SERM. Rules of Reafon; and the Hope of Glory; IX. and the Fear of God's Difpleasure. And, therefore, the Sufpicion of Imposing upon the World could not lie upon Him: As the Appearance of it plainly lies upon other modern Pretenders to Miracles. And, therefore, His Works themselves, fhould be examined: Which, neither, in their Number, nor Kind, bear any more Refemblance to the Pretended Works of Impoftors; than a vast Variety of Beneficent, Divine, Charitable, Open, Acts, do to one fingle Trick repeated yearly; or to Empty, Ufelefs Appearances; or to Clandestine, and Dark Proceedings, without any Witneffes, but fuch as have an Intereft to ferve, a worldly Cause to carry on, by endeavouring to fupport the Credit of them. This makes a vaft Difference: And should, in common Justice, be taken into the account, by all who pretend to examine into fo important a Matter, as that of Religion.

If it should be replied, that it is for the worldly Intereft of those who have corrupted Christianity, and made the Riches and Grandeur of this World a Part of the Gospel; that it is for their Intereft, and for the Continuance, and Support, of all that they fhall think fit to put upon Mankind, under the Notion of Chriflianity, that the Miracles recorded in the

Gofpel,

Gospel, fhould have Credit given to them; SER M. and be fupported by fuch Perfons: Which IX. may bring a just Sufpicion upon them: I anfwer,

1. No Just Sufpicion, certainly, with any, who will confider, that it is plain, from all Antient Writers, that the Gofpels were in being; and the Miracles in them recorded, before any fuch Abuses came into Chriftianity; nay, long before there was any Temptation to impose upon the World; that is, long before the Princes, or the Favors, of this World came into the Church; whilft little befides Perfecution could be expected by Chriftians; and little Hopes could appear of ever having it otherwife: That, from the Beginning, during all that Scene, when nothing was promoted by thefe Miracles, but Believing in a Crucified Saviour, whofe Kingdom was not of this World; then, I fay, thefe Miracles were recorded in the Gospel-History. From whence it is plain, that they have no Relation to any fuch Corruptions, as came not into the Church, till very many Years after thefe Miracles were done; and thefe Books were written. But then,

2. The Miracles which Chrift himself did, can confirm no Doctrine, but what Chrift himself delivered to the World. They have no more relation to what hath been, or

may

IX.

SER M. cannot but judge to be unworthy of God: When, at the fame Time, it must be acknowledged, that no fuch Designs can be supported by our Lord's Miracles; nor any indeed, but that noble Defign, worthy of God, of Redeeming us, firft from the Power, and then from the Punishment, of our Sins. To return,

4. When the Perfons, who pretend to be great Enemies to the Notions, and Speculations, which have been brought by fome Chriftians into Religion; nevertheless, embrace, and greedily catch at, any fubtile, metaphyfical, and abftrufe, ways of Arguing, about Neceffity, and Fate; or fuch like Subjects; not level to the Capacities of any number of Men; and perhaps not certainly intelligible to Men of great Understandings; when these puzzling, and mysterious Arguings, are advanced, and fet up, against all the Moral Evidences of the Gofpel; when, together with the Pretenfe of rejecting every thing that is not plain in Religion, fine and unintelligible Subtilties of Dif putation are introduced: Then, is there Reafon, from fuch contradictory Proceedings, to fufpect great Partiality, and little Love to a Juft Examination of Things. When, instead of these Moral Evidences of Chriflianity, other fort of Arguings are put into Men's Heads;

of

of which they never were, nor ever will be, SER M. tolerable Judges: This is a partial, and un- IX. equal, Procedure; and what the fame Perfons would not perhaps be guilty of, in any other Cafe, but that of Religion. For the Conduct

of Human Life is guided and influenced by fuch Moral Evidences, as are fufficient to put Men beyond reasonable Doubt; by the Teftimony of credible, and unexceptionable, Witneffes; and the Abfenfe of all real ground for Sufpicion; and the like. Of which Things, a little common Senfe makes moft Men pretty good Judges.

It hath pleased God to deal with Men, in the Chriftian Difpenfation, in this eafy Method; in which they are fo well fatisfied in many other Cafes. That our Blessed Lord lived, and died, and arofe again; that, before his Death, He wrought many great and wonderful Works; and this with a Defign, and Doctrine, worthy of God; we learn from fuch Teftimony, as hath no Objection against it, that would be accounted good, in any other parallel Cafe. Now, fuppofing that it had pleafed Him to have taken another Method; and to have spoken to us in an Abftrufe and Subtle way of Reasoning; without any fuch Facts or any fuch Teftimonies to them: I should not have wondered, if the fame Perfons fhould

1

6ER M. have been the firft Complainers; and the first to have represented this Method, as not likely to come from God; as too hard, and too unintelligible, to the greatest Part, if not the Whole, of Mankind. But if this would have been reasonable; how much more fo is it, not to neglect the Facts, and Teftimonies, upon which the Gospel relies, for the fake of any of thofe fubtle Speculations, or Arguings, which are wholly unintelligible to the greatest Part of Mankind; and by which the Conduct of Human Life is never guided, in any confiderable Inftance: Not to enter into a Method which cuts off all Examination into the Truth of Chriftianity, at once; and builds an Infidelity upon Cobwebs, as thin, or as intricate, as any Modern Schoolman ever wove for his own Syftem of Chriftianity.

Thus have I produced several Instances of a very unreasonable Proceeding against Christianity: Which doth not tend at all to the Examination of the Truth of the Gospel; but to the pofitive Condemnation of it, upon such Grounds as, I have fhewn you, cannot reasonably affect the Foundation upon which that is built. And, as unreafonable, as these are; yet, (as far as I can see, or hear,) They are the chief of the Modern Pretenfes of Unbelievers, whenever they are endeavouring to bring a Difreputation