Prerogative over any other man or men whatsoever For as the Divine Evidences were formerly so are they yet for the very same ends and purposes still useful and necessary to accompany the Ministry and so will they alway accompany the true Ministry for the conversion of men to the Faith of the Gospel But for R. B. thus to extend my words besides or beyond my meaning or to confine them short thereof is not to be allowed by me nor can it reasonably be approved by any man for whereas my meaning is limited onely to the conversion of unbelievers he extends them to any whether converted or unconverted as if I had been so irrational as to say or think That no man after his Conversion to the Faith of the Gospel was bound to believe or practise any other or further Duty of Christianity without some new Miracle yea new Miracles done in his sight to prove it for so much in effect his Charge amounts unto And who would ever think R. B. to be so void of understanding or ingenuity rather as to lay such and so irrational an aspersion upon any man that never did or thought him harm Now let any man in love convince me of my Errour in this my Position and I shall take it kindly and be as ready to retract and tread it under foot as he would have me but of all men in the world R. B. is least able to do it or to accuse me for it having asserted as much or more himself for in his Saints Rest Part 2. pag. 201. of the sixth Edition he asserts That Divine Faith hath ever a Divine Testimony and in pag. 205. That we must know it to be a Divine Testimony before we can believe fide Divina by a Divine Faith and I hope by a Divine Faith he intends no other then a true and saving Faith which must necessarily have a divine and infallible ground to be built on seeing of other Faiths he plainly tells us in pag. 201. That to believe implicitely that the Testimony is Divine or the Scripture is the Word of God this is not to believe God but to resolve our Faith into some humane Testimony even to lay our Foundation upon the Sands where all will fall at the next Assault And in pag. 236. he expresseth himself thus viz. I demand with my self by what argument did Moses and Christ evince to the world the verity of their Doctrine and I finde it was chiefly by this of Miracles and surely Christ knew the best argument to prove the Divine Authority of his Doctrine and that which was the best then is the best still And in pag. 33. of his book of Infidelity part 1. he tells us That Tongues are not for them that believe but for them that believe not that is saith he to shew them the power of Christ and so convince them And in part 4. pag. 46. of the same Book he tells us If it had no divine attestation or evidence that it is of God then you might (a) And I hope no man is bound by God to believe that which he may without sin or danger reject reject it without sin or danger Now let any rational and impartial man judge if R. B. himself hath not asserted sufficient and more then enough to justifie my Position and all that which I hold in the point yea and that which is tantamount the same although in many places of his writings he contradicts it which is no rare thing to see in men of his undertakings though they both speak and write much less then he hath done And amongst the multitudes of his failings in that and the like kinde in his voluminous writings thou mayst finde him friendly remembred of some few in a small Treatise entituled Fides Divina which when thou hast read then tell me If a Bear may not be known by a small Member even by his foot alone And whereas R. B. at the end of that his Charge intayles this viz. Adding withall That indeed Antichrist may do Miracles What cause of exception can be taken at Answ this my so saying when the Scripture it self affirms That the second Beast which came up out of the earth who is an Antichrist at least wrought Miracles Rev. 13. 11 14. Rev. 19. 20. This R. B. in his Saints Rest pag. 206. flatly contradicts by telling us there That no created power can work a Miracle Let him be pleased hence to be asked these sober Questions 1. Do you indeed and in truth as you pretend believe the Scripture to be the VVord of God 2. And that it was confirmed by Miracles as you assert it to be about the midst of your Preface to your Book of Infidelity and in divers other places of the same Book 3. How then dare you so presumptuously put the lye upon God by your flat contradicting his Word as here you have done This Charge lies upon him unavoydably unless he can prove that Beast to be an uncreated power which he can never do But we may see here as in many other places how he plays Bo-peep with us in rendring such persons abominable who do not with all readiness and without any chewing swallow all that which he pleaseth out of his own fancy to say of the Scriptures indefinitely being the VVord of God and that they (b) Which indeed is the harder for any man to belive because that some stuck not to raze and blot out of them senâ—ences above 1200 years since as Socrates reports lib. 7. ca. 31. And what hath been the boldness of others in that or the like kinde to do to them before and since is not known nor can be imaginâ—d were confirmed by Miracles when indeed and in truth he believes