which distinguished them from the inhabitants of Judæa. St. Peter himself was not free from this local peculiarity. Only a few weeks before Pentecost, though he was so anxious to conceal himself that he thrice denied his Lord by a falsehood, yet was he so little master of language, that he could not disguise his Galilæan dialect, and his speech betrayed him. And yet the same St. Peter, not many weeks afterwards, was able to hold a conversation with men from every nation under heaven. Thus it is that minute circumstances, which might seem unimportant or trifling in themselves, may all be brought to bear upon the fundamental evidences of our faith.

That the miracle of the day of Pentecost is a fundamental evidence of the Gospel, cannot be denied; at least, if the fact be granted, the miracle follows of course. The use which I make of the miracle in the present argument is this: it is proved that God interposed His Almighty power in a manner which enabled the apostles to converse with men of every country. The apostles employed this power in preaching the doctrine of remission of sins in the name of Christ.

We must, therefore, doctrine which God

believe that this was the intended them to preach, or, in other words, that the Gospel is true; or, we must believe that God worked a miracle to enable the apostles to preach a false doctrine, which they could not have preached without the miracle.

Such is the nature of the evidence upon which the Gospel rests; and I have said, that when God

requires us to believe the Gospel upon these grounds, he does not exact from us more, than when he requires us to obey its moral precepts. Moral obedience is, in fact, built and grounded upon belief. We must believe, that drunkards and covetous persons will be punished by God, or we shall not obey him concerning these and similar sins. How then can God be called unjust by requiring us to believe in Christ before he promises us forgiveness of our sins? I have shewn, by one example, that what he requires us to believe is supported by evidence which, so far from doing violence to our reason, is such as unprejudiced reason can hardly resist. The Almighty was under no obligation to promise remission of sins at all. He might have left us in that hopeless state of condemnation which our first parents bequeathed. But when it pleased him of his gracious mercy to promise salvation, he chose also to annex one condition, that we should believe in his Son: those who believe may have their sins forgiven; those who do not believe, remain as they were before: to use the expressions of Scripture, they are condemned already—the wrath of God abideth on them—they die in their sins3—their sins can never be forgiven they are in danger of eternal damnation. When we say this, we say no more than what follows from the first principles of the Gospel covenant. Belief in Christ is the only condition on which they can be forgiven they have not that belief in Christ,

1 John iii. 18.

2 Ibid. ver.

3

36.

Ibid. viii. 24.

and therefore they have not forgiveness. This seems sufficient to silence the objection of those who charge God with injustice for punishing infidelity. God does not punish the sinner merely because he is an infidel; but because he is an infidel, he cannot profit by that atonement which can alone save him from punishment.

I shall conclude this discussion with a few words to obviate an objection, and to make a practical impression of the subject upon ourselves. It may be said, that the natural tendency of these remarks is to make us uncharitable in condemning others who do not believe the Gospel. I am willing to allow, that if any view which we take of the Gospel make us uncharitable, we may be very sure that we have mistaken the Gospel. But I have yet to learn, that when the apostles went forth to promise remission of sins to believers only, they were guilty of a breach of charity. It is one thing to declare the conditions of salvation publicly, but it is another to apply the sentence of condemnation personally or insultingly. We know that pardon is promised by covenant to those only who believe: those who do not believe, have no part in the covenanted mercies of God. What sentence What sentence may be passed upon them at the great and awful day, it is not for us to decide. We know that belief itself, the foundation and corner-stone of our hopes, has no intrinsic merit to procure our pardon: if our sins are forgiven, it is because he in whom we believe has by the shedding of his own blood satisfied the wrath of our offended God; and who knows but that God

has some uncovenanted mercies yet in store, and that some drops of that atoning blood may yet be spared to wash away the sins of those who have trodden under foot the Son of God, and have counted the blood of the covenant whereby they might have been sanctified an unholy thing1. It is true that unbelievers are placed by an inspired apostle in the lake which burneth with fire, which is the second death; but they are not placed there alone, they have companions in that place of suffering, whose error is not of the head but of the heart. In that day it will profit us little that we have believed in Christ, if we have not obeyed him; and his words may afford a warning to ourselves, as well as a lesson of charity towards others, when he says of the sinful and presumptuous servant, that his Lord will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers 3.

1 Heb. x. 29.

2

Rev. xxi. 8.

3

Luke xii. 46.

SERMON V.

JESUS CHRIST THE FORGIVER OF SINS.

COL. iii. 13.

Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any; even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

THIS is one of those passages which, though referring primarily to that particular body of Christians to whom the epistle was addressed, may yet be applied to all persons who call themselves Christians, of every country and every age. The advantage, the necessity of brotherly love and forgiveness, must come equally home to ourselves; and the argument by which St. Paul enforces his precept applies equally to us and to all Christians as it did to the Colossians-even as Christ forgave you, so also do

ye.

Christ has forgiven us for something which we had done against him, and we are exhorted to behave in the same manner toward each other, i. e. to forgive those who have done any thing against us.

The text will naturally recall to us many other passages of Scripture in which we are exhorted to forgive one another, upon the same principle of