man the things that God hath prepared for them that love him." The Gospel a Do&rine according to (Continued from page 283.) TH IV. in HE gofpel in its requifitions, as to the principal condition of pardon and falvation, is a doctrine according to Godlinefs. The principal condition of pardon and falvation, is faith in Chrift. This will appear by the following fpecimen of its declara. tions upon this head." As Mofes lifted up the ferpent in the wilderness, even fo must the son of man be lifted up; that whofoever believeth in him fhould not perish, but have eternal life.-He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already. He that believeth on the Son hath everlafting life. He that believeth, and is baptized, fhall be faved; but he that believeth not fhall be damned. ---Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteoufnefs, that he might be juft, and the juftifier of him who believeth in Jefus. -Therefore we conclude, that a man is juftified by faith without the deeds of the law. Believe on the Lord Jefus Christ, and thou fhalt be faved." Hence, it is undeniably manifeft, that faith in Chrift is the grand capital condition of pardon, juftification, and falvation-that this implies, involves, and is connected with, every thing really neceffary to falvation, and will iffue in eternal life. Some, indeed, have feemed to think, that in this particular, the gofpel contains a doctrine rather If men unfavorable to Godliness. are justified by faith, and not by works, and he that believes will certainly be faved, what need have we to trouble ourselves about perfonal holiness?-Hence fome may have thought, the gospel tended to encourage or countenance the neglect of practical religion; and to open a door to immorality and wickedness. That fome have thus perverted and abused the doctrine of grace will not be denied: but that the doctrine of falvation by grace, through faith, or any of the doctrines of grace, as ftated in the gofpel, warrant or afford juft ground for any fuch conclufion, is utterly denied. All fuchlike inferences from the gospel doctrine of juftification by faith, or from the affertion, that he who believ eth fhall be faved, are founded on imperfect, defective, partial, or erroneous notions of the nature and properties of the faith required in the gofpel, as being neceffary to and connected with falvation. If men think the faith, with which the gofpel connects falvation, confifts in a bare belief or conviction of the truth, and implies neither love nor repentance, nor any other right exercife of heart, it is not ftrange, if they think themfelves warranted, by the gofpel, to expect falvation without perfonal holiness, or any real piety; and of course, that the gofpel tends to encourage ungodlinefs, or opens a door to licentioufnefs. Suchlike appear to have been the notions of fome in the apoftolic age; who are reproved and confuted, in James ii. 14-26. | Or if the faith, with which falvation is, by gofpel promife, connected, confifted in a firm belief, that we are juftified-that our fins are forgiven-that God is our that man believeth unto righteousness. Hence I am led to remark, 2. Faith implies a new heart, and is found in those only, who are born of God. Paul ufes the expreffions, a new creature, and, reconciled God and Father, and that we shall certainly be faved; and if it was wrong and wicked, even the great fin of unbelief, to call in question or to doubt the truth of these propofitions, how ever unholy and carnal we our-faith which worketh by love, in the felves are, as thofe originally cal- fame fenfe, or as implying or figled Antinomians appear to have nifying the fame thing. Gal. v. held; it would indeed appear, that 6. and vi. 15. John tells us, that the gospel countenanced and open- they who received Christ, even ed a wide door to iniquity. But they who believe on his name, thefe and all fuchlike notions of 66 were born, not of blood, nor faith, are as oppofite to the truth, of the will of the flesh, nor of the as darkness is to light, or fin te will of man, but of God ;" and holinefs. Hence, in order clearly fays exprefsly, "Whofoever beto fhow, how the gofpel in its re- lieveth that Jefus is the Chrift is quifitions, as to the principal con- born of God." This leads me dition of pardon and falvation, is to remark, a doctrine according to Godliness, it will be proper to point out fome of those things, which, according to the plain tenor of the fcriptures, are effential to, as being implied in, or indiffolubly connected with, the faith required in the gospel, in order to forgiveness and eternal life. 1. The faith required in the gofpel, is more than a bare conviction or belief of the truth it is receiving the love of the truth, and implies cordial confent to and acquiefcence in the character and mediation of Jesus Christ, and in the import of his death and refur. rection; with every correfpondent exercise and affection. Paul plainly foretold, to the Theffalonians, that ftrong delufion would be fent upon fome, "becaufe they received not the love of the truth, that they might be faved;" plainly importing that the faith neceffary to falvation, implies receiving the love of the truth. He accordingly faid to the Galatians, "In Jefus Chrift neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcifion; but faith which worketh by love ;" and taught the Romans, that it is with the heart | 3. True faith in Chrift implies and cannot exist without true repentance of fin. This is evident from the nature of faith.