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THE CALL TO THE SACRED MINISTRY.

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ADDRESSED TO ^JEMBERS OF

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CHURCH OF ENGLAND.

^.^>^■^^■WV^'V'■A^ \

BY A CLERGYMAN.

COBOURG:

PRINTED AT THE DIOCESAN FRE$S.

MDCCCXLIV.

•

THE CALL TO THE SACRED MINISTRY.

DISCOURSE

ADDRESSED TO MEMBERS OF

THB

CHURCH OF ENGLAND

BY A CLERGYMAN.

COBOURG:

FHWTBO AT THE DIOCESAN P!l«SS.

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THE CALL

mye Satrt\f minrnvv-

Beloved, believe not every ''pirit; but try the spirits,
whether they be of God: because many false prophet? are
gone out into the world. — I John, vi. 1.

It has never been the plan of Almighty God to make
his truth so clear, that man could not deceive himself.
On the contrary, there has been scarcely any age in which
such difliculties did not beset the truth, that ignorant
and unstable minds might without difficulty be led astray.
No doubt we may desire that it should be otherwise :
but it is not so. Error is allowed to prevail, as well as
truth, for a trial to us which we will choose ; " that they
who are approved may be made manifest." Under ihe
law of Moses it pleased God to suffer men who upheld
the worship of false gods to give signs in support of
their pretensions, which signs came to pass, (Deut. xiii.
1 — 3) although in opposition to God's truth and honour.
We may easily imagine that many would be grievously
perplexed, when they saw that the prophets of Baal
could give signs, and that their signs came to pass as
well as those given by the prophets of God. We may
imagine that many would say, How can we know which
is right and which is wrong? But still God thought fit
to allow it, for a trial to show who were his sincere wor-
shippers, and who not. For the sincere-hearted wor-
shippers never were misled : they found the worship. of
God to be the salvation of their souls, and they cquld
BOt be tempted to depart from hira.

THE CALL TO

So again in the New Testament we read of Satan
appearing "as an angel of liglit," and his ministers ap-
pearing "as the ministers of righteousness." Tin's lan-
guage is well worthy of our attention : for what can it
signify, excepting that it shall many times be extremely
difficult to distinguish the preachers of truth, ordained
and sent by God's authority, from the preachers of error,
thrust in by Satan to spread delusion amongst Cl)ristians?

And so it has been. Many false prophets came out
into the world even in the ApostKs' times, and deceived
many: for they so much resembled Christ's apostle*
that many could see no sufficient reason to listen to one
more than to another. But still sincere minds in the
Churcli could and did " try the spirits, whether they
were of God" ; for they had an inward "anointing of
God," and could not be deceived. 'J'hey were com-
manded so to do, and they did so; and thus those who
were approved were made miinifest, — not to ihe eye of
every professed Christian, but to the ho!y angels, and to
those who were themselves approved. But the ignorant
and unstable were no doubt in great perplexity which to
choose. And the same thing is going on now. There
are and nui?t be God's true messengers, and there are
likewise teaciiers, falsely professing themselves his mes-
sengers; and it is difficult to decide between tbern.
That this is the case will ai>pear if we consider that there
are in this eomitry, as in others, many different bodies of
Christian teaciitrs, gatlicM-ing followers around them, all
professing to come with autliority from God ; and yet
that they cannot all he from God, because they gather
togetlier followers in o})position to each otiier. Not-
withstanding this, tliey all ap{)ear as ministers of right-
eousness. They all take the same main truths to build
upon ; they all profess to desire to reclaim men from sin,
and bring them to everl-risting blessedness; they all ap-
pear more or less to succeed in so doing. And yet their
doctrines are contradictory one to another, and thev do>

THE SACRED MINISTRT.

fiot nnite together in Christian coninumion ; tht7 arc not
-bound together into one society. Some of them, tliere-
fore, eunnot be from (iod. And as the Word of God
reveals but one Church, one faiili, one baptism, one
fellowsl)ip, it is to be feared that all of these bodies of
teachers excepting one, must be without divine authority :
and it appears a just conclusion, that this one body must
be Christ's true ministers, and no other : for " God is not
the author of confusion, but of peace." It is therefore
highly important to every Christian to know whom to
foilow, and wliom not to foUow ; for truth is but one.

