act as a living Man On the account of his Resurrection too he is called the first begotten Son of God Rev. 1.5 1 Cor. 15.20 Col. 1.18 And by his Resurrection also was given a Testimony of the Truth of his Doctrine especially of the Points of the Resurrection of the Body and Life immortal And having fully instructed his Disciples and authorized them his Ministers to prosecute the same end he was sent for viz. the bringing rebellious disorderly Sinners to Repentance and Obedience for the fulfilling his Promise of the Mission of the Holy Ghost the Power by means whereof they wrought Miracles it was requisite he should leave this Earth which he did in the sight of many and go to some Heavenly Mansion till his Second Personal Appearance which Angels at his Ascension inform'd the Beholders should be in like manner and which he had before promised and wherein he will wholly finish his Office of Mediator between God and Men a part of which is his Ruling or Judging the World fully determining what 's right and what 's wrong as God has authorized him After which he shall give up that his Kingdom to his God and Father's immediate Government to whom he is and then will more eminently appear to be Subject tho' God has made him the Head or Chief of the Creation But I can but name things where every head would yield a large Discourse This is the Sum and Substance of the Revelation of God's Will by Jesus Christ And whosoever believes Christ's Doctrine and does it or in his own words He that hears his Word and believeth on him that sent him hath everlasting life and shall not come into Condemnation but is passed from Death unto Life Joh. 5.24 And not every one that suith Lord Lord unto him shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the Will of his Father which is in Heaven Matth. 7.21 But whosoever heareth the Sayings of Christ and does them not whatever he may think of Christ or how great soever an Opinion he professeth of him hath but built upon the Sand v. 27. It is Obedience that is the end of all true Doctrine and whosoever having been convinced of Sin and changed from doing his own disorderly Will does the Will of God and persevers in so doing will be happy nay is saved by what means soever this Change hath been wrought Where the End is accomplish'd it is accomplish'd Many have been the Instruments and various the Means that God hath used to reduce Sinners and some rebellious ones have been changed to comply with their Maker's Will by smaller Arguments some by greater The Means of Conviction God hath given the World seems from the beginning to have grown greater and greater as Wickedness hath increased but some Sinners have been so perverse that the greatest Motives God has pleas'd to give them have not done but they have appear'd resolved to abandon God and to devote themselves to their Sin and Misery Yet there have been many righteous Men who have not seen and heard what some others have and yet have indeed been righteous And they that have seen and heard the most of the Manifestations of God have little cause to censure and condemn them that have seen and heard the least when these have sometimes shewn as much or more of the End Goodness accomplished in them 39. But whatsoever means God may make effectual towards the Salvation of Men or bringing them from Sin to Obedience it may truly be said they are all saved the same way and that is by Christ Which must not be understood that it is absolutely necessary that every Man should be instructed in the Will of God and receive his Commends from Christ's own Mouth or from those he hath expresly sent to preach the Gospel Nor is it to be thought impossible that any should be saved without Reading or hearing read the Books we call the Holy Scriptures But whosoever is saved is necessarily some way or other instructed in the same things Christ hath taught viz his Duty to God and his Neighbour and brought to comply therewith and so to follow Christ in a Life of Obedience Christ is the Way the Truth and the Life There is no other Way Sinners can come to the Father but what he hath shown viz. Repentance bringing forth the meet fruits thereof There are no other Truths necessary to be known in order to living that Life of Obedience Christ gave us the highest Example of than what he taught There is no other Man a Master or Teacher teaching another Doctrine in which is Salvation for God hath given him the chief coruer stone of the Spiritual Building to which the rest must be squared and he hath given no other name among Men under Heaven in which we must be saved There is none a different or so compleat a Rule Acts 4.11 12. The Way the Truth and the Life is the same that all must go in believe and live However Men may disagree in Speculations and Opinions if they know but enough to subject their Wills in Agreement to this Life of Obedience which Christ in the name of God commanded and himself gave an Example of they may meet in Heaven Those that disagree from this Living Rule and persevere in their Dissention will not see Life notwithstanding their highest Pretences to Faith or Knowledge And if I am brought to submit to the Will of my Maker by reading the Bible or hearing Discourses on it it does not follow that none could be inform'd of the same Truths and reduced to the same Obedience any other way Before the Scripture was written there were Righteous Men accepted of God no doubt and since the Love of God has appeared larger than the Love of Christians in recommending and communicating that most useful Book to the rest of Mankind For there have been Examples out of the Pale of the visible Christian Church of such a Life as would become a considerable Christian at least of such as was proportionable to the measure of Knowledge And some things left so excellent in the Writings of some of those we call Heathens that Charity methinks would excuse me if I should esteem them Christians indeed without the name or such in Conformity to the Will of God as Christians should be And there have been not a few who have been no happier than to be educated in the Worship of the True God under no better an Instructer than Moses or Mahomet that might have shamed the Nominal Christian to behold their Vertues God sent Prophets of old in a special manner to instruct the Sons of Heber and doubtless it was their Duty to teach others the Knowledge and Worship of the True God and he sent his Son Jesus also first unto some of them but Christ commanded his Disciples to teach all Nations If Hebrews and Christians have not done their Duty it cannot be thought that therefore the rest of Mankind must
