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Suppose, in our times, an inconsiderable number of men, chiefly illiterate, should disperse into the different quarters of the world, and declare that a divine person had appeared in a remote province; that he had instituted a new religion, and confirmed the truth of his mission by miracles; could we hope or imagine that these declarations alone would have power to break through established systems? Could we then expect that whole states and nations should give up their tutelary gods, with whom they had such interesting connections, and to whom they were so faithfully attached, for the tales of babblers, and setters forth of strange gods? Could it be supposed that the bigotted Athenians, who banished a citizen for declaring that the statue of MINERVA was no living deity, but the work of Phidias who could condemn the brave ALCIBIADES for defacing the statue of MERCURY-Who could put to death the divine SOCRATES for speaking against the incredible fables of SATURN and JUPITER. Was it, I say, to be supposed that any of these Athenians should become converts to the preaching of St. PAUL? Yet, behold, several of them do become converts to his preaching; Plato. Eutrypho.

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Diog. Laert. lib. ii.

and one even of the Areopagus, that court whose bigotted principles had formerly ba nished STILPO, and condemned SOCRATES, now acknowledges the truth of the Christian religion. Paul, indeed, was not an illiterate preacher; he was an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures; but surely, without the cooperating power of God, he would have preached in vain to the Areopagus of Athens, even whilst he quoted their poet Menander to prove that the God of nature was one universally existent and intelligent Being.

But allowing, what seems hardly credible, that Paul might make converts at Athens, as well as in other places, by the power of his eloquence; did the rest of the apostles owe their success to the same means? What eloquence could there be amongst illiterate fishermen, carpenters, and officers of the customs? Yet these were all successful in their ministry, and converted thousands to the faith of Christ. They, indeed, received the gift of tongues from the effusion of the Spirit; but did they, at the same time, receive the gift of eloquence, the various powers of persuasion, and the art of addressing the passions? It is plain from those compositions they have left us that they did not; nor was it necessary, while the hand of God

was with them, and their doctrines were confirmed by the concurring testimony of miracles.

Hence then the argument, that without these miraculous powers, and without this divine concurrence, no new religion could have been established, by an inconsiderable number of men, sø extensively and so effectually, as Christianity was by the apostles.

But it is not so much from their success in propagating the religion of Christ that I mean to derive any arguments in favour of the truth of it, as from their own particular views and private convictions.

It is not to be imagined that any set of men, however ignorant, should be prevailed upon to undertake a task apparently dangerous and difficult, that was attended with no hopes or prospects of advantage.

The question then will be, what were the views of the apostles in labouring to propagate the religion of Jesus, and to establish doctrines which had brought their Author to a painful and disgraceful death?

Could it be from the prospect of any temporal advantage, that they persisted in performing the commands of their executed Lord? Could they hope, from such a scheme, to enjoy the affluence of wealth, or the plea

sures of luxury? No; for they wandered about in solitary places of the wilderness; hungry and thirsty, their souls fainted in them: they were in tribulation and distress; in famine and nakedness; in weariness and painfulness; always without the conveniences, and often without the necessaries, of life.

Could it then be with any ambitious view? Did they hope for fame or glory from men? Neither could that possibly be the case, since their Master himself had previously informed them, that, for his name's sake, they should suffer all manner of evils. Contempt and poverty, and pain and death. This prophecy they found most dreadfully verified; for they were subjected to cruel mockings and scourgings; they were spitefully entreated, and imprisoned; their life was persecution, and their death was torture.

Hence might the apostle reasonably exclaim, that if in this life only they had hope in Christ, they were of all men the most miserable.

But behold now the true cause of their perseverance! Their hopes were by no means confined to this life; nor, indeed, was there any object in it that seemed to merit their attention. Their expectations stretched beyond the limits of this world, to lay hold on

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that exceeding and eternal weight of glory, which he had promised, who could not deceive. This glorious promise was confirmed to their hopes by circumstances of which they had themselves been eye-witnesses, even the miraculous circumstances of their Master's life and resurrection.

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Behold here the fallacy of that argument, that the disciples of Jesus might, from the connections of friendship alone, give a false testimony to his miracles, and to all the other divine indications of his mission! What! can the connections of friendship, of departed: friendship, prevail over the fear of pain and punishment, of disgrace and death? Could the apostles, if they had looked upon their Lord as an impostor, and themselves as instrumental in extending a falsely acquired reputation; could they, I say, have been contented, for such a vile, and, to them, unprofitable purpose, to undergo the last extremities of distress? Can any thing be more absurd than even such a supposition?

The disciples of Jesus were well convinced of the divine mission of their Master; and for this cause, through all their sufferings, they fainted not. For this they were content to follow the fortunes of him that was despised and rejected of men. Hence, though troubled

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