be bleffed, Pfal. lxxii. 17. i. e. by the power of the Redeemer, grace fhall be conferred upon them here, and glory hereafter: power being given him over all flesh, that he might give eternal life to as many as were given him of the Fa

ther.

$10. Many Scriptures, which affert the neceffity of faith, would, if duly confidered, acquaint us what is its nature and object.

It is faid, John iii. 16. "God fo loved the "world, that he gave his only begotten Son, "that whofoever believeth in him, fhould not "perish, but have everlafting life." If we attentively view this verfe, and the rest of our Lord's difcourfe with Nicodemus, it will appear, that we must believe on Chrift, confidered as God's only begotten Son, who, as fuch, was in heaven, even when he had come down from it; and yet as alfo the Son of man : as lifted up on a cross for the cure of our spiritual maladies : and as the gift of the Father's love to a wretched perifhing world, the Father having constituted him Redeemer in the council of peace, 2 Tim. i. 9. Acts ii. 23. fent him into the world in the fulness of time, to affume man's nature, and obey and fuffer for man, Ifa. ix. 6. Jo. vi. 32. and having actually delivered him up to death as an atonement for our fins, Rom. viii. 32.

It is faid, John iii. 36. "He that believeth on "the Son hath everlafting life." The remainder of John's fermon fhews, that we must believe on Jefus as the Bridegroom of the church; as one that comes from heaven and is above all; as one whom God hath fent, who fpeaketh the words of God, and to whom God giveth not the Spirit by measure; and as the Son of God,

whom the Father loves, and into whofe hands he

hath given all things.

John vi. 47. "He that believeth on me, hath "everlasting life;" i. e. as appears from the context, he that believeth on me as the bread of God, which came down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world; he that believeth me not only willing to fave all that come to me, but fo able that none fuch fhall fail of complete falvation.

Acts xiii. 38. "By him all that believe are "juftified." Here, as the connection fhews, believing means a perfuafion, that through the blood and merits of Chrift, the chief of finners may be pardoned and accepted.

Acts xxvi. 18. "Sanctified by faith that is in "me;" i. e. by a perfuafion of the truth chiefly preached by the apoftles, of which we have a comprehenfive abftract, ver. 23. "That Chrift "fhould fuffer, and that he fhould be the firft "that should rife from the dead, and fhould "fhew light unto the people and to the Gen"tiles."

Rom. iii. 21-26. faith is evidently reprefented as a believing, that through Chrift's blood and righteousness God may be juft, in justifying men who have finned, and come fhort of his glory. And that a perfuafion of Chrift's death, as an atonement for fin, is effential to faving faith, is ftrongly intimated, John i. 29. Gal. ii. 20.

§ 11. One thing further I would obferve, that believing in Chrift, neceffarily supposes, a believing that mankind by their rebellions against God, had merited the fevereft effects of his difpleasure; were unable to fatisfy divine juftice for their offences, or to cure their natural depra

vity; and were unworthy of the divine pity and help; fo that their falvation is wholly to be afcribed, to the free mercy of God, and to the blood and obedience of Jefus. God's fending his Son to be the Saviour of the world, demonftrates, that the world was in a perifhing condition, and without this amazing interpofition muft have actually perished. And this again demonftrates the infinite evil of fin, and the eternal and unalterable obligations men are under to love and ferve God. To one infenfible, that the law of God is holy, juft, and good, and that his violations of that law deserve the moft dreadful punishment, the tidings of a Saviour will appear an infult, not a favour. And the fufferings of that Saviour, in the room of finners, will lead fuch a one, instead of admiring the tremendous justice and spotlefs purity of God, to fufpect him of cruelty, whofe tender mercies are over all his other works. Mr. Glafs juftly obferves, Teftimony, c. 5. §.3. That without a work of the law upon their confciences, men will flight the glad tidings of falvation.

§ 12. But I pretend not to collect a lift of the truths, which it is evident from Scripture, faving faith either directly affents to, or neceffarily fuppofes. It is for wife reafons, no fuch lift is contained in the facred oracles. It might have proved a fatal temptation to many, to reft content, with fome general belief of thefe firft principles of the oracles of God, instead of growing in the knowledge of Jefus Chrift. For the fame reason, the Bible tells us not, though many divines have attempted to tell us, how near we may approach the borders of wicked nefs without committing it, or how far we may be overcome by fin and fatan,

and

and yet retain a principle of grace. The filence of the Scripture, is a fpur to diligence and advancement in religion, and a warning to pass the time of our fojourning here in fear.

§ I. BUT

SECTION III.

are there not names given to faith, in various paffages of Scripture, that import choice, affection, and other operations of the will?-This has been taken for granted. How far upon fufficient grounds, I am now to enquire.

Faith is reprefented as hearing Chrift, or the words or voice of Chrift, Deut. xviii. 15. Pfal. xviii. 45. Prov. i. 33. Ifa. xlix. 1. lv. 3. John v. 24, 25. Without doubt every believer hears the voice of Chrift calling him to the exercise of devout affections, and a correfpondent practice. But that voice of the fupreme Wisdom (c), the heavenly Bridegroom (d), the good Shepherd (e), which was to call nations hitherto ignorant of true religion (f), yea, to quicken the dead and call the things that are not, as tho' they were (g), is no other than the glad tidings that the Father hath fent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. This is the joy and gladnefs which David prays he might be made to hear, Pfal. li. 8. Faith hears, i. e. credits thefe declarations of God's mercy through Chrift in the written word, and in the preached gofpel. Clemens Alexandrinus

(c) Prov. i. 20. viii. 1, 4. (e) John x. 3, 16.

(f) Ifa. lv. 5.

(d) Cant. ii. 8. (g) Rom.

iv. 17.

juftly

justly obferves, Strom. 1. 5. c. 1. that faith is the ear of the foul, and that Homer uses hearing for perceiving. Odys. C. ver. 186.

§ 2. Receiving Chrift, where it is put for faith, is nothing else than receiving the gospel-teftimony concerning Chrift. In almoft all languages, the metaphor of receiving, is often applied to hearing, learning, believing. Thus Hefychius de viris dotirina claris, p. 13. ως ένιοι παρακόσαντες εξεδέξαντο. Virgil. Eneid. II. 65. Accipe nunc Danaum infidias. Sulpicius Severus, Dial. I. pag. 428. "A beato viro Joanne verbum falutis ac"cepit." The fame phrafeology, is ufed both in the Old and New Teftament, Prov. i. 3. ii. 1. iv. 10. Matth. xi. 14. Acts xvii. 11. 1 Cor. xi. 23. xv. I, 3. Gal. i. 9. Philp. iv. 9. And faith is exprefsly defcribed as a receiving God's teftimony concerning his Son, John iii. 32, 33. 1 John v. 9. As a gladly receiving Peter's words, Acts ii. 41. And as receiving the word of God, Acts xi. 1.

Receiving Chrift therefore, John i. 11, 12. is a receiving him as the light of the world, ver. 4-9. which he was chiefly by his death and fufferings, as by these he witneffed to and manifefted the truth, in a manner peculiar to himself, as the Son of God and Saviour of men.

John v. 43. 66 I am

come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not." The meaning is, ye do not believe and acknowledge my dvine commiffion to fave finners. For our Lord proceeds to fhew, ver. 44-47. why they believed not his words, which would not have been to his purpose, if believing his words and receiving him had not meant one and the fame thing. I

Our