nal rites to the internal dispositions, no man can wilfully separate what he hath so united, without forfeiting his title to that eternal life, which was procured for the human race by the sacrifice on which we feast, at the Lord's supper, appointed to be observed in commemoration of it, even until our Lord's coming again to judgment. In the present case, however, something more may be said.

It is apparent from the Scriptures, and indeed from daily and hourly experience, that the pride of man hath always prompted him to claim eternal life as a matter of right—either as the privilege of his rational nature, or as the well-earned reward of his piety and virtue. Hence the numberless dissertations which have appeared in all ages, on the natural immortality of the human soul-as if the human soul, or any other created being, could exist one moment but by the will of the Creator," who upholdeth all things by the word of his power." It appears likewise from the sacred records, that in every dispensation of revealed religion, it hath been the will of God to repress this pride, by giving importance to some positive institution, calculated to convince mankind that eternal life is a free gift, just as life itself is, and not the wages of human piety or human virtue. In paradise, the immortality of Adam and Eve was suspended, not on their obedience to the precepts of the religion, which resulted from their natural relations to their Creator and to each other-but on their forbearing to eat of the fruit of a certain tree in the midst of

the garden, which, previous to the prohibition, appears to have been a matter of no moral importance whatever. When immortality was forfeited by their disobedience to that prohibition, it was restored in consequence of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, who was the Lamb slain, in the Divine decree, from the foundation of the world; and to keep Christians in mind that this, and this alone, is the foundation on which we can build a sure and certain hope of a resurrection to eternal life, the blessed Author and Finisher of our faith hath commanded us to continue a perpetual memorial of that sacrifice, by feasting on it till his coming again, it being the doctrine of that age, deduced from the law, that the benefits for which sacrifices were offered, were communicated through the feasts that were made on them.

Although saving "faith is indeed the gift of God," being produced in our minds by the influence of the Holy Ghost; and though every good work that we do is wrought in us by the same blessed Spirit; yet is that influence such as to leave our wills free, so that our faith and works are felt by our consciences to be our own faith and works, and not the faith and works of another. Were faith, therefore-even faith that worketh by love-the only condition of our justification, we might be led, as some of our puritanical brethren have been led, like the Pharisees of old, to compare ourselves with others, and, filled with spiritual pride, to thank God that we are not as other men are, our faith

having laid hold on Christ, and, without works, assured us of our salvation! But whilst two positive rites, to the efficacy of which we can contribute nothing, are believed by us to be generally necessary to salvation, it appears not to me possible, that any reflecting Christian can be filled with spiritual pride, as considering himself justified, either for his faith or for his works. If, then, humility be essential to what our brethren call vital religion; and if that religion consist in “ doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with our God," it seems to follow, that such external rites as baptism and the Lord's supper, or something else equally independent of our thoughts and dispositions, is absolutely necessary to support such a religion, among creatures so liable to spiritual pride as vain and erring man.

On the subject of justification, you will do well to study Bishop Bull's Harmonia Apostolica, with the several defences of it by himself and by Dr Grabe; on both regeneration and justification, Dr Waterland's Discourses should be consulted; and here you may likewise read with advantage, the ninth book of Warburton's Divine Legation of Moses, which, though far from a perfect work, is certainly what his friend and biographer calls it, a valuable rationale of the Christian religion.*

* Since these Letters were written, two very valuable tracts on Regeneration have been published, one by Dr Lawrence, now Archbishop of Cashel, and the other by Dr Bethell, Bishop of Gloucester.

LETTER XVII.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE DOCTRINES OF SANCTIFICATION AND PREDESTINATION.

ON the three articles which immediately follow those that treat of justification, I have nothing to add to what has been said by the Bishops Burnet and Tomline; but there is a doctrine entitled, Of Sanctification, which, though so intimately connected with justification and regeneration, that it cannot be separated from them, is by many theologians treated as a separate article of faith. I do not think that thus dividing what is in reality but one great doctrine of the Gospel, into three distinct articles of faith, with as many different titles, has added to the perspicuity of the whole; and am therefore far from considering it as any defect in the creed of our church, that it hath no separate article, entitled OF SANCTIFICATION. Other churches, however, have in their creeds an article so entitled; and therefore, as some of our own clergy delight to dwell on it, I think you will do well

to consider what the most eminent divines say on sanctification, as distinguished from regeneration and renovation. For my own share, I confess that I cannot perceive any intelligible difference between these doctrines and sanctification, though the distinction between them has been considered as of importance by some foreign divines of great emi

nence.

The literal meaning of the word sanctification is indisputably the state of being freed, or the act of freeing from the dominion of sin, and the being made, or the act of making holy. In the active sense, it can be predicated only of God, and in the passive, only of man; being, in the former of these senses, the operation of the Holy Spirit on the mind of man, and in the latter, the effect produced by that operation. In the Westminster Confession of Faith, there is a whole chapter on sanctification, which is there connected with what those divines term Effectual Calling, and seems to indicate the perseverance of all who have been regenerated, who, of course, are the elect, and none but the elect. This, I believe, is the general doctrine of the Calvinists; though some of them teach, as I have repeatedly observed to you, that the elect have the very righteousness and sanctification of Christ himself imputed to them; as if the righteousness and holiness of one person could be literally transferred to another. This strange doctrine is inferred from 1 Cor. i. 30, where it is said that," Christ Jesus is made unto us wisdom and righteousness, sanctifi