the conclusion, that the Scriptures are the divinely appointed document of God's truth, provided against the certain and, unless so guarded, irretrievable corruption of that truth in the progress of "tradition" through successive ages of the Church?

Mere possession of that document, and acquaintance by human means with its contents, does not indeed, as is erroneously supposed by many, qualify an individual to unite himself to the church, still less does it enable a number of individuals to "form a Church;" the trust committed to the church from the beginning, is a substantial and not a merely documentary trust. As the possession of the trust-estate is the substance in the administration of trust-property, which the trust-deed only defines as to its nature and object, and possibly the mode of its management, so in regard to the trust committed to the church, the substance is fellowship with Christ, and membership in his body the church, while Scripture is no more than the document which defines the nature and object of that fellowship and membership, and the means by which it may be attained in the first instance, and maintained afterwards; and hence the ministers and members of the so-called churches of modern invention whose boast it is that they are purely, or, as it should rather be stated, barely "scriptural," are

labouring under a delusion not a whit less absurd, and painfully at variance with reality, than if a number of persons having got hold of a copy of a trust-deed, some explaining it, others listening to the explanations, (which might be sound enough in point of law and reason,) were to imagine themselves the one the trustees, the others the parties benefited by the trust, of the estate described in that deed; and upon the strength of this imaginary property were to do divers acts, and execute among one another various instruments in conformity with the terms of that deed. In sound and appearance, it is true, their acts and instruments might in no way differ from those of the real trustees and usufructuaries; nay, if the latter had grown careless and inattentive to the provisions of the deed under which they held their trust, it is conceivable even that the illusory acts and instruments might be more conformable to the wording of the trust-deed, than the real ones. So much might this be the case, that in any litigation arising respecting the validity of the two classes of instruments, the prima facie evidence might seem to be in favour of the imaginary holders of the trust; until the question, "Who appointed you to this trust? have you possession of the estate as well as of the deed? should come to be duly tried. In that trial it would not avail to hand in a copy of the deed to

prove possession of the estate, and legal appointment to its trusteeship or its benefit; and the party having no better evidence to produce, must infallibly be nonsuited.

To that trial, as between the true church and pseudo-churches, the course of our argument will naturally lead us, and we will not, therefore, here anticipate it. All that we contend for in addition to the sum of our previous argument, as stated at the commencement of this chapter, is, that Christianity, "introduced upon earth under certain sanctions, incorporated in a certain body capable of enlargement by the progressive addition of new members under certain conditions, and kept in a state of vitality by the Holy Spirit of God, who is the life of the whole body collectively, and of every member of it individually," being according to the purpose of God perpetuated upon earth and transmitted through successive generations of men, thus assumed the nature of a trust committed to the church; and that, to guard that trust from abuse and corruption, or at least to afford the means of correction if abused or corrupted for a time, its nature and object, and the mode of its administration were defined in the record, known throughout the world by the name of "Holy Scripture."

CHAPTER VII.

The Document of the Church's Trust divinely, not humanly, authenticated.

66 WHICH THINGS WE SPEAK, NOT IN THE WORDS WHICH MAN'S WISDOM TEACHETH, BUT WHICH THE HOLY GHOST TEACHETH; COMPARING SPIRITUAL THINGS WITH SPIRITUAL: .

HE

THAT IS SPIRITUAL JUDGETH ALL THINGS, YET HE HIMSELF IS JUDGED OF NO MAN. FOR WHO HATH KNOWN THE MIND OF the LORD, THAT HE MAY INSTRUCT HIM? BUT WE HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST."-1 Cor. ii. 13, 15, 16.

If we knew it not as a matter of fact, we should hardly deem it possible, that the professed ministers of Christ and successors of his Apostles, could ever, as the Roman priests do, prohibit, and if found in unlicensed hands, commit to the flames, a book of which it is so abundantly evidenced that through "the comfort" it contains, we are appointed to "hope; " and it seems scarcely less incredible that among ourselves, who have renounced the mystery of iniquity which attempts to place the light of God under a bushel, there should be found those who will allow to a volume

S

$ Rom. xv. 4.

of holy records so introduced, so confirmed and honoured, so augmented, expounded, and perfected, as is the canon of Scripture from the opening of the Old to the close of the New Testament, no higher place than that of a witness, cited subsidiarily to prove that which tradition has, according to them, the primary office and the exclusive prerogative of teaching. But great as may be our astonishment at the perversion of truth involved in the doctrines alluded to, and palpably untenable as upon this point, if upon no other, every unbiassed mind must at once feel them to be, the question has on the part of the advocates of those doctrines been argued far too seriously, too elaborately, and in justice to them we rejoice to add, too sincerely, to admit of its being dismissed by any one who himself feels a serious concern for the truth, with a mere exclamation of surprise. The spirit in which their opinions, however erroneous, have for the most part been pleaded, entitles them undoubtedly to brotherly remonstrance, rather than to angry refutation or virulent abuse; and it is in this spirit of brotherly kindness that we would offer, and in their own spirit of sincere search after truth that we would wish them to peruse and carefully to weigh, the suggestions which in the course of these pages are thrown out in opposition to their views.