Moreover, there are certain passages in the New Tcs-
.taiiient concerning the Christian ministry, and the duties
of private Ciuistians towards those who are between God
and them in matters of the soul; and it is very impor-
tant to every one to know how to apply them aright.
Chrinf, for instance, says that " it shall be more tolerable
for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment," than
for thoic who will not receive the messengers whom he
has gent. IIow important then to know whom he has
tent!

There is another passage in which a very striking
«ounnand i« given, which the spirit of liberty of our day
has caused to be almost totally neglected. St. Paul
writes, " Obey them that have the rule over you, and
submit yourselves ; for they watch for your souls, as they
that must give account." The words are simple and
plain ; but how entirely are they neglected ! and most
neglected by those who make the loudest professions of
taking their religion entirely from the Word of God !
But one great reason of the neglect is the multiplicity
of those who profess to be ministers of Christ, watching
for men's souls. Now no man can obey a/Zthese. No
man can serve even two masters. If you obey one, you
must disobey another. One informs me that I am bound
to have my children baptized^, another declares that they
are not to be baptized. One requires me to receive the

THB CALL TO

traditions of the Church of Rome, another forbids me to
acknowlt'dijc any authority in that Church. One teaches
me that, if I feel a disposition to take upon me the func-
tions of the Christian mini.stry, I must do it fortiivvith;
anotlicr forbids me to do it without an authoritative
cominissio!! throuj»h the instrumentality of men. One
commands me to seek the assurance of divine forgiveness
tliroiigh dirtn;t impressions upon the soul, — another re-
quires me to loi'k for it in sacranjcntal ordinances. One
rccpiiri s my Docdicnce to his authority, because he bears
a commissi(»ri from the Bishop of Rome, — another, be-
cause he is commissioned by a bishop who has received
his authoiiiy in a direct line from the apostles, — another,
because he has been ordained by those whom the rules
of his Church empower to ordain, — a fourth because he
has received a direct commission from Christ. So that
it is impossible to obey one without disobeying enother;
and if the one I disobey be indeed placed over me by
Christ, in disobeying him I disobey his Master and mj
own Judge.

The question tlien i.<<, how are we to know a true mi-
nister of the Gospel ? whom are we to receive as such ?
whom trmst we obey for Christ's sake and our souls' sake?

In discussing this point I purpose, first, to consider the
answers which are most commonly given to this question,
and to show that they are erroneous, — and afterwards
to point out a track by following which we may arrive
at the right answer.

I. 1. One answer very commonly given is that the
person who thinks he has an inward call, who feels within
him a strong and vehement desire to proclaim the mes-
sage of salvation, is a true minister of Christ. But this
answer is not a sufficient one: first, because some of all
the parties I have mentioned will profess that they have
this call, and yet they contradict each other in their
teaching : so that we are left just where we were before.
Butffurther, what we observe in the Bible is in opposition

THR SACRED MIIIISTRT.

to this view. The Bible contains no warrant whatever
for saying that when a person supposes he has an inward
eall, that hij itself h u sufficient reason for his talking upon
him tlie office of a Christian preacher. There is no in-
•tance, either in the Old 'J'estanient or in the Now, of a
person who was a rc(tl minister of (iod resting his claim
to that high office ouly upon the foundation of an inward
call. It is very reinarkable, that the only persons i...n-
tioneci in the iiibie, who had onh/ an inward call, art- the
talse prophets. *' 1 have not sent tiiese prophets," saith
the Lord, ** vet tiny run : I have not spoken to them, yet
they prophesied." And again, "Son of man, prophesy
against the proi)het8 of Israel that prophesy, and say unto
them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the
word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord God, Woe unto
the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and hiwc
seen nothing." These men, we see, wei-e led by some-
thing within them : they had an inward call to prophesy;
but the eall did not come from God. And we are no-
where told of any true prophets whose claim to be heard
rested only on an inward call.

