have tafted the good Word of God, and the Powers of the World to come; If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto Repentance: feeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open Shame. Heb. 6. 4, 5, 6. And again, Let Us hold faft the Profeffion of our Faith without Wavering For if We fin wilfully after that We have received the Knowledge of the Truth, there remaineth no more Sacrifice for Sins, but a certain fearful looking for of Judgment, and fiery Indignation, which fhall devour the Adverfaries. He that defpifed Mofes Law, died without Mercy under two or three witneffes; Of how much forer Punishment, fuppofe Ye, fhall He be thought worthy, who hath trodden under Foot the Son of God, and hath counted the Blood of the Covenant, wherewith He was fanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done defpite unto the Spirit of Grace? Heb. 10. 23 &c. St. James, though the whole Intent of his Epiftle is practical, yet takes Care to conclude with this Proof of his Acknowledgment, that Salvation was only to be expected in the actual Belief and Profeffion of the Gofpel. Brethren, If any of You do err from the Truth, and One convert him; let him know, that He which converteth a Sinner from the Error of his Way, fhall fave a Soul from Death, and fhall hide a Multitude of Sins. Jam. 5. 19, 20. St. Jude directs all Chriftians to contend earnestly for the Faith, which was delivered unto the Saints, Jude 3. and herein to place their only Hope, looking for the Mercy of our Lord Jefus Chrift unto eternal Life. 21. The Doctrine

of

of St. John is fuitable and confiftent. He that believeth on the Son of God, bath the Witness in Himfelf; He that believeth not God, hath made Him a Liar, because He believeth not the Record that God gave of his Son. And this is the Record that God hath given to us eternal Life; and this Life is in bis Son. He that hath the Son, bath Life; and He that hath not the Son of God, hath not Life. 1 John 5. 10, 11, 12. And in the Book of Revelation He reprefents it as the immediate Voice of God from Heaven, that Unbelievers as well as Immoral Perfons, fhall have their Part in the Lake which burneth with Fire and Brimftone. Rev. 21.8.

But Many will admit the Truth of this Reprefentation, who are by no Means fatisfied as to the Equity of it; nay who urge the Truth of this Representation as an Argument against the Truth of the Gofpel; They will allow that it excludes all Unbelievers from a Title to Salvation, and threatens them with the feverest Penalties; and from thence form an Objection against the Authority of this Revelation from the Nature of its Sanction.

Yet how much more ftrongly would the Objection have been urged, if the Cafe had been directly otherwise; and a new Religion had been proposed to their Affent, without any Pretence of their lying under any Obligation to receive it? How would They have ridiculed or difregarded a Difpenfation, which the very Propofers of it had represented as a Matter indifferent, which They

might embrace or reject, just as They pleased? Could They believe it poffible that God Almighty should interpofe fupernaturally, and reveal a Religion from Heaven, and then leave it as a Point of no Confequence, whether his Creatures attended to and believed it or not? Could the Publishers of it have expected to make any Converts on this Principle? Or could They have adhered to it themselves, when Tortures and Torments threatned the Profeffion of it?

Could

They have faced Death in its moft terrible Afpect, and fubmitted to unheard of Cruelties in Support of their Testimony, if They had been taught themselves, and were to teach Others, that the Favour and Approbation of their Maker did not depend on their having any Regard to the Revelation of his Doctrines and Precepts? The Abfurdities of fuch a Suppofition are fo many and great, that it seems unneceffary to enlarge on them. If the Will of God be supposed to be revealed, it must be fuppofed to be of fome Confequence to Men, whether They liften to it or not. If fuch Confequence be foretold, it is a Prefumption of the Truth of the Pretenfions, and very confiftent with the Claim of a Divine Authority. It is farther a very proper Means of exciting Attention, and therein an Act of Mercy in not leaving Men to their own thoughtless Conduct without any Notice or Admonition of their Danger. When St. Paul expreffed Himself in this Manner in the Text, the unconverted Jews could not but fee his Notion of the Importance of the D Point

Point which He maintained, and that They were certainly ruined, if He was certainly in the Right. And furely This could not fail of having fome Influence in awakening them to a serious Enquiinto the Foundation of what He taught.

ry

Now the Scripture always fuppofes the Success of a diligent and impartial Enquiry into the Truth of Christianity, where the Evidence is fairly and fully proposed to the Enquirers, and therefore excludes at once thofe Objections which arife from the Pleas of invincible Ignorance, of the Neceffity of the Affent of the Understanding following the Appearance of Proofs, and of the Pretence of Sincerity. The Condemnatory Sentences have no Relation to the Cafe of Thofe, who never heard of the Gospel, and therefore Men may harangue as long as They please on the Subject of not being accountable for Light, which was never enjoyed, without affecting the Equity of fuch folemn Sentences. The Cafe of Those who fit in fuch utter Darkness, We have no Authority to determine, but muft leave them to their only Hope, that of uncovenanted Mercy. We are concerned only to vindicate the Apostle's earneft Expreffion of the hopeless State of Thofe, whether Jews or Gentiles, who rejected the Gofpel when it was proposed to them.

Now if We are at all accountable to our Maker for the Ufe of our Faculties, certainly in no Inftance more, scarce in any fo much, as in the Enquiry into the Truth of a Religion, which claims his great Name and fovereign Authority.

The

The Will of God must be the supreme Concern of Man, and a total Inattention to fuch a Claim must be fuch a Degree of Immorality as None will prefume to defend. And if the Evidence be fo circumstanced, as to be neither precarious on the one Hand, nor irresistible on the other; if it may be evaded by careless and prejudiced Minds, and yet appears clear and fatisfactory to every diligent and virtuous Enquirer, This is just what might be expected, what must be supposed in a State of Probation, and may therefore be confidered as a Confirmation of the Truth of this Religion, as well as a Vindication of its Sanctions. Whilft One confiders the various Evidences of the glorious Gospel of Chrift with an attentive and unprejudiced Mind, One is apt to stand amazed at the Poffibility of Infidelity; but when We look into the World, and obferve the blinding Influences of Pride, of Luft, of Avarice, and other immoral Paffions, our Aftonishment fubfides, and We fee in Fact how much the Affent of the Understanding depends upon voluntary Conduct. The Cafe is no other with Respect to the Belief than to the Practice of Religion. Whilst We attend in like Manner to the Enforcements of our Duty, the like Astonishment arises, that Any, who really believe what They profess, can refolve knowingly to expofe themselves to eternal Ruin for the Sake of any prefent Gratifications. But here again Experience fhews, in Oppofition to many plaufible Speculations, how much the Understanding is at the Direction of the Will,

and