Lord, Stand ye in the ways and fee, afk for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein; and ye shall find reft for your fouls.*

Godly Sincerity, as connected with external Obedience, con

fidered.

IN my other Piece, I have a few times ufed the term fincere, and its fubftantive fincerity. I have faid, that "fincerity is not the term of communion, but being conformed to the apostles' doctrine, and continuing fteadfastly therein." I have alfo faid, that "whatever we practise which is not according to the will of Chrift, is contrary thereto; although we be ever fo fincere in doing it." To this you reply, If I rightly conjecture, it exhibits a fentiment which is falfe in its nature, pernicious in its confequences, and a firft principle of your mistake refpecting clofe communion." Sir, if your conjecture be right, we are now in a fair way to get at the root of the difficulty. You however acknowledge the first part of the fentence," that whatever we practife which is not according to the will of Christ, is contrary thereto :" This, you fay, is very plain and good doctrine;' but when I added, although we be ever fo fincere, you fay, I prefent a difficulty. Really, Sir, it appears to me as you conftrue the paffage, it prefents a much greater difficulty: for, if an act were really difagreeable to the will of Chrift, and our performing it in fincerity would render it agreeable, we must fuppofe his will to be dependent on the fincerity of his creatures; if fo, his will cannot be a rule of conduct for us, but we must be governed by our own fincerity.

That we may not difpute about words rather than fentiments, it may be proper here to fettle the meaning Jer. vi. 16.

of the term fincere. You allow that the word is ambiguous in the customary use of it;' but conclude, as it is used in fcripture, it generally, if not invariably, implies or intends pure and upright affections of heart.' That it is ufed in this fenfe in the epiftle to the Philippians, will be granted; but, that it is ufed in fomewhat of a different fenfe by the apostle Peter, must also be acknowledged: For he speaks of the fincere milk of the word, which being of the neuter gender, does not include affections of any kind. These two, are perhaps the only inftances in fcripture, in which this adjective is ufed, except in the marginal reading.

But fhould it even be granted that the word, when ufed in fcripture, is conftantly ufed in the fense for which you plead; will you hence argue that I am obliged to use it in this fenfe? Have I not a right to ufe it according to common acceptation? Surely I have not mentioned godly, or fcripture fincerity. I have indeed annexed the adverb ever, to fincere; which you are pleafed to fay, extends to all kinds and to all degrees of fincerity." But have you, by the fair rules of criticism, a right to this conclufion? Moft certainly you have not. It will be allowed, that the term used will extend to the higheft degree; but by no means determines the kind or quality of fincerity.

Should you agree to meet a friend tomorrow evening at eight o'clock, and fhould fay, I will not fail of being there although it fhould be ever fo dark'-It might with as much propriety be argued, that this included all kinds of darknefs, natural, preternatural, moral, and fpiritual; as, that ever fo fincere includes all kinds of fincerity.

To prevent any mistake in future, I am willing to let you know how I understand the word, and how I wish to be understood when I ufe it. The plain, natural fignification of the word appears to be this--The honest perfuafion of the mind, according to the degree of light in the understanding; and in general is to be underftood in diftinction from hypocrify Thus, a man may be a fincere friend to the Federal Conftitution He may be a good man in a moral fenfe, and yet his fincere attach

ment to the laws of his country, may be the effect of his political fentiments, rather than his piety. Another man may fincerely believe the xxxix articles of the Church of England, and as fincerely believe that all the diffenters are wrong. I fhall not pretend to fay that this is godly fincerity, or that it is not; but I will 'venture to fay he may be a good man, and this may be his fincere opinion.

In farther remarking upon this part of the fubject you fay, Your words imply, that a perfon may, in the exercife of godly fincerity, act contrary to the will of Chrift.' In order to make a fatisfactory reply to this, it will be proper to inquire what is meant by the will of Chrift. When I ufe the term, I mean his WILL revealed in his word: For I know nothing of his will farther than he has therein made it known. It is a gen-.

eral maxim with Proteftants, that the word of God is a perfect rule of faith and practice. Therefore, to talk of things as being agreeable or difagreeable to the will of Chrift, in any other fenfe than as they are approved or difapproved by the word of God, is to talk merely upon the footing of conjecture. Hence, Sir, if you understand the will of Chrift in this fenfe, I freely acknowledge it to be my opinion, that a good man may fincerely act contrary to it. You may call this godly fincerity, or by any other name that you please.

