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were kept from error of every kind: so that all which they have spoken must be regarded as the word of God, no less than if their very words had been dictated from above: for though, I say again, they were left to record every thing in their own language, yet, in all that they stated, and in all that they revealed, they were kept from error of every kind and every degree. If, on some occasions, they delivered any thing from their own minds, as matters of opinion, and not as divine authority, they failed not to inform the reader in what light he was to regard that particular sentiment which was so delivered*: but in all other matters they claimed the authority of God himself, as sanctioning and confirming all that they uttered in his name1.]

This will yet more fully appear, whilst we consider, II. The authority committed to them—

The words in which this authority was conveyed have been grievously misinterpreted and perverted

[The ministers of the Church of Rome found on this, and other similar passages of Holy Writ, a claim to the power of forgiving sins. When, indeed, they are accused of this, they will deny it, and will endeavour to explain away their arrogant assertions. But it is a fact, that they teach their people to conceive of them as possessing this power: and their people do entertain this opinion, and do look to them to exercise this power; and do submit to their unscriptural impositions, under this fallacious hope; aye, and do pay them, too, for administering to them this indulgence. This power, say they, was given to St. Peter m; and therefore the Pope, as the successor of St. Peter, possesses it. This power too, say they, was given to the Church; and therefore they, as constituting the Church, possess it". And again: this power was given to all the Apostles; and therefore they, as descendants of the Apostles, possess it. But when did Peter ever exercise this power? Did he, when he first preached to the Jews? When, under great agony of mind, they cried, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" did he say, "I, I Peter, forgive you? No: he assumed no such power to himself; but said, "Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins P." Did he arrogate to himself any such power, when he opened the kingdom of heaven to the Gentiles? No: when they would have been ready enough to yield him even divine honours, he forbad them; and, in

k 1 Cor. vii. 6, 10, 25, 40.

m Matt. xvi. 19.

1 1 Thess. ii. 13. and iv. 8.

n Matt. xviii. 18.

• The text.

P Acts ii. 37, 38.

4 Acts x. 25, 26.

stead of saying "I forgive you," he referred Cornelius and his company to the Lord Jesus Christ, as the only source of hope and peace; saying, "To HIM give all the prophets witness, that, through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins"." When our blessed Lord himself forgave sins, the surrounding Jews, conceiving of him as a mere man, accused him of blasphemy. And their accusation was just, if he was not God; for, "who can forgive sins, but God only $?"]

What, then, is the true import of the passage?

[The authority vested in the Apostles was not personal, but official; or rather, I should say, did not exist at all in themselves, but only as declaring the character of those whom God would accept or reject in the day of judgment. So far as this power was exercised in inflicting or removing censures from any members of the Church, it had relation only to this world. So far as it related to the eternal world, it was altogether declarative, and in no respect judicial. It accorded. exactly with the authority of the priests under the law, when they were called upon to judge respecting lepers: there were given marks, whereby they were to try every case that came before them where those marks were found, they pronounced the person leprous: and where they were not found, they absolved him from the charge of leprosy. So the Apostles have laid down, with the utmost clearness, the marks whereby a child of God may be discerned, and be distinguished from an hypocritical professor: and according to what they have declared shall every case be decided in the day of judgment: those whom they have pronounced forgiven, shall be forgiven; and those to whom they have assigned a sentence of condemnation, shall assuredly be condemned. This was the power which they exercised: and this power still resides in those who, as God's ambassadors, are authorised by him to declare his will to men. So far as they judge according to the written word, the sins of men, as remitted or retained by them, shall be remitted or retained in heaven.]

That we may bring this subject home for more general use, I would call you to NOTICE from it, 1. What aid is reserved for you in the discharge of your duties

[You need, in your respective callings, the influence of the Holy Spirit, as much as ever the Apostles did. And to you shall it be given, as freely as ever it was conferred on them The Lord Jesus Christ has "the residue of the

Acts x. 43.

s Mark ii. 7.

t Lev. xiii. 38-46.

Spirit" still abiding in him": and if you pray, "Lord Jesus, breathe on me!" he will in no wise refuse your request*.]

2. How to judge of your state before God—

[Men will pretend to declare, with great confidence, that such and such characters, which they account good, have nothing to fear. You yourselves, too, may have formed a strong opinion on such points. But I warn you, that whatever you or the world may think, God's judgment shall stand; and his final sentence shall be in exact accordance with his written word. Your one inquiry therefore must be, "What saith the Scripture?" for assuredly those whom the Scripture acquits, shall be acquitted; and those whom the Scripture condemns, shall be condemned. "To the word, therefore, and to the testimony. Whoever they be that speak not according to this word, there is no light in them."]

