where he now Sitteth at the Right-hand of God the Father Almighty Q. After what Manner did Christ Ascend into Heaven A. He went up Visibly in the Presence of all his Disciples A Cloud came down under his Feet and he mounted by degrees in it They follow'd him a long time with their Eyes till at last having lost Sight of Him but yet still looking after him to the Place Where he passed Two Angels appear'd to them and thus confirm'd them in the Truth of what they had seen Ye Men of Galilee why stand ye gazing up into Heaven This same Jesus which is taken up from you into Heaven shall so Come in like manner as ye have seen Him Go into Heaven Acts i. 9 10 11. Q. Did Christ Ascend in the same Body in which He conversed with his Disciples after his Resurrection A. He did Ascend in the same Body and has assured Us thereby that We shall hereafter be Received up thither in our Bodies as well as Souls and so Reign in Both together with Him Q. Into what part of Heaven did Christ Ascend A. He ascended into the Highest Heaven where God does in a singular Manner shew his Majesty and Glory And therefore our Creed tells us that being ascended into Heaven he sat down at the Right-hand of God the Father Almighty Where also He shall continue till he shall come again from thence to judge both the Quick and the Dead Luk. xxii 69 1 Cor. iii. 1 2. Q. What do you mean by the Right-hand of God A. Not to Represent God under the Figure of a Man nor to intimate any particular Posture of Christ Above though having a Humane Body he might well enough be described in it But as by the One I understand a Place of Power Honour and Authority 1 King ii 19 Psal. xvi 11 xliv 3 Luk. xxii 69 Heb. i. 3 4. So by the Other I suppose is meant the settled Possession and Enjoyment of all these Prov. xx 8 Heb. x. 12 And the Sense of the whole I take to be this That Christ being Ascended up into Heaven was immediately thereupon enstated by God in the full Possession of his Regal Office and Dignity and shall continue to enjoy it till he shall have finish'd the whole Work of our Redemption By bestowing Glory and Salvation upon all his faithful Servants and by finally destroying in Hell-fire all the Enemies of his Power and Dignity Q. Does our Saviour do any thing at present for Us with God in Heaven A. Yes he perfects his Priestly Office there by Interceding Effectually with God for our Forgiveness As the High Priest under the Law when he went into the Holy Place before the Ark with the Bloud of the Sin-offering did thereby finish the Propitiation which he was to make for the Sins and Offences of the People of the Jews Rom. viii 34 1 Tim. ii 5 Heb. ix 11 12 24. 1 Jo. ii 1 SECT XIV Q. HOW long shall our Saviour Christ continue to Sit and Intercede for Us at God's Right-hand A. Till the End of the World Which being Come He shall Return from thence with Glory to Iudge both the Quick and the Dead Acts iii. 21 The Heavens must Receive him till the times of Restitution of all Things And then This same Jesus which was taken up into Heaven shall so Come in like manner as he was seen to Go into Heaven Acts i. 11 Q. What do you mean by that Phrase the Quick and the Dead A. By the Quick I understand those who shall be found Alive on the Earth at the Day of Judgment 1 Cor. xv 51 1 Thess. iv 15 By the Dead those who shall have before departed out of this Life And I make mention of Both to shew that ALL Men shall be judged And that Christ shall be the Judge of ALL. Acts x. 42 2 Cor. v. 10 2 Tim. iv 1 1 Pet. iv 5 Q. Do you then believe that there shall be a General Day of Judgment to the whole World A. I do believe there shall be such a Day and that most Solemn and Terrible Mat. x. 15 xi 22 24. xii 36 Jo. v. 22 25. Acts xvii 31 Rom. ii 5 c. 2 Pet. ii 9 iii. 7 Heb. vi 2 ix 27 1 Jo. iv 17 Jude 6. Wherein first the Angels shall Sound the Trumpet at the Voice of which all that are in the Graves shall Arise and Come forth and be Gather'd together into One certain Place Then our Saviour shall come down in the Clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory and the Books shall be Open'd and the Judgment sit and every Man be judged out of the things which are Written in those Books according to his Works See Mat. xxv 31 comp Mat. xxiv 30 Q. After what Manner shall this Judgment be transacted A. The particular Manner is unknown to Us Yet this we are told that we shall then