faith. St. James says, "I will shew thee my faith, by my works;" that is, I will convince you by proper evidence, that mine is not a dead, but a living faith; "for, as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." Good works are the natural fruit of the faith which justifies; but it is by the faith and not the works, that we are justified in the sight of God. Accordingly St. Paul in his Epistles, particularly in those to the Romans and Galatians, clearly states this truth, and contends for it against every kind of legal justification: while St. James, St. Peter, and St. Jude, as earnestly contend against every Antinomian abuse of it.

But notwithstanding all that the Apostles have written concerning this "most wholesome doctrine," as it is denominated by our Church (Art. 11,) two opposite parties have continued to abuse it in every age: the one, in pharisaic pride and self-righteousness, sought by an extraordinary degree of professed sanctity, which consisted in mortifying and denying the flesh, or by doing some works for that purpose, to justify themselves; whilst the others, in oppositlon to these, and to show their Christian liberty, indulged themselves in every sensual gratification. Many have opposed this doctrine, from conceiving that the excluding of all good works from the office of justifying, must be destructive of practical holiness; and that because the grace

of God abounds, it gives a liberty to those who receive it, to continue in sin but such persons seem to forget that the Apostle St. Paul has anticipated their objection, and completely answered it; where introducing an objector as saying, "Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?" he replies, "God forbid! how shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein ?” He that has received the grace of God is dead to sin, has received a new nature, and that nature hates and abhors sin, and does not willingly continue therein. Those who can bring themselves to profess and hold the doctrines of grace, and yet abuse them in Antinomian licentiousness, have a sufficient and awful warning in St. Peter and St. Jude and such should beware how they presume to talk of the free and sovereign grace of God, unless that grace has made them free from the dominion, love, and practice of sin, as well as from its guilt and condemnation.

In the second century, and towards its close, the adversary made another and different kind of attack on Gospel truth. The instrument he employed was human philosophy. Till this age of the church, the wise men of the world had no temptation to unite themselves to a religion, which in their eyes was in every respect contemptible for, in the Apostles' days, as the doctrine of the cross was "to the Jews a stumblingblock," so "to the Greeks," who prided them

selves in their own wisdom, it was "foolishness." But as the light of Divine truth spread abroad, it could not fail to engage the attention and impress the minds of many who were yet unconverted by its power. Christianity held and enforced many truths in common with natural religion, though she enforced them with more authority, and evidenced her superiority, by enabling men to put her precepts in practice. Hence many wise men, admiring the purity of her moral precepts, which they thought were also contained in their system, persuaded themselves that there was little difference between their philosophy and the Gospel, and that, in fact, they were the same in substance: but they paid little attention to the peculiar doctrines of the Gospel, and, in order to preserve their reputation among the men of the world, they made light of the cross of Christ: holding, that the practice of religion was every thing, (Note b) they neglected or denied those doctrines or principles which could alone enable a fallen creature, such as man is, to put Christian Morality in practice.

As philosophy, falsely so called, crept into the profession of Christianity, her teachers lost sight of the vital doctrines of Christ, though they still professed to hold them; and though St. Paul had cautioned them, in what he wrote to the Colossians, " Beware, lest any man spoil you through

philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ;" yet his cautions appear to have been forgotten, so that false humility, will-worship, bodily austerities, mixed with self-righteous pretensions, superseded the true life of faith in Christ. It was by the doctrines of the Platonic and Stoic schools, that the simplicity of Gospel truth was corrupted in the early ages of the church; and in subsequent times much evil appears to have been done, by the wrong use of what is called moral philosophy and metaphysics, in the hands of men unenlightened by the word, and uninfluenced by the Spirit of God. When thus abused, they have led to the same sort of vain speculations and refinements, against which the Apostle warned the Colossians. But here I would wish to be distinctly understood, as speaking, not against the use, but the abuse of philosophy, when it usurps the place of the word of God and the office of the Holy Spirit, assuming to be the guide and director, instead of the handmaid of religion.

But amidst the heresies which prevailed in the first three centuries of the church, some denying the divinity, and others the manhood of Christsome opposing and others abusing the doctrines of grace, God left not himself without witness for, during that period, he raised up such men as should "earnestly contend for the faith once

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delivered to the saints." Among the most eminent of these were Polycarp the disciple of St. John, Justin Martyr, Irenæus, Tertullian, and Cyprian; some of whom suffered martyrdom for the cause of Christ, and sealed his truth with their blood. Their writings which have come down to us, and particularly those of Cyprian, are well worthy of the attention of all who are zealous for the faith. But, notwithstanding the strenuous labours and able writings of these champions for Divine truth, the enemy was unremitting in his attacks; and in the beginning of the fourth century he raised up another opposer in the person

of Arius, who introduced one of the most dangerous heresies that ever infested the church of Christ it was not unlike that of the Ebionites, which had been long before refuted and condemned, though the leaven no doubt remained. The craft of the great enemy of the faith was never, perhaps, more conspicuously set forth, than in his choice of the period in which he introduced this heresy, and the instrument he employed for that purpose. Arius has been represented by the historians of that day, as possessing an understanding and capacity to command respect in no common degree; as by nature, formed to deceive in his behaviour and manner of life, he was severe and grave; in his person, tall and venerable; and in his dress, almost monastic. He was agreeable and captivating in his conver