flect; that they have sacrificed the cause of Salvation to the speculative opinions of any man, however distinguished: by "forsaking the fountain of living water, and having recourse to cisterns which hold no water."

This consideration will strike the more forcibly, on our recollecting, that the wisdom of God has taken care to guard us particularly against that sort of men, who, being considered as lights of this lower world, are, on that account, generally looked up to as directors, in some measure, of public opinion. When the Gospel was preached by the Apostles, we find that neither the wise man, nor the scribe, nor the disputer of this world, were to be found in the number of its hearers. The Doctrine of the Cross was then, what it has continued to be, generally speaking, ever since, "a stumbling block to the Jew, and to the Greek, foolishness."-The wise and prudent of this world, who appear strong in understanding, are sometimes very weak in faith: while the poor and simple have that faculty of the soul, that inestimable talent of a believing

heart,

heart, which alone enables man to receive and understand the things of Heaven.

The argument therefore which may be drawn from the opposition of human Science to the revealed doctrine of the Cross, is only one link in that long chain of proof, by which the evidence for the Christian Religion is held together. It is an argument which set out with the Gospel from the beginning of its general publication, has travelled on with it to the present day, and leads to this uniform conclusion; that God will reserve to himself the honour of his own Dispensation. With this view he made choice of the meanest instruments for the effecting his gracious purpose in the propagation of the Gospel; passing by the wise, the mighty, and the noble, he made choice of the "foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and the weak things to confound the mighty;" that the wisdom of the wise of this world being destroyed, and the understanding of the prudent being brought to nought, "no flesh should glory in his presence, but that he that glorieth, might glory in the Lord."

At the same time, whilst thus guarding against

against that vain pretension to science, which affects to look down with contempt on the revealed truths of Religion; we must not be understood as encouraging that dangerous notion so fondly cherished by enthusiasts, that they are more likely to attain salvation than the wise; not because they possess a believing heart, (which certainly does not necessarily belong, either to the learned or unlearned, as such,) but because they are poor and simple; in other words, as understood by them, because they are ignorant and unlearned. It requires, we presume, no nice discrimination to draw the line between that proud, abstracted, speculative and metaphysical presumption, which vauntingly assumes to itself the dignified name of philosophy; and that not less dangerous extreme of presumptuous ignorance, which foolishly. regards all its imaginary feelings and eccentric reveries, as the sure characteristics of a believing heart. Without meaning therefore to depreciate the proper exercise of that most valuable gift, by which God has distinguished his chosen creature; this short but useful lesson may be learned

from

from what has been said on this part of our subject; that there is a species of wisdom more to be dreaded by Christians than even folly; and that the smallest portion of true humility is of more estimation in the eye of Heaven, than the most boasted advantages of scientific attain

ment.

Truth, indeed, at the same time that it wants not beauty, is both plain, simple, and uniform. He that would fix He that would fix upon it,

must be content to think as others do. For truth cannot put on those various modes and shapes, that are suited to the levity of human affections. It cannot start things new and strange to take the multitude, which admires nothing so much as monsters. It cannot give way to the pride of singularity; the love of contradiction; the vanity of leading; or the interest of siding with a sect. All these are the rights and privileges of error. And it would be no difficult matter to make it appear, that of all the errors and heresies that have ever sprung up, to the disturbance of the Christian world, scarce one of them derived its origin from invincible ig

norance,

norance and want of light; but from an affectation of superior knowledge and want of humility. From whence it follows, that the surest guard against heresy, is to set a constant watch against the temptations of pride. For pride lies at the bottom of all heresies, as the source from whence they spring.

It would be inconsistent with the brevity allotted to discourses of this nature, to enter at large into a subject of this very extensive kind. Whilst therefore the opposition which the doctrine of the Cross has met with in the world, has, through the disposition of an All-wise Being, made the infidelity of man operate to the more perfect elucidation of divine truth; it may at the same time be observed, that all the arguments employed against it, have only changed the dress which they wore on former occasions; nothing material being now advanced on this subject, for which an answer is not ready prepared in writings, that have long since been before the world.

St. Paul knew, that the prejudiced Jew