in fome cafes not to hear or anfwer them, and though he denies them in their particular requests for their good, yet even then, the object of their request is answered, and that in a manner better for them than if they had obtained their defire in the particular fubject of their petition. The bible history of good men, is a hiftory of anfwers to prayer this might be fhown by the hiftory of Abraham, Jacob, Mofes, Samuel, David, Jehofhaphat, Hezekiah and many others recorded in the old teftament and the new. In many inftances, God gives the particular bleffings for which they pray, yea he always gives it unless the denial is a greater mercy. [Nov pofed to the legal spirit of natural men. legal fpirit, that it is one of the They are fo fixedly of this moft difficult things, that was evawakenings, to lead them even to er attempted with finners under apprehend what the doctrine is→→ what the terms of the finner's acwhat means they may be entitled ceptance with God are, and by to juftification thro Chrift. They do not conceive, that there can be without fomething commendable a way of acceptance with God, in themselves, as the grounds of it; or that Chrift will accept them, unless they do fomething beforehand, to conciliate his favour, and render themselves lefs unworthy of The prayer of faith is as accept- fuaded, that they have nothing to his notice. They cannot be able to God now as before the do, but to come, juft as they are, per. completion of the facred canon ; and good men in the prefent as the returning Prodigal, and caft in all their guilt and vilenefs, like well as the paft ages of the church, themfelves on the mercy of God; have free access to God by the Me--that it will be an acceptable diator, and they receive an anfwer of peace, either in the beftowment of the particular object of their petition, or in what is really and on the whole, more for their benefit. Thus fhall all things work together for the good of those who love God. plea with God, for them to be feech him, from regard to Chrift, to take them, and fanctify them, and receive them into favour, as Chrift, and delight in the mediaa token of his approbation of torial work of his beloved Son. tends, it has been ufualy a long So far as my acquaintance extime after finners have been awakened to a fenfe of their fin and dan How great is the duty of prayer and how vaft the privilege! Let us wifely confider it and thankfully improve it, yea let us be anxiouflyger, before they have formed any careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and fupplication, with thanksgiving, let our requests be made known to God.* PHILANDER. juft ideas of this fubject. I fup. pofe the difficulty of their underftanding it, principally arifes from their legal fpirit, and their unwillingness to fubmit to the most diftant idea, that they are liable to be called upon, to place their whole dependence on mere grace. ftate the doctrine, and explain it Yet it may be of advantage to to them as clearly as poffible: It ought to be done; to do it, is teaching them a peculiar and ef and purifies the heart. People, sential doctrine of the Gofpel. vour. If not, not because faith in Chrift makes The following obfervations were fuggefted to my mind, as I fat meditating on the declaration of Chrift, John iii. 18. He that believeth on him (the Son of God) 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. The faith in Chrift here mentioned, prefuppofes fome juft views of the actual state of the moral world-of the perfec. tions and government of God of his law, and our obligations to obedience of the character, work and design of Chrift, and of our own tranfgreffions. But all this does not amount to faving faith. Many know much of these things, who are not the people of God. They have both feen and hated, both the Father and the Son. And at the last day, all the wicked will poffefs this knowledge, while their hearts will remain in fixed oppofition to all good. Faith, more efpecially, refpects the heart, and confifts in a cordial approbation of Christ, in his whole mediatorial It implies work and character. that the believer enters into the views and feelings of God, refpecting moral things, juftifies and approves his character, law and providence, and condemns fin, and has much the fame exercises respecting the character of God, holiness and fin, as Chrift had, when he glorified the Father, magnified the law, and condemn. ed fin in the flesh. He therefore, who has this faith, will lead an holy life; it is a kind of faith, which naturally works by love,ners are condemned for, as whence : it comes to pafs that they are not pardoned. Men do not have their probation on the footing of law, as it refpects the alternative of juftification and therefore will not be rejected, because they have not a legal, perfonal righteoufnefs. This probation is on a plan of grace, and if they are condemned, it will be, because they do not accept of the offers of mercy-do not believe. It is on this account chiefly, that unbelief is the condemnation of fuch as perish. The following fimilitude will illuftrate the Gospel way of juftification by Chrift. interests of the kingdom required, that the rebellion fhould be crushed, and the benificent government be fupported. The king's friend took the fword, and immediately put himself at the head of the army, and after many sufferings and hardships, which he cheerfully underwent, in fupport of the laws, and interefts of the nation, he vanquished the rebels, and bro't them in chains to the capital. They were all put on trial before a court of justice, and found guilty of treafon, under various circumftances of aggravation. The crimes of fome were much more heinous, than of others, and the court pronounced fentence upon all, according to their respective offences. When the court had made an end of the bufinefs, and all were fentenced, according to their deferts, the king faid to the minifter of ftate, and the commander of his army who had rendered fuch effential fervices to his king and country, and he com A certain king was remarkable for wisdom and goodness; he was the father of his people, he made the happiness of his fubjects the object of his whole life; his laws and administrations were all admirabiy adapted to this end. He chofe for his affistance, in the adminiftration of government, a man like himself, of great abilities, and perfectly devoted to the good of the nation. He was made firft min-manded that proclamation fhould ifter of ftate. They both had the fame object, and confulted continually with each other, the meafures by which they might advance the intereft and happiness of the people. The nation profpered, the people were happy, they enjoyed all the bleffings of peace, and an excellent government.Yet all this was not fufficient to content every one. Certain men, of turbulent fpirits, in one province of the king's dominions, excited a rebellion against the king, caft off his authority, and took up arms against the government. It was in the province where the king's friend, the minister of flate was born, and where his family, and all his relations lived; and many of them were deeply concerned in the infurrection. The be made of it, thro' all his dominions, "I will this day do you public honor. All my fubjects hall fee and witness my fingular love to you, and the high fenfe I entertain of your fervices, and merit. Among all the criminals who have now been moft justly condemned, all your kinfmenevery one that has the most diftant family relation to you, whether their crimes are greater or fmaller-whether condemned to death, imprisonment, or fine, all are pardoned. Let all be inflantly fet at liberty; let them be bro't into the royal palace; let a fumptuous feaft be prepared their refreshment; and let theole nation hereafter view every one of them as a living monument of my regard to you, and of the pleafare I take in re warding your diftinguifhed merit. As for the other criminals, let the righteous fentence of the law be put into inftant execution against them." be faved; but he that believeth not, fhall be damned.