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The latter of which I fhall firft endeavour to make good, because it seems to have been the Apostles primary and cheif Intent, to fhew that whatever Subordinate means are to be us'd by Us, whatever Concurrent Qualifications are required of Us, towards the attainment of Everlafting Salvation, yet that whole great Work is principally owing to God's unmerited and unbounded Grace. That nothing might interfere with, or rob this free, infinite Love of God of any part of the Honour due to it in contriving and carrying on, and perfecting the Salvation of Man, but that the firft Propofition in the Text might ftill hold good, notwithstanding all the Subfervient Attendance of Faith or Works, By Grace ye are Sav'd. Through Faith indeed immediately follows: but as the Promife of that Earthly Inheritance which was made to Abraham, as the Apoftle tells us (Rom. 4. 16.) was of Faith that it might be of Grace: fo our Eternal Inheritance which was prefigur'd and fignify'd thereby, if it is, as we are here taught, through Faith, is fo, that it also might be by Grace. For to take off the too high Opinion that some Men seem to have of Faith, we fhould underftand that the very highest degree of it, even fuch as was in the Father of the Faithful himself, is far from be ing any Meritorious Caufe of Juftification.

Abraham

Abraham Believ'd and it was Counted to Him for Righteousneß, Rom. 4. 3. and again, Faith was counted to Abraham for Righteousneß. v. 9. It was reckon'd, it was counted to him For, therefore it was not Righteousness. So that as there is no Merit in Works, so neither is there in Faith; and tho' God do's Juftifie the Believing Man, it is not for the Worthiness of his Beleif, but the Worthiness of him, in whom he Believes. In whom he Believes, and from whom alone it proceeds alfo that he do's Believe. For let us give to Faith all the highest Elogies that are recorded of it, and very glorious things are fpoken of it in the Book of God; Let us own all its Victorys which are fo triumphantly display'd in the 11th Chapter to the Hebrews, and what is greater than all those what the fame Apostle speaks of it in the Text, Through it ye are Sav'd, yet that there may be no room for doubt but that Salvation is ftill entirely to be afcrib'd to Grace, we are at the fame time taught that this Faith, inftrumentally imploy'd in fo great a Work, is it felf of Grace, It is not of yourfelves it is the Gift of God.

Undoubtedly Faith, as Every good Gift and every perfect Gift, is from above and cometh down from the Father of Lights, who of his own Will begat us with the Word of Truth: James 1. 17, 18. That is, who has given us

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in his Word a full Revelation of the Truth, neceffary by all to be Believ'd in Order to Eternal Life. And fo far it is by all that ever call'd themselves Chriftians agreed, that Faith is the Gift of God. That is Objectively confider'd, containing the things Reveal'd by God, and propos'd to be Believ'd by Man, tho' undiscoverable before the Revelation, by the most exalted Powers of Human Underftanding. Which neither Eye has feen, nor Ear heard, neither hath it enter'd into the Heart of Man to conceive; but God has reveal'd them to us by his Spirit. So far I fay, even the Pelagians of Old, and the Socinians at this Day readily allow. But that there is any need of an Internal Operation of the Grace of God, any inward Motion of the Holy Ghoft towards creating in us a Belief of these things, they as absolutely deny, arrogating to themfelves a Natural Ability in themselves, without any Supernatural Affiftance to Believe the Gofpel. Against both these Antient and Modern Denyers of the Grace of God, we are conftantly to maintain, that God the only giver of all good Gifts, gives us Faith alfo, the chiefeft of all his Gifts, and That not only by Revealing the Deep things of God, which none but the Spirit of God has ever Searched out, or discover'd and propos'd as the matter of Our Belief, but also by ex

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citing in Us the Act of Believing, by Illuminating the Understanding that it may perceive, and enflaming the Will that it may heartily embrace the Truth. Briefly, not only by prefenting the Object, but also by Enlightning the Subject of Belief. Accordingly we find St Paul Praying in the behalf of his Ephefians, That God would give them the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the Knowledge of Him. Πνεῦμα σοφίας καὶ ἀποκα ausas. Not only a Spirit of Revelation to remove the Veil from off the Object, but a Spirit of Wisdom alfo to bring Light into the Eye of the Mind, that it may be fitted for the Reception of it. So that the beginning and progrefs and encrease and perfection of Faith is from the Spirit of God, that not only by an External propofal in the Word difcovers to us the things of God, but also by an internal Operation in the Soul enables every Believer, both to Affent to them, tho' they are Foolishness to the Understanding, and to Love them tho' they are enmity to the Will of the Natural Man. For it is not with Religion as with Sciences purely Speculative, which only aim at an acquiefcence of the Mind in the perception of the fimple Truth of a Propofition, but the Scope of Divine Truth is more to perfuade Men than to convince them, to attract their Wills rather than to

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force their Understandings. And thus after having offer'd outward motives of Credi bility fufficient to create a Rational Affent, out of this Rational Affent to form a Chri ftian Faith, which includes besides a bare belief, a Complacency alfo and Delight in what it receives, is a further effect of the good Spirit of God evincing the goodness of the Gospel to fuch as are perfuaded of the Truth of it, and rendring it Worthy of all Acceptation to them that own it a Faithful Saying. We are therefore under the ftrongeft Obligation both of Juftice and Gratitude, to acknowledge (and if we have True Faith we cannot do otherwise) that it is not of Our felves: it is the Gift of God. And a Gift of Ineftimable Price it is, And of fuch Virtue and Power as nothing is able to withftand. This is the Victory which Overcometh the World, nay by this we are more than Conquerors, more than Conquerors of the World, for by This we encounter and withftand, we defeat and vanquish all the Subtilty and Malice of our Spiritual Enemys, all the Wiles and Powers of Darkness and Hell. By this, which is yet a harder Victory, we fubdue our felves, our own Fleshly Defires aud Inordinate Lufts and Vicious Inclinations. In fhort, a true Faith works as great Wonders ftill, as our Saviour promis'd Thould follow them that Believe. In my R Name

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