SERM. comprehend the perfuafion of things moral, and naCOXIX. tural, and political, and the like: or,

2. Divine and religious, that is, a perfuafion of things that concern religion. I know not whether these terms be proper, nor am I very folicitous, because I know none fitter, and tell you what I mean by them.

The first kind of faith, concerning things human and civil, I shall not speak of, it being beside my design. The second, which I call a religious and divine faith, comprehends three things under it, which are diftinctly to be confidered.

1. A perfuafion of the principles of natural religion, which are known by the light of nature, as the existence of a God, the immortality of the foul, and a future state.

2. A perfuafion of things fupernatural and revealed. 3. A perfuafion of fupernatural revelation. These I design fully to handle. Thus I have prepared materials for a large difcourse; which though it be necessary, is, I am sensible, but too tedious, and yet pofsibly more tedious to me than you.

SERMON

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CCXX.

Of a religious and divine faith.

HEB. xi. 6.

But without faith it is impossible to please GOD.

N my last discourse I came to treat of a religious and divine faith, which, I told you, compreds under it three things, which I now proceed to Confider diftinctly,

First, A perfuafion of the principles of natural re-s ligion, which are known by the light of nature.

Secondly, a perfuafion of things fupernatural and

revealed.

Thirdly, a perfuafion of supernatural revelation. First, a perfuafion of the principles of natural religion, fuch as the light of nature could discover; fuch are the existence of God, the immortality of the soul, and a future state. The things to be enquired concerning this kind of faith are these.

I. Whether this be truly and properly called faith. II. What are the arguments whereby it is wrought. III. Whether it admit of degrees or not, and what differences are obfervable in them.

IV. What are the proper and genuine effects of it.
V. In what sense it may be faid to be divine faith.

I. Whether it may truly and properly be called faith, or not? If the general notion of faith which I have fixed before, viz. that it is a perfuafion of the. mind concerning any thing, be a true notion of faith, then there is no doubt but this may as properly be called faith, as any thing can be; because a man may be perfuaded in his mind concerning these things, that there is a God, that our fouls are immortal, that there is another state after this life.

But befides this, if the fcripture speaks properly, as we have reason to believe it does, especially when it treats professedly of any thing, as the apostle here does, then this question is fully decided: for it is evident to any one that will but read this verse, out of which I have taken my text, that the apostle doth here in this place speak of this kind of faith, that is, a belief or perfuafion of the principles of natural religion. For after the apostle had said, that "without faith, it is

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"impoffible to please GoD;" he immediately instanceth

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SERM.
CCXX.

SERM. stanceth in the belief of the principles of natural refiCCXX. gion, as necessary to the pleasing of God, that is, to

make a man religious. "He that cometh to God, " must believe that he is ;" there is the existence of God, the first principle of natural religion : " and "that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek " him;" which implies the other two, the immortality of the foul, and a future state; for if good men shall be rewarded, there must be a subject capable of such rewards, which brings in the immortality of the foul; and there must be a season for these rewards, which because they are seldom bestowed in this world, there must be a season when they shall, which brings in a future state after this life. So that whoever denies that a perfuafion of these principles of natural religion may properly be called faith, he quarrels with the apostle, and does not correct me, but the scriptures.

II. What are the arguments whereby this faith or perfuafion of these principles of natural religion is wrought? You may remember that I reduced all those arguments whereby any kind of faith or perfuasion is wrought in us, to these four heads, sense, experience, reasons drawn from the thing, and the testimony or authority of fome perfon. Now a faith or perfuafion of these principles cannot be wrought in us by sense: for "no man hath seen God at any " time," and being a pure spirit, he cannot be the object of any corporeal sense. Nor can the foul, or any mode of it's existence, fall under any of our fenfes; nor a future state; because sense is only of things present. Nor can it be wrought in us merely by experience: for no man can conclude from any thing he experienceth in himself, that there is a GOD, unless he be first perfuaded of it by other arguments: and the

immortality of the foul, and a future state, are things

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which none in this life can experience. Nor can thes ERM. authority or teftimony of any perfon be the argument that induceth that perfuafion. Not any human authority: for these things are of fuch consequence, and

- so much depends upon them, that is, the belief of them puts us upon so many things, which men would not do if they did not believe them, as particularly the venturing of our lives upon the account of religion, and all our worldly interests, if occafion call for it; that it were a fond thing to take matters of such moment and importance upon any man's bare word, without other afsurance of them. Nor can the teftimony or authority of God be the argument that perfuades me of the existance of a Gon. I grant, that for the other two, the immortality of the foul, and a future state, it is an excellent, and may be a sufficient argument. Though that these may be proved likewife by other arguments without a revelation, is evident in the heathens, who by the light of nature did affent to them without a revelation. But a divine revelation cannot possibly be an argument inducing me to believe the existence of a God for this plain reafon; because a divine revelation can be no argument to any that is not perfuaded that it is a divine revelation: but before I can be perfuaded that any revelation is from GOD, I must be perfuaded there is a God; and if so, there is no need of this argument to prove to me that there is one and therefore you do not find it any where revealed in all the scripture, that there is a GOD. The fcripture often declares that JEHOVAH is " the true and living Gon," and that "befides him there is no other:" but it doth not reveal, but every where suppose that there is one.

It remains then, that it must be another kind of arguinent whereby we must be perfuaded of the existence

SER M. istence of a God, and that is by such reasons as may CCXX. be drawn from things themselves to perfuade us here

of; as either from the notion and idea which we have of a God, that he is a being that hath all perfections, whereof necessary existence is one, and confequently that he must be; or else from the universal consent of all nations, and the generality of persons agreeing in this apprehenfion, which cannot be attributed reasonably to any other cause, than to impressions stamped upon our understanding by Gon himself; or (which is most plain of all) from this visible frame of the world, which we cannot, without great violence to our understandings, impute to any other caufe than a being endowed with infinite goodness, and power, and wisdom, which is what we call God.

As for the other two principles of natural religion, the immortality of the foul, and a future state; after we believe a Gon, we may be perfuaded of these from divine revelation, and that doth give us the highest and firmest affurance of them in the refurrection of CHRIST from the dead, Yet I do not find but that these also are rather supposed, than exprefly revealed in the bible. Indeed the immortality of the foul may be infer'd from several places of fcripture, and the tenor of the whole bible: and so a future state, which as for the thing itself, seems to be supposed as a thing acknowledged by natural light; only the fcripture hath revealed the circumstances of it more particu. larly to us, and given us higher afsurance of the thing: but if there were no revelation, men might be perfuaded of thefe; and so the heathens were by arguments drawn partly from the operations of the foul which would almost perfuade any man that the foul is immortal; it being altogether unimaginable how a principle that is nothing else but matter, can either