The Evangelical Magazine, 1796
Review of Religious Publications

Glad Tidings to Perishing Sinners
By Abraham Booth

[p. 348]
Glad Tidings to perishing Sinners; or, The genuine Gospel a complete Warrant for the Ungodly to believe in Jesus. By Abraham Booth. London: Printed for the Author, and sold by W. Buttop, Paternoster-row, and T. Knott, Lombard-street. 870. Pages 234.

      THIS publication, if we be not greatly mistaken, is one of the best theological pieces with which the public, of late years, has been favoured. The subject is highly interesting, and, in our apprehension, forms a constituent part of the Gospel, which the author very properly defines, "Good news - Glad tidings!" No person, we suppose, who is seriously concerned about salvation, the way of acceptance with God, &c. and his duly as a sinner, but must be anxious to obtain information on these important points; and few publications, ancient or modern, that we are acquainted with, are better calculated, than this before us, to give him that information. Mr. B. is aware that it is a controverted subject - not well understood by some, and reprobated by others, who do not seem to have given it an impartial consideration. With great propriety he therefore observes, "That prudence and caution," and, he might have added, judgment too, "are necessary in stating and defending the sentiment." We can give him full credit for what he says, "That the discussion of if has been attended with much thought, and frequent prayer. He has long been of opinion," he says, "that whosoever exhibits the true glory of divine grace, and the high importance of Christian duty, according to the apostolic pattern, will be considered by many as an Antinomian, and by some as an Arminian^*." "Although," as he observes, "the grand principle defended is far from being novel, it having been adopted by many Protestant writers of high reputation in the church of Christ, from some of whom a number of quotations appear in the following work⁺" for reasons assigned by the auuthor. The passages of Scripture, brought forward in support of the sentiment, are well chosen, the reasoning from them is fair and cogent, and
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* preface, page 5.
+ Page 6.

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[p. 349]
tlie inferences perfectly just. The arrangement of the work is good, and the stile well adapted to the subject. Whether any person will feel himself disposed to enter the lists of controversy with Mr. B. we cannot determine; but if any should, Mr. B. has not, in our opinion, the least reason to be afraid, either for his foundation or superstructure. Many may, perhaps, object to the sentiment, and cavil at the author's defence of it; but so long as the Scriptures exist, overturn it they cannot. To justify this assertion we shall present our readers with an extract from the work.

      Mr. B. observes, that it has, with some degree of confidence, been demanded, "Whether, if sinners must not come to Christ as penitent, and as possessing an holy disposition, they are to believe in him as impenitent, and under the reigning power of their depravity. But this, like some other objections, is not pertinent. For the question is, What is the proper warrant for a sinner to believe in Jesus? Not, What is the state of his heart in the moment when he first believes? Or, if the objection did apply, it might be answered, neither as a penitent, nor as an impenitent sinner, but under the character of one that is guilty and perishing. It was for such that Jesus died; it is to such the tidings of salvation were addressed by the apostles; and, therefore, such are encouraged to believe in Christ: The objector might, consequently, with equal reason, have asked, Whether, in a public ministry, salvation by the Redeemer should be exhibited to penitents or to impenitents; to those that have some degree of holiness or those who have none? And then the answer would have been, To neither those, nor these, respectively as such; but to all of them without exception, as deserving condemnation and final misery. Nor is there any reason to douht, whether he to whom, by divine authority, salvation through Christ is preached, be warranted to believe in him. Pages 185, 186.

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[From The Evangelical Magazine, 1796, pp. 348-9, via Google Books. Scanned and formatted by Jim Duvall.]

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