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THE ROMAN CATHOLICS.-Though they have the gospel in their hands, and believe it the last and best revelation of God's will given to the world; yet they shamefully corrupt it with many human traditions, false interpretations, and a strange mixture of superstitious ceremonies. They acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah and Saviour, but join with him many other intercessors, saints and angels of their own selecting, to whom they make their prayers and supplications. They own his death as the great propitiation for sin, and yet affirm their sacrifice of the mass to be equally expiatory. They profess the merits of the Son of God to be infinite, and yet assert the necessity of obtaining a part in the church's stock of merit. So that they reject the only foundation of God's laying, and build their hopes on sandy foundations of their own, on their masses, ave-marias, external purifications, penal pilgrimages, the absolutions of the priests, and the merit and good works of other saints, more holy and righteous than themselves.

THE PROTESTANTS.-Many among Protestants frequently build on weak foundations. Some lay for their foundation a false morality without faith in Jesus. Some of this number have disowned the Christian revelation, or, at least, have considered it as no other than a republication of the law and religion of nature. But, besides these, others have pleaded their good intentions, their moral honesty, their owing no man ill-will, wronging and defrauding no man, relieving the poor and necessitous, as sufficient excuses for neglecting the house and worship of God, absenting themselves from the table of the Lord, and as the ground of their hopes of pardon and eternal blessedness. They deny the Almighty those rights of worship, love, reverence, and obedience, which are most justly his due. They have no regard to Jesus the

Mediator, the only Saviour of lost men.

They never pray for the assistance of the Holy Spirit. And yet they expect everlasting happiness after death, for their good meanings, their honest dealings, and their benevolence and charities towards men.

Some lay for their foundation a pretended faith without morality. It is to be feared, there are some hypocritical professors who call themselves Christians, have been trained up in the principles of the Christian faith, entertain an abhorrence of the corrupt errors of Antichrist and his followers, yet are unjust in their dealings, false to their word and promise, and dishonourable and unholy in their lives. But how far are such persons from the kingdom of God? There were some persons of this character even in the apostolic age, called Gnostics, or Nicolaitanes, who boasted of their great knowledge in the mysteries of religion, and of the purity of their faith, while, at the same time, their lives were full of injustice, uncleanness, and violence. And they have had disciples in almost every age of the Christian church, men whose eyes have been full of adultery, their hearts fraught with covetous desires, and their hands filled with unjust gains; yet have presumed to think themselves in a safe state, and in the way to endless happiness, because they believed in Jesus, adhered to all the doctrines of the Christian faith, and were not chargeable with any error or heresy. Our Saviour informs us, that there will be many such self-deceivers in the last day, who will say to him, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name have done many wonderful works ?" to whom he will say, "I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

Some build their hopes on the Christian name and profession. There were some in the days of the prophet Jeremiah, who said, "The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, are these." They were called by his name, were his peculiar people, and therefore trusted in these "lying words," hoping they should be saved, notwithstanding they oppressed the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed innocent blood, and walked after other gods, to their hurt. So the Jews, in our Saviour's time, boasted that they were the children of God, his peculiar people, called by his name, taken into covenant with him, and, as such, were interested in numerous excellent and glorious privileges. And here they built their hopes of the divine acceptance, though they were unjust, malicious, cruel, and did the work of their father the devil, in crucifying with bloody hands the blessed Son of God. Our Lord says of the church of Sardis, that though she was dead, that is, in a declining, dying condition, yet pleased herself in her fair name, she had a name that she lived, and she built her hopes on it. And have not many others of the same character thanked God, with an air of confidence, that they are neither Heathens, nor Jews, nor Mahomedans, but Christians, have been baptized into the church, have renounced all alliance with the flesh, and the world, and the devil, and therefore doubt not but they shall be admitted into the Redeemer's heavenly kingdom?

Some build their hopes on the mere externals of religion, without that internal holiness which is essentially necessary to fit them for a world of unspotted purity.. There were such persons in the church at Corinth, who, having forsaken their idolatries, and taken on them the Christian profession, joined in all the external parts of religious worship, though they were at the same time

unclean, unjust, and covetous. And, therefore, the apostle warned and admonished them, saying, "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." The Pharisees gloried in their exact obedience to the ceremonial law, in observing all the external rites of religion, in being circumcised, in paying tithes of mint, anise, and cummin, in keeping many feasts, and making long prayers; while our Lord reproved them for being destitute of inward sanctity of heart and life, which only could denominate them religious persons, and fit them for the heavenly world.-And it is to be feared, that there are many persons at present in the tents of Christianity, who do as miserably deceive themselves, thinking that if they be but baptized into the Christian church, frequent the public worship, be outwardly civil and reformed, and free from any scandalous or gross impieties, all will be well with them, and they shall be heard when they cry, "Lord, Lord, open to us," notwithstanding they are false, envious, covetous, revengeful, proud, injurious, and far removed from that meek, humble, holy temper of mind, which the gospel requires in all the disciples of Jesus, and have no inward love to God, or real delight in his ways and worship.

Some lay for their foundation the absolute mercy of God, without any regard to the mediation of Jesus. The Scriptures represent God as merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, and forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; as gracious, and full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy; and as having no pleasure

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in the death, the final misery and ruin of sinners; but desiring the salvation and happiness of all men. whence some have drawn very unjust and dangerous conclusions, flattering themselves that they shall be saved, though they should not break off their sins by repentance-that a compassionate God will have mercy on the work of his hands-that if he has been kind to them all their days, he will not forsake them at the last-that the threatenings pronounced in his word may be proper to awe sinners, but were never designed to be inflicted on them,—and that they doubt not but to have time enough in their last moments to repent and ask forgiveness, and hope, on this ground, to be admitted into the heavenly Paradise. But such sinners do, alas! sadly deceive themselves, while they forget that the Lord is a just, and righteous, and jealous God—that he is angry with the wicked every day—that, after all his patience, if they continue in their sinful ways, "he that made them will not have mercy on them, he that formed them will show them no favour ;"-and that if they neglect the great salvation which Jesus has purchased with his blood, they cannot escape a just and severe condemnation.

These are some of those weak and sandy foundations on which ignorant, erroneous, prejudiced, proud, or wicked persons build, who reject and despise that only foundation which God has laid in the Scriptures. The insufficiency of all other foundations besides, besides that which God has laid, to bear the weight of the everlasting salvation of men, is very evident. No man has a right to attempt to lay any other foundation, and no man can lay any other that will support his hopes and happiness. For none of those things on which ungodly persons build their hopes have any strength or suitableness in them for supporting the weight of their immortal souls. Can the

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