cluding all things suitable to their condition; and had publicly declared, that whosoever of the persons so described would believe such an estate, in virtue of the grant now mentioned, to be his own, should not be disappointed, but should immediately enter upon the granted estate, according to the order specified in the grant. Suppose, too, that the royal donor had given the grant in writing, and had added his seal, and his oath, and his gracious invitation, and his most earnest entreaty, and his authoritative command, to induce the persons described in the grant to accept of it. It is evident, that any one of these persons, having had access to read or hear the grant, must either be verily persuaded that the granted estate is his own, or be chargeable with an attempt to bring dishonour upon the goodness, the veracity, the power, and authority of the donor; on account of which attempt, he is liable, not only to be debarred for ever from the granted estate, but to suffer a most exemplary and tremendous punishment." p. 66.

I suppose the object of this similitude is expressed in the sentence, "It is evident, that any one of these persons, having had access to read or hear the grant, must either be verily persuaded that the granted estate is his own; or be chargeable with dishonouring the donor." In what sense, then, is it his own? He is freely invited to partake of it: that is all. It is not so his own, but that he may ultimately be debarred from possessing it: but, in whatever sense it is his own, that is the only sense in which he is warranted to believe it to be so. If the condition of his actually possessing it, be his believing that he shall actually possess it, he must believe what was not revealed at the time, except conditionally, and what would not have been true, but for his believing it.

The above similitude may serve to illustrate Mr. A.'s scheme; but I know of nothing like it, either in the concerns of men, or the oracles of God. I will venture to say, there never was a gift, or grant, made upon any such terms; and the man that should make it, would expose himself to ridicule. The scriptures furnish us with an illustration of another kind. The gospel is a feast, freely provided; and sinners of mankind are freely invited to partake of it. There is no mention of any gift, or grant, distinct from this; but this itself is a ground sufficient. It affords a complete warrant for any sin

ner, not, indeed, to believe the provisions to be his own, whether he accept the invitation, or not; but that, relinquishing every thing that stands in competition with them, and receiving them as a free gift, they shall be his own. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.--To us it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead. Those who were persuaded to embrace the invitation, are not described as coming to make a claim of it as their property; but as gratefully accepting it: and those who refused, are not represented as doubting whether the feast was provided for them; but as making light of it, and preferring their farms and merchandise before it.

In short, if this writer can prove it to be true, that justification and eternal life are absolutely given, granted, and promised, to all who hear the gospel, there can be no dispute, whether saving faith includes the belief of it with respect to ourselves, nor whether it be a duty: but, if the thing be false, it can be no part of the faith of the gospel, nor of the duty of a sinner to give credit to it.

But to return. That the belief of the truth which God hath revealed in the scriptures concerning Christ, is saving faith, is evident from the following passages:-Go preach the gospel to every creature: he that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved. Believing, here, manifestly refers to the gospel to be preached, and the rejection of which would subject the unbeliever to certain damnation.-These things are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that, believing, ye might have life through his name. Believing unto life, is here described as a persuasion of Jesus being the Christ, the Son of God: and that on the ground of what was written in the scriptures.-Those by the way-side, are they that hear: then cometh the devil, and taketh c the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe, and be saved. This language plainly denotes, that a real belief of the word is connected with salvation. Peter confessed, Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus answered, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven. Here it is plainly intimated, that a belief of Jesus being the Christ, the Son of the living God, is saving faith; and that no man

can be strictly said to do this, unless he be the subject of a spiritual illumination from above. To the same purpose, are those express declarations of Paul and John: If thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved-Whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. He that hath received his testimony, hath set ta his seal that God is true.-No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Spirit.-Again: While ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. The light they then had was that of the gospel; and had they believed it, they would have been the children of light, or true Christians. Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. These things I say, that ye might be saved. Our Lord could not mean less, by this language, than that, if they believed those things which John testified, and which he himself confirmed, they would be saved; which is the same thing as declaring it to be saving faith. Christ shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe, (because our testimony among you was believed,) in that day. The words in a parenthesis are evidently intended to give the reason of the phrase, them that believe, and intimate, that it was the belief of the gospel testimony that denominated them believers. God hath chosen us to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. It cannot be doubted, that, by the belief of the truth, is here meant, faith in Christ; and its being connected with sanctification of the Spirit and eternal salvation, proves it to be saving.*

