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fion go upon the evidence of human teftimony, then it is hu man faith; and if my perfuafion go upon evidence that the divine teftimony carries in itself, then it is truly divine faith.

No man can fay, it is impoffible that God fhould teftify his mind and will in fuch a revelation as we have in the writings of the infpired prophets and apoftles, and give abundant evidence that it is he that speaks in this word itself. Neither will it be manifefted to be impoffible, that by means of this revelation, he should frame the minds of those whom he will have to understand it, into a suitableness to this his truth, and make them capable to difcern this evidence, in having a true understanding of the truth which he teftifies, and which carries this evidence in itself. Yea, it cannot well be conceived, how we can be furnished, in another manner, with a new fet of principles by a divine revelation. But men will have the Moft High to fatisfy them of the truth of his revelation in their own way: "The Jews required a fign, and "the Greeks fought after wisdom." The Jews faw figns; but were they satisfied with them? No: "As many of them "as received not the witness of God in themselves," and had not his word abiding in them," believed not" unto falvation. And our Lord-tells us, Luke xvi. 66 31. If they hear not Mo"ses and the prophets, neither will they be perfuaded though "one rofe from the dead.?? And if the Greeks that fought after wifdom, had lived unto these days, they had feen abundance of that kind of wisdom they were seeking for, brought forth to evidence the truth of the gospel; and fome men fatisfying themselves fo much in it, as to imagine, that their affent, pon this evidence of their own production, is indeed divine faith; yea, and to ridicule all pretences unto any higher evidence of another kind, as enthufiaftic imaginations. When thefe men come to inquire into the meaning of this revelation, whereof they pretend to be thus convinced, they explain it to themselves by that fame wisdom, whereby they convince themselves, that the revelation comes from God, Thus the Greek would find his wifdom in the gofpel, and it fhould no more be fo ridiculous to him, as fometime a day it was; but then I am mistaken, if he would be much the wifer or better by it; and it is plain, that the bleffed fruits of the gofpel brought forth by them that believed it, as it was the jeft of the Greeks, have not attended this new faith, even in them that make most of it.

But, fays the Apostle, we have a better way of doing to convince men; we declare the teftimony of God, I Cor. ii.

I. 2.

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"We preach Chrift crucified, unto the Jews a ftum"bling-block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto "them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God." I Cor. i. 23. 24, In this teftimony, and the fubject of it, fo foon as it is truly difcerned, the Jew will find the power of God in a far more glorious manner than in all his figns, even the power of God unto his falvation; and this is the fign of the prophet Jonas, Matth. xii. 38. 39. 40. The Greek will find here the wisdom of God unto his falvation, excelling his as far as God excells him, confounding his wifdom, and making all his wisdom of words, his difputing eloquent wisdom, "foolish"nefs:" for here he will fee more than notions or words, " even the deep things of God," and "the wifdom of God "in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which none of the prin"ces of this world knew," and which " was ordained before "the world unto" our "glory." Thus both Jew and Greek will find more fatisfaction in the gospel than they were inqui ring for. But who will find this? Only the Jews and Greeks that are called of God by this teftimony concerning Chrift crucified. The reft, both Jews and Greeks, will remain where they were, ftumbling at the preaching of the cross, and counting it foolishness, because they find not that in it which they were requiring and seeking after.

Every one that is perfuaded upon this evidence, fees with his own eyes. The unwife and unlearned need not take the truths of this revelation, and the meaning of it, upon truft, from the men of wisdom, because they have not ability nor leifure to fatisfy themselves about it. The Jew needs not be obliged to the Greek for his wisdom, nor needs the Greek the figns of the Jew here; for unto both Jews and Greeks that are called, Chrift crucified, teftified of in the gospel, is "the power of God, and the wisdom of God." This evidence that the divine teftimony carries in itself, is for men of all forts whom the Lord fhall call. The wisdom of the wife man is no advantage to him, as to the receiving this evi. dence; nor is the ftupidity and foolishness of the unwife any lofs to him in this cafe: "Yea, God hath chofen the foolish "things of the world to confound the wife, and hides these "things from the wife and prudent, while he reveals them "unto babes. No man can fee" these things " except he "be born again ;" and the unwife, that have not a difcerning of the difputing wifdom of words, nor a taste for the plea fures of human cloquence, ftand as fair for this, as the difpu

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ter of this world. When the unwife receives the teftimony of God upon its own evidence, though it make him wife unto falvation, it does not turn him into a philofopher; and when the wife man believes the teftimony of God, it makes him indeed wiser than ever he was before, yet not with that wisdom which he fought after, and wherein he once gloried; for it makes that wisdom foolishness to him, and now he is taught to glory only in the Lord Chrift, who is made of God to him wifdom. Thus God, in faving finners, ftains the pride of man's glory, (and there is nothing whereof men defire to glory more than their understanding and wifdom), that he alone may be exalted. We fell from God, affecting to be as gods for knowledge; and it was every way meet that God, in recovering us to himfelf, fhould effectually humble us in this refpect, glorifying his own wisdom, and staining the pride of ours.

