PART I. SERMON 7CY. tI7 I. That -there are mysteries in it whichare above the powers ofour reason to comprehend, and I will never believe a gospel that I cannot comprehend. This is the language of Socinians, men that have pretended so much to reason in our day. But to relieve this occasion ofshame, let us consider that mysteries areof two sorts. First, Such as we should never have known but by divine revelation ; but being oncerevealed, they maybe fairly explained and understood. Such is the doctrine of the satisfactionof Christ, . of the resurrection ofthe dead, of the forgiveness of sins for the sake of Christ's sufferings, and of eternal life in a future world. I say, these are all mysteries that were hid from ages, that is, they are such truths which nature or reason could not have found out of itself, but being once revealed to us of God, may be fairly explained and well understood. Other sort of mysteries are those, which when revealed unto us, we know-merely the eá- istence, or reality and certainty of them, but cannot comprehend the mode and manner how they are. And of this kind there are buttwo that I know of which are peculiar to our religion, and which are the chief objects of offence to some men. These are the mysteries of the blessed Trinity, and the mystery of the incarnation of Christ. The mystery of Three, whom the scripture describes as persons, who have some glorious com- munion in onegodhead ! and the mystery oftwo natures unitedin one person. Now, though the way and manner how the three persons, Father, Son, and Spirit, should be one God, and how twona- tures, human and divine, should beone person in Christ Jesus I say, though the way and manner how these things are, is notso easy to be explained and unfolded by us, and above our own pre- sent capacityto comprehend and fully to explain, yetI could never find these things proved impossible to be. IfI must refuse to believe a thing that I know not the manner and nature of, theca .are many things in the world of nature, and in natural religion, that I must disbelieve. Let them explain to me in natural re- ligion what is the eternity of God, what ideas they can have of a being that never began to be ; and then pérhaps I maybe able to explain to them how three persons can have communion in ' one godhead, and how two natures can be one in person. I am well assured, there are some doctrines in natural religion as dif- ficult to be explained, and hard to he understood, and the manner of them is as mysterious, as these doctrines of 're- vealed religion, which are also renderedmore offensive to the thinking mind, by some men's attempts to explain them in an un- happy manner. But we maygoastep lower to meet this objection, and con-
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