This I have been the more particular in, that it may be feen, that in his last difcourfe to his difciples (where he opened himself more than he had hitherto done; and where, if any thing more was required to make them believers, than what they already believed, we might have expected they should have heard of it), there were no new articles propofed to them, but what they believed before, viz. That he was the Meffiah, the fen of God, fent from the father: though of his manner of proceeding, and his fudden leaving the world, and fome few particulars, he made them understand fomething more than they did before. But as to the main defign of the gofpel, viz. that he had a kingdom, that he fhould be put to death, and rife again, and afcend into heaven to his father, and come again in glory to judge the world; this he had told them and fo had acquainted them with the great council of God, in fending him the Meffiah, and omitted nothing that was neceffary to be known or believed in it... Aud fo he tells them himfelf, John xv. 15.." Henceforth I call ye not fervants: for the fervant knoweth not what "his Lord does but I have called ye friends; for ALL THINGS "I have heard of my father, I have made known unto, you;" though perhaps ye do not fo fully comprehend them, as you will fhortly, when I am rifen and afcended.

"

:

་

To conclude all, in his prayer, which fhuts up this difcourfe, he tells the father what he had made known to his apoftles, the refult whereof we have John xvii. 8. "I have given unto them the words "which thou gayeft me, and they have received them, and THEY

HAVE BELIEVED THAT THOU DIDST SEND ME." Which is in effect, that he was the Meffiah promifed and fent by God. And then he prays for them, and adds, ver. 20, 21. “ Neither pray I for "thefe alone, but for them alfo who believe on me through their "word." What that word was through which others thould believe in him, we have feen in the preaching of the apoftles all through the hiftory of the Acts, viz. This one great point, that Jefus was the Melliah. The apoftles, he fays, ver. 25. "know that "thou haft fent me," i. e. are affured that I am the Meffiah. And in ver. 21 and 23, he prays, "That the world may believe" (which ver. 23, is called knowing) "that thou haft fent me:" fo that what Chrift would have believed by his difciples, we may fee by this his laft prayer for them when he was leaving the world, as well as by what he preached whilft he was in it.

And as a teftimony of this, one of his last actions, even when he was upon the crofs, was to confirm this doctrine, by giving falva. tion to one of the thieves that was crucified with him, upon his declaration that he believed him to be the Meffiali; for fo much the words of his request imported, when he faid, "Remember me, "Lord, when thou comeft into thy kingdom," Luke xxiii 42. To which Jefus replied, ver. 43. "Verily I fay unto thee, To-day "fhalt thou be with me in paradife." An expreffion very remarkable; for as Adam, by fin, loft paradife, i. e. a ftate of happy immortality, here the believing thief, through his faith in Jefus the

I

Meffiah,

Meffiah, is promised to be put in paradife, and fo re-inftated in an happy immortality.

Thus our Saviour ended his life. And what he did after his refurrection, St. Luke tells us, Acts i. 3. That he fhewed himself to the apostles" forty days, fpeaking things concerning the kingdom "of God.". This was what our Saviour preached in the whole course of his miniftry, before his paffion: and no other myfteries of faith does he now difcover to them after his refurrection. All he fays, is concerning the kingdom of God; and what it was he faid concerning that, we shall fee presently out of the other evangelifts; having first only taken notice, that when they now afked him, ver. 6, "Lord, wilt thou at this time reftore again the kingdom to Ifrael?" He faid unto them, ver. 7. It is not for you to know the times, "and the feafons, which the Father hath put into his own power: "but ye fhall receive power after that the Holy Ghoft is come upon "you; and ye fhall be witneffes unto me unto the utmost parts " of the earth." Their great business was to be witneffes to Jefus, of his life, death, refurrection, and afcenfion; which, put together, were undeniable proofs of his being the Meffiah. This was what they were to preach, and what he said to them concerning the kingdom of God, as will appear by what is recorded of it in the other evangelifts...

