1801 To Jofiah B. Andrews, balance for Miffionary fervices, Jan. 1. To Rev. David Bacon, Miffionary to Indians in advance, 26. To Rev. Jedidiah Bushnell, on account for Miffiona- Feb. 3. To Robert Porter, balance for Miffionary fervices, do. To Mefs'rs. Hudfon and Goodwin, for printing To Rev. Wm. Storrs, balance for Miffionary fervices, do. To Rev. Seth Williston, do. To Elifha Colt, for affifting the Treafurer, June. To Robert Porter for Miffionary services, do. do. To Rev. David Bacon, Miffionary to the Indians, 83 200 228 1 81 100 2985 1 200 64274 333 63 100 1369 15 6862 26 1369 15 Account of the fales, Sc. of the first twelve numbers of the Connecticut. Evangelical Magazine, to June 20th 1801. The whole number printed is 3266 for each month, amounting to 39192, at 66 Mills each for printing, Poftage, Stationary, &c. Whole expenfes of the Magazine, 32359 fingle numbers have been fold to fubfcribers, moftly amounting in the whole to, 2827 have been fold at retail, 1972 have been given gratis to fubfcribers who became refponfible for 12 fetts or more. 2034 are now on hand. 39192 4364 63 Of the above amount of profits there is due from Subfcri bers, as per the Publifhers' books, Cash in the hands of the Publishers, 1107 28 652 32 1759 60 The above Summary Statement is a true refult from the accounts of faid publifhers, audited by the Subfcribers on the 29th day of June, 1801. Certified by, The above mentioned fum of 652 dollars 32 cents, and a further fum of 347 dollars 68 cents, making in the whole 1000 dollars, were, on the 8th of July, paid by the Publishers to the Hon. John Treadwell, and the Rev. Mefs'rs. Nathan Strong and Abel Flint, appointed by the Trustees of the Miffionary Society of Connecticut, a Com mittee to receive the fame, and by faid. Committee paid to the Treafurer of the Society, as per the Treafurer's receipt, as follows, Hartford, July 8th, 1801. RECEIVED from the Hon. John Treadwell, Rev. Nathan Strong and Abel Flint, Committee of the Trustees of the Miffionary Society of Connecticut, the fum of One thousand dollars, for which I am ac countable as Treafurer to the Miffionary Society, having given a duplicate of this receipt therefor; it being avails of the Connecticut Evangelical Magazine. A. KINGSBURY, Treasurer. Note. There are fome fmall bills against the Magazine, to be paid out of the above amount of Profits which have not yet been prefented. They will not however amount to much. Should any loffes accruesto the Editors through failure of payment, or from any cafualties, a par ticular account of fuch loffes will be published, that the public may have before them a fair view of the real profits of the work. i. A On Self-examination. MONG the various du. ties of the Christian life, it is generally agreed that felf-examination has an important place. The great fubject of enquiry is, whether we are the true children of God, and fo heirs of eternal life, through Chrift Jefus, or, in the apoftolic language," whether we are in the faith." Because all true believers in Chrift, are, in deed, the children of God and have, in the gofpel, a fure title to eternal life. The enquiry fuppofes the fubject to be capable of a rational inveftigation and decifion, on propar evidence, and that Chriftians have the means and abilities to examine and decide. 2. The duty and importance of felf-examination, appears from various confiderations. Itrefpects the falvation of the foul, and is fo the falvation of the foul, and is fo intimately connected with it, that we may reafonably fuppofe it to be practifed by all who are the heirs of falvation, and poffeffed of the abil ities and means for this duty. The fubject is fo exceedingly interefting and important in itself, and in the VOL. II. No. 3. view of all Chriftians, that none can be fuppofed to neglect this enquiry. It is a fubject capable of invefti gation. Those who are in a state of falvation may obtain fatisfying evition. If this were not the cafe dence of it, by proper examina In temporal concerns, where truth. it would be improper to urge it. is attainable, men are difpofed to difcover it, in fome proportion to and the means they poffefs for the its importance, their interest in it, discovery. In the progrefs of this difcuffion it will appear that the important queftion of our title to heaven, may be decided on good scriptural evidence. A false hope is exceedingly danman's future ftate who thinks him gerous. Sad is the profpect of a nothing. He is hardened against felf to be fomething when he isall divine warnings to the wicked. Nothing fhort of a conviction that ken him to fly from the wrath to his hope is unfounded will awa come; and fo bring him within the make him afhamed at laft. This reach of a hope which shall not conviction may be produced by felf-examination. Without this there is little ground to expect it. "Now is the accepted time and the day of falvation.” Whatever is done for the falvation of the foul muft be done fpeedily. Neither felf-examination or any other mean of falvation, will be of any avail after death. The retributions of eternity will be "according to the things done in the body." Hence all the truly wife confider this fubject to be of the highest importance, and attend to to it, as being intimately connected with their eternal concerns. They feel the need of divine teaching, and fay with the pfalmift, "examine me, O Lord, and prove me. Try my reins and my heart;"* and they fubmit, with alacrity, to the apoftolic injunction, "Examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith, prove your own felves, know ye not your own felves, how that Jefus Chrift is in you except ye be reprobates."t 3. We must endeavor to