If good men cannot be fincerely wrong, or in other words, fincerely erroneous, then all their errors and mistakes, must be confidered as agreeable to the will of Christ; or otherwife, as acts of criminal hypocrify! But you afk,' Is not godly fincerity the very foul and effence of conformity to Chrift?' I anfwer, it is impoffible to conform to the will of Chrift without fincerity, or uprightness of heart; but mere fincerity is by no means conformity to Chrift's will, with respect to pofitive inftitutions. It can only be confidered as a neceffary qualification for conformity. Under the Mofaic economy, a lamb for facrifice muft be without blemish; but the perfection of the lamb did not make it a facrifice, this only rendered it fuitable; but it was its being actually offered up. So with regard to our obeying any pofitive

obedience.

precept, fincerity is abfolutely neceffary to acceptable A man may be convinced that it is his duty to relieve a needy brother; and alfo fincerely determine at a convenient feafon to do it; yet certain circumstances may take place, fo as finally to prevent its being accomplished. That God may approve of his fincere intention, will not be difputed; but we can have fellowship in his charity no farther than we know it, which is only by his acting it out. It will be granted that Chrift judges the moral qualities of our actions by the intentions of the heart; but he has not given this as a rule to us, any farther than it discovers itfelf in the action. Chrift pronounces the man guilty of adultery, who looks on a woman criminally to luft after her; but we have no right, either by the laws of God or man, to charge any perfon with that crime, without the actual commiffion of it.

I conclude, that a good man may, in one period of life, fincerely believe that he is, acting according to the will of Chrift, and at another, as fincerely believe that what he then did, was never commanded, or enjoined by Chrift; but was the mere effect of education or tradition.

Nothing can bring the matter more familiarly into view, than the fubject now in difpute. We will fuppofe, that in the fincerity of your heart, you have defired to open a door for free communion with fome of the Baptifts; and as fincerity is the very effence of conformity to Chrift,' we muft conclude, in this particular you act agreeably to his will. On the other hand, the Baptifts to whom you make the friendly proposal, as fincerely believe, that it is not according to the will of Chrift, that they fhould communicate with you in your prefent fituation. This alfo contains the effence of conformity to Chrift.

Thus, Sir, if I understand your argument, this must be the conclufion; that it is the will of Chrift, that the Pædobaptifts fhould communicate with the Baptists; and at the fame time, it is his will, that the Baptifts fhould not communicate with them! I fhall take it for granted, that the Baptifts do in the fincerity of their

hearts, refufe to communicate with thofe whom they look upon as not baptized according to Chrift's inftitution. If this refufal be made with godly fincerity, (and who will dare to fay it is not ?) then according to your argument, it must be above every thing else pleasing to Chrift; equally fo, as communicating with other denominations at the table.

To illuftrate your doctrine of fincerity you afk, 'Would it be according to the will of Chrift, for a person to conform to your mode of baptifm, while he really thinks it would be contrary to the will of Chrift for him fo to do? To answer this, it will be neceffary first to inquire, whether the mode of baptifm practifed by us, is according to Chrift's revealed will? If not, neither our thinking, or not thinking, can poffibly make it fo. If it be acccording to his will, our thinking otherwife cannot alter it, unless his will is entirely dependent on the opinion of his creatures.

Again, you ask, Would it be according to the will of Chrift, for a person to neglect to have his children baptized in our mode, while he really thinks it is the will of Chrift for him thus to bring them to the ordinance?' Anfwer. If Chrift has any where declared it to be his will, that new-born infants fhould be dedicated to him, by sprinkling water upon them in the name of the facred Trinity, it can by no means be duty to neglect it. If not, it may with propriety be asked, Whe bath required this fervice at your hands?

But may we not farther inquire, Would it be according to the will of Chrift, for a person to neglect to have his male children circumcifed, while he really thinks that it is the will of Chrift that they should be?

Again, Would it be according to the will of Christ, for a perfon to neglect to bring his baptized infants to the communion, while he really thinks that it is his will that they should be brought ?* In fhort, to grant your argument, will not this be the confequence, that every thing which a pious perfon fincerely believes to be according to the will of Chrift, is according to it, however abfurd or inconsistent it may be ?

* Vide Pierce's Essay on giving the Eucharist to Children,