,,,,

When, on the day of his refurrection, he appeared to the two going to Emmaus, Luke xxiv. they declare, ver. 21. what his disciples faith in him was: "But we trufted that it had been he that

66

fhould have redeemed Ifrael;" i. e. we believed that he was the Meffiah, come to deliver the nation of the Jews. Upon this Jefus tells them, that they ought to believe him to be the Meffiah, notwithstanding what had happened; nay, they ought by his fuffering and death to be confirmed in that faith, that he was the Meffiah. And ver. 26, 27. "Beginning at Mofes and all the prophets, he "expounded unto them in all the fcriptures the things concerning "himfelf," how," that the Meffiah ought to have fuffered thefe things, and to have entered into his glory." Now he applies the prophefics of the Meffiah to himself, which we read not that he did ever do before his paffion. And afterwards appearing to the eleven, Luke xxiv. 36. he faid unto them, ver. 44-47. "The "words which I fpoke unto you while I was yet with you, that all "things must be fulfilled which are written in the law of Mofes, "and in the Prophets, and in the Pfalms concerning me. Then "opened he their understandings, that they might understand the fcripture, and faid unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved "the Meffiah to fuffer, and to rife from the dead the third day; "and that repentance and remiffion of fins fhould be preached in "his name among all nations, beginning at Jerufalem." Here we fee what it was he had preached to them, though not in fo plain" open words before his crucifixion; and what it is he now makes them understand; and what it was that was to be preached to all nations, viz.. that he was the Meffiah, that had fuffered, and rofe from

F2

from the dead the third day, and fulfilled all things that were, written in the Old Teftament concerning the Meffiah; and that those wha believed this, and repented, thould receive remiffion of their fins through this faith in him. Or, as St., Mark has it, chap. xvi. 15, "Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature "he that believeth, and is baptized, fhall be faved; but he that "believeth not, fhall be damned," ver. 20.. What the "gofpel" or good news" was, we have fhewed already, viz. the happy tidings of the Meffiah being come, ver. 20. And they went forth "and preached every where, the Lord working with thein, and con"firming the word with figns following." What the word wasi which they preached, and the Lord confirmed with miracles, we have feen already out of the history of their Acts: I have already given an account of their preaching every wirere, as it is recorded in the Acts, except fome few places, where the kingdom of the Meffiah is mentioned under the name of the kingdom of God," which I forbore to fet down, till had made it plain out of the evangelifts, that that was no other but the kingdom of the Meffiah..

66

66

It may be feasonable therefore now, to add to thofe fermans we have formerly feen of St. Paul (wherein he preached no other article of faith, but that " Jefus was the Meffiah," the king, who being rifen from the dead, now reigneth, and fhall more publicly manifeft his kingdom, in judging the world at the last day) what farther is left upon record of his preaching. Acts xix. 8. At Ephefus, "Paul went into the fynagogues, and fpake boldly for the fpace of "three months; difputing and perfuading concerning the kingdom "of God." And Acts xx. 25. At Miletus he thus takes leave of the elders of Ephefus: "And now behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, fhalt "fee my face no more." What this preaching the kingdom of God was, he tells you, ver. 20, 21. "I have kept nothing back "from you, which was profitable unto you, but have thewed you, "and have taught you publicly, and from houfe to houfe; teftify

66

ing both to the Jews, and to the Greeks, repentance towards God, "and faith towards our Lord Jefus Chrift." And fo again, Aas xxviii. 23, 24. "When they [the Jews at Rome] had appointed "him [Paul] a day, there came many to him into his lodgings; to "whom he expounded and teftified the kingdom of God; perfuad"ing them concerning Jefus, both out of the law of Mofes, and "out of the prophets, from morning to evening. And fome be"lieved the things which were fpoken, and fome believed not." And the hiftory of the Acts is concluded with this account of St. Paul's preaching: "And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired. houfe, and received all that came in unto him, preaching the "kingdom of God, and teaching thofe things which concern the "Lord Jefus the Meffiah." We may therefore here apply the fame. conclufion to the hiftory of our. Saviour writ by the evangelifts, and to the history of the apoftles writ in the Acts, which St. John does to his own gospel, chap. xx. 30, 31. Many other figns. did. Jefus

66

7

Jefus before his difciples :" and in many other places the apostles preached the fame doctrine," which are not written" in thefe books; But thefe are written, that you may believe that Jefus is the Meffiah, the fon of God; and that believing you may have life in his name."

What St. John thought neceffary and fufficient to be "believed," for the attaining eternal life, he here tells us. And this, not in the firft dawning of the gofpel, when, perhaps, fome will be apt to think Jefs was required to be believed, than after the doctrine of faith and myftery of falvation was more fully explained in the epiftles writ by the apostles. For it is to be remembered, that St. John fays this not as foon as Chrift was afcended; for thefe words, with the reft of St. John's gofpel, were not written till many years after, not only the other gofpels, and St. Luke's hiftory of the Acts, but, in all appearance, after all the epiftles writ by the other apoftles. So that above threefcore years after our Saviour's paffion (for fo long after, both Epiphanius and St. Jerome affure us this gospel was written), St. John knew nothing elfe required to be believed for the attaining of life, but that "Jefus is the Meffiah, the son of God."

