discouraged at your weakness or ignorance; for he says, Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to

your souls.

2. If the Scriptures are thus valuable and important, how necessary it is that we should be well acquainted with them. The word of God denounces vengeance against many characters that are innocent among men; nor will our ignorance of these threatenings avert or delay the execution of them. Let us, then, study the Sacred Oracles with an express reference to ourselves, that we may know what God says in them respecting us. We may, perhaps, find many passages which, when applied to our hearts, will give us just occasion to mourn, as did the pious monarch Josiah. Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humblest thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me, I have even heard thee also, saith the Lord. Better were it far to know the full extent of our guilt, and thereby be stimulated to repentance, than through ignorance of our state to continue impenitent, till the wrath of God shall come upon us to the uttermost, and we be forever deprived of the means of grace.

Finally, permit me, in the conclusion of my remarks on this subject, to urge upon you, not only the importance of reading the book of the Lord, but of dedicating yourselves entirely to his service. Come unto me, says our Saviour, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest to your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. By his own gracious voice, Jesus Christ called you while on earth. By the voice of his embassadors he continues to call, and he now calls you by mine. Come to this Saviour of sinners, and he shall give you rest-rest from the hard servitude of sin, and appetite, and guilty fear. That yoke is heavy, that burden is intolerable; his yoke is easy, and his burden is light. But come in sinceritydare not come in hypocrisy and dissimulation. Think not it will avail you anything in the last day, to have called yourselves Christians, to have been born and educated under the gospel light, to have lived in the external communion of the church on earthif, all the while, your hearts have holden no communion with its head in heaven. If instructed in Christianity, and professing to believe its doctrines, you lead the lives of unbelievers, it will avail you nothing in the next, to have enjoyed in this world, like the Jews of old, advantages which you despised and neglected-to have had the custody of a holy doctrine which never touched your heart-of a pure commandment, by the light of which you never walked. To those who disgrace the doctrine of their Saviour by the scandal of their lives, it will be of no avail to have vainly called him Lord, Lord. None but the pure in heart shall see God.

None but those who do his commandments shall enter in through the gates into the city, and eat of the tree of life, in the midst of the paradise of God.

DISCOURSE II.

On the Christian Name.

"The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch."-Acts xi., 26.

NAMES are words given to persons and things, and express, by the common consent of mankind, certain ideas, by which these persons and things are known and designated. In modern times, names are little more than arbitrary distinctions; but among the orientalists, the appellations given as names are always significant. And in this sense all the names given to God in the Old Testament are to be understood. Hence, a knowledge of his name imports, not merely a knowledge of the different names by which he is known, but a knowledge of his essential perfections. According to this view of the subject, God was pleased to reveal himself in express terms, declarative of all his glorious perfections. The Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty. Before God proclaimed his name to Moses, he placed him in a cleft of the rock, in Horeb. This rock was an eminent type of Christ; and doubtless the whole transaction was intended to show, that in Christ alone he could be so viewed by fallen man. According to this view of the subject, the name, that is, the perfections of the Lord, become a strong tower to the righteous, into which they run and are safe. Hence, says the Psalmist, They that know thy name will put their trust in thee.

The names which have been given to Jesus Christ are, also, appropriate and significant. It is, therefore, said, that God has given him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. The name to which the apostle here refers, as having been given to Christ, and which he declared to be above every other name, is doubtless the name of Jesus. No other being, in heaven or in earth, can possess this name, as it is possessed by the Saviour and Redeemer of the

world; for there is no other name given among men whereby we can be saved; and no other could redeem us to God but HE. Hence, it was announced before his birth, by the angel Gabriel, that his name should be called Jesus, for he should save the people from their sins. The qualifications of the Saviour of the world were so extraordinary, the redeeming acts so stupendous, and the result of all so glorious, both to God and man, that it is impossible to conceive a higher name or title, to be given to any being, than that of Jesus, or Saviour of the world.

As God has revealed his perfections to man, under the most significant and appropriate titles, and as the work and office, which have been assigned to Jesus Christ under the gospel age, have been designated by the appellations given to him, so, in like manner, the Christian character and perfections have been designated by the name given to the true followers of Jesus Christ. The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. And although mere names are but empty sounds, yet it will not be denied by any, that there are names of honor and significancy, and when attended by the things signified, become of great and sacred importance. Such is the name of Christian, given to the primitive disciples at Antiocha name more than eighteen hundred years old. In discussing the subject before us, we propose to consider the original import of this sacred name, and shall endeavor, as far as may be practicable, to bring both the name and the thing signified into common use.

