and support his own views of the Bible revelation: He aims at nothing, as he trusts, but the glory of God, in the illustration and vindication of a doctrine, which, more than any other, places the crown on Jehovah's head-which stains the pride of human glory-and which teaches him that glorieth, to glory in the Lord. "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches!” "But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth; whereunto he has called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." These words exhibit, for consideration, I. The end which God has in view, with respect to some sinners of the human family,-viz. THEIR SALVATION. He has chosen them from the beginning to salvation, and to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. II. The means, by which this end is accomplished: Through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth; whereunto he hath called you by our gospel. III. The gratitude, with which this arrangement of infinite wisdom and mercy, ought to fill our minds. We are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation. I. Our text exhibits for consideration the end which God has in view, with respect to some sinners, viz. their salvation. "He hath from the beginning chosen them to salvation," and " to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." That God has some end in view in all his works is a self evident truth. To suppose, that an intelligent Being acts without design is absurd in the extreme! If a man, while busily employed, should tell us I know not what I am doing: I have no object in view: I am working without design :'—we would, at once, pronounce him deficient in intellect ! And surely, then, it is not to be supposed, that the infinite God, whose understanding is unsearchable, who is light, and in whom there is no darkness at all, has created this world, and stocked it with its various tribes of inhabitants, without knowing why he did so?-without having any end in view?-or without knowing what would be the movements and the destiny of the creatures of his power? His word informs us, that he "declares the end from the beginning; and from ancient times the things that are not yet done-saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure!"*"For the Lord of Hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? And his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?" "He worketh all things after the counsel of his own will!"‡ But, if God has fixed his plans in eternity-and now works ALL things after the counsel of his own will-his decrees must necessarily have respect to the final condition of men! He has purposed who shall be raised up as monuments of his grace, and who shall be suffered to go on in their sins, and work out their own destruction. But, again; the prescience or foreknowledge of God is generally admitted; and the fact, that so many prophecies are found in the sacred volume, which have received exact fulfilment long after they were recorded, is sufficient evidence, both that God knows the end from the beginning, and that he so controls every creature and every event, as to secure the execution of his righteous designs. "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world." *Isa. xlvi. 10. † Isa. xiv. 27. Eph. i. 11: But how does God foreknow what ever does, or shall take place? Nothing can be certainly foreknown which is uncertain in its nature; and nothing but the purpose of God can render what is future, certain. "It cannot be imagined (says an excellent writer,) whence he should have such a foreknowledge, but from his own decree: He foreknew such and such events, because he decreed they should come to pass. As he sees all things possible in his own power; so he sees all things future in his own will and decree; and he sees the nature of things in the eternal ideas in his own mind."* This foreknowledge, founded on decrees, has respect to all things and consequently includes our final condition. God knows who shall be saved! and he knows it in virtue of his eternal, unchangeable de cree. Once more : God is immutable. He is the Lord, that changeth not—the Father of lights-with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. No new thoughts can arise in his mind, no new plans can be adopted by him. If God is to know more one year, or ten years hence, than he does at present: If he at that time is to have different plans, from what he has at present, he must himself become a different, and a more perfect Being. Either God must change, or else his purposes must be fixed and eternal. God cannot be the infinitely perfect and unchangeable Jehovah, unless he has decreed whatever comes to pass !—and, of course, who shall, and who shall not be saved! These views of decrees in general, and of predestination in particular, are supported by the best and highest authorities. The wisest among the heathen acknowledged the purposes of God; and Senecat expressly refers to them, as a remedy against impaWishart's discourses of God, vol. ii. p. 74. Ep. 96, as quoted by Wishart, vol. ii. p. 74; Losses (says he) wounds, tience under afflictions. pains, fears, have made an incursion upon you: These things are usual: That is little: These things must needs come to pass: They are decreed, and do not come by chance!' But we have higher authority than that which is drawn from the annals of pagan philosophy: We have a more sure word of prophecy; and we say, in relation to this, as well as every other article of faith, " to the law, and to the testimony if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."* The decisions of Scripture are final; from them there is no appeal. Unless this principle be adopted and acted upon, we can expect nothing like uniformity of sentiment in the Christian world. The conclusions drawn by our reason may, and no doubt will be various; and if every one is to believe only what to him appears reasonable, the Bible, instead of being a light to our feet, and a lamp to our path in the investigation of moral truth, becomes a dead letter a mere blank. Our reason and our feelings, disordered and vitiated by the fall, are not infallible guides: And yet it is a well known fact, that men's ideas of right and wrong-the unsanctified notions of a rebellious heart, and not the authority of God's word-are the pleas urged against the doctrine under consideration. It is a warfare, carried on with artillery drawn not from Scripture, but from the human heart-a magazine, full of enmity against God and his truth. We readily admit, that there are in Scripture passages of doubtful interpretation; some of which may be supposed to militate against the doctrine for which we contend. But is it candid-is it honourable-is it just to set up passages of doubtful construction, in opposition to plain and unequivocal declarations? Surely, one plain and pointed declara * Isa. viii. 20. 1 tion in favour or against any doctrine, will weigh down all the doubtful passages that can possibly be collected? Is there then, we ask, any plain and unequivocal passages of Scripture against the doctrine of predestination? The most bitter opposers of the doctrine must acknowledge, there is not; while the advocates of the doctrine can refer to a host of passages-and say, with confidence, thus saith the Lord. A few of these passages we beg leave to introduce, to show you that those who reject this doctrine, reject it at their peril-and that the controversy is not between them and the preacher, but between them and the Bible-between them and the God of the Bible; and "wo to him who striveth with his Maker," The passages we design to mention are plain and conclusive, and such as altogether supersede the necessity of a tedious enumeration. Acts xiii. 48. "And when the Gentiles heard this they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord; and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed." Rom. viii. 33: "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth." Rom. ix. 11, 12, 13: "For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, according to election, might stand; not of works, but of him that calleth. It was said unto her, the elder shall serve the younger; as it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated." Eph. i. 4, 5: "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy, and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us anto the adoption of children, by Jesus Christ, to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." 1 Peter i. 2: "Elect, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of * Isa. xlv. 9. |