-It ought here to be noticed, that the nature of faith, as before defcribed, fecures the loyalty of all fuch as are pardoned, and received into favor, on account of their union to Chrift and their holiness and obedience is the evidence of this union.—I fhall finish this paper with a few remarks. 1. Great finners have no reafon to defpair of the gofpel falvation, on account of the greatnefs of their guilt. Juftification does not in the leaft regard the perfonal character of finners, as the reason why it is beftowed. No degree of guilt, however great, is any bar in the way of the juftification of the finner. Let him believe, and he is pardoned. Awakened finners are often on the borders of despair, on account of the greatnefs of their In this inftance, it is feen, that those who were pardoned, were not favored at all, on account of any worthiness in them, which diftinguished them from the others, but purely out of refpect to the king's friend that they were all pardoned with equal readiness, whether their crimes were greater or lefs. If they were the very principals in the rebellion, it did not exclude them from mercy, or render their pardon more difficult to be obtained; but in this cafe, their forgiveness was the more expreffive of the king's love to his friend. The others, who were not related to the man, whom the king delighted to honor, were condemned without diftinction, ex-guilt, and they are far from having cept only, that their punishments were exactly apportioned to their crimes. If their crimes were fmall, they could not plead that as a reafon, why they ought not to be punifhed at all it only fecured to them, that their punishment fhould be proportionably fmall. Each received his juft reward. If any were found not guilty, they were juftified by law bat if guilty, no plea could fave any, but this, that they were kinfmen to the king's friend. So in the matter of jullification before God. If any man, at the day of judgment, can plead not guilty, and fupport his plea, he will be juftified by law. But if that cannot be done, if the whole world are found guilty before God, each one must take the punishment of his crimes, according to his deferts, whatever they may be, unless it fhall appear, that he is related to Jefus, the king's friend, by a living faith. He that believeth, fhall too great a fenfe of their wickednefs, or rating it beyond the truth. Yet they have no reafon to apprehend, that God will not pardon fuch awful wickednefs. Whofaever will, let him take of the water of life freely. The Son of man has come, to feek, and to fave that which was loft. 2. Little finners, if there are any fuch, have no reason to prefume on falvation, because their fins are comparatively fmall. If any one expects favor on this plea, let him make it at law and justice. There it will be duly noticed, and his punishment will be proportioned to his deferts. But there is no room for this plea before the throne of grace. The falvation of finners by grace, is not fecured by the comparative fmallness of their offences; but by their union to Chrift. They are pardoned to do public honor to him. 3. If finners are condemned, who enjoy the inftructions of the gofpel, they will be their own deroyers not only because they have deferved wrath, but efpecially becaufe they have rejected Chrift. bly accompanied his preaching: And, as Chrift expreffes it, people preffed into the kingdom of God. But this was not all :John adminiftered baptifm to the Saviour of the world; and, by this rite, according to divine appointment, initiated him into his high and facred office. Mofes washed or baptized Aaron; and, by this rite, introduced him into that priesthood, which was typical of the priesthood of Chrift. But it was referved for John to baptize Jefus himself, the great Highprieft of 4. Chrift is a fit Saviour for fuch a world as this, where there are finners of all defcriptions, whofe guilt is in every degree of variation, from the most heinous aggravation, down to the leaft. The world needs fuch a method of falvation, as is revealed in the gofpel, in which no merit is required of finners, in which their perfonal demerits are not taken into confide-our profeffion; and, in this way, ration at all, in the affair of their juftification, and in which pardon and acceptance are equally open and acceffible to all, who will believe on Christ. He has a fulness. He is the Saviour we need. O how excellent, and how admirably adapted to the ftate of our world, is the gofpel method of falvation ! ! ! CH G. FOR THE CONNECTICUT EVAN- Luke vii. 28, it is, "There is not a greater prophet than John the Baptift." Former prophets predicted the coming of Chrift: -Daniel pointed out the particular time. But John was fent to prepare the way for his coming; and, to proclaim him already come. In this refpect he was a brighter luminary, than had before rifen in the church. John was fent, to "turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers." A divine and almighty power remarka inaugurate him into office. In thefe refpects John fuftained an of fice more honorable and dignified, than any one had done before him. But how the other affertion of our Saviour, that he that is leaft in the kingdom of heaven, is greater than John, is to be understood, it may be more difficult to decide. The kingdom of heaven, it is generally agreed, means that fpiritual kingdom, which Chrift has fet up in the world-the Chriftian church begun here on earth, and perfected and glorified in the heavenly world. That the leaft in this king. dom, when in its glory in the future world, will be greater than John was while on earth, will readily he granted. This is to obvious from a variety of confiderations, that we can hardly fuppofe it to be the thing, which our Saviour meant to affert. There is, therefore, reafon to conclude, that the fuperiority of John, here fpoken of, had reference to the kingdom of Chrift on earth. And, yet, can it rationally be fuppofed, Chrift meant to affert, that the leaft member of his fpiritual kingdom, his church on earth, is greater than John? Or, fhould we limit the application of the term greater to the prophetic chara&er, will it ap |