preventing, or creating work in the foul. This goes down glib, and gratefully.

And then for fleshly liberty, How do those that are fond of it rejoice in that doctrine, or opinion, which looses nature from the yoke of restraint? How does the poor deluded Papist hug himself, to think he hath liberty, by his religion, to let loose the reins of his luft to all fenfualities, and quit himself from all that guilt, by auricular confeffion to the priest once a year? How doth the Familift fmile upon that principle of his, which tells him, the gofpel allows more liberty than fevere legal teachers think fit to tell them of: they prefs repentance, and faith; but Chrift hath done all this to thy hands.

Caufe 12. Having confidered the feveral caufes of errors, found in the evil difpofitions of the feduced, as alfo the impulfive, and inftrumental caufes, namely, Satan, and false teachers employed by him; I fhall now proceed to discover some special, and most fuccefsful methods, frequently used by them, to draw the minds of men from the truth. Amongst which, that which comes first to confideration, is the great skill they have in representing the abuses of the ordinances of God, and duties of religion, by wicked men to fcare tender and weak confciences from the due ufe of them, and all further attendance upon them.

The abuse of Chrift's holy appointments is fo cunningly improved to serve this defign, that the minds of many well-meaning perfons receive fuch deep difguft at them, that they are icarce ever to be reconciled to them again. A ftrong prejudice is apt to drive men from one extreme upon another, as thinking they can never get far enough off from that which hath been fo scaringly reprefented to them. Thus, making good the old observation, Dum vitant ftulti vitia, in contraria current; they run from the troublefome fmoak of fuperftition, into the fire of an irreligious contempt of God's ordinances, fplit themselves upon Charybdis to avoid Scylla. Ex. gr.

The Papifts having deeply abufed the ordinance of Baptifm, by their corruptive mixtures, and additions of the furperftitious erofs, chrifm, &c. Part whereof is not fufficiently purged to this day by the reformation; and finding alfo multitudes of carnal Proteftants dangerously refting upon their fuppofed baptismal regeneration, to the great hazard of their falvation; which mistake is but too much countenanced by fome of its adminiftrators: they take from hence fuch deep offence at the adminiAtration of it to any infants at all, (tho' the feed of God's coveDanted people) that they think they can never be sharp enough

in their invectives against it; nor have they patience to hear the most rational defences of that practice.

So, for that fcriptural heavenly duty of finging: what more commonly alledged against it, than the abuse and ill effects of that precious ordinance? How often is the nonfenfe, and error of the common tranflation, the rudeness and dulness of the metre of fome Pfalms, as Pfal. vii. 13. as alfo the cold formality, with which that ordinance is performed by many who de but parrotize? I fay, how often are these things buzzed into the ears of the people, to alienate their hearts from fo fweet and beneficial a duty?

And very often we find it urged to the fame end, how unwarrantable, and dangerous a thing it is for carnal and unregenerated perfons, to appropriate to themfelves in finging thofe praises and experiences which are peculiar to the faints; not understanding, or confidering, that the finging of Pfalms is an ordinance of Chrift, appointed for teaching, and admonition, as well as praifing, Col. iii. 16. "Teaching and admonishing "one another in Pfalms and hymns," &c. *Thus Antinomianism took, if not its rife, yet its encouragement from the too rigorous preffing of the law upon convinced finners.

If Satan can prevail firft with wicked men, to corrupt and abule God's ordinances by fuperftitious mixtures and additions; and then with good men, to renounce and flight them for the fake of thofe abuses; he fully obtains his defign, and gives Christ a double wound at once; one by the hand of his avowed enemies, the other by the hands of his friends, no less grievous than the firft. First, wicked men corrupt Chrift's ordinances, and then good men naufeate them.

The remedies.

The proper remedies against errors, infinuated by the abufes

of duties and ordinances, are fuch as follow:

Remedy 1. Let men confider, that there is nothing in religion fo great, fo facred and excellent, but fome or other have greatly corrupted, or vilely abused them.

What is there in the whole world more precious and excellent than the free grace of God? and yet you read, Jude 4. of fome that turned the grace of our Lord into lasciviousness. What more defirable to Chriftians, than the glorious liberty Chrift hath purchased for them by his blood, and fettled upon

*The divinity of former ages, faith Mr. Saltmarfh, put but a grain or drachm of gofpel to a pound of law, in their receipts for diftempered fouls. Vide Saltmarfb of free grace, p. 4°..

them in the gospel-charter? A liberty from Satan, fin, and the rigour and curfe of the law; and yet you read, 1 Pet. ii. 16. of them that used this liberty for a cloak of malicioufnefs. It is true, Chrift came to be a facrifice for fin, but not a cloak for fin; to fet us at liberty from the bondage of our lufts, not from the ties and duties of our obedience. Under the pretence of this liberty it was, that the Gnoftics, Carpocratians, and the Menandrians of old, did not only connive at, but openly taught and practifed all manner of lewdnefs and uncleannefs.

+St. Auguftine, in his book of herefy, makes this fad com. plaint, "The Menandrians (faith he) do willingly embrace all "uncleanness, as the fruit of the grace of God towards men." And not only the liberty purchased by Christ, but the very perfon and gofpel of Christ are liable to abufes; and oftentimes, through the corruptions of mens hearts, become itones of stum bling, and rocks of offence. What then? fhall we renounce the grace of God, our Chriftian liberty, the very gospel, yea, and perfon of Chrift himself, becaufe each of them have been thus vilely abused by wicked wretches? At the peril of our eternal damnation be it, if we do fo. Bleffed is he (faith our Lord) that is not offended in me. Beware, left by this means Satan at once wound the Lord Jefus Chrift by scandal, and thy foul by prejudice.

