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2. The fame thing fhews the danger of error, as well as ignorance. Among many loofe and pernicious principles, which are zealoufly fpread, and blindly embra ced in this age, one of the moft prevailing and dangerous is, the innocence of error. "O, fay fome, every man is "to enquire freely, and each will embrace what appears "to him to be the truth. It is no matter what a man be"lieves, if his life be good. Even he who miftakes, may be as acceptable to God as his oppofite, if he is equally fincere." Now there is no doubt, that liberty to enquire freely, is an ineftimable bleffing, and impartiality in religious enquiries an indifpenfible duty. But the above maxim becomes falfe and dangerous by being carried an exceffive length; and it is carried to this ex, cefs by the favor of two fuppofitions, which are falfe and groundless. The maxim is applied frequently to justify an open and virulent oppofition to the most important truths of the gofpel; nay, fometimes, even a denial of all religion, natural and revealed. To be able to apply it thus, it is neceffary to fuppofe that falfe opinions will have as good an influence upon the heart as true. If this is the cafe, the boafted privilege of free enquiry is not worth having, and all the labor beftowed on the fearch of truth is entirely thrown away. Another fuppofition contained in the above maxim is, that a perfon may be as fincere in embracing grofs falfhoods, as in adhering to the truth. If this be true, our Creator hath not given us the means to diftinguifh the one from the other, which is the highest impeachment both of his wifdom and goodness.

Such perfons do not confider, that a corrupt inclination in the heart brings a bias on the judgment, and that when men do not like to retain God in their knowledge," he frequently in his righteous judgment, gives them up to a reprobate mind. Nay, when they reject his truth from an inward hatred of its purity, he is faid to fend them ftrong delufions," as in the following paffage: " Be"caufe they received not the love of the truth, that they might be faved, for this caufe God fhall fend them ftrong delufion, that they fhould believe a lie, that they "all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had

x.

pleasure in unrighteoufnefs." But the nature of regeneration will ferve, in a peculiar manner, to frew the danger of error. If men form wrong notions of God, if they love and worthip, and refemble a falfe God, they cannot he renewed, they are not like, and therefore unfit for the prefence of, the true. Be not deceived, he cannet deny himself, and therefore "there is no fellowship of "righteoufnefs with unrighteoufhefs, no communion of light with darknefs, no concord of Chrift with Belial†.”

I muft here, to prevent miftakes, obferve that this ought, by no means, to be extended to differences of fmaller moment, under which I rank all thofe which regard only the externals of religion. I am fully convinced, that many of very different parties and denominations are building upon the one "foundation laid in Zion" for a firmer's hope, and that their distance and alienation from one another in affection, is very much to be regretted. Many will not meet together on earth for the worship of God, who fhall have but one temple, where all the faithful, "from the eaft, and from the weft, from the north, and "from the fouth, fhall fit down with Abraham, and Ifaac, "and Jacob, in the kingdom of their" eternal "Father." But after all, I muft needs alfo believe, that it is poffible to make fhipwreck of the faith. This appears plainly from the following, as well as many other paffages of fcripture: "But there were falfe prophets alfo among the people, even as there fhall be falfe teachers among you, "who privily fhall bring in damnable herefies, even de"nying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon "themfelves fwift deftructiont." If any take up falfe notions of God, or expect fanctification and eternal life in any other way than he hath pointed out in his word, though they may now build their hope on a fond imagination that he is fuch an one as themfelves, they fhall at laft meet with a dreadful difappointment in this awful fentence, "Depart from me, I know ye not, ye workers of iniquity."

2 Theff. ii. fo, 11, 12. † 2 Cor. vi. 149.15. 2 Pet. ii. 1.

SECT. II.

There must be a discovery of the infinite glory of God.

IN

N the fecond place, As there must be a difcovery of the real nature, fo alfo of the infinite glory of God. He must not only be seen to be just fuch a being as he really is, but there must be a fenfe of the infinite worth, beauty, and perfection of his character. These two things, though intimately connected, are yet fo diftinct from one another, as to deserve to be separately confidered. The first is neceffary, but it is not fufficient alone, or by itself. There can be no true religion, unless there be a discovery of the real nature of God. But though there be a knowledge of what God is, unlefs there be alfo a discovery of the excellence and glory of this nature, he can never be the object of efteem and love. It is one thing to know, and another to approve; and, whilft this laft is not the cafe; whatever we may know or affirm, or be perfuaded of, with relation to the Supreme Being, we do not know him to be God, nor can poffibly glorify him as God. This momentous truth we may furely comprehend, by what is analogous to it in our experience, between created natures. Speculative knowledge and love are by no means infeparable. Men may truly know many things which they fincerely hate; they may hate them even because they know them and when this is the cafe, the more they know them they will hate them with the greater virulence and rancor. This not only may, but always must take place, when natures are oppofite one to another, the one finful, for example, and the other holy. The more they are known, the more is their mutual hatred stirred up, and their perfect oppofition to each other becomes, if not more. violent, at least more fenfible.

