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96

THE

PRACTTÒAL

USES

DEEM.

XXXV

?.

company,

who

deny the

propitiatory virtue

óf

the

blood

of

Christ

!

Let

them

find

a

better

ground

tò build their

hopes

of pardon

upon

:

But

do thou lay thy foundation

on this rock,

and the

poWvers

of

hell shall

not

prevail

against it."

Second

doctrinal inference. How strange and unrea

sdnabie

is

the

doctrine

of

the popish church,

who while

they profess to

believe

the religion

of

Christ, yet intro-

duce

many

other methods

of atonement

for

sin, beside

the

sufferings

of

the

Son

of

God, and the atonement

Which

Jesus

has made.

Every

time they

celebrate

the

Lord's

supper, and

the

priest communicates the consecrated bread

to

his

deluded

followers, they suppose

there

is

a

fresh

propitiation

Made

for

sin

:

Therefore

they call

it

the

sacrifice

of

the

mass,

and imagine

that their

unscriptur.al

representation

of

this holy

ordinance,

is

a

real propitiation,

not

only

for

the

sins

of

the

living,

but

for those

that

are dead

also.

Whereas

St.

Paul

assùres

us,

Heb.

ix.

28.

Christ

was

once

offered

to

bear the sins

of

many.

Heb.

x. 14.

By

one

offering

he

hath

for

ever

perfected

them

that

are

sanctified.

T

confess, this

practice

of

theirs

in

the

mass,

looks something

like a

pretence

of

honour,

to

the

name

and death

of Christ;

because, they declare, the

mass

is

but,

as

it

were,

a

repetition

of

the

very

sacrifice

of

Christ

himself:

Though

that

is

expressly

contrary

to the

language

of scripture;

for

"

this man

Jesus, after

he

had

offered

one

sacrifice

for

sins,

for

ever sat

down

at

the right hand

of God,"

Heb.

x.

12.

because

his single

sacrifice was all-sufficient,

and needs

no

repetition.

But, beside

this,

they have many

other

methods

of

atonement

which

men perform,

and

which

they add

to

the

atonement

of

Christ.

What

are

all

their

imposed

penances,

their

pilgrimages on bare

feet,

the

scourgings

of their

own bodies,

the

garments

of hair

worn

upon

their

flesh,

and their multitudes

of repeated Latin

pray-

ers?

What

are

they

all

but toilsome and painful labours,

invented

by

men to make

atonement

for

the

sins

6f

the

soul?

Reflection.

"

Blessed be

the name

of

our

God,- who

has delivered

our nation

from this

bondage

óf

iniquity,

from these

foolish

yokes

and burdens

óf

superstition;

these profane dishonours done

to the sacrifice

and

atone=