hard struggle with his bashfulness before he could prevail on himself to speak freely to the doctor on the things of God. At length he gave him a simple relation of his own experience: this brought on a full explanation of the doctrine of faith, which Dr. Byrom received with wonderful readiness.

Mr. Wesley having recovered strength, began to move about among his friends. He went to Blendon, and to some other places in the country, and found, that the more he labored in the work of the ministry, the more his joy and happiness in God was increased. He was remarkably diligent, zealous, and successful wherever he went, seldom staying a night or two in any place, but several persons were convinced of the truth and converted to God. In this journey he met with the Rev. Mr. Piers, and on the 9th of this month, in riding to Bexley, spake to him of his own experience, with great simplicity, but with confidence. He found Mr. Piers ready to receive the faith. Greatest part of the day was spent in the same manner, Mr. Bray, who was with Mr. Wesley, relating the dealings of God with his own soul, and showing what great things God had done for their friends in London. Mr Piers listened with eager attention to all that was said, made not the least objection, but confessed that these were things which he had never experienced. They then walked and sung, and prayed in the garden: he was greatly affected, and testified,his full conviction of the truth, and desire of finding Christ. "But," said he, "I must first prepare myself by long exercise of prayer and good works."

The day before Mr. Wesley and Mr. Bray arrived at Blendon, Mr. Piers had been led to read the homily on justification, by which he was convinced that in him, by nature, dwelt no good thing. This prepared him to receive what these messengers of peace related, concerning their own experience. He now saw that all the thoughts of his heart were evil, and that continually, forasmuch as whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

June the 10th. He became earnest for present salvation; he prayed to God for comfort, and was encouraged by reading Luke v. 23. “Whether is it easier to say, thy sins be forgiven thee, or to say, rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy) I say unto thee arise, and take up thy bed and go unto thine house," &c. Mr. Wesley and Mr. Bray now conversed with him on the power of Christ to save, and then prayed with him; they afterwards read the 65th Psalm, and all of them were animated with hope in reading, "Thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and receivest unto thyself; he shall dwell in thy court, and shall be

he received the appellation of Doctor, by which he was always known; but reducing himself to narrow circumstances by a precipitate marriage, he supported himself by teaching a new method of writing Short hand, of his own invention; until an estate devolved to him by the death of an elder brother. He was a man of ready, lively wit, of which he gave many humorous specimens, whenever a favorable opportunity tempted him to indulge his disposition. He died in 1763; and a collection of his Miscellaneous Poems was printed at Manchester, in two volumes octavo, 1773.

satisfied with the plenteousness of thy house, even of thy holy temple. Thou shalt show us wonderful things in thy righteousness, O God of our salvation! Thou art the hope of all the ends of the earth," &c. In the continuance of these exercises alternately, of conversing, reading, and praying together, Mr. Piers received power to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and had peace and joy in believing.

The next day Mr. Piers preached on death: and in hearing him, Mr. Wesley observes, "I found great joy in feeling myself willing, or rather desirous to die." This however did not proceed from impatience, or a fear of the afflictions and sufferings of life, but from a clear evidence of his acceptance in the beloved. After sermon they went to the house of Mr. Piers, and joined in prayer for a poor woman in deep despair: then going down to her, Mr. Wesley asked whether she thought God was love, and not anger, as Satan would persuade her? He showed her the gospel plan of salvation; a plan founded in mercy and love to lost, perishing sinners. She received what he said with all imaginable eagerness. When they had continued some time together in prayer for her, she rose up a new creature, strongly and explicitly declaring her faith in the blood of Christ, and full persuasion that she was accepted in him.