To come to the times of the Gospel, wilii which we
are more immediately concerned, we are so iar from find-
ing the apostles resting their authority upon an inward
eall, that we are nowhere informed that they had any such
call to take upon them their office. Peter and his com-
panions were engaged in their ordinary occupation, and
Maithew was seated at the receipt of custom, when they
received a call from Christ to follow him ; but it was an
outward call. Christ himself had an outward call by the
ministry of John the Baptist, before he exercised his mi-
nistry. And so with regard to St. Paul, and any others
of whom, we read that they were called to the ministry
of the gospel, where any mention is made of their being
called, the call is outward. Indeed, some of the most
remarkable and the most highly gifted, both under the
law and under the gospel, followed an outward call in

THE CALL TO

Opposition to their inward \vishes and feelings. Moses
received more than one call, and both outward, before
he would go on his mission. And St. Paul was abso-
lutely engaged in persecuting Christ's followers, when
he received his call, and that an outward one. So that
when persons plead an inward call as their authority for
taking upon them the office of ministers of Christ, they
go contrary to the whole current of Scripture ; they fol-
low the example of the false prophets of old ; they teach^
for doctrines the traditions of men; they set aside the ex-
ample of Christ and his apostles, to follow the imagina-
tion of their own hearts.

But it is sometimes asked, does not the Church teach
tliis same doctrine, when the Bishop inquires of those
who are candidates for holy orders, "Do you trust that
you are inwardly moved by the Holy Ghost, to take upon
you this office and ministration, to serve God for the
promoting of his glory and the edifying of his people?"
Does not thisqucHtion imp]y that every one should have
an inward call before he takes upon him the office of a
minister of Chri^i ? To this question as they intend it,
I reply. No. For what is signified by being inwardly
moved by the Holy Ghost? Does not every godly desire
and motive come* irom the Holy Ghost? What the
Church intends is this, — Do you desire to take the office
of a minister of Christ from godly motives ? for such rea-
sons as you sincerely think came from the Holy Ghost ?
In short, are your motives worldly, or are they religious?
Is it your chief desire in seeking the sacred ministry to
earn a livelihood, or to be placed in an honourable sta-
tion ? or do you chiefly desire to serve God better your-
self, and to be instrumental in his hands in bringing
others to serve him better likewise? This is the mean-
ing of the question, as it is addressed by the Bishop to
the candidates for holy orders. He does not ask ihem
whether they have a strong impression on their minds
that they are called to that office : for that is a thing iu.

THE SACRED MINISTRY. $

which they might easily be deceived; in the other thej
cannot, — if they are sincere.

But supposing the Church had meant the same thing
as these persons, by the expression of being inwaidlr
moved by the Holy Ghost,— still this circunihtance would
give no countenance to the idea that ar) inward call is
sufficient to authorize a person as a mim'ster of Christ.
For the question is never asked respecting the inward
feelings, aiiitil the person so questioned has had ati out-
ward call, and has beer, examined as to his outward qua-
lifications. For no person is ever admitted even to an
examination, who is not either called to minister in some
parish, — or required to be ready for some sphere which is
expected to be open for him,— or appointed to some office
which requires that the person who holds it should be in
holy orders, or which gives him a special opportunity of
exercising the sacred ministry. The Canons of the
Church do not permit him to be a candidate for Holy
Orders, without some such outward call. So that an out
ward call is the first thing required by the Church, with-
out which no idea of an inward call would ever be listened
to. A person is not even permitted to be a candidate for
the office of the ministry at his own desire, unless he can
look forward to some place in the Church which gives
him an outward call.

The Church therefore does not allord any countenance
in her ordin;ition services to the idea that an inward call,
either real or supposed, is a sufScient authority to any
person to take upon himself the office of a Christian
minister.

2. Another common reason whieli some ])crsons give
for thinking a person a true minister of Christ is, that
he is personally qualified for the office. Thoy say that
" whom God sends, he qualifies" ; by whicli they mean,
that if a person is ready in preaching and prayer, — if he
is earnest in his manner, and if his delivery is good ;— if
in short he is qualified for a popular speaker, and can

TUB CALL TO

carry with him the feelings of his audience, he must be
a true minister of Christ: and with the multitude this
opinion is very prevalent.

