duty, upon Gentile converts, was particularly erroneous ; fince, by a decree of the infpired churchat Jerufalem, they were exeemed from the neceflity of circumcifion, Acts xv.

The recommending of this, however, was not what the apostle accounted the worst office, to the churches, of thefe Judaifing teachers;-their making circumcifion abfolute neceffary, in order to mens juftification; or, to their giving proper evidences of a juftified ftate, was the fake-the deadly fnake in the grafs.--That they did fo, appears from what teachers of the fame flamp argued with the Chriftians at Antioch, faying, "Except. "ye be circumcifed, after the manner of Mofes,

ye cannot be faved," Acts xv. I. And that Paul confidered this doctrine in a moft pernicious Mght, appears from his ftrong declaration in the preceding context, "Behold I Paul fay unto you, that if "ye be circumcifed, Chrift fhall profit you no

thing," Gal. v. 2. That is, If ye, by circumcifion, as a mean, or inftrumental condition, feek or expect an intereft in juftification, you can have no profit through the fatisfaction of Chrift; for the exercife of faith is the alone mean whereby. fuch profit can be reaped and enjoyed; or, wherewith it is infeparably connected in the treaty of reconciliation Befides, circumcifion, being an inftitution of the ceremonial law, was a virtual obligation upon men to abide by the Old Teftament deconomy, though doing fo was utterly incompatible with their adherence to the gofpel plan; " For, "I teftify again (faid the apoftle) to every man "that is circumcifed, that he is a debtor to do the "whole law," Gal. v. 3. So that the practical rejection of God's method of grace was, in our a poffle's view, an inevitable confequence of that doctrine

G.6

doctrine which the Judaifing teachers urged with fo much zeal upon the churches of Galatia.

Nor is this all, for, from the courfe of Paul's reafoning, it would feem, he confidered circumcifion as fome how connected with the moral law itfelf, and with fuch conformity to it, as thefe teachers thought more than inftrumentally conditional of justification; "Chrift (fays he) is become of no effect unto you, whofoever of you are justified by the law," Gal. v. 4. Does not this make it more than probable, that the teachers, condemned in our text, led the Galatians to confider their own obedience as a joint meritorious condition, with the righteoufnefs which is by faith, of their pardon and acceptance?

Inculcating univerfal obedience to God's law is the duty of all gospel minifters; but, to make that obedience meritorious, in whole or in part, of jus ftification, is mifplacing and mifapplying the most wholefome doctrine; for, the only room it can occupy, upon gofpel principles, is, in the fecond place, as a fruit; by no means in the first, as the cause of juftification-And then, uniting fuch o bedience with the obedience of Chrift, fo far from correcting the error, makes it much worfe; for, fuch a daring coalition does manifeft prejudice to our Lord's most honourable righteoufnefs, as it infinuates an incompleteness of merit, which needs to be made perfect by the righteoufnefs of guilty creatures. And fuch a coalition is the more dangerous and enfparing to unwary fouls, as the bare mention of Chrift's obedience gilds the pill, and baits the hook, to the unquestionable ruin of those. who are unfkilful in the word of righteoufnefs, and babes only in fcriptural knowlege.

Though, therefore, men employed in the holy miniftry fhould occafionally touch at all the doctrines

trines of the word, if they are at no pains to diftinguish between one thing and another, and to keep each in its proper place, they may be no lefs troublers of the church of God, than if doctrines were taken from, or added unto, the infpired fyftem, by their incautious hands.

3. Office-bearers may trouble the church by laxnefs in communion, and oppreffive meafures in the exercife of difcipline and government.

With regard to the former of thefe, no doubt, men, bearing office in the house of God, may err upon the oppofite hand, by rendering the terms of Chriftian communion narrower than ever Chrift er his apoftles did; that extreme may be vaftly troublefome to many ferious perfons; and the promoters of it, in fome degree, troublers of the church: but, by an unfcriptural laxnefs in Chriftian communion, all proper difference between the church and the world proportionally ceafeth. The former extreme circumfcribes, indeed, the church within too narrow bounds; but the latter, by blending the church and the world together, leaves no distinct view of either; no proper New Testament church at all.

The church of Ifrael was not numbered with the nations; and the New Teftament churches are every where fpoken of as different from the world, and oppofite to it; but, if the grofsly ignorant, the outwardly profane, the evidently immoral, are allowed to partake of church privileges, in common with true Chriftians, would not this, at once, undo the distinction which the Head of his church. hath been pleafed to make, and bring the world under the fame point of view with the church of Chrift?

Without pretending to the knowlege of mens hearts, office-bearers in God's houfe may eafily di

Ninguish

ftinguish one, who has a competent mcafure of Bible knowlege, from one who knows nothing of Christianity at all. And does it require any great degree of penetration to find out the difference between the moral and immoral, the fober and intemperate, the man that fweareth, and him that feareth an oath -Will any perfon, who reads the fcriptures, be at a lofs to fee which of thefe belongs to the world, and which to the church? Can he hesitate a moment in determining who is Belial's of the two, and who Chrift's ?

If, notwithstanding, they should be admitted promifcuously to the fame New Teftament privis leges, the ends of difcipline would be doubly marred, and the authors of fuch a folemn medly twofold troublers of the church: a practice of this kind would mar the edification of the ignorant, by lulling them afleep in the lap of carnal fecurity; and flattering their vain imagination that they were Chriftians indeed, becaufe partakers of Chriftian privileges: nor, by fuch a practice, would the edification of holy perfons prove lefs abortive: for, in proportion as the ignorant and profane are permitted to join in ordinances, and partake of privi leges, to which Chriftians have an exclufive right,

their communion is evidently interrupted; ualefs it be true, in oppofition to Paul's doctrine, that righteoufnefs may have fellowship with un" righteoufnefs; and light have communion with "darkness: that Chrift may have concord with "Belial; and he that believeth have part with an "infidel," I Cor. vi. 4.

Whatever mens ftations, therefore, in the church, and whatever their reputation in the world, if they are at no pains to diftinguish between the precious and the vile; nor between the portions which belong to different perfons, as they are faints or fin

ners;

ners; then, in the views, for the reafons mentioned, they would trouble the church wherein they bear office. To them it would be owing, should the moft worthlefs think themfelves injured, if ac cefs to church privileges was denied them; and to them owing, fhould Chrift's little flock be thereby ftumbled and offended.-Would not fuch officebearers have the blame of deceiving the former, and difcouraging the latter of caufing the one intermeddle, to their hurt, with things wherein they have no lot or part and obliging the other to withdraw from privileges wherein. they are fcripturally and favingly interested?

But, we faid, that office bearers might likewife trouble the church, by oppreffive measures in the exercife of difcipline and government. Though they have a right from Jefus Chrift to rule and govern; in other words, to put his laws, refpecting church rule and government, in execution; and to do fo without refpect of perfons: yet, if they should either ftretch the laws of the Head too far, or claim obedience from his members to laws of their own, which may be inconfiftent with the New Teftament plan of church oeconomy; fuch procedure, varnished over with whatever pretences, would it not trouble the church, and oppress her members? However extenfive the authority our Lord hath given his fervants, in managing his affairs upon earth; is not the lordship, over the confciences of his people, referved in his own hand?-Chriftians are, indeed, bound to obey those who have the · rule over them; but, that fuch obedience may flow from the faith of a divine authority, and not stand in the wifdom of men, they are to obey them only" in the Lord," Theff. v. 12. i es to obey, because they fee a fcriptural warrant intcrpofed in fupport of the obedience church officers call for.

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