-The fame is proved by all those paffages of fcripture, which declare the neceffity of repentance in order to pardon, and call upon men to repent that they may be forgiven and faved, and connect forgiveness and falvation with repentance, just as they do with faith. A fpecimen of these may be seen in Mark i. 15. Luke xiii. 1-5, and xxiv. 47. Acts ii. 38, and iii. 19, and v. 3.1, and xi. 18, and xx. 21. Hence, 4. Faith in Christ implies a difpofition to, or the principle of all holy obedience, and is expreffed and appears in good works, in conformity to the general tenor of the divine law, and to the peculiar precepts and inftitutions of the gofpel. Paul fays, faith worketh by love. Love is the principle or life of all true obedience. "If a man love me," faid Chrift, "he will keep my words." Such, as now briefly fuggested, is the faith required in the gofpel. And what can be plainer, than that the gofpel, by making this faith the grand condition of all its bleffings, and indifpenfibly neceffary to pardon and final falvation, teaches a doctrine according to Godliness, favorable to the intereft of real piety and true holinefs, and admirably adapted to enforce and promote it? Hence, we may well be excited to examine ourselves, with respect to the nature and properties of our faith; and cautioned a gainst refting in any faith, fhort of that which is ftampt with the aforementioned characters. (To be continued.) The fecond part of the queftion is now to be confidered, "How is this confiftent with individual refponfibility" By individual refponfibility is meant, that every individual fhall anfwer for his own conduct, and shall not, for the fins of others, fuffer any punishment, which he himself does not justly deferve. N fhowing the confiftency of "vifiting the iniquity of the father upon the children" with individual refponfibility, or divine juftice; it is neceffary to obferve, juftice; it is neceffary to obferve, that mankind are all finners. As the Apoftle declares, "All have Gnned; and the whole world has become guilty before God." All therefore being finners, they juftly deferve the curfe or penalty of the divine law, which implies all the evils of the prefent life, and everlasting deftruction in the future world. Confequently God may, in perfect juftice, bring upon any of mankind, whatever temporal calamities he fees fit. Should he bring thefe evils upon them with out any reference to the conduct or iniquity of their parents, he would do them no wrong. Confequently it cannot be at all inconfiftent with juftice or individual refponfibility for God to bring fuch calamities upon perfons in confequence of the wickedness of their parents; fince they themselves justly de ferve thefe evils. For inftance, the children of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram were finners. They were also creatures, whofe lives were at the divine difpofal. God therefore had a perfect right to take their lives, as he pleased. He would have had a juft right to caufe the earth to open her mouth and swallow them up, though their fathers had been the best of men. He had the fame right to take their lives in this way, as by fickness, burning of houfes, or any other them no injuftice, in thus deftoycalamity. Therefore God did wickedness of their parents, and ing them on account of the daring as a token of his difpleasure against it. And this is always the cafe, when children fuffer evils in con fequence of the wickedness of their parents. They themselves are finners, and so justly deferve fufferings at the hand of God. far more than all these temporal Confequently his bringing fuch ca lamities upon them, on account of the iniquities of their parents, is perfectly confiftent with the ftri& eft juftice and perfonal refponfi | being vifited with temporal or bility. Nor is it lefs confiftent for God, in confequence of the peculiar wickedness of parents, to fuffer their pofterity to go on in fin, or to fall into fuch vicious courfes, as will ruin them for time and eternity. Mankind through their native depravity of heart, if left to themselves, will run into all manner of vice, and will never repent and go to Chrift, unless drawn by the Father. But God is under no obligation in juftice to difpense his grace to any by renew. ing their hearts, or to reftrain their finful inclinations; but may leave them to impenitence and their own heart's lufts, whenever he fees beft. Thus he might confiftently have left Abfalom to rife up in his wicked, unnatural rebellion, had David never been guilty of adultery and murder. Therefore God's leaving him to fall into this wickedness in confequence of David's heinous fin in the matter of Uriah, and as a punishment to him for this fin, cannot be inconfiftent with juftice and individual refponfibility. For Abfalom juftly deferved what he fuffered, although his wicked conduct and wretched end were also a juft and grievous punishment to David. fpiritual judgments; yet they will never, in this life, fuffer any thing more than they deserve. And in