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first of all to settle the important question, what are the constituent principles of the church or kingdom of Christ-the doctrine on which it is founded-the Sovereign whose authority it acknowledges-the laws by which it is regulated, with the nature of its privileges and blessings; and, having once ascertained these points on scriptural grounds, the discovery will serve us as a polar star, by which to steer our course through all the mazes and intricacies of what is termed Ecclesiastical History. The truth is, that to render this important subject as interesting, instructive, and profitable as from its nature it is adapted to become, a totally different form of compiling, and consequently a different mode of studying it, must be adopted and pursued. New arrangements of the subject may be devised, by means of which the narrative may be rendered more luminous— much trifling matter may, without detriment, be omitted—the most striking events in the lives or histories of the distinguished individuals with whom it brings us acquainted may serve to diversify and enliven the general narration, whilst the bearing of all the leading incidents upon the constitution of human nature, and on the influence which they have exerted, may be more clearly and steadily represented than hath hitherto been done. But, to achieve anything of this kind, a sincere and ardent love of truth, which is the surest guide, because it is the light of the mind, must be cherished and cultivated. This is the only thing that can raise us above the influence of those religious and political prejudices which too often bewilder the mind and enslave even the soundest understandings. But, to proceed,

Of MILNER'S History of the Christian church it may suffice to say, that, though extending to five thick volumes, it brings down the narrative no further than the Reformation, and of course leaves the subject incomplete by three hundred years. The author himself lived to publish only three volumes, and of these I cannot speak in very high terms: I mean, according to my own views of what a History of the Christian church ought to be. In point of learning he was not deficient, and his reading was extensive; but he wanted a discriminating judgment. He seems never to have settled in his own mind what constitutes the church or kingdom of Christ; or, if he had, he certainly decided erroneously, for he confounded it with the church of

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England, in which he exercised the ministerial functions; and the consequence has been that his volumes exhibit a strange mixture of truth and error, a motley assemblage of human inventions and the corruptions of Christianity with the pure and simple religion of the New Testament. It was obviously a leading object with him to make the primitive church the pattern of modern Episcopacy, that is, of the church of England, a point which he has laboured with great diligence, as had been done by several of his predecessors, as well as some who have followed him; but it is "labouring in the fire for very vanity." The fourth and fifth volumes of the work, which are occupied with the history of the Lutheran reformation, were added by the author's brother, the Dean of Carlisle, a man of much superior attainments, and these possess sufficient merit to make it a matter of regret that he did not live to finish the undertaking. The subject, however, has been lately taken up by a clergyman of the name of Scott, who has added a sixth and seventh volume, and is engaged on a continuation; but the work, if brought down to the present time upont he plan of the later volumes, independently of the objections already mentioned, must be too voluminous for the generality of readers.

Having thus offered my opinion concerning the most popular works on Ecclesiastical History in our language, and pointed you to what I consider to be defective in either the plan or execution of them, I have great pleasure in being able now to direct your attention to what I cannot but regard, and therefore think myself fully warranted to pronounce, a perfect specimen and example of what a History of the Christian church ought to be. I refer to the book of the Acts of the Apostles, which I venture to uphold as an inimitable model, both as respects style and materials. All this, indeed, natively follows from the fact of its having been written under divine inspiration. But let us, for a few moments, drop that consideration, and take a brief review of this section of the New Testament, considered simply as an epitome of Ecclesiastical history.

The penman was evidently the Evangelist Luke, who accompanied Paul in most of his travels, and was consequently an eye-witness of much that he relates. His entire narrative embraces a period of thirty years, commencing with the ascension

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of the Son of God into heaven, and the choice of an apostle to fill the place of Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him :-these two events occupy the first chapter.

The second chapter contains an account of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, in which was fulfilled, as the historian tells us, a memorable prophecy which had been delivered by Joel, eight hundred years before. We then have the substance of a sermon preached by the apostle Peter to a multitude of unbelieving Jews, most of whom had been accessary in putting the Son of God to a shameful and ignominious death, and so powerful was the appeal that, through divine energy, about 3000 of them were converted to the faith, baptized in the name of Christ, and formed into a Christian church. The chapter closes with a particular specification of the ordinances of public worship which, under apostolic direction, and conformably to the will of the ascended Saviour, chapter i. 3, they statedly observed, namely, "the doctrine or teaching of the apostles,-the fellowship or contribution for the relief of the poor, &c.—the commemoration of the Lord's death, here termed the "breaking of bread," with the moral and devotional exercises of prayer and praise," v. 41-47. And with this commenced the Christian church, or setting up of Christ's kingdom in the world: that church or kingdom whose history we intend, if the Lord will, to trace from that period to the present, contemplating the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, gradually expanding its dimensions until it becomes a great mountain, or, according to one of our Lord's own parables, "the grain of mustard need" taking root in the earth, springing out of the ground, rising majestically into a tree, casting forth its branches on every side, so that the birds of the air come and lodge under them.

