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God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.... Some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jesus (g)." "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto Salvation, to every one that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek (h)." "I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house; testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance towards God, and Faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ (i).' Belief or Faith being the condition upon which Salvation was offered both to Jews and Gentiles, and it being inconceivable that a just and merciful God would propose any but a practicable condition, it follows, that all to whom the Gospel has been made known since its first promulgation, have had it in their power to obtain eternal life through the precious blood of Christ. Those who deny this conclusion, must maintain that God offered Salvation to men upon a condition which it was impossible for them to perform; and that he inflicts punishment for the violation of a command, which they were absolutely unable to obey. Would

(g) Acts, c. II. v. 18 & 20. (h) Rom. c. 1. v.
(i) Acts, c. 20. v. 20 & 21.
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Would not this be to attribute to God a species. of mockery and injustice, which would be severely reprobated in the conduct of one man towards another?

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In the following quotations, all men, without distinguishing Jew and Gentile, are commanded and encouraged to believe the Gospel, by the promise of eternal Salvation, and condemnation is denounced against all who shall refuse to believe. John the Baptist came to bear witness. of the Light, that all men through him might believe (k):" "The Son of man must be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life (1):" "To Christ give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins (m):" "If ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins (n) :" "He that believeth on him, is not condemned; but he that believeth not, is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only

begotten Son of God (0)." ration to his Apostles was,

Christ's last decla"Ile that believeth,

and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not, shall be damned (p)." The doc

(k) John, c. 1. v. 7.
(m) Acts, c. Io. v. 43.
(•) John, c. 3. v. 18.

trine

(1) John, c. 3. v. 14 & 15.
(n) John, c. 8. v. 24.
(p) Mark, c, 16. v. 16.

that

trine which Paul and Silas preached was, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved (q);" and the Evangelists wrote their Gospels for the instruction of future ages, they might believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, and that believing they might have life through his name (r)." Thus men, without any discrimination or exception, were required to believe, and the reason assigned was, that they might he saved; but if all men were required to believe, that they might be saved, we again infer that Salvation was attainable by all.

"God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (s)." In this and many other passages of the New Testament, relating to the motive and design of Christ's Advent, God's love for the world is declared in general terms; and surely these texts are irreconcileable with the idea, of God's selecting out of mankind a certain number whom he ordained to save, and of his leaving the rest of mankind to perish everlastingly. How can God be said to love those to whom he denies the means of Salvation; whom he destines, by an irrevocable decree, to eternal misery? It

might

(9) Acts, c. 16. v. 31. (r) John, c. 20. v. 31. (s) John, c. 3. v. 16.

might be said, that God loved the individuals whom he delivered from the sentence of punishment; but it seems impossible to say, that he loved those,, to whom he would afford no assistance, and who, he knew, from want of that assistance, must inevitably suffer all the horrors of guilt and the pain of eternal punishment. "Whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother hath need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him (t)?" Can we then suppose that God sees his rational creatures not only in need, but obnoxious to death and misery, and yet refuses his aid to rescue them from impending ruin? The Gospel, instead of being a proof of God's "good-will towards men," would rather shew his determination, that they should add to their guilt, and increase their condemnation. Instead of raising us from a death in sin to a life of righteousness, it would be the inevitable cause of more heinous wickedness, and of sorer punishment, to the greater part of mankind. It was considered as an act of the greatest injustice to require the Israelites to make bricks, when no straw was given to them; and how then can we imagine that God calls upon men to believe and obey the Gospel, under the penalty of eternal misery,

(t) 1 John, c. 3. v. 17.

misery, when he denies them the possibility of belief and obedience? Does an earthly master punish his servant for not doing that which it was impossible for him to do? And shall we ascribe to God a conduct, which would be esteemed the height of cruelty in man! "Go ye, says Christ to his Apostles, into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature (u) :" here the precept is universal, without any limitation, any exception but is it to be supposed, that the blessings of that Gospel which was to be preached "to every creature in all the world," were necessarily confined to a few? that the Apostles should be commanded to promise to all, what God had irreversibly decreed should be enjoyed only by a small number?

Christ is represented as having died not only for those who are saved, but also for those who perish; and therefore we may conclude that he died for all: "Through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died (x);" "If thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died (y):" "He who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and

(u) Mark, c. 16. v. 15.

(*) 1 Cor. c. 8. v. II.

(y) Rom. c. 14. Y. 15.

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