condemnation to them," whether they "walk after the Spirit in love," or "after the flesh” in malice; whether they "forsake all to follow Christ," or, like Judas and Sapphira, "keep back part" of what should be the Lord's without reserve. Thousands boldly profess justifying faith, and perhaps eternal justification, who reverence the commandments of God just as much as they regard the scriptures quoted in Mr. Wesley's Minutes.

Upon their doctrinal systems they raise a tower of presumption, whence they bid defiance both to the law and gospel of Jesus. His law says, "Love God with all thy heart, and thy neighbour as thyself, that thou mayest live" in glory. "If thou wilt enter into" the "life" of glory, "keep the commandments." But this raises their pity, instead of commanding their respect and exciting their diligence. "Moses is buried," say they; "we have nothing to do with the law! We are not under the law to Christ! Jesus is not a lawgiver to control, but a Redeemer to save us."

The gospel cries to them, "Repent and believe;" and, just as if God was to be the penitent believing sinner, they carelessly reply, "The Lord must do all; repentance and faith are his works, and they will be done in the day of his power;" and so without resistance they decently follow the stream of worldly vanities and fleshly lusts. St. Paul cries," If ye live after the flesh, ye shall die." "We know better," answer they : "there are neither ifs nor conditions in all the gospel." He adds, "This one thing I do; leaving the things that are behind, I press

I have long wished to see, on both sides of the question about which we unhappily divide, moderate men stepping out of the unthinking, noisy crowd of their party, to look each other lovingly in the face, and to convince the world that with impartial zeal they will guard both the foundation and the superstructure against all adversaries, those of their own party not excepted. Whoever does this omne tulit punctum, he is a real friend to both parties, and to the whole gospel; for he cordially embraces all the people of God, and joins in one blessed medium the seemingly incompatible extremes of scriptural truth. Ye men of clear heads, honest hearts, and humble loving spirits, nature and grace have formed you on purpose to do the church this important service. Therefore, without regarding the bigots of your own party, in the name of the loving Jesus, and by his catholic Spirit, give professors public lessons of moderation and consistency, and permit me to learn those rare virtues with thousands at your feet.

towards the mark, for the prize of my high calling in Christ Jesus," the crown of life." "Be ye followers of me." "Run" also "the race that is set before you." “What!" say they, "would you have us run and work for life? Will you always harp upon that legal string, 'Do! do!' instead of telling us that we have nothing to do, but to believe that all is done?" St. James cries, "Show your faith by your works; faith without works is dead" already, much more that which is accompanied by bad works. "What!" say they, "do you think the lamp of faith can be put out as a candle can be extinguished, by not being suffered to shine? We orthodox hold just the contrary: we maintain both that faith can never die, and that living faith is consistent not only with the omission of good works, but with the commission of the most horrid crimes." St. Peter bids them "give all diligence to make their election sure," by adding to their faith virtue," &c. "Legal stuff!" say they: "the covenant is well ordered in all things, and sure: neither will our virtue save us, nor our sins damn us." St. John comes next, and declares, "He that sinneth is of the devil." "What!" say they, "do you think to make us converts to Arminianism, by thus insinuating that a man can be a child of God to-day, and a child of the devil to-morrow?" St. Jude advances last, and charges them "to keep themselves in the love of God;" and they supinely reply, "We can do nothing; besides, we are as easy and as safe without a frame as

with one."

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With the sevenfold shield of their antinomian faith they would fight the twelve apostles round, and come off, in their own imagination, more than conquerors. Nay, were Christ himself to come to them incognito, as he did to the disciples that went to Emmaus, and say, "Be ye perfect as your Father who is in heaven is perfect;" it is well if, while they measured him from head to foot with looks of pity or surprise, some would not be bold enough to say with a sneer, "You are a perfectionist, it seems, a follower of poor John Wesley! are you? For our part, we are for Christ and free grace; but John Wesley and you are for perfection and free will."

