Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

may have been murderers, adulterers, persecutors or blasphemers, they are not only reformed, but completely altered; they have repented of their sins and forsaken them entirely; they loath their past sinful courses, and are prepared to join the songs, and to participate in the employments of saints and angels in glory. Their characters, therefore, or rather the disposition of their minds will be directly the reverse of those of the wicked. It is therefore right and fit, that their situations should be very different; and upon supposition that they are to be so nearly alike, as some have represented, might we not with propriety adopt the expostulation of Abraham : "Be it far from thee, to slay the righteous with the wicked, or that the righteous should be as the wicked. Shall not the judge of all the earth do right?"

some who will be excluded, it must still be a truth, that, as the one will receive their portion on principles of justice, the other, on principles of grace, so their situations must of necessity be widely different.

3. The wisdom and goodness of God require, that mankind should be placed, hereafter, in situations, in which they can be useful in promoting the great end of creation. For this end, they are placed in a state of probation, that it may be discovered for what they are fitted; that is, what they would do, if laid under no restraint; whether they would glorify God or themselves. And this trial with res pect to the wicked will terminate in complete demonstration, that if left to themselves, they would never be actively useful in promoting the great end of creation. Of course, they will be altogether unfit to reside in that place, 2. The principles, on which where God is to be served and the righteous and wicked will glorified. Nor will it be conreceive their respective rewards, sistent with the glory of God to are totally different. The wick- make them happy in any other. ed will receive their rewards on The only way, therefore, in which principles of strict justice. The the wicked can be useful in a fuuttermost farthing, which is due ture world, will be, in being deto divine justice, will be required stroyed, and in that way displayof them; and having never done ing the power, justice and holy any thing except evil, justice re- displeasure of God against sin. quires, that the portion of their The righteous, on the contrary, cup should be evil also. The will be found to love their Maker, righteous, on the contrary, will and to delight in obeying his horeceive their rewards, not only commands. They will apprinciples of justice, but on those hear, of course, to be well fitted of grace. And in proportion as to inhabit the realms of blessedgrace is manifested in their sal-ness above; and God can convation, in the same proportion, sistently exercise toward them must their situation be more his benevolence, in making them happy, than what strict justice completely happy. The great would require. Admitting there- end of creation, therefore, seems fore, that there will be little to require, that the portion of dife en ce between some who the righteous should be happiwill be admitted into heaven, andness, while that of the wicked is

1

to be the object of the displeasure of a holy God.

the human mind must be by turns excited in them, by a view of those objects, which must be present before their minds. The righteous, on the contrary, will be prepared to be completely happy in view of the same objects. The more clearly they see the divine perfections, and the object of the divine government; the more extensive is their acquaintance with that va-. riety of objects, which the spir

any just views of the objects around them, they cannot but have totally opposite feelings; one must inevitably be miserable, while the other is happy.

4. The different temper or taste of mind, which will be possessed by the righteous and the wicked in a future world, will prepare them to have opposite feelings in view of the same objects." He that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still," will be one part of the sentence pronounced by an omniscient Judge. The wicked, there-itual world will disclose, and fore, in possession of an evil their various relations one to temper or taste of mind, will be another, the more happy will they in no degree prepared to relish be. It will be impossible, therethose spiritual objects which must fore but that the future situation of be present to their view. They the righteous and wicked should will doubtless behold clearer ex-be widely different. If they have hibitions of the divine perfections, than can be seen in the present life; but these exhibitions will afford them no satisfaction, because they do not love them. They will even prove sources of the most distressing pain, because their heart will be filled with enmity against them. They will see also the various methods of divine government, and particularly the great object of it, to display the benevolence of God, by making the righteous completely happy, and covering the wicked with shame and disappointment. These views, how-jects, do not the declarations of ever, must be to them a source of peculiarly painful sensations, because they are directly opposite to the wishes of their hearts. They will behold also saints and angels happy in each other and in their God, but for such society they will have no relish. They will hear their songs, but will not perceive in them any thing pleasing, because they celebrate the praises of the tri- | une God, whom they do not love. In short, every painful feeling of

When all these considerations are duly attended to; the different characters of the righteous and the wicked-the different principles on which they will receive their portions-the different ways, in which they are prepared to be useful-and the different taste of their minds, preparing them for directly opposite feelings in view of the same ob

inspiration respecting their future situations, appear to be per. fectly just and rational ?

Let no one, then, foolishly think it a matter of indifference, to which of those places he shall go, when he leaves this world. Let no one think that by maintaining a fair exterior in the view of men, he shall escape the more aggravated punishments of the wicked, or obtain a situation little inferior to that of some of the righteous, though his heart may

[merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small]

is made up of all the innumerable events, things, and circumstances, which compose this general state of things, and so are all included in the prophecy. If then these are accomplished, they certainly prove the decrees of God, concerning all which go in to make out that general state of things, which God has foretold. And have not these prophecies been, and do they not continue in a train of accomplishment to the present time? If all matters were not fixed, they could not be foretold; and if not fixed by God, by whom were they fixed? by a visionary power called chance? But if the latter be absurd, let us acknowledge the decrees of God.

