witness to the world, and saving as many as will believe on him whom he hath sent. The true idea and doctrine of the church is lost, and a system of societyship is instituted in its stead, which, giving heed to no ordinance, not even that of prayer, and to no discipline save that of subscribing so much, or so much more, is, under the pretence of well-doing, breaking down all bounds and limits, and introducing every evil under the disguise of good. This is the reason why the doctrine of election is no longer brooked, and the doctrine of union unto Christ, and of the assurance of the Holy Ghost, of the church, and the sacraments of the church, and every thing else which hath in it the principle of distinctness and separation from the world. And, in room of this, the true spiritual circumcision and separateness from the world, there has been introduced an outward and formal one, which is defined by abstinence from this and that fashionable amusement, from this and that worldly indulgence, whereby a schism is effected in the world, instead of a separateness of the church. The world is separated into two divisions, a religious and an irreligious world, but alike the world; the one being the Pharisaical, the other the sensual form of the natural man; of which the former is supposed to be the church, and so named; and the end is, that there is no church visible at all. According as this transition from the cold state of high-churchmanship to the lukewarm state of the religious world, is effected; the true saints of God will become more and more visible, by the persecutions and sufferings which they will be called upon to endure. They will stand at the door of their mother's house and knock; but there will be no one to open and let them in. I perceive that this state of things is fast realizing, is in Spirit indeed now realizing, and labouring to exhibit itself in action. I do not think that any power on earth can resist the combined forces which are crushing the church into this worldly form. But I believe that the doctrines which are now preaching in all quarters, will separate a holy people for a witness, and for a sacrifice, until the Lord come and fulfil his threatening of casting into the lake of fire, the beast and the false prophet. And I perceive by the way in which things are now working, it is to be, not a reformation of the church, but a

separation from the church, which God is effecting. For, from all quarters, I hear of little companies who upon being awakened, meet together for prayer and communion, and are immediately separated from the fellowship-and even from the society of the brethren; spoken against, openly reviled, and in all ways contemned. It is of no consequence how much service they may have done for the church, or for the societies; they are, without remorse, set aside and treated as the offscourings of the earth, as the blasphemers of God, and of his Christ, and of his church. This is not the way in which the Reformation proceeded; but it is the way in which the church was drawn out from Jewry and from Paganism, before their destruction of the Lord. When I speak of separation from the world, as the true condition of the church, I mean not the spirit of schism; but the very contrary of it, the Spirit of love. The world is lying in the evil one, who is a murderer and a liar, is in a state of infinite schism, from which it cannot be delivered by any means but destruction. Persons may be drawn out of it through the Spirit of love, which can alone dissolve the uncharitableness of the natural man, and those who by the Spirit of love are drawn out, do necessarily unite and form one body, of whose perfectness the bond is love. But as love is necessarily not divisive but unitive, the church stands with open arms to receive every one, who by the same Spirit is moved to forsake the world's divisive courses. And so it is the hatefulness which the world hath to love, that prevents the whole world from being included in the church. But when it arriveth, that the church itself becomes divisive in its spirit, as the Protestant churches are all become, each looking upon another as a rival, it is then necessary to destroy them utterly. And this is done by the Spirit of love, making for itself a home in certain hearts who know the truth, against whose sweet concord and inoffensive ways, the ecclesiastical body arming, do declare themselves thereby to be of those who are doomed to hell fire, because they would not favour and entertain the little ones of Christ.

I do believe, therefore, that Christ's threatening to spue these Laodiceans out of his mouth, is the same judgment with the casting of the beast and the false pro