THE Atheist turn'd Deist AND THE Deist turn'd Christian OR THE REASONABLENESS and UNION OF Natural and the True Christian Religion BY THO. EMES Chirurgo-Medicus LONDON Printed in the Year 1698. Speak every Man Truth with his Neighbour for we are Members of one another Eph. 4.25 AND So speak ye and so do ye as they that shall be judged by the Law of Liberty Jam. 2.12 ERRATA PAge 3. line 10. for certify read certifie L. 20. for Lier r. Lyar. P. 4. l. 26. for ll read all P. 6. l. last for unbeholding r. un-beholden P. 21. l. 20. for then r. than P. 22. for beholding r. beholden So P. 34. l. 34. P. 43. l. 36. r. Marriage-Constancy P. 45. l. 5. for countervaile r. countervale P. 84. l. 6. for God's r. Gods P. 95. after same add time P. 118. l. 26. blot and after David P. 181. l. 16. for they r. the before Oaths Some of the principal Heads of this Discourse under which divers other things are touched upon Numb 1. WHAT necessary to the End of Man Numb 2. Three Ways whereby we know Truth Numb 3. The nearest Way to prove the Being of God Numb 4. Self what The Necessity of supposing a Divine Being thence proved Numb 5. God knowable by Experience or Sense Numb 6. Self more largely considered and said to be Cogitation or Mind Numb 7. Objections against Cogitation's being the Essence of Self answered Numb 8. God considered more largely and as in himself or essential Attributes Numb 9. The common Notion of Omnipresence false Numb 10. God considered in relation to the Creatures negatively and positively Numb 11. Of the End of God's making things Numb 12. Man's Duty or Religion considered in general Numb 13. The same considered more particularly in Love to God Numb 14. And Love to his Works Numb 15. Love the Foundation of all orderly Behaviour No. 16. The Natural Reason and Sense of the Decâ—logue No. 17. The Goodness and Well-being of the Creaturâ— wherein it consists No. 18. The Ground of Vnhappiness No. 19. The true Notion of Sin and that Sin is a ways an Act and Original Sin as supposâ— distinct from Actual Sin a Mistake the triâ— Notion of it No. 20. The Fall of Man from Innocence naturalâ— known No. 21. The Aggravation or Greatness of Sins Diâ—order No. 22. How the Creature should behave it self on thâ— Conviction of Sin With the Natural Dutâ— of Repentance No. 23. Forgiveness with God apparently discoverabâ—â— by the Light of Nature No. 24. Why God made Creatures capable of Sin No. 25. Free will considered No. 26. What an Arbitrary Command of God and hoâ— reasonable No. 27. All the Commands of God tend to Mans Happiness or Pleasure Disobedience to the contrary neither Obedience nor Disobedience add to or take any thing from God No. 28. That the Creature having once sinn'd is more inclinable to go on sinning than to repent No. 29. Convicted Sinners at first unapt to believe that God will forgive No. 30. The Scope of all God's Dealings with Sinners in order to their Recovery No. 31. Immortality and a future Life discoverable by Reason what Death is and its use since Sin with Arguments for the Immortality of the Soul No. 32. The Resurrection of the Body rationally concluded No. 33. Future Judgment necessary No. 34. Man capable of Repentance and doing his Duty No. 35. The divers Motives and Arguments God has given Men to perswade them to repent and what the compleatest No. 36. Revelation chiefly for enforcing Natural Religion Divers Considerations about Revelation Miracles Faith c. No. 37. Of Christ and his Work No. 38. Of his Person No. 39. All that are saved saved the same way viz. by Christ No. 40. Scripture a Gift of God argued and the need of Revelation No. 41. Some things taught in the World as Doctrines of the Bible not tending to the true End and Scope of Revelation No. 42. As Mistakes about Reconciliation Christ's Death and Sacrifice Propitiation c. No. 43. About Satisfaction No. 44. Mistakes about Punishment God not to be thought the Cause of the Creatures Misery No. 45. Mistakes about Imputation of Sin and Righteousness No. 46. Mistakes about Merit No. 47. About Redemption No. 48. About Intercession No. 49. How the Mediation of Christ becomes â—â—fectual No. 50. Of the Doctrine of Fate or absolute Predestâ—â—nation No. 51. A Reflection on the present State of Christiâ—â—nity 1. THERE are Two Things necessary for Man in order to his attaining the End of his Being To know the Truth And to Will well Or in other words To be Wise and Good As for Knowing the Truth there are two Things wherein this Necessary Wisdom doth chiefly consist The Knowledge of God and the Knowledge of Ones Self And there is one thing wherein Man's Goodness doth consist and that is in the Conformity of his Will to the Will of his Maker to will as God wills The Order of our Knowledge of these two Objects God and Self seems to be this We begin to know our Selves as the Objects of which we are first aware and then we proceed to the Knowledge of God But the Connection of the Knowledg of God and of our Selves is such that we can never know our Selves well tell we arise to the Knowledge of God nor know God as we ought if we know but little of our Selves 2. There are but three Ways I conceive whereby we can have any Knowledge of God our Selves or any thing else 1. By Sense 2. By Reason Or 3. By Revelation By the Knowledge of Sense I do not mean only the Sensation or Perception of Bodies but also and rather the Experience Sense or Conscience we have of our own Thoughts or may have of others All those Notions we have as it were passively received without reasoning and which are as it were the Matter or Ground on which Reason works The second way of Knowledge Reason is the Faculty of arguing or discoursing with our Selves whereby from considering our passive Knowledges or Sensations we arise to get more full Knowledge of things and of what we had no immediate Sensation or Intuition and by getting the Knowledge of some things we proceed by Arguments and get the Knowledge and better Knowledge of others As by considering the Creatures especially our selves we may arise to the knowledge of God and then by considering our Maker we are led back again better to know our selves and from a better knowledge of our selves we get still the clearer knowledge of our Author The third way we may be made acquainted with God our selves or other things viz. Revelation is but as it were a compendious Assistance of the two former An express or particular Instruction from God telling the Creature in short what he would have been either ignorant of or not so soon or easily have known without such an immediate Teaching As for instance What God is and will be found to be what we are ought to
if the Desire to continue be good God is the Cause and Implanter of such a Desire and consequently wills we should have such a Desire I think none can but desire to continue if it were the Will of God we should cease to be the desire to continue would be a Sin but God can't be suppos'd to will we should desire that which he don't will should be that would be to will us to will contrary to his Will Now whatever God wills to continue cannot be supposed to cease If God wills to manifest himself in and to his Creatures to be loved and feared by them he must continue them for by their Cessation all these things will cease and be impossible Every Good Man that loves God would continue to love him it 's God's Will he should love him Can God be suppos'd to make him cease to love his Maker To what purpose Let it but be granted that it is not God's Will I should cease to love him and the Immortality of my Soul is secured for while I love I live viz. mentally Nor can the Evil Man that don't love God nor fear to act contrary to his Will be suppos'd to be for ever or for a long time exempted from the Evils of his Rebellion against his Maker or rendered by God himself uncapable of all Conviction Or can it be thought probable that God should make Creatures to deny him a little while and then cease under so great a Mistake as never to believe and confess God to be their Sovereign Lord and Sufficient Benefactor But if God approve himself and his own Works he will rather continue them and suffer them to make themselves miserable and find they are not God's than not assert himself God one way or other to all his Intelligent Creatures Besides the Soul either of Good or Bad cannot with any reason be suppos'd to cease for a time and then be again for if it cease to be it is not and nothing can be properly affirm'd or deny'd but of that which is Where there is no Being neither Life nor Death can be asserted So that if a Soul cease to be and a Soul be afterwards it cannot be the same but a new one to whom can be charged no account of the ceased Souls past Actions There must be a Continuation of Being or there can be no Identity or Sameness and the Essentials of the thing must remain or there is not the thing but another If there be not a Continuation of Thinking and