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Now, sir, if any doctrine, humanly speaking, can rescue these mistaken souls out of so dreadful a snare, it is that I contend for. Antinomian dreams vanish before it, as the noxious damps of the night before the rising sun. St. Paul, if they would but hear him out, with this one saying, as with a thousand rams, would demolish all their babels: "Circumcision is nothing, uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God;" or, to speak agreeable to our times, "Before the tribunal of Christ, forms of godliness, Calvinian and Arminian notions, are nothing;' confessions of faith and recantations of error, past manifestations and former experiences, 'are nothing;' but 'the keeping of the commandments of God ;"" the very thing which antinomians ridicule or neglect ! 2. This doctrine is not less proper to animate feeble believers in their careless pursuit of holiness. O if it were clearly preached and steadily believed,-if we were fully persuaded, we shall soon appear before the judgment-seat of Christ," to answer for every thought, word, and work, for every business we enter upon, every sum of money we lay out, every meal we eat, every pleasure we take, every affliction we endure, every hour we spend, every idle word we speak, yea, and every temper we secretly indulge,—if we knew we shall certainly give account of all the chapters we read, all the prayers we offer, all the sermons we hear or preach, all the sacraments we receive; of all the motions of divine grace, all the beams of heavenly light, all the breathings of the Spirit, all the invitations of Christ, all the drawings of the Father, reproofs of our friends, and checks of our own conscience; and if we were deeply conscious that every neglect of duty will rob us of a degree of glory, and every wilful sin of a jewel in our crown, if not our crown itself; what humble, watchful, holy, heavenly persons would we be! how serious and self-denying! how diligent and faithful! in a word, how angelical and divine "in all manner of conversation!"

Did the woman, the professing church, cordially embrace this doctrine, she would no more stay in the wilderness idly talking of her beloved; but, actually leaning

upon him, she would come out of it in the sight of all her enemies. No more wrapped up in the showy cloud of ideal perfection or imaginary righteousness, and casting away her cold garments, her moon-like changes of merely doctrinal apparel, she would shine with the dazzling glory of her Lord; she would burn with the hallowing fires of his love; once more she would be "clothed with the sun, and have the moon under her feet.”

Ye lukewarm talkers of Jesus's ardent love, if you were deeply conscious that nothing but love shall enter heaven, instead of judging of your growth in grace, by the warmth with which you espouse the tenets of Calvin or Arminius, would you not instantly try your state by the 13th chapter of the first epistle to the Corinthians, and by our Lord's alarming messages to the falling or fallen churches of Asia? Springing out of your Laodicean indifference, would you not earnestly pray for the faith of the gospel, the "faith that works by" burning "love?" If the fire is kindled, would you not be afraid of putting it out by quenching the Spirit? Would not you even dread grieving him, lest your love should grow cold? Far from accounting the "shedding abroad of the love of God in your hearts" an unnecessary frame, would you not be straitened till you were 66 baptized every one of you with ne Holy Ghost and with fire?"

Ye who hold the doctrine of perfection without going on to perfection, and ye who explode it as a pernicious delusion, and inconsistently publish hymns of solemn prayer for it, how would you agree, from the bottom of your re-awakened hearts, to sing together in days of peace and social worship, as you have carelessly sung asunder,— O for an heart to praise our God!

An heart from sin set free!

An heart in every thought renew'd,
And fill'd with love divine!

Perfect, and right, and pure, and good;

A copy, Lord, of thine.

Bigotry from us remove;

Perfect all our souls in love, &c.

O ye halcyon days! ye days of brotherly love and genuine holiness! if you appeared to pacify and gladden

our distracted Jerusalem, how soon would practical Christianity emerge from under the frothy billows of antinomianism, and the proud waves of pharisaism, which continually break against each other, and openly foam out their own shame! What carefulness would godly sorrow work in us all! what clearing of ourselves by casting away our dearest idols! what indignation against our former lukewarmness! what fear of offending either God or man! what vehement desire after the full image of Christ! what zeal for his glory! and what revenge of our sins! In all things we should approve ourselves, for the time to come, to be clear from the antinomian delusion! Then would we see, what has seldom been seen in our age, distinct, not opposed, societies of meek professors of the common faith, walking in humble love, and supporting each other with cheerful readiness, like different battalions of the same invincible army. And if ever we perceived any contention among them, it would be only about the lowest place, and the most dangerous post. Instead of striving for mastery, they would strive only who should stand truest to the standard of the cross, and best answer the neglected motto of the primitive Christians: Non magna loquimur sed vivimus: "Our religion does not consist in high words, but in good works."

3. I observed that this doctrine will likewise reconcile seeming contradictions in the scriptures, and fatal differences among Christians. Take one instance of the former: what can those who reject a second justification by works make of the solemn words of our Lord, " By thy words thou shalt be justified," or, "by thy words thou shalt be condemned?" Matt. xii. 37. And by what art can they possibly reconcile them with St. Paul's assertions,-“ To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is imputed to him for righteousness ;' Rom. iv. 5; and, "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ?" Rom. v. 1. Accept an example of the latter: in the antinomian days of Dr. Crisp arose the honest people we call quakers. Shocked at the general abuse of the doctrine of justification by faith, they rashly inferred it could never be