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639

Life of Martin Luther.

probable reports are to be credited, even promotion to the highest spiritual dignities, if he would only consent to the recal of his doctrines. With the same abstinence he often renounced such extraneous advantages, the possession of which he might have permitted, without doing any violence to his conscience. More than once he declined considerable presents, which were offered him by the Elector John the Constant; and, generous and disinterested, he distributed among the necessitous not only what presents he received, but also supported many helpless and indegent persons from his own moderate income.

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more prejudicial than profitable to the wholesome work of reformation.

On this ground, every distinction of his person displeased him: to mention here an example or two ;-he did not approve, that the adherents of the purified doctrine should be called after his name; nor was he pleased with Melancthon, who ordered the students at Wittenburg to shew him more external honours than to the other academic tutors.

It was this modesty which made him unceasingly industrious, because he never thought he had done enough. Even the few hours of recreation, in which he reposed from his various labours, were employed in various useful employments. The lathe, music, and horticulture, afforded him that recreation, which he used for the collecting of new powers, and for the maintenance of the serenity of his ever active mind.

Particularly, he amused himself with gardening and music, because the former appeared to him to represent the picture of the fruitfulness of his popular endeavours, and the latter raised his heart to a foretaste of hea venly joys. He affirmed also from hence, that (much to the beneficial influence of religion) music could contribute the most to the moral improvement of man; because, before the en chantment of her harmony, dissatisfaction and heaviness of mind, as well as bad and dangerous thoughts, must give place. In short, we meet in him, even in his hours of recreation, and in his innocent amusements which he permitted to himself, the great man again, who, in every one of his seemingly unimportant actions, had reference to the high object to which he had devoted all his industry.

His magnanimity was a consequence of his active love of mankind. Full of the sublime thought, that nothing less than unwearied activity to promote the true welfare of mankind would bring him nearer to his object, he did not need any external motives to undertake good and general useful actions; neither the indifference nor the ingratitude of his contemporaries,could drive him from his honourable career, because he did nothing for himself, but every thing for the good cause of religion. He therefore willingly forgave personal insults, and what only concerned himself, and evinced this placability sufficiently, by his behaviour towards the visionary Carlstadt, and the malicious Agricola. With a zeal never to be cooled, he withstood the enemies of the purified doctrine, and the authors of the dangerous divisions amongst the adherents of the Reformation, because he considered both the enemies of God, and, according to his own conviction, was obliged to refrain from all connection with them, and from all regard in his conduct towards them. With Luther's All these beautiful and exalted magnanimity, and active love of man- traits in Luther's character, received kind, his discretion stood in the exact-new lustre from his undissembled fear est connection. He never made a merit of God. He was pious; but his upon the strict fulfilment of the du- piety was not that something, which ties of his calling; he never imagined often is the case with the common himself at the mark, which he endea-man, the work of mean fearfulness youred to reach by his honourable en- or foolish superstition; both infirdeavours; and by the greatest efforts mities which found no place in his of his popular activity, he always be- (for the age in which he lived) great lieved much remained to be done. and unprejudiced mind. A childlike Hence his indifference to the equivo- confidence in the paternal goodness cal praises of short-sighted men; his of his Creator, sentiments of thanknoble displeasure at the external tes-fulness and love towards the eternal timonies of honour, which had no Benefactor of the human race, raised value for him, and, in his eyes, were him above all earthly circumstances,

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Translations of Latin Lines.-Impromptu.-Strictures.

and left him to seek his highest happiness in an intimate communion with God.

From hence his high opinion of the use and efficacy of prayer, with which he always commenced his day's work, and in whose beneficial influence he took his refuge with the happiest effect, in all the troubles which met him in all the dejected hours which broke upon his otherwise accustomed serenity.Hence his heroic faith, which bade defiance to all human violence and persecution, to every tempest which threatened him and the whole work of reformation with ruin, and let him not only anticipate a joyful eternity, as the sure reward of his virtues, but also I the blessed progress of the Reformation in the Church, undertaken by him, even after his death.

[To be concluded in our next.]

TRANSLATIONS OF THE LATIN LINES,
INSERTED COL. 479.

(In which for misi, read nisi.)

TRANSLATION of the lines, by the late
Professor Porson, inserted in col.
479, by
LECTOR.

Unless the death of Death to death,
Death, by his death, had given;
Mortals had found that shut to them
Had been the gate of Heaven.

ON OUR REDEMPTION.

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If Christ by death to Death, death had not given,

Clos'd were th' eternal gate that leads to

heaven.

OR,

If Christ by death, to Death, death had not
Life's gate eternal never had been riven.
given,

IMPROMPTU,

ON A POUTING BEAUTY.

