7 The Ghrifiian Life, a Life of Faith. Vol. I. with thofe Furies he had feen Tormenting Sinners in anther World, and the fearful Shrieks and Outcries of Miferable Souls would be perpetually ringing in his Ears ; and the Man would have fo lively and terrible an imagination of the Danger lie was running himfelf upon, that no Temptation would be ftrong enough to conquer his fears, and to make him carelefs of his Life and Affirms, after he had once feen how featful a thing it was tò fall into the hands of the living God : So that in this Cafe, the Reafon of Mens Obedience would be fo violent, that the Virtue of it mull bevery little ; for what praife is due to any Man, not to do thofe things which none but a perfelt mad Man would do ? For cer- tainly that Man mull be befides himfelf, that could by any Teniptatiöü be feduced to live a wicked Life, after he had feen the State of good and bad Men in the other World ; the glorious Rewards' of Holinefs and Virtue, and the difinal event of a vicious and finful Courfe. God bath defigned this Life for the Trial of our Virtue, and the Exercife of our Obedience; but there would hardly be any place for this, if there were a free and rafie Paffage for us into the other World, to fee the true State ofThings there. What Argument would it be of any Man's Virtue to forbear finning after he had been in Hell, and feen the miferable end of Sinners ? But I proceed to the III. And La/1 Obfervation ; namely, That notwithflanding Faith b'e an infer`i- our degree of Affent, yet it is a Principle of fuíficient Force and Power to govern our Lives. We walk by Faith. Now, that the Belief ofany thing may have its Effeft upon us, it is requifite that we be fatisfied ofthefe two things. r: Of the Certainty, and 2. Of the great Concernment of the thing: For if the thing be altogether uncertain, it will not move us at all, we (hall do no- thing towards the obtaining of it, if it be good ; nor for the avoiding andpreventing of it, if it be evil : And if we are certain ofthe thing, yet if we apprehend it to be of no great Moment and Concernment, we thall be apt to flight it, as not worth our Regard : But the Rewards and Punifhments of another World, which the Gofpel propounds to our Faith, are fitted to work upon our Minds, both upon account ofthe Certainty and Concernment ofthem. For, r4 We have fufficient Affuranceof the Truth of thefe things, as much as wd are well capable of in this State. Concerning things future and at a Diflance, we have the dictates of our Reafon arguing us into this Perfwafion, from the Confi- deration of the Juftice of the Divine Providence, and from the promifcuous and unequal Adminiftrationof things in this World; from whence wife Men in all Ages have been apt to conclude, that there will be another State of things after this Life, wherein Rewardsand Punifhments fhall be equally diftributed. We have- the general confent of Mankind in this matter : And to . affùre us, that thefe Rea- fonings are true, we have a moll credible Revelation of thefe things, God having fent his Son from Heaven to declare it to us, and given us àfenfible Demonftration of the thing, in his Refurreftion from the Dead, and his vifible Afcenfion into Heaven ; fo that there is no kind of Evidence wanting, that the thing is -capable of, but only our own Senfe and Experience of thefe things, of which we are not capable in this prefent State. And there is no Objeftion againft all this, but what will bring all things into uncertainty, which do not come under our Senfes, and Which we our felves have not feen. Nor is. there any confiderable .Intereft to hinder Men from the Belief of thefe things, or to make them hefitate about them. For as for the other World, if at daft there fhould prove to be no fuch thing, our Condition after Death will be the fame with the Condition of thofe who disbelieve thefe things; becaufe all will be extinguifh'd by Death : But if things fall out otherwife (as molt un- doubtedly they will) and our Souls after this Life do pafs into a ftate of Everlaft- ing Happmefs or Mifery, then our great Intereft plainly lies, in preparing our felves for this State ; and there is no other (day to fecure the great Concernments of ano- ther World, but by believing thofe things to be true, and governing all the Afti- ons of our Lives by this Belief. And as for the Interefls of this Life, they are but fhort and tranfitory, and confequently of no Confideration in comparifon of the things which are Eternal andyet (as I have often told you) fetting afide the Cafe
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