neither the one nor the other himself for if he did how durst he be so bold as flatly to contradict them as here he hath done And upon my saying that Antichrist may do Miracles R. B. infers thus viz. So it seems for all the talk Miracles themselves would not serve if they saw them Answ By this your inference you imply as if the signes and Miracles wrought by God himself for the Confirmation of the Gospel were no way dscernable by men from such as were or may be wrought by the Devil and his Instruments Is not this a casting a high disparagement upon the wisdom power and justice of Almighty God in his requiring faith and obedience to the Gospel upon pain of Damnation and yet produce no other nor better evidence for the Confirmation of the truth thereof then Satan or his Ministers can do for the Confirmation of falshood Doth not this amount to high Blasphemy against God himself For did not the Signes and Miracles wrought by Moses in Egypt so far transcend all those that were or could be wrought by the Egyptian Sorcerers or by the Devil himself as they were apparently discernable by all that saw them from those wrought by the
declare his Faith if he were in Spain He answered me No But soon after he would have supped up again that his answer by telling me If it concern'd the Glory of God he would After all which with a low voyce I told him That if we were alone I might haply be freer to speak and to tell him more of my minde Then stept he to the Lurcher and dismist him with words to this effect You may now be gone I have done with you there 's no more need now of your stay Which hearing I concluded as before I suspected that he was on purpose appointed in that manner to be there which made me think it best to say little more to him but rather to forbear until I had studied and found out the man and his aims more perfectly onely I wish'd him to answer the Book and not to be so inquisitive to know the Author and also to seek out some meeter Match then my self for him to Dispute and Contest withal Telling him in effect thus much further That when any great Boy encounter'd with a little one in the Street the very Women and Wenches passing by will reprove him saying Thou great Knave why quarrelest thou with this little Boy who is quiet not medling with thee nor is he any meet Match for thee so great a Lubber For shame let him alone and meddle with thy Match And having thus spoken I took leave and departed being glad to be so well quit of such a Companion well discerning of what Spirit he was Loe this is the sum of the whole that is worth the relating which then passed between this busy Bishop and my sel Since which came out his second sheet thus publiquely charging me which I have here answered and freely told him part of my mind and something of my Faith too which he so much desired to know for which I hope no Impartial Wise Just or Rational Man will in the least blame me doing it in my own Defence being so much assaulted and provoked thereunto and that both publickly in print and otherwise as is here already declared And now lest my Notes being in his hand should likewise be sent abroad either in some disguise or without the right and proper Sentences of the Book to which they relate I shall here make bold to publish them my self even as they came rudely and hastily at first from my Pen not in the least suspecting that I should ever have been thus caused to publish them in my own Defence as now I am Wherein for the Readers better satisfaction I shall first set down the Sentence as it is in the Book and the page where it is this shall be marked in the Margent with the letter B. for Book Next to which shall be my Note thereupon and this shall be marked with the Letter N for Note And where any need is to add a word for explanation this shall be marked with the letter A. for Addition The Title of the Book The Unreasonableness OF INFIDELITY Divided into Four Parts By RICHARD BAXTER 1. The Spirits Extrinsick Witness 2. The Spirits internal Witness 3. The sin against the Holy Ghost 4. The Arrogancy of Reason The First PART Page 16. B. TO one is given by the Spirit the word of Wisdom to another the word of Knowledge by the same Spirit to another working of Miracles to another Prophesie to another discerning of Spirits to another divers Tongues to another the interpretation of tongues but all these worketh that one and the same Spirit N. Why is Faith here omitted seeing the Text hath it Page 18. B. If we were in a case of doubt between several Teachers and one of them should write thus to publick Churches even the Churches of England Scotland Holland and Germany I appeal to your selves whether you did not by that Doctrine which I delivered to you receive the Holy-Ghost by which you all received either the gift of tongues healing prophesie or the like N. Can any Minister now truly so write to any Church or infallibly tell what that Gospel or Doctrine was which was so confirmed to the Galatians Page 30. B. We have yet Copies of Scripture extant of very great Antiquity N. Admit all this and that they all accorded as they do not yet the Quere will be Who gave those Copies or any Translations Authority to be a ground of true Faith to the world whereby they might be saved by their believing them or damned everlastingly for not believing them Page 32. B. Men must not believe Gods Law ceased or abrogated without good proof N. But the Gospel was in like manner confirmed to the Centiles also who had not the Law Page 32. B. We have the full use and benefit of the Holy Ghost which was given then that seal that was then set to the Christian Doctrines and Scriptures stands there still N. Hereby every several Opinion and Doctrine drawn from Scripture is justified the one as well as the other Page 33. B. Tongues are not for them that believe but for them that believe not saith Paul 1 Cor. 14. 