been fuch as they ought to be, even all along from the beginning, and stand careffing themselves, and applauding the goodi that they. ftill have done¿iso. that, to talk to them of converfion, is an impertinent lofs of your labour; for they feem to understand na converfion at all, but of heathens, infidels, or fome very notorious finners: when as, in truth, convers fion is not only changing names and profeffions, but. hearts and converfations. It is to be regenerate andi made new creatures; to pass from death to life; and, not only be civilized as to the external carriage, but renewed in the very fpirit of our mind, and faved from our worldly loves, and carnal minds, as well as, from crying fins, and feandalous ways. And fuch a change, O how many that name the name of Christ,, yet ftand in as much need of as any that ly without the borders of Christendom..

But when I hear men, that are for fhort cuts to. beaven, and for widening the way, which our Saviour: calls narrow, crying, it is but fo and fo, and feem as confident, as if all were their own already, though. fill their praying is at as low an ebb as their be lieving and world and flelh feem to have them as much under, as any other men; and to the means, of grace, that thould help us God and heaven-ward,, (as fcriptures, and fermons and facraments, and fabbaths, and the daily exercifes of piety and devos tion,) they feem very cold and indifferent, and are readier to dispute them away, than to how any zeal for them. I am ready to think with myself, if the religion of thefe men would ferve the turn, as low as it is with me, I durft venture, with cafe, to fetch out fuch a copy. And yet though I wrote fairer, and reached further than fo, E fhould be afraid to truft my everlasting falvation upon it. Nay, I fhould fuf

pect

pect all my faith in Chrift, by which I hope to be juftified and faved, if it did not excite and enable me to do better than fome that think they have done enough, and are good enough, when yet they ly far fhort of thofe believers in Jefus, against whom they have fo many articles, for their loofe opinions, deftructive of all good converfation..

Alas, who ute to throw the righteousness further from them with their hands, than fome that stifflieft plead for it with their tongues!, fhewing much more concern for others holiness than for their own. And we fhould be very forrily taught, if we had no better patterns to learn it from; when even the inherent righteoufnefs, upon which they hang all the weight of their falvation, yet fuch an ordinary attainment do they make of it, that a heathen man, or an unregenerate finner, might undertake to reach and accomplish as good a righteousness: for regeneration they treat as a child of the imagination, and only for the fport that it gives them, they might pass it over in deep filence. Belike they may not think themselves concerned in our Lord's determination, Matth. xvii. 3., Except ye be converted, ye fhall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.' And, John

1

3 Except a man be born again, he cannot fee. the kingdom of God. Yea, for (that which is their pride) the very morality, yet I know the cafe, wherein they can make it a difpenfable qua lity: for I have heard fome of them fetch off an egregious fwearer, drunkard, or fcandalous liver, for a very good, honest man, of whofe happiness they feemed not to make any doubt, because they were perfuaded he meant no hurt, but only had fuch failings. And, at that rate, as lofe as they count our doctrine of faith in Chrift, we may fay of their selfrighte

righteoufnéfs, Wide is the gate, and broad is the way; who almoft can mfs it? They are indeed the quickelt operators to relieve a troubled confcience. And if what they lay down would but ferve the furt, it were the leafieft matter in the world to do that which Elihu, Job xxxiii. 23. took for the work ofan interpreter, one among a thousand, to fhew unto man his uprightness to point out that which will be a convincing evidence of one's title to the king dom of heavem yet wont of navolamut zu prolazus Batybowover the righteousness of faith may be charged as deftructive of good life, (and let others take their diberty to judge as they find) as far as my own experience reaches, I muft needs teflify, that I know no fuch holy, humble, charitable, heavenly livers, as [fame of thefe cenfured believers.nat many that live and lean by faith on the Son of Gaj have much more of the goodness to fhew in their coverfations, than others that would ingrofs it all to themselves in their disputations. Nor can I fo adu mire any, even the beft, of the Socinians, as to think they do exceed, or come near to equal our holy rėžt formens, who yet were the known maintainers of! this doctrine of faith, and even built the reformation upon it and as they lived great examples to honour it, fo they died faithful martyrs to affert it! And they that cry, it is no thanks to the doctrine, if fome mens converfation under it be as becomes the gofpel, talk like thofe that do not know the truth as it is in Jefus, nor what an operative principle is the faith of Chrift to produce all the fruits of a godly? life: for if indeed I do believe in him, as dying for my fins, and making my peace through the blood • of his crofs,' how can I but love him, yea, love him

J

9

the

the more, the more I believe he has done on my acand I cannot love him, but I fhall fet myself to please him; and then, fure, am-1, like to do him more ingenuous and acceptable fervicey than when I work only as a flave for dread, or as a shireling for wageseheni 2009 au 2001 Psx-r 20det d-na ~ I know the Papifts alfo traduce ours for a loofe religion, because we teach this juftification by faith only; and yet how often have we feen the loofe live crs among us run over to them for cafe, and fuch hopes in an ill way as we could not give them ? If faith in Chrift be any part of our goodness, (as I cannot but think it is, because God has commanded it, and promised, everlasting life to it,) is it not es rough, then te bring the whole pretension of their goodness under fufpicion, who make for bold to explode and ridicule this faith, as a thing of more mifchief than benefit to the world? And they that use to be fo faucy with gospel, mysteries, do not afford faith any more, owvil ufage, but that which St Paul calls the mystery of faith, Timing it is doubt, is Qill fuch, a mystery to them, that when they make it their bayble to play wish, and their eye-fore to rail at, they jeer and they strike at they know not whato But if the well living greatly depends upon the found believing the credenda, then I think, ought to have a fair treatments of well as the agenda. And if fome dish believe of our Lord Jefus as they should, they would fhew a little better manners, and more reverence to him, than they do. And as he com mended the centurion, Matth. viii Io. I have not found fo great faith, no nos in Ifreal.' I wish I could not, fay it, to the reproach of fome, that would thruft themfelves for fhelter under our Ifracl, I have

not

not found fo great infidelity no not in Rome; where an honourable author (in his acute way) has long fince told them, they make a jest of Christ's three offices; yet they have not gone about to plunder him of his eternal deity, and his infinite fatisfaction, on which depends all our justification here, and our fatvation for ever.

But they that can allow and plead for the worshipping of our Saviour, and yet tell us, we need not coneern ourselves, whether he be God or not, would thus run us upon the fame abfurdity, as he condemned in the Samaritans, John iv. 22. to worthip we know not what 'yea, to give the glory of God (for ought we know) to a creature. And then we are like to be good livers, when fuch foul idolaters. But (af ter all the oftentation) I fhould not doubs to find as good life and morals, yea, as good rightcoufnefs and religion, as theirs, even among the old Ethnic philofophers. Nor do I queftion but St Paul, who was as great a fcholar, was alfo as good a liver as Socinus; yea, how incomparably better? and yet he believed,. that Jefus Chrift was over all, God bleffed for ever, Rom. ix. 5. and that we are justified by faith in him, without the works of the law; yea, by faith, in contradistinction from works, Rom. ix. 6. Ifit be by grace,' (fays he,) then it is no more of works; otherwife grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace; otherwife work is no more work. And of this faith and doctrine, it is moft evident, he was a moft zealous promoter. They therefore that afperfe it, as tending to ill life, and

*

him, as aon of manners, must needs reflect on

him, as a very fallow preacher, or none of the best liver.

But