Yet a little while and you shall be endued with power from on high, whereby you may purify yourselves, even as he is pure, and be holy, as he which hath called you is holy.

Wednesday 25, From those words, All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, I took occasion to speak of the ordinances of God, as they are means of grace.

Although this expression of our Church, means of grace, be not found in Scripture, yet if the sense of it undeniably is, to cavil at the term, is a mere strife of words.

But the sense of it is undeniably found in Scripture. For God hath in Scripture ordained prayer, reading, or hearing, and the receiving the Lord's supper, as the ordinary means of conveying his grace to man. And first, prayer: For thus saith the Lord, Ask and it shall be given you. If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God. Here God plainly ordains prayer, as the means of receiving whatsoever grace we want: particularly that wisdom from above, which is the chief fruit of the grace of God.

Here likewise God commands all to pray who desire to receive any grace from him. Here is no restriction as to believers or unbelievers; but least of all, as to unbelievers; for such doubtless were most of those to whom he said, Ask and it shall be given you.

We know, indeed, that the prayer of an unbeliever is full of sin. Yet let him remember that which is written of one who could not then believe, for he had not so much as heard the gospel: Cornelius, thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.

Thursday 26, I shewed, concerning the Holy Scriptures, 1. That to search, i. e. read and hear them, is a command of God. 2. That this command is given to all, believers or unbelievers. 3. That this is commanded or ordained as a means of grace, a means of conveying the grace of God to all, whether unbelievers, such as those to whom he first gave this command, and those to whom faith cometh by hearing, or believers, who by experience know, that all Scripture is profitable, or a means to this end, that the

man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished to all good works.

me.

Friday 27, I preached on, Do this in remembrance of

In the ancient Church, every one who was baptized communicated daily. So in the Acts we read, they all continued daily in the breaking of bread, and in prayer.

But in later times, many have affirmed that the Lord's supper is not a converting, but a confirming ordinance.

And among us it has been diligently taught, that none but those who are converted, who have received the Holy Ghost, who are believers in the full sense, ought to communicate.

But experience shews the gross falsehood of that assertion, that the Lord's supper is not a converting ordinance. Ye are the witnesses. For many now present know, the very beginning of your conversion to God, perhaps, in some, the first deep conviction, was wrought at the Lord's supper. Now, one single instance of this kind overthrows the whole assertion.

The falsehood of the other assertion appears both from Scripture-precept and example. Our Lord commanded those very men who were then unconverted, who had not yet received the Holy Ghost, who, in the full sense of the word, were not believers, to do this in remembrance of him. Here the precept is clear. And to these he delivered the elements with his own hands. Here is example, equally indisputable.

Saturday 28, I shewed at large, 1. That the Lord's supper was ordained by God to be a mean of conveying to men, either preventing, or justifying, or sanctifying grace, according to their several necessities. 2. That the persons for whom it was ordained, are all those who know and feel that they want the grace of God, either to restrain them from sin, or to shew their sins forgiven, or to renew their souls in the image of God. 3. That inasmuch as we come to his table, not to give him any thing, but to receive what

soever he sees best for us, there is no previous preparation indispensably necessary; but a desire to receive whatsoever he pleases to give. And, 4. That no fitness is required at the time of communicating, but a sense of our state, of our utter sinfulness and helplessness: every one who knows he is fit for hell, being just fit to come to Christ, in this, as well as all other ways of his appointment.

Sunday 29, I preached in the morning at Moorfields, and in the evening at Kennington, on Titus iii. 8. and endeavoured at both to explain and enforce the Apostle's direction, that those who have believed, be careful to maintain good works. The works I particularly mentioned were, praying, communicating, searching the Scriptures, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, assisting the stranger, and visiting or relieving those that are sick or in prison. Several of our brethren of Fetter-lane being met in the evening, Mr. Simpson told them I had been preaching up the works of the law," Which," added Mr. V-, " we believers are no more bound to obey, than the subjects of the king of England are bound to obey the laws of the king of France."