In the third, fourth, and fifth chapters we are furnished with an interesting account of the effects produced in Jerusalem by the occurrences of the day of Pentecost, connected with the preaching of the apostles, and the miracles which they wrought. As these wonderful works were attestations of divine power, and wrought in the name of him whom the Jewish rulers had lately taken, and by wicked hands had crucified and slain," they, by necessary implication, involved a charge of atrocious murder against the constituted authorities, who very naturally took the

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alarm and endeavoured to silence the apostles, first by intimidation; but, finding that to fail, they next betook them to brute force; for "they laid their hands upon the apostles, and put them in the common prison." And now heaven itself interposed in the contest: the angel of the Lord opened the prison doors, set the apostles at liberty, and enjoined them to go into the Temple and speak to the people all the words of this life. Here was a singular and interesting crisis! Heaven and earth at issue on the question whether Jesus of Nazareth were the true Messiah, or not an issue not long doubtful.

The sixth chapter opens with the appointment of deacons to attend to the temporal concerns of the church, with the names of seven individuals, who excelled in piety and wisdom, that were appointed to the office. Among these was Stephen, a man full of faith and power, who by the miracles he wrought, and by his pungent addresses, soon rendered himself obnoxious to the ruling powers, and brought down their utmost vengeance on his devoted head. Unable to resist the wisdom and eloquence with which he spoke, they had him apprehended and brought before the council on a charge of blasphemy. But here, availing himself of the opportunity of speaking in behalf of his divine master, he delivered that powerful address which takes up the seventh chapter. It is a recapitulation of the principal events of the Jewish History, from the times of Abraham to the building of the temple by king Solomon. Having deduced their history thus far, the Evangelist makes a transition from the Tetiple, which they regarded as the glory of their nation, to Him who was its antitype; viz. "that Just One of whom they had now been the betrayers and murderers." This charge could not be endured-they considered it as bringing that man's blood upon their head—it cut them to the heart, and they gnashed upon him with their teeth: a universal exclamation ensued-they stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one consent, cast him out of the city, and stoned him to death. And now, methinks, I behold the last act of this diabolical tragedy— methinks I see the holy martyr falling down upon his knees, invoking the Lord Jesus, and commending his departing spirit into his hands, and with his last breath imploring mercy on his murderers: "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge:" having said which, he fell asleep.

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Jerusalem was now one entire scene of confusion; at least it must have been such to the disciples of Christ: they were the victims of a sanguinary persecution which raged against the church, and among the ringleaders of this was a young man of the name of Saul, of whose singular history we shall have much to say hereafter. To escape the malice of this active zealot, a great proportion of the church fled from the city and dispersed themselves throughout the adjacent countries. But mark, I beseech you, the short-sightedness of human policy, and the overruling providence of God, causing the wrath of man to praise him, and restraining it at his pleasure. The persecuted disciples carried the gospel along with them wherever they went, and by that means sowed the seed of the kingdom. Philip, who had been chosen one of the seven deacons along with the martyred Stephen, went down to the city of Samaria, where he preached Christ with such acceptableness that the city was filled with joy. Such as believed the things that Philip made known were baptized, both men and women. Having evangelized Samaria and the places adjacent, Philip, by divine intimation, took his departure, and in his way towards Gaza fell in with the Ethiopian eunuch, a proselyte to the Jewish religion, who was returning from Jerusalem, whither he had gone up from a far distant country to worship the God of Israel. To him Philip communicated the knowledge of Christ, by expounding the fifty-third of Isaiah. This great man confessed his faith in Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God, received baptism at the hands of Philip, and joyfully carried the gospel down with him into Ethiopia. These interesting events constitute the eighth chapter.

The next subject that engages the pen of the sacred historian is the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, the young man who had so eminently signalized his zeal in the death of Stephen, and the persecution of the church at Jerusalem; and assuredly it is one of the most extraordinary occurrences to be met with in the history of the Christian church. In him we behold a mad and furious persecutor instantaneously disarmed of his hostility, and converted into a preacher of the faith which he was lately bent on destroying; we see the same individual become an apostle of Christlabouring more abundantly than all the rest-sacrificing his ease, his reputation, and his prospects in life-submitting voluntarily to

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