Ye all, faith St. Paul, are the fons of God by faith in Chrift SERM. Jefus. II. By it we abide in God, and do poffefs him, faith St. Gal. iii. 26. John. By it Chrift dwelleth in us, faith St. Paul. John i. 12. 1 Joh. ii. 24. 2 John ix. By it we obtain God's Spirit: Did ye, faith St. Paul, Eph. iii. 17. receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing 14. of faith? Eph. i. 13. John vii.38. By it we are justified, or acquitted from guilt, and con- v. 32. demnation for fin: for, Being juftified by faith we have Rom. iii.25. peace with God. V. 1. X. 10. By it our hearts are purged, faith St. Paul; our fouls are 18. x. 43. purified, faith St. Peter. Acts xv. 9. 1 Pet. i. 22. By it we are freed from the dominion of fin; according to that of our Saviour; If ye abide in my word,-ye shall John viii. know the truth, and the truth fhall fet you free. 31. .Heb. x. 22. It procureth freedom of access to God; We have, faith Eph. iii. 12. St. Paul, boldness and accefs with confidence by the faith of him. It is the fhield, whereby we refift temptations; and the Eph. vi. 16. weapon, whereby we overcome the world. 1 Pet. v. 9. 1 John v. 5. iii. 9. i. 5. In fine, it is that, which being retained in a good con- 1 Tim.i.19. science, and maintained by virtuous practice, doth keep us Eph. ii. 8. in a state of falvation, and will affuredly convey us into Rom. x. 10. eternal life and felicity; for, by grace we are faved, through Heb. x. 34. faith. viii.24.i.16. 1 Pet. i. 9. Luke viii. Acts xvi. 10. That faith fhould be thus highly dignified, hath always 12. appeared ftrange to the adverfaries of our religion a; and 30, 31. hath suggested to them matter of obloquy againft it: they 2 Theff. ii. could not apprehend why we should be commanded, or how we can be obliged to believe; as if it were an arbitrary thing, depending on our free choice, and not rather did naturally follow the representation of objects to our mind: they would not allow that an act of our under • Πίστιν Str. ii. (p. 265.) · ἣν διαβάλλουσι, κενὴν καὶ βάρβαρον νομίζοντες Ἕλληνες. Clem. Pagani nobis objicere folent, quod religio noftra, quia quafi rationibus deficit, in fola credendi perfuafione confiftat. Ruff. in Symb. Αδίκημα καὶ δικαιοπράγημα ὥρισαι τῷ ἑκουσίῳ καὶ ἀκουσίῳ. Αrift. Eth. v. 6. iii. 1. SERM. ftanding, hardly voluntary, as being extorted by force of arguments, fhould deferve fuch reputation and fuch recompenfes; for if, argued they, a doctrine be propounded with evident and cogent reason, what virtue is there in believing it, feeing a man in that cafe cannot avoid believing, is therein merely paffive, and by irresistible force fubdued? if it be propounded without such reason, what fault can it be to refuse affent, or to fufpend his opinion Prov. xiv. about it? can a wife man then do otherwife? is it not in fuch a cafe fimplicity, or fond credulity, to yield affent? yea, is it not deceit or hypocrify to pretend the doing fo? may not justly then all the blame be charged rather on the incredibility of the doctrine, or the infirmity of reafons enforcing it, than on the incredulity of the person who doth not admit it? whence no philofophers ever did impofe fuch a precept, or did affign to faith a place among the virtues. 15. To clear this matter, and to vindicate our religion from fuch mifprifions, and that we may be engaged to prize and cherish it; I fhall endeavour to declare, that Christian faith doth worthily deferve all the commendations and the advantages granted thereto : this I fhall do by confidering its nature and ingredients, its rife and causes, its efficacy and confequences. Πίστις τῆς I. As to its nature; it doth involve knowledge, knowεἰς τὸν Θεὸν γνώσεως παledge of most worthy and important truths, knowledge paris peculiar and not otherwise attainable, knowledge in way xh. Chryf. tom. v. Or. of great evidence and affurance. 55. 1. Truth is the natural food of our foul, toward which it hath a greedy appetite, which it tasteth with delicious complacency, which being taken in and digested by it doth render it lufty, plump, and active: truth is the fpecial ornament of our mind, decking it with a graceful and Pfal. cxix. pleasant luftre; truth is the proper wealth of reason, 142, 151. whereof having acquired a good stock, it appeareth rich, profperous, and mighty: what light is without, that is ὁ ̓Αλήθεια δὴ πάντων μὲν ἀγαθῶν θεοῖς ἡγεῖται, πάντων δὲ ἀνθρώποις. Plat. de Leg. v. (p. 481.) de Rep, vi. (p. 675.) truth within, fhining on our inward world, illuftrating, SERM. quickening, and comforting all things there, exciting all II. our faculties to action, and guiding them in it. All knowledge therefore, which is the poffeffion of truth, is much esteemed; even that which respecteth objects mean, and little concerning us, (fuch as human fciences are converfant about; natural appearances, historical events, the properties, proportions, and powers of figure, of motion, of corporeal force,) doth bear a good price, as perfective of rational nature, enriching, adorning, invigorating our mind; whence Ariftotle doubteth not upon all those habitual endowments, which fo accomplish our understanding, to bestow the name of virtues; that with him being the virtue of each thing, which anywife perfecteth it, and are agrn, * ἂν ἡ ἀρετὴς difpofeth it for action fuitable to its nature. And if igno-r rance, error, doubt, are defects, deformities, infirmities of x axorsour foul, then the knowledge which removeth them doth imply the perfection, beauty, and vigour thereof. Faith therefore, as implying knowledge, is valuable. λεῖ, καὶ τὸ ἔργον αὐτοῦ εν ἀποδίδωσι. Arift. Eth, ii. 6. 