l'ART zlfa SERMOlV 11Ì: gry Which shall answer all the cavilsof men why they believe Chris- tianity; through the weakness of their knowledge, yet'their faith in Christ is strong; for they are sure the doctrine is diviner because of the sweet and sanctifying influence it has Opon them. How condescending is God to poor sinners; to give sucha religion tobe saved by; that everyone who receives it shall have an infal- lible witness in himself of the truth of it, without the learning of the schools; and the knowledge of tongues! Their chief ar- gument for it is, they have divine holiness, and divine peace. VIII. This inward witness of the truth of Christianity, it, or should be, always growing and improving. The testimony increases as the divine love increases; the greater the degree of of holiness we arrive at, the More are wé confirmed in the truth of Christianitythe testimonygrows stronger, 2 Cor: iii. 18. You find that text approves of what I have now argued: When the apostle had been distinguishing between the religion of the law, Mid that Of the gospel; that the one was Coveredwith a veil, but tinder the other this veil was taken away : We, says he, under the gospel, with open face beholding; as in aglass, theglory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory. We who behold the face of Christ Jesus in his gospel, we who here see a God reconciled in and by the death of his Son; we who see the holiness of Christ here described, copied, and exemplified, we are changed into the camé image. The imago of Christ is transcribed upon our natures, we go on from one degree of it to another ; we are changed from glory to glory, from one degree of glorious holiness to another:. thereby the gospel appears to have a fairer, a brighter, and a stronger evidence. Thence it conies to pats, that when Christians have grown to agood degree of strength in faith, and greatmeasures of holi- ness in this world; all the temptations that they meet withto turn them aside from the'doetrines of. Christ, are esteemedbut as straw and stubble ;; they cannot move nor stir them from the faith that is in Jesus; because the evidence hath grown strongwith years : and as they have attended long upon the ministration of this gos- pel; they have found more and more of this eternal life wrought in their hearts ; they have got nearerto heaven, they have pressed On Continually towards perfection, they have found sweet assu- rance of the pardon of sin in their conscience, and diviner sensa- tions of the lute of God Communicated to them, and their own love both to God and man increasing; they have found their hearts more averse toall iniquity, they have feltthemselves rising higher andhigher above this world, as they have,cotue nearer to the end of their days; andaholy contempt of thisworldhas grown Dÿ`
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