ertained for themselves the promise of Christ's coming, and
themselves applied the tests which proved that Jesus of Nazareth was
this Christ.

[Footnote A: See Lord King's 'Critical History of the Apostles' Creed.']

Every man has a natural right, not only to form his opinions for
himself, but to change them as frequently as he shall believe himself
led to do so. This natural right is not only sanctioned, but its
exercise is approved, by the Gospel. As long as the opinions of men are
not absolutely right, as long as they fall short of the truth as it will
be perceived in heaven, there is room and occasion for a change; and
such a change, wherever recorded in the New Testament, is recorded with
approbation. Where was there ever a more extensive change of opinion
than in Apollos on his conversion? Yet in his youth, Apollos was as
orthodox, as undoubtedly correct in his religious opinions before the
introduction of Christianity, as any Christian who now subscribes all
the creeds of the Catholic Church. But what would have been the
consequence if he had engaged never to 'take and interpret the
Scriptures otherwise than according to the unanimous consent of the'
Rabbis; or if he had promised, vowed, and sworn most constantly to
profess his present faith whole and entire, with God's assistance, to
the end of his life? It is true that no revelation is likely to
supersede the faith of Christians; but it is, at the same time, as
little probable that no developement of the principles of Christianity
should cause gradual changes of opinion in the course of a lifetime, as
it then was that Judaism should not be expanded into the fuller
revelation of the Gospel. If, like Apollos, we believe rightly now, it
is impossible to answer for no change of opinion being necessary to
enable us to believe rightly twenty years hence. The view which we have
already taken of the expansive tendency of the eternal principles of
Christianity authorizes our declaring that a gradual enlargement of
views, _i. e._ change of opinions, is a necessary consequence of the
correct apprehension of religious truth.

Creeds are intended to be permanent and universal professions of faith;
and are the instrument by which a uniformity of faith is to be secured,
if such a thing be yet possible. But creeds never have fulfilled, and
never can fulfil, any one of these purposes. No uniformity of faith has
existed since the first creed was framed; no one formulary has be