even that of the fun*, arrefted the daring zealot, and ftruck him to the ground. At the fame time a voice called to him, faying, Saul, Saul, why perfecuteft thou me? And he faid, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord faid, "I am Jefus, whom thou perfecuteft: It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." In this marvellous manner did the Son of God make known his truth, his majesty, and his power to this enterprizing perfecutor, and evince, to all ages, what he can do to the "praife of the glory of his grace.' The will of Saul was broken, and made fubmiffive to God for the first time, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do," was his cry; and whenever this is uttered from the heart, it will not fail to bring down the divine bleffing. He was directed to go into Damafcus, where he remained three days without fight and without food, yet conftantly employed in prayer for divine grace and mercy. Thus the neceffity of the conviction of fin was preached to him with circumftances more extraordinary than thofe, which took place upon the preaching to the three thousand firft converts; but the fpiritual inftruction conveyed was precifely the fame. The work of converting grace may vary very much in non effential circumftances,-its nature never varies. The grace of forgiveness by Jefus Chrift would have been no welcome news to this Pharifee, had he ftill remained in the confidence of his own righteoufnefs; but now it was as life from the dead. After three days, by the particular direction of a vision from the Lord Jefus, Ananias, a disciple of Damafcus, was fent to him with the tidings of peace. He had heard of the active malice of Saul, but was encouraged to go by a pofitive declaration that Saul was a chofen veffel. Ananias * Acts ix. Ananias opened his commiffion by informing Saul, that the Lord Jefus had fent him, to the end that he might receive his fight, and be filled with the Holy Ghoft. Both these effects immediately took place. Ananias exhorted him to delay no longer, but to "wash away his fins, calling on the name of the Lord." He was baptized, and foon refreshed both in mind and body: and from that time the whole vchemence of his natural character, and the whole power of his intellectual faculties, which were doubtlefs of the firft magnitude among men, were fanctified to the fervice of Jefus Chrift; and to his death, he was engaged in a course of labours in the Church with unparalleled fuccefs. For this is he, who is commonly known by the name of St. Paul, and "his memorial is bleffed for ever." He was particularly commiffioned to preach to the Gentiles, and of all the Apoftles he feems to have entered with the greatest penetration into the nature of Chriftianity. Salvation by grace through faith was his darling theme, a doctrine diametrically oppofite to the felf-righteous fcheme in which he had been wont to glory. His countrymen, the Jews, were particularly fierce in oppofing this grand article of the Gospel, and were ftung to the quick when attacked by their once favourite champion. No doubt he had been fincere in his religion formerly; yet, is he far from exculpating himfelf on this account. On the contrary he magnifies the grace of the Lord Jefus, as extended to him, a blafphemer, a perfecutor, injurious, and the chief of finnerst, in whom the long fuffering of the Lord had been exhibited, "for a pattern to them, who fhall hereafter believe on him to life everlasting:"—that mankind may know, that God accepts finners on Chrift's * Acts xxii. 16. † 1 Tim. i. account account alone, and through faith in his blood; and that nothing can be more contrary to the whole defign of the Gospel, than to feek falvation by our own works of any kind. He feems ever after to have lamented deeply the miserable state of his countrymen, who "had a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge *." He pitied their felf-righteous notions: he knew how deceitful thofe notions were to thofe, who were under the power of them, by his own experience: and, while he rejoiced on account of that grace, which had redeemed himself from hell, he commiferated thofe, who were faft advancing thither in fearless prefumption. In the third chapter of the Philippians he gives us a very particular view of himself. To truft in any thing for falvation, except Christ alone, is with him to "have confidence in the flesh." No man appeared once to have had more juft pretenfions to fuch confidence than himself. His regular circumcifion on the eighth day, Hebrew defcent, Pharifaic ftrictnefs, zealous Judaism, and blameless morals, feemed to exalt him above the common level of his countrymen: but he declares that he "reckoned all these things as dung, that he might win Chrift;" and in him alone he defires to be found without his own righteousness to trust in; and he maintains the fettled determination of his foul in this article of juftification. Were it not for the perverfe blindness of fallen nature, one might be aftonished to find many perfons of learning and good fenfe, after reading this account of the Apostle by himself, ftill endeavouring to represent him as mixing grace and works in the fubject of juftification, and defcribing him as only excluding ceremonial works from the office of juftifying a finner. But to proceed : * Rom. x. Having Having preached Chrift for three years abroad, he went up to Jerufalem. Here he attempted to join himself to the Church, but the remembrance of what he had been, and the very imperfect account which they had of what he then was, prevented the Chriftians from receiving him, till Barnabas brought him to the Apoftles, (two of them only, Peter, and James* the Lord's brother,) and informed them of his genuine conyerfion. This cleared up all doubts; and he was now engaged in the work of the miniftry at Jerufalem, and would gladly have remained there, but the Lord, by a vifion, affured him, that the Jews would not receive his teftimony; and that the great scene of his labours was to be among the Gentiles. In fact, fome addrefs was needful in his brethren to fave his life from the rage of the Jews, and he was conducted to his native city of Tarfus. By this time, however, the fury of perfecution fubfided the Lord gave reft to his Church and the difciples both at Jerufalem and elfewhere, walked in the very best manner, in which they can walk on this fide heaven, "in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghoft." Where these go together, exceffes of all forts are prevented and inward joy and outward obedience confpire to demonftrate, that there Chrift reigns indeed. Yet fo flow are men to receive new divine truths, especially thofe which militate against old prejudices, that the Chriftians of Jerufalem contended with Peter on account of his intercourfe with the Gentiles of Cæfarea. The fiercenefs of Peter's natural character was now abated: with great meekness he reasoned on the cafe with his bigoted brethren, • Gal. i. 18, 19. brethren, and convinced them by the evident proofs of the grace of God being vouchfafed to Gentiles, that it was lawful to have communion with them. They glorified God, faying, "Then hath God alfo to the Gentiles granted repentance to life." Unutterable grace indeed to us, confeffed at length and owned by our elder brethren the Jews! David had just reafon to fay, "Let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercies are great, and let me not fall into the hands of man t." Even a converted Jew admits with difficulty, that the grace of God may vifit a Gentile. The vifits of Paul to Jerufalem seem to have been but fhort. The body of the Jewish nation fought his deftruction; and his Gentile connections and very referved practice of Mofaical ceremonies, rendered him no peculiar favourite in the mother-church, though they "could not but glorify the grace of God which was in him.' But the Church is not perfect on earth. His next return to Jerufalem was, however, of a popular kind, namely, to convey the alms of Gentile converts to the Jewish Chriftians oppreffed by a "famine, which came to pafs in the days of Claudius Cæfar §." His companion to Jerufalem was Barnabas, whofe liberality in the beginning had been fo eminent. This fervice being difcharged, they both returned to minister to the Gentiles. The civil power of Judea was now in the hands of Herod Agrippa, a great favourite of the Roman Emperor, a perfon of confiderable talents, and full of that fpecious virtue, which, in fecular annals, would entitle him to great renown. • Acts xi. In the ↑ Gal. i. ult. |