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When the sick man says he cannot walk with me, he means that he is physically unable to do it; that let him desire to do it ever so much, it is utterly impossible. But when the indolent man says, I cannot, he means that he does not choose to do it; that he prefers lying upon the bed, to the trouble of walking with me.

It should be remembered, that when the creeds and confessions of churches, in imitation of the language of Scripture, tell us that the sinner cannot do this or that, it is solely in this latter sense in which they use it. When our Savior says, "No man can come to me," &c., he means (as in the case of the indolent man just mentioned), that he does not come because he chooses to stay where he is; he prefers being away from Christ. This is what the Bible means by such language. But the sinner excuses himself from obeying God, and denies his desert of future punishment, on the pretence that he is no more able to do what God requires him to do, than the sick and dying man is to rise and walk.

It is this false view of the subject which I wish to oppose, when I say, that man can obey God, if he will. And first,

Its perfect harmony with the Scriptures proves the truth of this proposition. Among the various opinions which exist relative to the Scriptures, all agree, I believe, that God has there given actual commands to men. He tells them, they must love him, that they must love their fellow-beings, that they must cast away their transgressions, must make to themselves a new heart, and a new spirit, must repent and be converted. These are not mentioned merely as things desirable, but as things which we must do; which we are directly and without qualification commanded to do. It is perfectly undeniable, then, that men are addressed just as if they could obey God.

It will be seen, then, at once, how perfectly the doctrine which I have stated falls in, so to speak, with the whole tenor of Scripture precept. On the supposition that men can do what God commands, we see at once why God should give these commands, and why he should utter his displeasure when these commands are disobeyed. Here is no jar, no inconsistency in the doctrine or facts of Scripture; but all beautifully and exactly harmonize with each other.

But to what painful perplexities, and apparent contradictions, at least, are we driven by any other supposition. For let it be granted for a moment that men cannot obey God, how puzzling such questions as these. How can he be just in loading me with burthens which he knows I could not bear? Where is my guilt in not doing impossibilities? Do I not deserve more pity than blame? How can I merit the tremendous curses of the law, for weaknesses which I could not help? Questions you will perceive which it is not easy to answer, and which, instead of leaving the light of truth to break forth from the sacred page, clothe it in gloomy darkness and doubt. The perfect coincidence and harmony then of the doctrine I maintain, with every other part of Scripture, proves it to be true; an integral part of the great system which God has revealed. Suppose you possess a very ingenious and complicated machine, perfect

except in a single wheel. After various trials, you at last find a wheel which exactly fits the place which was destitute, and in every minute and intricate part, is precisely the thing; would you have any doubt that you had found the right wheel? Such then is the force of the argument with respect to the doctrine in question, drawn from its harmony with Scripture.

But it may be said that our proposition is inconsistent with the doctrine of original sin; that if that doctrine be true, then we cannot obey the commands of God. I grant that there are misconceptions or perversions of the doctrine of original sin, inconsistent with man's power to obey the commands of God. But I deny altogether that any thing which I have advanced is at all inconsistent with the real doctrine of original sin. The real doctrine of original sin is not at all that God creates sin in men, either directly or indirectly; or places them in circumstances in which they are unable to do what God requires them to do. This is the view of it which the sinner takes, as one of his excuses: but a totally mistaken view. The true doctrine of original sin is, that men become sinners in consequence of Adam's sin: not that God creates sin in them as a punishment of Adam's sin, but that while they do voluntarily become sinners, it is in consequence of Adam's sin that they become such. But to say that you or I do voluntarily sin, and that this is in consequence of our ancestors having sinned, is a very different thing from saying that God creates sin in us, or makes us unable to do his will. Such is precisely the view of the subject presented in Romans v. 12,"Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world," that is, he committed the first sin, and of course it was then, and in that manner, that sin entered into the world, and "death by sin,"-i. e. death was the consequence of sin; "and so," he proceeds, "death passed upon all men :"-why? "for that," or because that, "all have sinned:" or according to the description of sin given by the apostle, that sin is the transgression of the law; "because all have transgressed the law." Here you perceive, as if foreseeing the very abuse which would be made of the truth, the apostle is very careful to tell us, while he informs us that by one man sin entered into the world -that men are the authors of their own sin, that death passed upon all men, "for that"-for this explicit and sufficient reason-"all have sinned;" they have sinned: they have done that which exposes them to the wrath of God: which only exposes them to that wrath. The doctrine of original sin, then, freed from misconception, is not at all inconsistent with the position, that men can obey God, if they will. For nothing is plainer than that I may sin, in consequence of what another has done, and yet simply follow my own choice or preference in thus sinning.

