"they had sufficient evidence of their good state by This was their evidence: they

"their sanctification.

knew no other."

Mr. Bellamy's opinon, then, on supposition that it is contradictory to that of Mr. Marshal and Mr. Hervey, (and to say that it is not so, is to charge Mr. Bellamy with gross calumny) must be, that no person, without reflection on his good qualifications or inherent righteousness, can have any well grounded belief, that Jesus Christ is his own saviour.

In order to form a right judgment of this matter, we must attend carefully to the representation which the holy scripture gives of saving faith, as distinguished from the other graces of the spirit. In the first place, it may be observed, that the words by which faith is expressed in the languages, wherein the scripture was first written, are such as certainly imply persuasion. Mr. Bellamy ought to have taken notice of what is urged to this purpose by the authors whose doctrine he undertakes to confute. "This notion," says one of these authors, "of assurance or persuasion in

faith is so agreeable to the nature of the thing called "believing, and to the style of the holy scriptures, that "sometimes when the original text reads faith-or be«lieving, we read in our translation assurance, accord"ing to the genuine sense of the original phrase; Acts xvii. 31. Whereof he hath given assurance to all men "that he hath raised him from the dead; in the original "faith, as is noted in the margin of our Bibles. Deut.

xxviii. 66. Thou shalt have none assurance of thy life; "in the original, Thou shalt not believe in thy life. This "observation shews, that to believe, in the style of the

holy scriptures, as well as in the common usage of

"mankind in all other matters, is to be assured or per "suaded, namely, according to the measure of such "believing*." "Budæus and Stephens," says Mr. Hervey, "derive the Greek word rendered faith from ano"ther word in that language, which signifies, He is per"suaded and I think they do so very properly; for, "whatever we believe, of that we have a real persua❝sion. The interpretation which Stephens, one of the "most accurate critics in the Greek language, gives of "the word in the New Testament, rendered faith, is, "that it is a persuasion, which the holy spirit works in "us, of salvation promised in Christ, which a person "applies to himself in believing." George Pasor, in his Lexicon for the New Testament, observes, concerning the word rendered to believe," That in profane au"thors, it is used for trusting, depending, placing con"fidence in a person or thing. He who believes in Jesus "Christ, holds him not only to be the saviour of the elect, "but his own saviour, placing all his hope and confidence " in him. Whosoever does not adhere to Jesus Christ "by faith and to God in him, remains in the kingdom "of Satan, and is spiritually dead."

In the second place, it may be observed, that a real persuasion of our warrant to rest on Jesus Christ as our own saviour, not only belongs to the nature of saving faith, but serves to distinguish it from the other graces of the spirit. Mr. Bellamy himself allows, "that there is in saving faith an entire dependance for "acceptance with God on the free grace of God "through Jesus Christ, as exhibited in the written ❝ wordt."

It is true, he, at the same time, sets this dependance in opposition to the confidence which Mr,

* Mr. Boston's notes on the Marrow of Modern Divinity, Chap. ii. Sect. 3. ↑ Dialogue ii. page 80.

Marshal and others put in their definition of saving faith. But Mr. Bellamy had no warrant from the holy scriptures to represent these expressions as opposite to one another. On the contrary, believing and trusting, faith and confidence, are used indifferently for one another. Thus, confiding or trusting, in Ps. ii. 12. is parallel to believing in Mark xvi. 16. What we are exhorted to in Prov. iii. 5. Confide or trust in the Lord with all thine heart; is parallel to that which is affirmed in Rom. x. 10. With the heart man believeth unto righ teousness. In Ps. lxxviii. 2. believing in God is explain. ed by trusting in his salvation. Believing is expressed in other places by relying, staying, leaning on the Lord, 2 Chron. xiii. 18. and xvi. 7. Isai. i. 10. Song viii. 5. As fear and doubting are opposed to confidence, so they are to believing, Mark v. 36 Be not afraid, only believe.