ELIZA dear! thou fairest of the fair,
With bright blue eyes and finely curling hair,
How am I charm'd thy smiling face to see,
As

then it looks good temper'dly on me.
Thou turn'st my love almost to deadly hate.
But when thou pout'st, oh dark reverse of fate,
Thus the bright sun, the glorious orb of day,
Shines on our path with a benignant ray;
But when eclips'd, the Mexican turns pale,
And tells of dire events, a dreadful tale.
No more then pout, my charming, blooming
Bess,

But uneclips'd impart sweet happiness.

Strictures on Mr. Mac Millan's
Pamphlet.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE IMPERIAL
MAGAZINE.

SIR,-The spirit of bigotry seems, in
your quarter of the kingdom, to be
confined almost exclusively to that
class of churchmen who are not im-
properly styled semi-papistical. The
case, however, is widely different with

A regular subscriber of Leeds, ob- us who live in the northern part of

serves as follows:

I read the Latin thus

the island. While the moderate party of the church of Scotland are quiet

Mors, mortis, morti, mortem mihi si morte spectators, the evangelical party, in

dedisset,

Eterna vitæ janua clausa foret.

LITERALLY TRANSLATED.

Death would be the gate of eternal life, shut against death, if in death it gave to me the death

of Death.

THE ABOVE VERSIFIED.

When Death by death o'ercome, falls vanquish'd in the strife,

Tis then "the portal to eternal life."

From D. B. H. of Thetford, we have received the following.

As you requested a translation of the Distich, which appeared in col. 479, where it is erroneously attributed to the great Porson, I beg leave to send you a literal one. Distich, I remember to have seen in an old collection of epigrams, epitaphs, &c. printed probably before the Professor was born:

This Latin

general, look upon dissenters, especially the Methodists, with no small degree of jealousy, and occasionally treat them with a considerable portion of asperity. Although the Seceders, Independents, Baptists, and Relief, are sufferers in common with the Methodists; yet they have not, by this circumstance, learned the needful lesson of shewing mercy to others. While they are from certain reasons, less supercilious than churchmen, they

are, from other reasons, more effective

in their opposition; deeming it a duty incumbent upon them, equally to check the spread of Methodism, as to stem the torrent of iniquity.

Mr. Mac Millan, minister of the Relief Church in this city, has lately appeared, both in the pulpit, and from the press, as a resolute chainpion of Calvinism, and an inveterate

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Strictures on Mr. Mac Millan's Pamphlet.

foe to Arminianism. His first pamphlet consists of extracts from the writings of Dr. Owen and President Edwards, principally on the doctrines of eternal election, and particular redemption. A few remarks upon his pamphlet were lately published by Mr. Ward, a Methodist preacher. Mr. Mac M. has since ushered into the world another volume of extracts, chiefly taken, as he says, from the "best evangelical authors." The subjects treated in this volume are," Justification by the imputed righteousness of Christ, Efficacious Grace, Perseverance of the Saints, Original Sin, and Free Will." Mr. Mac M.'s labours, however, are not to terminate with this work, for, in its preface, we are informed, that he has, in a state of preparation, a reply to Mr. Ward's "blasphemous pamphlet." My intention in sending you the present communication is, to lay before your readers a few remarks on the gross misrepresentations which are found in Mr. Mac M.'s second publication.

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doctrines in question are false and damnable.

On the 53d and 54th pages of Mr. Mac M.'s former pamphlet, are contrasted with each other, two accounts of" Redemption by Christ," the one said to be the "Arminian Account," and the other, the " Scripture Account." Mr. W. charges Mr. Mac M. with a want of the fear of God, and of justice to his fellow-creatures, for palming on Arminians an account of redemption, which not one of them believes. "And," says Mr. W. "unless he will produce direct evidence that the account of Redemption, imputed to the Arminians, in his pamphlet, is in truth their account, or make a public acknowledgment that he has done wrong, Father, forgive him, for he knows not what he does.' p. 11. In my opinion, Sir, a high degree of penetration is not requisite to discover, that the sin which Mr. W. prays the Father to forgive, is, not the publishing of the doctrines contained in Mr. Mac M.'s publication, but the The world has already been inform- "palming upon Arminians an account ed, from high authority, that Calvinism of redemption which not one of them is a soil highly genial for the growth believes;" or, rather, not publicly acof Radicalism. This sentiment, how-knowledging his error, if he fail to ever severe, displays soundness of prove, that the account of redempjudgment, and breathes the spirit of tion attributed to Arminians is gecandour, compared to or with our nuine. Editor's opinion of Arminian doctrine: "doctrine," says he, "which I believe to be subversive of true religion, and even of the very being of God," page 5. Our Editor does not acquaint us, whether these awful consequences are stubborn facts, or only logical inferences. Proof, however, of such an assertion, would certainly have been acceptable to some of his readers.

