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SermonIndex.net : Christian Books : Address 65: Hence may be seen the great and like blindness both of infidels and Christiansà

An Humble Affectionate And Earnest Address To The Clergy by William Law

Address 65: Hence may be seen the great and like blindness both of infidels and Christiansà

Hence may be seen the great and like blindness both of infidels and Christians; the one in trusting to their own reason dwelling in its own logical conclusions; the other in trusting to their own reason dwelling in learned opinions about scripture words and phrases, and doctrines built upon them. |For as soon as it is known and confessed, that God is all in all, that in him we live and move and have our being, that we can have nothing separately, or out of him, but everything in him, that we have no being or degree of being but in him, that he can give us nothing as our good but himself, nor any degree of salvation from our fallen nature, but in such degree as he again communicates something more of himself to us, as soon as this is known, then it is known with the utmost evidence, that to put a religious trust in our own reason, whether confined to itself, or working in doctrines about scripture words, has the nature of that same idolatry that puts a religious trust in the sun, a departed saint, or a graven image.| {Demonstration of the Gross Errors in the Plain Account} And as image-worship has often boasted of its divine power, because of the wonders of zeal and devotion that have been raised thereby in thousands, and ten thousands of its followers, so it is no marvel, if opinion- worship should often have and boast of the same effects. But the truth of the whole matter lies here: as the WORD manifested in the flesh or become man, is the one mediator, or restorer of union between God and man, so to seeing eyes it must be evident, that nothing but this one mediatorial nature of Christ, essentially brought to life in our souls, can be our salvation through Christ Jesus. For that which saved and exalted that humanity in which Christ dwelt, must be the salvation of every human creature in the world. But to return. What poor divinity knowledge comes from great scholars, and great readers, may be sufficiently seen from the two following judicious quotations in a late Dissertation on Enthusiasm; the one is taken from Dr. Warburton's sermons, the other from a pastoral letter of Mr. Stinstra, a preacher among the Mennonists of Friesland. That from Dr. Warburton stands thus: |By them (that is, by the writings of the New Testament) the prophetic promise of our savior, that the comforter should abide for ever, was eminently fulfilled. For though his ordinary influence occasionally assists the faithful, yet his constant abode and supreme illumination is in the sacred scriptures.| {Dissertation, page 10.} Dr. Warburton's doctrine is this, that the inspired books of the New Testament is that comforter, or spirit of truth, and illuminator, which is meant by Christ's being always with his church. Let us therefore put the doctor's doctrine into the letter of the text, which will best show how true or false it is.

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