WHILE we celebrate the birth day of this Jesus, 'tis proper to consider, first, who he was?

Secondly—For what purpose he came into our world?

And Thirdly—By what means the end of his coming is to be accomplished?

First then we enquire, Who he was?

THE Disciples, who saw him after his resurrection, believed him to be GOD, as well as man: for when they saw him they worshipped him.—Well aware that they ought not to worship any but God and fully convin­ced, by his rising on the third day, according to his promise that he was GOD, they worshipped him. But some doubted.—Observing this, Jesus came—(that is came nearer)—and spake to them, saying, all power is given unto me in Heaven and in Earth.—Go teach and baptize all nations, and I will be with you to the end of the world—I will support you in the execution of your office—I will give sufficient proof, by the works I will enable you to do, that I have sent you and that indeed I have all power in Heaven and in Earth.

[Page 6]WE learn from the other Evangelists, that Jesus, on this occasion, promised the miraculous gifts of the Holy Ghost; the fulfilment of which promise, together with his own resurrection, abundantly demonstrated that he was GOD And if it was indeed a fact, that he did rise from the dead; and if it was also a fact, that he did, according to his promise, enable his disciples to work miracles.—(and it seems scarcely possible that men could be imposed on in such plain matters of facts) if these things, I say, were facts, it must be that he was what he pretended, and had all power in Heaven and in Earth. We may therefore safely conclude that he was GOD—We proceed then to the second inquiry: For what purpose did he come into our world?

HIS name Jesus, singnifies a Saviour. The Angel who foretold his birth, called his name Jesus, because he should save his people from their sins.

AND he himself tells us that he came—to call sinners to repentance.

HE gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works.

HE suffered,—the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to GOD.—Who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

THE wretched and miserable state of Man, after he had transgressed the divine law, moved the eternal fountain of compassion and mercy to contrive a way for man's recovery; to make atonement for sin; to procure us pardon and acceptance with GOD, and to bring us to that eternal glory and happiness for which human nature was first intended!—But the di­vinity of our Saviour, and the end and design of his coming into the world, are matters so well understood, that I need not take up much of your time on these heads.—What I chiefly intend at this time, is to con­sider the means by which that end is to be accomplished.

[Page 7]THE death and sufferings of Christ are the only cause of the pardon of sin; but as the pardon of sin is but a part of the design of his incarnation, other means are yet to be used. Men are to be made fit to be par­takers of the inheritance of the Saints in light: And to accomplish this part of the design he has instituted a religion; founded a church in the world, and commis­sioned an order of men to make disciples to him, to baptize them, and teach them to observe all things whatsoever he hath commanded. What we call the Christian religion is therefore a matter of great importance to mankind. Observing the institu­tions of it; living according to the rules and precepts of it; is, so far as we know, the only means of escaping eter­nal ruin, and being qualified for the enjoyment of ev­erlasting happiness.

THE commission therefore which Christ gave his Apostles, being the only means of conveying to us the knowledge of this religion; and those who refuse to comply with what that commission empowered them to require, being threatened with damnation; it concerns us to enquire into the nature and import of that commission.

HAD the Apostles taken it into their heads to require something which their commission did not warrant, there could have been no harm in refusing to submit to it. We find indeed that they have not done this; but 'tis more than probable that some of their succes­ors have.

SOME who call themselves the Apostles' successors, have exercised powers and authority which Christ nev­er gave his Apostles, and which they never did and never could give to any body else; for it is certain they could not give others more power than they had themselves; but 'tis not certain that they gave them quite so much.

THAT the commission which Christ gave his Apos­tles had no reference to one place or district more than [Page 8] another is evident from the very words of my text. Go ye and teach all nations, or as St. Mark records it; Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every crea­ture. All power, says he, in Heaven and in Earth is giv­en unto ME; I therefore, by virtue of this power, send you;—not to be lords over particular districts—nor indeed to be lords over any body; but to teach and baptize—to teach whatsoever I have commanded you; and to enable you to do this, ye shall receive the Holy Ghost, who shall bring to your remembrance whatso­ever I have taught you. And I will myself inflict dam­nation on those who refuse to believe that Gospel I send you to preach. I will still hold all power in my own hands; and to overcome the opposition which my Gos­pel will meet with at its first setting out in the world; I will, by the Holy Ghost, enable you to speak with new tongues—discern spirits, and work miracles.

