love." Then turning to his mother, he said, "What the blood of bulls and of goats could not do, the blood of Christ has done; it has made reconciliation with God. O believe it, and receive him; tell my father to receive him." Then, addressing himself to another person, he said, "What a blessed thing is it to be employed in the Lord's work-Blessed indeed are they who live to him-O, go on, go on, rejoice in Christ; bless his name; rejoice evermore."

After speaking for more than an hour in this strain, he lay quiet, and tried to sleep: but his heart was so full of the love of Christ, that he could not continue long silent: he soon began again to speak to the praise of his glorious grace, extolling the Lord Jesus for what he had done for his soul, and for the mercy now freely held out to sinners in the gospel. He continued in this strain of praise and thanksgiving, until near ten o'clock at night-often exhorting those who were present, and also those absent friends with whom he had been intimately connected, as though they had been present, according to their different situations; some to come to Christ, and believe on him for salvation; others, who had already believed, to cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart; to follow him fully, and not be ashamed of his cause. He in a very particular and affectionate manner, addressed himself to some of the officers of the regiment to which he had belonged, exhorting them to be good soldiers of Jesus Christ, not to be ashamed of his gospel, but to go on in the good ways of the Lord, and to be faithful unto death. He seemed to mourn over one of them, who had once made a profession of religion, but was gone back into the world: he besought him to return to Christ, who was yet willing to receive him, and would heal his backslidings: he assured him that Christ waited to be gracious, and he entreated him to be reconciled unto God.

After having, in very strong terms, expressed his assurance of eternal glory, he was suddenly tempted to doubt that he might be under a delusion. He cried

out in an agony, "O, what if I should yet be deceived -O, my past life stares me in the face-I am afraidI am afraid all is wrong-I never felt any thing like this what will become of me, if I should be deceived at last?" He wept bitterly, and seemed in great fear and horror of mind. A person who was present, said, Surely you have long ago renounced all dependence upon your own righteousness; you have fled for refuge to the hope set before you in the gospel; you have believed on Jesus as your righteousness and strengthwhy then should you be afraid? Is he not able to save to the uttermost, all that come unto God by him?Have you not again and again committed your soul unto him for salvation? And he is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. "Yes, yes (he cried out) he is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. O, why did I doubt his love? How dreadful is the sin of unbelief! I never felt any thing like this before; it was a fiery dart, but the Lord hath delivered me from it." Upon this he was reminded of having said some months ago, that he had no experience of Satan's fiery darts, and that he sometimes felt uneasiness at not having had this evidence of being a child of God. He answered, "It is true, but now I know what they are. It is a dreadful thing to listen to the suggestions of the enemy, and to doubt of Christ's love. O pardon me, Lord! Indeed it was a fit of jealousy." After this conflict was over, he seemed more full of faith and love than

He could not find words to express the joy and triumph of his soul. Jesus was his continual theme. Often did he call upon all to believe his goodness, his compassion, his willingness to save; saying, "Now he stands crying out to all, Behold me, behold me; and will ye not look unto him, all ye ends of the earth, and be saved? O, what has he not done for me, a poor wretched sinner-I went into all sin-yet he had mercy upon mea vile worm-O, I cannot express what he has done for my soul! Forgive me, Lord, for doubt

ing one moment of thy love! O the sin of doubting! O the compassion of Jesus!"

Some hours after this, he was again assaulted by the enemy, and cried out" I am undone, undone where am I going-the Lord has withdrawn himself." But, upon being reminded what had happened before, and that the Lord who had delivered once, would again deliver, for he was mighty to save. He gave a sudden spring up in bed, and getting hold of the person who spoke, said, "Yes, yes, my dear friend, he has saved me, and he will also save you."