Knowledge, or some competent understanding of the truths of the gospel, and a speculative assent to these truths, belong to historical and temporary faith, as well as to saving faith*. It requires, therefore, something

The design of these letters is not to treat of every thing supposed or implied in saving faith; but chiefly to explain and vindicate the truth on this head so far as appears necessary to obviate Mr. Bellamy's objections. It may, however, be of use to observe, that, besides a deep and abiding conviction of our sinfulness, misery and inability to help ourselves, there is a spiritual illumination necessary to our believing in Christ, according to these remarkable words of the Lord Jesus, in John vi. 42. This is the will of him that sent me, that every one who seeth the Son and believeth on him, may have everlasting life. The evidence, on which saving faith proceeds, is called our seeing the Son; because it is most certain and infallible. The knowledge of Christ, which is supposed and implied in saving faith, is not the knowledge of an uncertain report; but of the testimony of God, who cannot lie. Nor is it an imaginary idea of Christ as man. To regard such an idea as a representation of the object of our faith is to take up with an idol instead of the true Christ; and r it is not the holy spirit of God, but Satan, that leads any to al

else to constitute the faith of God's elect. Some judicious divines have said, that a cordial approbation of God's way of saving sinners by Jesus Christ, to the praise of the glory of his grace, is the true spiritual notion of justi fying faith. And it is certain, that such an approbation

low themselves or countenance others in such idolatry. A gross error in this respect is most judiciously confuted in a treatise on mental images, or faith no fancy, by Mr. Ralph Erskine. Nor is it a merely rational knowledge or conviction of Christ's being the true Messiah founded on the historical evi. dence of the miraculous facts recorded in the New Testament; but a supernatural knowledge, which the Holy Spirit gives us by enlightening the eyes of our understanding to apprehend the authority and faithfulness of God, shining in the light of his own word, particularly in the testimony which he hath given concerning his Son Jesus Christ. He gives us an understanding to know him that is true; to know that he, whom we contemp. late, is indeed the Christ, the Son of the living God. See this point well illustrated and established by Mr. Halliburton in his essay concerning the nature of faith; annexed to his Rational Inquiry into the principles of the Deists. The knowledge which believers have of Christ is certain; though it be, as yet, in a small measure. They see through a glass darkly; yet they know that the object seen is the Lord Christ and no other. Though the light of the sun, which is let in through the nar row window of a prison, be small; yet the discovery that it gives of objects is real, and no deception. So the view that believers obtain by spiritual illumination of the reconciled face of God in Christ is a just view; and none, that are favored with it, shall ever find themselves deceived. It is true, they often doubt, whether the view which they have of Christ, be of a spiritual and saving nature, and are sensible of nothing but darkness and inability to discern the object according to their desire. But their view of Christ is abiding; it becomes clearer by degrees; till it overcomes the remaining darkness. By this view, Christ is spiritually discerned in his glory and suitableness to their case; as their righteousness and salvation; as the glory of their strength; as the true bread which God the Father giveth them from heaven. We may farther observe, that although the seeing of the Son be, in the order of nature, before believing on him; yet the former cannot be separated from the latter. Nay, they are not to be considered as different acts; but as included in one and the same act of saving faith. Hence that act is expressed in some places of scripture by seeing or beholding Christ, or by looking to him. Heb. ii. 9. John i. 23. Isai. xlv, 22.

is always included in the exercise of saving faith: yet it may be questioned, whether our approbation of God's way of saving sinners, exclusive of an application of his salvation to ourselves, will sufficiently characterize true faith or distinguish it from every other gracious or spiritual exercise; since it is obvious, that the notion of believing or trusting in a person or thing is different from that of approving that person or thing. Besides, it is evident, that any holy rational creature, such as an angel, must approve of God's way of saving sinners by Jesus Christ; though his case neither requires nor admits the same faith or dependance on that salvation with the case of sinners. Nor is faith, formally considered, our turning from sin to God; which, under the name of repentance, is properly distinguished from faith, in our Shorter Catechism. The saving graces, which the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of true Christians, are inse parable; yet he teacheth us to distinguish them from one another. He teacheth us particularly to distinguish saving faith from all the other graces by the peculiar designations he gives it and by the peculiar office he assigns to it. He calls it our receiving the testimony of God concerning his Son, our coming to Christ, our leaning on him. He assigns to faith, and not to love, repentance or any other grace, the office of receiving the righteousness of Christ for our justification. The simple account, which our old Reformers used to give, of the formal nature of saving faith, however much despised by their Popish adversaries or by degenerate Protestants, was scriptural, and served well to distinguish faith from every other gracious act or habit. The formal nature of saving faith, according to them, is a sure trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, or a fiducial dependance on him for all our salvation; a trust, that he is and will be our atoning snd interceding high priest, our teaching

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