This, therefore, I am obliged to point out, as a fundamental defect in the Doctor’s discourse, and such as renders it an evil temptation, a dangerous snare, and fatal delusion to all those who do not read it with a full, and thorough dislike.
10. * Coldness, indifference, and a lifeless, outward compliance with the duties of religion: a slavery to ease, softness, and sensual pleasures: a criminal conformity to the spirit, fashions, and corruptions of the world; unmortified passions; conniving at favourite sin; deep roots of pride, partiality, and self-love: an unawakened conscience; an insensibility of their corrupt, unreformed, unregenerate state: a proneness to be content and satisfied with poor beginnings, names and appearances of virtue; is perhaps the state of more than two thirds of those that are looked upon to be the religious amongst us.
Now the Doctor’s discourse has a direct and natural fitness to lull all these people asleep, to [♦]suppress all stirring and intentions of amendment, to keep up and nourish every disorder of their hearts, to increase their blindness, and awaken nothing in them, but a hurtful zeal to censure and condemn all those that are endeavouring to practise the uncommon piety of the gospel.
[♦] The first line on page 144 “upon the madness, danger, and folly of too much” appears to be extraneous and inconsistent with the text flow, so has been removed. The catchword from the previous page appears at the start of line two.
There is scarce a reader amongst this number of people, whether he be layman or clergyman, but will find this effect from the Doctor’s instructions; he will begin to take fresh comfort in his state, to think himself happy for having had no aspirings after high improvements in piety; he will not only be content with his corruptions, but be fixed and hardened against all inward and outward calls to a solid piety; he will approve of the deadness and insensibility of his own heart, and acquiesce in it, as his just security, from the sin and folly and danger of being righteous over-much.
11. Again, others there are, I make no doubt in all parts of the kingdom, both amongst clergy and laity, men and women, rich and poor, whose consciences are greatly awakened, who see the general apostacy from the religion of the gospel, whose souls are wanting and wishing nothing so much, as to know how all that they are, all that they have, and all that they do, may be one continual sacrifice, and service of love unto God; to know how, and in what manner, and to what extent, and by what means, they may and ought to be perfect, even as their Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Now, who can help looking with love and compassion upon those poor souls, longing for that which has been so long lost; asking after that, which scarce any one will tell them any thing of, and wanting to enter upon paths where there are few or no footsteps to be seen, nor any travellers in motion?
Had these awakened souls lived in the first ages of the church, nay, I may say in almost any till these very last ages of it, their zeal had not been in vain: they could have been at no loss to know how they were to proceed in their heavenly purpose; because they would have been immediately directed to some living examples of the perfect spirit of the gospel, who were publicly known and acknowledged by all to be such, who had the same undisputed right, to point out the Christian profession, as John the Baptist had to preach up mortification and self-denial. Every age, and every sex, priests and people of all conditions, had their known standards to resort to, where every one was sure to be guided, assisted, and encouraged to live up to that height of holiness.
12. But now how does the Doctor deal with this sort of people? What love, assistance, and encouragement does he reach out to them? Why, truly, he considers them as a deluded, weak, or hypocritical, or half-thinking people, that disturb the Christian church with their projects; who are to be set right by returning to the instructions of common sense. He ridicules every step they must take in their intended progress, by adding absurdities of his own invention to it. There is nothing for such people throughout his whole discourse, but reproaches, and discouragement.
Are they desirous of all that self-denial, all such mortification of bodily appetites and sensual passions, as may best fit them to be temples of the Holy Spirit? He ridicules them, as holding the sinfulness of smelling a rose.