Of Believing in Nis Chrift. IS' terms of falvation ; as when with great fo- SE R rvt. licitude, the jailor aíketh St. Paul and Silas, VII. what he fhould do to be faved ? The anfwer is, believe in the Lord Jejis Chri/t, and thou fait be Paved, Alts xvi. 3 t. To faith our juftification is attributed in the epiflles of the apoftle Paul ; we are told that without faith it is impilìble to pleafe God and, in fine, the indifpenfable neceflity of it mutt be apparent to every one that with the leaft de- gree of attention readeth the fcriptures. I fhall therefore endeavour to explain the nature of that believing on the name of the Lord Jefus, which my text faith is the com- mandment of God to us, to all chriftians, all to whom the gofpel is fairly propofed, and which is every where by the facred wri- ters declared to be fo neceffary. The moft obvious fenfe of believing is affenting to a propofition as true, not upon the moft cer- tain demonftrative evidence, for then our affent is knowledge, but however upon evi- dence fitted to determine the judgment, and particularly upon teftimony. Although this is implied in the faith of a chriffian, the faith fo much celebrated in the gofpel, yet I do not take it to be principally meant ; becaufe fuch an affent is not properly the fubjet of a command ; fo our minds are framed that N 4 we
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=