THE LIVELY ORACLES GIVEN TO US, Or the Chriftians Birth-right and Duty in the cuftody and use of the HOLY SCRIPTURE. SECT I. The feveral Methods of Gods communicating the knowledg of himself. G OD, as he is invifible to human eyes, fo is he unfathomable by human understandings; the perfection/of his nature, and the impotency of ours, fetting us at too great a distance to have any clear perception of him. Nay, fo far are we from a full comprehenfion, that we can discern nothing at all of him, but by his own light; those discoveries he hath bin pleas'd to make of himself. 2. THOSE have bin of feveral forts; The first was by infusion in mans creation, when God God interwove into mans very conftitution and being the notions and apprehenfions of a Deity and at the fame inftant when he breath'd into him a living foul, impreft on it that native religion, which taught him to know and reverence his Creator, which we may call the instinct of humanity. Nor were thofe principles dark and confus'd, but clear and evident, proportionable to the ends they were defign'd to, which were not only to contemplate the nature, but to do the will of God; practice being even in the state of innocence preferable before an unactive fpeculation. 3. BUT this Light being foon eclips'd by Adams difobedience, there remain'd to his benighted pofterity, only fome faint glimmerings, which were utterly infufficient to guide them to their end, without fresh aids, and renew'd manifeftations of God to them. It pleas'd God therefore to repair this ruine, and by frequent revelations to communicate himself to the Patriarchs in the first Ages of the World; afterwards to Prophets, and other holy men; till at laft he revealed himfelf yet more illuftriously in the face of Jesus Chrift, 2 Cor. 4. 6. 4. THIS is the one great comprehenfive Revelation wherein all the former were involv'd, and to which they pointed; the whole myftery of Godliness being compris'd in this of THE LIVELY ORACLES GIVEN TO US, Or the Chriftians Birth-right and Duty in the cuftody and use of the HOLY SCRIPTURE. SECT I. The feveral Methods of Gods communicating the knowledg of himself. G OD, as he is invifible to human eyes, fo is he unfathomable by human understandings; the perfecti on of his nature, and the impotency of ours, fetting us at too great a distance to have any clear perception of him. Nay, fo far are we from a full comprehenfion, that we can difcern nothing at all of him, but by his own light; thofe difcoveries he hath bin pleas'd to make of himself. 2. THOSE have bin of feveral forts; The first was by infufion in mans creation, when A God der the Gofpel, who receiv'd yet more lively Oracles from him who was both the Word and the Life, did it for the like purpose; to tranfmit it to us upon whom the ends of the world are come. By this all need of repeated Revelations is fuperfeded, the faithful deriving of the former, being fufficient to us for all things that appertain to life and godliness, 2 pet. 1. 3. 6. AND for this, God (whofe care is equal for all fucceffions of men) hath graciously provided, by caufing Holy Scriptures to be writ; by which he hath deriv'd on every fucceeding Age the illuminations of the former. And for that purpose endowed the Writers not only with that moral fidelity requifite to the truth of Hiftory, but with a divine Spirit, proportionable to the great defign of fixing an immutable rule for Faith and Manners. And to give us the fuller fecurity herein, he has chofen no other penmen of the New Teftament, than those who were the firft oral Promulgers of our Chrifian Religion; fo that they have left to us the very fame doctrin they taught the Primitive Chriftians; and he that acknowledges them divinely infpir'd in what they preach'd, cannot doubt them to be fo in what they writ. So that we all may injoy virtually and effectively that wish of the devout Father, who defir'd to be St. Paul's Auditor: for he that hears any of his Epiftles read, is as really fpoke to by Saint Paul, as thofe who were within the found of his voice. Thus God, who in times past spake at fundry times, and in diverfe manners to our Fathers by the Prophets, and in the latter days by his fon, Heb. 1. 1, 2. continues ftill to speak to us by thefe infpir'd Writers; and what Chrift once faid to his Difciples in relation to their preaching is no less true of their writings: He that defpifeth you, defpifeth me, Luk. 10. 16. All the contemt that is at any time flung on thefe facred Writings, rebounds higher, and finally devolves on the firft Author of thofe doctrins, whereof these are the Registers and Tranfcripts. 7. BUT this is a guilt which one would think peculiar to Infidels and Pagans, and not incident to any who had in their Baptifm lifted themselves under Chrifts banner: yet I fear I may fay, of the two parties, the Scripture has met with the worft treatment from the latter. For if we measure by the frequency and variety of injuries, I fear Christians will appear to have out-vied Heathens: Thefe bluntly disbelieve them, neglect, nay perhaps fcornfully deride them. Alas, Chriftians do this and more; they not only put contemts, but tricks upon the Scripture, wreft and diftort it to juftify all their wild phancies, or fecular defigns; and fuborn its Patronage to those things it forbids, and tells us that God abhors. 8. IN |