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with human weakness. This planet, with all it's inhabitants, are but as the dust of the balance, when compared with the universe, with all the reft of God's works; and, therefore, to think that the praises and acknowledgments of the greatest collection of intelligent beings, that ever was upon the earth, when offered to God, in whose fight they must all appear, as it were, less than nothing and vanity, can be any otherwise, or upon any other account, pleafing and acceptable to him, than as they are subservient to the practitioner's good, is to conceive meanly and unworthily of that great and most perfect mind. To tell the Deity, that he is infinitely great, and wife, and good, and to fing anthems and hallelujahs to his praise; these, if performed folemnly and mufically, may ftrike the fenfes and give pleasure to the audience; but, furely, such compliments as these can minister no pleasure to God, who does not need to be told what he is, or what he does; nor can he be pleafed therewith, any otherwife than as his creatures well-doing is promoted thereby. The cafe is the fame with refpect to all pofitive infiitutions, whether they be confidered to be of a divine original, or only of human

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human appointment; feeing that does not alter their natures nor their uses. And as to God's glory; the excellencies and perfections of his nature, with the use and application of them in the creation and government of the universe, these only constitute the true glory of God, and befpeak or fhew forth his praife; nor does any thing that is fpoken of him, or done to him, or for him, by his creatures, (could fuch a thing thing be) contribute at all thereto. Men may, indeed, conceive and Speak honourably of God, and may, by words or actions, declare, or shew forth to others, the fenfe they have of his glory; but then, this does not add to it at all, by making him more glorious, or by Shewing him to be fo; because his glory appears from a perception and confideration of his works themselves, and not from what may be spoken of them by another. God's reputation, his honour and glory, are what they are, independent of the conceptions, the actions, and the declarations of his creatures; and, therefore, for men to pretend to do honour and give glory to God, properly speaking, must needs be moft childish and vain. And, indeed, in fome of those ways in which men think they do honour and

give glory to God, they only fhew their low and unworthy conceptions of him. Thus, men set apart a house for the fervice of God, as it is called) they ftile it God's house, they greatly beautify and richly adorn it, in hònour to God, as they think, or at least pretend; as if thereby God became more nearly related to one part of space than to another, and that he was pleased with, as being honoured by, the coftly and pompous furniture of an houfe; when, not only the earth but the univerfe is the Lord's, with the fulness thereof; and when they are the operations of nature that fhew forth God's glory, and not the faint refemblances of them, drawn by the pencil of human art.

AND as facraments, ordinances, or pofitive institutions, do not operate by way of charm, nor do they, nor can they, operate phyfically, but only morally, upon the human mind fo it muft, in the very nature of the thing, be quite indifferent who they are adminiftered by; whether by one appointed and fet apart for that purpofe, or by any other indifferent perfon: because the influence, or efficacy, of fuch facrament, or ordinance, does not at all arife from, nor depend upon the adminiftrator; but only,

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and wholly, upon the right use and application of it, by and to the receiver. Suppofe a man to be plunged under water (which, when religiously applied, is called baptizing him) by a person fet apart for that purpofe; fuch immersion can have no religious influence upon the perfon fo plunged, but as he seriously reflects upon, and applies it to himself; and this efficacy it will equally and as effectually have, when thus applied, whether he who baptized had any defignation to that office, or not. The cafe is the fame in the administration of the facrament of the Lord's fupper, as it is called; supposing that facrament to be administered by a good man. or a bad man, by one fet apart for that purpose, or not. For, as the eating bread and drinking wine in a religious manner, viz. in remembrance of Jesus Christ and in obedience to his command, cannot poffibly have any physical influence upon the human mind, nor can it otherwife operate, or have any efficacy, than by ferious reflection and confideration; fo, it is moft apparent, that fuch operation, or efficacy, cannot poffibly depend upon the administrator, but only, and wholly, upon the receiver, as he properly, and aptly, ufes and applies thofe

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outward actions or figns to himself. The cafe is the fame in all other inftitutions of a like nature; and also in the administration of the word, as it is called. The efficacy of the word preached has no dependence upon the regular and proper ordination of the preacher, but only on the attention of the hearer, and his practical application of it to himself; which efficacy it will equally, and as effectually, have, when thus carefully and seriously attended to, and thus applied, whether preached by a Priest or a Peasant. To pretend, therefore, that the efficacy of the word and facraments depends on the regular ordination of the adminiftrator to the priestly office, is a kind of religious bullying, or carrying a caufe by meer dint of affurance. If it fhould be faid, that the efficacy of the word and facraments confifts in the communication of divine grace to the receiver, which communication of grace does not arise from, nor depend upon, the will, intention, attention, or application of the receiver, but altogether upon the word and facraments being duly administered by one who has been regularly fet apart to the Prieftly office. Answer: Tho' the word grace, in our prefent view of it, is altogether unin

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