Mr. Wesley remained weak in body, but grew stronger daily in faith, and more zealous for God and the salvation of men, great power accompanying his exhortations and prayers. On the evening of this day, after family prayer, he expounded the lesson, and one of the servants testified her faith in Christ and peace with God. A short time afterwards the gardener was made a happy partaker of the same blessings. Mr. Piers also began to see the fruit of his ministerial labors. Being sent for to visit a dying woman in despair, because she had done so little good and so much evil; he declared to her the glad tidings of salvation by grace, and showed her, that if she could sincerely repent and receive Christ by a living faith, God would pardon her sins and receive her graciously. This opened to her view a solid ground of comfort; she gladly quitted all confidence in herself, to trust in Jesus Christ, and she experienced her faith in him by a calm, cheerful, triumphant expectation of death. Her fears and agonies were at an end; being justified by faith she had peace with God, and only entered farther into her rest, by dying a few hours after. The spectators of this awful joyful scene, were melted into tears, while she calmly passed into the heavenly Canaan, and brought up a good report of her faithful pastor, who under Christ saved her soul from death.

The next day, June the 14th, Mr. Wesley returned to London, and was informed that his brother, Mr. John Wesley, was gone to Hernhuth. The news, he observes, surprised, but did not disquiet him. He staid only two days in London, and then returned with J. Delamotte to lendon, and from thence to exley. Eere his complaints returned upon him, and he was obliged to keep his bed. "Desires of death," says he, "often rose in ne, which I labored to check, not daring to form any wish concerning it." His pains abated; and on the 21st, I find him complaining, that several days

had elapsed, and he had done nothing for God; so earnestly did he desire to be incessantly laboring in the work of the ministry.

In this excursion Mr. Wesley was very successful in doing good; but he met with strong opposition to the doctrine of justification by faith alone, from William Delamotte, whom he calls his scholar, and from Mrs. Delamotte, who was still more violent against it than her son; both were zealous defenders of the merit of good works. Mr. Delamotte supposed, that if men were justified by faith alone, without any regard to works, then sinners obtaining this justification, and dying soon after, would be equal in heaven with those who had labored many years in doing good and serving God. But, said he, “It would Le unjust in God to make sinners equal with us, who have labored many years." The Jews of old reasoned in a similar manner concerning the reception of the Gentiles into the gospel church, on the same conditions and to the same privileges with themselves. Their disposition towards the Gentiles is beautifully described, and gently reproved, in the parable of the prodigal son. The cases indeed are not perfectly similar; the one relating to our state in heaven, the other to the blessings and privileges of the gospel in this life. Mr. Delamotte's conclusion, however, does not follow from the doctrine of justification by faith. As all men have sinned, so all men must be justified, or pardoned, and be admitted to a participation of gospel blessings, as an act of mere grace or favor; and the condition required of man, is, faith alone; but it is such a faith as becomes a practical principle of obedience to every part of the gospel, so far as a man understands it. Thus far all men, who hear the gospel, are equal; they must be pardoned and accepted by an act of grace or favor, and the same condition of receiving these blessings is required of every man, without any regard to his works, which are all sinful. Our state in heaven will be regulated by a different rule. All who are saved will not be treated as equal: Every man will be rewarded according to his works;" that is, according to his improvement in practical holiness, on gospel principles. Heaven will undoubtedly be a state of society; this appears evident, not only from some passages of Scripture, but from the faculties of men, which are formed for social intercourse, in order to obtain the highest degree of happiness. But in a state of society, the members occ py different ranks and degrees; there are certain honors and rewards to be bestowed: in heaven these will all be distributed in proportion to our works, and the conformity to Christ, to which we may attain in this life.

Mr. Delamotte, however, thought his conclusion good, and was animated with zeal against this new faith, as it was then commonly called. He collected his strong reasons against it, and filled two sheets of paper with them: but in searching the Scripture for passages to strengthen his arguments, he met with Titus iii. 5. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he hath saved us." This passage of Scripture cut him to the heart, destroyed all confidence in the specious reasoning he had used on this subject, and convinced him he was wrong. He

purned his papers, and began to seek in earnest that faith which he had before opposed.

Mrs. Delamotte continued her opposition. In reading a sermon, one evening in the family, Mr. Wesley maintained the doctrine of faith: Mrs. Delamotte opposed. "Madam," said Mr. Wesley, "we cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard: I received faith in that manner, and so have inore than thirty others in my presence." Her passion kindled; said she could not bear this, and hastily quitted the room.—Mr. Wesley here gives us some idea of his success in conversing and praying with the people. A month had now elapsed since his justification. A part of this time he had been confined by sickness, and was not yet able to preach. Notwithstanding this, more than thirty persons had been justified in the little meetings at which he had been present! Mrs. Delamotte was afterwards convinced of the truth, and cordially embraced it.