Soon after this he took leave of those about him, saying, "Farewell, I shall meet with you in glory-I shall speak no more to you here." But some time after, seeing one in tears, he held out his hand, and said, "Submit, submit, it is the Lord's doing. We shall meet again, and live together with him in glory."— He then turned up his eyes, and moved his lips as if in prayer, but was unable to speak aloud; his countenance expressed a sweet serenity, and holy fervor of souluntil he was seized with a pang of death, which affecting his looks, a person asked him if all was well with his soul? He answered, “Yes, yes."-After another short struggle, the same question was repeated, to which he replied with difficulty, yet so as to be understood, All is well-well-well-breathing his last, with these words upon his lips, and this so gently, that one may with propriety say, he fell asleep in Jesus, at nine o'clock the 12th of June, 1778.-Aged 28.

An Inquiry into the scripture meaning of Charity. By the Rev. JOHN WITHERSPOON, D. D. L.L. D.

[Continued from Page 24, and concluded.]

(1) W only different, but opposite opinions, and WITHIN the

ITHIN the Christian church, there are not

mutually destructive of each other. Those who hold VOL. II. No. 2.

B

them, on each side, not only say, but think, that their adversaries are guilty of impiety and blasphemy. Let us take, for instance, the Calvinists and Socinians. Read the writings of the first, and you will see, that they consider their adversaries as taking away the very foundation of the gospel, denying the only Lord God that bought them, and as guilty of gross idolatry, in giving divine worship to one whom they believe to be a creature. Again, if you read the writings of the last, you will find them charging their adversarics with blasphemy of the most horrible nature, and not only making a god different from the true God, but such a one as is more cruel and vindictive than the very devils.— Now, I desire to know how the one of these sorts of persons can have a favorable opinion of the state and sentiments of the opposite, without renouncing their own? I do freely acknowledge, as I have formerly done, that I never did esteem the Socinians to be Christians; and yet find nothing more easy, or indeed more necessary, than to have charity for them, in what I take to be the scripture sense of that word. But in the modern sense it appears to me utterly impossible. For the very same reason, if any who had embraced these principles should pretend, that he had such charity for me, as to esteem and receive me as a faithful minister of Christ, I would consider it as a profession altogether hypocritical, or that he did not believe a word of his own system. The truth is, I cannot help thinking, from the manner of conducting theological controversies, that it is very common for many to plead for that charity to themselves which they never give to their adversaries; while the power of prejudice hinders them from observing the inconsistency between their reasoning and practice.*

* I could give many instances of this surprising inadvertency in writers of the very first character: I shall only mention one, of the renowned earl of Shaftesbury. His darling theme is, to shew, that every thing whatever is for the general good; that even the worst men are guided at bottom by a benevolent principle; yet even while

(2) Those who deny and oppose the gospel altogether, have just the same title to our charity, and we are obliged to believe, that they are honest and impartial inquirers, and therefore accepted of God. Now, if there be any thing in the world clear from scripture, it is, that we are not to approve or receive such persons; that they are not the objects of forbearance; and, by consequence, not of that charity that consist in forbearance on the contrary, the zeal and activity of the apostles was wholly employed in bringing unbelievers to the knowledge and confession of the truth; for which they deserve very little praise, if their state was safe, and their character unexceptionable before. And as to persons among us denying the gospel, after examination, I do not see how any person can think them impartial in rejecting it, without a very poor opinion of the evidence for receiving it.

(3) Even in point of morals, there have been, and are at this time, opinions so very gross, that few will look upon the state of those who hold them as safe; and yet if forbearance is charity, and the charity is unlimited, they must also be taken in. There have been se veral, who certainly were sincerely of opinion, that fornication, and other uncleanness, was lawful. So great a man as David Hume, Esq. has adopted a sentence from a French writer : " Female infidelity, when it is known, is a small matter; and when it is not known, it is nothing."-The very same writer seems also either to defend, or greatly to alleviate, unnatural lust. And many highwaymen have actually reasoned themselves into an opinion of the lawfulness of robbery, by alledging, that God never made the world with this view, that some should have too much and others should starve; and therefore they had a right to a share, and

expatiating on the goodness of the whole system of beings, he takes every opportunity of falling upon the clergy, whom he allows to be purely evil, without containing any good, or tendency to promote it: A defect in his own scheme, to which he doth not seem to have attended.