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Mifcellaneous Correspondence, &c.

A Letter to a Friend on Reason and Revelation.

SIR,

T

HE regard I have for you, and the concern for your Welfare, oblige me to take this trouble upon me, and to reason a little ferioufly with you upon an Affair which you, as well as a great part of Mankind, are too apt to neglect either thinking upon at all, or when you are thinking upon it, to be guided by falfe Maxims, fuch as will not bear the teft of Reason. As to the Scriptures, a great many in this Age have fo far got the better of their Understandings as to be able to shut both their Eyes, in regard to any thing they fay; but as to the dictates of Reafon we are not yet arriv'd to that degeneracy of Manners, as to profess or deny giving an Ear to it; tho' I am fure there is fo close a connection betwixt the one and the other, that a Man cannot discard the one without oppofing the other, however he may deceive himself and imagine that he is guided by its Precepts. Now as God is the God of Reafon as well as Revelation, and Truth is the fame, and comes from the fame Fountain, whether convey'd thro' the channel of Reafon or Revelation, what I am going to fay to you fhall be entirely fetch'd from Reafon; for Right Reason is as fure a guide as Revelation: But the Misfortune is, a Man's own Reafoning is not always right Reasoning, and Truths that are deriv'd thro' it are feen with more Difficulty, more Exactnefs and Niceness are requir'd in the Procefs, and the corruption of human Nature is so great, that a Man may be eafily led aftray; the close attention that is neceffary may be eafily interrupted, and a Man may wander by a little falfe bias put upon his Thoughts in labyrinths of Error, and mazes of Confufion. Here you fee the valt neceffity of Revelation, where the fame Truths are more plainly deliver'd, the foundation upon which they ftand much easier to be discern'd, and more obstinacy requir'd if we will not be guided by them; for how uncapable wou'd the bulk of Mankind be of examining fuch nice Speculations, and keeping clofe to that thread in all its Windings which leads to the discovery of Truth: The natural confequence wou'd be, for fome of the better kind to have an implicit Faith in Men of superior Understandings; and for others to form Doctrines according to their own Imaginations, and establish them for Truths, or at leaft as Rules for their own Practice. Surely therefore every wife Man fhou'd judge the World much better provided for by that written Revelation, where there is much lefs room for any fuch Impofitions.

The first Truth I wou'd make plain to your Understanding is this, That those who wilfully difobey God, and continue in fuch Dilobedience will fuffer eternally. I am afraid you have endeavour'd to perfuade yourfelf otherwife.

Now the way I wou'd prove this is, that a Power to do Well is attended with a Power to do Ill; this is abfolutely neceffary where there is the leaft degree

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degree of Merit in doing well; for there must be a place for Demerit, if there is room for Merit; for where there is the least Commendation for ufing a Power well, it unavoidably follows it might have been us❜d otherwife: Now if God defires and likes that we fhou'd ufe our Powers or act well, He must defire and like that we fhou'd not do the contrary, and confequently diflike our doing ill; and I am afraid it will be found that Punishment muft as certainly follow, his difliking our Actions, as Rewards. his liking them; If Happiness attends Merit, the want of that Happiness is in fome measure a Punishment; and therefore unless God rewards them that merit and demerit alike, Punishment of that kind must unavoidably attend upon the Sinner; and perhaps it must as neceffarily follow, in the nature of Things, that pofitive Punishment must as neceffarily follow as this fort of Punishment; for if Merit cannot be rewarded without Demerit being punished, then beware, O Sinner! left thy Mifery be as neceffary as the Happiness of the Virtuous; that is, it may be as poffible for God to ceafe to make the Virtuous happy, as to ceafe to make the Wicked miferable. For if God be the most free, I may fay the most arbitrary, Agent that can be, yet the nature of Things, and his own Nature, may determine him to act as certainly in fuch a manner, as if his Actions were guided by a blind neceffity of Nature. Now if it be true, from the nature of God and the nature of Things, that his Wifdom will as certainly determine him to reward Merit, as if he acted by neceffity of Nature, it may be equally as true, for the fame Reasons, that his Wifdom may as certainly determine him to punish Iniquity, as if he acted by neceflity of Nature.

And that this is a fad and difmal Truth will appear pretty plain, if we examine the Calamities and Miseries that are met with and recorded to have been found in the World: For if from the nature of God, and the nature of Things it was poffible, or confiftent with Wisdom, to have conferr'd the fame degrees of Happiness upon his free Creatures, without making room for others to be miferable, God might have prevented the Mifery that has befallen, and continually befalls his Creatures, without diminishing the Happiness of others. Now to fuppofe this, is to fuppofe that God makes Creatures miferable, which the nature of Things, and the Wisdom of his own Nature do not determine him to do. And if God makes Creatures miferable without being determined by the Wisdom of his own Nature, and the nature of Things, he chufes that Mifery which might, confiftent with his own Attributes, and the nature of Things, have been prevented: But if he chufes the Mifery of his Creatures he delights in Mifery, which is abfolutely contrary to the nature of a perfect and happy Being; what Mifery has been in the World, therefore, the Wisdom of his own Nature, and the nature of Things have determin'd him to inflict For when fupreme Wisdom determines, the Punishment is as certain as when Neceflity obliges; and the fame Reafons that determine him once may determine him eternally. This is a moft aftonishing Thought, and fhou'd make every Sinner tremble. That great and good Man, Dr. Tillotson, made a flip, out of a tender regard to wicked Men, in afferting that God might forbear to execute his Threatnings, meaning fuch as were not Conditional. God, it's true, can do every thing; but yet we may juftly fay he cannot Lye; why, Becaufe he will not; fo we justly fay he cannot forbear to execute his Threathings, feeing