And yet there is scarcely a single notion which is more
thoroughly in opposition to the Scriptures : for two of
the greatest of God's' ministers, tiie one under the Old
Testament, the other under the New, were entirely des-
titute of these popular qualititations. Both Moses and
St. Paul were just tiie reverse of eloquent. Moses, we
read, knowing the vulgar error, urged his slowness of
speech, as a reason why God should not send him. "O
my Lord," said he, "I an> not eloquent, neither hereto-
fore, neither since thou hast spoken to thy servant; but
1 am slow of speech and slow of tongue." And God
never did make him eloquent. And so of St. Paul : for
some of the Corinthians, misled by the same error, ques-
tioned whether he was an apostle, because he was not
eloquent. "His letters," said they, "are weighty and
powerful, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech
contemptible." And he calls himself " rude in speech."
Since, therefore, these two of the greatest and most ho-
noured of God's ministers were entirely destitute of flu-
ency of speech, it is plainly contrary to the Word of God
to lay any stress upon this quality, and a most lamenta-
ble vrror to suppose that it is any mark at all of a Chris-
tian minister. Readiness of speech and powers of per-
suasion are gifts of God to some persons ; either bestowed
by nature, or acquired by habit and practice : and they
were possessed in a very high degree indeed by many of
the ancient heathen. If men have them, God may make
use of them, as he did in the case of Apollos, — but they
are by no means necessary. St. Paul was a divine in-
strument for the conversion and edification of thousands,
and he was destitute of them.

3. And this brings me to a third thing, which many
persons consider a sufficient evidence that a person is a
minister of Christ, vi?. that he is successful in the cod.-

THE SACRED BIlNISTIir.

iiust be
ide this

is more
two of
be Old
;ly des-
ses and
)ses, we
iness of

heieto-
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ir, ques-
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peech."
lost ho-
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amenta-
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estowed
nd they
many of
ay make
3ut they
vine in-
3usandid,

;h many
I'son is a
the coB-

Tersion of sinners. For they conclude that none could
convert sinners without the blessing of God on his la-
hours; and they judge that God would not bless the
labours of any, except those whom he has sent. Now
n IS very true that no person could convert sinners with-
out the blessing of God on his labours ; but it is not true
that God blesses the labours of none except those whom
he sends : and this we can prove beyond a doubt from
the Word of God.

^^ St Paul, writing to the Philippians, has these words:
And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confi-
dent by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the
word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ even of
envy and strife; and some also of good will • the one
preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to
add affliction to my bonds : but the other of love. What
then ? notwithstanding every way, whether in pretence
or m truth, Christ is preached ; and I therein do rejoice,
yea and will rejoice." We see here that St. Paul de-
Clares that he does rejoice and will rejoice that Christ ts
preached every way, whether in pretence or in truth.-
^ould St. Paul have rejoiced that Christ «as
preached. If there had been no good fruit of this preach-
mg? Undoubtedly not. If no good vere done, there
could be no occasion for joy. What he rejoiced at ik>
doubt was, that by this preaching sinner, were converted
to Cxod. And could sinners have been converted with-"
out the blessing of God upoa the word preached P Uo.
doubtedly not. But St. Paul informs us that some of
these preachers preached Christ "in pretence," "of envf
and strife " "of contention, not sincerelv," thinkinir to
occasion him more affliction, in addition to his imprii,r».
ment. Now is it possible to believe of these men, who
began to preach out of env:^ and stiife and contention,
in order to vex the apostle, and without any authority
fron, h,m,-.i8 it possible to believe that God called them
to their work ? No one in his acosegeaDiKH^ibljr believe

THE CALIi TO

it. And yet we find that when these bad men did preach,
God gave his blessing with their preaching, to tlie con-^
version of the unbelievers to the knowledge and faith of
Christ. Clearly then it is no proof that a person is called
of God, when we find that his preaching avails to the
conversion of sinners. God works with any means he
chooses, and without means likewise ; in order that we
may learn that, although he has bound us to means, the
blessing does not rest in them, but in Him who has ap-
pointed them.

4. There is still another answer which professes to
settle the point in a much shorter manner. It is this :
every man who preaches Christ is to be regarded as a
minister of Christ. Now it is clear that this cannot be
the case by what I have been just saying : for the per-
•ons whom St. Paul mentions did preach Christ, and yet
they could not have been called by God, because they
did it simply out of envy and opposition.