phet into the lake of fire, Christ will have no more dealings with the church. He loathes it and rejects it, and returns not to it any more. To the earth he returns, but not to her. She sinks out of sight, like a milstone cast into the sea. I consider the spuing out of his mouth to be equivalent with the casting out, and the casting into outer darkness, so often spoken of in the Gospels. It is different from all the other threatenings; it is the con summation of the evil. I have oft put the question to myself, And canst thou really believe such things of the Protestant churches, consociated into the religious world, which every one admireth so much, and haileth as the world's regeneration? It is very difficult to believe, but I can and do believe it. And I partly perceive its operation, as I have explained above. It is not for nothing that the Lord hath placed me upon this pinnacle of observation, where for these eight years I have stood observing the face of the church. I have had opportunities of being fully convinced that the spirit of the religious world is the same as the spirit of radicalism, infidelity, and liberalism : is the same as the Neological spirit which first appeared in Germany, the birth-place of the Reformation. There it attacked the creed, because the Germans are a very thoughtful people, and their polemical spirit expresseth itself in forms of thought. Here it attacks the establishment and organization of the church, because we are a judicious and active people, who express one spirit in institutions; also a benevolent people, who like to be promoting things useful and advantageous to man. But it is the same visitation of God upon the cold Smyrnian church of the Reformation, which hath begotten the various Neological schools of Germany, and religious societies of England. They are both of the nature of consumptions and judgments; the one directed against a systematic theology, which had hidden the truth of the Gospel; the other against a well organized church, which had ceased to be the teacher and the mother of the people. The religious world is the antagonist of the church, as the radical politicians are of the state, and both are of the nature of judgments upon them for their iniquity. The Presbyteries of Scotland, and the Bishops of England, are fast hastening to send in their adherence unto the religious world.

The Smyrnian remnant, and the Laodicean populace are combining, and they will speedily work with one accord against the church of the livingGod, the pillar and the ground of the truth. If the gifts of the Spirit be now restored to the faithful, it will drive the cold and the lukewarm into the fury and fever of passion and persecution. Even now time moves too slowly for the speed of their wrath, and good ancient forms are too reluctant. Like the whirlwind pent up, it will burst forth with the more awful violence when the time comes; and then it will be seen whether I be a fool, or God hath given me wisdom to discern the sign of the times.

If these things be true, and the state of the church, even of the most reputable part of it, be so desperate and near unto judgment, it is high time that we should betake ourselves to point out what is the clear and manifest cause of the disease, and what is the safe and certain remedy. These follow in succession, delivered by him who loveth his church, and gave himself a ransom for her, who is the chief Physician, and possesseth the balm that is in Gilead, and hath borne our sins and carried our diseases. To him therefore presenting the cause and remedy of our estate, let us give the more earnest heed.

3. The Cause of the Evil.

The cause of the evil condition of the Laodicean church is expressed in these words: "Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked" (iii. 17). This full and fine delineation of a soul embedded in the world, and satisfied with itself, doth at the same time reveal the cause, that resting in half measures of truth, and desire of making contraries meet, to which the angel of this church, and with him his people, were addicted: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon" (Matt. vi. 24). He striveth to reconcile these contraries, which is impossible; and not seeking first the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness, he is in danger of losing it altogether. His devotedness to the world, and his satisfaction to be in such good standing with it, produce incapacity to receive the truth of God, by darkening the eye of the mind, and working insensibility

to holiness, by hardening the heart and bribing the conscience with the approbation and flatteries of mortal men, as it was spoken by the same Divine Preacher: "The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness" (Matt. vi. 22, 23). The same effect is gradually produced in the Christian church by the love of the world, which had been produced in the nations in the time of Paul, which stood not much further from the primitive times of the patriarchal, than we do from the primitive times of the Christian faith; and before the end the same words will describe our state, which in Paul's mouth described theirs: "Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart" (Eph. iv. 18). It is true that in this land of ours, where a Christian code of laws and manner of worship are established, and corresponding customs and feelings have arisen to defend them, the blindness of the mind doth not exhibit itself in the same form of lasciviousness and lust which Paul describes the heathens to have been overspread withal; but it doth produce the same incapacity of the mind for the discernment, and the admiration of moral and spiritual truth. The soul of man, through much business with this world, hath come to be disabled for any heavenly communion. Their daily work is so heavy upon men, to maintain life is so expensive, the mind is so harassed and occupied with almost necessary cares, that there hardly liveth either the desire, or the capacity of higher thoughts;insomuch that I know not whether to weep or to be angry at the incapacity which I find in men to enter into any idea, or to entertain any discourse of an ideal or spiritual kind. Controversy where persons are concerned, eloquence which presenteth a succession of figures to the fancy, discourse which concerneth customs religious or irreligious; or expoundeth systems of doctrine which can be referred to a book, as the Confession, or the Catechism, are all which the people hear, and almost all which they are capable of hearing. And why so? Because their