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whatever his Wifdom fees proper and fit to be done, according to the nature of Things, we fay he can no more forbear to do than if he was conftrain'd by Neceffity. And as Experience fhews us, that his Wifdom has determin'd him to execute his Threatnings, fo we justly say that God cannot forbear to execute his Threatnings.

The other Truth I wou'd endeavour to convince you of is, That God Almighty requires of us a perfect Abftinence, except in lawful Matrimony. This is a Truth this licentious Age endeavours to hide and get rid of, but to no purpofe to fatisfy the Confcience of any Man, who will give himfelf but time for Reflection even and Confideration,

I agree with you, that Defires and Appetites were implanted in our Nature to be gratified; but it is as true likewife, that they were planted to prove and try our Obedience: If they were given only to be gratified, God wou'd have guarded them by an abfolute Neceffity laid upon our Nature, that they fhou'd not be abus'd; for if the enjoyment of them had been the only end of their being planted within us, he wou'd not have put it in our Power to hurt ourselves or others, by any Exceffes and Irregularities in that Enjoyment; but it is plain to any Man, that is the least acquainted with human Nature, that both may be done. Why did God therefore give us the liberty of harming ourfelves and others by their Gratification? My Answer is very eafy, God did it to raise us to greater degrees of Happinefs than what arifes from the enjoyment of Senfe; for God has not only given us Appetites to be gratified, but liberty about the gratification of them, that we might attain to greater Happiness in ufing our Liberty well: For Liberty is neceffary to any great degrees of Happiness in Creatures; fince the more like God Creatures are, the more happy they must be: But without Liberty there is no poffibility of approaching to the likeness of God; for how can our Wills or Defires be any ways conformable to, or like his, if we have not an opportunity of willing or defiring otherwise than he does. A Neceffity laid upon the Creature, and his Liberty taken away, the Will of the Creature ceafes a courfe, and the Happiness attending its Will, imitating the Will of God, must be deftroy'd. To make us, capable therefore of enjoying our Appetites, and at the fame time greater Happiness than what arifes from the gratification of them, it was expedient for God not to bind us by any natural Neceffity to regulate them well, only to give us a liberty fo to do, and fhew us his Will therein; Now this Will the light of Reafon might have difcovered; but its approaches to. the Heart of Man, in this his degenerate State, are by fo many bye Ways, thro' fuch long Windings and Reaches, that it is generally loft, and has but little Influence; efpecially fince it learn'd of Adam to diflike its Dictates, and at the fame time a knack of fhutting its Eyes against what it dislikes: However, as his Will in this Point has been more plainly discover'd other ways, let us fee if it might not likewife have been found out by the light of Reafon; tho' I must own, when a Man is fhew'd by a Guide any particular Place in which he is concern'd, it is an eafier matter to trace out another way whereby he might have found it himself, than originally and actu ally to find it; fo when new Truths are made manifeft to us by Revelation, it is an easier matter to fhew how they might have been found out other ways, than actually to have found them out. Now in the Point before us, God has fufficiently made known to us by the Works of the Creation, that he defires the Happinefs of all his Creatures in their feveral Kinds and

