Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n
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A61625
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A sermon preached before the King & Queen at White-Hall on Christmas-Day, 1693 by the Right Reverend Father in God, Edward Lord Bishop of Worcester.
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Stillingfleet, Edward, 1635-1699.
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1694
(1694)
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Wing S5665; ESTC R8161
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16,121
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37
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take no Notice of them and on the other side to insist too much upon them were to make them appear much more considerable than they are Therefore I shall pass over all the Trifling and Impertinent Talk of such Men which is not whispered in Corners but I am afraid is become a Matter of too Common and Publick Discourse and I shall single out that which seems to have the greatest Weight in it viz. Suppose God should have an Intention to offer Terms of Salvation to Mankind yet what need was there that the Son of God should come into the World for that End Had not God easier Methods of doing it than by the Incarnation and Crucifixion of his Son Is it not more Credible that God should forgive Sins without any Attonement than that he should send his Son to be a Sacrifice of Propitiation to himself Is it not enough for us to believe all the Principles of Natural Religion to be true for we own a God and Providence and a Life to come and Rewards and Punishments of Mankind according to the Nature of their Actions but why should our Faith be cramp'd by such incredible Mysteries as these concerning the Son of God's coming into the World in such a manner as the Evangelists describe it This is so far from being a Kindness to the World that it makes the Condition of Salvation so much harder if we must believe things which seem so impossible to us and so hard to be reconciled to the Natural Principles of Reason and Religion I shall not dispute it with such Men whether these late Pretenders to Natural Religion have at the bottom any real kindness for the Principles of it or not I am willing to hope the best and that it is a meer Dissatisfaction in them as to our Revealed Religion and that this pretended Zeal for Natural Religion is little more than a meer Sham and Disguise to avoid a more odious Imputation But let it be as great and real as they pretend what I at present undertake is to make it appear That none who do embrace the Principles of Natural Religion can have any Reason to reject the Christian even as to this Article of God's sending his Son into the World which they seem most to stumble at I shall not go about to shew how the Christian Religion not only Supposes but Improves Refines Establishes and Enforces the most noted and allowed Principles of Natural Religion as to the Being of God and Providence the most Agreeable way of Worship the Nature and Kinds of Moral Duties the Rewards and Punishments of another World since no one of common Sense can deny that the Christian Religion is very Exact and Particular in these things above any other Institution in the World And therefore I cannot but in passing take notice that I do not remember any one Institution in the World with respect to Religion except that which we have by Revelation which hath not some notorious Blunders in it as to the Principles of Natural Religion and Vertue and therefore they have far less Reason to quarrel with Christianity than any other Religion if their quarrel were not really against all as I fear it is Let them look abroad over the unchristian World and they will find such foolish Notions such vain Superstitions such incoherent Fables such immoral Practices allowed by their several Religions as would make a considering Man wonder how the Notion of Religion could be so debased among Men. Let them look backward upon the Passages of elder Times and they shall find either they set up false Gods with the true or the false Worship of the true God or a Worship disagreeable to the Divine Nature by mean Representations or uncouth Sacrifices or impure Rites or else there were some horrible Flaws as to the Common Principles of Morality as to Conjugal Society or the Rights of Property or the due Regard to the Preservation of Mankind or they give such a pitifull Representation of the Rewards and Punishments of another Life as if they had a Mind to have them look'd on as Fables or despised as unworthy our regarding them above the present Pleasures of Life But I dare challenge the most Cavilling Sceptick to find any just Fault with the Duties of Christianity For the Worship of God required therein is Pure Holy Spiritual very agreeable to the Divine Nature and the common Reason of Mankind The Moral Precepts of it are clear weighty and comprehensive And those who have delivered them to us neither commend any Vice nor sink the Reputation of any Vertue they never lessen our Duties to God or to one another all the just Complaint is that the Precepts are too strict and severe too good and too hard for Mankind to practise them But is this an Objection against our Religion or against Mankind If they think that let our Religion require what it will the generality of the World will still live and act like Brutes and go against all Reason and Religion how can we help it But we hope the blame is not to be laid on Reason or Religion that so great a part of Mankind are either Fools or Mad-men i. e. either want Sense to understand their Duty or are resolved not to Practise it Especially considering that the Rewards and Punishments of another Life are set forth in the Gospel with that Clearness that Force that Authority that if any thing of that nature would work upon Mankind these must But all these things I pass over and come to that which I proposed as my chief Design which is to prove That none who truly believe the Principles of Natural Religion can have any Reason to reject this Fundamental Article of it as to God's sending his Son into the World And that upon two Accounts I. That the Principles of Natural Religion make this Design appear very Credible or fit to be believed by Men of Sense and Understanding II. That the Principles on which this Fundamental Article of our Revealed Religion stands afford sufficient Evidence to prove it True and therefore that we are bound to Believe it As to the former the Grounds or Principles which I go upon are these I. That the great End of Christ's coming into the World viz. the Salvation of Mankind is most agreeable to the Infinite Wisdom and Goodness of God No one who believes a God can deny him to be of Infinite Wisdom and Goodness for the very same Reasons which move Men to believe a God do convince them that he must be of Infinite Wisdom and Goodness seeing the strongest Evidences to prove his Being are from the Instances of them in the World These being then supposed as essential and inseparable Attributes of the Divine Nature we are to consider what End with Respect to Mankind is most agreeable to these to carry on and we must suppose Mankind to be made up of Soul and Body which are capable of Pleasures and Satisfaction both
