.I04 1"hefr/I Sign PART III. menfely below it, in its Kind ; and that which the Power of Men or Devils is not fufficient to produce the like of, or any Thing of the fame Nature. I have infified largely on this "Matter, becaufe it is of great Im- portance and Ufa, evidently to difcover and demonfirate the Delu- fions of Satan, in many Kinds of falle religious Af£eaions, which Multitudes are deluded by, and probably have been in all Ages of the chrifiian Church ; and to fettle and determine many Articles ofDoc- trine, concerning the Operations of the Spirit of God, and the Na- ture of true Grace. Now therefore, to apply thefe Things to the Purpofe of this Dif- courfe. From hence it appears that Impreíhons which fome have Made on their Imagination, or the imaginary Ideas which they have of God, or Chriff, or Heaven, or any Thing appertaining to Religion, have nothing in them that is fpiritual, or of the Nature of true Grace. Tho' fuch Things may attend what is fpiritual, and be mixed with it, yet in themfelves they have nothing that is fpiritual, nor are they any Part of gracious Experience. Here, for the Sake of the common People, I will explain what is intended by linprefons on the Imagination, and imaginary Ideas. The Imagination is that Power of the Mind, whereby it can have a Con- ception, or Idea of Things of an external or outward Nature, (that is, of filch Sort of Things as are the Obje&s of the outward Senfes) when thofe Things are not prefent, and ben't perceived by theSenfes. It is called Imagination from the. Word Image ; becaufe thereby a Perfori can have an Image ofCome external Thing in his Mind, when that Thing is not prefent in Reality, nor anyThing like it. All fuch Kind of Things as we perceive by our five external Senfes, Seeing, Hearing, Smelling, Tailing and Feeling, are external Things : And when a Perfon has an Idea, or Image of any of thefe Sorts of Things in his Mind, when they are not there, and when he don't really fee, hear, frnell, tafie, nor feel them ; that is to have an Imagination of them,and thefeIdeas are imaginaryIdeas : And when fuchKind ofIdeas are firongly imprefs'd upon the Mind, and the Image of them in the Mind is very lively, almofi as if one faw them, or heard them, &c. that is called an Impreffion on the Imagination. Thus Colours, and Shapes, and a Form of Countenance, they are outward Things ; be- caufe they are that Sort of Things which are the Objeas of the out- ward Senfe of Seeing : And therefore when any Perfori has in his Mind a lively Idea of any Shape, orColour, orForm ofCountenance that is to have an Imagination of thofe Things. So if he has an Idea of fuch Sort of Light or Durknefs, as he perceives by the Senfe of Seeing ; that is to have an Idea of outward Light, and fo is an Imagi- nation. So if he has an Idea of any Marks made on Paper, fuppefe Letters
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=