be call'd to an Account for all that we shall have done in the whole Course of our Lives here on Earth Every evil Work every foolish and wicked Word every secret Thought shall be brought to light Nothing that we now covet the most to hide but shall be then disclosed And we shall be either Acquitted or Condemn'd according to what we shall have done whether it be Good or whether it be Evil. Eccles. xii 14 1 Cor. iv 5 2 Cor. v. 10 Mat. xii 36 Rom. ii 5 Rev. xx 12 Q. Shall there be any particular Method observed in the Proceedings of this Judgment A. Yes there shall For First The Just shall be Raised and Judged and Acquitted and Caught up into the Air at some convenient distance from the Earth where with the Holy Angels they shall fill up the Retinue of our Blessed Saviour Then the Wicked shall be Raised and brought to Judgment And being condemn'd not only by Christ and his Saints but by the Sentence of their Own Consciences they shall together with the Devils be driven away by the Angels thereunto appointed into their Place of Torments Which being done Our Saviour shall together with all his Saints Return triumphantly to Heaven and there Reign in Glory at the Head of them for Ever and Ever Mat. xxv 1 Thess. iv c. SECT XV. Q. WHat does the THIRD PART of your Creed contain A. It contains all that is needful to be Known and Profess'd by Us with Relation to the Holy Ghost Q. What do you account needful to be believed concerning Him A. Not only that there is a Holy Ghost but that he is the Third Person in the ever-blessed Trinity and partakes as such of the same Divine Nature with the Father and the Son Q. How does this appear A. By the plain Testimony of the Holy Scriptures by which alone we are capable of knowing any thing in these Matters Now those Sacred Writings evidently speak of him not only as a Person but as a Divine
Person and that distinct both from the Father and from Our Lord Jesus Christ. Q. Wherein do the Holy Scriptures speak of this Blessed Spirit as of a Person A. * They give him the Proper Names of a Person God Acts v. 3 4. Lord 2 Cor. iii. 17 The Spirit 1 Sam. xvi 14 Jo. xvi 13 The Comforter Jo. xiv 26 xvi 7 c. * They ascribe to Him the Properties of a Person Vnderstanding 1 Cor. ii 11 Will 1 Cor. xii 11 * They Represent Him as doing Personal Acts He is Sent He Cometh Goeth Heareth Teacheth Jo. xiv 26 xv 26 27. Jo. xvi 7 13 c. Is Tempted Resisted Grieved Eph. iv 30 Speaketh Commandeth Intercedeth Acts x. 19 xiii 2 Rom. viii 26 * They join him with those who are confessedly Persons viz. God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Form of Baptism Mat. xxviii 19 In St. Paul's Wish for the Corinthians 2 Cor. xiii 14 In St. John's Catalogue of Witnesses 1 Jo. v. 7 They Oppose him to such Spirits as We All allow to be Persons 1 Sam. xvi 14 * They represent him under Personal Apparitions Mat. iii. 16 Acts ii 3 and by all this undoubtedly assure Us that He is a Person Q. By what Arguments from the Holy Scriptures do you prove that He is a Divine Person A. By the same by which I before shew'd the Son so to be They ascribe to him the Names of God Acts v. 3 4. 2 Cor. iii. 17 The Attributes of God Heb. ix 14 Psal. cxxxix 7 Job xxvi 13 The Honour of God They tell us That He is the Spirit of God 1 Cor. ii 11.17 That a Sin may be immediately committed against Him Mat. xii 31 That his dwelling in Us makes our Bodies the Temples of God 1 Cor. iii. 16 That Christ by being Conceived by him became the Son of God Luke i. 35 They teach us to Baptize in his Name together with those of the Father and Son Mat. xxviii 19 And shew Us even St. Paul himself paying a Religious Invocation to him 1 Thes. iii. 12 13. 2 Thes. iii. 3 c. Q. How do you prove him not only to be a Divine Person but a Person distinct both from the Father and the Son A. He proceedeth from the Father and therefore is not the Father Jo. xv 26 He is sent by the Son and therefore is not the Son Jo. xvi 7 15. He is sent sometimes by the Father in the Name of the Son and sometimes by the Son from the Father and therefore is neither the Father nor the Son Jo. xiv 26 xv 26 Q. But did not you before say that there is but One God And how now do you say that the Father is God the Son is God and the Holy Ghost is God A. That there is but One God the Holy Scriptures plainly declare and even Reason it self confirms it to Us. And yet the Same Scriptures