there have been Mistakes and Disputes about some things accounted Good and Evil is as Absurd as to say there is no Difference between Day and Night because in the Twilight it is hard to distinguish them But if there be such a real Difference in the Nature of Human Actions and God be a strict Observer of them he being a God of Infinite Holiness and Justice cannot but be offended with Mankind's wilfull Omission of what they know to be Good and Commission of what they know to be Evil. But here we must distingush between God's Displeasure against the Actions and against the Persons who commit them The former is a Necessary Consequent upon the Evil of Sin and can never be removed for God is irreconcileable to Sin But those who commit Sin are his Creatures and therefore Capable of Mercy and Forgiveness There is always a Desert of Punishment following upon Sin but there is no inseparable Connection between the Sin and the Punishment for the great and wise Governor of the VVorld acts not by Necessity of Nature in punishing Sinners but by the Methods of VVisdom and Justice And if the saving of Sinners upon their Repentance can be made agreeable to these such is the Mercy and Goodness of God to his Creatures that there is great Reason to hope for a Reconciliation For although God be displeased he is not implacable although he be justly provoked to punish Sinners yet there is no Absolute Necessity that he should nor any irreversible Decree that he will do it and therefore notwithstanding this Displeasure of God there is a way still left open for Reconciliation which leads to the next IV. The Fourth Principle is That if God be thus displeased with the Sins of Mankind and yet there is a Possibility of Reconciliation between God and them He alone is the most proper and competent Judge on what Terms this Reconciliation may be obtained For being both the Offended Party and the Supreme Governor he hath the sole Right on both Accounts of fixing those Terms and Conditions upon which he will forgive Sins and receive the Offenders into Favour It is a vain thing for any to argue from one Attribute of God against another Some are apt to flatter themselves that God will easily forgive Sins because he is Mercifull but they ought to consider that he is Just and Holy as well as Mercifull and there is as much ground to fear that he will not forgive because he is Just as there can be to hope that he will because he is Mercifull And thus it is impossible for a considering Man to satisfie his own Mind as to God's forgiving his Sins unless he be some way assured from himself that he will do it And therefore a particular Revelation in this case must be made if God designs to bring Men to Repentance by the Hopes of Forgiveness But meer Repentance can never make any satisfaction to God for the Breach of his Laws Suppose a Sinner comes to himself and is heartily sorry that he hath Offended God so many ways and with such aggravating Circumstances as he hath done and now resolves in the Anguish of his Soul never more to return to the Practice of them This no doubt is far more pleasing to God than going on to offend still but all this is no more than a man in justice to God and to himself is bound to doe for he is bound to vindicate the Honour of God's Laws and to condemn himself for his own Folly and to return no more to the Practice of it But what Amends is made by all this for the infinite Dishonour which hath been done to God and his Laws by the Violation of them The Courts of Justice among Men take no Notice of the Malefactors Repentance however he be affected the Law must be observed and Offenders punished How then can any persons be assured from meer Natural Reason that God will not be as tender of the Honour and Justice of his Laws as Mankind are allowed to be without any imputation of Cruelty or Injustice If God should be exact in punishing Offenders who could complain For who can plead Not-Guilty before his Maker And when a man 's own Conscience condemns him that he hath deserved Punishment what reason can he have from himself not to expect it And if he doth justly expect to be punished what reason can he have to hope for Forgiveness Since he knows that he deserves to be punished and therefore can never deserve to be Forgiven It must be therefore a Free Act of Grace and Mercy in God to forgive even Penitent Sinners and upon what Terms and in what Manner he will do it depends wholly upon his own Good Will He may forgive Sins if he pleases and it is agreeable to his Nature to do it if Sinners do Repent and Forsake their Sins but whether God hath actually made known to us the Way of Reconciliation cannot be known by any Principles of Nature because it is a matter of Fact and must have such Proof as a thing of that Nature is capable of II. Having thus shewed how strongly the Principles of Natural Religion do make way for entertaining this point of the Christian Doctrine as to God's sending his Son into the World in order to our Reconciliation with him and our Salvation by him it remains now to shew how justly God doth require the Belief of it from us as True for the next words tell us That he that believeth on him is not condemned but he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God v. 18. This some may say is very hard Doctrine for they believe as much as they can and if they can believe no more it is no fault for no man can be bound to believe more than he can I do not question but Nicodemus to whom these words are generally supposed to be spoken by our Saviour thought he had gone a great way when he used those words to Christ v. 2. Rabbi we know that thou art a Teacher come from God for no man can do these Miracles that thou dost except God be with him i. e. He was willing to believe him some great Prophet whom God had sent and this was a fair step for a Ruler among the Jews who were generally very unreasonable Unbelievers But Christ tells him plainly this would not do for unless he believed him to be the only begotten Son of God he could not be saved And this is the great Point That God so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life v. 16. Not as though meer Believing this were sufficient for this carries a great many other things along with it but that since God had sent his only begotten Son into the World upon such a Message he did expect that he should be received and