Conscience of former Thoughts it cannot be conceived how the Sameness of a Mind can be ascertained and if a Soul in this present State be wicked and cease at the Dissolution of the Body it can neither be just nor good that a new one should be miserable because the ceased Soul was unrighteous nor be determined what new one should be so Nor that a Soul penitent in this World should not it self be happy hereafter but have its hopes of future Happiness utterly frustrated and be put off with the Mock-happiness of being happy in another Soul What Encouragement can I have to my Duty if I suppose I must not continue to the Perfection and Happiness of my Obedience but must perish and only now be contented to think that God will create a Soul hereafter and perhaps give it my Dust to be happy because I only began to be holy Or how shall I be deterr'd from Sin if I am perswaded I my self must be discontinued and that it is not I but another Mind that is in danger of everlasting Vexation it may be with my old Body if I now die impenitent When we say a Man is dead if we talk like Rational Creatures we must have some determinate Sense of those words He is dead Who is dead He. The He or Person must remain What is dead Such a thing A Man The thing or Man is tho'dead A Man is a Compound of Soul and Body Or a Mind doing and suffering with or by occasion of an Organical Body A Man's being dead is the Cessation of this manner of Life not of either of the Components Beings or Essential Properties The Body unacted by the Mind is useless among Men and tends to Corruption or Dissolution of parts so the Living put it out of their sight the Soul or Mind is invisible of its self and can neither converse with Men nor Men with it without the use of Body so when separate it is not to Men yet it no way follows but that it may well be to God and to it self which is Being enough But the Soul consider'd apart can have no Dissolution of parts having none to be separated nor can it die otherwise than in a figurative or Metaphorical Sense As it may be said to be morally dead or dead in Sin when it is impenitent and not conformable to its Duty To be Spiritually dead when it thinks not of or is not busied about Spiritual things To be dead to Sin or dead to this World when its disorderly Thoughts or undue Manners of Thinking on earthly vile sordid things cease It may be said to be dead to Joy or Comfort when it has lost all pleasant Thoughts and has only grievous horrid anxious ones without all hope or rest continually and if such a State always continue whether the Soul be separate from or joyned to a Body it is that which is properly call'd everlasting Death Thus I think it is apparent that the Soul is immortal and that which is its proper or natural Life viz. Thinking does not cease Tho' to suppose the Soul immortal of its own Nature or that it is or has any thing in it self which necessarily infers its Continuance would be as great or a greater Error than to fancy it mortal for that would be to suppose it immortal as its Author is But it cannot be suppos'd thus to be immortal for whatsoever had a Beginning or had not Being always may be supposed to have an End and cease to be Such are all Creatures who would fall into nothing if God should not will their Continuance But that he does will them to continue I think we may be perswaded by the foregoing Considerations 32. Moreover we have not only reason to believe that Souls do continue tho' separate from that is disusing their Bodies and such a Life they lived with them but that they shall have their Bodies again after some time because the end of the Souls having a Body cannot easily be thought to be fully attained in this Life This material World seems to be made chiefly for Man to be concern'd with and the things therein to be Objects of his Knowledge and Subjects of his Actions It is by means of his Body that he is now capable of knowing and acting in Bodily Nature but what he knows and does therein is so imperfect notwithstanding all the Wonders that have come within the reach of his Understanding and great things have
been effected by his hand that we believe God will not let him loose his Body or cut the bond of Corporal and Spiritual Nature for ever but rather give it him again and that so alter'd as where-with he may be more capable of all those things he ought to do and be in Bodily Nature The Creatures inferiour to Man and subject to his Knowledge and use are but very little known or duly used in this Life therefore it is probable they will in another and without a Body we cannot see that the material World can signifie any thing to the Mind of Man Man at his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Dissolution probably ceases to be to the BodilyWorld and the Bodily World to him but in his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Resurrection standing up or using a Body again he is again united to Bodily Nature to do and be something again therein And that he may be more capable of what he should be and do than he was in his first State or of finding the great Unreasonableness and Unhappiness of persisting in the contrary to his Duty it is requisite that the Body he receives should be altered or not exactly the same but otherwise modified so as to be capable of the state the Soul is then determined to And if we have reason to believe the Body shall be changed we cannot well think it shall be exactly the same numerical and like figured Parts of Matter it had before such a Supposition is needless as well as groundless if not contradictory The Body a Man of Forty or Fifty has is not the same numerical Matter he had at his Birth but has received the greatest part of its bulk from the various matters of his Food so that he was truly eating from his Trencher what is his Body But every Soul hath its own Body tho' the Body now be in continual change The Matter of the Bodies of Men and Brutes in the long tract of the Ages of this World hath been confounded and the same Matter or part of it that was the Body of one at one time has become the Body or part of the Body of another at another time but that needs not trouble us when the Sameness of a Person does not consist in the Sameness of the Matter of his Body but in the Continuation of his Thinking and Conscience of his Thoughts Nor perhaps have we any ground to suppose the raised Body will be altogether unchangeable it will be enough if to the happy it be such as will never any way hinder their Happiness to the wicked such as will continue tho' in the want of all the disorderly beloved Gratifications of Sense To believe the Possibility of a Soul 's having a Raised or Refitted Body either from the common Matter of the Earth or partly from those very Particles it formerly had is no difficulty when the Will of God is supposed the Cause Nor need we perswade the Possibility of a Recollection of dispersed Matter or tell you that even the Art of Man can gather together that which seems to be separated as much as a rotten Corps There is no manner of Difficulty or Contradiction in believing the Resurrection to those that believe a God The Difficulties that some have pretended in the notion of the Numerical Sameness of every Particle of Matter are nothing when we are no way obliged to believe it such a Resurrection 33. Moreover as all things in this sinful Life are very much out of order and Men do not sufficiently see their Disorders but think well of that which is ill and ill of that which is well It is very requisite and becoming the Perfections of God beseeming his Justice and Truth or his Approbation of his Will to Man and of his Constancy with the Manifestation of the true Causes of all Good and Evil that there should be some time or other after this Life