Page:The Works of the Reverend George Whitefield, M.A. (1771 Vol 1).djvu/326

 will work in the ministers and young students hearts. Even so. Amen. Pray fail not writing to

Ever yours, G. W.    LETTER CCCXLVII. To Mr. D E, at Sterling.

My dear Brother,     Edinburgh, Aug. 13, 1741.

I Received your kind letter, and heartily bless, if any thing dropping from my unworthy lips was made of service to your soul. I believe, inclined me to speak to you. The sons of the prophets are much upon my heart. I pray that you may be polished shafts, and noble instruments in his hands, of building up living temples for the Holy Ghost. The treatment I met with from the associate presbytery, was not altogether such as I expected. It grieved me, as much as it did you. I could scarce refrain from bursting into a flood of tears. I wish all were like-minded with your honoured father and uncle: matters then would not be carried on with so high an hand. I fear they are led too much. Such violent methods, such a narrow way of acting, can never be the way to promote and enlarge the kingdom of the blessed Jesus. It surely must be wrong to fix such bounds to ourselves, as forbid even our hearing those who love the in sincerity, and have also been owned of him. would not have done so.—Supposing the scheme of government which the associate presbytery contend for to be scriptural, yet forbearance and long-suffering is to be exercised towards such as may differ from them; and I am verily persuaded, there is no such form of government prescribed in the book of, as excludes a toleration of all other forms whatsoever. Was the New Testament outward tabernacle to be built as punctual as the old, as punctual directions would have been given about the building it; whereas, it is only deduced by inference, and thus we see Independents, Presbyterians, and Episcopalians bring the same text to support their particular scheme, and I believe thereby would teach us to exercise forbearance and long-suffering to each other. Was the associate presbytery scheme to take effect, out of conscience, if they acted consistently, they must restrain, and grieve, if not