22. that is to shew them the power of Christ and so convince them N. What are not now unbelievers in the world as well as then Page 33. B. But now the Scripture is sealed by these N. Who but Mr. Baxter dare to affirm this Page 34. B. These glorious Experiments and potent Workings will not suffer them to change their Religion N. This justifies the Quakers as well as Mr. Baxter if not more at least they may pretend the same as well as he Page 35. B. The gifts of strange Languages healing casting out of Devils fell on men ordinarily N. These gifts being ordinary Why do you elsewhere term them extraordinary A. Yea and why do you in the seventh page of your second sheet for the Ministry say If Miracles were ordinary few would be moved by them as any proof of a Divine Testimony And also in the thirty sixth page part two of your book of Infidelity say Miracles if common would lose their convincing force and be as none Yet here you tell us That they were ordinary when no such inconvenience followed their being so But these with other like slights and juggles are so common in your VVritings as no man in his VVits can take them for Miracles nor your VVritings for any proof of a Divine Testimony Page 35. B. That putteth such a new nature into the soul of every Saint N. â—quere VVhether this be any otherwise then by Faith or their believing the promise of having it 2 Pet. 1. 4. A. Afterward viz. at the Resurrection and now to have it meerly by promise See the Text. Page 36. B. If you would open your eyes you might see very much of it i. e. of the gifts of the Spirit before specified in the holiness of the Saints N. If it be with any now shew it and so end the Controversie but if not then rest onely on
That is no member of his Body or true Church A. For this Body of Christ is capable onely of profitable Members by having some manifest gift of the Spirit to profit the Body withal for the manifestation of the Spirit for that purpose was given to every Member of that Body 1 Cor. 12. 7. c. Whence will follow No manifestation by some gift of the Spirit no Spirit of Christ and no Spirit of Christ no Member of Christs Body Page 87. B. The Spirit by extraordinary works formerly and by holy actuating the Church to the end is Christs great witness to the world N. Christs great witness to the world by his Spirit is by outward works not by inward workings in the hearts of his Saints A. For how can any unbeliever be convinced and brought to the Faith by the secret workings in another mans heart or spirit without some powerful manifestation thereof outwardly Page 96. B. All this you know is Scripture N. Although all this is Scripture yet little of all this is of Scripture and that which is is little to the purpose to prove that which is endeavoured by the Author Page 98. B. For the same spirit will not say and unsay N. How ill will this prove the generality of preaching now to be of the Spirit since the same is so full of Contradictions Page 99. B. The spirit of Illumination is the same and given onely by Scripture and for any spirit that shall contradict Scripture it can never be holy nor true nor faithful as contradicting Truth N. VVhen various and contradictious Expositions are made of Scripture how may we certainly know which is for and which is against the Truth and when or by whom were Miracles ever wrought to confirm Scripture or Doctrines taught now by our Ministers or whether all Scriptures Ministers and Doctrines now extant be or have been so confirmed since all do or may challenge it the one as well as the other Page 105. B. There is the Spirit of God within that doth second these Doctrines and take the received Species of them and impress them upon the Soul and doth this effectually and potently according to the mighty unresistible power of the Agent N. How then is unbelief any sin deserving damnation or belief any vertue if it be wrought by an inward unresistible power Page 106. B. You see the truth of Christian Religion by the Spirit of holiness besides that of Miracles formerly All Sects and sorts of Christians pretend to have this Spirit of holiness and may challenge the former Miracles to give evidence for the one as well as the other The Second PART Page 32. B. And to make the giving of the Holy Ghost to be that seal which should credit this report with their hearers N. VVhere is this seal to credit your Doctrine and Ministry if you had it it were more to purpose then a thousand such Books as this Page 34. B. No man can know that the Magna Charta the Petition of Right or any other Statute of this Land are indeed Genuine and Authentick N. Nor is any