professors should contend for this contradictory doctrine, this flesh-pleasing standard of Calvinian inconsistency and Christian imperfection. But that good and, in other respects, judicious men should so zealously contend for it, appears to me astonishing. They can never design to confound carnal bondage with evangelical liberty, and St. Paul's Christian experience with that of Medea and Mr. Fulsome, in order to countenance gross antinomianism; nor can they take any pleasure in misrepresenting the holy apostle. Why do they then patronize so great a mistake? I answer still, By the same reason which makes pious papists believe that consecrated bread is the real flesh of Christ. Their priests and the pope say so; some figurative expressions of our Lord seem to countenance their saying. We protestants, whom the papists call "carnal reasoners" and "heretics," are of a different sentiment; and should they believe as we do, their humility and orthodoxy would be in danger. Apply this to the present case. Calvinian divines and St. Augustine affirm, that St. Paul humbly spake his present experience when he said, "I am carnal," &c. We who are called "Arminians" and "Perfectionists" think the contrary; and our pious opponents suppose, that if they thought as we do, they should lose their humility and orthodoxy. Their error, therefore, springs chiefly from mistaken fears, and not from a wilful opposition to truth.

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Nor is St. Augustine fully for our opponents; we have our part in the bishop of Hippo, as well as they. If he was for them when his controversy with Pelagius had heated him, he was for us when he yet stood upon the scriptural line of moderation. Then he fairly owned, that the man whom the apostle personates in Rom. vii., is homo sub lege positus ante gratiam, a man under the" condemning, irritating "power of the law, who is yet a stranger to the liberty and power of Christ's gospel." Therefore, if Mr. Hill claims St. Augustine the prejudiced controvertist, we claim St. Augustine the unprejudiced father of the church; or rather, setting aside his dubious authority, we continue our appeal to unprejudiced reason and plain scripture.

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What I say of St. Augustine may be said of the Rev. Mr. Whitefield. Before he had embraced St. Augustine's mistakes, which are known among us by the name of Calvinism," he believed, as well as that father, that the disconsolate man who groans, "Who shall deliver me?" is not a possessor, but a seeker, of Christian liberty. To prove it I need only transcribe the latter part of his sermon entitled, "The marks of the new birth:

Thirdly," says he, "I address myself to those who are under the drawings of the Father, and are going through the spirit of bondage; but not finding the marks" of the new birth "before mentioned, are ever crying out," (as the carnal penitent, Rom. vii.,) "Who shall deliver us from the body of this death? Despair not; for, notwithstanding your present trouble, it may be the divine pleasure to give you the kingdom." Hence it appears that Mr. Whitefield did not look upon such mourners as Christian believers, but only as persons who might become such if they earnestly sought. He therefore most judiciously exhorts them to seek till they find. "The grace of God through Jesus Christ," adds he, "is able to deliver you, and give you what you want; even you may receive the Spirit of adoption, the promise of the Father. All things are possible with him; persevere, therefore, in seeking, and determine to find no rest in your spirit till you know and feel that you are thus born again from above, and God's Spirit witnesses with your spirits, that you are the children of God."

What immediately follows is a demonstration that, at that time, Mr. Whitefield was no enemy to Christian perfection, and thought that some had actually attained it; or else nothing would have been more trifling than his concluding address to perfect Christians. Take his own words; and remember that when he preached them, by the ardour of his zeal, and the devotedness of his heart, he showed himself a young man in Christ, able to trample under foot the most alluring baits of the flesh and of the world.

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Fourthly and lastly," says he, "I address myself to those who have received the Holy Ghost in all its sancti

fying graces, and are almost ripe for glory. Hail, happy saints! for your heaven is begun upon earth. You have already received the first fruits of the Spirit, and are patiently waiting till that blessed change come, when your harvest shall be complete. I see and admire you, though, alas! at so great a distance from you.* Your life, I' know, is hid with Christ in God. You have comforts, you have meat to eat, which a sinful, carnal," &c., "world knows nothing of; Christ's yoke is now become easy to you, and his burden light; you have passed through the pangs of the new birth, and now rejoice that Christ Jesus is formed in your hearts. You know what it is to dwell in Christ, and Christ in you. Like Jacob's ladder, although your bodies are on earth, yet your souls and hearts are in heaven; and by your faith and constant recollection, like the blessed angels, you do always behold the face of your Father which is in heaven. I need not then exhort you to press forward," &c. "Rather I will exhort you in patience to possess your souls yet a little while, and Jesus Christ will deliver you from the burden of the flesh, and an abundant entrance shall be administered unto you into the eternal joy," &c., "of his heavenly kingdom." I have met with few descriptions of the perfect Christian that please me better: I make but one objection to it. Mr. Whitefield thought, that the believers who, "by constant recollection, like the blessed angels, always behold the face of their Father," are so advanced in grace, that they "need not be exhorted to press forward." This is carrying the doctrine of perfection higher than Mr. Wesley ever did. For my part, were I to preach

