St. Paul in his laft journey to Jerufalem. I can no more conceive Philip to have been idle and unfruitful all this time, than James to have been fo at Jerufalem. A Church, mixed of Jews and Gentiles would naturally be formed under fo zealous a paftor, whofe obfervation of the Grace of God in the cafe of the eunuch, must have opened his mind to an affectionate reception of Gentile converts. Indeed the abuse, which the malignant pride of the Jews had made of the Mofaic prohibition of intercourse with Gentiles, was a great bar to the extenfion of the Gofpel. They refused to keep company with foreigners, and seem to have looked on them as devoted to deftruction. The Apostles themselves were, as yet, under the power of the fame bigotry, till a vifion from heaven inftructed Peter, as he was praying on the house-top at Joppa, that he ought not to call any man common or unclean *. By this he was prepared for the work which the Lord was immediately affigning him. The Holy Spirit fuggested to him that three men were at that time enquiring for him, and directed him to go with them; " for I have fent themt." Peter was foon informed by the men, that they had been fent to him from Cæfarea by Cornelius, a Roman centurion there, a devout • Acts x. + The proper perfonality and divinity of the Holy Ghoft, and the unlimited fubjection due to him from Chriftian paftors, and, of course, from all Christians, are solidly deducible from this and various fimilar paffages in the Acts of the Apoftles. ↑ Much has been written concerning two forts of Profelytes to the Jewish religion, circumcifed ones, and incomplete ones, called Profelytes of the Gate. Two learned critics, Dr. Lardner and Dr. Doddridge, feem to have fhewn, however, that the latter had no existence. Cornelius was a Gentile altogether, and was treated as fuch by the Jews, though from his pious attention to the Jewish religion he must have been at least a Pro D 2 felyte a devout man, and one that feared God with all his family, gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway; who had been warned from God by an holy angel to fend for him.Peter lodged the three men that night: two of them were houfhold fervants, and the third-rare character!-a devout foldier, who waited on the centurion continually. On the next day Peter went with them, but had the precaution to take with him fix Jewish Chriftians from Joppa as witneffes of his proceedings. The following day they entered Cæfarea, and came into the house of Cornelius, who had called together his kinfmen and near friends, with that charity for their fouls, which fails not to influence the minds of thofe, who have real charity for their own. On the entrance of Peter he falls down and worships. Peter corrects his mistaken devotion. Cornelius informs him, that having been particularly engaged in fafting and prayer, he was affured by an angel that his prayers and alms were acceptable to God, and that he had obeyed the divine direction in fending for him. now preached the Gospel to the company, frankly owning, that he was at length fully convinced, that God was no refpecter of perfons; but that he equally regarded Jew and Gentile, whoever the perfon was that "feared God, and wrought righteousness." On this broad basis of encouragement, he was enabled to preach to them the good news of forgiveness of fins by Jefus Chrift, whofe history they knew, though they did not understand the nature of his doctrine. He directed them now to receive that doctrine cordially for their peace with God. The perfect holinefs Peter felyte of the fecond fort, if any ever were fo. In that cafe it feems difficult to conceive, why any Jew fhould have made fuch a difficulty of converfing with perfons of this defcription. holinefs and the fupernatural works of Jefus, he obferved, demonftrated him to be no impoftor, but fent of God unquestionably: that he himself and the other Apoftles were witneffes of Chrift's refurrection, and had received a commiffion from him to preach to the people, and to urge men's acceptance of him here, if ever they expected to be welcomed by him, when he should judge the quick and dead at his fecond coming: and that all the prophets had teftified, that whoever placed his confidence for falvation in the name of Jefus Chrift, fhould receive remiffion of fins. Few words fuffice, where God himself power. fully works. The whole company were converted to God. The Holy Ghoft, both in an extraordinary and in an ordinary way, fealed the Apoftle's fermon. The Jewish brethren were astonished to find Gentiles put on an equal footing with Jews. Peter, after observing how unreasonable it would be to deny baptifm to perfons who had received the Holy Ghost, no less than themselves, baptized the whole company; and at their defire spent a few days with them, to inftruct them farther in Christian principles; and then left them to the care of Philip, whofe character at Cæfarea would, probably, from this time increase in public esteem. A remark or two on this important tranfaction will be proper. 1. The Grace of God acts very variously in converting finners. There are confiderable fhades of difference in the cafes of Saul, of the Eunuch, and of Cornelius. The preaching of the Gofpel found the first a determined enemy, the second an ignorant enquirer, the third a regenerate perfon already, though with no more than the Old Teftament-light. But to all these different cases, the doctrine itself is the fame: and the work of God in humbling man for his fins, and leading him to Chrift alone for juftification, is the fame alfo. 2. How D 3 2. How neceffary is it, that the way of peace by Chrift alone be distinctly explained and underftood! Cornelius, with an enlightened mind and a tender confcience, unless he had understood the doctrine of forgiveness by the blood of the Redeemer, would never have found peace of conscience. Imperfection ftill attending his beft actions, he muft have remained miferable in his spirit. The doctrine of forgiveness, accompanied by the Holy Spirit, brought him at once to a peace before unknown. How careful fhould we be to understand this doctrine aright! how zealous, in proportion to our ability, to tranfmit the precious jewel to pofterity! 3. How narrow are the hearts of men! how circumfcribed the charity even of the best! With difficulty even Chriftian Jews are brought to admit as brethren the Gentile converts. Self-righteousness is natural to mankind. That God fhould receive as his children idolatrous Gentiles, as well as religious Jews, provokes the pride of narrow-minded selfish men, who have long been accustomed to confider themselves as the peculiar favourites of heaven. CHAP. CHAP. VI. ANTIOCH AND SOME OTHER ASIATIC CHURCHES. WE have not yet feen all the good effects which Providence brought out of Stephen's perfecution. Though the Apoftles thought it their duty to continue to water the flocks of Judea and Galilee, and to look on Jerufalem as a fort of central metropolis to them all, they encouraged the inferior paftors, who fled from the rage of perfecution, to diffeminate the Gospel in Gentile regions. Damafcus, we have seen, reaped the benefit of this difpenfation, and fo did Tarfus. Some travelled as far as Phenice, Cyrus, and Antioch, ftill preaching only to Jews. At length certain Cypriot and Cyrenian Jews ventured to break through the pale of diftinction: and at Antioch, the metropolis of Syria, they preached the Lord Jefus to the Gentiles. The Greek language here prevailed, and, on this account, the inhabitants were called Grecians*, being the defcendants of a Macedonian colony, planted there by the fucceffor of Alexander. And now the Lord, willing to overcome effectually the reluctances of felfrighteous bigotry, attended their miniftry with remarkable fuccefs. The idolaters felt the renovating power of the Gofpel, and in great numbers turned to the Lord. The mother-church hearing of this, fent Barnabas, whofe piety and charity were renowned, to carry on and propagate a work, which required more labourers. His benevolent Acts xi. 20. heart |