"i9 4 ~piritual Perfeelion. dillancc fr~m his Eyes, woul? not acknowledge th~t thi~gs diltam fr~m him the extent of e h~ Honzon,_ are beyond h1s fighr. \Vc are finue .Bemgs; there is fame proportion ~uDinrrOdtum between our M1nds and our Natures: If we cannot undcrlland our felves, what tally f:.:~;;~:;ium is it to prefume t ~Jat we Imow Go~? C~tnjl_tbo" by !(arching find 0111 God? Canfi rhou 1"t rlltifum 111~ find out the Altmghty unt o Perfe8IOn? lt tJ h_if!.h tU Heavm, rvhat cm fl thou do? Du;Jtr tr~~n vult c"pe· th~tn H(/1, what canft thor1 knorl-'? The mea{Nre ts longer thtw the Earth, and broader than ~ ~~~~ tz:~~~? the Set~. \V I~o can unfold the Divine Attributes? They are not confufl:d in their um&y 1m u. r. nor divided Ill number; tbey are not ftparablc q~alitics, but his EtTence: He is no; Job ll ·7· 8·9· 01~ly wife, but Wifdom; not only li ves, bu t is Ltfe. W~ cannot fp~ak of fame At· tnbu tcs without dillinaion, \VifOom and Power; nor of others, wahouc a ICcmina O.PPOfi tion, Jullice and Mercy ; yet they are .the fdmc Divine Nature, and cannot b~ fcparare but 10 our thoughrs. He is Eternal w1thouc fuccefll on ; with him there i; no pajl and to come: He fees all things with one view; not only Events that proceed from th~ confirai nt of natu~.li and neceJTary Caufcs, but that depend upon Caufcs varioufly free and arbi trary. T ins f0;rJivledr,e is too wonderfi~l for m. To behcve no more than we can Jnf.•ritwimmtn· underHand , proceeds from the ignorance of God 's Nature, and our own: For the Divine fuo. & Jol: f;bi Nature is rruly infi nite, and our Minds are narrow and finire . ;;r~::·,z·:·":,~· 3· The Human Under flanding in our laps'd fiatc, is dark and defiled, weakened and '" '1Jm,pcfl:n viciated. Of this we have innumerable Inilances. Although the Deity be fo illufhi~ '6~g~~c~nf;c ouOy vifi blc in ~he Cr~ati?n, yet even the wife Hea[hen reprefenr e~ him in fUc~1 a decum drgn.t gree of Deformity, as IS htghly blafphemous. They could not conceive his Infinltcncfs ~::z:;~;,;;:·n ~:r~ ~:~~i~~~~1s ~}u~~u::r~h~0~~in:~~~:an.~~~~fl~ ~~~i~;o;;a~[for;: i~:~~~it ~~~ M. Fclix. into t1~:::. !ikencfS of the grcd t God. Th_ey auribuce to the Pope a Powe r .of c?nrradifling the DIVIne Laws: For though God, m the Second Commandment, fa fi nClly forbids the ~odhip of l~a~es, and has annex•d ro rh~ prol~i birion the moll_ terri ble Threatniog, of v;jiring the bugurty of the Fathers upOn therr Clnldren, to the thtrd and fortrth GentY4· tion ; yer in defi ance of the Majefl:y of the Lawgiver, the Pope commands a11 his ado· rers to worrhip the Images of the dead Saints: He arrogates a Power to difpenfe with Oaths, the mo!t facred bands of Human Society, and thereby authorizes Perjury• . 4· Though Reafon is not able to conceive and comprehend fupernatural Mylleries, yet it can never demontlrate that they cannot be. W ~10 can prove by irrefifl:ible evidence, t ha t God, who is an infinite Good, cannot by an mfinite communication of himfelf be in dillinCt Subfill:encies? 'Tis true, our Reafon may find unaccountable difficulties, that One fhou ld be Three in tlJC Subfillence of Perfons; and Three, One in Nature: But there can be no proof that 'tis impof!ible, without the perfd.l: under/landing the Nature of God. The Incarna tion of the Son of God, is matter of afloniOJment, that two Na. tu res fa dirTcrent 2. nd immenfe!y difl:ant, as Finite and Infinice, Mortal and Immortal, fhould be fo intimately and infeparably united in one Perfon, without confu!ion of their Propert ies: But we have the flrongefl Reafon to believe, that God knows his own Na. wre, and is to be believed upon his own Teflrmony. If the matter of his tellimony be inconceivably great, we mull exalt Faith, and deprefs Reafon. If we will believe t he Word of God no farther than 'tis comprehenfible by our Reafon, we infinitely drf. parage him : For this is no mo~e than the credit we give co a fufpeaed wirnefs. Tr~~h:.·~:~l~~~;~~e~tafoh~ ~~~i;~h!h~/~~~nr~~~i~el~a:~t~o~~ar~lc~[{~~~~~n ~~t~t ~hee~ rranfgrefs the Laws of God, narural Confciencc is their accufer, an effcmial Faculty of the Human Nature, thar can neither dye wirh rhem, nor without them: That every Sin needs PJrdon, is moll evident: That God is jull, is !mown by the general Light of Reafon in all Men: That ·tis becoming God to pardon Sin in a way honourable to his J uflice, is as certain : Now the fatisfaccion of Divine J ullice requires the enduring the J'unifhrnent ordain'd by the Law, and equal to the guilt of Sin. The guilt of Sin ri· fes from the Majefly of the Lawgiver, who is dilbonoured by it, and the fatisfaaion mull be by a l'erfon of equal dignity, and con ftqucn tly only God can make fatisfaccion. Now Rcafon di8:ates, chat he that fatisfies, and he that receives fati~faB:ion, muft be dillingui01'd : For 'tis not reafonable that the lame Perfon be the Judge and the Crimi· na l; t herefore 1here mull be two difrinft Perfons in rhe Deity: From hence the Rcafon of rhe Incarnation is evident; for the Deity is incapable of Suffering, and it was ne4 cdfary that the dignity of the Divine Nature fhould give value to the Suffcrings.. It was t herefo"e requifite that rhe Deity fhould affume ~ur N~turc_ capable ?f Suffe~mg., and the Salvation of the World fhould refulc from therr conJunccwn. Thrs DOC\noers very honourt~ble eo God, and beneficial and cornfona~le to Man_; .whicl~ ar~ the ~onfpi· fUOus Characters, and llrongell Evidence of a Doccnne truly DIVIne: flus rnarnt~I~:
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