To the Ephesians he writes, Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the Saints who are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. Eph. i. 1.

To the Philippians he writes, I thank my God for your fellowship in the Gospel, from the first day until now: being confident of this very thing, that He, who hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Phil. i. 3, 5, 6.

To the Colossians he writes, Paul, an Apostle, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ, who are at Colosse; We give thanks to God, since we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the Saints, for the hope, which is laid up for you in Heaven. Col. i. 1-5.

To the Thessalonians he writes, We give thanks to God alway for you all, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope, in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God, even our Father; knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God. 1 Thess. i. 4.

To the Hebrews he writes, Brethren, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany Salvation. Heb. vi. 9.

St. James, speaking of himself, and of the Churches to whom he wrote, says, Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first-fruits of his creatures. James i. 18,

St. Peter writes to the Churches in Pontus, &c. Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through Sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience, and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. 1 Pet. i. 2.

St. John says, I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you. I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known Him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. 1 John ii. 12, 13.

St. Jude, addressing his epistle to the Churches generally, writes, To them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called. Jude 1.

With this language every thing, found in the New Testament, perfectly harmonizes. One character, and one only, is given in it of the Church; and that is, the character of Christians. There is no mixture of any other character. Even when the faults of its members are mentioned, they are mentioned, solely as the back; slidings of Christians; and never as the sins of unbelieving and impenitent men. How, then, can we entertain a rational doubt, that God, when he instituted his Church, intended it to be an assembly of believers?

SERMON CL.

THE EXTRAORDINARY MEANS OF GRACE.-OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH.-MINISTERS OF THE GOSPEL.-WHO ARE MIN

ISTERS.

1 PETER V. 1-3.-The Elders, which are among you, I exhort, who am also an Elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. Feed the flock of God, which is among you; taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy luere, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.

IN the preceding discourse, concerning the Constitution of the Christian Church, I observed, that the Church is composed of its Ordinary Members, and its Officers. The character of its Ordinary Members I investigated at that time. I shall now consider,

The Character of its Officers.

Before I commence the direct examination of this subject, I shall make a few preliminary observations.

1. The Scriptures have actually constituted certain Officers in the Church.

Whatever differences of opinion exist concerning the kinds of officers in the Church, designated by the Scriptures, it is agreed by most, if not all, Christians, that such officers, of some kind or other, are established by the Sacred Volume. We there read of Ministers, Pastors, Teachers, Bishops, &c. By these names, it is generally acknowledged, officers of one or more classes were denoted, who were intended always to be found in the Christian Church. Certain powers, also, they were intended to possess, and certain duties to perform.

2. Whatever the Scriptures have said of these men is of Divine Authority and Obligation: but nothing else is of such authority, nor at all obligatory on the consciences of mankind.

Whatever the Scriptures have instituted, required, or directed, is instituted, required, and directed, by God; and is invested with his authority. All else, by whomsoever said, or in what age soever, is said by man. But man has no authority over the conscience; and can never bind his fellow-man in any religious concern whatever. If, then, we find in the present, or any past age, any thing said on the subject, whether by divines or others, however learned and esteemed they may have been, which at the same time is not said in the Scriptures; it is totally destitute of any authority or obligation with respect to us. It may, or may not, be said wisely,

It may be good, or bad, advice or opinion; but it cannot, in any degree, have the nature of law; nor be at all obligatory on their fellow-men.

The Fathers of the Church, for example, were in many instances good, and in some, wise, men. They are often valuable witnesses to facts. On a variety of occasions they help us to the true meaning of words, phrases, and passages, in the Scriptures. They often edify us also by their piety. But their opinion, or judgment, or injunctions, are totally destitute of authority; and stand upon exactly the same level with those of men, who now sustain a similar character. If we could rely on the authenticity of the smaller Epistles of St. Ignatius; or had we the Autographs in our possession; all the injunctions, and declarations, contained in them, exclusively of those derived from the Scriptures, would be mere advice or information.

3. Whatever Church Officers the Scriptures have established as standing Officers, are appointed by God himself. The Church, there fore, is bound to receive them as having been thus appointed; and to take effectual care, that they always exist.

This will not be denied by any man, who admits the Divine revelation of the Scriptures.

4. No other officers, beside those thus appointed, have any authori ty to plead for their existence in office. All others are of mere human institution; convenient and useful perhaps; but never to be regarded as possessing any authority, except what arises from the personal consent, or engagement, of those who receive them: and this can never be obligatory on the consciences of others.

It is to no purpose, here, to allege, that they have been introduced, and established, by the deliberate determination of wise and good men; or of the whole Church. It is to no purpose to allege, that they have existed for any length of time, however great; nor that they have existed in various churches, however distinguished for learning and piety. It is to no purpose to allege, that these Churches have believed them to be divinely instituted. This belief, respectable as those are who have entertained it, can claim no more authority, and involves no more obligation, than any other opinion concerning any other subject.