the future, which is to be a state of complete retribution, their punifhment will be exactly in proportion to their criminality. Thefe confiderations may vindicate the juftice of God, in the evils which mankind experience in confequence of the fall of Adam. For although in confequence of his fin, they are born with depraved dif pofitions, which lead to finful exercifes, and on account of their own fins, originating from this depravity, they are expofed to the moft dreadful evils in the prefent and future world; yet they are not punished, either in the prefent or future life, any more than they juftly deferve for their own perfonal finfulness. Therefore God's dealing, with them in this manner is entirely just. Thus God, in "vifiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children," is perfectly confiftent with juftice or individual refponfi bility; which implies, that each one fhall be punished for his own fins only, or no more than he just ly deferves. What has been said on this fubject furnishes an eafy folution to the laft Question, "How is this confiftent with what we fee in the world, the uninterrupted profperity of notorioufly wicked perfons for feveral generations together?" As God vifits the iniquities of the fathers upon the children by fpir So God, in perfect rectitude, may leave any of mankind, by following their own finful inclinations, to fall into vice, or go on in impenitence and unbelief, without any regard to the conduct or iniquities of their parents. There-itual, as well as temporal, judg fore it cannot be inconfiftent or unjuft in God to leave them to these things, in confequence of the wickedness of their parents, and as a token of the divine difpleaf ure against it. For whatever may be the immediate occasion of their ments; he may, in the inftances now stated, vifit the iniquities of thefe wicked perfons upon their children by giving up the children to worldly purfuits and profperity, and leaving them, like their wickled parents, to choose this world ag their portion, and then to bring | gion and yield a cordial obedience upon themselves everlafting de- to all the divine commands.-For ftruction. This is vifiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children in the most awful manner, and is unfpeakably worfe than temporal judgments. And it feems as if the children of wicked worldly parents were often vifited in this way; as the most of them appear to be left to follow the evil examples of their fathers in making earthly objects their God, or chief purfuit. by living in impenitence, vicious practices, or neglect of the duties of religion, parents not only expofe themselves to deftruction, but they are doing what tends to draw down the judgments of heaven upon their dear children, and to ruin them forever.-How many parents, by their wickedness, have thus been the means of the eternal ruin of their beloved offspring. For it is declared of God, by the prophet," Thou recompenfeft the iniquity of the fathers into the bofom of their children after them." On the contrary, if parents are pious and obedient, there is great encouragement, that they may be the means of drawing down bleffings on their children, and of faving them, as well as themselves.— Thefe confiderations must have great weight with all parents, who believe the facred fcriptures, and have any regard for the temporal or eternal intereft of the offspring of their own bodies.-Who, that is not callous to all the tender feelings of a parent, can think of expofing his dear children to ruin by living in finful courfes? How cru But fhould there be instances, where the children of notoriously wicked perfons are both pious and profperous in this life; it would not be inconfiftent with the declaration of God's "vifiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children," because, as already fhewn, this is not a pofitive declaration, that he will do it in every inftance. But it is a general declaration, implying, that he may, and often does thus vifit children. But ftill he is at liberty in his fovereign goodness to difpenfe with this threatning, when he fees beft, without violating his truth; fince he has not bound himself to do it in every inftance. From the obfervations fuggeftedel and criminal is the conduct of in answer to these queries it may fuch? Let us then keep the flatbe remarked, that the divine con- utes and commands of the Lord, ftitution in "vifiting the iniquity "that it may go well with us, and of the fathers upon the children" with our children after us.”is not only perfectly juft, but is Choofe life, that both thou and wifely calculated to anfwer valua- thy feed may live." ble and important ends.-It ftrikingly manifefts God's difpleature again impiety and wickedness, as in the inftances of Korah and his company, and of the Jewish nation, upon whofe children God fo remarkably vifited the iniquity ef their fathers.-It also affords peculiar motives to diffuade parents from vice and wickedness, and to influence them to engage in reli H. NOTE. Some of the ideas and ex preffions in the preceding obfervations are taken from a piece, which the writer published on this fubject a few years fince in the Theological Magazinc. TO THE EDITORS OF THE CON- GENTLEMEN, THE enciofed letter was not |