IT appears then that the Apostles' commission em­powered them to do no more than baptize men, and declare to them the will of their master. And lest they should attempt to to exercise lordship and autho­rity over their fellow-creatures; he more than once ex­pressly forbids it. Be not ye called masters—it shall not be so among you!

AND as the Apostles had no jurisdiction, or authority over particular districts, so neither did they pretend to give any body else. As they were not placed over particular parishes themselves, so neither did they ever place any body else over any.

AND further: As they had no power to discard or si­lence any of their brethren, so neither did they, or could they, give any such power to their successors!

THE arguments on which the contrary opinion is grounded, are chiefly drawn from the case of Timothy at Ephesus. And Titus at Crete.—We are told, in the postcripts to the Epistles to Timothy and Titus, that they were ordained Bishops, the one over Ephesus, and the other over Crete.—Who ordained them is a [Page 9] question. We have no evidence that Paul did it: much less that he ordained them over these districts. St. Paul indeed when he wrote his first Epistle to Timothy, besought him to abide still at Ephesus, while he [Paul] went into Macedonia. But it does not follow from this, that Timothy was at Ephesus when that epistle was written; much less that Paul had placed him over that district. I did at a certain time, says Paul, beseech thee to abide still there; which shews that the Apostle did not authoratively place him there. Had Timothy been ordained by an Apostle over Ephesus, and had he believed the Apostle had power so to ordain him, he would have stayed there very cheerfully, let him have had ever so many, and ever so great CALLS, to get else­where! So that the Apostle need not have besought him to abide there.

BUT it is added that Paul in his second Epistle, en­joins Timothy to stir up the gift of GOD that was in him, by the putting on of the Apostle's hands; which shews, they say, that Paul ordained him.

BUT to this, I answer: that the gift here mention­ed was probably not the commission of a Gospel Minis­ter, because there appears an impropriety in requiring him to stir it up. Should any one say to me; come Sir, you don't stir up your commission! You must stir up the commission that is in you by the laying on of the hands of the Bishop; I should not think he spoke properly!

BUT if we observe that the Holy Ghost is frequently in Scripture called fire,—and that this fire was convey­ed by the laying on of the Apostles' hands; there ap­pears a peculiar propriety in requiring Timothy to stir up that gift.—The spirit of the Prophets is subject to Prophets.—A man who had the miraculous gift of the Holy Ghost could exercise that gift or let it alone. But you know how it is with fire, to make it shine and give heat, you must stir it up. The gift was from GOD conveyed by the hands of Paul, but the exercise of [Page 10] that gift was the business of Timothy. So far then was Paul from ordaining Timothy over Ephesus that he did not ordain him at all. And the directions given to Timothy respecting the qualifications of a Bishop and Deacon, and the manner of receiving an accusation a­gainst an Elder, do not concern Timothy as Bishop of Ephesus; but that he might know how he ought to behave in the House of GOD. Which is, says he, the Church of the LIVING GOD: That is, the universal Church. In this great house Timothy had a great deal of work to do. Accordingly Paul calls on him to endure afflictions; to make full proof of his ministry, and do the work of an Evangelist; which seems hardly compatible with fattening in a Diocese. For the work of an Evangelist was to travel from place to place, to propogate and es­tablish the Christian faith wherever occasion and op­portunity offered. St. Paul had run the same course, and had, as he says, now finished it; and calls on Ti­mothy and Titus to do as he had done. It further appears that Timothy was not bishop of Ephesus, from the 20th of Acts; where we find him with Paul on his travels. And we find also Paul sending from Miletus and calling the elders of Ephesus, and instructing them in their duty; which we presume he need not have done, if Timo­thy had been settled there for life, as overseer of those overseers. At this time Timothy did not reside at E­phesus; and he was not there when Paul wrote his se­cond epistle to him; neither do I believe he was there when the apostle wrote his first epistle to him. Timo­thy then was not bishop of Ephesus!

