+ti 1 194 The NEW and COMPLETE LIFE of our BLESSED LORD the inftruaions and offers of falvation now made to them ; for the doarine I have preached; (hall beat witnefs againfi them at the awful tribunal of the laft day ; and as it ha aggravated their fin, fo it fhall then heighten their punilhment. 'I well know, that the doctrines and precepts which the Father hath commanded me to preach, are the only conditions of eternal life ; and therefore, I have propofed them with the greateft faithfulnefs, perfpicuity, and confidence; confequently I am worthy of credit, both with regard to my miffion, and the faithfulnefs with which I haveexe- cuted the commands of the Moft High. A deputation of priefts and elders was fent from the fupreme- council, while our Lord was thus preaching in the temple, to a(k him concerning the nature of the authority by which he ailed, whether it was as prophet, prieft, or king, as no other perfon had a right to make any alterations either in church or (late ; and, if he laid claim to either of thofe charaiers, from whom he received it? But our bleffed Sa- viour, inftead of giving a direEt anfwer to the queffion of the Pharifees, afked them another; promifing, if they refolved his queffion, he would alto anfwer theirs I alfo will afk you one thing, which ifye tell me, I in like manner will tell you by what authority I do theft things. Thebaptifin of John, whence was it ? from heaven or of men? Matt. xxi. 24, 25. The priefís were reduced, by this quef- tion, to an inextricable dilemma : they confidered, on the one hand, that ifthey Paid it was from God, it would oblige them to acknowledge the authority ofJESUS, John having more than once publicly declared him to be the Meffiah ; and, on the other, if they peremptorily denied the authority ofJohn, they would be in danger ofbeing ftonet by the people, who, in general, confidered him as a prophet: they there- fore thought it the molt eligible method to anfwer, that they could not tell from whence John's baptifm was. Thus,-by declining to anfwer the queflion anted them by JESUS, they left him at liberty to decline giving the council the fatisfaftion they had fent to demand : and, at the fame time, they plainlyconfeffed, that they were unable to pats any fentence onJohn the Baptift, not- withftanding he claimed the charaier of a meffenger from God, and they had Pent to examine his pretenfions. This was, in effeët, to acknowledge, that they were incapable ofjudging of any prophet what» foever: well, therefore, might the bleffed JESUS fay, Neither tell Iyou by what au- thority I do thefe things. You have no right to afk, fence you have confeffed you are unable to judge; and, for that reafon, I (hall not fatisfy your inquiry. This deputation of the elders having Paid, that they were ignorant from whence the baptifm of John was, our bleffed Sa- viour fharply rebuked them, conveying his reproof in the parable of the two fops commanded to work in their father's vine- yard ; and made them condemn themfelves, by afking their opinion of the two. A certain man, Paid he, had two fops; andhe came to the firft and Paid, Son, go work to-day inmy vineyard. But this un- gracious youth very roughly anfwered the kind commandof his father, and, without the leaft preface, or appellation of refpeil, anfwered, Iwill not: but, after refleuing on the improprietyand indecency of fuch behaviour to his kind and indulgent father, he repented of what he had done, and went to work in the vineyard. The father having met with fo harfh a reply from the former fon, had recourfe to the other, and in the fame manner, ordered him to work that day in his vineyard. This fon was very different from the former, and in a very dutiful manner Paid, Igo, Sir. But, notwithllanding this Teeming obedience, he delayed to do as his father defired he did not go to work in the vineyard. The temper and behaviour of this fecond fon were exacfl'y conformable to that of the Pharifees : they gave the Almighty the moil honourable titles, and profeffed the utmoft zeal for his fervice, in their prayers and
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