Wesley Corpus

Perhaps because of the deeply rooted prejudice which they brought with them to the inquiry; and which, still hanging on their minds, makes it scarce possible for them to form an impartial judgment. Perhaps, even a slight preposses sion might occasion their stumbling on some of those rocks cf offence, which, by the wise permission of God, always did ard always will attend any revival of his work. Nay, it may be, their very caution was carried to excess. They would not judge before they had such evidence as the mature of the thing would not admit, or, at least, God did not see fit to give. 3. All this is very easy to conceive. But it may at first appear surprising, to find men of renown, men supposed to be endowed with knowledge, and with abilities of every kind, flatly, openly, percmptorily denying, that there has been any unusual work of God at all ! Yea, a late eminent writer gocs farther yet; accounts it an instance of downright enthu siasm, to imagine that there is any extraordinary work now wrought upon the earth. (Observations, Part III.) It avails not to say, “No ; he docs not deny this, but he denies it to be the work of God.” This is palpably trifling; for the work under consideration is of such a nature, (namely, the conversion of men from all manner of sins, to holiness of lieart and life,) that if it be at any time wrought at all, it must be the work of God; seeing it is God alone, and not any child of man, who is able to “destroy the works of the devil.” Yet neither is this difficult to be accounted for, if we consider things more closely; for the same prejudice which keeps some in doubt, may easily be conceived so to influence others, as to make them wholly deny the work of God. And this it may do in several ways: It may either bring them to question the facts related, and hinder their endeavouring to be more fully informed; or prevent their drawing such inferences from those 210 A FARTHER Al"PEAL TO MEN facts, as they would otherwise see to be plain and undeniable. Yea, and it will give tenfold weight to the offences which must come, so as to over-balance all evidence whatsoever. 4.