man bound upon Pain of Damnation so to know or believe it as he is the Gospel that hears it declared and attested by Signs and Gifts of the Holy Ghost wherefor the Comparison is frivolous Page 34. B. The most unlearned man is so far bound to believe the Statute of Felony to be authentick and in Force that he shall be justly hanged if he break it N. But no man can justly be hanged for not believing it onely nor can any man be justly blamed for not believing you more then another contradicting you Page 36. B. Miracles if common would lose their Convincing Force and be as none N. Miracles though common in the first Age lost not their Convincing Force Then Miracles though common in after Ages may not lose their Convincing Force But the first is true Besides in page 242 of the Third Part of this Book you tell us That it 's certain from current History and Church-Records that the Gift of casting out of Devils and making them confess themselves mastered by Christ did remain in the Church for long time after the Apostles even for three of four hundred yeers at least Page 45. B. God doth still effectually convince millions of men of the certainty of Christian Religion and that without renewed Miracles N. All several sorts of Christians have this Conviction respectively yet condemn one another for Hereticks Page 50. B. It was the Office of the Apostles and the Duty of all other that saw Christ's Miracles to bear witness of them N. It was the Office and Duty of such to stay until they were indued with power to do the like Miracles See Luk. 24. 49. Act. 1. 4 5 8. before their witness was to be received Page 50. B. Those that saw not those Miracles were bound to believe their witness N. Prove this if you can Page 55. B. Lillies Grammar may be mis-Printed or the Writings of Cicero Virgil or Ovid which were written before the Gospel and yet we are past all doubt that their Writings are not forged N. That which God bindes men to believe upon Pain of Damnation comes with more certainty then these or any other Writings or Words either especially they coming to them in an unknown Tongue A. As the Scriptures did from the Pen-men thereof unto nineteen parts of twenty men in the world Page 55. B. Must you not believe him that tells you the Truth and proves it to be so N. If one by his Scholarship proves it true and another in like manner prove it false which of the two is a man bound to believe or must he believe both Page 56 B. Object Christ saith If I had not done the works which no man else could do ye had no sin Answ But doth not say If ye had not seen them ye had no sin N. This Text is cited falsely and deceitfully for it affirmeth in effect that which is denied in the Answer A. For you wilfully have omited among them and that they did both see and hate both Christ and the Father which being cited and duly considered will quite overthrow that Doctrine which you seek here to up-hold by omiting it which is neither fair nor honest Page 58. B. All Historians are fallible and liable to Error N. How then can it be any sufficient ground of true and saving Faith A. Or how then can any History or words from men fallible and liable to Error without infallible Evidence be any sufficient Ground for Divine Faith since you tell us elsewhere That Divine Faith hath ever a Divine Testimony but no Testimony that is fallible and liable to Error can possibly be a Divine Testimony Page 59. B. Such are the Scriptures and it was necessary that the Language should be suited to the matter so to the capacity of the generality of the Readers N. How is this true when it is Barbarism to the generality
we shall then be necessitated to despise the other party and by consequence to despise Christ and God himself but God puts no people upon any such necessities and therefore also the Ministers of the reformed Churches are not the true Ministers of Christ Whence will as a necessary consequence follow That all the Arguments which are or can be brought by R. B. to prove them such are fallacious and deceitful and all the Scriptures brought by him to ground and make good the said Arguments are perverted and abused because no good or sound Argument nor any Scripture in its true and genuine sence can be brought or produced to prove a lye and falshood as this is And if they who said they were Jews when they were not blasphemed Rev. 2. 9. What do they less who say They are the Ambassadors and Ministers of Jesus Christ when they are not Now if any skilful in humane Arts will please to put these Grounds and Reasons into Syllogistical Forms he may but I must let him know That this is not desired by the forementioned plain man for we may gather his Opinion of humane Learning and of the Art of Logick by his words uttered at Nice who had therefore rather with a plain and sincere minde with Faith and good works trust to such plain and downright Grounds and Reasons of his own then to any Artificial Logical or Fallacious Arguments brought now into the Churches by humane Learning whereby such a cunning Sophister as R. B. is able to make plain men such as he was believe The Crow is white the Swan black and the Moon to be made of green Cheese A POST-SCRIPT READER THe supposed ground of this Charge if he had any at all