the Apoftles before his afcenfion, But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye fhall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerufalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and unto the uttermoft parts of the earth. This was that which qualified them to be witneffes to Chrift, and which gave confirmation to their teftimony. So St. Mark tells us, Mark xvi. 20. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with figns following. To the fame purpose the Apoftle to the Hebrews, chap. ii. 3, 4. fpeaking of the publishing of the gospel, How shall we efcape, fays he, if we neglect fo great falvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him? What was the confirmation that was given to it? It follows in the next words, God also bearing them witness, both with figns and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghoft. The Apoftles bare witnefs of Chrift, and God bare witnefs to them, by thofe miraculous powers and gifts, that their teftimony was true.

Thirdly, Thofe who received the doctrine of Chrift from the Apostles, had yet a farther evidence of the divinity of this doctrine, from the wonderful fuccefs and prevalency of it by fuch improbable and unlikely means. Had the doctrine of Chrift's religion been fuited to the corruptions of men, and tolen infenfibly into the world, and prevailed by degrees in the revolution of many ages, as the heathen fuperftition and idolatry did, which met with no oppofition from the lufts and interefts of men, it had then been no ftrange thing: or had it been planted by power and force of arms, as the religion of Mahomet was, then indeed the fuccefs af it had been no argument that it was from God. Had it been fet off with all imaginable advantages of wit and eloquence, as the philofophy of the Heathen was; and had it been entertained by a few more fublime fpirits, and thofe who were more studious and contemplative, and whofe understandings were elevated above the common pitch, this might

have been looked upon but as human and ordinary, and according to the common and ufual courfe of things. But that a doctrine which was fo oppofite to the lufts and inclinations of men, which was perfecuted and oppofed by all the powers of the world, defpifed and contemned by the witty part of mankind; that a doctrine, the profeffion whereof did expofe men to fo many worldly inconveniencies, to fo many dangers and fufferings, to derifion and to death, fhould be planted by a few mean and inconfiderable men, deftitute of all fecular power, and advantages of human learning and eloquence; and in fo fhort a time be fo vaftly propagated, and fo generally entertained by all forts of men, rich and poor, Philofophers and illiterate; this was extraor dinary, and can be attributed to nothing else but a divine power accompanying it, and bearing it up against the power and malice of men. That the doatrine of the gofpel delivered to the world by mean perfons, with fo much fimplicity and plainnefs, fhould fo ftrangely affect the hearts of men, and be of fo admirable a force to ftir up and inflame men to piety and virtue, seems to me a very plain argument of its divinity: For we do not find that any doctrine that was merely human, had ever any confiderable power upon the minds of men, where it was not fet off with the arts of fpeech and charms of eloquence: and then it only produceth fome prefent motions and heats; but feldom hath any lafting and permanent effect, fuch as the Christian religion hath had in the world.

Thus I have fhewn what affurance those who received the doctrine of the gofpel from the Apostles, were capable of having concerning the divinity of this doctrine, and the divine authority of the perfons who declared it to the world.

Thirdly, I am to confider what affurance afterages, down to this day, are capable of having concerning this matter: and this principally concerns us, who live at the distance of fo many ages from the first revelation of the gofpel. Of this I fhall give you an account in these two particulars :

First, We have an authentick and credible account of this doctrine, and of the confirmation which was in the first ages given to it, tranfmitted down to us. Secondly, The effects of this doctrine ftill remain in the world.

Firft, We have a credible and authentick account of this doctrine, and of the confirmation which in the first ages was given to it, tranfmitted down to us. I told you at firft, that there are but these three ways whereby we can be affured of matters of fact:

1. By the immediate teftimony of our own fenfes, if we ourselves be prefent when the thing is done or fpoken, and fee and hear it. Or,

2. By the teftimony of credible eye or ear-witneffes of it. Or,

3. By a credible account or relation of it tranfmitted to us. And all these ways, in their kind, are accounted fufficient to give men an undoubted affurance of matter of fact. No man doubts of what he himself fees or hears: Men generally believe many things which they have not opportunity of feeing themfelves, if they be attefted to them by credible eyewitneffes; and for things that were done long ago, and which no man now alive was a witnefs of, men are abundantly fatisfied by a credible relation tranfmitted down to them. Upon this account men do firmly believe, that Alexander about two thousand years ago conquered a great part of the world; and that there was fuch a person as Julius Cæfar, who feventeen hundred years ago conquered England; and the like. Now if we have the doctrine and hiftory of the gospel, and all the evidences of our Saviour's divine authority, conveyed down to us in as credible a manner as any of these ancient matters of fact are, which mankind do moft firmly believe, then we have. fufficient ground to be affured of it.