prepare our minds for this duty, by deep and folemn contemplation on the importance of it, as probably extending its influence to our eternal ftate. We muft enter upon it with serious deliberation, as far as poffible with a mind fequeftered from the cares of this life, and the concerns of time. We must have, fixed in our mind, the most distingishing scriptural marks of a gracious ftate, and be well established in the belief of the truth and divinity of the facred writings, and in a full conviction of the principal doctrines, inftitutions and duties of Christianity, for it is by evidence of our conformity to thefe in heart and life, that our title to future happiness is to be proved to ourselves. Pfalm xxvi. 2. † 2 Cor. xiii. 5. The importance of this work, our inefficacy in ourselves, and great liability to felf-deception, will lead us to humble, fervent and per fevering prayer, to the God of all grace, that he will enlighten our darknefs, make us truly willing and defirous to know the truth of our state and character, and affift us in the work, and bring us to fuch a decifion as will stand the teft of his all-fearching eye. 4. At our entrance on this work, we must examine ourselves, what we believe concerning God and religion, and on what evidence. For as "all people will walk af ter the name of their God," if our views of the divine character are effentially wrong, our religion will be fo likewife; and our conformity to the character and inftitutions of the object of our worship, howev er exact, will be fo far from prov ing our fcriptural title to eternal life, that it will prove directly the reverfe. Will a belief of the character and inftitutions of the God exhib. ited in the Koran of Mahomet, and a conformity to it fecure to the fubjects the eternal life which the gofpel promises to all true Chrif tians? Again, we must enquire on what evidence we believe the holy fcrip tures and the doctrines, inftitutions and duties which they teach. A belief founded on the proper divine evidence is, itfelf, a good proof of our title to eternal life, for the fcriptures affure us that "he that believeth fhall be faved," but there are many who have fome kind of faith and yet draw back to perdition. Such are thofe in the parable of the fower reprefented by the ftony ground and the thorny ground. We first obferve here, that the faith of the gospel, which is con nected with the falvation of the believer, receiveth divine truth on the teftimony of God, fubmits to it, and embraces it, and is governed by it, and endures to the end. This implies that it is a fruit of renewing grace, that it involves reconciliation to God, repentance for fin, approbation of the law and gofpel, and effentially, all Chriftian graces, and is productive of a courfe of perfevering obedience to divine commands to the end of life. 1 given us fome great temporal or fpiritual good, or that he will do it hereafter? Or is it the refult of a view of the real excellence, or beauty of the divine character, as holy, juft, good and glorious, exhibited in the works or word of God, directly to the mind, without any refpect to self or self-intereft? For though true gratitude for divine favors is a spiritual and holy exercife of heart, totally different from felfish rejoicing in our own private advantage, and the confequent selfish affection to the benefactor, yet, the nature of gracious affection, is more easily discerned and distinguished when excited by direct views of the moral beauty or loveliness of divine objects as they are in themselves. 5. We must examine, whether we experience the exercife of the Chriftian graces, in particular, whether we truly love the ever blessed God? This must be determined primarily, by a consciousness of what paffes in our own minds. If this be determined in the affirmative, the enquiry may be extended thus, is the prefent confcioufnefs of love to God a folitary ex-ly finful, may be deeply affected perience, or have we a confciouf nefs of a feries of like exercifes, from the time that we have hoped were she children of that we God? There is indeed a time when the true Chriftian has the first experience of love to God, at the time of his faving converfion; but this can never be his cafe but once, and therefore doth not materially affect the prefent enquiry. If we are unconscious of a feries of exercises of love to God, from the time that we fuppofed ourselves to be renewed, no prefent impreffion of that afpect can give well grounded evidence that we are paffed from death to life. love to God be genuine it is perfevering. If our This being found on examination, we enquire after the objective ground of our love to God. Does it reft on impreffions of divine favor only? In a belief that God has This distinction is exceedingly important. "Sinners love thofe who love them.” A heart entire with the reception of perfonal favors, and this affection to the benefactor will be proportioned to the impreffion of the greatness of the evil to which the subject was expofed, and the greatness of the good beftowed. Hence the finner, who is awakened to a realizing fenfe of the wrath of God and his extreme expofedness to eternal mifery, and is fuddenly impressed, (by whatever means) with a belief, that God loves him, that Chrift died with a defign to fave him, that God has pardoned his fins, or will fave him from endless torments, fuch a finner will be filled with unutterable joy, and will be full of expreffions of his great love to God and Chrift, on the principle of perfect selfishness, and without the leaft degree of true holinefs, or genuine love to God and Chrift. Such was the cafe with the Ifraelites at the Red Sea, who "fang the praises of God |