I. We learn from the Scriptures, that at first the followers of Christ were designated by different names. Among themselves, they were most usually denominated brethren, from their mutual love, and their relation to God and to each other. They were styled believers, from their reception of Jesus as the true Messiah. They were called disciples, from learning their religion of Christ, as their Teacher. They were also called saints, from their separation from the world, and from their holiness and purity of heart. Their enemies styled them Nazarenes: thus Tertullian accused Paul of being a ringleader of the sect of Nazarenes. Of similar import to this was the appellation of Gallileans, and the term aireses, or sect; meaning, by that, a body of men who had embraced a religion of their own, in opposition to that established by law. And this appellation of Gallileans was continued to be employed by the enemies of the Christian religion, as a term of reproach, as late as the time of Julian, who reigned about the middle of the fourth century, and used it incessantly in his invectives against the followers of Christ.

But, after the lapse of some time from the promulgation of Christianity, the followers of Christ were designated by a new namethey were styled Christians. The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. Antioch was a famous city, built on the river Orontes, and the capital of Syria, where the kings of Syria, the successors of Alexander the Great, usually resided. The gospel

was first preached in this city by certain men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who had fled from the persecution which commenced at Jerusalem, on the death of Stephen. These men, when they first came to the city, addressed themselves to the Greeks, the pagan inhabitants of the place, preaching the Lord Jesus. This is the first instance we meet with in the Sacred Writings, of the gospel being preached to the heathen. Though the apostles and evangelists had received from their Lord a commission to preach the gospel to every creature, it was some time before they fully comprehended its import, or attempted, in its full extent, to execute it. Until this time, they who were dispersed from Jerusalem, into various parts, preached the gospel to the Jews only. The introduction of the gospel into Antioch was, therefore, distinguished by the remarkable circumstance of its being the first instance in which the apostles' commission was executed to the full extent, and the treasures of divine grace were freely proposed to the acceptance of the Gentiles.

The humble and faithful labors of these persecuted men, were singularly blessed in this idolatrous city, for the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned unto the Lord. When tidings of these things came to the ears of the church at Jerusalem, they immediately sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch, who, when he came and saw the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they should cleave unto the Lord. Not satisfied with contributing his own exertions to the formation of the work, he called in superior aid; he went to Tarsus, to seek Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. Thus this church, in addition to other extraordinary circumstances, had the honor of being one of the first scenes in which the great apostle of the Gentiles labored. It was here he began to scatter those celestial sparks, which soon after kindled a general conflagration in the world. And it came to pass that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. Great and continued prosperity attended this church, till the number of its communicants, as we are informed by Chrysostom, swelled to a hundred thousand. It was during the residence of St. Paul in this city, that this extraordinary name was given to the disciples.

II. It is evident, from many considerations, that the name of Christian was given to the disciples by divine authority. It has, indeed, been supposed by some, that this name was given to the disciples by their enemies. But it does not look at all probable that an appellation so inoffensive, and even so honorable, originated with their enemies; they would have invented one that was more opprobrious. There is not the least intimation, either in sacred or profane history, that this name was ever used as a term of reproach; and had it ever been so used, it is unreasonable to suppose it could have escaped the notice of all historians. It has been supposed by

others, that it was first assumed by the disciples themselves. But we can scarcely suppose that they would have ventured to take a step so important as that of assuming an appellation by which the church was to be distinguished in all ages, without divine direction; especially at a time when the extraordinary gifts of the Spirit were so common, and in a church where prophets abounded. For there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers, as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and with Saul. It is not to be supposed that they would assume a new appellation without recourse to the prophets for that direction; or that, supposing it to have no other than a human origin, it would have been so soon and so universally adopted by every part of the Christian church.

This opinion is fully confirmed from the use of the word here employed, and which is not used in any other instance in the New Testament, to the giving a name by human authority. In its genuine import, it signifies an oracular nomination, or a declaration from God. Thus Dr. Doddridge translates it: And the disciples were by divine appointment first named Christians at Antioch He adds, "I think with Dr. Benson, that the word chrematisai, which is rendered were called, implies that it was done by divine direction, and have translated accordingly." In this sense the original word is uniformly used in the New Testament. And being WARNED OF GOD in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their country another way. But when he had heard that Archelaus did reign in Judea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither; notwithstanding being WARNED OF GOD in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee. And it was REVEALED into him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death till he had seen the Lord's Christ. And they said, Cornelius the centurion was WARNED OF GOD by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was ADMONISHED OF GOD when he was about to make the tabernacle. By faith, Noah, BEING WARNED OF GOD of things not seen, as yet, moved by fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house. The evangelists employ the same word in the original which is used in these several verses, but differently rendered; in all of which, however, it signifies oracular nomination. The Sacred Oracles, then, may be considered as giving a universal testimony in favor of this import of the word, and as fully sanctioning the doctrine we have stated.

thee.

The celebrated Dr. Clark, in his commentary on this text, says: "The word chrematisai, which we translate were called, signifies in the New Testament, to appoint, warn, or nominate by divine direction. If, therefore, the name was given by divine appointment, it is most likely that Saul and Barnabas were directed to give it; and that, therefore, the name Christian was from God." The Dr. further