world. 8. And as it is a Religion which must be taught us ; fo it requireth or confifteth in so much wisdom, and willingneß, and fortitude of mind, that few are naturally apt to receive it; because folly, and badness, and feebleness of mind are fo common in the world. And as we see that Learning will never be common but in the poffeffion of a very few, because a natural ingenuity is neceffary thereto, which few are born with; fo would it be with Chriftianity, if Divine Power maintained it not. 9. And it is a Religion which requireth mach time and contemplation, in the learning and in the practiling of it: whereas the world are taken up with fo much butiness for the body, and are fo flothful to thofe exercifes of the mind, which bring them no prefent fenfible commodity, that this also would quickly wear it out. 10. And then the terms of it being fo contrary to all mens fleshly intereft and sense, in felf-denyal, and for faking all for Chrift; and in mortifying the most beloved fins, and the world putting us to it fo ordinarily by perfecution; this alfo would deter the moft, and weary out the reft, if the Power of God did not uphold them. That which is done by exceeding industry, against the inclinations and intereft of nature, will have no confiderable number of practifers. As we fee in horfes and dogs which are capable with great labour, of being taught extraordinary things in the femblance of reafon: And yet because it must coft so much labour, there is but one in a Country that is brought to it. But (though the truly religious are but few in comparifon of the wicked, yet) godly perfous are not fo few as they would be, if it were the work of induftry alone. God maketh it as a new nature to them; and (which is very much to be obferved) the main change is oft-times wrought in an hour, and that after all exhortations, and the labours of Parents and Teachers have failed, and left the finner as fcemingly hopeless.

And thus I have fhewed you 1. That our Religion objectiveky taken, is the Image of Gods WISDOM, GOÖDNESS and POWER, and thereby fully proved to be from GOD. 2. And that our Religion fubjectively taken, is answerably the Spirit or impress of POWER, and of LOVE, and of SOUND UNDERSTANDING, and is in us a conflant feal and witness to the truth of Chrift.

CHAP.

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CHAP. VII.

The means of making known all this infallibly to me,

Suppofe the evidence of divine atteftation is fo clear in this Image of God on the Chriftian Religion, which I have been opening, that few can doubt of it, who are fatisfied of the biftorical truth of the facts; and therefore this is next to be confidered, How the certain knowledge of all these things cometh down to ms?

The firft queftion is, whether this Dedrine and Religion indeed be the imprefs of Gods WISDOM, and his GOODNESS and POWER, fuppofing the truth of the hiftorical part? This is it which I think that few reafonable perfons wild eny: For the doctrine is legible, and fheweth it self.

But the next question is it, which I am now to refolve, Hw we shall know that this Dorine was indeed delivered by Chrift and bis Apostles, and these things done by them, which the Scriptures mention ?

And here the first question shall be, How the Apoftles, and all other the first witnesses, knew it themselves? For it is by every reasonable man to be fuppofed, that they who were prefent, and we who are 1668 years diftance, could not receive the knowledge of the matters of fact, in the very fame manner. It is certain that their knowledge was by their pre fent fenfe and reafon : They faw Chrift and his miracles: They beard his words: They faw him rifen from the dead: They difcourfed with him, and cat and drunk with him: They faw him afcending up bodily to Heaven. They need no other Revelation to tell them what they faw, and beard, and felt.

If you had asked them then, Hw know you that all these things were faid and done? they would have answered you, Because we faw and beard them. But we were not then prefent: we did not fee, and bear, what they did: Nor did we fee or hear them, who were the eye-witneffes. And therefore as their fenfes told it them; so the natural way for our knowledge, must be by derivation from their sense to ours: For when

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they themselves received it in a way to natural, (though not without the help of Gods Spirit, in the remembring, recording and attefting it) we that can lefs pretend to infpiration, or immediate revelation, have fmall reafon to think that we muft know the fame fals, by either of those fupernatural waies. Nor can our knowledge of a history, carryed down through fo many ages, be fo clearly fatisfactory to our felves, as fight and bearing was to them. And yet we have a certainty, not only infallible, but so far fatisfactory, as is fufficient to warrant all our faith, and duty, and fufferings for the reward which Chrift hath fet before us.

Let us next then enquire, How did the first Churches know that the Apostles and other Preachers of the Geppel did not deceive them in the matter of fall? I anfwer, They had their degrees of affurance or knowledge in this part of their belief. 1. They had the most credible bumane teftimony of men that were not like to deceive them. But this was not infallible.

