and regular clergy of every church, and often do little elsehowever upright their motives-than make inroads on the flock, and disturb the minds of the young and inexpericnced; and then mask the whole with the fair names of union and charity, and the non-importance of forms, whilst their own charity is obviously narrow, and their own peculiar ordinances are made prominent, and almost essential to salvation. This is not the true charity and union which my text would inculcate; but zeal disgraced with an unholy mixture of ignorance and self-will. This ultimately tends to introduce disorder and confusion, and every evil work. Whereas the genuine charity of my text, is of a disinterested and holy and elevated character-enlightened, self-denying, intent on the mystery of godliness, superior to passion and petty ends, and equally watchful over the tendencies of our corrupt nature on every side. Such a charity has the stamp and impress of heaven. It will even dispose the considerate Christian to regard these very persons, irregular as they are in their notions of discipline, in the most favorable light; and to bless God for the real good which may eventually have resulted from the distractions of human sentiments, and from the anomelies of the Protestant sects throughout christendom, however little he can approve of much in their spirit and conduct. He will consider them, as having frequently, under the controling disposal of Divine providence, served incidentally to chasten the lukewarmness, and supply the defects, of national churches in seasons of declension; as having stimulated them to a new zeal and emulation; as having recalled them to their own first principles and early piety; and as having, above all, guided souls-with whatever defects, perhaps, in some matters of importance, yet as having guided souls-to heaven. This is the inference to be drawn from the spirit, not only of my text, but of the whole New Testament dispensation. It leads a Christian to say with the Apostle, Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife--not sincerely--notwithstanding every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached, and I therein do rejoice; yea, and will rejoice.

But from these general observations, applicable to every Protestant body, I come now to our own particular circumstances. For I am sure you will agree with me, that our own Church has a claim on our most affectionate and filial reverence and support.

The great mystery of "God manifest in the flesh" is the foundation of Her Articles, her Liturgy, her Homilies.

Not only is the Deity and Sacrifice of the Son of God, recognized, but it is incorporated in all her services. Her prayers are offered up in the alone name and merits of Christ: her doctrines are founded on his humiliation, atonement, glory, and intercession: her festivals celebrate his nativity, circumcision, manifestation, passion, resurrection, mission of the Holy Ghost, and future coming to judge the world. Her devotional formularies breathe the very language of the renewed heart: her administration of the sacraments is simple, yet edifying and sublime: her order of church government is, to say the least, most conformable to the primitive standard: her offices of consecration and ordination fence round her ministry, and are adapted to perpetuate an ortho. dox, and spiritual, and holy priesthood. But more especially is her Confession of Faith in her Thirty-nine Articles, expanded as it is in her admirable Homilies, amongst the most pure and scriptural of all the Protestant formularies. It rests on the sufficiency of Holy Scripture alone, for salvation: it establishes the proper Divinity and Propitiation of the Son of God: it avows the total corruption of our nature, its impotency to any thing spiritually good, and the necessity of preventing grace, and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to the production of any good works. It maintains the great Protestant doctrine of Justification by faith only, and insists on the obedience of a Christian, as the necessary fruit and evidence of a lively faith; and it teaches us, finally to ascribe all our salvation to the special grace and mercy of Him who hath chosen us in Christ, according to his everlasting purpose, before the foundation of the world were laid.

There is nothing, my brethren, of which I am, for myself, more deeply convinced, than that the security of any Protestant church, and therefore of our own, is the blessing of God on the simple and commanding doctrine of Christ Jesus. To magnify matters which relate merely to the constitution, and, as it were, the scaffolding of the spiritual edifice; to give an overcharged and almost popish exposition of necessarily general and charitable language of sacramental offices; to assume as a matter unquestionable, the purity of the doctrine preached by the ministers of religion from which, after all, the mass of a nation will chiefly judge of the tenets of a church, and on which the conversion, edification, and salvation of each passing age so much depend, and to hold at a distance, and refuse any intercourse of charity with Christians

174 of other confessions, in the greatest and most simple of causes,the circulation, for instance, of the Holy Scriptures throughout the world, by a variety of Societies for that purpose-all this, if any thing of this kind should ever be prevalent in any Protestant church, would, in my judgment, go to loosen its foundation; and in a day of general inquiry and information, and amongst a free and noble-minded people, would tend eventually to degrade its character, and materially diminish its influence and safety.