Remedy 2. Confider alfo, that it is the nature and temper of a gracious foul, to raise his esteem, and heighten his love to those erdinances, which are most abused and difgraced by men.

The more they are abused and oppofed by others, the higher they should be valued and honoured by us: Pfal. cxix. 126, 127. "It is time for thee, Lord, to work; for they have made void thy law; therefore I love thy commandments above gold, yea, above fine gold;" q. d. The more they are difgraced and abused by wicked men, the more do I honour and prize them. A like fpirit with David's was found in Elijah, 1 Kings xix. 14. " I have been very jealous for the Lord God "of hofts; because the children of Ifrael have forfaken thy "covenant; thrown down thine altars, and flain thy prophets "with the fword.”

A good man will strive to honour and fecure those truths and duties moft, which he finds under moft difgrace or danger: he loves the truth fincerely, who cleaves to it, and ftands by it under all oppofition. This is a good trial of the foundness of thy

+ Menandriani omnem turpitudinem libenter amplexi funt, tané quam gratiae Dei erga homines fructum, August. lib, de Hæref.

heart, and purity of thine ends in religion; fuch a proof, as the honour and reputation of religion in the world can never give thee.

In Solomon's time, the Jews were very cautious how they admitted and received profelytes, fufpecting that by-ends, and worldly respects, may draw men to it; but they were not fo cautious in times of difgrace and perfecution.

Remedy 3. Before you part with any ordinance, or practice in religion, bethink yourfelves, whether you never found any fpiritual bleflings or advantages in that path which you are now tempted to forfake.

Had you never any spiritual meltings of your hearts and affections in that heavenly ordinance of finging?, And, may there not be now thousands of mercies in your poffeffion, in confe quence to, and as the fruit of your folemn dedication to God in baptifm, by your covenanted parents? For my own part, I do heartily and folemnly blefs God for it upon this account; and fo, I hope thousands, befides myself, have caufe to do: however, fuch a practice may, by no means, be deferted by you, because abused by others.

Caufe 13. Another method and artifice, by which falfe teachers draw multitudes of difciples after them, is, by granting to their ignorant and ambitious followers the Liberty of Prophely ing flattering them into a conceit of their excellent gifts and attainments, when God knows they had more need to be cate chised, and taught the principles of Christianity, than undertake to expound and apply thofe profound myfteries unto others.

Satan hath filled the church and world with errors and troubles this way.

*When ignorant and unexperienced perfons begin to think it a low and dull thing to fit from year to year under other mens teachings, and to fancy that they are wifer than their teachers, their pride will quickly tempt them to fhew their ignorance, and that mischievous ignorance will prove dangerous to the truth, and troublesome to the church. The apostle forbids the ordination of a novice, left he be puffed up, and fall into the con demnation of the devil; and in 1 Tim. i. 7. he fhews us the

* Ignorant and wicked men, not minding, that the fame inspired writer never advances contrary affertions on one and the fame fubject; and regarding only the found of the words, do overlook the fenfe and scope of them; and obferving that there is a diversity or feeming contrariety in the fame fcripture-expreffions, they have apo ftatized into error, not understanding the true meaning of them.

reafon why fome fwerved and turned afide unto vain janglings: and it was this, that they defired to be teachers of the law, neither understanding what they faid, nor whereof they affirmed; that is, they affected to be preachers, though not able to speak congruously, with tolerable fenfe and reafon.

I do not here cenfure and condemn the use and exercise of the gifts of all private Chriftians. There are to be found, amongst them, fome perfons of raised parts, and answerable modefty and humility, who may be very ufeful, when called to fervice, in extraordinary cafes, by the voice of providence; or exercife their gifts in a probationary way, or in due fubordination unto Chrift's public officers and ordinances, by, and with the confent of the paftor and congregation.

But when unqualified, and uncalled perfons, undertake fuch a work, out of the conceit and pride of their own hearts, or are allured to it by the crafty defigns of erroneous teachers, partly to overthrow a public, regular, and standing ministry in the church, to which end the fcriptures are manifeftly abused, fuch as, Jer. xxxi. 34. Rom. xii. 6. 1 Cor. xiv. 1 Pet. iv. 10. with many others: this is the practice I here cenfure, which, like a Trojan horse, hath fent forth multitudes of erroneous perfons into the city of God to infest and defile it.

I cannot doubt but many a fincere Chriftian may be drawn into fuch employment, which puts him into a capacity of honouring God in a more eminent way, which is a thing defirable to an honeft and zealous heart: and that the temptation may be greatly ftrengthened upon them by the plaufible fuggeftions of cunning feducers, who tell them, that those minifters who oppofe and condemn this practice, do it as men concerned for their own intereft, as defirous to monopolize the work to themfelves, and as envying the Lord's people: and that Chrift hath given them a greater liberty in this cafe, than thofe men will allow them. By this means they draw many after them, and fix them in their erroneous ways.

I have no mind at all here to expole the follies and mischiefs introduced this way, as neither being willing to grieve the hearts of the fincere on one fide, nor gratify fcoffing Atheists, and profane enemies to religion upon the other fide; only this I will, and must fay, that by this means the facred fcriptures are most injuriously wrefted, the peace and order of the church disturbed, and a great many mistakes and errors introduced. The remedies.

The prevention and cure of errors this way introduced, or VOL. IV.

Kk