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THOMAS'S UNBELIEF REproved.

John xx. 27, 28. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

IT is worthy of observation, that the inspired writers shew no solicitude to conceal their own faults, or the faults of each other; but that they relate every thing with artless simplicity, precisely as it occurred. The Disciples were all, without exception, reproved as "fools, and slow of heart to believe what had been written by the prophets" of old. But Thomas in particular gave way to unbelief, and would not credit the resurrection of his Lord, even after all the others were convinced of it. This, however, was overruled by his Divine Master, for the good of the Church in all ages: for, whilst it was an occasion of a particular manifestation of Christ to him, it brought forth from him as glorious a confession of Christ, as any we find in the inspired volume.

From that manifestation, and that confession, we shall be led to shew,

I. The evidence we have of the truth of Christianity

Of course we cannot enter now into the consideration of the evidences at large: we must confine our attention to the two which are mentioned in the passage before us;

1. The testimony of the Apostles in general

[They had no expectation that their Lord and Master would rise again: and when they were informed that he was risen, they knew not how to believe it. However, the numerous proofs which they had of it on the very day on which he rose, and particularly his presence with them all on the close of that day, convinced them fully that he was indeed risen, and that the same body which had been crucified was restored to life. From that time they entertained no doubt respecting this fundamental article of their faith. On the contrary, as soon as ever the Holy Ghost had descended on them on the day of Pentecost, they spake of it with great boldness, and urged it as a decisive proof that Jesus was the true Messiah. In this testimony they all concurred; nor could the most cruel. menaces or persecutions at all abate their confidence in maintaining it. Having themselves had such abundant opportunities of ascertaining the truth of his resurrection during the forty days that he continued upon earth, they were ready to seal their testimony with their own blood, and did actually lay down their lives in confirmation of it. To this conduct they had no temptation whatever; for they knew that nothing but trials and persecutions, imprisonments and death, would be their portion in this world. With what confidence they themselves relied upon this truth, may be seen from their writings": and, if we receive not their testimony, there must be an end of all testimony whatever; since nothing ever was, or can be, so incontrovertibly established, as this fact.]

2. The testimony of Thomas in particular

[His doubts might seem to justify a suspicion of the veracity, or at least of the judgment, of all the other Apostles: but it rather adds weight to their testimony; since it shews his absolute determination never to acknowledge that fact to have taken place, till it should be proved to him by such evidence as it would be impossible to withstand. Indeed the proof which he required was most unreasonable; for, if our Lord was to submit his wounds to be inspected by all mankind, in order to gain their assent to the truth of his resurrection, he must never go up to heaven at all, but continue on earth to the very

a Luke xxiv. 39, 40.

b Acts i. 3. and x. 41. 1 Cor. xv. 3-8. 1 John i. 1-3.

end of the world, in order that every person in every successive generation might have the evidence here required. For, if Thomas could not credit the other Apostles who had touched and handled their Lord's body, why should he expect others. to credit him? And why should not every one to the end of time demand for himself the same evidence that he did? But our Lord was pleased to gratify his unreasonable desire; and by thus extorting from him an acknowledgment of his resurrection, he has given to the world such a proof of it as incredulity itself can now no longer withstand.]

Thomas, overcome by this evidence, shews in his acknowledgment,

II. The faith it should produce in us

It is not an assent to the mere fact of Christ's resurrection that is required of us, but,

1. An assent to all those truths which the resurrection of Christ was intended to confirm

[Our Lord referred men to his resurrection as the proof of his Messiahship, and as the evidence that the religion which he established was of God. Accordingly, we must consider every word of Christ as confirmed beyond all doubt, the very moment we acknowledge the truth of his resurrection. The divinity of his person, as "Emmanuel, God with us;" the nature of his death, as "a propitiation for the sins of the whole world;" the certainty of acceptance to all that should believe in him; together with the whole plan of the Gospel salvation; must be regarded as inseparably connected with that event, and infallibly established by it

2. A cordial approbation of them—

[To suppose that the words of Thomas were a mere exclamation, only shews to what miserable shifts Socinians are reduced, in order to maintain their views of Christianity. For, not to mention that such an horrible profanation of God's holy name could not be supposed to issue from an Apostle, in the very presence of his Lord, under such peculiar circumstances, we are expressly told that Thomas addressed those words to our Lord himself; and consequently they can be interpreted in no other way than an acknowledgment of Christ as "his Lord and his God." And here we may observe, that Thomas does not merely acknowledge Christ from the conviction of his mind, in the same way as the worshippers of Baal acknowledged the supremacy of Jehovah, "The Lord, He is the God; the Lord, He is the God";" but with most affectionate endear

c 1 Kings xviii. 39.

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