from my mouth was from a small Conference he had with me some five years since after which about three years since he sent me a Book of his Infidelity desiring me impartially to read it over which when I did I found therein very many things unsound at least to my apprehension some few whereof I noted in the Margent with my Pen with some hints of my exceptions thereunto which Book when I had thus gone through I returned unto him again with an Epistle in a blank Page thereof The Copy of which here followeth To Mr. RICHARD BAXTER At KIDDERMINSTER This deliver SIR I Have read over this your elaborate Piece most Learnedly and Zealously compiled wherein are many observable Things some excellent Good and some liable to Exception being asserted with much more Confidence then Proof at least as I conceive I have noted some few Places bear with the Rudeness and Imperfections thereof being sudden Conceptions hastily exprest not in the least intending it for your scanning but marking them meerly for my own further Consideration upon a Re-view But in my second Thuoghts considering your Ingenuity and Worth in divers respects to exceed the ordinary Pitch of Men of your Function I altered my Intention and resolved to subject the same notwithstanding all its Defects to your View well knowing that you by your far greater Abilities can easily descant what further and more exactly to that or the like effect might be urged by an abler Pen which I wish you would please impartially and without offence to consider as I have done your Book sent me I hope in much Candor and Love for which being much obliged I kindly thank you Farewel Decem. 1. 1655. Clement Writer The Reasons of my thus returning the book were chiefly these First I saw the contents thereof were such as made me something suspect that it was sent me as an Assault to provoke me to some open Contest with him which I desired to prevent as being not onely indisposed thereunto but also utterly unable to incounter with such an Assailant though it were to defend Truth against him Secondly considering if I should have made no return nor given him any account at all of my reading it he might have imagined that Truth had been on his side and have ascribed the modesty of my silence to the prevalency of that which he mis-calls Truth Wherefore to prevent both these I sent him in this loving and private manner my notes for him to consider of taking him then to be both honest and ingenious but I am not the first that hath been mistaken in that kind and therefore thought that by my communicating to him my apprehensions in this Friendly and private manner I should have had the like Love and Friendship returned me or at least never any way to have been quarrelled with about our different perswasions otherwise then by some friendly and private conference about the same which I expected and desired But I heard nothing from him at all about my Notes nor ought else until about August 1657. He being then in Worcester sent to speak with me I readily went my selfe alone thinking then he intended some such Conference but I was much deceived therein for coming to the House where he was he sent for me up to him in a Chamber whereinto I had no sooner entred but in came one slinking after me in a Ministers habit and without speaking any word sate him down at a distance from us in the same Room which observing I resolved in my self to be very reserved whatsoever his business was with me The Scoene being thus set in a stern authoritative manner he began to question me about a small Treatise then lately come forth intituled Fides Divina wherein as it seems some few of his Doctrines are touch'd demanding of me who was the Author of that Book I told him If I knew I would not tell him without the Authors leave seeing the Author himself had conceal'd it He then told me That he knew that I was the Author because it concurred with my Animadversions or Notes which formerly I had sent him To which I answered If he knew the Author before why did he but then ask to know who it was Telling him withal that he might be much mistaken in his Conclusion from such a Ground because there were very Many in England of the same Judgement with my Notes and far abler then my self to compile such a Book After which he would have had me declare my Faith and he would declare his and then see how far we agreed and in that we differ'd he would reason or Dispute it with me but this I declined telling him That I was no meet Match for him so great a Scholar unless I had some as great as himself to unty his fallacies wherewith hee might else soon entangle me Yet then the better to allure me to speak out fully according to the monstrous shape and ugly look of his aims He said to me What dare you not declare your Faith You need not fear any thing now in this time of Liberty But this Bait neither would be swallowed by me for I then ask'd him If it would be his wisdome without all fear upon such terms to