as plainly declare Every One of these Three to be God And the only way we know of Reconciling these Two seemingly contrary Assertions is to say that these Three partake of One and the same Divine Nature communicated from the Father to the Son and from Both to the Holy Ghost And that therefore They together make but One God Q. How can it be possible that Three distinct Persons should so partake of the One Divine Nature or Essence as All together to make but One God A. That is not my Concern to determine This I am sure that if the Scriptures be as We all allow that they are the Word of God what they plainly deliver must be true because it is in effect delivered by God himself who can neither be Himself deceived nor will deceive Me. Now that they deliver both these Propositions to me That the Father is God the Son is God and the Holy Ghost is God And yet that there are not Three Gods but One God I am as sure as I can be of any thing that is spoken or written for my Understanding That therefore both these Assertions are True and Credible I am sure But how or after what manner I am to understand them so as to remove all shew of Contradiction in them this the Holy Scriptures have not Revealed nor do I therefore presume to pronounce any thing more particularly concerning it Q. Why then do you say that they are Three Persons and but One in the Divine Essence A. Because I know not how better to express the Vnity and Distinction of them and they are Terms which the Church has long Received and I see no Reason to depart from them unless I knew of some better and more apt Expressions to Use in their Stead Q. Is there any thing farther needful to be known concerning the Holy Ghost A. Yes there is and that is with Relation to his Office That it is he who Sanctifieth Me and All the Elect People of God Q. How is it that the Holy Ghost does this A. He Regenerates Us at our Baptism Jo. iii. 5 Tit. iii. 5 Gal. v. 15 He Vnites Us unto Christ 1 Cor. xii 12 13. 1 Jo. iii. 24 Co-operates with Us in all our Religious Vndertakings 2 Cor. ix 5 He Illuminates our Vnderstandings Psal. cxix 18 Acts xvi 14 Disposes our Wills Phil. ii 12 Settles us in the Faith of Christ Eph. ii 8 Phil. i. 29 Heb. iv 2 Enables us to fulfil our Duty Rom. viii 14 Gal. v. 16 Helps our Prayers Rom. viii 26 34. 1 Jo. v. 14 Fortifies us against Temptations 1 Cor. x. 13 And Carries us through all the Dangers that either our Own Weakness or the Cunning and Malice of the Devil may raise against Us to draw us away from or hinder Us in Our Duty Phil. i. 6 1 Cor. i.8 2 Cor. i. 22 Eph. iv 30 Q. Will the Holy Ghost alone do all this for Us A. No but we must Use our Own Endeavour if ever we mean to be assisted by him It is by the Grace of the Holy Spirit alone that we are Able to do those things which God and our Duty Require of Us. But that Grace is not to exclude but to assist and perfect our Own Endeavours and to enable us thereby to do that which without it we should never have been able to have done Phil. ii 12 Work out your own Salvation with Fear and Trembling For it is God which Worketh in you both to Will and to Do of his Good Pleasure Q. By what means may we obtain this Help of the Holy Spirit A. By fervent Prayer to God for his Grace Luke xi 9 and by a diligent Care to use that Portion of it whatever it be which God hath given Us to his Honour and Service Mat. xiii 12 xxv 29 And upon our doing of which not only that Grace which we have already shall be sure to be continued to Us but greater Degrees shall be added to it 2 Pet. iii. 18 Q. Are these the only Ends
to be truly Catholick Christians And also holds Communion with all such Churches as profess the same Faith and as far forth as they do so Q. What is your Opinion of the Church of Rome in this particular A. That she is both Schismatical and Heretical Schismatical in cutting off all Others from her Communion who will not profess her Errors and submit to her Vsurp'd Authority Heretical in professing such Doctrines as quite destroy the Foundations of Christianity and are inconsistent with that Truth which yet she pretends to maintain Q. In what Respect do you believe the Catholick Church to be Holy A. As both the * End of Christ in Gathering of it the * Rules he has given to it the * Promises he has made it * It s Sacraments * Ministry all its * Ordinances were design'd to make it Holy But especially as * All Those who are indeed the Faithful Members of it are actually Sanctify'd by the Grace of the Holy Spirit And so are truly though imperfectly Holy now and shall be made altogether Holy and without Spot hereafter Eph. 5.25 SECT XVII Q. WHat is the first Duty or Privilege belonging to those who are Members of Christ's Church A. The Communion of Saints Q. What do you mean by Saints A. Though the Word in our Language be more Restrain'd yet in that in which this Creed was composed it may indifferently denote either Holy Persons or Holy Things And this Article may very well be extended to both of Them Q. Whom do you mean by Holy Persons A. Though all Christians in General are so called in Scripture and we are Charitably to presume that All such are Holy Persons Yet by Saints we are most properly to understand such as answer the End of their Calling by a Lively Faith and a Holy Conversation in which Two the Gospel-Saintship seems to consist Q. With Whom and in what Things do you believe such Persons to have Communion A. I believe that all the true Members of Christ's Church have a Right of Fellowship or Communion with God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ as they are Received into Covenant by the One through the Death and Passion of the Other I believe that they have a Fellowship with the Holy Ghost by his Dwelling in Them and Sanctifying of Them I believe that they have Fellowship with the Holy Angels who both Minister unto them in their Exigencies and have a most tender affectionate Concern for Them I believe that they all have a Fellowship with One Another as * Members of the same mystical Body of Christ * Professors of the same Faith * Heirs of the same Promises * Guided by the same Spirit and * Governed by the same Laws And I believe that they ought as living Members * to have a Fellowship of Love and Charity also towards Each Other And Lastly I believe that they have a Right of Communicating in all the Ordinances of the Gospel In the Prayers of the Church in the Ministry of the Word and Sacraments and whatsoever else hath been ordain'd by Christ or establish'd in the Church for the common Good and Benefit of all the Members of it Q. Do you not by this Account of the present Article utterly shut out those from any part in it who yet are most commonly called Saints I mean Such as have departed this Life in the Fear of God and the Faith of Jesus Christ A. No by no means I believe them to partake in this Communion also as they are still living Members of Christ's Holy Catholick Church And therefore I believe that They have a Fellowship no less than We with God and Christ. That they are Sanctified by the same Spirit Are Visited by the Holy Angels Have some kind of Fellowship with One Another and with Vs also however separated by Death from Us. Q. Wherein do you suppose their Fellowship with Us to consist A. I look upon the Case to be much the same with Us as it is with Members of the same Civil Society upon Earth when they are in a foreign Country far distant from One Another * We are Members of the same Church * Vnited to the same Head * Sanctified by the same Spirit * Heirs of the same Promises * Shall in a little time be in the same Place and State and when the End of the World comes * we shall All be translated to the same Glory and Happiness in God's Heavenly Kingdom Q. To what Offices of Communion does this Belief oblige Us at present towards Each Other A. To the Members of Christ's Church still Living it obliges Us to Love and Charity to mutual Prayers for and Help of Each other in all such Things as may promote the Salvation of Us all How the Saints departed maintain Communion with Us We cannot tell Probable it is that they do in general pray for us as it is certain they wish well to Us. But for our selves who are yet here on Earth we must Bless God for the Grace he was pleased to bestow upon Them and by which they were delivered from the Sins and Temptations of this Evil World and enabled Faithfully to serve him unto the End We must set before Us their Examples and Imitate their Vertues We must account of them as Living Members of Christ's Body and be not only Ready but Desirous to Go to them whenever it shall please God to call for Us. We must take care decently to dispose of their Bodies and faithfully to fulfil as much as in Us lies what they have left in trust with Us to be done