2. But it is much more fo, in regard to the quality of its objects, which are the most worthy that can be, and most useful for us to know; the knowledge whereof doth indeed advance our foul into a better ftate, doth ennoble, enrich, and embellish our nature; doth raise us to a nearer resemblance with God, and participation of his wisdom; doth infuse pureft delight and satisfaction into our hearts; doth qualify and direct us unto practice most conducible to our welfare; it is a knowledge, enlightening the eyes, Pfal. xix. 7, converting the foul, rejoicing the heart; fweeter than honey, 8, 9, 10. and the honeycomb; more precious than rubies; which 111.) giveth to our head an ornament of grace, and a crown of Prov.iii.15. glory. For,' Thereby we understand the nature, or the principal attributes of God, of whom only the Chriftian doctrine doth afford a completely true and worthy character, directive of our esteem, our worship, our obedience, our imitation of him; whereby our demeanour toward him may become him, and please him. (cxix. 103, iv. 9. SERM. II. By it we are fully acquainted with the will and intentions of God, relating both to our duty and our recompenfe; what he requireth from us, and what he defigneth for us; upon what terms he will proceed with us in way of grace, of mercy, of justice. By it we are informed concerning ourselves, what our frame is, whence our original, to what ends we are defigned, wherein our felicity doth confift, and how it is attainable. It enableth us rightly to diftinguish between good and bad, right and wrong; what is worthy of us, and pleafing to God, what mifbecoming us, and offenfive to him; both abfolutely and comparatively, according to the degrees of each cafe refpectively. It prefcribeth us an exact rule of life, comprifing all our duties toward God, our neighbour, ourselves; to observe which will be moft decent, and exceedingly profitable to us. It teacheth us from what principles, and upon what grounds we should act, that our practice fhould be truly good and laudable. It proposeth the most valid inducements to virtue, tendering the favour of God and eternal blifs in reward thereof, menacing divine wrath and endless woe upon its neglect. It discovereth the special aids difpenfed to us for the fupport of our weakness against all temptations and difcouragements incident to us through the course of our life. The knowledge of these things is plainly the top of all knowledge whereof we are capable; not confisting in barren notion, not gratifying idle curiofity, not serving trivial purposes, but really bettering our fouls, producing moft goodly and wholesome fruits, tending to ends moft noble and worthy: this indeed is the highest philosophy; the true culture, and medicine of our foul; the true guide of life, and miftrefs of action; the mother of all virtues ; the best invention of God, and rareft gift of heaven to 16. II. men: for thefe commendations, by Pagan fages afcribed SERM. to their philofophy, do in truth folely belong to that knowledge, which by faith we do poffefs: their philofophy could not reach fuch truths d; it could not fo much as aim at fome of them; it did but weakly attempt at any : it did indeed pretend to the knowledge of divine and human things, (this being its definition, current among them,) but it had no competent means of attaining either in any confiderable measuree; for divine things (the nature of him who dwelleth in light which no man can approach unto ; 1 Tim. vi. the intentions of him, who worketh all things after the Eph. i. 11. counsel of his will; the ways of him, which are more dif- Iía. Iv. 9. cofted from our ways, than heaven from earth; the depths of 1 Cor. ii. God, which none but his own Spirit can search out, or difco- 10, 11, ver) do lie beyond the sphere of natural light, and inquifition of our reason: and as for human things, the chief of them have fuch a connection with divine things, that who were ignorant of the one could nowife defcry the other; wherefore thofe candidates of knowledge, notwithstanding their lofty pretences, were fain to reft in a low form, employing their studies on inferior things, the obfcurity of nature, the fubtilty of discourse, and moral precepts of lifef; fuch precepts, as their glimmering light and common experience did fuggeft; for even in points of common morality and prudence human wit can but fumble, as by the great clashing and jangling about them is very notorious. 3. Faith alfo hath this excellent advantage, that it endueth us with fuch knowledge in a very clear and fure way, comparable to that whereby the theorems of any science are known; it not being grounded on any flippery deduc < Cultura animi, Cic. Tufc. 1. Medicina animi, Tufc. 3. O vitæ philofophia dux, &c. Tufc. 5. de Leg. 1. de Fin. 3. Nec ullum arbitror, ut apud Pla tonem eft, majus aut melius a Diis datum munus homini. Acad. 1. Tusc. 1. d Omnis optimarum rerum cognitio, atque in iis exercitatio Philosophia nominatur. De Orat. 3. • Οὐκ ἐχέγγυοι διδάσκαλοι περὶ Θεῷ λέγοντες ἄνθρωποι καθὸ ἄνθρωποι, &c. Clem. Alex, Strom. vi. p. 501. 'Philofophia in tres partes diftributa eft, in naturæ obfcuritatem, in diffcrendi fubtilitatem, in vitam atque mores. Cic. de Orat. 1. |