endeavour to transform themselves into so many angels of light.' And yet, if an angel from heaven were to teach you any other gospel than that which God himself hath taught you,' as he must be accursed of God, so he ought to be of you. The word and grace of God shall be sufficient for you,' if you are not wanting to them, and to yourselves. Christ gave outward or bodily sight to such as were blind in a literal sense. He also opened the eyes of the mind, and poured in a day of spiritual light on 'souls that sat in darkness, and the shadow of death.' 'I,' saith he, 'am the light of the world. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me.' Fix your eyes on this way, every step of which is rendered visible to you by his truth and light shining from thence, and on the eternal life to which it leads you. In this road, the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err.' The great principles necessary to salvation, 'God hath hid from the wise and prudent, and revealed them unto babes;' hid them from the learned and worldly wise, and revealed them to you, the simple babes and children of Christ Jesus. Did not the devil blind the eyes of our first parents, when he persuaded them to take a serpent for their teacher and guide, rather than God, in direct contradiction to the word of their Creator? When he led them out of the upward way of truth and obedience, that is, of common sense, into the downward way of ' pride and appetite? Will you, as they did, suffer the blind beast within to guide you? Instead of looking and going upright to God, as reasonable men should do, will you submit to crawl like that venomous worm to the devil? Were not the minds of your forefathers spiritually blind to common sense itself, when they worshipped stocks and stones, modelled by their own hands, and even devils? And are you less blind, if you fall down to the indwelling beasts of corrupt affections and foul imaginations, now that Christ hath come from heaven to shew you the vanity, the vileness, the danger, the misery, of following these more abominable idols? It is not the proud, the cruel, the lustful beast alone, that works in the unregenerate heart. There is also an evil spirit in possession of that heart, which gives its power to that beast, as it did to the serpent in the temptation of Eve, and which none but the Holy Spirit of Christ can drive out; and it is frequently of so obstinate a kind, that 'with

out fasting and prayer,' the dispossession is not to be effected.

If you know yourselves, and easily you may, to be but poor, weak, despicable beings, how can you be proud? On the other hand, if you take yourselves to be great and good beings, why then enslaved to this wretched world? Why then drenched in drunkenness and lust? Why liable to be undone by every pitiful temptation? If you inherit even the devil's blessing, to know good and evil, why turn you away from the good, and fly to embrace the evil? Supposing this to be your practice, most assuredly you want the aid of Christ to open your eyes, and by a greater miracle than that afforded to blind Bartimeus.

You love liberty; what, only that you may be wicked without fear of punishment! Were this possible, which God will never suffer it to be, it would, in you, quickly prove itself to be the most abject sort of slavery. You can have no master so tyrannical as your own will, no guide so dangerous as your own wish. If you come to be taught of Christ, you shall soon perceive, that he who committeth sin, is the servant, or slave, of sin : you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free indeed;' shall mortify the beast within you; shall dethrone your ugly tyrant, sin; shall shew you the honourable liberty of God's service, with the path of real happiness, and give you strength to walk steadily therein, till you arrive at its blessed end.

If he is pleased thus to instruct you, common sense will pronounce you worse than mad, in case you put yourselves into the hands, knowing them to be such, not only of very fallible, but most deceitful teachers: and whether they are or not, your Bible will inform you. Were you to make a plough or loom, having already a pretty good notion of both, and a master carpenter at hand to direct you, you would not quit him, and ask instructions from some boy, not half a year at the trade, especially if, on hearing this raw creature speak, you found he knew nothing of the matter. Now, as you have God himself to teach you religion, your madness in this case must be ten thousand times greater than in the former, should you trust your souls to ignorant and conceited pretenders, nay, to known cheats and deceivers, as guides to truth and happiness, when by the word of God you may so

easily try them, or at least their doctrines. If common sense hath not wholly forsaken you, it is impossible you can think of insulting the goodness and majesty of Heaven by preferring their folly and wickedness to his infinite wisdom. What, to trust the wretched quacks of opinion more than God! How impious, how damnable the stupidity, especially when you know their principles are directly contrary to those he hath taught you! In your worldly affairs you will not depend, as to the smallest concerns, on a known villain. You must therefore rate your souls lower than a single shilling, if you follow a more careless conduct in regard to them.