for a time of Discovering Determination Judgment or Declaration of the Truth of things That the Work of Repentance and Obedience may be approved and appear to be good and most profitable for the Creature and Disobedience and Impenitence may be no more mistaken by Sinners for the way of Goodness and Happiness That Justice and Injustice may no more be taken one for the other that the Good may appear to be delivered from the power of the Wicked and the Wicked appear to be the Fools that were deceived And that the Truth of things may be most manifest and the Determination of them clear even to wicked Men it is not only highly probable but necessary that Men shall appear again in such Bodies as whereby they may be known to one another and these things be effected by such a means and in such a manner as may most aptly tend to the undoubted Determination of all things to their due and lasting Condition 34. Now as it is evident that Man's Business is to be conformable to the Will of his Maker according to that order the Most Wise thinks fit wherein his Perfections may be most seen and whereby the Creature may be most happy or pleas'd and since it is as evident that Man has failed and gone out of this order and vainly sought out himself an impossible way of Happiness wherein his Maker cannot be duly seen It follows that Man ought to repent and change his Mind To the doing of which it is necessary that Man should be capable of so doing It cannot be an immediate Obligation on a Creature to do what he cannot do Tho' the Creature has disobey'd yet the Obligation to future Obedience still remains so consequently a Capacity of obeying It would be very hard to be required to give what one has not and cannot have The Difficulty that may seem in several Instances wherein a Man may in some sort render himself uncapable of what he ought to do may be solved by this Consideration That Man cannot be thought to be disabled of a Will or Faculty of Desire While he has a Being he always wills or desires something and his Will is changeable by the strength of Argument or new appearance of Good from one thing to another There are the greatest Arguments on the side of Duty which may possibly appear to the Man whereby his Will may be changed and the willing according to God's Will is the act of Obedience which God accepts where the Soul cannot effect the outward things which are to Men the Testimonies Signs and Effects of it And such hearty Desires continued God often assists to be shewn forth and have their Effects to others or by his Providence some way or other rectifies the matter As for instance If a Man borrows Money spends it and then can't pay it he repents that he has done amiss desires and endeavours to get Money to pay but can't God forgives his Sin wherein he willed amiss accepts of his Will to pay for the deed supplies his Creditor another way or
Lord of all other Beings That at his Word the Heavens and the Earth and all things in them were made and are upheld That he is Good Wise Just True Benign or Merciful c. Besides this Instruction what God is it teacheth us what we are viz. Sinful wretched Fallen Creatures that can have no Good or Happiness in our selves It informs us how we should behave our selves towards God viz. as Dependent things and that we should love him obey him fear to do any thing contrary to his Will trust him or believe him c. and how we should carry it to one another viz. to do as we would be done by that is every one to confer as he is capable towards another's Happiness Having propos'd things to the Understanding Secondly It addeth the Perswasive Part to the Will moving us to behave our selves suitably in the Actings of our Wills to such Truths known by setting before us Good or Evil Profit or Disprofit Pleasure or Displeasure Seemliness or Unseemliness accompanying or consequent on our orderly or disorderly Behaviour Now these things propos'd and urged in these Books as the main Scope and Design of them appear to be of God as they come with evidence of Truth and Goodness such as are agreeable to the Reason of a considerate Man and are seen proper and convenient for the Creatures Will to comply with things beseeming the all-perfect Being to teach and command convenient and profitable for the Creature to learn and obey Which if we consider with our selves and compare with what has been said in the former part of this Book will appear to be the very same Principles and Practice of that we call Natural or Rational Religion which is knowable by the Light of Nature to all Mankind But that these same things may and how far they may be call'd Revelations will appear by considering the Times and Circumstances and Manners of their Delivery Thus if when Men had given up themselves chiefly to the Consideration of sensual Objects and bent their Wills to the disorderly Satisfaction of their Bodily Appetites neglected the due Consideration of their Author and the End of their Being Began to fancy God too much like themselves Had low mean gross Conceptions of him and too high Conceits of Creatures Confounded the Properties of God with those of his Works Gave Divine Honour to Men or any thing they fancied excellent or useful Made Bodily Representations of God and as some represented him by one thing some by another their various and disagreeing Images could not be reconciled so as to be taken all so different for Images of one and the same Being but they began to fancy as many Gods as their differing Conceits had made Images So that Divine Nature was mistaken even as to number uncertain without end And even those who by long Instructions had been brought again to the Belief and Worship of but One God had so far mistaken his Will as to fancy their good Behaviour to him consisted in external Ceremonies supposing that he would be affected with the Slaying of Beasts and pleas'd with a Custom of little Observances as wearing of odd fashion'd Garments keeping of certain Days using divers Gestures c. when at the same time they neglected Justice Judgment Mercy Truth Goodness c. grew corrupt and unreasonable in their Actions even to one another had brought themselves into divers present Miseries and laid a foundation for future Unhappiness to themselves after this Life and to their Posterity yea lived as if they believed there was no future Life If then in such times of Ignorance and Corruption God sent or particularly instructed and sent some one or more to the rest expresly to teach the Truth and command his Will here was a Revelation and a time for the Goodness of God to shew it self in supplying the necessity of blind miserable Sinners when nothing could be more profitable for Man or becoming God than such gracious Discoveries But if these Men also declar'd some things that could not be otherwise known to them than by Divine Inspiration as certain future Events If there accompanied them a Supernatural Power effecting things could no otherwise at least by them be effected here is enough to be call'd Divine Revelation and Miracles And there can no more Scruple remain if we can but be perswaded to believe that the History of the Bible it self is true which is the Second thing to be consisidered And in order to which I think it not unnecessary to lay down some general Considerations about Faith as following Faith is an Assent to a thing as a Truth on the Word of another which we our selves don 't know or see according to that compleat Diffinition thereof Heb. 11.1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the evidence of things not seen or known for Knowledge leaves no room for Faith any more than it does for Hope which is the Desire of what we only believe will be Faith being its only Basis 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Faith