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And notwithstanding the utmoft force of it, we have no caufe to be ashamed of the gospel of Chrift; but the gospel of Chrift may justly be afhamed of us. For whatever we be, the gospel of Chrift is the power of God unto falvation. The natural tendency of it is to reform and fave men, and the wrath of God is therein revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, however they may detain the truths of God in unrighteousness, and not suffer them to have their due and proper influence upon their

hearts and lives.

But that I may give a more clear and particular anfwer to it, I defire you to attend to these following confiderations:

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1. It cannot be denied, but that Christianity hath had once very great and marvellous effects upon the hearts and lives of men. And for this I appeal to the lives and manners of the primitive Chriftians, for which we have not only the teftimony of our own books and writers, but even of the adverfaries of our religion. What reformation Christianity at firft wrought in the manners of men, we have clear and full teftimony, from what the Apoftles wrote concerning the feveral churches which they planted in feveral parts of the world. What hearty unity. and affection there was among Chriftians, even to that degree, as to make men bring in their private eftates and poffeffions for the common fupport of their brethren, we may read in the hiftory of the Acts of the Apoftles. The city of Corinth, by the account which Strabo gives of it, was a very vicious and luxurious place, as moft in the world; and yet we fee by St. Paul, what a ftrange reformation the Chriftian religion made in the lives and manners of many of them; 1 Cor. vi.. 9, 10, 11. Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor idola

ters,

nor effeminate, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And fuch were fome of you but ye are washed, but ye are fanctified, but ye are juftified, in the name of the Lord Jefus, and by the Spirit of our God. And furely it is no small matter

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to reclaim men from fuch a profligate courfe of life. The Apostle inftanceth in crimes and vices of the first rate, from which yet he tells us many were clean- ̄ fed and purified by the name of the Lord Jefus, and the Spirit of God; that is, by the power and efficacy of the Chriftian doctrine, together with the cooperation of God's Holy Spirit."

After the Apoftles, the ancient Fathers, in their apologies for Chriftianity, give us a large account of the great power and efficacy of the Chriftian doctrine upon the lives and manners of men. Tertullian tells the Roman Governors, that their prifons were full of malefactors, committed for feveral crimes; but they were all Heathen. De veftris femper aftuat carcer, their prifons were thronged with criminals of their own religion; but there were no Chriftians to be found committed there for fuch crimes; Nemo illic Chriftianus, nifi hoc tantùm, &c. There were no Chriftians in their prifons, but only upon account of their religi on. Or if there were any malefactors that had been Chriftians, they left their religion when they fell into thofe enormities. And afterwards he adds, that if Christians were irregular in their lives, they were no longer accounted Chriftians, but were banished from their communion as unworthy of it. And they appealed to the Heathen, what a fudden and strange change Chriftianity had made in feveral of the most lewd, and vicious, and debauched perfons, and what a vifible reformation there prefently appeared in the lives of the worst of men, after they had once entertained the Chriftian doctrine.

And these teftimonies are fo much the ftronger, because they are publick appeals to our adverfaries, which it is not likely they who were fo profecuted and hated as the Chriftians were, would have had the confidence to have made, if they had not been notoriously true, even their enemies themselves being judges.

And that they were fo, we have the confeffion of the Heathen themselves. I fhall produce two remarkable teftimonies to this purpofe, and one of them from the pen of one of the bittereft enemies that the Christian religion ever had.

Pliny, in his epiftle to Trajan the Emperor, gives him an account, "That having examined the Chriftians, fetting afide the fuperftition of their way, he "could find no fault; and that this was the fum "of their error, that they were wont to meet be"fore day, and fing a hymn to Chrift, and to "bind themselves by folemn oath or facrament, not

to any wicked purpose, but not to steal, nor rob, "nor commit adultery, nor break their faith, nor "detain the pledge." So that it feems the fum of their error was, to oblige themselves in the ftrictest manner against the greatest vices and crimes. Which methinks is a great teftimony from an enemy and a judge, one who would have been ready to difcover their faults, and had opportunity of enquiring in. to them.