Thus is the mind freed from all painful perplexity and doubts respecting the character of God, and another proof is given, that the truth must be perverted, ere men can excuse their sin, or charge it upon any but themselves.

But it may be said, that the position I maintain is inconsistent with the doctrine of total depravity, or the entire sinfulness of the human character before regeneration. But this can only be said from mistaken views of the doctrine. For what is the doctrine of total depravity, or the entire

sinfulness of the human character? Not that God in any way creates sin in men; but it is, that men have no holiness at all in them previous to regeneration: they sin and only sin, and thus their character is totally sinful. But how is the fact, that men do constantly and invariably and voluntarily sin, at all inconsistent with the other fact, that they can obey, instead of transgressing? So far from being inconsistent with the doctrine of total depravity, it is essential to the doctrine. For, suppose one so created that he could not obey God, that he could not help transgressing, he is an unfortunate being, but could not be a guilty being. We must pity him, but could not find it in our hearts to blame or punish. But when I see a being who can obey the commands of his God, I know that he should; when I see such a being just telling his God that his own will he will follow, and persevering in that course, in direct opposition to law, and always doing it, he is a being guilty and depraved, not unfortu nate; he deserves the displeasure of God.

But how is it possible, some may say, that I am totally depraved, completely sinful? Sinful to some extent I acknowledge I am, but not totally so, for I practise many things, such as honesty, sobriety, &c., which I am sure are such as God approves, and are not sinful. I answer-suppose a father, on leaving home in the morning, gives this peremptory charge to his son, that he is to stay in the house all that day; that on no account whatever is he to go out. Soon as the father is gone, the boy very coolly takes his hat and goes out, and remains the whole day. He does not go, you may suppose if you please, into vice or idleness; but goes to his school or to his business, quietly and industriously. Now is not that boy transgressing his father's commands, every hour and every moment of that day? True, much of the time he is not even thinking of his father, or his commands, so engrossed is he with his books or his business; and is even doing things which his father at other times would approve: but still in every thing he does, he is constantly transgressing his father's will: the command was that he should stay at home: he will not do it, he is entirely disobedient. The father at night calls his son to account; the child acknowledges the fact of absence from home during the day, but pleads that he had been industrious at his studies or his business. Yes, the reply would be, but I told you to stay at home; your absence proves a deliberate purpose to disobey; your industry and good behavior are nothing, because they were not done to please me. Had you any affection for me, you would have shown it in the way I pointed out. But your disobedience shows, that even those things which appeared well, you performed to please yourself, not me.

This illustration may show how the sinner is constantly disobeying God, totally sinful. The command is, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart. Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. The command is obligatory every moment.

But the sinner does not obey at all; he is constantly sinning. Every thing which he does is sinful; for his disobedience shows, that he does every thing to please himself, and not God.

But it may be said that the position which I maintain is inconsistent with the need of divine influence. If men can obey the commands of God,

then what need is there of the Holy Spirit, to renew the heart, and lead them to repent? But this can only be said from mistaken views of the nature and design of divine influences. Some appear to imagine that divine influence is given merely to help weakness: to give the sinner strength to do that which he has no power to perform. Thus I am too weak to raise the weight of a ton, and so a lever, a screw, or wheel and pulley is given to me to enable me to do it. So it is supposed, the Holy Spirit is given to men to enable them to do that which they have no kind of ability to do. But this is a totally mistaken view of the necessity of divine influence. Divine influence is given to incline, or influence, the sinner to do that which he can do, if he will, but which, through the voluntary perverseness and wickedness of his heart, he will not do-till this divine influence is imparted. The two different modes of viewing the subject may be illustrated thus:

There are two children: one is commanded to read a page from a Hebrew book which is given to him. He cannot do it: what he needs is some help,-some further knowledge or capacity to enable him to do it. The other child is told to read an easy sentence from an English book. He can do it; but, through obstinacy, will not. Now, what this child wants is not help to enable him to read, but some influence exerted on his mind to induce him to read. So the influences of the Spirit are given to influence a perverse and rebellious being to change the purpose of his heart.

