AN

ESSAY ON INSPIRATION:

BEING

AN ANSWER TO THE QUESTION,

"HOW FAR MAY FREACHING BE CONSIDERED AS A HUMAN ART, AND HOW FAR, THE EFFECT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT OPERATING ON THE MIND OF THE PREACHER? OR WHERE, IN PREACHING, MAY THE WORK OF MAN BE SAID TO END, AND THAT OF THE SPIRIT TO COMMENCE?"

NOR did the Sire Omnipotent forget
His tender bloom to cherish; nor withheld
Celestial footsteps from his green abode.
Oft from the radiant honours of his throne,
He sent whom most He loved, the sovereign fair,
The goddess from whose inspiration flows
The toil of patriots, the delight of friends;
Without whose work Divine, in heaven or earth,
Nought lovely, nought propitious, comes to pass,
Nor hope, nor praise, nor honour. Her the Sire
Gave it in charge to rear the blooming mind,
The folded powers to open, to direct

The growth luxuriant of his young desires,
To teach him what was good."

AKENSIDE.

AN ESSAY,

&c.

THE question presupposes, what need not now be proved at large, that the direct inspiration of the Spirit is, in some respects, necessary to every Christian preacher, not only for assisting him in the actual exercise of his great duty, but for the government of his private studies. This, in any case, would require no tedious and elaborate proof: The nature and importance of the work, and the great unfitness of the ablest instruments considered in themselves, seem sufficient to demonstrate the necessity of such an influence. Indeed, so natural is this opinion, that the very Heathens would never venture to officiate in religious matters without a supposed inspiration from heaven, or a previous initiation by those whom they thought entrusted by the Deity for that purpose. Philosophers have, therefore, been deficient in asserting, that all our ideas, and consequently all the impressions thence arising, are derived by means of sensation and reflection only. They seem to have forgotten, that, from the nature of a Divine influence, and the manner of its application to the human mind, it must be a perfectly distinct and most important source of our ideas. This, however, will be the decided opinion of the true Christian philosopher, and especially of the Christian minister who receives the fulfilment of that Divine promise, “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.”

Dr. Doddridge appears to have stated the different kinds of inspiration with great exactness. It will open the way to some important conclusions on the question before us, briefly to state the substance of his scheme :

"That is called in general' an inspiration of superintendency' in which God does so influence and direct the mind of any person, as to keep him more secure from error, in some various and complex discourse, than he would have been merely by the use of his natural faculties. Plenary superintendent inspira

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tion is such a degree of inspiration as excludes any mixture of error at all from the performance so superintended.

"An inspiration of elevation' is said to take place where the faculties act in a regular and, as it seems, a common manner, yet are raised to an extraordinary degree; so that the composure shall, upon the whole, have more of the true sublime, or pathetic, than natural genius could have given. There may be such an inspiration as this where there is none of superintendency, and much less any that is plenary.

"Inspiration of suggestion' takes place when the use of the faculties is superseded, and God does, as it were, speak directly to the mind, making such discoveries to it as it could not otherwise have obtained, and dictating the very words in which such discoveries are to be communicated, if they are meant as a message to others. There may be a plenary superintendency where there is neither the inspiration of elevation, nor suggestion."

These views the doctor, in a very judicious manner, applies to the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures; but, it is evident, his principles may be usefully applied to other instances of inspiration, particularly that of faithful ministers, in the discharge of their ministry. Did opportunity permit us to investigate this subject fully, it would probably appear, that all these kinds of inspiration, the plenary excepted, are bestowed in different combinations and degrees, on ministers of all descriptions, good and bad, able and inadequate, orthodox and heretic. Let us not be surprised at this remark. Some of the observations which follow will, in a certain degree, show the justice of it.

The different kinds of inspiration which are requisite for the ministry may be applied to the mind of the preacher in two distinct senses: 1. In that general mode of government by which the Almighty checks, or facilitates, or otherwise qualifies the common operations of every human soul: And, 2. In a special and peculiar manner, God the Holy Ghost at once approving of the minister, as a true and qualified servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, and graciously assisting him in every good word and work connected with his ministry. This capital distinction must be carefully observed; it will essentially assist us through the whole of this discussion, and disentangle many difficulties otherwise inextricable. A separate illustration of the senses above-mentioned will enable us more completely to dis

cover their importance, and, consequently, to apply them with

the greater precision.

It

First, then, as to a Divine operation in the general sense. is readily acknowledged, that such an universal influence continues to control mankind, for the preservation and order of society, preventing innumerable crimes and miseries, and promoting an infinite variety of general good. In this sense the hearts of all men are in His hands, and he turneth them as the rivers of waters. In this sense, also, he often works imperceptibly, and in a manner utterly inexplicable; the mind not consciously concurring with an over-ruling Influence, in advancing the Divine purpose, though it co-operate to its accomplishment in the most effectual way. This kind of Divine influence may extend to the communication of what are termed in Scripture "the gifts of the Spirit." St. Paul has observed, "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues." These, indeed, were gifts extraordinary, and, as such, peculiar to the primitive times; but no one doubts of their being perfectly distinct from the Spirit itself, and from the fruits or graces of that Spirit, which are the effects of his constant in-dwelling in the soul; and no one doubts of their having been possessed by some who were total strangers to the life of God in the soul. In this view they may be considered as analogous to the various natural endowments of ministers in every age,-endowments which God appoints as answering to the various dispositions and necessities of the people. With such endowments, in the same view, may be classed the over-ruling Power above-mentioned, by which the mind is influenced in the use of its attainments. From this sense of the operations of the Holy Spirit, it is manifest, that the words of satan himself, recorded in different parts of Scripture, may have been occasioned and directed by God for our instruction. And as

ministerial gifts are principally designed for public use, it is rational to presume, that God, the first great Cause, will operate on these second causes, as far as may be consistent with his perfections and counsels, so as to direct them, in some degree, to