every day, since he is commanded to pray every day (i)." Some modern enthusiasts consider themselves as entirely free from sin; and the Moravian Anabaptists are said to omit this part of the Lord's Prayer, " Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us;" because being regenerated, they are no longer guilty of sin (k).

While we condemn the presumption of those who think more highly of themselves than they ought to think, we must be careful not to suffer the infirmity of human nature to be abused into an encouragement to sin, or perverted into a cause of gloomy despondence; it should rather stimulate us to vigilance and

exertion, than drive us

Though we cannot ar

to negligence or despair. rive at sinless purity, it is still our duty to aim at an uniform obedience to all God's commands; and to indulge any apprehensions which tend to weaken the energy of our minds, is doubly sinful, because we thus voluntarily increase the difficulty of obedience to the will of God, and in reality doubt his assurance, that our sincere endeavours to persevere in the paths of virtue and religion will be forwarded by the assistance of divine grace.

(i) De Orat. Dom.

(k) Hey's Lectures, vol. 3. p. 422.

ARTICLE THE SIXTEENTH.

Of Sin after Baptism.

NOT EVERY DEADLY SIN, WILLINGLY COMMITTED AFTER BAPTISM, IS SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST, AND UNPARDONABLE, WHEREFORE THE GRANT OF REPENTANCE IS NOT TO BE DENIED TO SUCH AS FALL INTO SIN AFTER BAPTISM. AFTER WE HAVE RECEIVED THE HOLY GHOST, WE MAY DEPART FROM GRACE GIVEN, AND FALL INTO SIN; AND BY THE GRACE OF GOD WE MAY RISE AGAIN AND AMEND OUR LIVES: AND THEREFORE THEY ARE TO BE CONDEMNED, WHICH SAY, THEY CAN NO MORE SIN AS LONG AS THEY LIVE HERE, OR DENY THE PLACE OF FORGIVENESS TO SUCH AS TRULY REPENT.

THI HIS article is directed against the Montanists, Novatians, Anabaptists, and others, who denied the efficacy of repentance in certain cases; and also against those who contended that men could not possibly be guilty of sin after they had once received the Holy Ghost, or divine grace. In the preceding article we noticed a sect of Christians who maintain the peccability of Christ, and

in this article we have to argue against those who contend for the impeccability of man. But before we proceed to explain the propositions contained in this article, it may be right to inquire into what is meant by the Sin against the Holy Ghost, which occurs in the former part of it. Divines are by no means agreed concerning this sin. I shall state what appears to me to be intended by it, and refer those, who wish to see the different opinions which have been entertained upon this difficult and disputed point, to Archbishop Tillotson, Bishop Pearson, and Dr. Whitby.

The sin of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost is mentioned in the three first Gospels. We learn from St. Matthew and St. Mark, that the Jews, who had seen Christ cure many dæmoniacs, being unable to deny the reality of these miracles, asserted that he derived his power of casting out devils from Beelzebub the prince of the devils. Our Saviour, after pointing out the absurdity of such an imputation, added, according to St. Matthew," All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost,

it

it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world,
neither in the world to come (a)." St. Mark's
words are,
"All sins shall be forgiven unto the
sons of men, and blasphemies wherewithsoever
they shall blaspheme; but he that shall blaspheme
against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but
is in danger of eternal damnation (b)." Upon
another occasion, when no imputation of the above
kind seems to have been alleged against our Sa-
viour, St. Luke tells us that Christ declared that,
"Whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of
Man, it shall be forgiven him; but unto him that
blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not
be forgiven (c)." It thus appears, that all the three
Evangelists agree in representing the sin or blas-
phemy against the Holy Ghost as a crime which
would not be forgiven; but no one of them affirms
that those, who had ascribed Christ's power of cast-
ing out devils to Beelzebub, had been guilty of that
sin; and in St. Luke it is not mentioned that any
such charge had been made. Our Saviour, accord-
ing to the account in St. Matthew and St. Mark,
endeavoured to convince the Jews of their error;
but so far from accusing them of having com-
mitted an unpardonable sin in what they had said
concerning

(a) Matt. c. 12. v. 31 and 32.
(b) Mark,. c. 3. v. 28 and 29.
(c) Luke, c. 12. v. 10.

concerning him, he declares that, "Whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him," that is, whatever reproaches men may utter against the Son of man during his ministry, however they may calumniate the authority upon which he acts, it is still possible that hereafter they may repent and believe, and all their sins may be forgiven them; but the reviling of the Holy Ghost is described as an offence of a far more heinous nature: "The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

"He that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost, hath never forgiveness."-" Unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven."—It is plain that this sin against the Holy Ghost could not be committed while our Saviour was upon earth, since he always speaks of the Holy Ghost as not being to come till after his ascension into heaven (d). A few days after that great event, the descent of the Holy Ghost enabled the Apostles to work miracles, and communicated to them a variety of other supernatural gifts. If men should ascribe these powers to Beelzebub, or in any respect reject their authority, they would blaspheme the Holy Ghost, from whom they were derived ; and that sin would be unpardonable, because this

(d) John, c. 7. v. 39. c. 16. v. 7.

was