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Capacities; the inanimate Part by blind Neceffity, the fenfitive Part by Instinct, are abfolutely determin'd to follow thofe Laws and Rules which are neceffary for the Prefervation, Order and Happiness of the Whole: Tho Man therefore be left at liberty,it is only that he fhou'd fubmit voluntarily to be guided by the fame Rules which others by Compulfion are forc'd to fubmit to (that he might be capable of greater degrees of Happiness, as has been obferv'd before). Whatever Rules therefore tend to the Prefervation, Order and Happinefs of the Whole, God has mark'd out as the Rules of our Action, tho' he has given us a liberty of not following them: For either he must have mark'd out fuch Rules for us to follow, or he must cease to will thofe Rules hou'd be follow'd; that is, He muft will and defire the Happiness of the whole Creation, and not will and defire the fame, which is a Contradiction. Whatever particular Rule and Law therefore can be prov'd to tend to the Preservation, Order, or Happiness of Mankind in general, is plainly discover'd to be the Rule and Law God wou'd have us to be guided by, and which he has mark'd out for our Obedience; and confequently whatever tends to the Deftruction, Difquiet and Unhappiness of Man, is a Rule and negative Law by which we may judge of our Difobedience. An Act of Difobedience therefore to God is an Action of that fort which tends to the deftruction, confufion and unhappiness of Men: Fornication is an Action of that fort; for the promifcuous ufe of Women naturally and unavoidably tends to the Confufion, Diforder and Devaftation of Mankind, it in a great measure prevents the propagation of Children, the care of their Education on one fide is utterly loft thereby, and the Diseases that attend fuch a boundless liberty are intolerable. Now there is but one plain, fimple Rule to prevent all this Confufion, That two fhou'd be join'd together during Life; or that every Man fhou'd have his own Wife, and every Wife her own Husband: This tends to preferve the order, quiet and peace of Mankind, and confequently is discover'd by that to be the Will of God. But perhaps you may fay, This is very well in the main, and very proper for Society; but that a few fhou'd now and then tranfgrefs this Rule is of little fignification, and by a prudent Tranfgreffion (if I may properly so speak) no great detriment follows. To this I answer, If God has given us any Rule to fquare our Actions by, as I have before fhewn you he has, it must be a general Rule, or we muft prove the Exceptions as plainly as the Rule is prov'd to us; when a Man can prove, that he in particular, or any few Perfons in particular, are excepted, then I agree he may tranfgrefs: But let it be well confider'd, what I have prov'd above, that God has given us a Rule to follow, in order to fhew our willingness to obey him, and by that means be exalted to greater degrees of Happiness. Now the breaking or obferving this Rule is the teft of his Obedience, and in fuch cafe it is of no fignification that he thinks the breach in particular is attended with no Inconveniencies; for there can be no teft of Obedience where a Man is left as a Judge himfelf, when the particular Action in which he is concern'd is inconvenient; fince he may easily imagine to himself the detriment of abstaining to be greater. Befides, if a Rule is given a Man both to prevent Inconveniencies, and likewife to try his Obedience, he is to follow the Rule both when Inconveniencies attend it, and when they do not; as one Reafon may remain for obferving the Law

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tho' the other be taken away; for in negative Laws no Circumftances whatfoever can juftify the breaking of them. The preferving to every Man his Property, to ufe and difpofe of it himself without having it forcibly or clandeftinely taken away from him, is neceffary to the Order, Peace, Quiet and Happiness of Mankind. Hence appears the plainnefs of that negative Law that a Man is not to Steal. But poffibly particular Cafes may happen where a Man fhall have fo much Property, and of fuch fort, as may be neither of ufe to himself or Society; But must particular People be left to judge in fuch Cafes, and fo break this Law where they think the ufe of the Law is loft? Such a latitude given wou'd quite destroy the Law, and the greatest Confufion muft inevitably follow. It is the very fame Cafe in all negative Laws, and God proves us thereby, to know whether we are capable of that Happiness he defigns us for.

SIR,

A

I am your faithful Friend and Servant,

Of the METHODISTS,

A. B.

Midft fuch a diverfity of Opinions about the Methodists, and the various Reflections made on their Doctrine and Practice, it is not the eafieft thing in the World to arrive at a right knowledge of them; and fo forcible a bias do Education and Prejudice fet on the Mind in favour of the religious Tenets firft imbib'd, that it requires no fmall degree of Impartiality, of Humility, and difinterefted love of Truth, to be able to judge coolly and equitably of whatsoever contradicts them. But I hope it will be allow'd by all wife and good Chriftians, of whatfoever Order, that the Holy Scriptures are the only infallible Teft of every Point of Doctrine, and of every Action. To the Law and to the Teftimony: if they speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no light in them. Let this then be granted, and let both the Doctrine and the Practice of the Methodists be ftrictly examined by that facred Rule, and be either approved or condemned, embraced or rejected, according as they are found to agree or difagree therewith.

As for my own part, when I first heard of the rife of the Methodists, I confidered them as a meer Ignis fatuus, a fallacious Light, of fhort continuance, and as fuch not worthy regard. As repeated and ftill larger Accounts of them reach'd my Ear, my attention to them began to be a little awakened; but yet not enough to engage my ferious Confideration. It is somewhat more than a Year fince Mr. Whitefield's Difcourfe on Regeneration, or the New Birth, accidentally fell into my hands: I gave it a hafty reading, and was thereby convinc'd of the goodness of the Man's Defign: He feemed to discover a warm Concern for the Salvation of Souls, his Reasoning I thought clear and strong, and well confirm'd with Scripture Proofs, undeniably evincing that the most unblamable, inoffenfive'Converfation in the fight of Men, unless the natural Corruption of our Hearts be fubdued, and the very bent and bias of our Wills changed, from a prevailing love of this World, to a prevailing love of God and Holiness, cannot entitle us to the Kingdom of Heaven. One or two of his Journals fell next into my hands, which furprised me. I wifh'd he had conceal'd fome things which he thought proper to publifh'; but was thereby convinc'd of his undiffembled Piety and Zeal, and of his extenfive Usefulness. However my Judgment on him, and his Brethren the Methodifis, by reafon

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