2. They had in their teftimony the evidence of a natural certainty: It being naturally impossible, that fo many perfons fhould agree together to deceive the world, in fuch matters of fact, at so dear a rate, in the very place and age when the things were pretended to be done and faid, when any one might have prefently evinced the falfhood, if they had been lyars about the twice feeding of many thousands miraculoufly, and the railing of the dead, and many other publick miracles, and the darkness at his death, and the rending of the Rocks and Vail of the Temple, and the Earth quake, and the comin down of the Holy Ghoft upon themselves; with many the & like they would have been detected and confuted to their confufion: And we should have read what Apologies they made against such detections and confutations! And fome of them (at least at their death) would have been forced by confcience, to confefs the plot.

3. But to leave no room for doubting, God gave thofe firft Churches, the addition of his own fupernatural atteftation, by the fame threefold imprefs of his Image before described : 1. In the holy Wisdom and Light which was in their doctrine. 2. In the holy Love, and Piety, and Purity, which was confpicuous in their defrine, and in their lives. 3. And in the evidences

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of divine Power, in the many gifts, and wonders, and miracles which they wrought and manifefted. And thefe things feem a fuller teftimony than the miracles of Chrift himself. For Chrifts miracles were the deeds of one alone; and his refurrection was witneffed but by twelve chofen witneffes, and about five hundred other perfons; and he converfed with them but forty daies, and that by times: But the miracles of the Disciples were wrought by many, and before many thousands, at several times, and in many Countreys, and for many and many years together; and in the fight and bearing of many of the Churches: So that thefe firft Churches had fight and bearing, to affure them of the divine miraculous atteftation of the truth of their teftimony, who told them of the doctrines, miracles, and refurre&tion of Chrift: And all this from Chrifts folemn promife and gift, Jobn 14.12. Verily, verily, I fay unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do, shall be do alfo; and greater works than these shall be do, because I go to the Father.

But if it be demanded, How did the next Chriftians of the fecond age, receive all this from the first Churches, who received it from the Apoftles? I anfwer, by the fame evidence, and with some advantages. For 1. They had the credible bumane teftimony of all their Paftors, Neighbours, Parents, who told them but what they faw and beard. 2. They had a greater evidence of natural infallible certainty: For 1. The doctrine was now delivered to them in the records of the facred Scriptures, and fo less liable to the mifreports of the ignorant, forgetful or erroneous. 2. The reporters were now more numerous, and the miracles reported more numerous alfo. 3. They were perfons now difperfed over much of the world, and could not poffibly agree together to deceive. 4. The deceit would now have been yet more cafily detected and abhorred.

3. But besides this, they had also the supernatural teftimony of God: For the Apostles converts received the fame fpirit as they had themselves: And though the miracles of other perlons were not fo numerous as those of the Apostles; yet the perfons were many thousands more that wrought them: All this is afferted in the Scripture it felf; as Gal. 3. 3, 4.

I Cor. 14. & 12. and many places: And he that should have told them falfly that they themselves had the spirit of extraordinary gifts and miracles, would hardly have been believed by them. And all this alfo the following Ages have themfelves afferted unto us.

The question thea which remaineth is, Here we receive all this infallibly from the fubfequent Ages or Churches to this day? The answer to which is, ftil by the fame way, with yet greater advantages in fome repels, though lefs in others. As I. We have the humane teftimony of all our ancestors, and of many of our enc.nies. 2. We have greater evidence of natural certainty, that they could not poffibly meet or plot together to deceive us. 3. We have ftill the fupernatural divine atteftation (though rarely of miracles, yet) of those more neceffary and noble operations of the Spirit, in the fan&tification of all truc Believers; which Spirit accompanieth and worketh by the doctrine which from our ancestors we have received.

More diftin&ly observe all these conjun& means of our full reception of our Religion.

1. The very Being of the Chrißians and Churches, is a teftimony to us that they believed and received this Religion. For what maketh them Chriftians and Churches but the receiving of it?

2. The ordinance of Baptifm, is a notable tradition of it. For all that ever were made Chriftians, have been baptized: And Baptifm is nothing but the folemn initiation of perfons into this Religion, by a vowed confent to it, as fummarily there expreffed in the Chriftian Covenant. And this was used to be openly done.

3. The ufe of the Creed, which at Baptifm and other facred seasons, was alwaies wont to be profeffed, (together with the Lords Prayer, and the Decalogue; the fummaries of our faith, defire and practice) is another notable tradition; by which this Religion hath been fent down to following Ages: For though perhaps all the terms of the Creed were not fo early as fome think, thus constantly used; yet all the sense and fubftance of it was.

4. The holy Scriptures or Records of this Religion, containing integrally all the doârine, and all the neceffary matter

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