And

as doomed to certain Perdition. thus the fame Apostle teftified, that faith towards our Lord Jefus Chrift, as well as repentance towards God, is requifite to the attainment of Eternal Life, Acts xx. 21. And Parallel to this Text is the Character given of the Saints, Revel. xiv. 12. They that keep the Commandments of God, and the Faith of Jefus. Those therefore who Imagine, that they are not Obliged to Believe the Mysteries revealed in the Gospel, do break through a Principal obligation: And whilft they are Deficient in the Duty of Faith, they labour under a Defect, which prevents the Perfection and Acceptance of every Other Duty.

Faith is the very Foundation † of Virtue in a Chriftian; and if This be wanting, his Best performances are as an house built upon the Sand. For 'tis unto Faith that Virtue must be Added, ‡ if it recommends us to the favour of God; and all Those who call themfelves Chriftians,

2 Cor. iv. 3, 4. and 2 Theff. ii. 12.

†Theophylac. in Ep. ad Heb. vi. 1. & S. Chryfoft. Homil. ii. in Ep. ad Rom.

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2 Pet. i. 5.

and

*

and yet content themselves with Moral virtues alone, and those derived perhaps from no Higher principle, than what the Heathens acted by, must fall under the character given of the Heathens by the Apoftle, that profeffing themfelves to be wife, they become fools. When God hath Required our Belief, as the Ground of all our Duty, is it not extremely Abfurd to conceive, either that we are Obedient unto Him, whilst we Difbelieve, or that He will be Gracious to us, whilft we Difobey him? "Tis a ftrange Unhappiness of Judgment, to Appropriate the notion of Duty unto Virtuous Actions, and to think that Nothing is Criminal but Immorality. The Rules of Moral Virtue must be Highly esteem'd, and Inviolably observed in their utmost Perfection, even in That perfection, which the Gospel hath given them: But let not the Rule of Virtue derogate from the Rule of Faith; nor the Neceffity of the One be prefumed to fuperfede the Other. Immorality renders us Ob

* Clemen. Alexandr. Strom. lib. i. p. 338. Edit. Oxon.

noxious

noxious to Divine Vengeance, but let us not forget, that Infidelity does So too: And the Event must be, in Both cafes, the fame, that if thou hast rejected the Word of the Lord, the Lord hath alfo rejected thee. Heinous is the Sin of Envy, Extortion, Wrath, Hatred, Reviling; Heinous every Sin committed against our Brethren: But furely More Heinous. must that Sin be, which is pointed directly against God, and is an Immediate violation of His honour. Let all Thofe confider this, who dare to Impugn the Veracity of God, and with-hold their Affent from what He hath Declared; * for be that believeth not God, hath made him a liar.

Those who will not yield their Affent to any other Truth, but what they can, by the power of Reafont, form Full notions of, and entirely Account for, are Abfolutely Deftitute of Faith, and do not Believe at all; for the evidence of Faith is altogether Different from that evidence,

* 1 John. v. 10. Eunom. lib. ii. vol. ii. in Pf. 115. vol. i. pp.

† Vide S. Bafil. M. adv. pp. 64, 65: Edit. Parif. & Homil. 313, 314.

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which

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which ariseth from the Nature of Things: In One cafe we are convinced of a Truth, and yield our Affent to it, because the Nature and Reafons of That truth, are evident to our Apprehenfions concerning it: In the Other, we are Perfuaded of a Truth, not because our Apprehenfions and manner of Thinking can entirely reach the Nature and Reafons of it, but because it is fupported by a Teftimony, which we can Depend on. Whofoever therefore wants This kind of Perfuafion, is Void of Faith. And if it is not at all implied in Faith, as one of its Conditions, that we should Apprehend the Nature, and Manner, and Reasons of Things offer'd to our Belief, how comes the Want of fuch Apprehenfions to be urged in Vindication of Unbelievers? It must be a very Perverse, or, a very Weak way of Reasoning, when we fail of any Duty, to conclude our felves Excufable, because we are under a certain Incapacity, wherein that Duty not at all concerned.

Such Men as Generally indulge themfelves a liberty of arguing at this rate,

in favour of their Infidelity, concerning Mysteries Revealed, do yet profess to believe the Existence of God, notwithstanding that His Nature and Attributes do exceed the Measure of their Apprehenfion, and are confeffedly Unaccountable. Those mighty Advocates of Human Reafon, in Oppofition to Divine Faith, will not easily clear themselves of Inconfiftency, whilst one and the fame Plea, which Equally affects Two different cafes, is vehemently Urged by them in one case, and entirely Difavowed in the Other. The want of clear Apprehenfions, concerning the Nature of Myfterious Truths, can be no more an Impediment to the Belief of Thofe Truths, than the want of fuch Apprehenfions, concerning God, is an Impediment to the Belief of a God. Let not Unbelievers therefore any longer Attempt to Shelter themselves under their Incapacity of Apprehending, and Accounting for, the Nature of Divine Truths propofed to them; for such an Apprehenfion is quite out of the Queftion, and Foreign to the purposes of Faith.

But