Now there are but two ways imaginable, whereby the doctrine of Chrift's religion, and the evidences of its divinity can be conveyed down to us, either by oral report and tradition, or by books and writing. The former of thefe the experience of the world hath fhewn to be very uncertain, and in the

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ceffion of many ages liable to great changes and hazards. Hence it is that the prudence of mankind, and the neceffity of human affairs, have introduced the latter way of conveying the memory of things to after-ages, namely by writing and records: and the good God likewife in his wife providence hath taken care, that thofe who were eye and ear-witneffes of our Saviour's doctrine and life, fhould commit to writing the history and relation of those matters, that fo the memory of them might be preferved to all generations; and these books which we call the holy fcriptures, are the authentick records of our religion, without which the Chriftian religion, in all probability, had long fince either been ftrangely corrupted, or wholly loft out of the world. For that oral report would not have preserved it, there is this evidence, fufficient to convince any man, that is not obftinately refolved to the contrary, that of all the perfons that formerly lived in the world, and the great actions that have been done, befides what are recorded in hiftory, and of the innumerable miracles of our Saviour, which were not written in the books of the gofpel: I fay, of all thefe, oral tradition hath preferved nothing; fo that if the doctrine of the Chriftian religion, and the hiftory of the life and actions of our Saviour and the Apoftles, had not been put into a furer way of conveyance than that of oral tradition, in all probability before this time. there would have been left no certain monuments of them in the world,

And that we may understand how much these latter ages are indebted to the wifdom and goodness of God, that he hath furnished us with fo fixt and certain a way of being acquainted with his will, with the doctrine and grounds of our religion, I might reprefent to you what advantages this ftanding revelation of the fcripture hath above that way of oral tradition; yea, though the revelation of the gospel had been renewed every two or three ages. But this has been done in fome former difcourfes. [ See ferm. cxxvii and cxviii. ] I therefore proceed to the other

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ground of affurance, which the ages after the Apostles are capable of having, viz.

Secondly, The effect of this doctrine ftill remains in the world. The Chriftian religion is ftill profeft in feveral nations, and is entertained by a, confiderable part of the world: And allowing for the difference between the extraordinary affiftance which at firft accompanied the gofpel, and was neceffary for the planting of it, and the more human and ordinary ways whereby it is now propagated, it hath confiderable effects upon the hearts and lives of men.

It might juftly indeed be expected, confidering the reasonableness of the Chriftian religion, and the great evidence we have of the truth and divinity of it, that it fhould have greater force and power upon men, than it hath in moft parts of Christendom; but we cannot reasonably expect in a profperous state of Chriftianity, thofe extraordinary heats and fervours which the primitive Chriftians had whilst they were under continual perfecution: We cannot reafonably expect that unity among Chriftians, and that they fhould be fo generally and univerfally good, as they were under a ftate of perfecution; for common fufferings have a ftrange force to unite men, and to endear them to one another: In times of perfecution it might be expected that all or moft of thofe who profefs themselves Chriftians fhould be really fo: When a profeffion is dangerous to thofe that make it, and attended with perfecutions, then there will be but few pretenders to it; fcarce any man will diffemble to the hazard of his life: But when any religion flourisheth, and is profperous, when it is an odious thing, and against a man's intereft not to profefs it, then it may justly be feared that there will great numbers of hypocrites, of thofe who in compliance with the fashion, and the prevailing intereft, will take upon them the outward profeffion of it.

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But however we fee the fame effects of Christianity ftill remain in the world: Chrift is ftill owned as the true Meffias and the Son of God; his doctrine acknowledged to be true, and to have been from God; fo that thus far his promife hath been made good of