How then is the position that men can obey God inconsistent with the need of divine influence? The sinner is going on in sin with full purpose of heart; he is determined in his course; reason, argument, and truth have not moved, they never will move him from his purpose. Left to himself, he will certainly go on in sin and ruin. Does not such a sinner need a divine influence to turn him from his sin?

The true doctrine of divine influence, then, so far from affording a refuge or excuse to the sinner, is the very doctrine which shows him the exceeding greatness of his sin and guilt. It proves him guilty of a deliberateness, wilfulness, determination in his guilt, for which no vengeance could be too great. The fact, then, that sinners can obey God, and will not, shows the need of divine influence.

Harsh as the language seems, I must now draw the inference that you do deserve eternal punishment. God has ordained that the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment, and we only say that every sinner who takes up his dreary abode in hell is the guilty cause of his own destruction, and deserves to be there.

In this discourse I have endeavored to tear away the refuges in which sinners intrench themselves, and to show the reason why they deserve eternal punishment,-that they could, but would not obey God. Did the opinion on either side end in mere speculation, I should consider these consecrated hours abused when occupied in such discussion. But it ends not in mere speculation: the question is no less than this-whether God or the sinner is to blame for sin; whether he has or has not a good reason for disobeying God. If God is to blame, then go on in sin, and

I will trouble you no more; if you are to blame, then you deserve, and must receive, the reward of your doings-eternal punishment.

If you were unfortunate creatures, who could not obey God, then you could not deserve eternal punishment. But this is not the case; you can obey God: the only reason why you do not is that you will not. You are voluntary in your rebellion against God, and therefore deserve his wrath. What! you angrily ask, send your fellow-creatures to hell!— Consign us all to eternal condemnation! I send you to hell!--I give you over to condemnation! God knows that I desire your salvation; that often I have urged you to come to Christ; that I have pointed you to the only way of life, and would gladly have persuaded you to turn and live: but " ye will not come.” It is God who hath declared, "the soul that sinneth, it shall die;" "except ye repent ye shall perish;" and what ambassador will dare to keep back the message of his Master?

Did I leave your case hopeless, then well might you complain. Did I merely tell you that hell's dark gulf was before you, that your feet would slide in due time, and then leave you to the horrors of hopeless, utter despair, then well might you complain of me as the hateful bearer of bad tidings,—as wishing to deprive you of the little hope you could enjoy in this poor life. But it is not so. I come to tell you that you need not be destroyed; I bring you the glad news that you are not bound by any irresistible destiny to destruction; that you can be saved; that if you do perish, it will only be because you would not have life; that even for you, who all your life long have been living in purposed and voluntary rebellion against God, there is pardon and life, if you will come for it; that even "while you were yet enemies, Christ died for you."

But while I say this, I do again solemnly warn you that your present course leads down to hell; for it is a course of voluntary rebellion against God: that if you at last make your abode there, you deserve it.

I say this, as I see many of you travelling, with fearful rapidity, the broad road to death. But you are careless, laugh as gayly, tread as merrily, toil as busily, as though only life and happiness were before you. Your present joys are fleeting and transient; even at the longest, you can have them but a little while, and then you part with life, joy, light, for ever: yet for these you are bartering your soul, and despising the eternal treasures of bliss which God can give. Why will you die?-why will you keep on? You comfort yourselves with thinking that you are not to blame. As you float down the current, you lull conscience to sleep by the fatal opiate that you are not to blame, that you cannot do any thing, that you are under some resistless agency of good or evil; and when I come and say that you are indeed a sinner, so desperately wicked that you will not obey God, and have all your life long been voluntarily resisting him, you deny it; you are too proud to acknowledge that there is such deep guilt attached to you. Instead of falling down, confessing and forsaking your rebellion, you excuse yourself by charging your sin on God, and thus deepen your own damnation.

But if what I have said be true, you have no excuse. Far above all cavil lie the government and dealings of God; pure as the untroubled brightness around his throne, shines his character, while the sinner is seen

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