5. But then the current notion takes another form.
Persons are apt to say, Supposing they are not properly
sent by Christ, yet we may attend and profit by their
preaching, because there is a blessing attending it. But
let us consider the matter a little. St. Paul rejoiced
that good was done in the conversion of unbelievers, by
the preaching of men who preached out of strife and
opposition : would he therefore have encouraged ChriS'
Hans to attend their ministry, and to countenance their
ungodly conduct by their presence ? On the contrary,
he says to Christians, " Mark them that cause divisions
and offences amongst you, and avoid then)." So that
whilst he is glad that some good does arise from their
preaching, he would yet persuade and conmiand Chris-
tians to avoid them. He was glad that men were brought
from sin and unbelief by their preaching; but when they
were so brought, and received into the fellowship of the
Church, he required thein to keep company with such
persoDi no more. And so no doubt in the present day,

THE SACRED MINTSTRT.

when so many sects and parties abound, although we
may rejoice that sinners are awakened and convinced by
the preaching of any, — yet we must not therefore con-
clude hastily that it is advisable to seek to any of them
at discretion for our soul's benefit. The preaching of
all may benefit to some extent ; but if we follow the
whole teaching of any who do not preach the truth as it
is in Jesus, and look to be trained up by them in the
whole life of God, we may be led into errors more dan-
gerous than open sin ; because they may ruin our souls
without our perceiving it, or knowing how to guard
against it.

6. But still there are persons who come back to the
same point, and build upon words of our Lord himself.
Upon a certain occasion the apostles reported to Christ
that they had found a man casting out devils in his name,
and that they forbad him, because he followed not with
them : upon which he replied, " Forbid him not, for he
that is not against us is for us." Hence they conclude
that every man who chooses to take upon him to preach
Christ is to be followed, and that we do wrong iu dii-
suading persons from so doing.

Now in the first place, this passage is very little to
the purpose ; for the preachers of the present day do
not cast out devils. If they did, it would be presump-
tion to forbid them ; for it is an act which none can per-
form, without the special authority and power of God.

But perhaps it is said that by the same rule, if we find
roen by their prqaching casting out drunkenness, lewd-
ness. Sabbath-breaking, swearing and the like, we are
aurely not to discourage them, but rather to encourage
and commend them. And so, I fully |;rant, we ought to
do. Whenever I see a man earnest and zealous against
tin, checking it and repressing it in his own family, in
bis children, in his servants, amongst his friends and
neighbours, I feel it my duty to encourage and commend
hiro. Nay, more .than this, if I should find that after
B

THE CALL TO

this man has thus done his duty at home, he finds time,
without neglecting any domestic duty, to travel ahroad
and warn sinners to flee from sin wherever he can get a
hearing, I will obey Christ's words ; I will not forbid him.

But let me explain what I mean more fully. If I 'find
that this man when at home is a sound member of the
Church of Christ, — if I find that he attends the service
of God in the Church constaiuly whenever opportunity
offers, — tiiat he is regularly seen at the Lord's Table, —
that he obeys those who have the rule over him in the
matters of his soul, — that he marks those who make
divisions and avoids them, — but being moved by great
zeal and great love, after duly attending the ministry of
his own pastor (if he has one), and discharging every
relative duty to which his station calls him, as a son, a
brother, a husband, a master, a servant, he exhorts and'
warns sinners of their wickedness and danger, — I say
again, 1 will not forbid him. I say with our Lord, " lie
that is not against us is on our side."

But that case would be a very di^ercnt one from those
of which 1 have been speaking. 'I he persons w ho come
about in the character of ministera of Christ, on the
ground that every one may preach €hrist and warn
sinners, and whom we arc blamed for discountenancing,
are not men of this stamp. The larger portion must
neglect the public worship of the Church, because
there can be but one true Church, and they belong
to various bodies: for the same reason many of them
necessarily neglect the Communion <* saints in that
Church : most of them refuse to acknowledge any who
shall rule over them in matters of salvation, and mak«
and uphold divisions in the Church. And are these the
persons whom we are not to forbid ? Are these the per-
sons who are not against us but for us? We do not
forbid them to convert sinners; but we tell them first to
perform their own duty as private Christians, and to
abstain from dividing the body of Christ ; an<i if they

TUB SACRED MINISTRY J 5

would do so, we 8ho,dd generally find that they had em-
|.loj.,„ent enough nearer hon.e. VVI,ilst thev aVe zealous
to keep the vn.e.yards of others, it is to be" feared that
tliey too often neRlect their own.

