and session at the right hand of the Father; concerning His Holy Spirit, His Divine power, His procession, His gifts, and wonderful operations in the world; concerning the Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, and many other remarkable persons, and what they did in their several generations. Some things He hath been pleased to promise to those who believe and obey Him; as that He will be merciful unto them, and bless them, and keep them from all evil, and give them all the good things they can desire, both in this world, and the next. Some things He hath said by way of threatening, to those who refuse to believe and serve Him, as that He will punish and afflict them, in their souls, bodies, estates, relations, or the like; and at last give them their portion with the Devil and his angels. Some things also He hath been pleased to foretel, concerning particular persons or nations, or else concerning all mankind in general; as that, they all shall rise again at the Last Day, and stand before Christ's tribunal, and there receive according to what they have done, whether it be good or evil; and accordingly, the wicked shall go into everlasting punishment, and the righteous into life eternal. These and such like things which God hath said in His Holy Word, although we never saw them, nor perhaps can understand how they should be so as He saith they are, or shall be; yet we have the greatest reason that can be, to be fully persuaded of the truth and certainty of them, in that we have the Word of God Himself, His infallible testimony, His Divine authority for it. And they who are thus accordingly persuaded in their hearts of the truth of such things which they never saw, merely upon God's Word, they may be truly said to believe, in a Gospel sense, as having and exercising that faith, which, the Apostle saith, "is the sub- Heb. 11.1. stance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." As they hope for the good things which are promised in the Holy Scriptures, so believing that God Himself hath promised them, they are as fully persuaded, as confident, that they shall have them, as if they had them already; and so have them in effect, already subsisting in them: and they are as sure and certain of those things which He hath there said, although they have never seen them, as if they had XXXIV. 17. seen them, or rather much more, as knowing that their senses may deceive them, but God cannot. And these are they which our Saviour here pronounceth blessed, saying, "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." That they are blessed, we cannot doubt, having Christ's own Word for it; but wherein their blessedness consisteth, and how great it is, is a matter that deserves our consideration and inquiry: for which purpose we may observe, that [Heb. 1.3.] as God made the world by His Word, so it is by His Word also that He upholds and governs the world in general, and mankind in a particular manner, ordering and disposing of them, according as they do or do not believe it. He had no sooner formed man, and put him into the garden that Gen. 2. 16, He had planted for him, but He presently said to him, "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die." If Adam had believed what God then said, he would never have ventured to eat of that forbidden fruit: but believing what the serpent said to the woman, rather than what God said to him, he eat of it, and so poisoned and destroyed himself, and his whole posterity, then contained in him. But so great is the love of God to mankind, that notwithstanding their fall through unbelief in their first parents, yet He was pleased so to order it, that none of them but might rise again and be restored to their first estate, unless they themselves, every one in his own person, were guilty of the same fault, " even of unbelief." For God hath spoken His mind, as I observed before, in all ages to mankind; and hath caused it to be written too, that men might always know what He hath said, and what He would therefore have them to believe, that they might be saved. What St. John saith of His Gospel, is true also John 20. 31. of all the Holy Scriptures: "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." 1 John 5. 10. But if, after all, men will not believe," they make God a liar," which is the greatest affront and dishonour they can offer to His Divine goodness and truth, and therefore are justly condemned; as the Judge of the whole world hath told us, saying, "He that believeth not shall be damned." Mark 16.16. And," He that believeth on Him is not condemned; but he John 3. 18. that believeth not, is condemned already." He is condemned to" that everlasting fire, that is prepared for the Devil and [Matt. 25. his angels;" which is therefore called, "The portion of Luke 12.46. unbelievers," as being allotted for all unbelievers, as such, and for no other. Whereas, on the other side, they who believe God, and so give Him the honour that is due to His most sacred Name and Word, are so far from being condemned, that they are blessed by Him; blessed in the highest manner that He Himself can bless them. It is not in my power to reckon up all the blessings that He confers upon them, much less to describe the greatness of them. I shall therefore only direct you to such places in God's own Word, which may give you so much light into it, that you may clearly see into the truth of this Divine proposition, uttered by Truth, by the Word of God Himself; "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." 