eye of a Christian judgment. Or if they in fact be vifible and profeffing faints, yet, they are not admitted as fuch; no profeffion of true faintship, nor any manner of vifibility of it, has any thing to do in the affair.

There is one way to evade these things, which has been taken by fome. They plead, Although it be true, that the Scripture reprefents the members of the vifible church of Chrift as profeffors of godliness; and they are abundantly called by the name of faints in Scripture, undoubtedly because they were faints by profeffion, and in vifibility, and the acceptance of others; yet this is not with any reference to faving holinefs, but to quite another fort of faintship, viz. moral fincerity; and that this is the real faint fhip, discipleship, and godliness, which is profeffed, and visible in them, and with regard to which, as having an appearance of it to the eye of reason, they have the name of faints, difciples, &c. in Scripture.

It must be noted, that in this objection the vifibility is fuppofed to be of real faintship, discipleship, and godlinefs, but only another fort of real godliness, than that which belongs to those who fhall finally be owned by Chrift as his people, at the day of judgment.

To which I answer, This is a mere evafion; the only one, that ever I saw or heard of; and I think the only one poffible. For it is certain, they are not profeffors of fanctifying grace, or true faintship: The principle proceeded on, being, that they need make no pretence to that; nor has any vifibility of faving holiness any thing to do in the affair. If then they have any holinefs at all, it must be of another fort. And if this evafion fails, all fails, and the whole matter in debate must be given up. Therefore I defire that this matter may be impartially confidered and examined to the very bottom; and that it may be thoroughly inquired, whether this distinction of thefe two forts of real Chriflianity, godliness, and holiness, is a diftinction, that Chrift in his word is the author of; or whether it be an human invention of fomething which the New Teftament knows nothing of,

devised to serve and maintain an hypothefis. And here I defire that the following things may be observed:

1. According to this hypothefis, the words faints, difciples, and Chriftians, are used four ways in the New Teftament, as applied to four forts of perfons. (1.) To those that in truth and reality are the heirs of eternal life, and that shall judge the world, or have indeed that faintship which is faving. (2.) To those who profess this, and pretend to and make a fair fhew of a fupreme regard to Christ, and to renounce the world for his fake, but have not real ground for these pretences and appearances. (3.) To those who, although they have not faving grace, yet have that other fort of real godliness or faintfhip, viz. maral fincerity in religion; and fo are properly a fort of real faints, true Chriftians, fincerely godly perfons, and difciples indeed, though they have no faving grace. And (4.) to those who make a profeffion and have a vifibility of this latter fort of fincere Christianity, and are nominally fuch kind of faints, but are not fo indeed. So that here are two forts of real Chriftians, and two forts of vifible Chriftians; two forts of invifible and real churches of Chrift, and two forts of visible churches. Now will any one that is well acquainted with the New Teftament fay, there is in that the leaft appearance or fhadow of fuch a four-fold ufe of the words, faints, difciples, &c. It is manifeft by what was observed before, that these words are there used but two ways; and that thofe of mankind to whom these names are applied, are there diftinguished into but two forts, viz. Those who have really a faving interest in Chrift, fpiritual conformity and union to him, and those who have a name for it, as having a profeffion and appearance of it. And this is further evident by various reprefentations, which we there find of the vifible church; as in the company of virgins that went forth to meet the bridegroom, we find a distinction of them into but two forts, viz. The wife that had both lamps and oil; and those who had lamps indeed like the wife virgins (therein having an external fhew of the fame thing, viz. oil), but really had no oil;

fignifying that they had the fame profeffion and outward fhew of the fame fort of religion, and entertained the fame hopes with the wife virgins. So when the visible church is reprefented by the hufbandman's floor, we find a diftinction but of two forts, viz. the wheat and the chaff. So again, when the church is compared to the husbandman's field, we find a distinction but of two forts, the wheat and the tares, which (naturalists obferve) fhow or appear exactly like the wheat, till it comes to bring forth its fruit; representing, that thofe who are only visible Chriftians, have a vifibility or appearance of the nature of that wheat, which fhall be gathered into Chrift's barn; and that nature is faving grace.