Having enervated one part of his argument, I proceed to examine the other.

In supporting an inference which he makes on the 26th page, Mr. W. quotes the sentiments of President Edwards, from Mr. Bromley's Essay on Divine Prescience, along with Mr. Bromley's remarks. The paragraph, which has proved the occasion of Mr. Mac M.'s blundering, is not in Mr. Alluding to Mr. Ward, he says, Ward's, but in Mr. Bromley's words, "This reverend gentleman in his re- and is as follows: (p. 27.) "But the marks on my publication, declares as worthy President allows it is best there much as that the most of all contained should be moral evil, yet, in page 373, in it is false and damnable doctrine; he informs us, that God's hatred to for he prays the Father to forgive me sin is infinite, by reason of the infinite for publishing such doctrine; and contrariety of his holy nature to sin.' again he earnestly prays 'from such Let the reader put these two statetheology, good Lord, deliver us,"" p. 6. ments together, and he will see before Hence it appears, that the charge him this monstrous inconsistency,— preferred against Mr. W., is his insi- that the infinitely wise and benevolent nuating, that the greater part of what Jehovah infinitely hates what is for is contained in Mr. Mac M.'s pam- the best, and what is an essential part phlet, is false and damnable doctrine. of his own wise and good system! The proof adduced, is said to be con- From such reasoning, from such tained in two prayers offered up by theology, good Lord, deliver us! Mr. W., denoting his belief that the Bromley's Essay, p. 110.

It would

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Strictures on Mr. Mac Millan's Pamphlet.

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be a mark of trifling to attempt prov-nian creed, which says, 'That justifiing, that the theology prayed against, cation is an act of God, by which, for is not the theology found in Mr. Mac the sake of Christ, he freely and fully M.'s pamphlet, but the theology con- pardons the sinner, and accounts him tained in these words, " It is best there righteous, on his believing in Jesus should be moral evil." It is also ob- Christ.' So that according to both vious, that the person who prays to these, believing in Christ is the probe delivered from such theology, is per justifying righteousness, and the not Mr. Ward, but Mr. Bromley! righteousness of Christ is only that which purchases and procures the way for God to justify sinners on condition of faith and sincere obedience. If, by saying that the "obedience of Christ is the procuring cause of justification, Arminians make way for asserting that sinners are justified on condition" or (as our Editor means) by virtue "of faith and sincere obedience;" it would certainly have been an easy matter, and a satisfactory method of proving his point, to have given us the name of the person who asserts such a proposition, and the place in his writings where the assertion is to be found. If I wait till our Editor produce such an assertion from the writings of Mr. Wesley, I am confident I shall never have occasion to appear in Mr. Wesley's defence.

Not content with saying that Mr. W."declares as much as that the most of all contained in" his pamphlet "is false and damnable doctrine," he adds, "he can yet boldly tell us that all that D. Owen, that great and good divine, has written concerning our redemp- | tion by Christ—that all he has written concerning eternal election being the cause of holiness in the people of God-and that all that Jonathan Edwards has written concerning eternal election, and the sovereignty of Godthat all this is most false and pernicious." If this is not a specimen of wilful misrepresentation, it is, at least, a proof of our Editor's incompetency to fulfil the duties of an author. He continues, 66 whereas the truth is, that what these great and good men have written upon these subjects, is nothing but purely the doctrine of holy Scripture." So says Mr. Mac M.; but who is obliged to submit his judgment to the authority of our Editor's ipse dixit?

I am inclined to think that our Editor will find some difficulty in extricating himself from the charge of inconsistency: for he says that Arminians believe we are justified by virtue both of faith and sincere obedience; and yet he infers, from this supposed belief, that faith itself is our proper justifying righteousness.

It is equally surprising to me, how Mr. Mac M. could, from the foregoing definition of justification, infer that the author of it meant that sin

sincere obedience, seeing that no allusion is made to obedience of any kind. It would appear that he has been led to draw the inference, that