they spake with Tongues before people of many Nations and that it was not one nor one hundred but multitudes of Christians that had one gift or other of this sort either miracles specially so called or healing or prophecie or tongues He might have said Not one but bad one such gift or other c. and for proof thereof he citeth 1 Cor. 12. Mar. 16. 17. both which Scriptures mention manifest gifts and outward and visible works of the Spirit only and not inward invisible workings thereof And he likewise tells us That these manifest gifts did remain in the Church at least three or four hundred yeers after the Apostles How easie by these gifts might any Heathen having but the use of reason undoubtedly know the true Church and all at once without any circumcursoes or wandrings hither and thither to finde her And since a true visible Church is here defined to be a Congregation I quere When or where this Objectors Catholick Church whereof he professeth himself a member was ever congregated I think he can hardly tell me and if it was never congregated How then can he prove it to be a congregation or Church Act. 20. 28. 1 Thes 5. 7. Col. 3. 16. Heb. 3. 13. much less any true Church of Christ the Elders whereof are to feed and take care for all the flock and the particular members thereof ought to edifie admonish and exhort one another dayly but how the Elders and members of this his Catholick Church do or can perform all these their duties he need to inform us before we can or ought to beleeve it to be any true or visible Church of Christ I have been much the larger in answering this Objection because I find the framer thereof to build many great errors upon this fabrick founded upon meerfallacy and quicksand But I now hope that upon his review a speedy way may be opened to him no more to deceive others nor longer to be deceived himself therein it being an ingenuous valiant pious and glorious thing in any man at any time upon any occasion to forsake an error and repent And that he may the rather be induced thereunto I shall minde him of one at least as wise and as learned as himself viz Mr. John Goodwin well known to be both grave and judicious against whom the like Objection is made by Mr. Pawson thus That notwithstanding such a purpose in God to save whosoever beleeves all might perish and Christ be an head without a body a King without Subject c. Hereunto Mr. Goodwin in his Triumviri pag. 38. gives this sober and solid answer following viz. These are offered under a pretence of high absurdities in case they were truths have nothing in them but what even a childe might readily vindicate from such an imputation For what absurdity or inconvenience is it that Christ should be an head actu signato i. e. a person fit or meet to make an head and not be an head actu exercito i. e. not an head actually united to a body there is the same reason of his being a King also When Solomon saith That he had seen Princes walking as servants on the earth Eccl. 11. 7. he judgeth it no absurdity to stile those Princes who had no Subjects nor any thing else externally comporting with the state of a Prince but ascribes unto them the honour and denomination upon the account of their truly noble and Prince-like qualities and endowments but besides the regularness and inoffensiveness of such consequences in case they were regularly deducible from their premises the clear truth is they are plain non sequiturs It doth not follow that if all men might perish that Christ should be an head without a body or a King without Subjects for might he not yea should he not have been an head to a body of Angels whether men had been any part of this body or no Are not Angels also now his Subjects If it were lawful for him that is Orthodox to learn any thing from a man that is erroneous Mr. Pawson might have informed himself of these things from pag. 438 439 c. as also from pag. 215 216. of my Book of Redemption Thus far Mr. Goodwin to whom I refer this our learned Objector for his better learning and information in these particulars It being no small cause of grief to see a man so studiously industrious as he is with so much zeal for God and so much charity towards men as he seems to have to be in so many things so extreamly mistaken The Authors last farewell to his Reader Reader Be intreated for thine own sake in thy perusal of the foregoing discourses to lay aside all prejudice which often so prepossesseth the minds of most that it quite puts out the very eye of the understanding or at least so transports the whole man that we can by no means rellish or down with any thing that is contrary or different to our education or the approbation of the time and place we live in though never so evidently made out unto us to be both sound wholsome and good for when it is presented so to be and that within our view we then usually wink with our eyes lest we should see This deadly enemy to our peace is bred and fostered in some by ignorance in some by perverse and willful obstinacy in some by malice See Act. 19. 24 to 36. and in many by self-interest and wordly emolument but never habituated or justified in any but by extream weakness or exceeding great wickedness Wherefore be intreated as before First clearly to rid thy self of this evil Spirit and then seriously and impartially to read and consider what is there said And the Lord give thee a right understanding therein and the exercise of a pure conscience in all things Farewell From my Lodging in London this fatal 3. of Sept. 1658. C. W.