for Them after their departure Q. What think you of that Honour which is paid to Them in the Church of Rome A. It is not only Vain and without all Warrant from God's Word but is indeed Superstitious and Idolatrous To Pray to any Creature and He at a vast Distance from Vs In the House of God with all the Outward Marks of Adoration nay and oftentimes in the same Words and in the same Breath that We pray to God and that lastly with a Confidence that the Person so pray'd to can Hear our Prayers and Answer our Desires being evidently to Give to the Creature the Honour due to the Creator which cannot be done without the Peril of Idolatry SECT XVIII Q. WHat is the next Privilege which you believe does of Right belong to those who are the Members of Christ's Church A. The Forgiveness of Sins Q. What is Sin A. It is the Transgression of God's Law 1 Jo. iii. 4 Whether by our Omitting to do what that Required us to have done Or by Our doing any Thing contrary to its Commands Q. What mean you by the Law of God A. The Will of God howsoever made known to Us whether by the Light of our Own Consciences or by the Declarations of his Word especially that which is deliver'd to us in the Books of the New Testament Q. How does God
may prove a Snare rather than a Guide to Us. Q. How then do you Suppose that this Rule is to be Vnderstood by Us A. We must first set our Selves in our Neighbour's Place and then put it to Our Consciences Were his Case our Own what would we desire that One in Our Circumstances should Do for Vs and then conclude that We ought to Do the Same for Him Thus for Example If a poor Man ask an Alms of Us We must not think that We are at Liberty to Refuse him because we neither need nor desire that Any One should Relieve Us But we must bring his Case home to our selves and suppose that we were in his Circumstances poor and destitute would we not then think it Reasonable that One in Our Circumstances should Relieve Vs and that will shew Us that therefore we ought to Relieve him Q. But must We then after such a Change of Circumstances absolutely Do to Others whatsoever we would in the like Circumstances desire that They should do to Us A. I do not say that neither Men may desire what is Vnlawful and then in Conscience of our Duty to God we must deny them They may desire what is Vnreasonable or may be Greatly Inconvenient to Us and in such Cases though we Owe a Duty to our Neighbour yet we must Remember that we Owe a Duty to our Selves too and must consider our Own Interests as well as those of Our Neighbour If a Man should fall into such Circumstances as to need my telling of a Lie or Forswearing my self to bring him safely out of Them though I should be so Wicked as to desire in the like Case that Another would do the same for Me yet I am not therefore Obliged by this Rule to do this for Him because neither ought I to desire such a Thing of Another nor ought Any Other to desire it of Me. Again Should a Man desire me to be bound with him for a considerable Sum of Money which I cannot pay without great Damage to my self and Prejudice to my Family Though I should perhaps wish that had I the same Occasion that this Man has Another would be bound for Me yet because the desire is Vnreasonable and such as in Duty to my self and my Family I ought not to comply with neither am I obliged by vertue of this Rule to answer his Desires in it Q. What then do you take to be the true Import of this Rule A. That whatsoever I could justly and reasonably Desire of Another Man in my Circumstances and it would become him in Charity to do for Me the same ought I to do for my Neighbour And thereby make it manifest as the Other Rule directs that I do indeed Love him as my Self Q. To how many Commandments has God Reduced our Duty towards Our Neighbour A. To Six which make up the whole of the Second Table Q. What is the First of These A. Honour thy Father and thy Mother that thy Days may be long in the Land which the LORD thy God giveth Thee Q. What is the proper Extent of this Commandment A. It expresly Regards only our Natural Parents But the Reason of it extends to all Sorts of Persons who are in any Respect our Superiours and to whom we Owe any Singular Honour upon that account And to the most of which the very Name of Fathers is Given in the Holy Scriptures Q. What are the chief Relations to which this Commandement may be Referr'd