defire you to bear in mind as I go along, that, knowing how liable I am to error, I feel no difpofition to be very anxious about bringing you over to my opinions. The rage for profelytifm is one of the curfes of the world. I wish to make no profelytes except to candour, and charity, and honest enquiry. You must judge for yourselves; and should any thing I have faid in my former difcourfes, or shall say in the present discourse, give you any affiftance in doing this, my principal end will be answered. I can, in this inftance, as in most others, with much more confidence fay what is not, than what is the truth. The Athanafian or Calvinistic scheme of Christianity I reject with ftrong conviction. The Socinian fcheme also, on the two points which chiefly distinguish it, I find myself incapable of receiving. The reasons which determine my judgment on one of these points I have stated laft difcourfe. I am now to state my

in my

my reasons for not receiving the Socinian doctrine on the other of these points.

God, my text fays, SENT his SON to be the SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD.

I have obferved that thefe words lead us to confider THREE particulars in the doctrine of our falvation by Christ.

First. The dignity of the Saviour. He was the SON OF GOD. This has been explained.

Secondly. The nature of the inftrumentality, expreffed by his having been

SENT.

Thirdly. The nature of the service, expressed by his having been sent to be the SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD.

After I have faid what I think neceffary on the two last of these heads, you will be in full poffeffion of my fentiments of the Gospel.

I am first of all to give you an account of the nature of that inftrumentality in the work

work of our redemption which is afcribed to Chrift, when it is faid that he was SENT of God to be the Saviour of the world. The following obfervations on this fubject appear to me of some importance.

In the communication of benefits from one being to another there are two forts of inftrumentality. There is an inftrumentality which (being conftrained and paffive) does not imply obligation to the inftrument; and which, therefore, requires no gratitude except to the donor himself. And there is an inftrumentality which (being spontaneous and active) does imply obligation to the inftrument; and which, therefore, calls for gratitude to him as well as to the donor. Of the former fort is the inftrumentality of a fervant in conveying a benefit to another from his master. In this cafe, the fervant being merely the conveyer, and having no choice with respect to the communication of the benefit, the perfon benefited car

ries his views entirely to the master, and confiders him alone as the cause of the be nefit-Of the latter fort is the inftrumentality of one employed by another as a truftee to distribute his bounty, but who, at the fame time, is left at liberty, and may be unfaithful if he pleafes. In this cafe, thofe who partake of the bounty feel obs ligation and gratitude to the trustee as well as to his principal. Room is left. for the exercife of the free-will and difcretion of the truftee; and the reception of the bounty is made to depend on his benevolence and honour in such a manner that, but for thefe, the recipient would have loft it.

Of this last fort is the inftrumentality employed by the Deity in the diftribution of his bounty among his reasonable creatures. He makes them, not paffive inftruments, but trustees and voluntary agents, in conveying to one another the bleffings of his goodness. He makes them inftruments in fuch a fenfe that the bleffings received M

fhall

fhall come from them, as well as primarily from him. He makes them, in short, grantors of benefits at the fame time that they are conveyers. In no other way, could there have been room for gratitude to inferior beings for any benefits. You must be fenfible, that the principal bleffings of our existence are not received by us immediately from the hands of the Deity. We fee that he acts by inftruments; by paffive inftruments in the material world ; and by voluntary inftruments in the intellectual world. In both, there is a feries eftablished of intermediate causes between us and that Divine power, wisdom, and goodness in which all caufes terminate, on which they all depend, and to which ultimately they owe all their efficacy. Every reasonable and moral agent, placed in fociety and furrounded with fellow-creatures, is a trustee for diftributing God's bounty. But, in the distribution, he is fubjected to no restraints or limitations,

except