quires no exceffive aufterity. It aims at affifting poor erring mortals in overcoming their weakness and mifery; but it does not add to them, by requiring the facrifice of health, eafe, peace, fociety, cheerfulness, and innocent gaiety. It does not condemn those, with whom it cannot agree in opinion, with uncharitable severity. It is gentle and candid; it is accommodated to such a creature as man, for ever aiming at good, but, from weaknefs, continually relapfing into fome degree of evil. It does not, like the fevere fyftem of the over-righteous, inflame and aggravate the wounds of its patients, but, with lenient balfamics, affuages their anguish*.

And if the over-righteous object that regularlybred minifters want vehemence and earnestnefs, I affirm that the objection cannot be universally well-founded. Men, having various degrees of talents, and various degrees of fenfibility, will have a correfpondent variety in their modes of delivery. The lively by nature, with very little fenfe of religion, may be animated in their discourses; the dull by nature, with a meaning very honest and pious, will be poor orators. And it always happens, in a very large body of men, that fome are idle and irreligious; though circumftances may have led them to affume a profeffion where careleffness and impiety are doubly culpable.

fuch is the present state of human nature. He who demands more perfection than experience has ever yet found, is unreasonable and over-righteous. If fome men have lefs pretenfion, and less vehemence, than those who are called the over

By the CHURCH I wish to be understood all those who are united to Chrift by the Holy Ghoft, wherever they dwell, and by whatever denomination they are diftinguished. The WORLD, in the fcriptural fenfe, confifts of all who are not fo united.

RIGHTEOUS,

RIGHTEOUS, they have probably lefs hypocrify, lefs folly, and lefs fpiritual arrogance. Overrighteousness, with all its pretenfions to humility, is often the parent as well as the child of pride.

After all, let us remember, that there is an underrighteousness (if I may use the term) as well as an over-righteousness; and that mankind are much apter to err from defect than excefs. While hypocrify and fanaticism are avoided, let us not, in the present times, be alarmed at danger from exceffive piety.

SECTION XL:

All extravagant and felfifh Pretenfions to the Spirit to be anxiously avoided, as they proceed from and cherish Pride, and are frequently accompanied with Immorality.

STENTATIOUSLY to pretend to greater portions of the Spirit than others, is alone a very unfavourable symptom, as it is a prefumptive proof of two wants, not compatible with the Spirit's benignant influence: the want of humility, and the want of charity. It is no wonder, therefore, that those who have made fuch pretenfions, have difgraced them by the wickednefs of their lives; and have induced ill-judging men haftily to confider the whole doctrine of divine affiftance as a mere delufion *.

* The phrases, being Godded with God, Chrifted with Chrift, and others equally abfurd, adopted by fanatics of the last century, have given just offence to men of fenfe and fincerity; but difguft is apt to run into extremes. and like the loathing occafioned by fickness, to cause a rejection of wholesome aliment.

Hypocrites,

Hypocrites, in fanatical times, when the appearance of extraordinary piety was conducive to advancement in wealth and honours, were fure to go farther in their pretenfions, than the modesty of true profeffors could permit or excufe: but that deceitfulness of heart which produces hypocrisy, leads to all other bad conduct; and religion has been difgraced by the fingular profligacy of oftentatious profeffors.

Knaves of the very worst kind, who have no other object than to avail themselves of the credulity of others, are likely at all times to put on a cloak and a mafk, which may render them externally refpectable, and facilitate their purposes of deceit. Nothing feduces the ignorant and unexperienced fo eafily as the appearance of extraordinary fanctity; and nothing has been more frequently affumed, fot the accomplishment of ambitious and avaricious defigns. When these designs have been accomplished, the cloak and the mask have been thrown afide as ufelefs incumbrances, and the villain has stood forth in his proper fhape and colour.

Men of weak heads and warm hearts have proceeded to the most extravagant lengths in pretenfions to fanctity; and at the fame time, from the want of folid virtue, have fallen into deplorable fins. Their fins derived additional deformity in the eyes of the people, from the contraft of affumed fanctity; and the world was ready to exclaim that all religion must be vain, if, in men who display fo much of it, it contributes fo little to wisdom and virtue.

Great finners, unwilling to tread the rugged road of virtue, have thought it an easier and pleafanter mode of avoiding the confequences of their enormities, to perfuade themselves of fudden con

verfions,

verfions, and peculiar favour from heaven; and to compenfate for inward impurity by outward fanctity, and for disobedience in things effential, by intemperate zeal in things indifferent, formal, and merely oftentatious.

Thus fpiritual pride, want of charity, hypocrify, knavery, folly, and extreme wickedness, have given rife to extraordinary pretenfions to the Spirit, and verified the observation, that the wickedeft of mankind have been among those who difplayed the appearance of goodness and piety in the EXTREME.

"The gradation has been," (fays Dr. Trapp,) ❝righteous overmuch in practice-righteous over"much in practice and doctrine-immoral and "profligate in both; and this ftill with pretenfions "to extraordinary measures of the Holy Spirit."

But to what fhould a conviction of this truth lead the fober Chriftian? Certainly not to deny the doctrine of fupernatural affiftance, which he finds in the gofpel; but to avoid all extravagance of pretenfion, all boasting, all over-righteousness, all preference of himself to others, on account of spiritual gifts, left he should ultimately find himfelf alfo deceived and a deceiver.

The religion of Chrift is of a retired and referved nature. Its most important transactions are in the receffes of the heart, and in the closet. It loves not noise nor oftentation. Let him, therefore, who wishes to know whether he really has the Spirit, examine whether his virtues and good difpofitions abound in retirement, and without the least parade whatever, or the smallest applause or reward of men. If he does good privately, and avoids the eyes of admirers, I think he may entertain an humble confidence that he has the favour of God. He has, in confequence, a fource of joy within him, which no man taketh away. He has the

the bread of life, and feeds on it in his heart by faith with thanksgiving. He is filently and unoftentatiously happy, neither courting the notice of the world, nor regarding its unjust cenfure. He is particularly careful, that no ill-treatment fhall caufe him to violate the law of charity. His chief concern is to bear and yet forbear; to be rather than to feem good.

SECTION XLI.

Affected Sanctity, Demureness, Canting, Sournefs, Cenforioufnefs, ignorant and illiterate Preaching, no Marks of a State of Grace, but contribute to bring the whole Doctrine of Divine Energy into Contempt, and to diffufe Infidelity.

ELIGION is lovely. Her voice is melodious,

Rand her afpect delightful. How has the

been deformed! She has been taught to utter jargon with the hoarfe croaking of the portentous raven, or to scream with the terrific howlings of the bird of night. Her face has been changed from the face of an angel to a gorgon's head, furrounded with fnakes. She has been rendered a bugbear, terrifying all who approach her, instead of a gentle nurfing mother, inviting wretched mortals to her foftering bofom, by the tenderest blandishments of maternal love.

Men of natural fenfe, improved by a learned education, and polished by all the elegancies of cultivated life, have turned from her, thus difguifed as the appears, with disgust and horror.

They