Selected quad for the lemma: reason_n
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A60471
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The designed end to the Socinian controversy, or, A rational and plain discourse to prove, that no other person but the Father of Christ is God most high by John Smith.
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Smith, John, fl. 1673-1680.
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1695
(1695)
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Wing S4103; ESTC R15169
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29,912
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68
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Contradiction to the most self-evident Sentiments of humane Understanding But some may say If such Passages as these are so generally to be overlook'd in the Business of Religion why then did God cause them to be recorded in the sacred Scripture I answer that it may as well be asked why God made so many sorts of small and as we think useless Insects to live upon the Earth since we know not what Benefit they are of to the World Doubtless God who does nothing in vain made them for some great Ends though our short-sighted Understanding cannot perceive what those excellent Ends of his are Even so likewise will his Wisdom be manifested some way or other by what to us is yet hard to be understood in Scripture And though we are ignorant of the true meaning of many of the most obscure and doubtful Parts thereof yet the Ends and Purposes of God in causing them to be written either are or shall in due time be accomplished In the mean time we ought to magnify that manifest Goodness of God who hath communicated to Mankind such a number of plain and evident Precepts as will be fully sufficient for Salvation if we carefully observe them All are concern'd in the Business of Life Eternal therefore hath God given us Laws sutable to our common Capacities The Gospel of Christ was preach'd to the Poor which intimates that the Glad-tidings of Salvation did not consist of unintelligible Mysteries but of such plain and evident Notions as did fit the Understandings of the lowest People Of Faith and Reason There are a sort of People in the World of several false Perswasions who when they can no longer maintain their Errors against the Power of true Reason fly to Faith as their last Refuge and tell us that 't is by Faith only that we are made able to overcome the World 1 Joh. 5. 4. And that therefore 't is necessary for Men to believe what yet they cannot comprehend To this I answer That Faith indeed is the chief Duty of the Christian Religion because 't is the Belief of God's Promises and Threatnings that does ingage Mankind to the Obedience of his Precepts Few I doubt would be religious were there no Fear of Hell nor Hopes of Heaven 'T is said that all things are possible to him that believes Mark 9. 23. which in other Words imports that no Difficulty nor Hazard how great soever shall be able to stop them in their Christian Race And in this Sense it only is that Faith is said to be the Victory that overcometh the World But though 't is only a firm Perswasion of the Truth of God's Promises and Threatnings that inspires the Faithful with Courage to overcome and conquer the Temptations not only of the Devil but of the Lusts of this World too yet this is no Argument that therefore we must assent to that which we see no Reason to believe for then we might be every whit as liable to believe things false as things that are true Wherefore it behoves us to be very watchful and circumspect in avoiding false Principles for Error of any kind will rather make us Slaves to the Devil than enable us to overcome and conquer him As therefore thou oughtst to imbrace Truth wheresoever thou dost find it so be as ready to relinquish Errors when by carefully examining into Religion thou hast discovered them to be such for 't is in every respect as Heroick an Act of Faith to believe our selves in the wrong when we really are so as 't is to adhere stedfastly to a Truth undoubted Know then that no kind of Faith can be true that is certainly unreasonable for the Light of Nature is as much God's Law as Divine Revelation and none must ever think that God's Law can contradict it self Right self-evident Reason is the only Touchstone that Men have to distinguish Truth from Error and 't is the Agreement even of Scripture with this Reason that makes us know it to be the Word of God 't is not our Forefathers saying so but the exact Concurrence of the Witness of our Spirit and that Testimony And though some would perswade us not at all to trust to Reason in Matters of Religion yet 't is observable that those very Men that exclaim most against it are yet necessitated to give Reasons of their own to prove if 't were possible that your Reason is not to be relied on and certainly that Guide must needs be most safe whom the whole World in some kind or other do find it so necessary to follow Of the true Nature of Religion 'T is certain that the Laws of Religion are design'd by God for the only Good of Mankind he forbids some things and commands others only because the one is prejudicial to Man's Well-being and the other is absolutely necessary to his Peace and Happiness In order then to the true Happiness of this Life there is required a sutable way of living even such as respects the Universal Good of the whole Kind which in short is that which Men call a Life of Holiness or a Life perfectly free from every kind of Injustice or Mischief both to one's self and others And as for the Heavenly State that is a State of perfect Goodness and Purity and 't is impossible that any one can take delight in that Divine kind of Life hereafter which he hated here And for that Reason could the Wicked be admitted into Heaven yet then would they be unhappy by reason that there none of those base and ignoble Pleasures would be found which their corrupted Minds on Earth did love and admire 'T is then only a good Life on Earth that can fit us for the Heavenly Inheritance Now this Goodness of Life so necessary to Man's both present and future Bliss does not consist in Speculation but in Practice Belief is of no other Use than as it enacts Obedience and that 's the Reason that the Day of Judgment is represented as taking no notice of the Opinions but of the Practices of Men. Have you fed the Hungry Have you clothed the Naked Have you visited the Sick Mat. 25. 36. At that great Solemnity the Inquiry will not be What had you in the World or what did you profess but what good Deeds have you done therein how has your Care been to promote the Universal Good of rational Beings Have you renounced the Lust of the Flesh the Lust of the Eye and the Pride of Life 1 John 2. 26. and lived soberly and righteously and godlily in this present World Tit. 2. 12. and done justly and loved Mercy and walked humbly with God Mich. 6. 8. Now if 't is the Goodness of our Practice that is the one thing necessary to Salvation then the disbelieving either a few doubtful or else a few unreasonable Opinions can never be dangerous Let us then as to the Point now under Examination ask our selves but this one Question Will the Belief of the Doctrine