A. They are especially these following 1. Of Children towards their Parents 2. Of Subjects towards those who are in Authority over Them 3. Of Scholars towards their Governours 4. Of Ordinary Christians towards their Ministers 5. Of Servants towards their Masters 6. Of Wives towards their Husbands 7. Of Younger Persons towards the Aged And 8. Of those who are in a lower degree towards such as are in a higher Place of State and Dignity Q. Does not this Commandment Require some Return of Duty from those who are upon any of these Accounts to be Honoured by Us A. In the Equity of it it certainly does And therefore as it is Our Duty to Honour Them so it is no less their Duty to behave themselves as their Relation requires towards Us. Q. What do you mean by Honouring of such Persons A. Not a bare formal Respect but with that all that Love Duty and Obedience all that Help and Service which they may justly expect from Us and which our Own Reason tells Us we ought to yield to Them Q. What are the Particular Duties which are Required of Children towards their Parents A. To Love Honour and Succour their Father and Mother To Obey their Orders and Bear with their Infirmities and Submit to their Correction To promote their Comfort and Welfare by all fitting Means and if they Need and their Children are Able to Provide for and Support Them Q. Are all these Duties to be equally paid to both our Parents A. They are and that by the express Words of the Commandment Honour thy Father and thy Mother Comp. Prov. i. 8 vi 20 Eph. vi 4. Q. What Return of Duty ought Parents to make to their Children A. It is their Duty to breed them up Carefully whilst they are young Vertuously and Religiously when they are capable of discerning between Good and Evil. To Love them To Provide according to their Ability for them To bring them up to some honest and useful Employment To Encourage them when they do Well to Correct them when they do Amiss To be Gentle and Courteous towards them and not by their Passions or Perverseness provoke them to Anger and Alienate their Affections from them Q. What is the Duty of Subjects towards those whom God has set in Authority over Them A. To submit to their Laws to be faithful to their Interests and Obedient to them in all their Just Commands To live Quietly under their Government and to Contribute according to their Capacity towards the Support and Defence of it By their Counsel their Estate and if need be by Venturing their very Lives for their Service Q. What if the Civil Power shall command Me to do that which is contrary to my Duty towards God A. I must in that Case Obey God rather than Man If for this I shall be punish'd I must patiently yield to it and Glorify God That He has thought Me worthy to Suffer for my Duty to Him Exod. i. 15 16. Dan. iii. 14 c. vi 6 c. A. What if any Difference should arise in the Commonwealth of which I am a Member between the Prince and the People A. I must carefully Examine where the Right lies and Act so as is most agreeable to the Rules of Religion first and where they are Silent to the Laws and Constitution of the State to which I belong Q. What is the Duty of the Civil Magistrate towards his People A. To order all his Counsels
and to their being saved hereafter Q. What are those things which may be accounted thus necessary to be known by All Christians A. They may in general be reduced to these two Heads viz. The Knowledge of the Gospel-Covenant that is to say Of the Promises made by God to Mankind through our Lord Jesus Christ and of the Conditions upon which We may become Partakers of them And 2dly Of the means which God has appointed whereby to convey his Grace to Us and thereby both to assist and confirm Us in the discharge of our Duty to Him Q. What are the Promises which God has made to Mankind through Jesus Christ A. Pardon of Sins Grace to fulfil our Duty in this Life And upon our sincere Performance thereof Everlasting Salvation in the Life which is to come Q. What are the Conditions required of Us by God in order to our being made Partakers of these Promises A. A hearty Repentance of our Sins past A sincere Endeavour to live according to God's Commands for the time to come And both these made perfect by a lively Faith in God's Mercies towards Us through Jesus Christ Jo. iii. 16 Q. What are the Means ordained of God whereby to convey his Grace to Us A. They are chiefly