ESSAY III. ON The Time when PAUL and BARNABAS became, and were known to be, APOSTLES. H AVING confidered the history of St. Paul with fome care and attention, and particularly in relation to the order of time and place; it appears very plainly to me, from taking feveral parts of it together, that he did not appear to be an apoftle to any part of the chriftian church, till he was declared to be feparated to that office in the church of Antioch1; and that he did not even commence an apostle, or receive his commiffion from Chrift as fuch, till a very little before he came thither; namely, at Jerufalem, the fe cond time of his being there, after his converfion to the faith of Christ, about the latter end of the year 43. do, from the Lord, and in his name; and as it would be otherwife fetting them up as kings in Chrift's kingdom, or lords, having dominion over our faith, inftead of his fervants of the churches: fo it must have been peculiarly improper in that ftate of things, from the gifts of the Spirit that abounded fo much in thofe churches where the decrees were fent. For they were churches where Paul and Barnabas had been, and had, no doubt, imparted the Holy Ghoft. So that thefe decrees cannot be fuppofed to be any more than the advice of spiritual men, appealing to those who were fpiritual, and defiring them to judge of what they faid, as St. Paul does on another occafion. If this was the cafe, then I am fure, those who would have a power of making canons, or decrees, (that fhall bind chriftians) inherent in the church, must have some other authority for it than this decree. For if fpiritual men here do no more than advise fpiritual men about a known duty, from the evidence brought for it; and appeal back to their judgement upon that evidence; rational men (as the pretenfions of Proteftants go no higher) can do no more with rational men, by virtue of this precedent. Nay, and as far as this goes, when advice is to be given, it must not be by the clergy in exclufion of, or in an over-pro* 1 Cor. xiv. 37: portion |