This truth of the gospel, whereby Christ advances his kingdom in the world, is practical; and when it is received upon its proper evidence, it must influence the practice: but all that evidence which is by fome fet up as the only true evidence upon which we receive the gofpel, may be, and is clearly perceived by men, that are no wife influenced by the gospel in their practice. For what should hinder them to perceive it? Many fuch have as clear wits, and as much thirst for philofophical knowledge, as other men. What then should make such a man a Christian in his practice? His corrupt affections certainly must be rectified. But how should that be, if it be not by the light and evidence of the gospel? Yet he has that evidence already, and he is the fame man ftill. But if this is to be done with a blind influence of power without light, how shall our wife men understand this, or reconcile this kind of dealing with a rational man? To be moved thus, and influenced blindly to live the Chriftian life, muft certainly be unto these men as ridiculous, as the true way of receiving the gospel is. Therefore this man must have more light to make him a Chriflian than our philofophers can afford him; and that is no other than the light that fhines in the truth of the gospel itself, the teftimony of Jefus Chrift, which when he is enabled to behold, will effectually change him, and conform him to itself in heart and life, fo far as he beholds it. Now, this is by means of the "foolishness of preaching," or declaring unto men the testimony of God in fuch a way as is, unto the wife men of this world, foolishness; and when the truth of the gofpel is received, by this means, "not as the VOL. I. "word

"word of man, (but as it is indeed) the word of God, it "worketh effectually in all them that thus believe it."

Men may have all that perfuafion of the truth of the Chriftian religion which the extrinfic evidence can afford, with out difcerning the glory, or feeling the power of any one truth of the gofpel: and whence is this, but that they receive not the truth of the gofpel upon its proper evidence, and fo indeed receive it not at all? for whatever may be pretended, they that difcern not the glory of gospel-truth, and in whom it works not effectually, "do not receive it, "and believe it, as it is in truth, the word of God," 1 Theff. ii. 13. Col. i. 6. 1 John v. 19. 20. I John ii. 4. "He that "faith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, "is a liar, and the truth is not in him." And however much they who despise the evidence proper to the gospel as enthufiaftic, may value themselves upon doing fuch things, and leading fuch a life, as an infidel may lead as well as they; yet it is impoffible, that the peculiar fruits of that faith which works by love, and purifies the foul unto unfeigned love of the brethren, can be found with them, or that they fhould have those works to produce, by which the Apostle James calls men "to fhew their faith," and by which our Lord will try the faith of the hearers of the gofpel at his fecond coming, Matth. xxv. 31.-46.

This perfuafion of the gofpel, which produces fruits fuitable to the gofpel, is begotten in men, neither by the figns of the Jew, nor the wisdom of the Greek, however these may ferve to make men attentive to the gospel, and render them inexcufable in an open rejection of it; but by this bearing witness unto the truth. Chrift himself is the witness, and the gospel preached by his minifters is his teftimony; and whofoever" receives his teftimony has fet to his feal that "God is true." In him we have all the perfons of the Godhead bearing witnefs unto us. The Father speaks to us only in him, and by him; "and none knoweth the Father, fave the "Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him," Matth. xi. 27. "God, who, at fundry times, and in divers manners, "fpake in time paft unto the fathers by the prophets, hath "in these last days fpoken unto us by his Son,--the bright"nefs of his glory, and the exprefs image of his perfon," Heb. i. 1. 2. 3. "And the Spirit of truth," the Holy Ghoft, "given by the Father," without measure unto him the Son of man, is fent by him from the Father," and bears witnefs to us in the gospel, If. lxi. 1. 2. John iii. 34. xiv. 16.

17. xv. 26. 27. and xvi. 13. 14. 15. Thus the teftimony of Jefus is the teftimony of the glorious Three that now bear record in heaven, 1 John v. 7. When Jefus began his miniftry on the earth, there was a glorious manifestation of these Three at his baptifm, Matth. iii. 16. 17.; but now they witnefs gloriously in heaven, in the teftimony of Jefus which we have now from thence. Jefus Chrift began to testify in his miniftry upon the earth, and was then declared very far to excel all that came before him. John Baptift, greater than all the prophets, teftifies of him, that he was preferred before him, though coming after him; and that on these accounts, 1. Becaufe "he was before him," (the eternal God), Johni. 15.; and because he is "from above," (the Lord from heaven), John iii. 31.; and to this agrees our Lord's saying, "I was born, and I came unto the world, to bear witness "unto the truth." 2. Because he was upon all the counfels of God, and in the contrivance of the great things brought to light by him, John iii. 32. "What he hath feen and heard, "that he teftifieth." John i. 18. "No man hath feen God "at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bo"fom of the Father, he hath declared him." 3. Because the Father giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him, John iii. 34. The man Chrift Jefus was furnished with the Spirit for the exercise of his prophetical office on the earth beyond all the prophets, and his hearers wondered at all the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and were obliged to own that he spake with a peculiar authority, and "that never "man fpake like this man." But now having afcended to the right hand of the Father, and having received of the Father the promise of the Spirit, he speaks from heaven in a far more glorious and powerful manner; and when he began to testify from thence, he made his rude Galileans speak in an amazing manner" the wonderful things of God," Acts ii. 7. 11. John xvi. 12. 13. Eph. iv. 10.—13.

And this is that prophet that was promised to the church by Mofes, Deut. xviii. 14.-19. His voice at Sinai, that fhook the earth, was fo terrible, that the children of Ifrael faid unto Mofes, "Speak thou with us, and we will hear :* "but let not God fpeak with us, left we die," Exod. xx.

19. And according to this the Lord faid to Mofes, "They "have well spoken that which they have spoken: I will raise "them up a prophet from among their brethren like unto "thee." In hearing the voice of this our brother, the antitype of Mofes, we hear the voice of the Lord our God, with

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