is the foundation or ground of things hoped for for where we have no Faith of the real Futurity of a thing there Hope has no ground But Faith if it hath its due Circumstances it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Convictive Argument And tho' Faith and Knowledge are so different that we can no longer properly say we believe a thing when once we can say we know it yet Faith if right is as near to Knowledge as that which is not Knowledge can be and far from that doubtful Supposition call'd Opinion That which is to be believed or assented to as a Truth on anothers Word is either First an Assertion or Affirmation that such or such a thing was is or will be Or Secondly a Promise when the Person on whose Word we rely for the real Futurity of the thing makes us expect it from him as the Cause Now that Faith may be as it ought an Assent indeed to a Truth tho' we don't know it and not the believing a Lye these things we ought to be certain in First that the Person that hath asserted or promised the thing we are to take for a Truth could know it or were not lyable himself to be deceived or can or will be able to do it it being in his power Secondly that he be Trusty or one that will not deceive us As to the Knowledge and Power of the Person that we may be sure he could or might know the thing or can or will be able to do it we must see that the thing is in it self knowable or that it may possibly be a Truth for that which I see absurd contradictory or absolutely impossible to be suppos'd I can never well believe on any one's Word nor could I do so would it be of any use to me Whatever I am to believe must at least seem possible to be a Truth for nothing else can challenge my Faith or be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
of the Conception When we say such a Woman is with Child of a Boy we mean her Child is a Man Child not that a Boy impregnated her Now what is there inconceivable or mystical in all this I admire that any Man should make it a difficulty to believe that God whom they acknowledge to be the Creator as he hath made Seeds to grow in Plants and fall off and increase in the Earth to the due size of Plants as he hath caused Seeds to grow in Man which ejected into their proper place for Nourishment the Matrix of the Woman are informed with a Mind and grow to perfect or due sized Animals fit to be nourish'd another way and so come to be born and act of themselves in the common order of the Creation could not as well if he pleas'd go for once on a special occasion out of his common way in Nature and work a Miracle in the First Production of a Humane Seed or Small Organical Body in a Woman and give it to a Soul of his immediate Producing without the Will of Man Or that this Mind and Organical Body of God's particular making should not be thought to be an Innocent Man free as Adam that he might obey God in overcoming the greatest Temprations That such a Person so produced was really given amongst Men besides the Prophesies of him in the Old Testament for instance that the Seed of the Woman shall bruise the Serpents Head Gen. 3.15 The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee of thy Brethren like unto me unto him shall ye bearken According to all thou desired'st of the Lord thy God in Horeb in the day of the Assembly saying Let me not hear again the Voice of the Lord my God neither let me see this great Fire any more that I die not And the Lord said unto me they have well spoken that which they have spoken I will raise them up a Prophet from among their Brethren like unto thee and will put my Words in his Mouth and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him c. Deut. 18.15 16 17 18 c. and a Virgin shall be with Child and bring forth a Son c. Isa 7.16 See Chap. 11.1 c. Dan. 9.25 26. and Gen. 49.10 Which Texts all deserve to be well considered tho' I omit to recite them at length Besides these Prophesies I say and many more agreeing with his Character Circumstances and Time of Manifestation we have the sufficient Testimony of his Disciples not absurd and contradictory but such as we have endeavoured to shew might well be conceived to be true All which I think is enough to challenge the Belief of any that will give themselves leave to consider Besides the Consideration of Christ's Person as an Innocent Perfectly Obedient Man thus produced and related it was necessary that God should be with him in an extraordinary manner inspiring him with Wisdom enduing him with Authority inflaming him with Love Luk. 2.40 47 42. acting in him who yet acted freely with God as it were his Organ whereby he made known his Will and manifested himself most clearly to Sinners and was as it were conversing amongst them working Miracles by him to convince Men of his special Sonship and Mission which Christ frequently asserted from that Argument of the mighty Works of God wrought by him Which Wonders of Christ were also necessary to perswade the Truth of his Doctrine as received from God especially in that part of it where he taught the Insufficiency of the Levitical External Worship which the Jews were so unapt to believe other than the Will of God or ever to be abolished But tho' Christ taught that which to them seem'd a new way they were inexcusable in not believing him when God concurr'd with real Signs and Wonders which he cannot be thought to do to perswade Falshood so much against his pure Will These Miracles wrought by his means and by his Disciples from his Authority were not only testified by his Disciples but seen and confess'd by many the Opposers of his Doctrine It was necessary I say God should be with him in so extraordinary a Manner who was to be the most Extraordinary Embassadour or Instrument of God And that God was so with him cannot with any reason be doubted if his Friends Testimony and his Enemies Confession of his other Miracles be not enough his Prophesies of so many things exactly fulfilled in relation to himself his Disciples the City of Jerusalem c. methinks are convincing Arguments that he was the Prophet that God had promised a Prophet being to be known to be sent of God by the things coming to pass The Anointed with whom God was in a most special manner and never left him unless so far as to shew that the most Perfect Creature is insufficient in it self and cannot be satisfied or pleased in the withdrawing of the Chearing Presence of God To let it appear that an Innocent Man may be grieved at the Disobedience and Misery of Sinners and not only sympathize with them in their Unhappiness but be afflicted by them not only be greived at their unjust and wicked Doings but suffer from them that Sorrow that in the common course of Nature is occasioned by what may be done to the Body And tho' God left him so far to the Will of the Wicked as that they prevailed to put him to Death whereby we may have occasion to believe that Adam was not invulnerable or naturally immortal before the Fall but by the Grace of God in the Gift of the Tree of Life and his special Providence which on his Obedience would have prevented external Hurts and Death thereby tho' I say God suffered the Wicked to put him to Death on a false Accusation as a Malefactor and he patiently suffered to give us an Example that nothing should deter us from Obedience it was necessary that God should raise him from the dead That as he had chose Death rather than omit his Duty God should crown his Sufferings with a Resurrection to Immortality as a Token that he had regarded his Obedience as perfect that he deserved not Death but Men unjustly laid hands on him and slew him and that their so doing was disapproved of God Which Resurrection of his being the Confirmation of his being the Christ and of his having done his Work so far exactly and that he would in due time finish it wholly his Disciples constantly witnessed as having seen him and convers'd with him Forty days after his Suffering and the Jews and Romans having heard it said he would rise again after three days taking strict care to watch the Sepulchre least there should be any cheat in the matter so that there can be no rational doubt of it It is very easie to be sure a Man is put to Death and as easie to know he is alive if many Persons see and hear him