I once heard of a minister of the word of God, who, on his death bed, deeply lamented, | that he had not more laboriously That God has fore-ordained inculcated on his congregation, whatsoever comes to pass, dethe gospel doctrine of fore-or- rives also much evidence from dination. This is the most prom-the consideration, that God doinent trait of the divine adminis- eth his will in heaven and on trations, and that, against which, earth, that the Lord reigneth, the pride of the enemies of God and causeth all things to work is most violently opposed. You together for the good of them have not indeed been silent on that love him. If God does his this subject, in your evangelical will-if he has projected a plan publication, and it is presumed how all things may subserve his will continue to ascribe king-church-if his counsel shall dom and dominion to our God. stand, and he will do all his If the following pages meet your pleasure, as we are assured in approbation, they are submitted his word, then he has fixed his to your disposal. will and counsel, which can be nothing short of fore-ordination.

you

[blocks in formation]

Unless God has adopted some purposes, then all things are governed by chance, or rather, are under no direction; and unless he has fixed his purposes concerning all things, and even the most minute, then these may defeat his purposes concerning others, and his designs, threatenings, promises and prophecies fail of accomplishment. But God hath not exposed himself to such disappointment: all

things are therefore pre-deter- | in such relation to each other, mined.

The bare consideration that God is perfect in wisdom, is evidence that he has decreed all things. Even the husbandman, though he cannot secure himself from being exposed to disappointments, is not so void of all wisdom, as to have no fore cast how to manage his concerns. It is the definition of a lunatic, that he acts from present impulse, without any preconcerted plan. But God has unquestionably fixed his purposes with infinite propriety.

It is also desirable that all things should be made to work together for the good of them that love God, and therefore, that all things should be directed on a wise calculation, to answer this end, according to the counsel of God. This is the sole ground of any confidence which we can reasonably have, that the final issue of all things will be to the glory of God, and the good of his people.

then one event may perfectly depend on another, which preceded it, and yet be absolutely fixed in the counsels of God. Thus the deliverance of all the ship's company, which sailed with Paul for Rome, though foretold, depended on the continuance of the mariners on board, this too depended on the cutting away the boat, so that they should not be able to desert the ship, this depended on the communication of Paul to the soldiers, and this again on the revelation from God, that the seamen must be retained. The whole train of these things was decreed, before it was predicted, that all on board should be saved from the danger of the seas, and accordingly the seamen put the ship in, so near the shore, that when it was broken, all escaped to land. This also was the means by which Paul was preserved to see Rome, and preach the gospel there, as was foretold, while he was yet in Judea; and probably his preaching at Rome was the means of the salvation of many, and so of a train of events, reaching through time and eternity; and these again are connected with innumerable other events, and they with others. In this way the disposal of all things is connect

2. The decrees of God are an establishment of an endless train of events, in successive dependence on each other, so as to be the means of securing the accomplishment of the whole in sucecssion. It is easy to see, that if every event is pre-determined in particular, then the whole train of them is fixed, ined into system, and every event all the relations in which they stand to each other; and the relation in which one stands to another, is itself as much the subject of a divine determination as any thing. We know that one event is in some respects the cause of another, as wind is the cause of waves, temptations the cause of sin, and motives of moral action. Since events stand

is dependent on its connections, according to the decree and providential agency of God. One thing may be so dependent on another, that it could not take place, if that should fail, and yet this be no objection to the doctrine of absolute decrees, for the cause is as much fore-ordained as the effect. Thus the whole train of events in the

God, before time began, and were designed to be the means of accomplishing them in eternal succession. God has fixed from eternity the connection betweeń causes and effects.

world, though they are all in suc- sent, and yet these are but the cession dependent on preceding accomplishment of that train of causes and means, are, notwith-things, which was concerted by standing, all fixed by the decrees of God, who has ordered the connection of all in his plan. Means and ends, causes and effects, antecedents and consequents, are all ascertained in his eternal counsels and the means secure the events dependent on them, according to his eternal pur-established the accomplishment

poses.

The view we have taken of the manner in which God has

of his purposes, affords ministers, parents and all christians encouragement to be laborious and faithful in their services for the cause of Christ; and it was designed from everlasting, that this should be a motive to their faithfulness. When proper

salvation of men, they are workers together with God in this matter, and there is the greatest encouragement, from this ar

It depended on innumerable voluntary acts of men, that Christ was born, in Bethlehem, of the seed of David, that he was put to death, and that all things which were decreed, and foretold concerning him, came to pass. If Judas had not betray-means are used by them for the ed him if Pilate had not condemned, and if the people had not been disposed to do every thing, that had been predicted, then those prophecies could nev-rangement of the means under er have been accomplished. The providence, to expect the event. volitions of free agents are e- If God had not intended to acvents, as much as other things, complish the salvation of souls, and the decrees and providence and the edification of his people, of God, are as much concerned it is not to be supposed, that he with them; and moral causes would have decreed the means. and means have their use as Where the apostles preached, much, in bringing about moral souls were renewed, but when events, as natural causes and Christ was not preached, souls means, in producing natural were not saved, for faith comes events; and these are all equal- by hearing, and how can they ly the care of providence; there believe on him, of whom they is therefore no impropriety in have not heard? So when the saying, a thing is decreed, and means of grace are used in any that it is dependent on the will country, more or less are usualof man, whether it shall come ly brought into the kingdom of to pass; for our wills and actions God. When God was about to are decreed, and are decreed as save souls at Macedonia, he sent the means of such an event. In- Paul, and he sent the apostles deed almost all the events, which to other places, when he intendtake place among men, are de-ed to give success. pendent on our free volitions, When we see an husbandman and sometimes on the volitions repair, with his workmen, teams of millions. Generations back and proper implements, to a have an influence on things pre-certain field, we conclude, he has

« AnteriorContinuar »