Chap. 7: of Faith' aidVribelikf. Corn. t: ir5 even with God himfelf, for the Angel when he perceived that 7acobs faith was fo prevalent that he would not let him go, nor he could prevail againft him, told him that his namefhould be no more %.tcob, bur lfael, becaufe he had power with God and men. Now if we be 7a6.0b and prevail with God thus, we, (hall alfo prevail Gera,;z,zs. with men. We fee that the woman of Syrophanicia gaveour Saviour the foyl, and he was forced to fay, O woman, great is thyfaith,, be it unto thee even as thoat wilt; for Matth,t ç. 38. indeed faith is fo word rful a thing, that it became wonderful to him to whom. no- 8.zo, thing elfe is wonderful, Chrift hitnfclf wondred at the Centurions faith. To avoid errour we are to know, that Divines makethree kinds or degrees rather of faith. I. General. z. Legal. 3 . Evangelical. And'all theft are nceceffary in their place and order. t. The General (lands in believing that God is, &c. He that cometh to God muff r, 'believe that God is, and 2. that he is a rewarder of them that leek him,aad that he will finde means to bring them tofelicity. And this was the faith of Ada» in Para- dife. and is fuppolcd in theother two as the foundation of all Religion. z. TheLegal Hands upon the Law , and the belief of the Promifes and Threat. pings contained in it,with the puniflunents and the rewards thereof ; Chrift tells,the Jof,n S. Jews of a faith in the Law ; if ye had believed Males, yc would have believed me, Thís was peculiarto theJews before Chrift carne, and is not proper for us. 3, TheEvangelical is the third, Which is thebelief of the Goffiel, whereby we trufl Additia, and rdy upon Chrift for reraí/o n of fins and eternal life, in the way by him prefcribed ç` °c r '> in-the Gofpel, which is by repentance and new obedience : which way they that wall) aieh i ti rè " in, are faid tobelieve in Chrift, or to believe the Gored; whereas to apply the promifis Mattit. abfolutely, notperforming the conditions isa nicer fancáe, and not faith in Chrift, er. the Go.tfiel : becaufe Chrift hath no where promifedpardon or life, but to fach as repent andArt- 3 6 leada new life ; and therefore 'thole thatrefolve not ferionfly f tó do; .Und as occafian is l'ha offered, do not puttheirpurpafes in execution, do nothing, lefs than believe in C'hriff, but turn the Gofpel into adottrine of liberty. Therefore faith Sr. Cyprian, . iomodct fc credete in Chriftum dicit,qui non Tacit qui Chriftus fame prxcipit, how can any ray he believes in Chrifl, Who darb not what Chrifl commands him. And St. Aaguftine defide& operib. c. 23. faith; not only that a good life is infeparable from faiths but alfo ipfam effe bonam bonam vitam, thatfaithand good life are all one.And l ræneus. be fore them both, Credere in Chrifto, eft voluntatem ejus lacere, ie believe in Chrifl.it to do his will. TheObjelt of all Faith is the Word of God, which, as it is raid, profited not the H? .. Jews becaufe it was not mingled with Faith, when it was preached to them, So that there muff be a mixture of Faith with the Word, for the Word and Faith cond.. nue the Spirit of God in us. Our Saviour tells his Difciples, thathis coming upon earth was,fsvereignew, to cheriih andkeep frefh the Spirit, Which is there comp- LO'.;e :._ red to a fire.St, Sohn the Baptifl calls him the Baptizer with fire and the Holy Ghoft; M.,Lh. and therefore it is, that St. Paul adv'ifeth, not to quench the Spirit : and that which t Thef. 5.., nouri(heth it is in the next Verle, Defpife not Prophetic, which is lampasfiidei, the oyl z` of faith. The word is the matter of this fire if itcome into a,nias, it is but as a Lamp without Oyl, which flameth for a times it is but a blaze in the Hearers, when it is not mingled with faith, it bideth but awhile if this Nutriment be wanting. And it is wanting inthe wicked. Nonquia diitar, fed quiacreditur, ficut credit itafit tibi. st.Augu /lion Non efi femen immortale, nifi credos efe a Des, qui eft folus immortalis. And.this is the neceifary nfe of faith. Thus much for the Fitt Rule. The fecond and third Rules are of little ufe in this Commandment: The fourth Rule is concerning the means to believe : about which we need not much to labour, becaufe it is certain, that the firft way whereby we come to believe is the relation of others. The even of Sheba believed Solomoni Wifdom upon, ra.' Port.And the reports of Saints, who rcpofed their whole confidence in God,may bea- t Reg. ble to perfwadeus, elfe (which cannot be) we mull think that all the Patriarchs and Prophets were either ut wife or di(honeft,and their faith in vain : but they according to:their own experience,left that which they found CO pofterity.Thus the teftitítony of the Church is the firft motive and inducement to belief, though not the foie or the Principal, for this is Divine Authority, viz. the Word of God derivedand conveighed unto us by the Church of God; into Which out faith mull be finally 4 P z áefoI,
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