be believed, as it is revealed by God; whether it comes with the true marks of his authority, and hath him really for it's author. For, our accepting of any thing as revealed by God, must be grounded upon evidence that it comes from him. And when by proper arguments we are convinced of the divine authority of the revelation, reafon affifts us in difcerning the true and genuine sense of such a revelation, and helps us to apply general rules contained in it, to all manner of special cafes whatsoever: and when we are fatisfied that a doctrine is revealed by God, though it is above the reach of our understanding; yet we have the strongest and most cogent reason in the world to believe it: because God is infinitely wife and all-knowing, and therefore cannot be deceived; and being infinitely good, we may be fure he will not deceive us. Thus we are conducted to the knowledge of that faithand practice, that peace and holiness, without which no man fhall fee the Lord: for this is life eternal to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. And therefore,

SUNDAY IV. CHAP. IV.

I. Of Faith in Chrift our Saviour. II. Why the Chrift. III. Why our Lord. IV. Objections answered. V. The Truth and Excellency of the Chriftian Religion proved. VI. The Angel's meffage and falutation to the Virgin Mary. VII. The Incarnation of the Son of God. VIII. The Birth of Chrift. IX. How he draws us to himself. X. His Sufferings. XI. Crucifixion. XII. Death; and XIII. Burial.

Of Faith

in Jefus

E profefs in the fecond article of our chriftian faith, that we believe in Jefus Chrift his only begotten Son our Lord: because, as we believe in God, fo we must also believe in Chrift; for this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jefus Chrift, who fhall fave his people from

Christ.

Our Saviour.

their fins. Therefore, fays the apostle, there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Because he declares to us the way to eternal falvation by his gospel, which is the power of God unto falvation to every one that believes. And has wrought out our falvation for us by his death. As we were all concluded under fin, the wages of fin must have been our due, had not our fin been remitted: but without the shedding of blood there is no remiffion; it was therefore neceffary that Chrift fhould appear to put away our fin by the facrifice of himself. And fo he did, for he shed his blood for many for the remiffion of fins; he bare our fins in his own body on the tree; and therefore, being juftified by his blood, we shall be faved from wrath through him. And also, in respect of conferring eternal falvation on us, for we must believe that he is able to fave them to the uttermoft, that come unto God by him, feeing he ever liveth to make interceffion for them. The Father has given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as he has given him. Therefore,

We are abfolutely obliged to believe this part of Why necef- the christian faith, because we cannot be faved by fary. Chrift, but by believing in him; for this is life eternal to believe in God, and in his Son Jefus Christ our Lord whom he hath fent.

Chrift.

II. When we give the title of the Christ or MefHe is the fiah unto Jefus our Saviour, then we profess to believe that Jefus is the perfon confecrated of God, by the most facred anointing to that high office of saving mankind; like which were the offices of king, priest, and prophet, under the law, in the fetting of whom apart to their proper offices, the anointing oil was used, as types and shadows of the Saviour of all mankind.

Wherefore the prophet Ifaiah foreseeing this A prophet. coming of the Son of God for our redemption, cries out in the perfon of the prophet Jefus, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gofpel to the poor. And, that Jefus was anointed to the facerdotal office, appears from that of the Pfalmift, the Lord

fware

fware and will not repent, thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchifedeck. It appears Jefus was A priest. anointed to the regal office, from the most antient tradition of the Jews, and predictions of the prophets, and to this he was folemnly fet apart when God raised him from the dead, and fet him at his own right-hand in heavenly places, far above all principality, might, dominion, and power.

A king.

In what

manner.

He exerciseth this office by delivering his people a law, and by his grace enabling them to walk in it, by preserving them from temptations, by supporting them under afflictions, and delivering them out of them, and will at laft complete all, by rewarding them in a most royal manner, making them kings and priefts unto God and his Father. He exercifes his dominion alfo by deftroying his enemies not only his temporal ones, the Jews and Romans, and all who will not that he should reign over them, whom he will at last order to be brought and flain before him, but also his fpiritual enemies, Satan, fin, and death, for he must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet: and God hath faid unto him, fit thou on my right-hand till I make thine enemies thy footftool, as we read in the book of Pfalms.

