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among them, as I have prov'd before, that they have no lawful Paftors, no truly evangelical Teachers or Governors among them, to whom they may appeal in Cafes of real or of feeming Difficulty. And hence it comes to pafs, that, as Sectaries have agreed too well to throw Dirt in our Faces, fo they have not forborn the bittereft and most scandalous Terms, in which to befpatter one another, as it were eafy to prove by innumerable Inftances. But, after all, certainly a Man may have a very good and ufeful Guide, in Matters relating to his Salvation, tho' that Guide be not infallible. The Church of Rame makes not every little private Prieft or Confeffor, a Pope; and yet it makes them the indifpenfably neceffary Appendages of a Chriftian's Life. Our Diffenting Brethren make not every prefuming Teacher infallible; yet they conclude the Church of Chrift incapable of fubfifting long without fuch Teachers. He who is the best acquainted with a Road may fometimes lofe his Way in a very gloomy Night, and fo miflead thofe who follow him: But is it therefore not convenient to make ufe of a Guide to conduct a Man in a dark Night? The wifeft and most cautious Phyfician may fometimes apply deftruative Medicines to the Patient's Diftemper, the Nature of which he has perhaps miftaken; muft we therefore, never confult a Phyfician in the Time of Sicknefs? And if our lawful Spiritual Paftors do fometimes provethemselves to be but Men, do trip or fail in the Management of their Truft thro' human Weakness or Inconfideracy; must we therefore conclude,

that

that none of our lawful Paftors can poffibly give any Inftructions agreeable to the Gofpel? Whither would fuch foolish Opinions hurry Men at laft? How ftrangely unfettled muft thofe be in their Religion, who embrace fuch loofe and Fantastick Notions? Is our holy Religion a Matter to be trifled with? May we flit, and fhift, and act, as if we were bewildred in perpetual Labyrinths, out of which we can never extricate our felves? How difmal was the Judgment which fell upon that Family which feparated it felf from a formerly feparate Congregation; when the Father and one Son divided against the other Son, and a confiderable Part of the Family, on a pretended religious Account; when the Father and the Son, who had before agreed against the reft, fell from one another; and the Father, at laft, conftituted a Church by himself, baptiz'd himfelf, and was his own Paftor, Teacher, and entire Congregation? What Authority can a Teacher, ordain'd by the People, have over those who made him what he is? If they really reverence him, are they not guilty of Idolatry, fince they adore the Work of their own Hands? If they defpife him, is it likely, that they should ever edify by his Converfation or Doctrine? It was acknowledged in Honour of our Saviour, that, He taught the People with Authority, and not as the Scribes: Thofe, who have no lawful Call, can have no juft Authority; and confequently, can neither reprove, rebuke, nor cenfure with any reasonable Hope of reforming the Sinner. But those of our Church acknow

ledge no fuch Authority, as deriv'd from Men

P

Men: They affert, and are able to maintain their Divine Commiffion, and therefore, let Men fmile or frown, they may and ought to do their Duties: And if, for doing their Duties, any will feparate themfelves from them; theirs is the Guilt, and theirs will be the Punishment.

I'll

4. And in the laft Place, let us seriously confider that great Miftake which many poor ignorant Creatures run themselves upon, when they think, that the Means of Edification in feparate Congregations are greater, than they are in thofe eftablish'd by Law in the Church of England. And here, if it may please them, agree with them intirely, that That Communion in which the Soul may be the most effectually edify'd in the Ufe of God's Ordinances, is to be preferr'd before all others. I believe, that the Salvation of a Man's own Soul is the greatest and most important Concern, which he has, or indeed can have in this World, and that, therefore, every Man is bound to make ufe of the beft Means he can to obtain that Salvation. But then, we muft carefully confider what is generally underftood by Edification, in the Word of God: For, if it fhould appear, that we are mistaken in our common Notion of it, our Cafe muft needs be very dangerous, as having feparated from the Communion of a truly Evangelical Church, upon Pretence of feeking for that Spiritual Help and Affiftance in another Society, which is only truly to be met with in that Communion which we left.

Now, we muft obferve, that the Words by did which we generally meanEdifying or Edification,

are

ver. 16:

are metaphorical, or figurative Words, taken from Architecture, and us'd primarily by fuch as build Castles, Towers, Houfes, Walls, &c. who are always raifing their Edifices higher and higher, and adding what is neceffary from within and without, till they have compleated their Defign at laft, and made their Building, fit for Ufe. Hence, as the Church is generally call'd, the House of God, fo St. Paul, where he writes to the believing Corinthians, tells them, they are God's Husbandry; they are. God's Building; and in purfuance of the fame i Cor. 3: Figure, calls them, The Temple of God. He 9. perfuades the Coloffians, to walk as they had re- Col. 2. 7: ceived Chrift, rooted, and built up in him, and eftallif'd in the Faith. St. Jude takes it for granted, as a Duty in thofe, to whom he writes, that, they should build up themselves in their moft Jude veri holy Faith: All which Paffages imply the fame 20 Thing, viz. That as we call our felves by the Name of Chrift; fo we fhould endeavour to grow in Grace, and to advance in all Divine Gifts, and in particular in the Knowledge of him. So when we are exhorted by the Apoftle, to follow after thofe Things, with which we Rom. 14 may edify one another; when we read of the 19. Churches of Judea, Galilee, and Samaria being A&s9.ji: edify'd; we understand, that we are advis'd to what thofe Churches did, i. e. to grow wifer and more knowing in Divine Truths, and better and more fincere and blameless in our Lives and Converfations. Hence we hear of Charity edifying which Words exprefs their 1 Cof. 8: Progrefs in Goodnefs, who exercife themselves 1. in Works of Charity, and inftruct others, on whom it is exercis'd, to the fame excellent

2.

6.

3.

Practices. And fo, when we are perfuaded, Rom. 15.every one of us to please his Neighbour to Edification; when St. Paul tells us of his Apoftolical Au2 Cor.10.thority, that, It was given him to Edification, and not to Deftruction, and of Prophets; that 1 Cor.14. He who prophefieth, Speaketh to Men to Edification; in every Text Edification means the Improvement of the Understanding and Practice of all Perfons concern'd; the edifying the Body of Chrift, being the Method of perfecting the Saints, till we all come to the Unity of the Faith, and of the Knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect Man, unto the Meafure of the Stature of the Fuluefs of Chrift.

13, 13.

Having thus gotten a right Understanding of the true Nature of Edification, or what Edification is; we may easily find out, what it is not which, yet, too many weak and mifled Chriftians think it is. Edification then, is no Heating of the Fancy, or fudden Motion of Tenderness in the Mind, or Excitement of the Affections. If to have the Fancy warm'd, the Heart tender, the Affections melted, were to be edify'd, the best Musician, or the finest Poet would be the most edifying Creature in the World. Mufick and Poetry have infpired the greatest Courages, rais'd the most noble Paffions, and have managed Mens Affections with the most irrefiftible Influences in the World; as any who are at all acquainted with either antient or modern History muft acknowledge: And I make no Question, but that it was upon fuch Confiderations, that Mufick of various Kinds, was appointed by Men divinely inspir'd, in the Jewish Temple; and the nobleft Pieces of their Publick Ser