If the foregoing passages be admitted to prove the point, (and if they do not, we may despair of learning any thing from the scriptures,) the duty of unconverted sinners to believe in Christ, cannot fairly be called in question: for, as before said,

* Mark xvi. 16. John xx 31. Luke viii. 12. Matt. xvi. 17. Rom. x. 9. 1 John vi. 5. iv. 15. John iii. 33. 1 Cor. xii. 3. John xii. 36. v. 33, 34. 2 Thes. i. 10. ii. 13.

it is admitted on all hands, that it is the duty of every man to believe what God reveals.

But, to this statement, it is objected, that Christianity having at that time great opposition made to it, and its professors being consequently exposed to great persecution and reproach, the belief and acknowledgment of the gospel was more a test of sincerity than it now is: men are now taught the principles of the Christian religion from their youth, and believe them, and are not ashamed to acknowledge them; while yet they give no evidence of their being born of God, but of the contrary. There is some force in this objection, so far as it respects a confession of Christ's name; but I do not perceive that it affects the belief of the gospel. It was no more difficult to believe the truth at that time, than at this; though it might be much more so to avow it. With respect to that traditional assent which is given to Christianity in some nations, it is of the same nature as that which is given to Mahometanism and Paganism in others. It is no more than that of the Jewish nation, in the time of our Lord, towards the Mosaic scriptures. They declared themselves to be Moses' disciples, and had no doubt but they believed him; yet our Lord did not allow that they believed his writings. Had ye believed Moses, says he, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. * The same is, doubtless, true of all others who assent to his gospel, merely from having been educated in it. Did they believe it, they would be consistent, and embrace those things which are connected with it. It is worthy of remark, that those professors of Christianity who received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved, are represented as not believing the truth, and as having pleasure in unrighteousness. To admit the existence of a few facts, without possessing any sense of their humiliating implication, their holy nature, their vast importance, or the practical conse, quences that attach to them, is to admit the body without the spirit. Paul, notwithstanding his knowledge of the law, and great zeal on its behalf, while blind to its spirituality, reckoned himself to be without the law. And such are those professing Christians, with respect to the gospel, who receive not the love of the truth, that they may be saved.

* John v. 46.

2 Thes. ii. 10. 12. {

Rom. vii. 9.

It is farther objected, that men are said to have believed the gospel, who, notwithstanding, were destitute of true religion. Thus some among the chief rulers are said to have believed in Jesus; but did not confess him: for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. It is said of Simon, that he believed also; yet he was in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. Agrippa is acknowledged, by Paul, to have believed the prophets; and faith is attributed even to the devils. The term belief, like almost every other term, is sometimes used in an improper sense. Judas is said to have repented, and hanged himself; though nothing more is meant by it, than his being smitten with remorse, wishing he had not done as he did, on account of the consequences. Through the poverty of language, there is not a name for every thing that differs; and, therefore, where two things have the same visible appearance, and differ only in some circumstances which are invisible, it is common to call them by the same name. Thus men are termed honest, who are punctual in their dealings, though such conduct, in many instances, may arise merely from a regard to their own credit, interest, or safety. Thus the remorse of Judas is called repentance; and thus the convictions of the Jewish rulers, of Simon, and Agrippa, and the fearful apprehension of apostate angels, from what they had already felt, is called faith. But, as we do not infer, from the application of the term repentance to the feelings of Judas, that there is nothing spiritual in real repentance; so neither ought we to conclude, from the foregoing applications of the term believing, that there is nothing spiritual in a real belief of the gospel.

"The objects of faith," it has been said, " are not bare axioms, or propositions: the act of the believer does not terminate at an axiom, but at the thing; for axioms are not formed, but that, by them, knowledge may be had of things." To believe a bare axiom, or proposition, in distinction from the thing, must be barely to believe that such and such letters make certain words; and that such words, put together, have a certain meaning: but who would call this believing the proposition? To believe the proposition, is to believe the thing. Letters, syllables, words, and propositions, are only means of conveyance; and these, as such, are not the objects of faith,