A DESIGNED END TO THE Socinian Controversy Or a Rational and Plain DISCOURSE To Prove That no other Person but the Father of Christ is God most High By JOHN SMITH Father This is Life Eternal to know thee the only true God John 17. 3. LONDON Printed in the Year MDCXCV AN ADVERTISEMENT THE Reader is desired to take notice that these Papers were written at different times as Matter did offer it self to the Author's Mind and for that Reason some Particulars are therein touch'd upon more than once for which 't is hoped however that there will need little Excuse since in relation to the whole Design it may be pertinent enough The Method also for that Reason is somewhat unusual but I have ventur'd however to let it pass as it is since not Method but Matter in such Cases is chiefly to be minded and I doubt not but that in one Part or other thereof every Part of the Controversy will be found to be both fully and fairly discuss'd And I wish none that read it may be of that evil Temper as to forbear the Acknowledgment of that Truth which yet in Conscience they dare not deny like those Jews of old who though they believed in Christ yet did not confess him lest they should be put out of the Synagogue Joh. 12. 42. A DESIGNED END TO THE Socinian Controversy That there is a God THAT there is such a Being as God by which is meant one Eternal Mind Essence or spiritual Power who is the Original and first Cause of all other Beings besides is manifest for 't is not possible that any other Being whatsoever could give a Being to it self Certainly nothing can be more absurd than to imagine that a thing can act any ways towards its own Production before it is Hence it follows that every one of these Beings is but the real Effect of this first Cause that had a Being before it and this first Cause of necessity must have been Eternal and without Beginning since had there been once no kind of Being at all there then could never have been such a Being as God no nor any other Being besides for doubtless of nothing nothing can be produc'd That this God is but one in Nature or Essence And as 't is thus plain that there is a God so 't is utterly impossible that there can be any more than one God for whoever is truly God must be absolutely Infinite or Immense that is His Divine Essence must be boundless and fill all that endless and inconceivable Space that is without or beyond the Limits of this World as well as this World For 't is impossible that any Being whatever can in any respect be greater than God is or contain him for then he himself could not be truly Infinite nor excel in all Perfections The Nature or Essence therefore of God is Infinite and in Extent is without Bounds and 't is self-evidently impossible for two or more infinitely extended Beings to subsist together which demonstrates by Consequence that God can be but one as to his Divine Essence or Nature And as right Reason does plainly teach this Truth so do the Scriptures as evidently declare the same to instance in a few The Lord he is God there is none else besides him Deut. 4. 35. See now that I even I am he and there is no God with me Deut. 32. 39. There is none like thee neither is there any God besides thee 1 Chron. 17. 20. I am the first and I am the last and besides methere is no God Isa 44. 6. We know that an Idol is nothing in the World and that there is none other God but one 1 Cor. 8. 4. To us there is but one God 1 Cor. 8. 6. I might add a great Number of other Texts that speak to the very same purpose but I think 't is needless in a Case so plain That this one true God is but one in Person Now as 't is thus plain that God is but one as to his Nature or Essence so 't is evident likewise that he can in no Sense be any more than one in Person for if as some affirm the Divine Nature did contain in it several Persons as does the humane Nature then each of those must be truly Immense truly Almighty and truly most Wise else they could not each of them be truly God as some have unwarily asserted and the Trinitarian Notion supposes for whoever is truly God must be every way thus qualified in all Respects For if that Person that is supposed to be God be not truly immense then some other Being of necessity must be greater than he for whoever is not Infinite must be bounded by some other Being which in that respect does truly surpass that bounded Being in Greatness But as I said before nothing can in any kind or respect whatsoever be greater than God is or contain him and by Consequence he alone is truly Immense The Person that is truly God must be also Almighty that is he must be able to do more than any or than all other Beings together can do for doubtless none is the most High but he that in Might and Strength does transcend all others Touching the Almighty says Job he excels in Power ch 37. 28. The Person also that is truly God must be most wise and knowing 'T is doubtless a Property essential to the true God to know more than any other Being besides can know Of that Day and Hour saith our Saviour knoweth no Man no not the Angels which are in Heaven neither the Son but the Father only Matth. 24. 36. Mar. 13. 32. Now if that Person who is truly God must be thus Immense in his Person Almighty in his Power and most Wise in his Knowledg then it follows by direct Consequence that 't is impossible for more than one Person to be truly God for nothing can be more absurd than to believe or affirm that two or three distinct Beings such as all personal Beings are can be each of them unlimited as to the extent of their personal Beings can be each of them able to do more than the rest can do or that each of them can know more than the others know Suppose for Instance two such Beings as A and B Now if the Person of A can do more than the Person of B then the Person of B cannot do more than the Person of A for if he could then would not A be able to do more than B and by Consequence he could not be Almighty Again if the Person of A be most wise and knows more than the Person of B then B cannot know more than A for if he did then would not A know more than B and so by Consequence would not be most wise which evidently demonstrates that no more than one Person can be truly God since no more than one can be truly Infinite in all these afore-mentioned Divine Perfections That this one Person who