Madeley, April 22d, 1763. Mr. Samuel Hatton. precious to you. Am glad to find by your welcome letter, that Jefus is ftill O may he be fo an hundred to me and you! May we live only to fhew forth his praife, and grow up into him in all things! fold more both As for me, I have reafon to praife God, that he gives me patience to throw in my weak line, till he gives the word and enables me to caft the net on the right fide, and enclofe a multitude of finners. The hope of this bears me up above the toils of a night of ignorance, perplexity, and trials of every fort. I find, bleffed be God, that all things work together for my good, whether it be fuccels or want of fuccefs, joy or grief, fickness or eafe, bad or good report: all encourages or humbles me. With refpect to Mifs Hattons, I hope they will call no man upon earth master, and that they will fteer clear of the rocks of prejudice and bigotry, against which fo many profeffors fplit daily, even when they think they are at the greateft diftance from them. I am quite of your opinion about the mifchief that fome profeffors (puffed up in their own fiefhy minds,) do in the Church of Chrift under the mafk of fanctity; but my Master bids me bear with the tares until the harveft, left in rooting them up, I fhould promifcuously pulĮ up the wheat alfo. As to Mr. Wefley's fyftem of perfection, it tends rather to promote humi lity lity than pride, if I may credit his description of it, in the lines following. "Now let me gain perfection's height, Be less than nothing in my fight, And feel that Chrift is all in all.” More than this I do not defire, and I hope that, fhort of this, nothing will fatisfy either, my dear friend or me. With respect to "one Mr. Bn, having been fo bold as to affert in your room, that our falvation was conditional," he may be orthodox enough, in my poor judgment, although he faid fo. Indeed the meritorious part of our falvation is unconditional on our fide, and if Mr. B―n talks of meritorious conditions, he is a ftranger to the gofpel: But, that the application of this falvation is conditional, I gather from every doctrinal chapter in the bible, especially from* Have you drank in the doctrine of particular redemption, contrary to the thoughts of your efteemed friend, Count Z-f? But be that as it will, let us ftill make the beft of our way to the dear Saviour, and drop all our particular opinions in his univerfal, unbounded love; and whereinfoever any of us is wrong the Lord will reveal it unto us. Pray for my flock; and pray for, Dear Sir, your fincere friend, and affectionate brother in Chrift, I. F. 13 1 Madeley, *Luke xiii. 3. and Mark xvi. 16. Madeley, July 26th, 1763. The Rev. Mr. Charles Wesley. My dear Sir, I Have for two months waited impatiently for fome news of you-but in vain. Are you alive-paralytick-gouty-flothful-or too bufy to write a line to your friends at Madeley? If you have not leifure to write a line, write a word-I am well, or I am ill: God grant it may be the former! Every thing is pretty quiet here now. Many of our offences die away; tho' not long ago, I had trials in abundance, but bleffed be the Lord he gave me his peace. It is not, however, without fighting that I keep it. One of my late trils might have had confequences to make me quit Madeley, and, I praife God, I am ready to do it without looking behind me, even this day. The young perfon, I mentioned as being forely tempted of the Devil, is happily delivered; and we have had the teftimonies of Mr. Mould who preached here three weeks, ago, and of Mr. R, who spent four days here, and preached laft Sunday. He is an excellent young man, and only wants a little of the Methodist zeal to temper the referve of Mr. W When will you come to Madeley? What do you do at London? Have you repaired the breach, and healed the plague? May the Lord give you all the wifdom, the patience, the zeal, the gentlenefs, and the health you stand in need of! Aik them for your poor brother, I. F. Madeley, Mifs Hatton. Madeley, 3rd Aug. 1763. I Am heartily glad to find by the contents of your letter, that your heart is more fet upon obtaining the one thing needful, Chrift in us, with all his graces, the hope of glory. I beg, in my Mafter's name, you would cherish the conviction of the need of this prize of your high calling, and purfue it in the new and living way in which the father's trod, that of the cross, and that of faith. We travel in the firft, by continually denying felf, in the defire of the flesh, the defire of the eye, and the pride of life; and we advance in the fecond, by aiming at Chrift, claiming Chrift, embracing Chrift, delighting and rejoicing in Chrift received in the heart, through the channel of the gofpel promifes. To be able to go on in the way of the crofs and that of faith, you ftand in need, Madam, of much recollection, and steady watchfulnefs over the workings of your own heart, and diligent attention to the whifpers of divine grace. That the Lord would powerfully enable us to run on with faith and patience, till we inherit the promifes, is the prayer of, Madam, your fervant in Chrift, I. F. Madeley, Mifs Hatton. Madeley, Aug. 19th, 1763. MR RS. Hatton gave me this morning your ferious letter. You wifely observe therein the continual need profeffing Chriftians have to guard against religious chit chat, and conclude by requefting a few lines, when I fhould have an opportunity of writing, but, as there is nothing in your letter which requires an anfwer, I was thinking, whether I could anfwer it without being guilty of religious chit chat; for as there is fuch a thing in fpeaking, no doubt in writing alfo. I believe I fhould have facrificed to confcience what the world calls good manners, had I not just after accidentally opened Lopez's Life upon the following paffage, which I fhall tranfcribe, hoping it will be bleffed both to the reader and copier. "He was as fparing of words in writing, as in fpeaking. He never wrote firft to any one, "nor did he anfwer others, but when neceffity "or charity obliged him to it; and then fo precifely, and in fo few words, that nothing "could be retrenched. I have feveral of his "letters in my hands of five or fix lines each. "In answer to thofe he had received from the 66 66 46 Viceroy of Mexico, he fent him one contain"ing only thefe words-I will do what you command me: And although this manner of writing might feem disrespectful to perfons of "fo high quality, yet it gave no offence from one, who was fo far from all compliments, "and who never fpoke any thing fuperfluous." 66 Now, |