We have little reason to doubt, that the fallen angels, thofe apoftate fpirits, have a great degree of fpeculative knowledge. I would not, indeed, take upon me to af firm that they are free from error and mistake of every kind, yet it feems highly probable that they have a clear, though, at the fame time, a terrible apprehenfion of

"what" God is; for they have not the fame opportunities, or the fame means of deceiving themselves, that we have in the prefent ftate. But do they love him, or fee his excellence and glory? Very far from it. They believe and tremble; they know God, and blafpheme. The more they know of him, the more they hate him; that is to fay, their inward, native, habitual hatred is the more trongly excited, and the more fenfibly felt.

The cafe is much the fame with fome finners, when firft awakened, and it continues to be the fame fo long as they are kept in bondage and terror. They have an awful view of the holinefs of God's nature, of the ftrictnefs of his law, and the greatness of his power. This is directly levelled against their own corrupt inclinations, and carries nothing with it but a fentence of condemnation against them: "Curfed is every one that continueth not

in all things which are written in the book of the law, to "do them*." This brings forth their enmity, which before perhaps lay hid. It is remarkable that fome perfons of loose and disorderly lives, will fometimes maintain, at ftated feafons, a profeffion of piety. So long as they can keep their confciences ftill and quiet by general indistinct notions of God, as very easy and gentle, no way inclined to punish, they think of him without averfion, nay, will go through fome outward forms with apparent fatisfaction and delight. Their notion of divine mercy is not a rea> dinefs to pardon the greatest finner on repentance, but a difpofition to indulge the finner, and wink at his continuance in tranfgreffion. No fooner are fuch perfons brought to a discovery of the real character of a holy God, than their thoughts of him are entirely changed. They have gloomy views of his nature, and harth thoughts of his providence; they fret at the ftrictnefs of his law, and, as far as they dare, complain of the tyranny of his government. Their fentiments are the fame with thofe expreffed by the men of Beththemefh: "Who is able to ftand before this "holy Lord God, and to whom fhall he go up from ust."

VOL. I.

* Gal. iii. 10,

B b

Sam. vi. 20.

I cannot help obferving, that here we are, if I may fpeak fo, at the very fountain-head of error. What is it lfe that makes many frame to themselves new and flattering schemes of religion, that makes them imagine a God fo extremely different from that holy Being he is reprefented in his own word? When men will not conform their practice to the principles of pure and undefiled religion, they scarce ever fail to endeavor to accommodate religion to their own practice. Are there not many who cannot endure the reprefentation of God as holy and jealous, which is given us in fcripture? With what violence do they oppofe themfelves to it by carnal reasonings, and give it the most odious and abominable names? The reafon is plain. Such a view of God fets the oppofition of their own hearts to him in the ftrongeft light. Two things oppofite in their nature cannot be approved at once, and, therefore, the conféquence is, God or themfelves must be held in abhorrence. But we have reafon to bless God, that their refiftance to the truth is only a new evidence and illuftration of it, fhewing that "the carnal "mind is enmity against God; for it is not fubject to the "law of God, neither indeed can be*" And as this enmity to God difcovers itself in oppofition to his truth on earth, it will become much more violent, when further refiftance is impoffible. When an unregenerate finner enters upon a world of fpirits, where he has a much clearer fight and greater fenfe of what God is, his inherent enmity works to perfection, and he blafphemes like those devils with whom he muft forever dwell.

From all this it will evidently appear, that there must be a discovery of the glory and beauty of the divine nature, an entire approbation of every thing in God, as perfectly right and abfolutely faultlefs. It is felf-evident, that without this, there cannot be a fupreme love to God, in which true religion properly confifts; no man can love that which doth not appear to be lovely. But I further add, that this is abfolutely néceflary to the very beginning of the change, or the foundation on which it is built. It

* Rom. viii. 7.