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ABUSE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS.

WE enter upon the subject of which we are now about to treat with a deep sense of its importance, and of painful awe upon our minds. We are conscious that it is adapted to the atmosphere of very few minds; and having made it a matter of fervent prayer ourselves that nothing may appear which shall be calculated to injure the souls of our readers, we exhort all who are inclined to follow us to commence its perusal with a similar petition to the God of truth. It may be asked, "wherefore we have undertaken to enter upon the discussion?" Our answer and our justification is, "The necessity of the case." It is to the shame of the pastors, that this necessity is placed upon us; but since they are incompetent to exercise the higher department of teaching the flock from the pulpit, we are compelled to exercise the lower function of instructing from the press. Even this last remark will sound strange in the ears of this infidel generation, which despises preaching, though the ordinance of God, and exalts above it human reason in the exercise of reading books; but to such we recommend the observation in Eusebius iii. c. xxi. "that the ministers of Christ used in their preaching a plain and simple manner of speech, from a divine and forcible power which they had received of Christ; and by such a demonstration of the Holy Spirit they published the knowledge of the kingdom of heaven to the whole world, being nothing solicitous about writing of books; and those few we have, some of them wrote not without being constrained thereto; particularly St. John, as Epiphanius says, being in himself very unwilling, and avoiding it, was forced and compelled by the Spirit to write his Gospel a little before his death."

In declaring our belief that the Holy Ghost is now speaking in several persons, we deem it incumbent upon us to state the ground of that belief; and furthermore to shew, that we have such a basis of Scripture that we cannot be shaken from it by any reasonings of man's invention. When any one speaks in an extraordinary manner, and informs us that he is constrained to do so by a supernatural power acting upon, and within, him, the question is one simply of fact: if we love the person who makes the declaration, we do not doubt him, for confidence is the lowest ingredient in love: if we doubt him, it is a proof not to be gainsayed that we place no confidence in the truth of his assertions, that we entertain no love for him. The doubt, therefore, of the truth of what the persons assert who are now speaking in an extraordinary manner, is proof conclusive that there is no love amongst high-sounding professors of religion for them: yet

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they are persons walking blamelessly in all the ordinances of God and man, fulfilling the various duties of their several stations, and making good and unquestionable confession of faith in Christ Jesus: the boasted pretensions to love in the Evangelical world turns out, when tried, to be all hypocrisy and delusion. On the other hand, if these persons assert falsely that they are speaking by a supernatural impulse, then are they most fearful impostors; but if they are truly speaking by a supernatural spirit, it becomes us next to inquire into the nature of that spirit.

For this purpose the Bible has given us very clear and explicit directions: " Now, concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant :.... wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed; and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost" (1 Cor. xii. 1, 3). In these days it is rare, except amongst Jews, to hear any one call Jesus accursed; and as almost all call him Lord, in some sense or other, it is necessary to define the meaning of that term. It can, then, mean only one of two things: either that He is Jehovah, that is, Essential Godhead; or that He is the only Lord and Master (deoTorns, as in Jude) of this earth, and of all that it contains. The next test is in 1 John iv. 1-3: "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in flesh, is of God; and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in flesh, is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come, and even now already is it in the world." The last test left for our guidance, that we may KNOw-not merely think, or doubt, or guess, or fancy, but KNOW, in order to be fully assured, and certain, and act upon that knowledge, assurance, and certaintyis in 2 John 7: "Many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is coming (Epxoμevos) in flesh: this is a deceiver and antichrist." Now, if the supernatural voice affirms, and bears testimony to, the essential Godhead of Jesus of Nazareth; to Him as the sole source of power, authority, and rule, on this earth; to the Christ having taken the fallen flesh of the Virgin Mary into personal subsistence with Deity; and to His coming in that flesh again; that supernatural voice is God the Holy Ghost himself speaking. Now all these points we have heard the voices proceeding from divers persons affirm; and therefore we believe, on the sanction and by command of the written word of God, that the persons so speaking were moved by God himself indwelling in them in the Person of the

Holy Ghost. On the other hand, if we had heard them say, that Jesus was a mere man, as they do whom the religious world has formally, after due debate and deliberation, and by large majorities, voted to be a denomination of Christians ; or that, not Jesus, but an ungodly rabble, was the source of all power and authority upon earth, as the Evangelical liberals assert; or that Christ has not appeared in the flesh of Abraham and Mary, but in a better and new kind of flesh first created in her womb, as the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland asserts; or that, if Christ did take the substance of Mary into subsistence, yet He is not coming in that flesh, but only in spirit, to reign on the earth; then we should with equal confidence maintain that the spirit speaking in them was the spirit of antichrist, which is the spirit of Satan.

If it be objected to this argument, that Satan comes as an angel of light, to deceive if possible the very elect, and therefore he must come in a form so like the truth that there is no discovering him by such tests as those above quoted, then we reply, that such an objection proves too much; for it proves, either that the very elect may be deceived, or that there can be some mode of preservation and sanctification in Christ other than by belief of the truth;-an argument only of an Antinomian Calvinist, who fancies that he may be kept by some indefinable and incomprehensible chain, while his whole judgment and affections are absorbed in Satanic delusion. It is an argument which sets aside the written word of God as the only standard and guide, and makes the directions given, whereby we are to KNOW THE SPIRITS, utterly useless for any such purpose.

