new vidual character was altogether and always such as is represented by Lactantius; and hence resulted combinations in society, and such combinations, with their accompaniments, furnish the data by which we ought to determine the merits of the apostolic work, and the moral greatness of the apostolic character. The question is, To what extent did Paul directly by his own efforts, and indirectly by the agencies which he set at work, affect for good the religion and morals, the laws and governments, of the heathen world? The measure of his efficiency in this is just the measure of his moral greatness. How may this point be ascertained? In various ways; by his own testimony; by the witness of friends; and by the confession of adversaries. This is surely a case in which his own evidence is admissible, and it is one to which he has distinctly, although incidentally, spoken in divers passages of his writings. I will rest satisfied with two illustrations from one of his letters. Addressing the Colossians, he declares that the gospel was come to them as it was to "all the world," and that it was "preached to every creature which is under heaven." If it be said that this is hyperbole; I reply, hyperbole has its bounds-bounds which, in the lips of such a man, were not likely to be transgressed. Could any thing, then, but a diffusion of the gospel the most extraordinary, warrant the use of language so glowing? But, in support of the apostle, we may adduce the evidence of adversaries, in addition to the conclusive passages already quoted from the Acts. The well-known letter of Pliny, who wrote some time subsequently to the death of Paul, attests the true state of things in Bithynia and Pontus, his province, and may be taken as a faithful representation of the average condition of Christianity throughout the Roman empire. Pliny reports to the emperor, that the disciples of Jesus filled the land; that they were found in cities, in villages, and in the open country; that they comprised people of all ages, of all ranks and conditions; that so great were their numbers, as to produce a visible desertion of the heathen temples, the almost entire neglect of sacrifices, and of all the other solemnities of idolatry. The work went on from year to year, spreading throughout the earth. To Pliny, about thirty years afterwards, succeeded Justin Martyr, who, in his dialogue with Trypho, thus testifies to the progress of the truth :-" There is not a nation, either of Greek or Barbarian, or of any other name, even of those who wander in tribes, and live in tents, amongst whom prayers and thanksgivings are not offered to the Father and Creator of the universe, by the name of the crucified Jesus." The work continued rapidly to advance. Some forty years after Justin Martyr, Clemens Alexandrinus published a happy comparison, or rather contrast, between Christianity and philosophy, which serves, at the same time, forcibly to illustrate the wonderful progress of the Word of God. "The philosophers," says he, 66 were confined to Greece, and to their particular supporters; but the doctrine of the Master of Christianity was not limited to Judea, as philosophy was to Greece; for it has spread throughout the whole world, in every nation, and village, and city, both of Greeks and Barbarians, converting as well whole houses, as separate individuals, having already brought over to the truth many of the philosophers themselves. If the Greek philosophy be prohibited, it instantly disappears; whereas, from the first promulgation of our doctrines, kings and tyrants, rulers and presidents, with their entire train, and with the multitude on their side, have laboured with all their power to exterminate it, yet it only flourishes the more."* A few years after Clemens, stood forth Tertullian to advocate the gospel. That great man, addressing the Roman authorities, thus speaks: "We were *Clem. ad Strom. lib. vi. ad fin. but of yesterday, and we have filled your cities, islands, towns, and boroughs, the camp, the senate and the forum. They, (the heathen adversaries of Christianity,) lament that persons of both sexes, of every age and condition, and of every rank, too, are converts to that name."* The same writer also declares, “that, in almost every city, Christians form the majority.”