Serin. CLXXXIII. of the Chriflian `Religion. namely, his Afcenfion into Heaven ; and his fending the Holy Ghott upon the Apoftles and Primitive Chriftians in fuch Miraculous Powers and Gifts. Firfl, His Afcenfion into Heaven. And of this the Difciples of our Saviour were alto Eye-witneffes.SoSt. Luke tells us,Ats t. 4. g. And when they were a jf:mbled together,and Chrifk among them after his Refurrc ion,and when he had given them in Charge what he would have them do, as they lookedon,he was taken up,and a Cloud received him out of their fight. What more vifible Demonftration could there be, that this Man wás fent'of God, than that after he had preached the Dordrine, which he came to deliver to the World, and confirmed it by fo many Miracles, and God had given fo great an atteftation to him, by railing him up from the Dead ; i fay, what more vilible.Demonftration that he came from God, than to fee him taken up into Heaven, after he had finifh'd the Work for which God Pent him into the World ? Secondly, The fending of the Holy Ghott upon the Apoftles and Primitive Chri !lions in fuchMiraculous Powersand Gifts, whereby they were enabled to fpeak divers Languages, in order to the more expedite publifhing of the Gofpel to the World, to heal Difeafes, and to raife the Dead, to foretel things to come, and (which was common with the Apoftles and all Chrifiians for force Ages) they had a Power of cafting out Devils, by adjuring them in the name of Chrift. Now what could be a clearer Evidence that he came fromGod, and was returned to him, than the conferring of fuch Miraculous Powers and Gifts upon Men, after he was afcended into Heaven, as a.Teftimony that he was invefted in his Royalty, ha- ving a Power conferred upon him to difpenfe thofe Gibs to Men ? But of the Afcenfion * of our Saviour, and the extraordinary Gifts of the Holy: Vol . II. Ghat, * having upon other occafions difcourft at large, I (hall need to add nose,, i4a. more here ; only before I conclude this Head, I (hall briefly mention the chief of Vol. u. thofe Obje&ions, which there Miracles which were wrought by our Saviour, and ;4a, ásì on his behalf, are liable to, and endeavour ro return a fatisfa&ory Anfwer CO ,is, i76, them. And there are Two Obje&ions againft his Miracles in general. 177. Firft, That he wrought them by the Power of the Devil. Secondly, The other Obje&ion is taken from that exprellion of the Evangelid, Mattb. r3. 58. where it is Paid, that when /efrss was in his °wit Country, He did not many mighty works there, becaufe of their unbelief 5 which Paying is per - verfely abufed by Tome, as if it fignified,. that the creduiiry, and ftrong imagina . tion of the People, was a great ingredient into his Miracles. Fir/t, That he wrought them by the power of the Devil. This was the Ob jeetion which the yews of old made againft our Saviour. Mattb. sa. 24. That he call wit Devils by Beelzebub the Prince of the Devils, who had Power and Autho- rity over the reti, and confequently to cad out thofe that were fubjelt ro him 5 and the yews at this day make the fame Objection againit all his Miracles. Celfus did the fàme. To this I cannot render a better Anfwer than our Saviour himfelf did, when this Obje&ion was firft darted, which was two fold. z. That it was very unlikely that the Devil Ihould contribute to the ruine and overthrow of his own Kingdom. Ranh. 12. 25, z6. Every Kingdom. divided againfl it felf, is brought to defolation and every City or Houle divided again(? it Pelf, (hall not flan/. And if Satan call out Satan, he is divided again/? himJelf : how Ball then his Kingdom flared s? The force of which Argument is this, that it can- not be imagined that he who preacheth a Do&rine fo contrary to the defign which the Devil carried on in the World, and fo déflruh ive to his Kingdom, as our Saviour did, fhould -be aflifted by him to confirm the Doetrine by any Mira- culous Elie&s ; efpecially fuch as did fo dire&ly tend to the overthrow of his own Kingdom, and to difpoffefs him of the Advantage of tyrannizing over Men, which he was fo defirous to get and hold. But, a. He tells them, that by the fame reafon that they attributed thofe Mi- racles of his to the Devil, all Miracles that ever were wrought in the World, might be attributed to him. Did it appear by the tendency of his Do&rirte, or Aaaa the
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