The neceffity

and

Whence we should collect, that the belief that Jefus is the Christ, is a moft fundamental article. St Paul at Theffalonica reafoned out of fcripture, opening and alledging that Chrift must needs have fuffered, &c. and that this Jefus whom he preached, was Chrift; and at Corinth, being preffed in spirit, he teftified to the Jews that Jefus was Chrift; and Apollos mightily convinced the Jews, and publickly, fhewing by the fcriptures that Jefus was Chrift. And St John faith, that whofoever believes that Jefus is the Chrift, is born of God.

Wherefore, this belief that our Jefus is the Chrift, ought, in the highest manner, to influence us by the holinefs, piety, and charity of our lives, to remove that Influence of offence we give the Jews by envy and malice, divifions, rapines, wars, and maffacres, fo irreconcileable with

F

this belief.

that

that bleffed, peaceable, and holy state, which the prophets have taught us to expect when Meffiah should appear.

If we believe him to be our prophet, we should be induced thereby to hear, and receive, and observe his word, as being delivered by one whom God himself hath declared to be his beloved Son, and hath commanded us to hear: and our belief in him as our priest, should add confidence to that obedience, and give us boldness to enter into the holieft by the blood of Jefus; and having a high priest over the house of God, to draw near with a true heart, in full affurance of faith; to confider ourselves as bought with a price, and no longer our own, but bound to live only to him who died for us. Our belief in him confidered as our king, should induce us to be his faithful fubjects, and to honour him by a cheerful and ready obedience of his laws. Alfo our belief in Jefus as the Christ, ought to put us in mind of our high obligation to be like him. That God may establish us in Chrift, and anoint us, and we may have an unction from the holy one, and the anointing which we receive from him may abide in us; and we may always remember, that this is part of the feal of the foundation of God, that every one that nameth the name of Chrift depart from iniquity.

Why called our Lord.

gene

III. When we therefore acknowledge Chrift to be our Lord, it is not only in respect of his ral dominion over all things, but more peculiarly as having by his death conquered him, to whom we had before yielded ourselves fervants to obey: and alfo having by that death purchased us by his blood; and farther, as he is the head of the church, whereof we are members, and as master of the family, provides all neceffaries for us; and farther, in refpect of our own covenant as chriftians, that we will yield ourfelves to him, as those who are alive from the dead, through the price of his blood. Confequently,

beyed.

Seeing that Chrift is our abfolute Lord and MaMust be o- fter, fince he hath bought us, and hath the sole right to the property and poffeffion of us; we must remember that we are not our own, that we ought not to do our own will but his, and neither live nor die to ourselves, but only to him.

And

faith.

And it is apparently agreeable to right reason, that God, in the fulness of time, which his infinite wisdom had The reafonfore-appointed, which all the antient prophecies ablenefs of had determined, and which many circumftances the chriftian meeting together in the ftate of the Jewish religion, and in the government of the Roman empire, had made a fit feafon for the reception and propagation of a new form of religion, fhould fend his only begotten Son, that Word or Wifdom of the Father, that divine perfon by whom he created the world, and by whom he made all former particular notices of himself unto men, to take upon him our human nature, and therein to make a full and particular revelation of the will of God to mankind, who by fin had corrupted themselves, and forfeited the favour of God; to preach unto men repentance and remiffion of fin, and by giving himself a sacrifice and fatisfaction for fin, to declare the acceptableness of repentance, and the certainty of pardon thereupon, to be a mediator and interceffor between God and man; to procure the particular affiftance of God's holy Spirit; and in fine, to be the Saviour and Judge of mankind, and to bring them to eternal life. And,

This is the great article

thereof.

Since this is the chief article on which the christian faith is grounded, I fhall endeavour to make it out more largely and distinctly, by showing in particular, that none of the feveral objections, upon which presumptuous unbelievers reject this doctrine, do at all prove any inconfiftency in fuch a belief. For, IV. Neither can it ever be accounted unreasonable to be believed, in the general, that God fhould make a revelation of his will to mankind; fince on the contrary, it is very agreeable to the moral attributes of God, and to the notions and expectations of the wisest and most rational men that ever lived.

Arguments anfwered.

Befides, it is moft confiftent with reason to believe, that in fuch a revelation, wherein God freely proclaims to us all remiffion of fin, and thro' Chrift the acceptableness of repentance, he has appointed fuch a facrifice for fin, as may at the fame time be a fufficient teftimony of his irreconcileable hatred against it. Because, by the light of nature, it was ex

F 2

ceeding