Let us next see how the case was with Titus, who, we are told, was ordained the first bishop of the Cre­tians. Poor Cretians! they did not enjoy their bishop but a little while! For we find Paul requesting him to come to him at Nicopolis; and the year after, in his last epistle to Timothy, he tells us, Titus had depart­ed to Dalmatia. Paul therefore did not ordain Titus bishop over Crete, he only left him in Crete, that he [Page 11] might set in order the things which were wanting and ordain elders in every City. What a pity it is, the apostle had not said, "ordain elders over every city!" By their wanting elders or presbyters in every city, it seems there was not one priest on the Island when Paul left it; to supply that defect, and some others not men­tioned, Titus was left in Crete; and when he had ac­complished the business, he left Crete and travelled on.^*

BUT it will be asked; does not the apostle call the elders of Ephesus overseers? And does not this imply that they had authority over their flocks? And did not Timothy ordain these overseers; and by ordaining them, gave them the oversight of their particular flocks? To this I answer, I know not what reason we have to suppose that Timothy ordained them? But if he did; his ordaining them did nothing towards making them overseers: because the Apostle says the Holy Ghost made them over­seers. And 'tis probable these overseers were able to give some proof of their having received their authority from the Holy Ghost; otherwise their flocks would have had too much sense to regard them. But what were these overseers to do? Nothing more than feed the Church of GOD! Not thresh the members of it with an iron flail. Feeding the church of GOD being a dif­ferent thing from governing it, which makes it proba­ble that these overseers were not governors; but if they were, 'twas the Holy Ghost who made them such, and not bishop Timothy. Their ruling and governing powers▪ if they had any, were not derived from Christ by virtue of the commission he gave his Apostles, and which he intended should be continued to the end of the world; but these powere were imparted to them [Page 12] by the Holy Ghost and did not belong to their commis­sion as gospel ministers.

THE peculiar circumstances of the church at that time, required gifts and powers, which were not ne­cessary in after ages—accordingly he gave Apostles, Evangelists, Prophets, Pastors, Teachers, Governors, Helpers—Speakers with tongues, Interpreters of tongues, Descerners of spirits, Workers of miracules &c. &c. All which offices, gifts and powers, ceased when the church was established in the world; and can never exist again, unless it shall please GOD again to pour out his spirit upon all flesh as he did in that day.

BUT what says Paul to Timothy? A Bishop, or o­verseer, must be one that ruleth well his own house— for if a man know not how to rule his own house; how shall he take care of the Church of GOD! Take care of it!— Alas; what a pity it is, the Apostle had not said, how shall he rule the Church of GOD. We find then nothing in the New Testament that an­swers to the modern idea of spiritual rulers▪ and Eccle­siastical Governors!

WHAT then! —you will say —are we in this age, to have no church government! no discipline! — who shall judge, censure and excommunicate offenders! who shall discard and silence a wicked Minister!—

To solve this we must look back to the XVII chapter of St. Matt. (and 'tis wished that every body would read that chapter) where we had our Lord instructing his disciples in the business of discipline. If thy brother trespass against thee, go & tell him his fault between thee and him alone; if he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother; but if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be to thee as a heathen man, and a publican.

[Page 13]THERE will be no difficulty in understanding this, if we can only determine what is here meant by the word CHURCH. And if men were lest to the dictates of common sense, they doubtless would understand it just as our Lord intended. The word Church, is in­deed, in different places, used in different senses; but 'tis most natural to suppose, our Lord here meant by it the congregation, or society, to which the offending brother belongs. He surely did not mean to send us to Rome! He did not mean that we should cross the At­lantic; nor ride posthaste to New London; nor call a consociation. He doubtless intended that his disciples, in all parts of the world, as many as can convenient­ly, should meet together in one place to worship GOD. And wherever any number, if it be but two or three, are met together in the name of Christ, there is he in the midst of them; and there is the Church.

THE body, or society, be it greater or less, has a right, and sufficient power, to expel from itself an unruly member, if he cannot be reclaimed; and if he repents, they can restore him. If there is a clergyman in this society, he is under the same law, subject to the same fate; we know no distinction. And we know of no other discipline intended for the christian church af­ter inspiration and miracles ceased. See the 1st epistle to the Corinthians, 5th, 12th and 13th Chapters. Do not ye judge them who are within [your society?] Them who are without GOD judgeth. Therefore put a­way from among yourselves that wicked person. See al­so, 2nd to the Thess. 3rd chap.—14th and 15th verses. If any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be a­shamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admon­ish him as a brother.

PUNISHING an offending brother with death, or with bodily diseases—or remitting and retaining sins, binding & loosing, inflicting corporeal or pecuniary pun­ishment [Page 14] —is no part of the church's business at this day. Whatever of this kind has ever been done by divine authority, has been done by immediate inspiration. And the Pope is so far in the right: first to pretend to infallibility, before he undertakes to remit and retain sins, or to punish heretics. For even that injunction to bishop Titus—(after the first and second admonition) to reject a heretic, required and supposed inspiration in Titus. Because the Apostle there says, a heretic is one who is self condemned; which is impossible to be known without inspiration. And thus we see who is to judge, censure and excomunicate offenders. 'Tis the church or congregation to which the offender belongs.

