you will injure religion and the kingdom of Christ. And let me beseech you to remember, that you also have a master in heaven, to whom you, as well as the rest of men, must give an account. The only way to gain his approbation is, to keep a conscience void of offence, and in your political transactions not to act from party attachments and private connections, not to practise intrigue to serve your own interests or those of your friends; but to endeavor to serve the public in the best manner according to your capacity and opportunity. In so doing you will appoint to the several executive offices, men of knowledge and discretion; men that fear God and hate covetousness; men who will be just and rule in the fear of God. By the promotion of such men, virtue will be encouraged and vice will be restrained; by their official proceedings, law and justice will be executed, and “judgment will run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream," even that righteousness which exalteth a nation." Then shall our political interests be in a prosperous state; then shall we be that happy people whose God is the Lord.

The Reverend Pastors of the churches, who are present, will also suffer the word of exhortation.

MY FATHERS AND BRETHREN,-We who are employed in the work of the ministry, are deeply interested in this subject. We are interested in the prosperity of the state, and are peculiarly interested in this means of prosperity on which I have been insisting. It is our business to study and teach christianity, and thus to promote the political good of the state, as well as the spiritual good of the souls of our hearers. This is a noble employment, to fidelity and zeal in which, not only the motives of religion call us, but even those of patriotism. Therefore if we have any love to religion and the souls of men; nay if we have any public spirit and love to our country, let us diligently study the evidences, the nature, the doctrines and duties of christianity, and inculcate them with all plainness, assiduity and perseverance, giving line upon line and precept upon precept. This is to be done,

1. By instruction. Without communicating instruction and information concerning the truth, we can expect to do nothing in our work to any good purpose. Knowledge and not ignorance is the mother of real devotion. The rational mind is to be led by the exhibition of the truth only.

2. By every motive to persuade, drawn from reason and revelation, from time and eternity; and among others this motive of the public good of the state and our general happiness, liberty and prosperity as a people, is not to be omitted.

3. By a christian life and conversation.

If we do these

things; if we thus instruct, persuade and live, we shall at last stand in our lot, and shall be owned as his, when Christ our Lord and judge "shall make up his jewels."

Finally I shall, in the last place, address myself in a very few words to this numerous auditory collectively. Men and brethren, this subject nearly concerns you all. How happy would you be, if the Lord were indeed your God? Nor can you be truly happy on any other condition. However prosperous you may be in your private concerns, in your property, your business and your reputation; yet unless you are the objects of the favor of God and the heirs of eternal life, you are truly in a miserable situation. You have not only the motive of eternal happiness to choose the Lord for your God; but the motives of the peace, good order, and happiness of the people as a body politic, and the general prosperity of the state. You all feel a firm attachment to your liberties and to the privileges of a republican government. Of all forms of government a republic most essentially requires virtue and good morals in the great body of the people, in order to its prosperity and even its existence. But the way to virtue and good morals is to choose the Lord for your God. Nor is this all; you not only have to choose and serve the Lord yourselves, but by the same reasons by which you are obligated to choose the Lord for your God, you are obligated to seek out and by your suffrages to promote to legislative authority, such as are of the same character. In a republic all authority is derived from the people; and such as they generally are, we may expect their representatives, legislators and all their civil authority will be. If you have the Lord for your God, you will elect those of the same character with yourselves, to be your legislators; you will encourage and support them and other faithful rulers in the thorough discharge of their duties of civil government, and you will withhold your suffrages from those who acknowledge not the Lord as their God and regard not his law. Nor can you consistently and innocently give your suffrages to men of this last description; for thus you would give a sanction and influence to sin and vice, would be partakers of their wickedness and would do an injury to the state.

But if you and the good people of the state in general shall unite to practise virtue and christianity, and to promote the wisest and best men among us, we shall doubtless be that happy people described in the text, and "judgment shall dwell in the wilderness and righteousness remain in the fruitful field; and the work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever."

SERMON XII.

THE DUTY OF MINISTERS TO PREACH THE TRUTH.*

JOHN 18:37. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.

THESE are the words of our blessed Savior. In them he informs us, that one end of his incarnation and ministry was, that by bearing witness to the truth, he might communicate the knowledge of it. The same is doubtless the end of the ordinary ministry of the gospel, and should be the object aimed at by every minister. From our text therefore I deduce this doctrine:

The great duty of the ministers of the gospel is, to preach the truth.

Under this doctrine I purpose,

I. No show what truth ministers of the gospel ought to preach. II. To mention some reasons in confirmation of the doctrine. I. I am to show what truth a minister of the gospel ought to preach.

