for the Gospel in England, maintain an unabated contest about the doctrines of grace and justice—a contest as absurd as that in which the whigs and tories would be involved, if they perpetually debated whether the house of lords or

that of commons makes up the British parliament; and whether England or Scotland forms the island of Great Britain! And with what self applause will he apply to us what the apostle says of wicked heathens and apostate Christians: "Because when they knew God, they glorified him not as God"-the sovereign, righteous God of love and justice-"they became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves wise, they became fools: being filled with envy, debate, malignity, whisperers, backbiters, despiteful, without understanding, without brotherly affection, implacable; having a form of godly orthodoxy, but denying the power of" peaceable charity!

VII. Instead of continuing to give avowed infidels such room to laugh at us and our religion, would it not become us to stop, by a speedy recon. ciliation, the offence given by our absurd debates? Should we feel less concern for the honour of Christianity, than Sir Robert Walpole did for the honour of the crown? It is reported that when he stood at the helm of the British empire, he was abused in parliament by some members of the privy council. Soon after, meeting with them in the king's cabinet, he proceeded to the despatch of business, with his usual freedom, and with a remarkable degree of courtesy toward his enemies. And being asked how he could do so, he replied, "The king's business requires union. Why should my master's affairs suffer loss by the private quar. rels of his servants?" May the time come, when the ministers of the King of peace shall have as much regard for his interest, as that minister showed for the interest of his royal master! Do not circumstances in Church and in state loudly call upon us to unite, in order to make head against the enemy of Christ and our souls? An enemy terrible as the banded powers of earth and hell, headed by the prince of the air, whose name is " Abaddon, Apollyon, Destroyer?"

VIII. Ye are no strangers to the craft and rage of that powerful adversary, O ye pious Calvinists and godly Arminians! For "ye wrestle not with flesh and blood only, but with the principalities and powers" of the kingdom of darkness! Cease then, cease to spend in wrestling one against another, the precious talents of time, strength, and wisdom, with which the Lord has entrusted you, to resist your infernal antagonist. Let it not be said that Herod, a Jew, and Pilate, a heathen, became friends, and united to pursue "the Lamb of God" to death; and that you, fellow Protestants, you, British believers, will not agree to “resist the devil, who goes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

You are astonished when you hear that some obstinate lawyers are so versed in chicanery as to protract for years law suits which might be ended in a few days. Your controversy has already lasted for ages; and the preceding pages show that it might be ended in a few hours: should you then still refuse reasonable terms of accommodation, think, O think of the astonishment of those who will see you protract the needless contention, and entail the curse of discord upon the next generation.

Our Lord bids us "agree quickly with our adversaries ;" and will ye for ever dispute with your friends? Joseph said to his brethren, "See that ye fall not out by the way;" and so far as we know, his direction was faithfully observed. Christ says to us, Wear my badge: “By this

shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye love one another." And will ye still fall out in the way to heaven, and exchange the Christian badge of charity, for the Satanic badge of contention ?

Passionate Esau had vowed that he would never be reconciled to his brother. Nevertheless, he relented; and as soon as Jacob was in sight, "he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him and they wept," Gen. xxxiii, 4. And shall it be said that Esau, the hairy man, the fierce hunter, the savage who had resolved to imbrue his hands in his own brother's blood, the implacable wretch, whom so many people consider as an absolute reprobate-shall it be said that Esau was sooner softened than you? He was reconciled to his brother who had deprived him of Isaac's blessing by a lie; and they lived in peace ever after. And will ye never be reconciled one to another, and live peaceably with your Calvinian or Arminian brethren, who, far from having deprived you of any blessing, want you to share the blessing of holding with them the doctrines of grace, or those of justice?

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The Prince of life "died, that he might gather together in one the children of God, who are scattered abroad," John xi, 52. And will ye defeat this important end of his death? He "would gather you as a hen gathers her brood under her wings;" and will ye pursue one another as hawks pursue their prey? Or keep at a distance from each other, lambs do from serpents? Cannot Christ's blood, "by which you are brought nigh to God," bring you nigh to cach other? Does it not "speak better things than the blood of Abel?" kinder things than your mutual complaints? Does it not whisper peace, mercy, gentleness, and joy? "In Christ Jesus neither" rigid Calvinism "availeth any thing, nor" rigid Arminianism, "but faith which worketh by love :" draw near with faith to the Christian altar, which streams with that peace-speaking blood. Behold the bleeding Lamb of God, and become gentle, merciful, and loving! See the antitype of the brazen serpent! He hangs on high and says, "When I am lifted up, I will draw all men unto me:" and in me they shall centre as the solar beams centre in the sun. And will ye reply, "We will not be obedient to thy drawings: we will not be concentrated in thee with our Calvinian or Arminian brethren! Thy Father may sacrifice thee to slay the enmity, and so make peace:' and thou mayest lay down thy life to make reconciliation; but reconciled to each other we will not be; for the god of discord draws us asunder, and his infernal drawings we will obey." If you shudder at the thought of speaking such words, why should you so behave, that whoever sees you, may see they are the language of your conduct,-a language which is far more emphatical than that of your lips?

Say then no longer, "Have us excused;" but "come to the banqueting house," the temple of peace where "the Lord's banner over you will be love," and his mercy "will comfort you on every side." "If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies; fulfil ye the joy" of all who wish Sion's prosperity: "be like minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind, submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. He is my record how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ, in whom there is neither Greek nor Jew, neither bond nor free," neither Calvinist nor Arminian, “but