5. If the Scriptures have constituted Officers in the Church, and have partially, and imperfectly, designated their classes, numbers, offices, and duties, then this imperfect exhibition of the subject, and this alone, is of divine authority and obligation.

It has been often supposed, that God has, of design, left the subject of Ecclesiastical Government partially exhibited in the Scriptures. Whatever else was necessary to complete the system, he is further supposed to have left to be supplied by the prudence of Christians, as the various circumstances of the Church, in various ages and countries, might require. If this supposition be admitted; then whatever is contained in this imperfect institution of

Ecclesiastical Government, in the Scriptures, "is authoritative and obligatory; and whatever is supplied by human wisdom to complete the system, is merely advisory and prudential.

The full admission of these principles would, as it seems to me, prepare the way for a final removal of most disputes concerning this subject.

These things being premised as indispensable to a just decision. concerning this subject; I observe, that the system of Ecclesiastical Government, mentioned in the Scriptures, is disclosed by them either completely, or partially. If they have completely disclosed this system, then we shall find it all in the sacred volume; and cannot need to search for it elsewhere. If they have disclosed it partially; then a partial disclosure was sufficient; and this part is all that possesses, or can possess, any authority to bind the consciences of men. Whatever additions are made to it, and however wisely or necessarily they are made, by men, they cannot pretend to the least authority or obligation. It is in vain to say, that in this case the Church would be left at loose ends, and unprotected against disorder and schism. The answer to this objection is obvious, and complete. The Church is left, as Infinite Wisdom chose to leave it. Should we grant, contrary to truth and decency, that the situation, in which it is left, is not the best; still the evil is without remedy: for we cannot add to the words of God.

Let us now inquire what Ecclesiastical officers are mentioned in the Scriptures as instituted by God.

The largest, and most particular, account, given of this subject in the Scriptures, is in Eph. iv. 11. And he gave some Apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. Here we find at least four sorts of officers in the Church; four classes of men, who are empowered, each, to do some things in the Church, which they, and they only, had a right to do.

The office of Apostles is acknowledged, on all hands, long since to have terminated.

Of Prophets, it is only necessary to observe, that their office must terminate, of course, when inspiration terminates.

Evangelists, the third class here mentioned, are universally ac knowledged to have been extraordinary officers, and to have ceased in a very early period of the Church; unless the word be supposed to denote merely a minister without a cure.

There remain, then, only Pastors and Teachers. From the phraseology, here used, it appears to me evident, that they were not two distinct orders of men, but one, destined to feed and teach the Church. The language is not, as in the preceding clauses, some pastors, and some teachers, but some pastors and teachers, that is, some, who were both pastors and teachers. To teach the Church is to feed it with the bread of life.

Some Christian churches have supposed, that teachers were men, who, holding the pastoral office, were particularly to be employed in teaching Candidates for the ministry whatever was necessary to qualify them for this office. Others have believed, that they were destined to the employment of teaching, and defending, evangelical truth generally; without taking upon themselves the carè of particular Churches. As all these, so far as I know, consider both kinds of officers as of the same rank, and as invested with exactly the same powers; it will be unnecessary, at the present time, to examine this opinion.

We are come, then, to one class of permanent Ecclesiastical officers, mentioned in this text; viz. That, which is known by the word, Pastors.

The Apostle is here recounting those officers, which Christ gave to the Church, when he ascended to Heaven: and it must, I think, be admitted, that he mentions all those, which Christ gave to the Church directly, or in his own person. All other ecclesiastical officers, constituted in the Scriptures, were therefore constituted, afterwards, by the Apostles. Of these I know of but one class, mentioned in the Scriptures; viz. Deacons. In Acts vi. seven men are said to have been chosen to this office, and set apart by prayer and the laying on of hands.

The only debate concerning this subject respects the class, or classes, of Officers, denoted by the word Pastors. In my own opinion, this word includes a single class only; spoken of elsewhere in the Scriptures under the names Elders, Bishops, Ministers, Teachers, and some others. This opinion I shall endeavour to support by the following arguments, derived from the Word of God. Of these I allege,

1. The Text.

The text is addressed directly to the pastors of the Christian Church, under the name Elders; derived as is that of Pastor also from the Old Testament. In the customary language of the Jews, the word Elders denoted the Rulers and Counsellors of that nation: as some corresponding word has often denoted, either generally or particularly, the Rulers and Counsellors of other nations. Thus among the Romans Senator, and among ourselves Senator, denote an officer, similar to the Jewish Elder. Human wisdom is chiefly the result of experience; and experience is the result of years. Nations therefore, peculiarly when unenlightened by science, have committed the direction of public affairs, and public counsels, almost exclusively to the aged. The name, in this appropriate sense, was naturally transferred to those, who were to counsel and direct the Church; especially by the Apostles, as being Jews, and writing originally for their own countrymen. These Elders are exhorted to feed, that is, to teach, edify, and rule, the flock of God. That the Greek word oparva, a derivative of which is here translated feed, signifies to rule, in the most extensive manner;