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At that time Mr. Whitefield was in orders, and had "received the Spirit of adoption." As a proof of it, I appeal, 1. To the account of his conversion at Oxford before he was ordained; and, 2. To these, his own words, "I can say, to the honour of rich, free, distinguishing grace, that I'received the Spirit of adoption' before I had conversed with one man, or read a single book, on the doctrine of free justification by the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ;" that is, before he had had any opportunity of being drawn from the simplicity of the scripture gospel into the Calvinian refinements. See his Works, vol. iv., page 45. Now, those Christians who leave babes and young men in Christ "at so great a distance from them," are the very persons whom we call "fathers in Christ," or "perfect Christians."

to a congregation of such "happy saints," I would not scruple taking this text, "So run that ye may" eternally "obtain ;" nor would I forget to set before them the example of the perfect apostle, who said, "This one thing I do, leaving the things that are behind, and reaching forth," &c., "I press towards the mark," &c. Had I been in Mr. Whitefield's case, I own, I would either have refused to join the imperfectionists, or I would have recanted my Address to perfect Christians.

So strong is the scriptural tide in favour of our doctrine, that it sometimes carries away the Rev. Mr. Romaine himself. Nor can I confirm the wavering reader in his belief of the possibility of obtaining the glorious liberty which we contend for, better than by transcribing a fine exhortation of that great minister to what we call "Christian perfection," and what he calls "the walk of faith: "

"The new covenant runs thus: 'I will put, says God, my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts,' &c. The Lord here engages to take away the stony heart, and to give an heart of flesh, upon which he will write the ten commandments," &c. "The love of God will open the contracted heart, enlarge the selfish, warm the cold, and bring liberality out of the covetous. When the Holy Spirit teaches brotherly love, he overcomes all opposition to it," &c., "he writes upon their hearts the two great commandments, 'on which hang all the law and the prophets.' 'The love of God,' says the apostle to the Romans, is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost;' and to the Thessalonians, Ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.' Thus he engages the soul to the holy law, and inclines the inner man to love obedience. It ceases to be a yoke and a burden. How easy is it to do what one loves! If you dearly love any person, what a pleasure is it to serve him! What will not love put you upon doing or suffering, to oblige him? Let love rule in the heart to God and to man, his law will then become delightful, and obedience to it will be pleasantness. The soul will run; yea, inspired by love, it will mount up with wings as eagles, in the way of

God's commandments. Happy are the people that are in such a case." Now such a case is what we call "the state of Christian perfection," to the obtaining of which, Mr. Romaine excites his own soul by the following excellent exhortation :

"This is the very tenor of the covenant of grace, which the almighty Spirit has undertaken to fulfil," (if we mix faith with the promises, as Mr. Romaine himself will soon intimate,)" and he cannot fail in his office. It is his crown and glory to make good his covenant engagements. O trust him then, and put honour upon his faithfulness." (That is, if I mistake not, make good your own covenantengagements.) "He has promised to guide thee with his counsel, and to strengthen thee with his might, &c. What is within thee, or without thee, to oppose thy walking in love with him, he will incline thee to resist, and he will enable thee to overcome. O what mayest thou not expect from such a divine friend, who is to abide with thee on purpose to keep thy heart right with God!" (Query, When the heart is kept full of indwelling sin, is it kept right with God?) "What cannot he do, what will he not do, for thee? Such as is the love of the Father and of the Son, such is the love of the Holy Ghost; the same free, perfect, everlasting love. Read his promises of it. Meditate on them. Pray to him for increasing faith to mix with them; that he" (not sin) "dwelling in the temple of thy heart, thou mayest have fellowship there with the Father and with the Son. Whatever in thee is pardoned through the Son's atonement, pray the Holy Spirit to subdue, that it may not interrupt communion with thy God. And whatever grace is to be received out of the fulness of Jesus, in order to keep up and to promote that communion, entreat the Holy Spirit to give it thee with growing strength. But pray in faith, nothing wavering. So shall the love of God rule in thy heart. And then thou shalt be like the sun, when it goeth forth in its might, shining clearer and clearer to the perfect day. O may thy course be like his, as free, as regular, and as communicative of good! that thy daily petition may be answered, and that the