Ball - BT770 B3 1637

Howfäithaffurethoffalvation. g fometime call it knowledge ; yet calling it againe beleeving alone,or beleeving and knowing, it is manifeff fuch a know- ledgeis intended, as not onely Howes from theprinciples of faith, but alto is reduced to the fame habit. For with what other eyes can the foulebehold the heavenly light of the Gofpel ? . How fhall that confidence, afliirance, or certaintie, which is created by the mixtureof the light of the Scripture, with the light of a goodconfcience renewed by the Holy Ghoff, belong to any humane knowledge, when the Scripture faith exprefièly, Thepromife oftheSpi- cal, 3.14 -rit is, receivedby faith and wherefoever in all the Bible, the Gofpell is xevealed; men are called upon tobeleeve ? Andif therebe granted a certaintie ofa mans owne fpeciall ffanding, whichcertaintiearifes from the Scriptures, one ground thereof being a propofition or fentence immedi- ately divine, the other inferred and concluded from that ,which is divine ; it muffbee granted alfo, that it is a worke or effeólof faith. The Scripture reports howmany of the childrenof God were tried, by mockingand fcourging, by bandsand imprifonment, they wereffoned, heaven afunder, tieb x,.36.. tempted; theywandered up& downe deftitUte &afjí'itted: All which, the Apoftle faith, they did by faith and confi- denceof the promifs; and yet their affurance was no other, nor otherwifebegotten,,than the ordinarieaffurance of all Gods children, which is concluded by joyning the light of their confcience, kindled by the Holy Ghoff, and ruledby the Scriptures,.to the immediate.light of thecon- ditions revealed in the Scriptures. Faith which is belee- ved, or the do&rive of faith, is written in the Word of God, the holy Scriptures : but faith whereby weebeleeve,, or ofthe heart, is written, engraven, rooted in the heart, ont oftheWord ofGod, by theHoly Ghoff ; andknowne, notbeleeved, by the teflimonyof the renewed confcience, enlightened by theSpirit, and dire6ledby theWord : for the rulebywhich a mandifcerneth himfelfe tobeleeve, is the doc''frine of Gods Word , declaring the qualitie of faith: And the certaintie or affurance, which a juft per- fon

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