Si A CHRISTIAN CHURCH. trances, unless it be professed in 'a credible manner to the world ; nor can the want of such real and inward religion exclude any person from communion while he mikes such a credible pro- fession, for God only is the judge of, hearts, and not man, we must act according to outward appearances: There will be hypo- crites in the church of Christ in this world, and there is no help for it ; The wheat and tares Will grow together in the same field till the time of harvest ; Mat. xiii. 30. The day of judgment is the only time to decide the matter completely, and distinguish hypocrites for ever from real christians ; and therefore all that have the credible form and appearance of christianity, must be -admitted Into the Church of Christ on earth. This is the com- mon'sentiment anti practice of all the reformed churches, " that a credible profession is the general term of communion," though they differ about some particular circumstances of this profession that go to make up the credibility of it. These things are so generallyacknowledged by the most and best of writers of our day, that I shill not stay here to prove them, and my business in this discourseis with those christians that allow and acknowledge what I have alreadysaid. Now a credibleprofession of christianity implies these two things : First, that the matter professed be of such a nature, and declared in sucha manner, as may render the profession credible ; and, secondly, there must alsobe some person or persons to whom that profession must appear credible, and who must be judges of the credibility of it. , I shall begin with the last of these and dis- patch it soon, because I mention it only as a needful introduction to the chief questions relating to the particular terms of christian communion. QuEST..1I.Who are the proper Judges of the Credibility of our Profession Sect I. Jesus Christ in his word is the supreme Judge of what is truth, and what is ditty; what sort of Persons ought to be admitted to .christian communion, and who should be forbid. But as'he is absentfrom us, and speaks not but by his word, and his worddoes not apply its oivñ rules to particular persons, John, Thomas; William, &c. in every age and nation there is a ne- cessity that some persons must judge and determine whether John, Thomas, William, &c. have these characters of worthy communicants,which Christ has appointed in his word. . Every man for himself must use his own best judgíneçt in searching his heart, and trying himself by the word of God, whether he has complied with the terms of salvation, and he must judge for himself too whether it be his duty to propose himself to christian communion: But no man must determine for
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