To go back to the case of the man in the Gospel of

«ho,n Jes„x said " Korhid ;,in, no; ;"_can we suppose

hat .( h,s man had bee,, f„n„,l calling himself an apos-

tie declanng that he was fnlly a, mnch so as the twelve

col ecl.ng together a sect in communion with himself

and „, separation from the apostles,_do v„„ think that'

111 such a case our Lo,d would have saiil, "'lie that is not

agatnst us ,s for us" ? No; for such persons Christ has

augnt a very d,(rerent doctrine: for »„el, persons our

Lor.l has reserv,.d a very different judg,ne„t. I„ regard

to such pe,-son, h,s language is, "He that is not with us

» oga,,,_st us; and he that gathereth not with us scat-

II. Seeing tl,en tliat all these various eun-ent notions
a» to what makes a person a true minister of Christ, are
tot,. ,y unfounded in the Word of God, and indeed di-
reetly contrary to it,_|et us inquire what does nualify
a person to be listened to in the na>„e of Chris,, and to
be obeyed in the tnatters of the so,d : and it will be
found that hoth the Holy Bible itself and history, .ive
« least one decs.ve mark, that he .nust have ha^hi,
authonty, openly and in the sight of „the,-s fron. our
Lo d hunse t^. or from those who aet by his authority

r-arl'l sh'n « "'° "'"' ""'^ '"""^' ■"" '■"^'I'e most
part I shall conhne myself to Scripture. The Apostle

M. Paul quoting from the Old Testament, says in one

pace "How shall they preach except they b'e se,t""

Clearly ,„,ply,ng that " no one taketh this honour upon

h-mself, but that every one must be sent. And if so

a. the message he has to Mivcr is from Christ, so the au-

thontx, to preach mmt come from Christ. And that all

parttes may be under no mistake, it is requisite that this

undmg should take place in such a rammer as that other.

TUB CALL TO

should he witnesses of it. And so it was. The twelve
Apostles and St. Paul, as we very well know, had their-
authority, outwardly and with the knowledge of others,
from Christ himself. The next preachers we find in the
New Testament were Philip and Stephen, two of the
seven deacons. And how were they commissioned?
They were ordained openly, and in the sight of others,
by the Apostles themselves. After the Gospel was
spread into various nations and countries, how did the
first Christians obtain their ministers? The Apostles
went through the countries they had preached in, and
ordained elders in every city. And what was the nature
of this ordination ? They prayed and fasted, and laid
their hands upon them in the presence of many witnesses.
But it was sometimes necessary that ministers should
be appointed in places which the apostles could not visit,
and how was this accomplished ? It was not left to the
people to choose and appoint their teachers ; neither
were persons left and allowed to take the office upon
them of their own accord: but the /postles chose out
persons, and appointed tliem for that special office of
ordaining others to teacli and guide Christ's people.
Sometimes this was done where there were hitherto no
ministers, as when Titus was sent to Crete ; but some-
times it was foreseen that additional ministers would be
wanted at some future day, where there was one or more
already. And was that left to the ministers already
there? Were they permitted to choose whom they would,
and appoint him to the same office they themselves held?
No: a person was especially sent or left behind by an
apostle, like Timothy at Ephesus, to ordain elders and
deacons when they should he required.

But how was the appointment of ministers to be kept
up after the death of the apostles? This must be an-
swered from history. We learn ivhat they appointed hy
that which we find prevailing after their death for many
hundreds of years, in all parts of the Church, and hy the

THB SACRED MIMISTRT.

testimony, of early Christian tvriters as to the origin of that
.state of things. From these sources we learn that before
the apostles quitted this world they appointed persons
every where, whose special office and business it should
be to ordain the teachers of Christ's people ; that they
alone had the power of giving others that authority they
themselves possessed ; and that none were lawfully sent,
except they were sent by persons having that authority.

