396 AN. HUMELE ATTEMPT, &C. of moral, divine, and eternal things. Judge wisely whit to leave' out as well as what to speak. Let not your chief design be to workup a sheet, or to hold out an hour, but to save a soul. Ill. In speaking of the great things of God and 'religion, remember you are a minister of Christ and the gospel, sent to publish to men what God has revealed by his prophets and apos- tles, and by his Son Jesus; and not a heathen philosopher to teach the people merely what the light of reason can search out : you are not to stand up here as a professor of ancient or modern philosophy, nor an usher in the school of Plato or Seneca, or Mr. Locke ; but as a teacher in theschool of Christ, as apreacher of the New Testament. Yon are nota Jewish priest to instruct men in the precise niceties of ancient judaisms, legal rites and ceremonies; but you are a christian minister : Let christianity therefore run through all your composures, and spread its.glories over them all. It is granted indeed, that reasonings from thé light of na- ture have a considerable use in the ministry of the gospel. It is by the principles of natural religion, and by reasoning from them on the wonderful events of prophecy and miracle, &c. that we ourselves must learn the truth of the christian religion, and we must teach the people to build their faith of the gospel on just and rational grounds; and this may perhaps, at some timeor other, require a few whole discourses on some of the principal themes of natural. religion, in order to introduce and display the religion of Jesus. But such occasions will but seldom arise in the course of your ministry. It is granted also, that it is a very useful labour sometimes in a sermon to slim how far the light of nature and reasonwill carry uson in the search of duty and hap- piness ; arid. then to manifest how happily the light of scripture supplies the deficiencies of it; that the people may know how' greatly they are indebted to the peculiar favour of God for the bookof divine revelation.. And yet farther, since.the whole of natural religion is con- tained and included in the gospel of Christ, it is proper some- times to shew that reason as well as scripture confirms the same doctrines, and obliges us to practise the same ditties. It is cer- tain also that human reason, though it could not discover the. religion of Christ, yet it is able to point out many admirable glories anddivine condescendencies in this religion when it is dis- covered. It is good to impress the conscience as well as instruct the understanding by the two great lights that Godhas given us, viz. reason and revelation. Two such pillars will support the structure of religion better than one. And when we happen to hear any of our brethren occasionally insisting on the themes of natural religion; and enforcing thebelief of truths, or the prac- liee of duties, by the principles. of reason, let us candidly sup-
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=