Almost every one of these Essays was written above twenty years ago, and some of them more than thirty. The Author finds reason to offer his sincere acknowledgments and thanks to Almighty God, who has preserved him, even to this day, in the same sentiments and principles of Christian Faith and Love, amidst the numerous follies and errors of the times.
One of these papers indeed, found its way into the world the very year in which it was written; the very design of it was to exemplify the title of this book, and it has been often since solicited to be printed again. But it was delayed for many years, till the Author had formed a collection of papers of this sort large enough to compose a moderate volume; and the reader will be sufficiently informed of the present reason of this publication, by a mere explaining of the words of the title, Orthodoxy and Charity united.
By the word Orthodoxy, the Author means all those Christian doctrines which were generally approved in the last age, so far as he knows at least, by almost all the Protestant Dissenters in the nation; even those great doctrines on which the Reformation from the Church of Rome was built; and they continued so all the time these Essays were writing, and long before, in the general good esteem of the churches, as being conformable to the instructions of Christ and his Apostles. It is needless in this place to reckon them all up particularly, but in general they were such as these.
1. By the fall of the first man, he, together with his posterity, lost their innocence and their immortality, their bodies were subjected to diseases and death, their natural inclinations were perverted from that which is good, and there was a strange prevailing bias in human nature, even from its infancy, to that which is evil.
2. In order to their recovery from this ruin, there is not only a necessity of the pardon of their sins, and reconciliation of their persons to God, but there is need also that their sinful natures be healed, and renewed by sanctifying grace, in order to restore men to virtue and piety, that is to the love of God and their fellow-creatures.
3. The Son of God, who in the language of Scripture is one with the Father, came down from heaven to take flesh, and therein to fulfill the duties of the law, and give an example of perfect holiness. And then he was appointed to suffer death as a sacrifice and atonement for the sins of men, that mankind might thereby obtain pardon and the favor of God.
4. There is a necessity also that sinners should heartily repent of their sins, return to God, and be renewed to the principles and temper of holiness, in order to their complete recovery to eternal life and happiness.
5. Besides this repentance and returning to God, it is also required that they believe in the name of Jesus Christ their Savior, or trust in him with a humble expectation of the favor of God through him. And it is through this faith they are to be justified and accepted of God.
6. They are also obliged to obey the law of God, as far as this feeble and imperfect state admits of, during their whole life, and still to grow up towards perfection therein.
7. When such persons die, their souls are conveyed to a state of peace and rest in the presence of God, till the great day of the resurrection, when their bodies shall rise again from the dead, and the whole person, body and soul, be made happy forever in the favor and presence of God their Maker.
These doctrines were generally professed at the time of the Reformation, by Protestants abroad and at home, and these are the set of principles which have been usually called Orthodoxy or right sentiments.
Now it has unhappily fallen out, that many of those who have received and professed these important doctrines, have differed also in many lesser points, such as the Logical relations of some of these doctrines to one another, that is, Whether Faith or Works be Conditions or Consequents of their Justification and Acceptance; what is the essential Difference between the Covenant of Works and the Covenant of Grace, or the Law and the Gospel, et cetera, as well as in several particular practices of divine Worship, such as Ceremonies, Vestures, imposed Forms of Prayer, et cetera. And they have so far quarreled about these things as too much to neglect and abandon that Christian love and charity they ought to have maintained, according to their general acknowledgment of the great and necessary truths and rules of Christianity, and hereby they have in many instances lost that duty and character of good Christians, namely to Love one another.
Now since these unhappy and uncharitable practices, even amongst some good men, have prevailed even to this day, it is the design of these Essays to endeavor the recovery of these persons, who unite in these principles, to charitable sentiments and practices towards one another.
Here it will be very natural to inquire, Where is there found amongst all these Essays, any attempt to reconcile those to the Christian love and charity of others, who while they profess the Christian Religion, yet oppose, renounce or deny the great doctrines of the atoning sacrifice of Christ, or his propitiation for sin by his death?
All the answer that can be given is this: The Author would gladly have done it, that the whole book might be of a piece, and every page might overflow with love, if he could, after the turning over his New Testament, have met with any evident instances, or examples, any plain rules or requirements of such Christian charity expressed towards persons of this character in all the sacred writings.
But the language of Scripture gives no encouragement to such a charity; for this doctrine is not anywhere numbered among the doubtful disputables of our religion, the lesser things of Christianity, such as Meats and Drinks, and observation of Days, and outward Forms of worship; but it is spoken of as a matter of far higher importance, and I think seems to be necessary to constitute Christianity itself.
This doctrine contains in it the highest and the kindest design toward men, for which our blessed Savior came down from heaven; it was for this very reason he came into this world, (namely) to give his life a ransom for sinners, Matthew 20:28. And it is repeated in Mark 10:45. So that those who depart from and renounce this article, renounce the kindest design of the coming and the death of Christ, and they seem, by the words of the holy writings, to be exposed to another sort of sentence, from which may the grace of God recover and preserve them!
In the meantime, I hope those who heartily unite in their sentiments of these great doctrines which I have mentioned, and maintain a correspondent practice of strict holiness and dependence upon Jesus Christ our great High Priest, and our sacrifice, will be taught by some of these papers, to learn the duties of Christian love more perfectly, agreeable to the original design of the holy Founder of our religion.
It should be observed here, that though the chief part of these Essays were written at the time which is mentioned, yet there happen to be now and then a few lines or pages, and some few citations from elder or later authors, which were not all written or inserted at that time.
Let it be observed also, that all the characters here mentioned are general and indefinite; and there is not one character or name, that is now written in these papers, or ever was, that was designed to be applied to any particular person. For the Author avoided it with care in all these writings, and in all his reviews of them, that no single person whatsoever should be so particularly described, as to imagine himself to be intended, and much less to be distinguished by any reader. May the divine blessing attend every humble attempt to establish the Christian faith, and to confirm and enlarge our love. Amen.