My other witness is Julian the Emperor and Apoftate, who, in one of his epiftles, tells us, "The "Chriftians did feverely punifh fedition and im"piety." And afterwards exhorting the heathen Priefts to all offices of humanity, and especially alms towards the poor; he tells them, they ought to be more careful in this particular, and to mend this fault; because (fays he) the Galileans taking advantage of our neglect in this kind, have very much strengthened their impiety (for fo he calls their religion) by being very intent upon thefe offices, and exemplary in their charity to the poor, whereby they gained many over to them.

And in his 49th epiftle to Arfacius the High-priest of Galatia, he recommends to him, among other means for the advancement of Paganism, the building of hofpitals, and great liberality to the poor, not only of their own religion, but others. For, fays he, it is a fhame that the impious Galileans fhould not only maintain their own poor, but ours alfo; wherefore let us not fuffer them to out-do us in this virtue. Nothing but the force of truth could have extorted fo full an acknowledgment of the great humanity and charity of the Chriftians, from fo bitter an enemy of our religion as Julian was. If he owned it, we may be fure it was very great and exemplary.

So

So that you fee that the Chriftian religion had a very great power and efficacy upon the lives and manners of men when it firft appeared in the world. And the true fpirit and genius of any religion, the force of any inftitution, is beft feen in the primitive effects of it; before it be weakened and difpirited by thofe corruptions, which in time are apt to infinuate themselves into the best things. For all laws and inftitutions are commonly more vigorous, and have greater effects at first, than afterwards; and the best things are apt in time to degenerate, and to contract foil and ruft. And it cannot in reafon be expected otherwife. So that though it be a thing to be bewailed, and by the greatest care and diligence to be refifted, yet it is not fo extremely to be wondered at, if Christianity, in the space of fixteen hundred years, hath abated much of its firft ftrength and vigour.

Efpecially confidering, that there were feveral circumftances, that gave Chriftianity mighty advantages at first, especially the miraculous powers which did accompany the firft publication of the gofpel; which muft needs be full of conviction to thole who faw the wonderful effects of it: the extraordinary operation of the Spirit of God upon the minds of men to difpofe them to the receiving of it the perfecuted and fuffering ftate that Chriftians were generally in, which made those who embraced the profeffion to be generally ferious and in good earnest in it, and kept up a continual heat and zeal in the minds of men for that religion which coft them fo dear, and for which they fuffered fo much: and the fury of their enemies against it did naturally inflame their love and kindness to one another; nothing being a greater endearment among men, than common ufferings in a common cause. So long as Chriftians were not corrupted by fecular interefts, and, by denying all for Chrift, were free from covetoufnefs and ambition, the great roots of all evil, the church of Chrift, tho' fhe was black, yet she was comely, and terrible as an army with banners fhe was all this while in an excellent pofture to refift the temptations, and VOL. VI.

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fight against the vices and corruptions of the world; but after the world broke in upon the church, and Christianity was countenanced by the powers of the world, and watered with fecular preferments and encouragements, no wonder if the tares began to grow up with the wheat: then iniquity began to abound, and the love of many to wax cold. When the fun of profperity began to fhine upon the Chriftian profeffion, then no wonder if the vermin bred and fwarmed every where. When it grew creditable and advantageous for men to be Chriftians, this must in all reafon make a world of hypocrites, and counterfeit profeffors.

These things, I reckon, muft in reafon make a mighty difference between the first ages of Chriftianity, and thofe which have followed fince; and no wonder if the real fruits and effects of religion in thefe feveral ftates of Chriftianity be very unequal. For profperity and adverfity made a wide difference in this matter. The perfecution of any religion naturally makes the profeffors of it real; and the profperity of it does as naturally allure and draw in hypocrites. Befides, that even the beft of men are more corrupted by profperity than affliction.

But though Chriftians were beft under perfecution, yet God did not think fit always to continue them in that ftate, because he would not tempt them and tire them out with perpetual fufferings; and after he had given the world a fufficient experiment of the power and efficacy of the Chriftian religion, in maintaining and propagating itself in defpite of all the violence and oppofition of the world, fufficient for ever to give reputation to it; he then thought good to leave it to be kept up by more human ways, and fuch as offer lefs violence to the nature of man. Being once established and fettled in the world, and upon equal terms of advantage with other religions, God left it to be fupported by more ordinary means; by pious education, and diligent inftruction, and good laws and government, without miracles, and without perfecution, and without thofe extraordinary and overpowering

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