less esteem of what is uncontroverted the Sum and Substance End and Design thereof Nor have we any reason since we may read the Book it self to look upon the Bible as it is most abused and deform'd by Expositors who if we were to take it from them have represented it to us but as a contradictory or confused Rule 41. For we find many things taught by them who take upon them to expound the Scripture as Doctrines clearly express'd as they say therein that have not only no apt Tendency to the Great End the Love of God and Man but some of them naturally tend or incline to the contrary Which Consideration bringeth me to the last thing I designed to speak to the last Stumbling block I shall endeavour to take out of the Deists way viz. The Consideration of divers Doctrines now confidently taught as Orthodox and main Points of Christian Faith which to render Christianity more reasonable more like it self I shall not only readily disown but endeavour to shew that they cannot reasonably be thought to be Doctrines of the Gospel necessary to Christianity or True That they cannot be accounted for or proved Points of a Rational Faith or truly deduced from the Bible But are Mistakes taken up through Prejudice from Tradition and confirm'd by mistaken Texts of Scripture It being an Evil but common Custom among Men to take up Opinions before they carefully read the Scripture or consider the Agreement or Disagreement of things and then to labour to make the Scripture prove and confirm them endeavouring to bring Scripture to their unreasonable Opinions when they should rather have brought their Opinions from Scripture and Reason Scripture so understood as to be reconcileable to it self and to Right Reason And as this word reconcileable brings into my Mind the notion of Reconciliation which I take to be misunderstood by many I shall first begin with that Point and endeavour to shew the Mistakes about it 42. It is the fancy of some that Christ has reconciled God to Sinners Let us a little consider the matter Reconciliation is a making Friends of some or other at variance When there is Disagreement Enmity or Hate in a Person that did agree love and was a Friend the taking away or changing these for Agreement Friendship and Love is properly Reconciliation Now to say that Christ hath reconciled God to us is as much as to say God was a Friend and did love Man but then became an Enemy and hated him and then was made a Friend and loved him again But this can with no good reason be said of God because he is unchangeable and these things imply a Change Foolish Men are very apt to look upon God to be such a one as themselves now willing one thing then another now angry then pleas'd because they find themselves so But such things are Imperfections incompatible with a Self-sufficient Being God has properly no Passions must be confess'd tho' Men do commonly speak of him as if he had and he is in Scripture so represented sometimes after the manner of Men. But he is the same still has the same Will the same Love to whatever is his own and cannot have less He represents himself as he is hating Sin or that unjust and unhappy Action of the Creatures willing contrary to its Maker's Will but he never hates the Creature his own Work but loves it He cannot be suppos'd to be reconciled to Sin he never loved or can love Injustice To suppose him so reconciled as to approve like or allow Sin in his Creature would be to suppose him to will Evil or contrary to his own Will And he is not reconciled to his Creature because he was never deconciled or an Enemy to it His Goodness and Bounty is over all his Works he is always ready to do Good to his Creatures and make them happy it is they that are Enemies to him and to themselves and to their own Happiness A Man that runs into a Cave and hides himself from the Light and Warmth of the Sun and is perswaded at length to come out and receive the Benefit of its Heat and Splendour may as well say the Sun was angry with him and his his Face and withheld his Beams but now is reconciled to him and shines on him again as to fancy that the Ever-overflowing-fountain of Good withholds his Streams from the Works of his hands He is the most loving Father that is always ready to do Good to his Children but they Rebellious will not always receive it Therefore we may boldly nay we must on good Consideration say that whatever Christ hath done and suffered does not make God any more willing Sinners should obey him or be saved than he was before If he could at any time will Sinners not to obey him he might be suppos'd not to will them to be saved but to will Sinners not to obey him is all one as to will his Will to be done and not done at the same time which is a Contradiction We find foollish Men commonly representing God as one full of Wrath Anger Hatred to his poor silly Fallen Creatures severe furious and hard to be appeas'd but Christ as one full of Love Mercy Pitty Good-will to Sinners but we must not think God to have less Love Goodness Mercy c. than Christ that would be unreasonable when there can be no less than an Infinite Distance between God and the most Perfect Creature in Goodness Mercy Kindness and all Perfections yea as much as God is above Man so much greater must we think is the Mercy Goodness and Love of the Father to Sinners than that of the Son who is but the Image of him that is greater than all God so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life The Love of God was the Cause of Christ's both Sonship and Mission and the Cause must be greater than the Effect God could have no external Cause or Motive to love us but loveth us freely for he is Love which can be said of no Second No Man hath greater Love than Christ for he laid down his Life for us even while we were Enemies but he had a Motive to Love greater than from himself viz. his Duty to obey and imitate God his Father Moreover if God has commanded all Sinners to repent believe and be saved he must be supposed to will that they should do so or he deceives them which cannot be admitted If he wills them to repent and be saved he is not their Enemy but their Friend What then you will say did Christ come to reconcile I say with the Scripture to reconcile us to God who were Enemies to him by wicked Works to reconcile us to our best Friend and Father from whom we had gone astray and been prodigal Sons to reconcile us to our Duty yea to our own Happiness which can no way