But still you will repeat, and reiterate the question: Who shall discard and silence a wicked minister? Why, we have already observed, that the minister is subject to the same law with the rest of the congrega­tion: we know no distinction!

But still, you say, St. Paul instructed bishop Timothy how to receive an accusation against an offending elder, or priest. 'Tis true he did so: but we have shewn that Timothy was an evangelist, had inspiration,—and more power than gospel ministers ^* at this day. But even Timothy with all his power, could do nothing about si­lencing a wicked minister. All he could do was only to rebuke! Them who sin, rebuke; says the apostle. Why hid he not say; hang them up; put them down; turn them out; unordain them; take away their com­mission!

The apostle well knew that the commission origina­ted from Christ, and none but he could take it away. And the ordainer, if he is any thing, is the instrument of conveyance only. If the commission originates from Christ, although the ordainer does convey it, yet he can not take it away. No power, short of that from which the commission originates is sufficient to [Page 15] recall it.—He, who has all power in heaven and in earth, might have ordered, that his ministers should uncom­missionate one another; he might have done this, I say; but I deny that he has. As the case now stands; 'tis just as if the Governor of the state should send me, by one of this congregation, a commission to execute some office in the civil or military department; and the man who conveys and hands the commission, should take it into his head to recall it, and forbid me to act accord­ing to it. In that case, I believe, you would all call me a fool, if I regarded him; unless he could prove that the power from which the commission issued, had expressly ordered and empowered him to do so.

How any man can, at this day become a gospel minis­ter? Is a question we shall not, at present, meddle with. But if he once has that commission, he may de­fy all the powers of earth and hell to take it away. If the ordainer conveys the commission, the man who has it, may go into the world, and teach and baptize, in despite of what the ordainer can do. If he is per­secuted in one city, he may flee to another. If any re­fuse to receive, or hear him, he may shake off his dust, and pass on. He never can become the minister of any particular parish, unless the people of that parish make a contract with him; and when they have done so, all the powers under heaven cannot dissolve that contract.—Not dissolve it!—What then must a congregation do, if their minister turns wicked? They must be in a woeful ease, if they cannot find somebody to silence him! Don't be frightened friends!—A congregation, so far as concerns them, may silence their own minister, if they find just cause. For, "if thy brother tresspass against thee, go and tell him his fault." —If thou findest aught against thy brother, who is a minister, (and I advise thee to keep a good watch) go and tell him his fault—if nothing else will do; tell it to the church. Call the minister and the congrega­tion together. And if it appears that he has not ful­filled [Page 16] his part of the contract. If he has transgressed what the gospel makes his duty, and refuses to be re­claimed; then let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. The congregation, in that case, may safely put away from among themselves that wicked per­son: and sufficient will be his punishment, which is inflicted by many.—Oh! but, you will say, that won't do; for he will draw his salary still. We shall have him to pay during life, notwithstanding all this! —Why so!—Why, because the law of the land im­powered the ordainer to place him over the parish; & the same law impowers the ordainer to take him down again, and unordain him.—Ah indeed! — Is it the ci­vil law that impowers gospel ministers to unordain one another!—I have long thought that they did not derive such power from Christ. And it seems the legis­lators thought so too, or they would not have meddled with the matter.

If it be the civil power that makes a gospel minister; the civil power can, without doubt unmake him. — Or, if a man's having such and such qualifications authori­ses him to teach and baptize; then when he ceases to have those qualifications, he looses his authority. In either of these cases; for the ministers of Christ, as such, whether bishops or presbyters, to pretend to suspend, or silence a minister, is but a solemn farce, a meer sham, and deserves no other notice but ridicule. So that choose what method you will to make a man a minister; when once he is made, his brother ministers have no power over him. And he, by the law of Christ has no power over the people. All he can do by virtue of his commission as a gospel minister, is only to teach and baptize!—What! you will say; is it not the priest's business to administer the Lord's supper? Does not the apostle injoin the overseers of Ephesus to feed the church of God?—Yes: and they were to feed it as Paul had done. They were to feed it with milk; (the sincere milk of the word) if it could not bear strong meat but not with bread and wine. The fact is; according [Page 17] to the new testament there is no administering about the Lord's supper, and the priest has no more to do with it than any other christian.^*—That christians, when they come together to eat the Lord's supper, should consider it as the most solemn act of worship; —That they should, by the eye of faith, discern the Lord's body;—That they should call to mind his death and suffering, and that sin was the cause of them;— That they should examine themselves, and look well to the motives and views which govern them—are facts which none can doubt who read the new Testament: —But that they cannot eat that supper unless they have a priest to consecrate the elements and make them holy▪ and then administer them,—is a whim, which has no foundation in that book,—as is all pretence to lord­ship and ecclesiastical government, derived from the commission Christ gave his apostles.

