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that God is merciful; and confequently that he will 'pardon finners, upon their repentance and amendment: ' of life. Let us then confider this cafe impartially.

I think, there is no need of arguments to convince you, that you are a finner. Do but confider the natural tendency of your affections, appetites and paffions; and review the paft conduct of your life; and a demonftration of this fad truth will unavoidably ftare you in the face. Let any man enter into himself; and seriously confider the natural operations of his own mind; and he must neceffarily find, that inftead of a frequent and delightful contemplation of the perfections of the divine nature, inftead of a thankful acknowledgment of his obligations to the divine goodness and beneficence, and inftead of that fublime pleasure and fatisfaction, that should flow from the remembrance of his Creator and Benefactor, his affections are naturally following mean, low and unreafonable, if not vile and wicked entertainments and gratifications. He will find, that all communications with his glorious Creator are naturally painful and uneafy to him: while every trifling amusement, and the vilest sensual object of his thoughts, find a more eafy entrance, and a more peaceable reft in his foul. From hence it is most evident, that the heart is revolted from God; and that we have fubftituted the creature in his ftead, as the object of our pursuit and delight. And befides this; who are there among the beft of the children of men, whofe confciences will not charge them with innumerable actual tranfgreflions of the law of nature? From this view of the cafe, you mult therefore certainly find yourself in a state of moral pollution and guilt.

And can you in fuch a ftate as this, reflect upon a God of infinite purity and juftice with comfort and courage? Won't confcience fly in your face, and upbraid you with your guilt and danger? don't your reafon tell you that the great Creator and governor of the world is too holy to approve, and too juft to overlook fuch a fixed averfion to him; and fuch numerous fins and provocations against him, as you cannot but charge to your own account?

But God is merciful.' True, he is fo, to all proper objects of mercy; and in a way agreeable to the laws of his immutable justice and holinefs. But can you fuppofe, that God will give up his juftice and holiness, as a facrifice to his mercy, out of compaffion to those, who deferve no pity from him, to those who refuse the offers of his mercy in the Gofpel, because disagreeable to their finful defires and imaginations?

But Repentance will entitle the finner to pardon, without any other Atonement.' Are you fure of this? Certain it is, that mankind, have always, in all ages,. thought otherwife. What else was the meaning of those facrifices that have every where obtain'd; and what the meaning of those fuperftitious aufterities, and fevere penances, that have been fo commonly practis'd in the heathen world, if fome atonement befide repentance, was not thought neceffary to pacify an offended deity ? Confider, I intreat you, that as fin is contrary to the divine nature, it must be the object of God's difpleafure. As it is contrary to the rules of his governing the world, it must deferve punishment. If God be the rector and governour of the world, he muft have fome laws to govern by. If he has laws to govern by, they must have fome penalties to enforce them. If his laws have penalties annexed to them, thefe must be executed; or elfe they would be but fcare-crows, without truth or juftice. Lentreat you alfo to confider, how the repen, tance of a guilty criminal can answer the demands of juftice. What fatisfaction will our forrow for fin afford to the divine being? How will it repair the difhonour done to the perfections of his nature? How will it rectify our depraved appetites and paffions; and qualify us for the enjoyment of his favour? How will it vindicate his holinefs; and difcover to the rational world, his na turakaverfion to fin and finners? Or how will the fear of God's difpleafure be a fufficient reftraint to men's lifts and vitious appetites, if finners may fuppofe, that when they have gratified their lufts, and taken their fwing in fin, they can repent when they please; and thereby have an easy access to the favour of God? In a word, whitevidence. can you poffibly pretend to. from

the light of nature, that repentance only will fatisfy the divine juftice; and reconcile you to God?

But after all, were it even fuppofed that repentance would neceffarily give us a claim to mercy without any other fatisfaction to God's juftice, it must then be another fort of repentance, than you seem to fuppofe. You muft then allow, that this repentance must be a thorough change of heart and life. For you can hardly fuppofe, that we are qualified for God's favour, while all the powers of our fouls are in direct oppofition and aversion to him. And is this repentance in our power? Can we at pleasure renew our own fouls; and give ourfelves new affections, difpofitions, defires and delights? Can we change the bent and bias of our inclinations to the objects of fenfe, and bring ourfelves to love God above all things; and to take our chief delight and com placency in him? This must be obtain'd, in order to enjoy the favour of God. And yet it is manifefily out of our reach. It must be the effect of an almighty power..