two Constant Prayer to God for it And a worthy Use of the Holy Sacraments Luk. xi 13 Mark xvi 16 Acts ii 38 1 Cor. x. 16 xi 23 c. Q. Are there not besides these some other means ordain'd by God and necessary to be made use of by Us in order to our Salvation A. Yes there are particularly the Hearing Reading and Meditating upon his Word The Substance of which tho' it be sufficiently gather'd together and represented to Us in our Catechism yet ought not that to hinder our Reading of the Holy Scriptures nor to deprive Us of any other Means of Christian Instruction but rather should be used as a Help whereby to render both the Reading and Hearing of God's Word more plain and profitable to Us. Psal. i. 2 2 Tim. iii. 16 Jo. v. 39 Rom. xv 4 Q. Does your Church-Catechism sufficiently instruct you in All These A. It does For therein both the Nature of the Christian Covenant is declared to Us and the Conditions are set forth on which we may become Partakers of it And we are particularly Instructed both how we ought to Pray to God and what those Sacraments are which are necessary to be Administred unto and Received by All of Us. SECT II. Q. WHat is your Name A. N. or M. Q. Who gave you this Name A. My Godfathers and Godmothers c. Q. What is that Name which is here demanded of you A. It is my Christian Name therefore so called because it was given to Me by my Godfathers and Godmothers at my Baptism For as from my Natural Parents I derive the Name of my Family so from those who were my Spiritual Parents I take that Name which properly belongs to me as a Member of Christ's Church Gen. xvii 5 15. Gen. xxi 3 4. Luk. i. 59 60. Luk. ii 21 Q. Whom do you mean by your Godfathers and Godmothers A. I mean those Persons who became Sureties for me at my Baptism And upon whose Promise there made in my Name I was Baptized and so foederally admitted into the Communion of Christ's Church Q. What are the Benefits which by your Baptism have accrued to you A. They are Many and Great Ones but may in general be reduced to these Three that thereby I was made a Member of Christ the Child of God and an Inheritor of the Kingdom of Heaven Q. How were you hereby made a Member of Christ A. As I was made a a Member of his Mystical Body the Church of which Christ is the b Head a 1 Cor. xii 27 Ye are the Body of Christ and Members in particular b Ephes. iv 15 v. 23 Christ is the Head of the Church Q. How were you hereby made the Child of God A. As by this means I was taken into Covenant with Him was adopted into his Family dedicated to his Service and intituled to his Promises Gal. iii. 26 27 Ye are All the Children of God by Faith in Jesus Christ. For as many of you as have been Baptized into Christ have put on Christ. And if ye be Christs then are ye Abrahams Seed and Heirs according to the Promise See Gal. iv 5 7. Eph. i. 5 Q. How were you hereby made an Inheritor of the Kingdom of Heaven A. As by my Baptism I became intituled to a Right to it and was actually put into such a State that if I be not wanting to my self I shall not fail of being made Partaker of it Tit. iii. 4 c. But after that the Kindness and Love of God our Saviour toward Man appeared Not by Works of Righteousness which we have done but according to his Mercy he saved us by the washing of Regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost That being justified by his Grace we should be made Heirs according to the hope of Eternal Life 1 Pet. i. 3 c. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who according to his abundant Mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Dead to an Inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in Heaven for Vs. Q. Are All who are Baptized made Partakers thereby of these Benefits A. They are all at that time either made Partakers of them or intituled to them But those only continue to hold their Right to these Privileges who take care to fulfill their part of the Covenant which was therein made between God and Them Q. Have none but such as are Baptized a Right to these Benefits A. None have a Right to them but such as are Baptized or were ready to have been Baptized had they had the Opportunity of Receiving that Holy Sacrament Jo. iii. 5 Except a Man be born of Water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Mark xvi 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved SECT III. Q. WHat did your Godfathers