Whilst there are some persons who are too tardy in bringing their minds to a decision on this subject, partly from ignorance of scriptural guides, and partly from habitual want of faith in what the bare word of God declares, there are others who decide with equal impropriety from the mere result of animal feeling, and apprehension at the novelty of hearing so appalling a sound as a voice which is said to be the voice of God Himself, and before they have "tried the spirit" for themselves. Now let it be observed, that it is the spirit which is to be tried, not the individual whose organs he uses. An evil spirit, therefore, may be found in a person whose outward conduct is unblameable; but such a spirit will not testify to the things given as the test for trying him, and to which Scripture declares the Spirit of God alone can testify. Thus some persons have felt convinced upon first hearing another speak in the Spirit, while others have not felt so; and the latter may really have better grounds for their doubt than the other for their faith, although the Spirit be really the Holy Spirit himself. And this we say in

order to check the uncharitable judgments of those, who, having had either more abundant opportunities than their less fortunate brethren, or greater want of caution in making up their opinion, look with suspicion upon all who, however they receive the doctrine, withhold their assent from any particular manifestation. The same rash persons are also concluding that no one can be a child of God without manifesting some supernatural power. It is true, indeed, that there can be no healthy church without having all the Spirit and all the gifts in it; and that our not manifesting these is a proof of the low estate into which the church is fallen; and is a sign of unholiness, which all lively members, who love holiness and conformity to their Head, will deeply mourn over, and pray to be recovered from: but let not these glorious gifts be abused, by having the question concerning them mixed up with another entirely distinct; nor let any child of God be led to doubt his heavenly Father's love, or his own adoption in Christ Jesus, in consequence of the increased sense of his low condition, and dissimilarity to the standard attainable by him through the manifested power of the indwelling Holy Ghost.

Being, then, fully and firmly convinced, by every examination which we have been able to give the question, that the Person of God the Holy Ghost is now speaking in, and distinct from, the persons of the individuals whose organs He constrains for that purpose, as He did in the Corinthian church, and indeed in all the primitive churches; the example of that church shews us that these precious gifts may be abused; and the example of Christendom shews us that by abuse the Spirit may be quenched, and his light concealed, if not totally extinguished. That such has been the case is undeniable; and it is the apprehension of a similar consequence recurring from similar abuse which marks the importance of the present discussion. "The Greek word Paraclete," says an old writer, "rendered the Comforter in the Gospel of St. John, is in his First Epistle (ii. 1) rendered an Advocate: but the word in its derivation is capable of a much more extended meaning than either or both those words do import; which appears by the different constructions the English version often puts upon the same word, in the verb, as well as noun. Thus, in 1 Thess. ii. 2 Tapakλnois is translated exhortation; in which text and others, says Chrysostom, the word means teaching and indeed the context clearly shews it; for St. Paul's preaching is there termed the Gospel, or good message of God; he therefore who despised it, despised not man, but God, who had given unto him his Holy Spirit. Now exhortation, when it is applied to the Holy Spirit, carries in it, throughout the New Testament, the nature and

validity of an authoritative command: nay, though the same word be rendered beseech, as sometimes, or persuade; thus in 2 Thess. iii. 12, we command (Tapayyɛλoμɛv, rather declare), &c. And thus, when the Apostle exhorts that supplications, prayers, and giving of thanks be made for all men, we with one consent construe it a Divine command to do so.

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"The same Greek word is in Acts xxviii. 20 rendered called for, and properly agrees with the derivation, which signifies any sort of speaking aloud, or calling out to; and so well suits to public preaching, and is so applied, not only to the prophetical inspiration of St. Paul above-mentioned, but in 1 Pet. v. 12: therefore the same word is joined with other ways besides exhortation used in preaching the word, as 2 Tim. iv. 2 and elsewhere. Seeing, then, the English translation of the word, with the sense concurring, does allow us to understand by it, to plead as an advocate, to speak aloud in exhorting and commanding, as in the function of prophetic preaching, let us have recourse to that great promise of our Saviour to his church, John xiv. 16, I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another (Paraclete) Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever, even the Spirit of Truth.' The following verses plainly shew that other Paraclete was to supply his place: therefore our Lord, by way of explanation, adds, I will not leave you orphans, I will come to you.' ....All which, in this and in the two following chapters, is ascribed to that Paraclete, saying, He shall teach you all things; and when he is come, he shall testify of me. I have many things to speak unto you, but ye cannot bear them now: howbeit, when the Spirit of Truth is come, he shall guide you into all truth: he shall not speak of himself, but whatever he shall hear that shall he speak he shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine, and declare (avayyɛλɛ, publish) it to you, and shall declare things to come: when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and convince it of judgment,' &c.

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Seeing therefore our Lord, the great Prophet, Teacher, and Master of his church, has explained to us thus the office of that Comforter to his church, how he would not leave us orphans, but come again, and be represented by the Paraclete, another like himself, that should speak unto us, testify of him, guide us, reprove, and declare to us many things he had not done; all these do indeed agree with the character of an advocate from, and for, God pleading with men, and with public authoritative preaching, exhorting, and commanding by the prophet; and all these make up a complete definition of the Spirit of prophecy, which is the testimony of Jesus, and of a Comforter such another as our Lord himself; for if the presence of the head and husband ought to be the chief delight and comfort of

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