Torments But I do not believe that those Torments or Pains and Diseases in this life are inflicted or caused by God's Immediate Hand but are the Work and Procurement of Sinners according to that Jer. 2.19 Thine own Wickedness shall correct thee c. God can I think be no more the Cause of the Creatures Misery than of its Sin otherwise than as he is the Cause of the Creatures being capable thereof so that the Creature could neither sin nor sorrow if God had not made it a Creature Let us endeavour to clear this matter if possible that I may not be thought by all Men grosly mistaken to hold so great a Paradox as that God does not punish for Sin There are two sorts of Evils the Creature is capable of Sin and Misery or rather Sin and Displeasure which though we call two are in many Respects the same That God should be the Cause of Sin few will in words tho' many do in consequence affirm and I think I have said enough before to convince them both But Displeasure or Misery most Men I meet with esteem God the Cause of to the Creature In the Consideration of Misery we have First The Want of Good or Pleasure Secondly The Presence of Evil or Displeasure First As to the Want of Pleasure It is certain God made Intelligent Creatures capable of Intense and perpetual Pleasure and Satisfaction but if the Creature has it not it is not God's fault It was impossible the Creature should have continual Happiness or Pleasure as God has it viz. independently in it self or by its own Will as its own oppos'd to the Will of God God could make it no more than a Creature and so the Creature must needs be satisfied by its Creator But if the Creature turns from God and sets up a Will against him he must needs want Satisfaction when through Creature-Impotence he can't have his Will God's Will not concurring with his and when through Creature-Folly he has willed what was not best for him and finds it so So that if the Creature wants any Pleasure or Good it is because he has turned from it or left it or at least has some other Sinners hindering it or taking it from him by their Sin for even the Innocent as Christ was being Creatures may suffer by the Sins of others But the presence of this Evil of Displeasure may farther be considered under two Heads 1st Displeasure merely mental 2dly Displeasure or Pain by the occasion of the Body both of them in their center are nothing but discontented or uneasie Thoughts a Consideration or Apprehension of something against ones Will. Now as to the first If I desire that which is contrary to the Order of the Creation unfit to be and cannot have it and therefore am foolishly discontent angry fret rage c. it is not God that makes me do so No the disorderly Desire is a Sin something against God's Will therefore God don't will it To will something against God's Will is a Sin and to be angry and fret and rage because we can't have our disorderly Will is a farther Aggravation of the Sin a stronger Will against God's Will therefore God can't cause or will it that were to cause Sin so that God cannot be suppos'd the Cause of the Mental Unhappiness or Displeasure God has given Man a very large desire but for what that it should be crossed because he is but a Creature and can't be God No but that it may be satisfied in the way it possibly can viz. by its Maker in the compliance with his Will in the excellent Order of the Creation that Man willing what God wills viz. that which is good and so to be doneby God's Power may be very happy But as to those uneasie Thoughts we have or may have by occasion of the Body which go under the name of Pain and Disease there seems more difficulty to excuse God's hand from being the Giver But I think if we consider it may soon appear that God is no more the Cause of all the Conditions or the Actual Existence of this Misery than of that Discontent Sinners have when they have not their foolish Wills in other things The Connection of the Body with the Mind without which such Sensations are not probably thought to be in the Mind is to be ascribed to God as the cause The manner of this Union of Soul and Body is Use the Mind desires to use the Body acts upon it by and with it and receives divers Ideas or Thoughts of Body by occasion of it God's Will is indeed the Bond of this Union he wills that the Mind should desire to use its Body gives the Mind power to move it and to do divers things in Bodily Nature by it and causes that when such and such Conditions are in the Body the Mind should have such and such Ideas or Thoughts pleasing or displeasing But as I said before of Sin God made Man capable of Sin not that he might sin so God made Man capable of displeasing Thoughts by means of the Body not that he might have them as the end of the Capacity but that he might as much as possible avoid the least thing that tends to the spoiling or disordering of the Body with which he is to act a Part for a time When there are the Conditions of Pain or Disease God in his general Law in Nature wills Pain or discontented Thoughts should follow and so this Discontent in it self is not sinful but God is not the Cause of the Application of the Conditions but the Sinner himself or some other Sinner for him When there is such and such a Body abus'd and unduly apply'd to Man's Body the Mind presently is uneasie as at the approach of some Enemy but this Uneasiness was not the end God caused in Man such a Sensibility but that Man might be the more affected with the pleasing Sensations he has made him capable of by avoiding at the first touch all things that tend to remove the Conditions of Pleasure that he might sooner be warned so than he could by Consideration God made Man exquisitely sensible that he might be capable of Pleasure even by having a Body and not be as it were imprison'd against his Will and whenever the Conditions of Pleasure are present God fails not to cause that Sensation tho' under Circumstances where the Creature acts against his Will So on the contrary But Man has a power given him to use or abuse things and it is one part of his business in this World to do all those things that tend to keep his Body most in health and ease that he may be the more capable of the chief part of his work which does not relate only to this Life but that which is to come viz. the rectifing his Thoughts in order to his greatest and lasting Happiness But to bring the matter near the eye if possible take this instance Fire tends to
depends on its Capacity of Knowledge and Circumstances it is then naturally in or how far it is liable to be mistaken in it self or impos'd upon by such Agents as will certainly as much as they can deceive it and when and where and how far God will permit or interpose by his special Acts of Information and Perswasion But that God should decree absolutely or will any Evil is an Opinion so full of Absurdities yea and in its tendency so apt to over-throw all Religion that no single probability or other difficulty can perswade a considerate Man to believe it therefore I think I need say no more in this matter 51. And now after all these Considerations I cannot but reflect and consider with Grief the miserable State of Christianity and the Professors thereof as well as of the rest of Mankind of the generality of those that call themselves the Reformed and Protestants as well as of the Papists between whom I can see but very little difference they agree so much still in many the same Unreasonable Doctrines as the Fundamentals of Religion as well as consent in the like wicked Practices as the Upholders and Effects of those Doctrines How much is the World and many the highest Pretenders to Religion in it alienated and changed from True Religion and the Scope and Design thereof in its Primitive Purity and Plainness How much more busie and concern'd are Men in contriving and contending for idle and uncertain Speculations and Niceties than in doing the plain undoubted and necessary Duties of the Gospel Natural Religion or the Practice of Love Goodness Mercy Brotherly Kindness Patience Meekness Humility Truth c They seem much more intent in considering according as every ones Fancy and Education leads him how Men are or may be saved or not saved than in working out their own or in furthering other Mens Salvation Whilst they place the main business in hitting the right notion how Salvation is wrought and in this they are also commonly mistaken they labour very little in conforming to the easily known Will of God according to the Precepts and Pattern he hath given us in the Man Christ Jesus whose pure holy Life seems hard and uneasie to the Rebellious