472e Of the Chriflian Faith, the Means of its Conveyance, Vol. IL fon, why Miracles, as well as Dottrines, might not have been lea to toe dpo- files, to have been Traditionally deliver'd down to Pofterity without Writing; For Do&rines may as well be committed to Writing, as Relations of Miracles : and Miracles may be with as much cafe, and certainty, and convenience in all Refpe&s, delivered down to Pofterity by an Oral Tradition, as Doctrines may. Thirdly, That the Miracles related in the Gofpel, are a proper and fufficient Means to bring Men to ChriftianFaith. That they are fo, it is a good fign, that God did work them to this end, and afterward commit them to Writing for this very Realm, that the knowledge of them might be conveyed to Pofterity, and there might Rill remain in the World a proper and (officient Argument to perfwade Men to believe ; and we may well imagine, that God would not do any thing, but what isvery proper and fufficientfor its end. Now that Miracles were wrought by the Divine Power purpofely to this end, and that they are in reafon a very fufficient atteltatiou to a Perfon, and confirmation of the Do&rine which he brings, :sg° 1 have largely Ihewn elfe-where * ; and that all alongboth in the Old and New Sermons Teftament, Goddid impower Mores and the Prophets, Chrift and his Apofiles, to to ibis work Miracles, to bring Men to Faith, and that this was the' principal Argument vot. whereby thofe who did believe, were wrought upon. Fourthly, That credible Hiftory Both give Men fufficient allurance of Matter of Fad ; and fuch Affurance, as we may fairly build a Divine Faith upon. We freely believe innumerable things, whichare faid to have been done many Ages before we were bòrn, and make not the leaft doubt of them, only upon the credit of Hiftory : fo that if the Relation of Miracles be but granted to be a credible Hi- llary, we may upon thecredit of the Relation, fafely believe that fuch Miracles were wrought ; and if fuch Miracles were wrought, we may fafely believe the Do&rine to be from.God, for theconfirmation of which they were wrought and confequently, a Divine Faith may be fafely built upon fuch an Affurance of Mi- racles, as we may have from a credible Hiftory and Relation. Fifthly, That we are not-now a-days, deftitute of a fufficient Ground of Faith; becaufe the Do&rine of the Gofpel hath frill the fame confirmation that it had, viz. Miracles : only we who live at this diftance from the time when, and the place Where they were wrought, have the knowledge of them conveyed to us, and come to be allured of them in another way. Thofe who lived in the Age of Chrift and his Apoftles, had affurance of Miracles from their own Senfes : and we now are allured of them by credible Hiftory and Relation. Now tho' ehefe ways be not equal; yet they are both fufficient to beget in us an undoubted Afro- rance, and fuch as no Prudent Man hath any reafon to doubt of. For a Man may be as truly and undoubtedly certain, that is, as well fatisfied, that a thing was done, from the credit of Hiftory, as from his ownSenfes. I make no more doubt whether there was fuch a Perfon as Henry the VIII. King of England, than I do whether t be in this Place. Sixthly, That now a-days,, thofe to whom the Gofpel comes, are under an ob- ligation to believe ; or that now a-days there is fuch a Sin as unbelief of the Gof- pel, And I the rather note this, becaufe Tomewell-withers to Atheifm, who out of prudence and regard to their own fafety, chufe rather fecretly to undermine Religion, than openly to deny it. I grant indeed, that in our Saviour's time, When fuch great Miracles were wrought; thofe who faw thofe Miracles (which they think no body did) wereunder an obligation to believe, and guilty ofa great Sin in not believing the Gape!: but now a-days, when we fee no fuch Miracles wrought for the confirmation oftheGape), there lies no obligationupon any Man to believe it ; and that now there is no fuch Sin as Unbelief. New any Man may with half an Eye fee the confequence of this Affection : for being once admitted, it cloth as certainly deftroy ChriftianReligion, as if Men &ould deny that there was any fuch Perlon as yefue Chrifi, or that he ever wrought any Miracles : for if to disbelieve the Gofpel be no Sin, and confequently brings a Man into no danger ; but on the other hand Dangers and Perfecutions do attend the Belief and Profeßîon of it ; it were the greateft folly in the World for any Man to believe; unlefs this poffibly may be greater, for a Man who does not believe it, to obey and live according
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=