31i A CAVEAT XGAÏNST- TNP1OELIPY. wiser or better than our ancestors, if we had never heard of Christ and the bible. Our modern deists and apostates from christianity, are too. vain and assuming, when they pretend to have spun out of their own understandings, any such schemes as they would give us for the religion of nature, as though they borrowed nothing from the prophets and apostles. Why did not our infidel fathers in the days of Cassibellan and Arviragus5; frame as good a system of religion as their infidel sons pretend to do? It is the light of thegospel has opened the understand- ings of men, and awakened the natural light of reason, to display itself in fairer colours : and yet witha profane ingratitude they deride this divine light, and with strange vanity they boast of their pretences to a better religion than the bible has taught us. But let us who wear the honourable name ofchristian, give glory to the grace of our Saviour, while we survey and pity the hea- then world, immersed in wickedness, and in brutal follies. Let ,us-remember and adore the rising Sun of Righteousness, that has scattered the clouds and thick darkness from amongst us, and has introduced the light of life.. And then let us ask ourselves this plain question, " are we willing to part with this bible, and re- nounce this gospel ?" VI. "Meditate particularly, on the glorious and inestima- ble advantages that are derived to us from the religion of Christ, the blessed change of Our Mate here in this life, the glorious hope in death, and the joyful expectation of future felicity." What an amazing difference between a blind heathen, who knows not the true God, nor loves him, nor performs his duty to him, and an enlightened christian, who knows and loves, who worships and obeys his Creator andhis God ! Between a pagan drenched in brutal vices, in shameful immorality and impiety, and a dis- , ciple of Christ cleansed from his sins in the blood of Jesus, and renewed in the image of his heavenly Father! What a glorious andjoyful difference between the inhabitants of Corinth, when . they werefornicators, idolaters, adulterers, abusers of themselves ..by unnatural lusts, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extor- tioners, and the same persons when they were washed, when them were .justified, when they mère sanctified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God; 1 Cor. vi. 9 -11. What a surprizing and blessedchange among the other Gentiles, when instead of the works of thefesh, uncleanness, witchcraft, hatred, wrath, envyings, murders, drunkenness, and revellings, they were blessed with thefruits of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, long-suffer- 'ng, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance; Gal. v. 19-23. If christianity hath not made tisis change every where * Two Princes of Britain, ose is the days of Julius Casar, and ene in the time of Domitian.
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