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As surprise must have been excited, when reflecting on our Editor's misconception of the plainest statements, so will the same emotion be brought into exercise, on discovering his ingenuity in perverting the most unequivocal propositions. He says, (page 7) "But all that Arminians seem to mean when they say that sin-ners are justified upon condition of ners are justified by the righteousness of Christ, is that they have the benefit of Christ's obedience; that his obedience is the procuring cause of their justification; and in this manner they 'believing in Christ is the proper make way for asserting that sinners justifying righteousness," &c. from are justified on condition of faith and those words in the definition which he sincere obedience. This seems plain has marked in italics. However, infrom these words of Mr. Wesley, com- stead of proving that the inference is menting on Jer. xxiii. 6. He shall unfairly deduced, I shall merely prebe called, the Lord our Righteousness. sent to your view a definition, accreIs it not the plain indisputable mean-dited by our Editor, and given in his ing of this scripture,' says he, He pamphlet, p. 11. I shall mark in itashall be what he is called, the sole lics the words which I consider as purchaser, the sole meritorious cause, corresponding with those marked in both of our justification and sanctifi- the foregoing definition. Justification cation? The same thing is evident is " a gracious sentence of God, from the seventh article of the Armi- whereby a sinner, antecedently guilty

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647

Strictures on Mr. Mac Millan's Pamphlet.

in his sight, is upon his believing in Christ, acquitted from guilt, accepted as righteous, and entitled to all the benefits of the covenant of grace, on account of what Christ has done and suffered for him." It is obvious, on the slightest inspection, that if the former definition is faulty, the latter is equally so: and if the latter definition requires mending, our Editor is obliged to correct one of his "best Evangelical Authors,"on a subject, with regard to which, the author thought that he had given "a just and clear view of the doctrine before him!"

A Note on page 29 next claims our attention. "Mr. Fletcher," says he, "a great leader of the Arminians, calls the moral law, or the law of the ten commandments, 'the Creator's antievangelical, paradisiacal law of innocence;' and the Gospel, he callsan evangelical law-a milder law, adapted to our present state and circumstances.' He allows that sinners could not be justified by the strict moral law of the Creator, but he comforts sinners by telling them of the Gospel being a milder law, adapted to their imperfect state, and that this milder law will justify them on condition of faith and sincere obedience." Every candid reader of Mr. Fletcher's works will join with me in praying, Father, forgive him.

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law is considered as the ground of a sinner's justification? Certainly not. Mr. F. was better acquainted with the human heart than to imagine, that any unrenewed, and consequently unjustified man, could obey even this substituted law. Keeping this remark in view let us read Mr. F.'s own words. "Should Mr. Hill ask if the Christian perfection, which we contend for, is a sinless perfection, we reply: Sin is the transgression of a divine law, and men may be considered either as being under the anti-evangelical, Christless, remediless law of our Creator; or as being under the evangelicai, mediatorial, remedying law of our Redeemer; and the question must be answered according to the nature of these laws," p. 128. What question? The mode of a sinner's justification? or, the extent of a believer's sanctification? The latter, most evidently.

Again: "For there neither is nor was any mán born into this world who could say, I am clear from sin,i.e. I fulfil the Adamic law of innocence, except Jesus Christ: and in that sense, we have all reason to pray with [justified] David, Cleanse thou me from my secret faults; for if thou wil mark what is done amiss, Lord, who may abide it? If thou wilt judge us according to the law of paradisiacal perfection, what man living shall be justified in thy sight? But Christ hás so completely fulfilled our Creator's paradisiacal law of innocence, which allows neither of repentance nor of renewed obedience, that we shall not be judged" [at the last day]" by that law; but by a law adapted to our present state and circumstances, a milder law, called the law of Christ,i.e. the Mediator's law, which is, like himself, full of evangelical grace and truth," pp. 129, 130. It must be evident to every candid reader, that Mr. F. means that the sinner, on his

In Mr. Fletcher's Last Check to Antinomianism, vol. vi. pp. 128, 129, we have the above-quoted words, but in a connection, and with a design, vastly different from what our Editor would make his readers believe. The subject under discussion, is not the mode of a sinner's justification, but the extent of a believer's sanctification. To prove this, nothing more is necessary, than giving the passages in their connected form. It may not, however, be improper in this place to remark, that Mr. F.'s opponents grounded their opposition to the doc-believing, is, in consequence of Christ's trine of Christian Perfection on man's present inability to obey the law of God, in the degree of perfection in which Adam obeyed it before the fall. Mr. F., admitting the force of their argument, obviated their ob jection by stating, that it is not the law given to Adam, but the law of love given to Christians, that is the standard of Christian holiness. Does it follow from such a sentiment, that sincere obedience to this substituted

fulfilment of the Creator's law, ex-
empted from its claims, and placed
under a new law, a law that admits of
repentance and forgiveness (see 1 John
ii. 1. and Rev. iii. 19.) a law whose
fulfilment consists in the obedience of
love, Rom. xiii. 10. It, therefore, re-
mains for Mr. Mac M. to prove, that
Mr. F. "
comforts sinners by telling
them of the Gospel being a milder
law, a law which will justify them on
condition of faith and sincere obedience.”

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