But, you will say; does not the apostle tell the He­brews; to remember them that had the rule over them, —to obey them that had the rule over them, and and submit themselves; and to salute them that had the rule over them?—And does our Lord tell Peter that he would give him the keys of the kingdom of Heaven? And does not all this imply that Christ has given his ministers power over men? By no means. For as we [Page 18] have already observed; that age was the age of mira­cles and inspiration, and the Holy Ghost did then im­part extraordinary gifts and powers, which soon after ceased—and these rulers, whatever they were, might be immediately constituted such by the Holy Ghost, like the overseers of Ephesus—Or they might be con­stituted rulers by the free choice of the people. But however they might become rulers over the Hebrews; —what they spake being called the word of God, im­plies that they had inspiration.

And as to Peter's having the keys, it means no more than that he should unlock the door, and set open the gate of the kingdom of Heaven, or the gospel church. Which he did, by being the first preacher of the gos­pel both to Jews and Gentiles. And as his name sig­nifies a rock;—and as he was the first preacher and founder of christianity, it might be said, by a figure, that the church was built on him. But having opened the door, he had nothing further to do with the keys. And we do not find he attempted to make any other use of them.

Upon the whole it appears, that in this business of church government, we have been as much hoodwink­ed, as ever we were in the business of state govern­ment.

It appears also, that as the christian religion is of infinite importance to mankind; so it is also plain, sim­ple and rational, —every way adapted to the circum­stances and necessities of men; calculated, in the high­est degree to promote the peace and happiness of so­ciety—and instead of infringing, was intended in­deed to secure and establish the inherent Rights, and native equality of all the children of Adam!

To conclude then; —All the use I wish you to make of this discourse is, to be hereby excited to open your eyes, and then open your Bibles, and see for yourselves. The Bible has been too often represented as a very gloomy sort of a book; fit only to amuse a melancholy [Page 19] hour. It has been represented as full of mistery and obscurity, and requiring a great deal of learning and study to understand it, but it requires no great study to understand whence this notion is derived!— We are often told what a blessing it is to have the Bi­ble in our hands, and in our mother tongue. We are often pitying the poor Roman Catholics, who are, by their spiritual rulers, denied the use of it. We are highly favored indeed! But pray tell me what is the difference between having no Bible at all, and only having it smoakdrying on a shelf, while we depend wholy on a priest to tell us what it contains, or how we shall understand it. Does not the Bible contain that very gospel, and the whole of it, which Christ sent his apostles to preach, and are we not threatened with damnation if we refuse to believe it? Were not the apostles inspired for that purpose; to guide them into all truth, and bring to their remembrance what­soever Christ had taught! And have they not recorded that truth? And does it not concern us to look into it? Let me assure you my friends; it is not that gloomy book! I have read a few books in my day, & some with great ea­gerness and satisfaction; but never one, except the Bible, but in a little time grew stale, I lost my relish for it, and laid it aside. But the Bible is always new. The more I read it the better I love it. The more I am acquainted with it, the more entertainment and sa­tisfaction I find in it: and it seems as if that would be the case to all eternity! And this very circumstance clearly evinces, that the Bible is of a different origin from all other books. And 'tis a mark of its divinity, that its contents are so long unfolding. Oh! My friends! Could we read this book with that attention, candor and impartiality, which the nature of it de­mands! Could we lay aside all bigotry, superstition, and party spirit. Could we strip christianity of the fooleries and fopperies—Could we unload it of the lumber, which ignorance and priest-craft have [Page 20] heaped upon it, we should be charmed with it— We should embrace it with eagerness—Conform to it with cheerfulness— obey its precepts with sincerity, and should then have the witness in ourselves, and feel the genuine influence of it on our hearts, and the pow­er of it would appear in our lives! 'Twould raise us above the world! 'Twould carry as fearless thro' the valey of the shadow of death, and bring us to the re­gions of eternal bliss and glory! And by these means would the end of our Saviour's coming into the world be accomplished.