Now here is a mark of the true teachers which admits
of no mistake. It is not an inward thing, which none
can know or judge of but the person possessing it. It
does not require us to wait, to observe whether the
preacher is successful, before we acknowledge him. It
does not leave all at liberty to be teachers, to the endless
confusion of the Church. According to the Word of
God, no one has a right to be a public teacher in the
Church of Christ, unless he is ordained to the office by
one who has authority to ordain. And the practice of
the apostles shows that none has authority to ordain but
one who has received that authority down in a line from.
Christ and the apostles. *

And what persons then in this country does this mark
cmrespond with ? Is there any Churchman that can have
any doubt as to at least one body of teachers ? Are there
any members of our Church who doubt whether our Bi-
shops have received authority to ordain, in a direct line
from the apostles ? Are there any persons who doubt
whether our Clergy have received a commission to teach
from the Bishops of the Church ?

2. I have given one test, viz. a positive one : but as
it may happen, and indeed has happened in various ages,
that those who have received a real appointment from
the apostles are yet not .i true pastors of the Church,
I must introduce likewise a negative test ; and that shall
be furnished likewise from Holy Scripture.

St. Paul has these words, " If any man preach any
Other gospel untoyou.than that ye have received, lethira

THE CALL TO

be accursed"; nrul St. John still more explicitly, "Who-
soever transgresscth and ahideth not in the doctrine of
Christ, hath not (iod. If there come any unto yon, and
bring not this doctrine, receive liini not into your house,
neither bid liiin God speed." It appears clear, then,
that even if a person should have received the apostolical
commission by ordination from a l)isliop deriving his au-
thority from the a])ostles, — still, if he teaches doctrine
the reverse of the doctrine of the apostles, — if Ihe thhv*
is clem- and eridenl, he cannot bt* God's teacher to iks:
find therefore if two classes of teachers come before us,
both liaving the apostolical connnission, yet if one sliould
teach the doctrine of Christ and the other not, this must
be the great turning point to decid*' our choice. And
how shall we decide this point except by minds trained
to know the mind of Christ through the diligent study
of the Scriptures, and, if doubt arise a« to their meaning,
by an appeal to the teaching of the Church Catholic, in
those ages when in all parts of the Christian world that
teaching was uniform, steadfast, and consistent?

* Aod here again I ask, has any one amongst us a doubt
that »he Clergy of our Church will abide this test, what-
ever others n»ay be disqualified by it; — that our teach-
ing ie agreeable both to the Word of God, and, so far as
we know it, to the teaching of the primitive Catholic
Church ?

It is true that these facts will not appear equally clear
to all n»inds, — that all have not equal means of ascer-
taining them, — that some must take them upon trust
from others, — that something is left for private judg-
ment, and therefore some room for error. But this is
only what happens to us in the ordinary business of life,
and it is another illustration of what I remarked in the
commencement, that God never intended to make truth
8o clear that man could not deceive himself. No : the
search and acquisition of truth are with multitudes the
trial of their characters, — the appointed trial ; and many

THE SACRKI) MIN18TRT.

tniss the attain.ncMU of it, because they have allowed
their consciences to become so blinded by wilful or care-
less transgression, that they cannot perceive it. IJut it
IS ram for us to think of shrinking from pergonal respon-
sibility m that respect, more than in any other. One per-
son may endeavour to escape it by professing to be guided
Dy tlie Spirit, and another by being guided by a Church
professing mfaliibillty : but in the eye of God it still re-
fnams. Nor to him wht, bears it as before God, and in
tm-rif thing follows sincerely the light he gives, will the
truth fver be sought in vain.

Here then, Christian brethren, are teachers in whom
you may rely,— those concerning whom you feel assured
mat tfiey have a divine outward conimission to exercise
tneircfhce,-~atui who teach to you the doctrine of Christ
M It was delivered to hia Church by his holv Apostles.
Your best informed conscience cannot resist iluir claim.
1 heir teaching is by divine authority. He that despiseth
them despiseth him that sent them. Whilst the true
Christian hnds himself in their ministry privileged to be
Orought into nearer and nearer romnumion with our

.11 "'"^V^".^^^ ^' ''' r^'»oved to join the blessed
company ol the just made perfect.

^^P^