Wesley Corpus

Thou art to “speak, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.” To say the very truth, I am afraid you rather strengthen their hands in their wicked ness. For you not only do not testify against it in the con gregation,” but even sit at their table and reprove them not. Why, then, thou also art one of “the dumb dogs that cannot bark, sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.” I fix this charge upon every Preacher, in particular, who saw a young woman, daughter to one of the Quakers in London, going to be married in apparel suitable to her diamond buckle, which cost a hundred guineas. Could you see this, and not call heaven and earth to witness against it? Then I witness against thee, in the name of the Lord, thou art a blind leader of the blind; thou “strainest a gnat, and swallowest a camel !” Verily, the sin both of teachers and hearers is herein exceed ing great. And the little attempts towards plainness of apparel, which are still observable among you, (I mean, in the colour and form of your clothes, and the manner of putting them on,) only testify against you, that you were once what you know in your hearts you are not now. 8. I come now to your main principle: “We are all to be “taught of God, to be inspired and “led by his Spirit: And then we shall ‘worship him, not with dead form, but ‘in spirit and in truth.” These are deep and weighty words; but many hold fast the words, and are utterly ignorant of their meaning. Is not this * You say you do testify against it in the congregation. Against what? “Against gay and gaudy apparel.” I grant it. But this is not the thing I speak of You quite mistake my mark. Do you testify against the costliness of their apparel, however plain and grave it may be? against the price of the velvet, the linen, the silk, or raiment of whatever kind? If you do this frequently and explicitly, you are clear. If not, own and amend the fault. It is easy to discern how your people fell into this snare of the devil. You were at first a poor, despised, afflicted people.