Will but to be saved in the Theory is look'd upon now as more pleasant and desireable And how apt are Men now a-days to judge and condemn one another and that merely on the account of their Differences even in their idle Speculations in which Censures some are so ridged that they will hardly allow any but themselves and a few whose Noses are just of the same length and fashion to have smell'd out the way of Happiness or to be fit for Christian Brotherly Communion with them But we will not be afraid to affirm That whosoever truely loves God and his Neighbour shall certainly be saved or happy nay is pass'd from Death to Life Whosoever does not cannot be happy till he does tho' he may have the finest yea the best System of Divinity in his Head Tho' he have all Faith even to remove a Mountain of Contradictions to believe the greatest Mysteries Absurdities or Nonsense imaginable That one pure simple Act and Habit of Child-like Love to God is really more influencing to persevering Obedience and pleasing to God than the most Catholick Orthodoxy in the World He more truely knows God even by experience that loves him tho' but a Child than the most eloquent and subtile Teacher in the World that does not love But I am afraid nay I think I need not question it that the life of Religion is very much eat out and weakned by those many unreasonable Doctrines Whilst we have it taught either implicitly or expresly That God is the Author of Evil. One that made the greatest part of the Creation for that very end to be inevitably miserable for ever and consequently that they must needs be and continue Sinners to make them so That he is one that loves the Miseries of his Creatures and takes such pleasure in their Pains that he will bear with their Rebellion for ever rather than not have them unhappy That he made the most of them on purpose to shew his Power and Sovereignty in their everlasting Disorders Yea that that little number that he is said to be dearly hired and hardly perswaded to spare are continually afflicted with one Mischief or other from his hand tho' they are seeking him and crying after him continually he is not so ready to hear but often hides himself from them And yet that tho' this little number is sohardly saved they are infallibly sure of Salvation do or not do what they will Who would not rather be astonished and confounded and render'd inactive than influenced to love and obey God by these Doctrines When farther I am told that I cannot keep God's Commandments but that Christ hath keept them for me consequently my keeping them is not so necessary if suppos'd possible and God reckons Christ's Perfect Righteousness to be mine and I am perfect in him tho' I am not like minded all is done for me without me if I can but believe that is fancy so Ah but my Heart misgives me may one that considers say I fear that if Christ hath done all for me without me he will be happy also for me without me and I shall go to Heaven but by Proxy Who will be humbled before God and thankful for his free Beneficence and Forgiveness when we are perswaded that Christ hath purchased it at a full rate of him by his Doings yea and Sufferings for us and we may demand Happiness of God as our due But I fear many such Confidents will be put off with I know you not Nay how do we acknowledge God just and good and ready to forgive when we are perswaded that tho' he does not satisfie himself in punishing us for our Sins yet he will have them punished somewhere or other and rather than any where in the most Innocent Man Jesus on whom they say he laid all the Punishment or Misery due for the Sins of all Men and yet nevertheless most of them are damn'd and all of them die and that he reckon'd him guilty of others Sins tho' he were not so O Justice how unjustly hath the Malice of the Adversary represented the Fountain of Goodness and Justice But what shall the Generality of Mankind do What Encouragement shall they have to their Duty How shall they be stir'd up to seek Life and Happy Immortality especially the poor Convinced Souls that cannot get up so high as to read their Names in the Eternal Decree of Life or see yet much of the Effects thereof in themselves When they are told unless they are of that little number Christ has made Satisfaction for and ten thousand to one whether they be or no all their Repentance is in vain and their best Works are Sins in the sight of God tho' perhaps splendid Ones When they are taught that greater Goodness Justice Mercy Truth c. in one Man is less acceptible to God than much less in another and so God a Respecter of Persons Supposing I cannot perswade my self as I think all Predestinarians do that I am one of the Elect or do not believe that God has absolutely decreed either to save or damn any I am nevertheless convinced of my Sin and Duty as the way of Unhappiness or Happiness and would fain be happy Shall not I do my Duty on a Fancy that God has not decreed the Event or must I despair in it the former were but Madness the latter a miserable Condition But I must leave these things to the Thoughts of the Considerate and to them I would propose this Question What has been the reason that no more of Mankind have embraced Christianity and where has the fault been I think surely Original Goodness has not hinder'd nor has the fault been in the Christian Religion it self or in the want of the Love of Happiness in Mankind I believe you must confess that the generality of its Professors have discredited Christianity and given the World a false Draught or Picture thereof Till which is mended what hopes can we have of the Conversion to Christianity of those who have not from their inconsiderate years its Deformed Doctrines impos'd upon them and the disagreeing Lives of its Professors recommended to them What Expectations can we have of convincing Jews Turks and Pagans when not only the above-named Doctrines and an hundred more perhaps have represented Christianity as full of Contradictions and Absurdities and unsuitable to the Condition and Nature of Man But we even seem to differ in our Notions whether there be One or More Objects of Divine Worship insomuch that if those that have not yet embraced Christianity were to hear our Discourses and Forms of Worship they could not I believe but think that a great part of Christians believe and worship more Gods than One and even enjoin such a Faith and Practice upon pain of Damnation yea some of them having no better Arguments urge it by the Rack of Persecution while their Lives also are as different from Unity in pure Christian Morality Which now adays is distinguish'd from Religion O Times and a Moral Man is spoken of with Contempt in comparison with the Religious as a different Person But I must confess I look upon nothing as a Doctrine of Christianity or think can reasonably be represented as such or proved so to be by Scripture which does not naturally tend to promote Morality or Influence to those Good Manners which become our relation to God and which are convenient and profitable towards the true Interest of Mankind I would that Men would once come to try Doctrines by their natural Inferences and Tendencies then I should hope Truth would more appear But I must here conclude tho' I have been very short on every Particular I have been discoursing as unable now to write all I could wish to say of the Natural of the True Christian and of our Laodicean Religion promising my Reader an Answer to what he shall rationally object against whatever has been said in this Discourse and therewith a fuller Demonstration of things if God give me Life and Opportunity supposing that my whole Life must be spent in labouring against our common Errors if the Appearance of Christ don't bring on their Period sooner FINIS