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Letter 10: To Hephzibah—On The Church
My Dear Hephzibah, The perversion of terms and phrases, (especially those which occur in the word of God,) has been a fruitful source of mischief in every age, and has led astray the minds of the unwary, from truth and simplicity into the labyrinths of error and superstition; until reason itself has been fettered, and common sense insulted. This remark is awfully true with respect to the word CHURCH, which has been indiscriminately applied to a pile of building— a national establishment— and the antichristian hierarchy: to neither of which can it properly belong, nor is there any countenance given in scripture to such applications of the term.
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Letter 9: To Beulah—On Union With Christ
My Dear Beulah, Permit me to address a word of congratulation to you, on the sacred, honorable, and indissoluble union which exists between Christ and your soul; a union planned in eternity, effected in the fulness of time and fraught with infinite and eternal advantages. The word of truth employs many delightful, metaphors to explain it, and affords many positive declarations of its reality— eternity— and vitality; and it is my object to present a scriptural view of it in a few lines, for the instruction and comfort of your mind; praying the Holy Spirit to assist me in writing and you in reading on this important subject. In the sacred volume we have a variety of the most beautiful imagery to represent the union…
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Letter 8: To Abiah—On Adoption
My dear Abiah, When the objects of Jehovah’s electing love receive the adoption of sons, and are introduced to the family of God, it is impossible to describe the blessedness of their experience, or to delineate the extent of their privileges. I trust you have shared in that mercy; and I am solicitous that you should be conscious of its value and importance; let me therefore entreat you to read this epistle with fervent prayer, that the brief outline it contains of this most valuable privilege may be clearly understood and rendered very useful to your soul. The adoption of a sinner into the family of God is an act of his own sovereign love pursuant to the election of grace, in which Jehovah regards…
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Letter 7: To Olympas—On Sanctification
My dear Olympas, The God of Israel is the God of order, and all the works of creation— the mysteries of providence and the wonders of grace are conspicuous monuments of this interesting fact. There is an important connection between the parts of creation— an undisturbed order in the movements of providence and a holy harmony in the doctrines of grace. The doctrine of sanctification shines bright in the constellation of gospel truths, and on account of its peculiar brightness, shedding its sacred lustre over all the inspired page, as the glory of the whole scheme of redemption, Satan has done all in his power to becloud it, and has often furnished men with discoloured mediums of viewing it, so as to effect his malicious…
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Letter 6: To Zadok—On Justification
I know not a question of greater moment to a trembling sinner, than that which the Holy Spirit directed Job to propose, “how shall man be just with God?” And as I am persuaded of your solicitude to decide this question for yourself I write this epistle, with the hope of affording you a little assistance. In order to place the subject in a clear light it is necessary to premise, that the state of mankind is a state of condemnation— that human nature has sunk into total ruin and depravity— and that “sin has entered into the world, and death by sin, so that death hath passed upon all men:” these are facts which I trust you have not only admitted as important articles…
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Letter 5: To Zebah—On Atonement
The subject on which I am about to offer you a few remarks, has been dear to the heart of every Christian in all ages; it is the glory of the gospel scheme, and shall constitute our song in the realms of bliss; it is therefore desirable, that your mind should be well informed upon it, and deeply affected with it. Throughout the mosaic economy, the doctrine of atonement was set forth in lively colours by the bleeding victims on the Jewish altar. Prophets spake of it in the most unequivocal terms, and apostles asserted it as the fundamental article of Christianity; yea, the exclamation of John, “behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world,” was but the echo of…