Truth is very extensive and of various kinds. There is truth in every science, in mathematics, philosophy, history, etc. It will not be pretended, that mathematical and philosophical truth is the proper subject of the evangelical ministry. Nor is historical truth, any further than it illustrates the gospel, by exhibiting the facts of it, or other important facts relating to the works and the character of God.

The truth then intended in the doctrine is primarily evangelical truth, and secondarily all other truth which relates to the gospel and tends to illustrate it; as all truth relating to God and his character, especially his moral perfections; all truth relating to his supreme, universal and sovereign government; all truth relating to his law, its requirements and threatenings; relating to sin, its nature and evil; relating to ourselves, our present fallen state, and the ruin consequent on the fall; particularly our na

* Preached at the ordination of the Rev. Edward Dorr Griffin, A. M. to the pastoral charge of the church in New Hartford, June 4th, 1795.— First published at Hartford.

tive and total depravity, our actual sins and the various aggravations of them; our demerit as sinners; our dependence on the mere mercy and sovereign grace of God; our own moral inability to bring ourselves to repentance and holiness of heart and life, and our absolute insufficiency to make satisfaction for our sins; the necessity of an atonement and one of infinite value, correspondent to the demerit of our sin; the character of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, his divinity, his humanity, his offices, his sufferings in our stead, and his readiness to save sinners of every description, who come to him for this purpose; the conditions of his salvation, the privileges and rewards of it, and the inevitable consequences of a rejection of it.

This is a very brief summary of the truths, which every minister of the gospel is obligated to preach and inculcate.

II. I am to mention some reasons in confirmation of this doctrine.

The following reasons show, that ministers of the gospel are obliged to preach the truth or the real doctrines of scripture.

1. The truth was the subject of the preaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. He certainly is a proper example in this, as well as in his common conduct. He was a perfect preacher. Therefore he is to be imitated by all other preachers. And he in our text, informs us not only that he preached the truth, but that this was one great end of his incarnation and ministry.

2. The same was the subject of the preaching of the apostles and prophets. 2 Cor. 4: 2, "We have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God." Chap. 13: 8, "For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth." Gal. 4: 16, "Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?" 1 Tim. 2: 7, "Whereunto I am ordained a preacher and an apostle-a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity;" i. e. in faith and truth.

The great business of the prophets was to declare the word of God, which is the truth, as it was immediately taught them, or as they were by God directed to repeat former revelations. The great business of the apostles was to preach the gospel, which is the system of divine truth given to the church and to the world, in the last and most perfect dispensation. Both the prophets and apostles were inspired by the infallible spirit of God which guided them into all necessary truth, and preserved them, in their official proceedings, from everything inconsistent with it. Under the influence of this spirit they preached the truth and that only.

3. The knowledge of the truth is necessary to true religion. It is necessary both to the affections and to the practice of it.

(1) The knowledge of the truth is necessary to true religious affections. The knowledge of the true God is necessary to the true love of God. That love of God, which implies true virtue and real holiness, is the love of the true God and of the true and real character of God. To love any other than the true character of God, is as really to love a false God as to love Jupiter or Dagon. For instance to love God as a perfectly holy and wise God, is a holy affection; but to love him as one who tolerates and connives at sin and saves all at last, whatever their lives and characters be in this world, is a wrong and sinful affection. To love God as a benevolent being, aiming at his own glory consisting in the good and happiness of the intellectual system, is a right and holy affection. But to love him in the idea, that he is aiming at some partial, private good, or our own particular good only, is no exercise of true virtue, but a mere love of ourselves or of some party. Therefore we must have the knowledge of the truth in this important particular, and just ideas of the divine character, in order to the exercise of true virtue and religion in the love of God.

Similar observations may be made concerning the divine law. If we believe that it forbids and condemns some sins only, and in that view love it, there is in that love no true religion, but irreligion. If we believe it forbids all sin and love it in that view, that is true virtue and religion. If we love the divine law, because we believe it denounces some small temporary punishment, and cannot bear it, as threatening an endless punishment, we hereby show, that we are not friends, but enemies to the law and the truth.

We must believe, that there is a God, or we cannot love him at all. We must believe, that Jesus Christ is the Savior, or we cannot receive and trust in him as our Savior. We must believe the scriptures, or how shall we receive and comply with them? We must believe that we are sinners, or we can never repent. We must believe the atonement, or we shall never depend on it, nor seek forgiveness and salvation on the ground of it. And so with respect to every other truth of the gospel. We can have no right exercise or affection in view of any truth, unless we know and believe that truth.

(2) The knowledge of the truth is necessary to all genuine religious practice. Genuine practice implies genuine affections, and is founded on them. Therefore without repeating, it is sufficient to say, that the knowledge of the truth is necessary to gen