They who choose their own teachers, as too many do, under circumstances of ignorance and partiality, make themselves accountable for the soundness, or unsoundness, of the doctrines which they, their wives, and children are to hear. And what other directions can they have, either in choosing, or afterward listening to them, but the word of God? Should it be novelty, or worldly interest, or family connexions, or popularity, or the recommendation of a rich man, that guides their choice, they are by far more likely to pitch on an ass or wolf, than on any better sort of animal. If among electors there are some (and possibly not a few) of loose principles themselves, they will certainly give their voices to men of like mind, without caring much, how this may affect the simpler part of the flock. Take heed how ye hear,' saith Christ, whether in the pulpit, or in conversation. There is not a more deadly poison than that which is poured into the ear. This kills the very souls. Your itching ears are apt to heap to themselves teachers,' especially of new doctrines, whereas there can be nothing new in Christianity. All was, of old, fixed by the word of God, where every thing necessary or helpful to make a man wise unto salvation,' hath been provided and fully laid open. If you do not already know it, take it as an act of the tenderest charity towards you, and of conscientious duty to God, when I inform you, that a great number of those, in all denominations, who at present take upon them to teach you, are either grossly ignorant, or make it their business to spread opinions in matters of religion, not more contrary to one another, than to the plainest principles of Christianity; insomuch that

little else, but heresy, schism, dissension, hatred, confusion, and at last infidelity, can be gathered from the tares they are sowing throughout the patrimony of Christ, some part of which takes root among the good seed, even in the best soil. Yet howsoever unscriptural their opinions and doctrines may be, if they have been really ordained to the ministry by the church of Christ, their errors cannot hinder his sacraments to have their saving effects, though coming from their hands; for it is the Holy Spirit, and the answer of a good conscience' in you, which produce those effects, and not the soundness of principles, nor piety of the administrators. However, they should be sent from God, who take upon them to deliver to you these his inestimable gifts.

The church or body of Christ is one body; so is yours. How great would be your pain, if all your limbs were disjointed on the rack, and your flesh torn to pieces with pincers! And can you think Christ feels less sensibly through his spiritual body, while it is racked, torn, and crucified afresh by these dissensions, this variety of antichristian opinions, this implacable hatred, ever ready to pull out the sword, and kindle the faggot of one pretended Christian against another? He felt through his natural body on the cross, at least as keenly as ever man did in the like circumstances; yet this, with infinite pity and love for you, he sacrificed for his spiritual body, as dearer to him. Will you then outdo the cruelty of Caiaphas and Pilate in aiding these impostors to mangle this his most beloved body? Hear the great law of Christian peace, and at all times remember that Christ is the prince of peace.' If in the established religion of any country wherein you dwell, or but sojourn, every thing made necessary to your salvation by the word of God, is afforded, and nothing laid upon you contrary to that word, you are an enemy to Christian peace, if you do not conform to the aforesaid church. You ought to know, that the religion of Christ, like himself, is light in the human understanding, and love in the human heart. In the disputes, raised by the firebrands, of whom I have been warning you, there is nothing but darkness and confusion. In the divisions they make, nothing but hatred. Can hatred be the Spirit of Christ, who says to us all, by this shall all men

know, that you are my disciples, if you love one another;' observe, not, if you are loved, but if you love' one another? Can dissension be the spirit of unity among Christians? Can animosity be the bond of peace, which is to connect all the members of Christ to one another, and to their head? There is nothing more contrary to common sense.

It ought however considerably to strengthen your faith in the holy Scriptures, to see these false teachers therein foretold, and their characters so plainly drawn, that you can hardly mistake them. St. Paul, speaking to the bishops of Asia, and through them to us all, saith, 'grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them.' Therefore watch. There were,' saith St. Peter, false prophets of old among the Jewish people even as there shall be false teachers among you, who shall privily bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them,' both denying his divinity, and the purchase made of their souls by his blood; and many shall follow their pernicious ways, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of, and through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you.' It is, you perceive, the aim of all their arts, and deceitful discourses, to enrich themselves at the expense of your worldly substance, and even of your souls. It is another of their features, given by this prophetic painter, that they are presumptuous and self-willed; that they despise government, and are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.' It would be unreasonable to expect, that they who fear not God, should honour the king.' Accordingly, you find they are all rebels. It is another, that they speak evil of things they understand not.' There is no sort of men who know less of either religion or government, nor that take such foul-mouthed liberties with both; and yet, as Christ's kingdom is not of this world, the Spirit of God forbids us, even under a Nero, to deal in politics, or to resist the powers' that be providentially placed over us. 'Spots they are, and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings,' while over the dish and bottle in your feasts they spread about infidel opinions, enforced by profane jests, instead of arguments; beguiling unstable souls, going astray