I hope, you may now fee the neceflity of a Saviour, both to expiate your fin and guilt, which your repentance can never do; and to fanctify your depraved foul; and make you meet for the fervice and enjoyment of God. If thefe are obtain'd, you must be certainly and eternally fafe: but if you dare venture into eternity without them, I must needs fay you don't want courage.

You fee, I have addrefled you with an unreferv'd freedom and familiarity. I have overlook'd the distance of your character; and treated you as if we were in the fame itate of equality now, as we fhall quickly find ourfelves before the tribunal of our glorious Judge. The caule requires this at my hands; and I should have been unfaithful, I had almoft faid unmerciful to you, if I had not fail'd of the decorum, which would have been my duty to have obferv'd in any other cafe. I fhall therefore depend upon your candid interpretation of this unpo-. lifhed addrefs; and your kind acceptance of the faith ful defigns and defires of,

SIR,

Your most obedient

humble Servants,

LETTER II. Wherein a brief and general View is given, of the EVIDENCES of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION.

SIR,

You

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OU tell me, My letter had almost thrown you into a fit of the fpleen.' But I can't but hope, from your awful concern, left you meet with the con• fufion I have therein described,' that it will have a better effect. I acknowledge, that a pathetick decla. ⚫mation cannot be received for argument. And that, your faith must be built upon evidences, that will reach the understanding, as well as the fofter paffions of the foul.' But what evidence do you defire or want, of the truth of Chriftianity? Confider, Sir. Confult your books and your friends. Make your demands as large, as you or they can contrive. And whatever rational evidence you are pleased to ask for, fhall be at your fervice. I have myself with particular applicationbeen confidering, what reasonable evidence can poffibly be confulted or defired, which the glorious God has not. already given us, in confirmation of the Chriftian institution; and I find nothing wanting, which we are capable of receiving. And I can't but prefume, that if you likewife would impartially and in earnest put yourfelf upon the fame inquiry, you must meet with a full and compleat fatisfaction.

You will certainly acknowledge, that the great Creator is capable fome way or other to communicate his will to intelligent beings, with fufficient evidence that the revelation is from him. Now what I defire of you is to fit down, and confult upon some such means of doing this, as would ftrike your mind with the strongest conviction, obviate all your doubts, and give you the fulleft confirmation of the divine original of fuch a revelation. When you are come to a point, confider the credentials of Christianity and fee whether you can find what you yourself would demand, and what you suppose moft likely to give you fatisfaction..

Would you expect from such a revelation, a reasonable account of our first original? Look into the Mofaic hiftory of the creation; and there you will find, how the world, and how yourself originally sprang from the divine Fiat ; and in what manner we are the offspring of God.

Would you expect a narrative of fuch circumftances. of God's difpenfations towards us from the beginning, as would be correfpondent with our conftant experience and obfervation? The fame hiftory will inform you of thofe irregular affections, and vitiated appetites and paffions, which every man finds in himself; and which have brought fuch deftruction and mifery upon the world, in all its fucceffive periods, fince Adam's fall.

Would you expect, that there should be early intimations of the method of our recovery from the ftate of fin and guilt, which we had brought ourselves into by our apoftacy? You will there alfo find the gracious promife, that the feed of the woman fball break the ferpent's head; and deliver us from the deadly effects of his malicious temptation.

Would you defire to find a particular prediction of the promised Saviour, by whom we are to obtain a redemption; his lineage and defcent, the time, place and manner of his birth, the circumstances of his life, death and refurrection, a particular description of the nature, the subjects, and the continual progrefs of his kingdom? Read the prophecies of the Old Teftament; and read the history in the New; and you will find fuch a correfpondence and agreement, as will afford you matter of fullest fatisfaction, that they are both from God.

Would you expect, that there fhould be fome means, to keep the promised Saviour in the continued view of God's people, before his actual and perfonal manifeftation; and to keep alive their faith and hope in him? What were all their facrifices, their legal purifications, their priesthood, and all their long train of rites and ceremonies, but inflitutions purposely adapted to that end?

Would you expect repeated and renewed teftimonies from heaven, to the profeffing people of God, that their religion was from him; and that their faith and hope,

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