Ruling, Ordaining, or administering the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper, can claim any such efficacy from any Scriptural declarations. On these two last subjects, however, I shall dwell more particularly hereafter.

3. The manner, in which Preaching is generally spoken of, exhibits its superiority to other Ministerial duties.

Christ mentions Preaching as his own great commission from the Father. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor: Is. Ixi. 1. Luke viii. 14. And accordingly, he alleges the fact, that the poor had the Gospel preached to them, as proof that he was the Messiah. Matth. xi. 5.

The text shows, that it was the great commission, given by Christ to the Apostles, and other Ministers, immediately before his ascension. Go ye, teach all nations, (or make disciples of them by teaching) baptizing them, &c. teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Here they were to make disciples of mankind first; and then to baptize them, and thus to seal their discipleship.

St. Paul mentions it as the great commission of Christ to him, Rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a Minister, and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee the Gentiles, unto whom I now send thee; to open their eyes. Acts xxvi. 16, 17. In the following verse, he informs us, that Christ, referring to the same subject, said to Ananias, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name to the Gentiles, and Kings, and the Children of Israel. Again, Rom. i. 1, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an Apostle, separated unto the Gospel of God; that is, to the Preaching of the Gospel.

Again; But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace to reveal his Son unto me, that I might preach him among the Heathen.

Preaching is also commanded by St. Paul to the Elders of Ephesus, and by St. Peter, to those of the countries mentioned in his first Epistle, universally, as their chief duty.

Its importance is in the strongest language placed above Baptism by St. Paul; 1 Cor. i. 14-17. I thank God, that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius; lest any should say, that I bap tized in my own name. And I baptized, also, the household of Ste phanus. Besides, I know not whether I baptized any other; for Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel.

It is decisively preferred to Ruling, in 1 Tim. v. 17. Let the Elders, who rule well, be accounted worthy of double honour; especially those who labour in the word, and doctrine.

It is also generally preferred to every other Ministerial duty, by the vast attention paid to it in the Scriptures: being mentioned in about one hundred and forty instances, in express language; alVOL. IV.

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most all of them in the New Testament; by the variety of modes, in which it is forcibly described, enjoined, and honoured; by the comparatively small attention, given in the Scriptures to the other Ministerial duties, which are little spoken of, and rarely enjoined; and by the supreme efficacy, which it is exhibited as possessing in promoting salvation.

4. All the other means of grace have neither efficacy, nor value, except as they display, or impress, divine truth.

The agency of Preaching is in this work, altogether supreme; and that of other Evangelical administrations merely subsidiary. This, without them, would be powerful and effectual. They, without this, would hardly have influence, or meaning. Baptism and the Lord's Supper, for example, are founded on divine truth; and are manifestations of that truth, which possess great power, and most useful efficacy. But to their efficacy, or their use, the knowledge of the truth preached is indispensable. Still more are Ruling, and Ordaining, of no use, except as they are subsidiary to preaching. Even Prayer itself, the prime duty of worship to man, as a solitary creature, would have neither meaning, nor use, antecedently to the knowledge of the truth, which is communicated by preaching.

Reading the Scriptures is undoubtedly of more importance to mankind, than any thing else, beside preaching. The reason is obvious. The truth of God is more extensively learned in this manner, than it can be by all the other ministerial offices: and this truth makes men wise to salvation.

5. The Experience of all Christian ages has furnished ample proof of this position.

By the preaching of the Gospel were all the first converts made by Christ and his Apostles: and by the same preaching have all succeeding converts been made in every age and country. I have begotten you, says St. Paul to the Corinthians, through the Gospel. Who were born, says St. Peter, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God. Of his own will, says St. James, begat he us with the word of truth. Religion has in this respect been so nearly co-extensive with preaching, that where preaching has not been, there has, with scarcely a solitary exception, been no religion and wherever Preaching has existed for any length of time, religion has almost invariably existed also.

But it has been, and may be again, observed, that "all these things were true in ancient times, when Bibles were in few hands, and few persons were able ro read. In such times men were in a sense entirely dependent upon preaching for their knowledge of the Gospel. But now, most persons can read; and can easily obtain Bibles. Preaching, therefore, is now of less importance, and less necessary to salvation; because mankind can now come to the knowledge of the truth without this aid."

That the Gospel, if read, believed, and obeyed, will make men wise unto salvation, can never be seriously questioned. I will go farther. The reading of the Scriptures is, in my apprehension, after preaching, the chief mean of salvation. This truth, however, is objected, in the present case, with very little pertinence or success. For,

In the first place, a great part of mankind are, even now, unable to read. A considerable number of such persons can be found even in the most enlightened countries and in the Christian world at large not a small majority are in this unhappy situation. To all these Preaching is, beyond debate, equally necessary, as to those, who lived in the first ages of the Church.

Secondly. Of those, who can read, multitudes read the Scriptures, either not at all, or very little. To these also, preaching is absolutely necessary.

Thirdly. Of those, who actually read the Scriptures, multitudes are very imperfectly able to understand most of what they read. The necessity of Preaching is very great to these also.

Fourthly. To those, who both read, and in a good degree understand, the Scriptures, Preaching is far more interesting and impressive than Reading. The day, especially devoted to Preaching, is the most solemn of all days; the place, of all places; the occasion, of all occasions. This solemnity is so associated with the Preaching of the Gospel, that the mind naturally considers this ordinance as furnished with all the importance of these affecting things. Besides, the fact, that so many persons are assembled together to worship God, involved in the same guilt and danger, subjects of the same necessities, and obligated to the same duties, awakens in them a powerful sympathy, and gives to Preaching a singular importance. We feel, because others around us feel; and instinctively reciprocate the views, and emotions, which rise in their minds.

