unto the end, are made absolute conditions for man to comply with, to give him even a claim or expectation of salvation. Upon the above supposition, another difficulty of no small magnitude will occur; justification, we must conclude, must take place upon some particular act being done, and generally conceived at the time of having, or embracing faith; to salvation there are undoubtedly more than one condition necessary to obtain it; we find St. Paul, in one instance, says, without holiness no man shall see the Lord. We also find, in other parts of Scripture, that baptism doth now save us; also, that we are saved by hope; we then see there are more than one matter necessary to obtain salvation; and as justification will inevitably be succeeded with salvation, all those conditions, whatever they may be, which are necessary to obtain salvation, must be complied with or performed, before justification can take place; consequently the difficulty that must occur, upon justification taking place in this life, whether at baptism, embracing faith, doing works, or upon any other occasion, seems to be insurmountable; and particularly when the Scriptural doctrine, which is most plain and certain, that man can at any time during life commit sin, and wholly fall from faith and grace is considered; by his justification he has effected the remission of all sin, past, present,

and future; a man who has the sentence of justification passed upon him is become perfectly just and righteous, and accepted by God as such, and being so accepted, it seems a perfect contradiction to say, he can be capable afterwards of committing sin; it would be uttering the greatest absurdity that can exist, to say a man has effected the remission of all sin, and yet having done so, he can commit sin. Faith being an indispensable requisite in justification, all who are justified must possess faith; and if justification takes place in this life, it is most reasonable to conclude, it must be upon embracing faith; but it is most truly certain and clear, from the cases stated in Scripture of persons being justified in this life, that they did not take place upon any particular occasion, or act being done. It is more than once stated by St. Paul, that Abraham was justified by faith; that is, his faith was counted to him for righteousness, which is understood to be justification. St. James asks, whether Abraham was not justified by works, when he offered up Isaac his son; and, from what follows, it is plain St. James meant to show that Abraham was justified by works; and in this case of Abraham, that his works and faith cooperated in his justification. It is most certain his first justification neither took place when he embraced faith, nor did it take place when he had

performed a work, which he did by or through his faith; this difficulty, or objection to the tenet of justification taking place generally on earth, seems to be incapable of admitting an explanation, to show to a precision when earthly justification does actually take place; and if this point cannot be clearly established by the authority of Scripture, and the time distinctly shown, it will then appear to be uncertain when it did take place. What can be a greater objection to any system than uncertainty? In theology it is considered that justification is not a transient but a permanent act of God. If there is any ground for this opinion, which is generally ad mitted by theologians, justification in this life will produce a difficulty of no small extent, particularly to those who hold, that justification takes place upon having faith, when we know to the greatest certainty by Scripture, that man can, at any time during life, wholly fall from faith and grace, and be totally lost. It surely will not be said that the man who is justified cannot fall from faith; if it should be so said, how can it be proved from Scripture?

We shall now consider this matter further, upon examining the case as it respects different sects of Christians. One sect holds that

justification takes place at baptism; another at the time of believing, particularly those who hold that justification is by faith only: another, that works as well as faith are necessary to justify; and another, that there are two justifications, one on earth, the other at the day of judgment. Those who hold that baptism is the time of justification, must reject infant bapism, because an infant cannot have faith; and justification, according to the general received principles of Christianity, must be obtained by faith as a condition, or instrument, either with or without works. Those who hold that faith only is sufficient to justify, without works, must at the same time hold, that any one, after he has faith, cannot commit sin, or that all his sins must be remitted as soon as committed, which is nearly the same thing in other words; and it is scarcely possible to conceive how a person who, by having faith, has his former sins remitted at the time he believes, and afterwards continues in that state of belief, can commit sin, because he is possessed of that faith which not only remits past but present sins; will it be said, that the commission and remission can take effect, as it were, uno flatu, as is said of some who blow hot and cold at the same time? This difficulty cannot be surmounted but by one of the two modes above stated, namely, that the believer, from the time

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of having faith cannot commit sin, or that his sins at the instant they are committed are remitted. The first is clearly unscriptural as the following texts will shew.

Gal. ii. 17. "But if while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid."

Heb. x. 26. "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin."

Ibid. x. 38. "Now the just shall live by faith : but if any man draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him."

2 Pet. ii. 20." For if after they have escaped the pollution through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning."

Ibid. ii. 21. "For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them."

Ibid. iii. 17. “Ye therefore beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness."

From these texts, and many others that might be adduced, it plainly appears from the admis