THE CHURCH, THE PILLAR and grouND OF THE TRUTH.

Every thing, in order to prosper, must be placed on its true and natural footing. That for which the whole institution of church polity subsists is, that it may be the "pillar and ground,” not of ceremonies, "but of truth. Let Truth, then, the Truth of a Divine Saviour, Truth as fruitful in good works, be presented conspicuously before the eyes of men. Other matters may then fall into their place. The necessary rules of church discipline and subjection, as the shadow accompanies the substance, will, if duly inculcated, follow naturally after the body and reality of Spiritual Religion. Reverse the order, and you destroy both.

This, this, is the security of any church, the mighty power of godliness. The mystery of Christ, acknowledged, inculcated, preached, believed on--in the spirit which dictated the Protestant Articles and Confessions, and which brought our Reformers out from the Church of Rome-the mystery of the person of Christ, abased indeed, but justified, and, amongst angels and men, proclaimed the King of Glory, and Lord and Saviour of men--this is the characteristic, and true preservative, of all Christian churches. Around this stupendous truth the decent vesture of primitive discipline will enfold itself: without it, they will, they must, inevitably sink into decay.

But this is far from being an inviting topic. Rather let me express my ardent wishes for the prosperity of our own church in particular. "If I forget thee O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning!" May the dew of heavenly grace ever descend upon thee! May the Almighty God make thee a blessing more and more at home; and plant thee in every part of the heathen world! Mayest thou attend the progress of the missionary, and follow wherever the great Bible Institutions may prepare the way! Thus, burning brightly and conspicuously in thy own sphere, and supporting with thy maternal discipline the infant churches abroad, mayest Thou continue a blessing in the midst of the earth!

SERMON XVII.

THE CHURCH IN ITS APOSTOLIC DOCTRINE AND

FELLOWSHIP.

By the Rev. HUGH PEARSON, D. D.,

Dean of Salisbury.

ACTS ii. 42.

And they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.

It is a beautiful and most attractive picture which is here presented to us by the sacred historian of the primitive church of Christ; one which strikingly displays the genuine influence of the Gospel on its sincere converts, and which, in its leading features, deserves the attentive consideration of Christians in all ages. The whole passage, of which my text forms a part, describes the result of the first discourse of the Apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost; when, under the influence of that Divine Spirit which had just descended upon himself and his fellow-disciples, he unfolded to the assembled multitude, from the prophetic writings, the occasion of that extraordinary scene; reminded them of the ministry and miraculous works of Jesus of Nazareth, whom "with wicked hands, they had crucified and slain;" and declared to them the resurrection of that mighty Saviour, whom death could not retain as his captive, and his exaltation to supreme power and glory at the right hand of God, from whence he had shed forth that wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost, the effects of which they were then witnessing. Penetrated to the heart by this powerful address, his deeply affected auditors said to Peter and to the rest of the Apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized

every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call......Then they that gladly received his word were baptized; and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfast in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were done by the Apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart; praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."

Some of the interesting circumstances here recorded concerning the church thus founded at Jerusalem, were obviously peculiar, and restricted to that primitive period; but the general outline of its constitution and principles, its doctrine, its discipline, its holy character and salutary influence, so simply, yet so eloquently, pourtrayed by the sacred writer, may justly be considered as comprising the model and exemplar of every Apostolic church. It is, I think, remarkably so of that of which we profess to be members; and in developing that brief but emphatic description, we shall, I trust, be employed not unsuitably to general edification, and to the particular occasion for which this discourse is intended. May God vouchsafe his presence and blessing!

I. The edifice of the Christian church is founded on the doctrine belivered by the Apostles. They were the chosen messengers divinely commissioned to "show unto men the way of salvation." "Endued with power from on high," with the inspiration of the Spirit of Truth, with the gift of divers tongues, and with many other miraculous credentials, they went forth to preach the Gospel; to proclaim to God's ancient people the fulfilment of the promises made to their fathers, and of the predictions of the prophets; and to make known, first to them, and then to the Gentile nations, the provisions of that covenant of grace which comprehends reconciliation and peace with God, together with all other spiritual and heavenly blessings.