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is allowed by all Christians to Christ, the High Priest of the Christian temple: to the Christian ministry of succeeding ages is assigned, that of the second by those who admit, and that of the third by those who deny, an Apostolic platform of the Christian Church. If however the existence of a scriptural model be admitted, and the constitution of the Church be interpreted in connection with the profession of our faith, a divine origin and foundation must be maintained, whether they be derived from the will of the Father, from the express appointment of the Son, who is our great God and Saviour, God over all blessed for ever'; or from the extraordinary inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who with the Father and with the Son is equally glorified, and whom the Apostle expressly denominates Lord and God m. The form of ecclesiastical government delivered in the Scriptures will be exhibited in the following pages; in which it will be shewn, that in the original order of the Church, both before and after our Lord's ascension, in appointments immediately divine, and not recommended by any forms of human ordination, and in those, which derive their authority from men invested with power to convey it, there is a warrant for asserting, that the origin of the Christian Ministry, and its distribution into three distinct orders, are divine, and that its regular succession is appointed and allowed by God, and was primarily superintended by men acting under extraordinary and immediate inspiration.

Titus ii. 13. 2 Peter i. I.

1 Rom. ix. 5.

m 1 Cor. xii. 5, 6.

SECTION II.

ORIGIN AND SUCCESSION OF THE CHRISTIAN

MINISTRY.

IF the truth had never been perplexed by controversy; if the order of the Church had never been corrupted by innovation; if the minds of men were still under the exclusive influence of the plain sense of the Scriptures, and the recorded practice of the Apostles; it would be sufficient for the confirmation of the faithful, and the information of the inquisitive, to assert, in words of inspired authority, that the Apostles were ministers of GOD"; that God appointed Apostles, Prophets, and other orders of the Christian Ministry°; and that their authority was given by the LORD for the edification and not for the destruction of the people. Under existing circumstances it is necessary to enlarge the inquiry, and to enter into a specific detail of the principles and the practices of inspired men; of those who best knew the Spirit of the Lord, and with whose example it is not less our wisdom, than our duty, to comply. The persons, whose immediate appointments are recorded in the Scriptures, are, besides the Christ of God, the twelve Apostles; the seventy Disciples; Matthias; and the Apostle of the Gentiles. The immediate successors, whom they ordained, were the seven Deacons; Timothy, and Titus; the elders whom they were authorized to ordain, and other persons, to whom the Apostles refer, as invested with ministerial authority.

n 2 Cor. vi. 4.

• 1 Cor. xii. 28.

P 2 Cor. x. 8. xiii. 10.

The eternal designation of Christ to the priesthood is registered in the Scriptures, and adduced as an example of the principle, that no man is privileged to assume the office to himself without a divine appointment. "No man taketh this honour to himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron: so Christ also glorified not himself to be made an high-priest, but He that said unto him, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee: as also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchisedek "." This eternal designation of Christ was in due time expressed and ratified, when, as he was coming out of the water, after his baptism, the heavens were opened, and the Spirit visibly descended upon him, and, lo! a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased! Immediately after this consecration, which supplied the place of the material unction, which prevailed in the early periods of the Jewish polity, and of the prophetic annunciation, which usually recommended a new appointment, or an irregular succession to an office of authority, Jesus assumed the ministerial character by calling unto him disciples, and preaching the glad tidings of the kingdom of heavens. If then he, who from the eternal ages was designated to the priesthood; he, in whom dwelt all the fulness of the Divinity in a bodily form *; he, who knew the will of the Father, to whom the Spirit was given without measure", and whose internal qualifications were unexceptionable, yet deferred

9 Heb. v. 4, 5, 6. Psalm ii. 7. cx. 4. Mark i. 10, 11. Luke iii. 21, 22. Mark i. 14, 16, 19. Luke iv. 15, 16.

Matt. iii. 16, 17. Matt. iv. 17, 18, 21.

* Col. ii. 9.

u John iii. 24.

the execution of his office till he was invested with it in an outward and visible manner, in a manner, which unquestionably declared the assent of the Father, and was evident to the senses of his disciples, let not man presume to seize the honour to himself to invade the office of the priesthood, to serve at the altar, to which God hath not invited him, or to offer incense, which God hath not sanctified. The call, which is from God, will be attested in a visible manner, as was that of Christ; or it will be conveyed mediately through the hands of men, as was that of Aaron, who is said. to have been called by God, though the divine appointment was originally delivered to Moses, and by him announced to Aaron. By virtue of this call, immediately delivered to Moses, and mediately conveyed to Aaron, he and all his posterity in succession after him were invested with the Levitical priesthood, which is confessedly a divine institution; and their anointing by Moses rendered them an everlasting priesthood, nor was there any necessity of renewing the rite of their original consecration". A certain interval elapsed between the separation of Aaron and his sons to the priesthood, and their sanctification with the holy oil, and their investment with the holy garments. In this interval various ceremonial rites are prescribed; but no mention occurs of Aaron's ministrations, before his solemn investiture by Moses, when he immediately offered a burnt-offering with the assistance of his sons, and solemnly pronounced his official blessing on the people". The order of events is important,

y Exodus xxviii.

a

Levit. viii. 14-22. ix. 1-21.

z Levit. viii. 7, 10.

b Levit. ix. 22.

and shews the caution and reserve of Aaron, in entering on his ministry; a caution and reserve, which Christ himself did not disdain, who, though he was designated from eternity, waited for an external and visible ordination, which was conferred by the descent of the Holy Spirit.

The call of his disciples was among the first acts of the public ministry of Christ; and the assumed rights of popular election could not have been in any manner more effectually discountenanced, than by investing certain persons with an official character, before any Church was collected to make or to confirm the choice, and by delivering to the eleven their final commission when they were alone with Jesus, and separated from the other disciples. The circumstances under which Andrew and Peter, James and John, Matthew, Philip and Nathanaelf, (which seems but another name for Bartholomew,) were called, are particularly detailed. More than twelve disciples must, however, have attached themselves to the service of Christ, when he appointed them to their office; for he called unto him his disciples, and out of them he chose twelve, whom also he named Apostles. He calleth unto him whom he would, and they came unto him, and he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach and to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils". These twelve disciples, before their ministerial commission, appear to have been treated by our Lord with the d Matt. iv. 21. Mark ii. 14. Luke v. 27. f John h Mark iii, 13, 14, 15.

c Matt. iv. 18. Mark i. 16. Luke v. 10. Mark i. 20. e Matt. ix. 9. Luke vi. 13.

i. 43.

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