7. What has been said in explaining the nature and the foundation of divine faith, furnishes a satisfying answer to that question, Whether does the faith of the gospel import our believing something that was true before we believed it? or does it imply our believing something that only becomes true when we believe it? Every good and perfect gift is conveyed in the declarations of the gospel, to be received and enjoyed by the knowledge and belief of these declarations. There is no enjoyment of Christ, or any of the blessings of salvation, except in a way of believing. We cannot believe upon any other ground than the word of God, which presents to us these blessings to be received, and the sufficient warrant we have, as sinners, to take possession of them for our own benefit. Therefore, what we believe is true in itself, before we believe it, in this sense, that the blessings we receive are real, independent of our believing them to be such; and these blessings are freely given and exhibited to us, independent of our receiving them. When we realize and appropriate these given blessings, we only believe that they are real and substantial things, according to the testimony of God concerning them in his word; and we depend upon them as given to us for our own benefit. This faith does not, in the least, go beyond the word of the Lord; because it only receives what is given, and depends upon what is spoken, by the God of truth.

If it be said, that the confidence of believers exceeds the revelation God has made unto them in his word, while they express themselves in such language as this, "We believe that through the

grace of our Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved," I answer, This confidence corresponds most harmoniously with the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation, wherein Christ says, "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth." It expresses their perception of the word of God, their persuasion concerning it, and their embracing it as a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, for their own personal benefit. Such a declaration of their confidence can never be true, such a confidence can never exist, before they believe.* Christ and his great salvation, in all its several branches, are exhibited in the Scriptures, and they are enjoyed in the belief of the word that exhibits them; but it is impossible they can be enjoyed without that belief. The de

scriptions of faith that express its boldest and most assuring confidence, are not to be considered as a bare account of the thing that is believed; but they manifestly relate to the appropriating trust of the soul, built upon the divine testimony concerning that which is enjoyed by believing. The faith that answers to the declarations of the gospel, is not a firm assent to some general propositions, but a persuasion of, and a

"When the word faith belongeth to persons, it comprehendeth and includeth both their believing, and what they believe, or believe in. What is to be believed, or to be believed in, doth not become any man's faith before he believeth it, or believeth in it. My faith, belief, or creed, meaneth what I believe; or what is believed, or believed in by me. What I believe, may be true before I believe it; but it is not my faith before I believe it. The gospel is the truth of God, whether it is believed or not; for it is the same truth before and after believing of it. But the gospel doth not become any person's faith, till he believeth it. If I believe not the gospel, yet, nevertheless, it is the precious truth of God: but if I believe the gospel, it becometh my faith." Ingham on the Faith and Hope of the Gospel, p. 11, 12.

dependence upon, such declarations as convey to us eternal life in the form of a free gift. Therefore, when the apostle says, "I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me;" he is not to be understood as if he believed any thing that was not true, even before he believed it; and yet this declaration he makes concerning his faith could not be true before he believed; because it is a contradiction to suppose, that an unbeliever can live by the faith of the Son of God.

What I mean on this head may be summed up in these four propositions: (1.) Divine faith has its alone and whole foundation in the word of God. (2.) Every thing revealed in the word of God, as an article of faith, is unquestionably true in itself, whether it be believed or not; and therefore they that believe not are represented as making God a liar, which implies that his witness is true beyond all dispute. (3.) We cannot enjoy the good things reported to us in the divine record, without the belief of that record. And, (4.) All the appropriating confidence of believers concerning the record of God, implies their belief of that record, and their dependence upon it. In other words, their confidence is the suitable exercise of their minds about divine truths which they believe; and therefore, as it cannot be exercised about any thing but what was true before their minds were exercised about it, so it cannot exist until the soul actually believeth.

8. The account that has been given of divine faith in the preceding sections, shows the propriety of living by faith on all occasions, and in all circumstances and conditions. Things not seen are presented to

our faith in the word of God, that we may look at them as our own, and take the enjoyment of them for ourselves, without waiting for any ground of hope in the appearances of providence, and without attempting to seek any recommendation to render us worthy of such inestimable mercies. When the

ever.

mountains depart, and the hills are removed, the Lord's covenant of peace remains immoveable; when man is turned into destruction, the word of our God, which is preached to us by the gospel, endureth for Therefore," let us run with patience the race which is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith." What time we are afraid, let us trust in him. When providence frowns, and Satan tempts us, when the world hateth us, and our consciences condemn us,-when all refuge faileth us, and none careth for our souls, then let our dependence be firmly rooted and grounded on the wisdom, power, faithfulness, and mercy of a promising God. The prophet sets us an example, and invites us to copy it, while he sings in the following words: "Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will," even on such an occasion," rejoice in the Lord; I will," in such distressing circumstances, "joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hind's feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places."

CHAPTER III.

THE NECESSITY OF BELIEVING THE GOSPEL.

WHEN God created man in his own likeness, and after his own image, he endued him with all that knowledge of his will, and with all those powers and inclinations for his service, which thoroughly furnished him unto every good work. But man, being in honour, did not continue; he became like unto the beasts that perish. By his fall he became a wretched sinner, and a child of wrath. Being altogether dead in trespasses and sins, and exposed to the wrath and curse of his offended Judge, he is not in a condition to contribute, in the smallest degree, to his own recovery. In these deplorable circumstances of sin and ruin, it pleased God to reveal a help meet for our forlorn and hopeless state, namely, Jesus Christ, the second Adam, the head of that better covenant by which life and immortality are brought to light, and conveyed to our enjoyment. Upon the revelation of this rich and abounding grace, it is become our indispensable duty to believe the gospel; and to neglect the great salvation therein revealed, will be the condemnation of every unbeliever. So absolutely necessary is faith in the system of our holy religion, that "whatsoever is not of faith is sin ;" and "without faith it is impossible to please God."

To illustrate the necessity of believing the gospel, I shall only propose four things to the reader's con