To this, it is likely, it will be objected by fome, that to believe only that Jefus of Nazareth is the Melliah, is but an Hiftorical and not a Juftifying or Saving Faith.

To which I anfwer, that I allow to the makers of fyftems, and their followers, to invent and ufe what diftinétions they pleafe; and to call things by what names they think fit. But I cannot allow to them, or to any man, an authority to make a religion for me, or to alter that which God hath revealed. And if they please to call the believing that which our Saviour and his apostles preached and propofed alone to be believed, an Hiftorical Faith, they have their liberty, but they must have a care how they deny it to be a Justifying or Saving Faith, when our Saviour and his apofties have declared it fo to be, and taught no other which men fhould receive, and whereby they thould be made believers unto eternal life; unlefs they can fo far make bold with our Saviour, for the fake of their beloved fyftems, as to fay, that he forgot what he came into the world for; and that he and his apoftles did not inftruct peoplé right in the way and mysteries of falvation for that this is the folé doctrine preffed and required to be believed in the whole tenor of our Saviour's and his apofiles preaching, we have fhewed through the whole hiftory of the evangelifts and the Acts. And I challenge them to fhew, that there was any other doctrine, upon their affent to which, or disbelief of it, men were pronounced believers or unbelievers; and accordingly received into the church of Chrift, as members of his body, as far as mere believing could make them fo, or elfe kept out of it: this was the only gofpel-article of faith which was preached to them. And if nothing elfe was preached every where, the apostle's argument will hold against any other articles of faith to be believed under the gospel, Røm. x. 14. "How "Thall they believe that whereof they have not heard" For to

preach any other doctrines neceffary to be believed, we do not find that any body was fent.

Perhaps, it will be further argued, that this is not a faving faith, because fuch a faith as this the devils may have, and it was plain they had; for they believed and declared Jefus to be the Meffiah. And St. James, chap. ii. 19, tells us, "The devils believe, and "tremble;" and yet they fhall not be faved. To which I answer, 1. That they could not be faved by any faith, to whom it was not propofed as a means of falvation, nor ever promifed to be counted for righteoufnefs. This was an act of grace, fhewn only to mankind. God dealt fo favourably with the pofterity of Adam, that if they would believe Jefus to be the Meffiah, the promised king and Saviour, and perform what other conditions were required of them by the covenant of grace, God would juftify them because of this belief; he would account this faith to them for righteousness, and look on it as making up the defects of their obedience; which being thus fupplied by what was taken inftead of it, they were looked on as juft or righteous, and fo inherited eternal life. But this favour fhewn to mankind was never offered to the fallen angels. They had no fuch propofals made to them; and therefore whatever of this kind was propofed to men, it availed not devils whatever they performed of it. This covenant of grace was never offered to them.

2. I answer; that though the devils believed, yet they could not be faved by the covenant of grace; because they performed not the other condition required in it, altogether as neceffary to be performed as this believing; and that is repentance. Repentance is as absolute a condition of the covenant of grace, as faith; and as neceflary to be performed, as that. John the Baptift, who was to prepare the way for the Meffiah, for the Meffiah, "preached the baptifm of repentance for the remiffion of fins." Mark i. 4.

As John began his preaching with "Repent, for the kingdom of "heaven is at hand," Matt. iii. 2. fo did our Saviour begin his, Matt. iv. 17. "From that time began Jefus to preach, and to fay. "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Or, as St. Mark has it in the parallel place, Mark i. 14, 15. "Now after that John was put in prifon, Jefus came into Galilee, preaching the gofpel of the kingdom of God, and faying; The time is fulfilled, "and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gofpel." This was not only the beginning of his preaching, but the fum of all that he did preach; viz. that men fhould repent, and believe the good tidings which he brought them, that the time was fulfilled for the coming of the Meffiah. And this was what his apottles preached, when he fent them out, Mark vi. 12. "And they

46

going out, preached that men fhould repent." Believing Jefus to be the Mefliah, and repenting, were fo neceffary and fundamental parts of the covenant of grace, that one of them alone is often put for both. For here St. Mark mentions nothing but their preaching repentance; as St. Luke, in the parallel place, chap. ix. 6. mentions nothing but their evangelizing, or preaching the good

news