The Chrifian Life, a Life ofFaith. Voh I. was the Faith of Mofes, he did as firmly believe the invifible God, and the Re- compense of Reward, as if he had beheld them with his Eyes. And of this Recompence of Reward, we Chriflians have a much clearer Re- velation, and much greater Affurance, than former Ages and Generations had; and the firm Beliefand Perfwafion of this, is the great Motive and Argument to a Holy Life ; The hope which is fee before no of obtaining the Happinefs, and the fear of incurring the Mifery, of another World. This made the Primitive Chriftians, with fo much patience to bear the Sufferings and Perfecutions, with fo much Conftancy to venture upon the Dangers and Inconveniencies which the Love of God and Religion expofed them to. Under the former Difpenfation of the Law, tho' goodMen received good hopes of the Rewards of another Life, yet thefe things were but obfcurely revealed to them, and the great Inducements to Obedience were Temporal Rewards andPu- nifhments ; the Promifes of long Life, and Peace, and Plenty, and Profperity, in that goad Land which God had given them, and the Threatnings of War, and Famine, and Peffilence, and being delivered into Captivity. But now, under the Gofpel, Life and Immortality are brought to light ; and the great Arguments that bear fway with Chriftians, are the Promifes of Everlafting Life, and the Threat- nings of Eternal Mifery ; and the firm Belief and Perfwafion of thefe is now the 'great Principle that governs the Lives and Allions of good Men : For what will not Men do, that are really perfwaded, that as they do demean themfelves in this World, it will fare with them in the other ? That the Wickedfhallgo into ever- Wing Punfiment, and the Righteous intoLife Eternal. I proceed to the II. Obfervation, namely, That Faith is a Degree of Affent, inferiour to that of Senfe. This is intimated in the Oppofition betwixt Faith and Sight ; We walk by Faith, and not by Sight ; that is, we believe thefe things, and are confidently perfwaded of the truth of them, tho' we never faw them, and confequently can- not poffibly have that Degreeof Affurance concerning the Joys of Heaven, and t'he Torments of Hell, which thofe have who enjoy the . One and endure the Other. There are different Degrees of Affurance concerning things arifing, from the different Degrees of Evidence we have for them. The higheft Degree of Evi- dence we have for any thing, is our own Senfe and Experience; and this is fo firm and ftrong, that it is not to be fhaken by the utmoft Pretence of a Rational Demonftration ; Men will troll their own Senfes and Experience, againft any fubtilty of Reafon whatfoever : But there are inferiour degrees of Affurance con- cerning things, as the Teftimony and Authority of Perfons every way credible And this Affurance we have in this State concerning the things of another World, we believe with great Reafon, that we have the Teftimony of God concerning them, which is the higheft kind of Evidence in it felf; and-we have all the rea- fonable Affurance we can defire, that God hath teftified, thefe' things, and this is the utmoft Affurance which things future and at a diftance are capable of. But et it is an unreafonable obftinacy to deny, that this falls very much Ihort of that degree ofAffurance which thofe Perfons have concerning thefe things, who are now in the other World, and have the Senfe and Experience of thefe things. And this is not only intimated here in the Text, in the Oppofition of Faith and Sight, but is plainly expreft in other Texts of Scripture ; r Cor. 13. 9, ro. We know now but in part ; but when that which is perfe[i is come, that which is in part !hall be done away. That degree of Knowledge and Affurance which we have in this Life is very impeded, in comparifon to what we (hall have hereafter; and Ver. 12. We now fee as through a.Glafs darkly, ae áwi3pcaTy as in a Riddle, in which there is always a great deal . of Obfcurity ; all which Expreflions are certainly intended by way of abatement and diminution to the certainty of Faith ; becaufe it is plain, that by that which is in part or imperfeEt, the Apoftle means Faith and Hope, which he tells us fhail ceafe, when that which is perfeEl, meaning Vifion and Sight, is come. We fee likewife in Experi- ence, that the Faith and Hope of the belt Chriftians in this Life is accompanied with doubting concerningthefe things, and all doubting is a degree of uncertainty, but
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