flood that he brought upon a world of finners at once. The accepter makes himfelf directly a partner with the patron in his finful ufurpation over the church of God, and becomes in fome refpects more guilty than he; as is evident from the Teftimony, p. 51. and 52. Now, if this practice be finful (as certainly it is) the commonnefs of it will not at all loofe us from obedience to God's command, that injoins us to "hate and abhor that which is evil," and as God's witneffes to bear our teflimony against it. Surely the commonnefs of this evil is one ground of the Lord's controverfy with this church and land, for which we ought to faft and mourn. 3. As to the church's conniving at thefe acceptances, I heartily bewail it: Alas! the fear of men hath brought them into this fnare, as is obferved in the Testimony, P. 51. But, whatever be the temptation, the word of God holds it as a fin in any church to bear with those who are evil, or do evil, without duly testifying against the evil, yea, and cenfuring those who are impenitent and ob finate, in an evil courfe. Wherefore I am afraid that our keeping filence fo much at this finful connivance, may come to involve us into the guilt of it. O what need have we to be humbled under a fense of this and other shortcomings, and to cry with the Pfalmift, • Who can underftand his errors? Cleanfe thou me from fecret faults.' May the Lord bring the whole church, and every member of it, to a fenfe of what is fin, and what is duty, in this matter! As for my part, I must declare my opinion, That all thofe who are erroneous, immoral, intruders, fupporters of patronage, and fpoilers of Chriftian congrega tions of the rights which Chrift hath purchased for them, cught to be teftified againft, and dealt with to bring them to repentance; and, if they remain impenitent and obftipate, they ought to be purged out of the church. And, if they ftill be connived at in the church, notwithstanding of impenitence, I cannot but look upon the fociety as: dangerous, infectious and hurtful. Likewife I must own, that the word of God makes it the duty of thofe who would keep their garments clean, to mark them, avoid them, and turn away from them, at leaf as to intimate fellowship and familiarity; for, if we fhould continue familiar with them, we will be ready to lose that abhorrence of their evil courfes which God commands, and also to encourage and harden them in them. Wherefore it feems. needful needful for those who would keep confcience pure while attending judicatories where fuch members are, that they proteft or declare that their prefence with them ought not to be conftructed as giving any fort of countenance or encouragement to their evil courfes, but rather as defigned to teftify against them, ftop and prevent them, and to excite and promote reformation as much as in their power. I make no question but fundry will be offended with this plain dealing, and efpecially thofe who would fain be at eafe in Zion, though in a time of grievous provocations and backflidings, and of the Lord's judgments both inflicted and impending but, if I know my own heart, it is truly confcience not humour, love to the church not hatred, that prompt me to this plainnefs. I fee no way to put an end to the Lord's controverfy with us, but by a fincere turning to God in Chrift, in the way of faith, repentance and reformation. Now, if we would behave as true penitents, and make peace with an offended God, we muft fall in with the revealed will of God in every thing: we must be so far from pleading for fin, bearing with or conniving at it; that we must forfake fin, yea, hate and abhor what is evil, reprove the works of darkness, and have no fellowship with them. This being the exprefs will of God to us, how can we think he will be at peace with us, until we fincerely fall in with it! I acknowledge it is not eafy to keep up the impreffions of fin's evil, and a due abhorrence of it, when fin turns common and fashionable; it is not eafy to keep clean garments, when the examples of fin are always before our eyes, and efpecially when we fee those who are reputed pious drawn into it: but these things fhould weigh but little with us, when we fee it is the exprefs will of God, that they who bear the veffels of the Lord must be clean, muft keep themfelves pure," and not fo much as 6 touch the unclean thing;' and those who would take the kingdom, muft do violence to their carnal cafe and intereft, when they interfere with the will and glory of God. These confiderations have moved me to use this plainnefs, and to join in the following Teftimony against fin; and that not only to keep myself pure, but alfo to preferve others, if poffible, from the prevailing fins and evils of the day, which are more infectious and dangerous than any plague whatfomever and this I think is the greatest act of charity that can be done to the precious fouls of men. 6. The The common Objection against emitting this or the like Teftimony is, That it may have bad confequences. make new divifions and distinctions in the church, give advantage to her adverfaries,' &c. Anf. 1. The fubfcribers of this Teftimony teftify againft the ill grounded divifions and unscriptural separations among Prefbyterians which now prevail; and they defign not to alter their respects or conduct towards other godly minifters, who may not be clear about every thing contained in this Teftimony, seeing they never intended it as the badge of a party, or a term of communion either minifterial or Chriftian, but only to be an exoneration to confcience, a witness against corruption, and a prompter to reformation. 