Senn. CLXVI. 0f a Religious and 'Divine Faith. 427. he is the Eternal Son of God, that is, true God, the MYlefias, or Saviour of the World, the King, Prieft, and Prophet of his Church, and the like. Nowa Faith of the DoEfrinal part of Scripture, is a Perfwafion that thole Propofitions, which contain thofe Do&tines, are true. Or, 4. Laws for the Ordering and Governing of our Spirits and Lives, under which I comprehendall the Precepts and Prohibitions of Scripture, which are the matter of our Duty. Now a Faith of thefe, is a Perfwafion, that God bath Commanded, and Forbidden fuch things S and confequently that theyare neceflàry to be oblerved by us. Or, S. Promifes of good things, either with relation to this Life, or the ocher. Now a Faith of the Promifes is a Perfwafion, or Confident expe&ation that they will be accoinplifh'd. And thus the Apofile defcribes the Faith of the Promifes of another World, at the firft ver. of this Chapter, that it is the fubflance of things hoped for, tizaósaore, that is, a confident expeltation that the Promifes of the Gofpel, which are the matter of our hope, !hall be accomplifh'd 9 and the evidence of things not Peen, a being convinced of the certainty and reality of future and invifib e things. And thus likewife the Apofile explains to us the Faith of Abraham, in reference to the Promifes of God to give him a Son, Rom. q. zr. He was fully perfwaded, that what Godhad promifedhe was able to perform. Or, 6. Threatnings. Now a Faith of the Threatnings, is a Perfwafion of .the dan- ger we incur, if we negle& our duty g that is, a Belief that God julily may, and will (having confirmed his threatnings with Oath, which is a fign of the immu- table determination of the Divine Will) infli& thofe Puni,hments upon us, which he bath threatned, in cafe we difobey his Laws. Thefe fix heads do, I think, contain all, I am fure the molt Principal matters of Divine Revelation g which I have the more carefully dittinguith'd, becaufe Come of them are of a chitin& and peculiar Confideration from the reif, as will afterwards appear. Having thus, as plainly and briefly as I could, opened to you, what I mean by this ficond fort of Divine Faith, which is a Perfwafion of things Supernatu- rally revealed, I now come to fatisfie fuch enquiries about this, as may be moft material. And here I thall proceed upon thofe Heads of enquiry which I handled when I fpake of thefirff fort of Divine Faith. I. Whether this may truly and properly be call'd Faith ? II. What is the Argument whereby this Faith is wrought ? III. Whether it admit of Degrees, and what are the Differences of them ? IV. What are the proper and genuin Effe&s of this Faith ? V. In what Refpe&s it may be faid to be Divine ? I. Whether this may truly and properly be call'd Faith ? And that it may, is evident, becaufe the general definition of Faith agrees to it : for a Man may be perfwaded in his Mind concerning things fupernaturally revealed g and the Scrip- ture everywhere calls a perfwafion of thefe matters, by the name of Faith. But betides this, it (eeins this is the adequate and only Notion of Faith, as it bath -been fixt by the Schools, and is become a Term of Arta For the definition that the Schools give of Faith is this ; that it is anafent to a thing credible, as credi- ble. Now, fay they, that is Credible which relies upon the Teftimony of a Cre- dible Perlon ; and confequently a Human Faith is that which relies upon human Teftimony ; and a Divine Faith, that which relies upon the Tehimony or Aur thority of God : which Definition, tho' it be lhort and imperfe&, (being indeed not a Definition of Faith in general, but of a particular kind of Faith, viz. that which is wrought by the Argument which we call Tellimony or Authority, and confequently excludes a belief of the Principles of natural Religion, and a belief that the Scriptures are the Word of God, from being Faith) yet this !hews thus much, that all agree in this, that a Perfwafion of things fupernaturally revealed, is truly and properly Faith. II. What is the Argument whereby this Faith, or Perfwafion of things fuper- naturally revealed is wrought in us ? And this, by the general confent of all, is the Teftimony or Authority of God, force way or other revealing thefe things to us ; whole infallible and unerring Knowledge, together with his Goodnefs and Au-
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