Fifthly. God has promised his blessing, peculiarly, to the Preaching of the Gospel.

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A blessing is never connected with any human effort by any law of nature; and cannot be expected from the mere external formance of any duty whatever. It is given, when given at all, as an answer to Prayer; and is annexed only to obedience. But we are not warranted to pray for a blessing upon any conduct, which is not obedience to a divine institution. In the present case, God has expressly taught us the nature of his institution. Faith, says St. Paul, cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. How shall they believe in him, of whom they have not heard; and how shall they hear without a Preacher? To depart from the duty, so plainly enjoined in this passage, is to set God at naught, and to squander, with the most wanton profusion, eternal life. Instead of obtaining a blessing, therefore, on the neglect, or violation, of this duty, we ought to expect those terrible evils, de

nounced Heb. x. 25-31, against those, who forsake the assembling of themselves together. No denunciations ought more to alarm us : for they involve judicial blindness here, and eminent perdition hereafter.

Sixthly. Accordingly, Preaching is now, as it ever has been, the great means of promoting salvation.

I have already observed, that, where Preaching does not exist, Religion is almost never found. I now observe farther, that, where persons are not present at the preaching of the Gospel, they scarcely ever become religious. Such, also, is the fact, where, although present, they are inattentive and regardless. For proof of these things, look at yourselves, and those around you. On the contrary, Religion regularly revives, and flourishes, wherever the preaching of the Gospel is numerously and solemnly attended. "The Pulpit, says the great Christian Poet,

"Must stand acknowledged, while the world shall stand,
The most important and effectual guard,
Support and ornament, of virtue's cause."

From the infancy of the Church to the present hour, Preaching has more aroused, and engaged, the attention of mankind, than every thing else, which was not miraculous. If you are at a loss concerning this truth, you will easily satisfy yourselves by searching the history of practical and experimental religion. Far more knowledge, and far deeper impressions, of religious subjects have been gained by mankind from this source, than from all other human labours whatever. Nor was any other method ever devised in the present world, so cheap, so convenient, or so effectual, for the purpose of diffusing instruction or reformation.

III. I shall now consider the Subjects of preaching.

All these are included under one general head; viz. the Gospel. On this great truth I found the following observations.

1. As the Gospel includes all the subjects of Preaching, the Preacher is bound to exhibit nothing as a part of the Christian System, but what is contained in the Gospel.

The Gospel contains whatever it expresses, and whatever it im plies: but it contains nothing more. Nothing more, then, can be lawfully inculcated by the Preacher, as a part of the Gospel.

In examining the express declarations of Scripture, he is bound to give them that sense, which the words obviously convey, the current, of the context demands, and the circumstances, in which they were uttered, point out. Beyond this he cannot go, without adding to the words of God, and exposing himself to be reproved by him, and found a liar. This sense he cannot change, at all, for one which he conceives will better suit, and support, any part, or the whole, of a pre-conceived System; a doctrine of his own Philosophy, or a tenet of the Church, sect, or party, to which he belongs.

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Neither can he lawfully conceal, or slur over, any thing, which, in his view, the words really contain. Falsehood is as easily propagated by the concealment of truth, as by the utterance of deceit.

With respect to Implications, supposed to be contained in Scriptural expressions, the Preacher is bound to see, that they are certainly contained. This, usually, may be clearly seen, wherever the Inference is immediate; or when the chain of reasoning, which conducts to it, is short, and the links are few and obvious. But wherever the inference is doubtful; or the reasoning, through which it is derived, long and obscure; two qualities, which, with respect to this subject, are very generally associated; the Preacher is forbidden to make use of it as a part of the Word of God, or to exhibit it as being, in any sense, contained in the Scriptures.

Of Inferences from Scriptural declarations, I observe, universally, that there is usually some, and often great, danger attending them. A man, employed in supporting a darling point, will, when hardly pushed, very naturally feel, that, as he undoubtedly must be right in his own system, so the Scriptures must somewhere declare that, which he, at the time, wishes to teach. With these views, he will naturally hunt for the passages, which come nearest to the doctrine in question; and will as naturally believe, that the meaning, which he wishes to assign to them, is their true meaning, Hence he will attribute to them the Implication, which he wishes to find. The whole of this process is wrong from the beginning. Every man, particularly every Minister, is bound to take up the Bible with a desire, and an intention, not to find it supporting his own doctrines, but to learn, merely, what it actually declares; and to conform both his opinions, and wishes, to its declarations. In this way, he may humbly hope to discover the truth in the other, he may be almost assured, that he will be left in error.

It is a hard thing for Man to believe the Scriptures; and not an easy one for a Preacher. Generally he may believe the great doctrines, contained in them; and, perhaps, with no great difficul ty. But when particular passages appear to thwart his own opinions, he will ever be in danger of bending them into a conformity to those opinions. His whole soul, on the contrary, ought to be yielded to the dictates of the Scriptures, and humbly to receive whatever God hath spoken. However easy this may seem; it will, unless I am deceived, be found a matter of no small difficulty, even by a man, solemnly resolved to carry the design into practice. Inferences, distantly drawn, are always to be suspected. Our reasonings, whenever they are complicated, are, even in mathematical cases, exposed to error. A long process in arithmetic, or algebra, or geometry, frequently needs to be reviewed over and over, in order to leave us entirely satisfied, that our reasonings are sound. Yet here we have certain standards of truth; such, as words in most cases cannot become. How much more doubtful are those processes, in which certainty is at the best rarely attainable. But