2. This argument, taken from the fear of divifion, firikes equally against all teftimonies whatfoever, against thofe emitted by our antient worthies in times of defection, against the representation of the 42 minifters in the year 1732, and againft all diffents, and proteftations in judicatories for it may be pretended, that these testimonies or public appearances tend alfo to make divifions in the church: nay, the fame argument may be made use of against our giving a testimony against Prelacy, or the English fervice, or any grofs error, were they coming into the church. : 3. We must not neglect prefent duty for fear of bad confequences which poffibly may never happen; especially when we evidently fee that the neglect will have far worse confequences. In my view, by our omitting to give a teftimony against error and corruption, when it is called for, and all to prevent the evil of divifion which is uncertain; we bring on evils far greater and more certain, viz. the lofs of truth and purity, and the finful neglect of duty,' both to God, and the generations prefent and to come. We fee that great man, Luther, reckoned the lofs of any of God's truths to be the greatest of evils; Ruat coelum (faid he) potius quam una mica veritatis pereat. And holy David fays, Pfal. cxix. 72, 'The law of thy mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and filver.' 4. We ought to obferve the order laid down in that Divine precept, Ezek. viii. 19. Love the truth and ce; where the Spirit of God gives truth to the precedence of peace. Peace indeed is a thing very lovely in itself, but truth is far more amiable and precious, and must never never be facrificed to preferve peace. Union or peace is no real bleffing to a church, if the be in a state of lukewarmnefs, or fliding back into corruption or error. Peace, in fuch a state, is rather a judgment than a mercy. 5. A moft lamentable divifion and fchifm broke in amongst us a few years ago, when no teftimony was in the field. Nay, in all probability, if a free and faithful testimony had been effayed by a great body of minifters fometime before it happened, inftead of making a fchifm, it had prevented one, and might alfo have ftopt judicatories from going fuch lengths as they have done. 6. As to adverfaries getting advantage by this Teftimony; the fubfcribers, as they had no fuch view, so they expect no fuch event, but rather the contrary, viz. that they will lofe by it. But, whatever happen, if truth and holinefs get any advantage by it, as is honeftly defigned; that gain will countervail any other damage. But it is in vain to multiply answers to fome, who will by no arguments be reconciled to a fair and honeft teftimony to truth, when the stream of oppofition is strong against it. I now fee, by the difcouragements I have met with in this attempt, that those who will be faithful to the truth, must be valiant for it also, and not daunted by the fear or faces, power or numbers of thofe who oppose it, or who shift appearing for it. It is one of the characters of God's fervants, which he takes pleasure in, to be valiant for the truth upon the earth, especially when it is run down, Jer. ix. 3. And indeed it is fometimes run down with such violence, that there is no lifting up a testimony for it, without fomething of this christian valour. It is truely afflicting to me, to find that there are so many of my brethren whom I love and efteem, who privately own they are of the fame mind with the following Teftimony, concerning the defections and corruptions of the times, and yet have not the refolution to declare this under their hand to the world. I would be very loth to say they are of those whom the Scripture calls the FEARFUL, because of the fociety 1 fee them claffed with, Rev. xxi. 8. But I have freedom to fav, that the prefent dangerous state of this church, of the truths of God, and true Chrif tianity, in this day of backfliding, is fuch, as requires more courage and refolution for preferving true religion, and reviving a work of reformation, than what the most part of good men appear at this time to be poffeffed of. May U u 2 the the Lord himself spirit and qualify men for his own work! As I join with the Teftimony in other things, fo efpecially in the humble Pleadings with our Mother, with which it concludes; intreating that fhe would call all ranks to lay to heart the fins abounding, and the judgments im pending, and to fet about extraordinary fafting, humiliation, prayer, repentance, and reformation. The present dangerous fituation these nations are in from the combination of cruel Popish adverfaries, who have destroyed other Proteftant churches, and multitudes of their fellow creatures, doth loudly call upon us to thefe duties. Very lately we were like to have been furprised with a formidable invafion from France, when unprovided for it; but the Lord of hofts, in his aftonishing mercy, pitied our naked, defenceless condition, ftept in himself, and fought for us; he caused his winds and ftormy feas to oppofe the enemy, and dash many of them in pieces, and so brake the attempt for that time: Surely our deliverance about the end of February last 1744, by God's own immediate hand, together with others of the fame kind, fhould not be forgot by us. But though he hath hereby allowed us a further breathing time, and fpace to repent, our danger is not over for now France as well as Spain have declared war against us. Now the kings of the earth do fet themfelves, and the princes take counfel together, against the Lord,' and these Proteftant nations. Now there is a more formidable conjunction of Popish powers against us than ever we faw before. Now France, Spain, Rome, Naples, Sicily, &c. thefe cruel and bloody nations, feem all to be combined against our Proteftant king, and his royal family (whom God long preferve) feeking and plotting how to deftroy them, together with our religion, laws, and liberties; and, instead thereof, to fet up among us a Popish Pretender, an arbitrary government, and a blafphemous, idolatrous, and bloody religion. And may not the numerous hofts of thefe nations, and the cruelty of a Popish party, wherever they get the upper hand of Proteftants, as manifefted in the dreadful burnings in queen Mary's reign,, the inquifition in Spain and Italy, the maf facres in Ireland, in Paris, and other towns of France; I fay, may not thefe alarm us, and fufficiently convince us of our danger, if the Lord permit them, for our fins, to plot and effectuate a new invafion upon us? Thefe days wherein |