41.] They are blessed with profit and comfort from the Word of God, whensoever they read, or hear it read or preached to them; "For it works effectually in them that believe," 1 Thess. 2. and in none else. 13. Heb. 4. 2. They are blessed with pure, and clean, and holy hearts; "For God purifieth their hearts by faith." "And they are Acts 15. 9. sanctified by faith that is in Christ." Acts 26. 18. They are blessed with the pardon and remission of all their sins, through the blood of Christ; "For to Him gave Acts 10 43. all the Prophets witness, that through His name, whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins." Gen. 15. 6; They are blessed with the righteousness of God, whereby they are justified, or accounted righteous before God Himself; "For they are justified by faith;" "as Abraham be- Gal. 2. 16. lieved God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness;" Rom. 4. 3. "which is therefore called the righteousness of God by Phil. 3. 9; faith;"" and the righteousness of faith itself;" "and the Rom. 4. 13. righteousness which is of faith." Rom. 3. 22. Rom. 9. 30. SERM. They are blessed with the love and favour of God, the Almighty Governor of the world; He is reconciled to them, Rom. 5. 1. and they are at peace with Him: "For being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ." Gal. 3. 26. They are blessed with the nearest relation that can be to the Most High God, the chiefest good; they are His children, by adoption and grace; "For ye are all the children John 1. 12. of God, by faith in Christ Jesus." "For as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name." Hab. 2. 4; They are blessed with a principle of new life, which directs, influenceth, and governs them in all their actions; "For they live by faith." "We walk," saith St. Paul, “by 2 Cor. 5. 7. faith, not by sight;" "and the life which I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Heb. 10. 38, Gal. 2. 20. They are blessed with free access to God, and full assurance from Him, that they shall have whatsoever they ask, Mark 11.24. that is truly good for them; "For what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." They are blessed with success and prosperity in all their 2 Chron. 20. undertakings, for God's glory and their own good; "Believe the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe His Prophets, so shall ye prosper." 20. [Jam. 4. 7.] They are blessed with power to resist the Devil, so as to Eph. 6. 16; make him fly from them; "Above all things, taking the Luke 22.32. shield of Faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." They are blessed with conquest and victory over the 1 John 5. 4, world; "For this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" 5. Mark 9. 23. They are blessed with a kind of omnipotence; "For all Phil. 4. 13. things are possible to him that believeth." "I can do all things," saith St. Paul," through Christ which strengtheneth me." They are blessed with God's acceptance of what they do; Gen. 4. 4. "For by faith, Abel offered unto God a more excellent Heb. 11. 4; sacrifice than Cain." "But without faith it is impossible Heb. 11. 6. to please God." 39. They are blessed with the gifts and graces of God's Holy Spirit; "For he that believeth on Me," saith Christ, "out of John 7. 38, his belly shall flow rivers of living water. This He spake of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive." "In whom," saith His Apostle, "after that ye Eph. 1. 13. believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise." "And that we might receive the promise of the Spirit Gal. 3. 14. through faith." They are blessed with the special presence of Christ Himself, dwelling or residing continually in them; " For Christ Eph. 3. 17. dwelleth in their hearts by faith;" "so that the power of 2 Cor. 12.9. Christ resteth upon them," as certainly as it did between the Cherubims upon the Ark, in the old Law. They are blessed with unspeakable joy and comfort, amidst all the changes and chances of this mortal life, through Him in whom they believe, even Christ their Saviour; "Whom having not seen, they love; in whom 1 Pet. 1. 8. though now they see Him not, yet believing, they rejoice with joy unspeakable, and full of glory." And they are blessed at last with Everlasting Life, consisting of all the blessings that mankind is capable of; "For John 3. 16. God so loved the world, that He gave His Only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have Everlasting Life." And then they "receive the 1 Pet. 1. 9. end of their faith, even the Salvation of their souls." 34. Thus blessed are all they that believe: thus Abel, and Heb. 11. Enoch, and Noah, and Abraham, and Sarah, and Isaac, and Jacob, and Joseph, and Moses, and Joshua, and Rahab, were all blessed, and all by their faith, as the Apostle shews at large; and then adds, "What shall I more say? For Heb. 11.32the time would fail me, to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Sampson, and of Jephthae, of David also, and Samuel, and of the Prophets; who, through faith, subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword; out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the |