2. It is evident, that those who had the name of difciples in the times of the New Teftament, bore that name with reference to a vifibility and pretence of the fame relation to Chrift, which they had who fhould be finally owned as his. This is manifeft by John viii. 30, 31. "As he spake these words, many believed on him. "Then faid Jefus to thofe Jews which believed on "him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my

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difciples indeed." (Compare Luke xiv. 25, 26, 27. and John xv. 8.) The phrafe, difciples indeed, is relative; and has reference to a vifibility, pretence, or name, only, which it is fet in oppofition to, and has a reference to that name and visibility that thofe, who then bore the name of difciples, had; which makes it evident, that those who then bore the name of difciples, had a vifibility and pretence of the fame difcipleship Chrift fpeaks of, which he calls true difcipleship, or difcipleship indeed: For true difcipleship is not properly fet in oppofition to any thing elfe but a pretence to the fame thing, that is not true. The phrafe, gold indeed, is in reference and oppofition to fomething that has the appearance of that fame metal, and not to an appearance of brafs. If there were another fort of real discipleship in thofe days, befides faving difcipleship, persons might be Chrift's difciples indeed, or truly (as the word in the original is)

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without continuing in his word, and without felling all that they had, and without hating father and mother and their own lives, for his fake. By this it appears, that thofe who bore the name of disciples in those times were diftinguished into but two forts, difciples in name or vifibility, and difciples indeed; and that the vifibility and profeffion of the former was of the discipleship of the latter.

3. The fame thing is evident by 1 John ii. 19. “They "went out from us, because they were not of us: If "they had been of us, they would no doubt have "continued with us." The words naturally fuggeft and imply, that thofe profeffing Chriftians, who at last proved falfe, did, before they went out, feem to belong to the fociety of the true faints, or thofe endued with perfevering grace and holiness; they feemed to be of their number, i. e. They were fo in pretence and vifibility, and fo were accepted in the judgment of charity.

4. The name and visibility, that nominal or vifible Chriftians had in the days of the New Teftament, was of faving Chriftianity, and not of moral fincerity; for they had a name to live, though many of them were dead, Rev. iii. 1. Now it is very plain what that is in religion which is called by the name of life, all over the New Teftament, viz. faving grace; and I do not know that any thing else, of a religious nature, is ever so called.

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5. The vifibility, that visible Chriftians had of faintfhip in the Apofles days, was not of moral fincerity, but gracious fincerity, or faving faintfhip: For they are spoken of as being visibly of the number of thofe faints who fhall judge the world, and judge angels. 1 Cor. vi. 1, 2, 3. any of you, having a matter against an"other, go to law before the unjust, and not before "the faints? Do ye not know, that the faints ball "judge the world? And if the world fhall be judged "BY YOU, are ye unworthy to judge the fmalleft "matters? Know ye not that IVE fhall judge angels? These things do manifeftly imply, that if the Chriftiag

Corinthians were what they fuppofed they were, and what they profeffed to be, and what they were accepted to be, they were fome of thofe faints who at the day of judgment fhould judge angels and men.

6. That the vifibility was not only of moral fincerity, but faving grace, is manifeft, because the Apoftle speaks of vifible Chriftians as vifible "members of Christ's "body, of his flesh, and of his bones, and one spirit "with him, and temples of the Holy Ghoft," Eph. v. 30. and I Cor. vi. 16. 19. And the Apoftle Peter fpeaks of vifible Chriftians as those who were vifibly fuch righteous perfons as fhould be faved; and that are diftinguished from the ungodly, and them that obey not the goSpel, who fall perish. 1 Pet. iv. 16, 17, 18. "Yet if any 66 man fuffer as a Chriftian, let him not be ashamed, but "let him glorify God on this behalf. For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God; "and if it firft begin at US," (us Chriftians, comprehending himfelf, and those to whom he wrote, and all of that fort) "what fhall the end of them be that obey "not the gofpel of God? And if the righteous fcarcely "be faved, where fhall the ungodly and finners appear?"

7. That the vifibility was not merely of moral fincerity, but of that fort of faintship which the faints in heaven have, is manifeft by this, that they are often fpoken of as vifibly belonging to heaven, and as of the fociety of the faints in heaven. So the Apoftle in his Epistle to the Ephefians fpeaks of them as vifibly of the fame household or family of God, a part of which is in heaven. Chap. ii. 19. "Now therefore ye are no more ftrangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the "faints, and of the household of God." Together with the next chapter, ver. 15. "Of whom the whole family

"in heaven and earth is named." Where the context and continuation of difcourfe demonftrates, that he is ftill speaking of the fame family or household he had fpoken of in the latter part of the preceding chapter. So all visible Christians are spoken of as vifibly the children of the church which is in heaven. Gal. iv. 26. "Jeru