† Origen succeeded Tertullian, at the distance of about thirty years, in the work of defending the truth of God. His evidence runs thus:" In every part of the world, throughout all Greece, and in all other nations, there are innumerable and immense multitudes, who, having rejected the laws of their country, and those whom they formerly esteemed gods, have given themselves up to the law of Moses, and the religion of Christ; and this not without the bitterest resentment from the idolaters, by whom they were frequently put to torture, and sometimes to death; and it is wonderful to observe how, in so short a time, the religion has increased, amidst punishment, and death, and every kind of torture." The writer who next offers himself in evidence, is Arnobius, who speaks of the whole world as filled with Christ's doctrine-of its diffusion throughout all countries of an innumerable body of Christians in distant provinces of the strange revolution of opinion among men of the greatest genius-of orators, grammarians, rhetoricians, lawyers, physicians, coming over to the new institution, and that also in the face of threats, executions, and tortures. This conducts us to the accession of Constantine, and his declaration in favour of Christianity: an event which, there is every reason to believe, proceeded from his conviction of its preponderating influence in the empire. Here, Sir, let us pause a moment, and survey the combined result of Christian missions. That result is *Tertull. Apol. c. 37. Orig in Cels. lib. i. † Ad Scap. c. 111. § See Paley, Part II. ch. viii. sect. i. not merely an event of stupendous magnitude; it is a new thing in the earth, and its novelty is equalled only by its glory. Princes and potentates are struck dumb with amazement, to find that their violence has only promoted the object they sought to defeat. The great The pontiffs and the teeming priesthood of idolatry are confounded to behold their mysteries despised, their gods abhorred, their temples abandoned. The masters of philosophy, too, are put to shame; their glory is gone; their schools are closed, and they are deserted. The night is over, and the dawn has come. The buried intellect of the world has experienced a resurrection to vigorous life. Human character presents a new, a beauteous appearance, and stands arrayed in a rich garment of moral excellence. The whole aspect of society is altered, and the mighty revolution has been effected by means the most contemptible in the eye of man. princes, the legislators, the magistrates, the orators, the men of letters, the wealthy, and the wise, of this world -have had no share in the enterprise. They have laboured, not to promote, but to obstruct it. The prime agent in the wonderful work, was a despised Jew, 66 one SAUL of TARSUS." He it was who first communicated the omnipotent impulse which aroused mankind, and shook to its centre the prodigious fabric of society, throughout the Roman empire. Converts were multiplied by millions, and every convert was a host in himself. Before the apostle's decease, he beheld the heavenly flame spreading among all nations, and reflected from every sky. His heart was the source from which the celestial fire had emanated; and before he left the earth, other hearts which burned with a kindred glow, were counted by myriads. The victory in the Roman empire was clearly decided for Christ, before the great missionary was summoned from the field of conflict and of glory. On ascending with the tidings to heaven, after fighting the good fight, finishing his course, and keeping the faith, he left behind him an innumerable spiritual progeny, who, inheriting his hope, walked in his footsteps, wielded his weapons, and added to his triumphs. The period which elapsed between the ascension of Christ to heaven, and the accession of Constantine, witnessed a display of missionary spirit and of moral greatness, such as had never before been exhibited, and such as has never since been seen. The intervening centuries were seasons of suffering which no heart can conceive, no pen describe. Those, Sir, were days which tried the spirits of men-days that indeed demanded decision of character. The condition of discipleship was then oft-times the loss of all things— subjection to cruelty the most refined, to torture the most exquisite, and at last to death in its most dreadful forms! Those few centuries elicited infinitely more real greatness than all the wars that have been waged since the creation. The church was then, in the highest sense, militant; for it was altogether missionary. chief end of its existence was the diffusion of the gospel. In promoting this, suffering was considered enjoyment, infamy honour, excruciating death welcomed as the introduction to immortal life! The But, Sir, this presents to us only the first great stage of the Christian mission. We are looking chiefly at Paul, with his assistants and successors, as propagators of the gospel. In that capacity, it is surely a truth self-evident, that he was incomparably the first of the human race, by far the greatest man that ever appeared in our world. This he is proved to be from his principles, labours, character, and sufferings, independently of the effects which have resulted. But if, in addition, it can be shown that Paul and his coadjutors have, in all conceivable points, proved inexpressible benefactors to mankind; that in the work of true philanthropy they enjoyed an entire monopoly; and that there is hardly a blessing which we possess, whether for time or for D D |