June the 30th, Mr. Wesley received the following letter from Mr. William Delamotte.

"Dear Sir,

"God hath heard your prayers. Yesterday about twelve, he put his fiat to the desires of his distressed servant; and glory be to him, I have enjoyed the fruits of his holy Spirit ever since. The only uneasiness I feel, is, want of thankfulness and love for so unspeakable a gift. But I am confident of this also, that the same gracious hand which hath communicated, will communicate even unto the end.-O my dear friend, I am free indeed! I agonized some time between darkness and light; but God was greater than my heart, and burst the cloud, and broke down the partition wall, and opened to me the door of faith.”

CONTAINING SOME ACCOUNT OF MR. CHARLES WESLEY'S PUBLIC MINISTRY.

If we consider how necessary the gospel is, to the present and future happiness of men, we shall readily acknowledge that a minister of it, occupies the most important office in society; and hence it becomes a matter of the utmost importance, that this office be filled with men properly qualified for it. Christianity is a practical science, the theory of its principles being only preparatory to the practice of those duties which it enjoins. A preacher therefore should not only understand the doctrines of the gospel, and be able to arrange them according to the natural order in which they are intended to influence the mind, and direct the conduct of life; but he ought to experience their influence on his own heart, an I be

daily conversant in a practical application of them to every duty which he owes to God and man. Here, as in every other practical art or science, principles and practice must be constantly united; they illustrate and confirm each other. Fundamental principles must first be learned; they must be applied to the heart, so as to awaken the conscience to a sense of the evil of sin, &c., and have a suitable influence on our actions. This first step in christian knowledge will prepare the mind for the second; and so on till we come to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. If a minister of the gospel be unacquainted with this practical application of the principles of the christian religion to his own heart and life, he is deficient in one of the most essential qualifications for his office, whatever may be the degree of his speculative knowledge.

The observations of a professor of divinity in a foreign university, en the qualifications of a gospel minister, appear to me so just and excellent, that I shall take the liberty to translate them, and present them to the reader.

"If," says he, "an evangelical pastor be only a voice, a voice erying in the temple, and nothing more, as many seem to think; if he be nothing, but a man who has sufficient memory to retain a discourse, and boldness sufficient to repeat it before a large congregation-If an evangelical pastor be only an orator, whose busiHess it is to please his audience and procure applause-then we have nothing to do, but to make the voice of our pupils as pleasing and sonorous as possible-to exercise their memory, and to give them a bold and hardened countenance, not to say impudent-to teach them a rhetoric adapted to the pulpit and our audiences; and by perpetual declamation, like the sophists of old, render them prompt and ready in speaking with plausibility on any subject, and to point out to them the sources from whence they may draw matter for declamation. But the pastor whom we should form in our academies, is something much greater and more divine than all this. He is a man of God, who is influenced by nothing but high and heavenly thoughts; of promoting the glory of God, of propagating the kingdom of Christ, and destroying the power of satan; of obtaining daily a more perfect knowledge of that sublime science on which eternal happiness depends, of more widely diffusing it, and more efficaciously persuading others to embrace it; of restoring fallen Christianity, binding up the wounds of the church, and healing her divisions.-He is a man whose business it is to perform and direct all the parts of divine worship before the whole church; to offer to God, the desires, the prayers, the praises and thanksgivings of the people assembled.-This pastor is a man divinely called, an ambassador of God sent to men, that he may bring as many souls as possible, from darkness to light, from the world to Christ, from the power of satan to God, from the way of perdition to the way of salvation: a man who, by public preaching and private instruction, faithfully explains the word of God, especially the doctrines of salvation contained in it, and by the simplicity and clearness of explanation adapts them to the capacity of every individual person, O tremendous einployment!" &c.*

*Werenfelsius in Dissert. de Scopo Doctoris Theologi,