Wednesday, July 2, I went to the Society. But I found their hearts were quite estranged.

Friday 4, I met a little handful of them, who still stand in the old paths. But how long they may stand, God knoweth, the rest being continually pressing upon them.

Wednesday 9, I came to an explanation once more with them all together; but with no effect at all.

Tuesday 15, We had yet another conference at large; but in vain, for all continued in their own opinions.

Wednesday 16, One desired me to look into an old book and give her my judgment of it; particularly of what was added at the latter end. This I found was, The Mystic Divinity of Dionysius, and several extracts nearly allied thereto, full of the same super-essential darkness. I borrowed the book, and going in the evening to Fetter-lane, read one of those extracts, to this effect:

"The Scriptures are good. Prayer is good. Communicating is good. Relieving our neighbour is good. But to one who is not born of God, none of these are good, but all very evil. For him to read the Scriptures, or to pray, or to communicate, or to do any outward work, is deadly poison. First let him be born of God. Till then, let him not do any of these things; for if he does, he destroys himself."

After reading this twice or thrice over, as distinctly as I could, I asked, "My brethren, is this right, or is it wrong?" Mr. Bell answered immediately, "It is right; it is all right. It is the truth; and to this we must all come, or we never can come to Christ." Mr. Bray said, "I believe our brother Bell did not hear what you read, or did not rightly understand." But Mr. Bell replied short, "Yes, I heard every word; and I understand it well. I say, it is the truth: it is the very truth: it is the inward truth."

Many then laboured to prove, that my brother and I laid too much stress upon the ordinances. To put which matter beyond dispute," I," said Mr. Bowes," used the ordinances twenty years, yet I found not Christ. But I left them off, only for a few weeks, and I found him then. And I am now as close united to him as my arm is to my body."

One asked, whether they would suffer Mr. Wesley to preach at Fetter-lane ? After a short debate, it was answered, "No. This place is taken for the Germans." Some asked, whether the Germans had converted any soul in England? whether they had not done us much hurt, instead of good, raising a division of which we could see no end? and whether God did not many times use Mr. Wesley for the healing our divisions, when we were all in confusion? Several roundly replied, "Confusion! What do you mean? We were never in any confusion at all." I said, "Brother Edmonds, you ought not to say so: because I have your letters now in my hands." Mr. Edmonds replied, "That

is not the first time I have put darkness for light, and light for darkness."

We continued in useless debate till about eleven. I then gave them up to God.

Friday 18, A few of us joined with my mother in the great sacrifice of thanksgiving; and then consulted how to proceed with regard to our poor brethren of Fetter-lane: We all saw the thing was now come to a crisis, and were therefore unanimously agreed what to do.

Sunday 20, At Mr. Seward's earnest request, I preached once more in Moorfields, on the work of faith, and the patience of hope, and the labour of love. A zealous man was so kind as to free us from most of the noisy, careless hearers (or spectators rather) by reading, meanwhile, at a small distance, a chapter in the Whole Duty of Man. I wish neither he nor they may ever read a worse book; though I could tell them of a better,-The Bible.

In the evening, I went with Mr. Seward to the love-feast in Fetter-lane. At the conclusion of which, having said nothing till then, I read a paper, the substance whereof was as follows:

"About nine months ago, certain of you began to speak contrary to the doctrine we had till then received:-The sum of what you asserted is this:

1. That there is no such thing as weak faith; that there is no justifying faith, where there is ever any doubt or fear, or where there is not, in the full sense, a new, a clean heart.

2. That a man ought not to use those ordinances of God, which our Church terms means of grace, before he has such a faith as excludes all doubt and fear, and implies a new, a clean heart.

"You have often affirmed, that to search the Scriptures, to pray, or to communicate, before we have this faith, is to seek salvation by works; and that till these works are laid aside no man can receive faith.

"I believe these assertions to be flatly contrary to the Word of God. I have warned you hereof again and again,