and Godmothers then for you A. They did promise and Uow three things in my Name c. Q. What is the first Thing which your Godfathers and Godmothers promised in your Name A. That I should Renounce the Devil and all his Works the Pomps and Uanity of this Wicked World and all the sinful Lusts of the Flesh. Q. What does the Renouncing of all these import A. It imports an utter forsaking of Them And obliges me not only inwardly to detest Them but so to watch and govern all my Outward Actions as not to follow nor be led by Them Q. Do you think that you shall be able thus to renounce the Devil the World and your Own Flesh A. So perfectly as I could wish I cannot hope to do it in this present Life
Lives End 2 Thess. iii. 3 The Lord is faithful who shall stablish you and keep you from Evil. Eph. iv 30 Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby you are sealed unto the day of Redemption Phil. 1.6 Being confident of this very thing That he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it untill the day of Jesus Christ. SECT IV. Q. BUt what if notwithstanding all your present Desires and Resolutions you should chance to fall away from your Duty and thereby put your self out of this state of Salvation â—s there no way left for you to recover your self and to return again to it A. Yes there is by a true Repentance for the Sins which I shall have Committed and an humble Confession of them to God with earnest Prayer for his Forgiveness through the Merits and Intercession of Jesus Christ our Blessed Saviour and Redeemer Q. What mean you by Repentance A. I mean such a Conversion of a Sinner to God whereby he is not only heartily Sorry for the Evil he has done and Resolved to forsake it but do's actually begin to renounce it and to fulfil his Duty according to his Ability with a steadfast purpose to continue God's faithful Servant unto his Life's End Q. What are the chief Acts required to such a Repentance A. To forsake Evil and to do Good To turn from those Sins which we repent of and to serve God by an Universal Obedience of him in whatsoever he has required of us Q. What is the first step towards a true Repentance A. To be thoroughly Convinced of the evil of our Ways and heartily Sorry for it Q. Is any kind of Sorrow to be look'd upon as a part of true Repentance A. No there is a Sorrow for Sin which proceeds not from any Love of God or Sense of our Duty to Him nor yet from any real Hatred of the Sins which we have committed but meerly from the fear of God's Judgment and of the Punishment which we may be likely to suffer for them This is that Sorrow which is commonly called Attrition and may be in the most Wicked Men without ever bringing them to any true Repentance for their Sins Q. What then is that Sorrow which leads to a true Repentance A. It is that Godly Sorrow which proceeds from a Sense of our Duty and of the Obligations we lie under to the performance of it When we are Sorry for our Sins upon the account of our having thereby offended God broken the Covenant of the Gospel and grieved the Holy Spirit which was given to us and are therefore resolved immediately to forsake our Sins and never to return any more to them Q. How is such a Sorrow to be wrought in a Sinner A. Only by the Grace of God and the serious Consideration of our Own Estate towards him the former to be attain'd by our constant Prayers for it the latter by accustoming our selves often to Examine our Souls and to try our Ways by the measures of that Obedience which the Gospel of Christ requires of us Q. Do's not God make use of many other ways to bring Men to such a Sorrow A. God has many ways whereby to bring Sinners to Repentance Sometimes he do's it by bringing some temporal Evils and Calamities upon them Sometimes by visiting them with Terrors and Disquiets of Mind Sometimes he calls upon them by the Outward Ministry of his Word and Sometimes by the Evils which befal Others especially those who were their Companions in their Sins But whatever the Occasions be which God is pleased to make use of to bring us to Repentance it is the Grace of the Holy Spirit and the serious Consideration of our own wretched Estate that begins the Work and produces in us that Godly Sorrow which finally ends in a true Repentance Q. What are the chief Motives with respect to us to engage us thus to Sorrow for our Sins A. The Threats of God denounced in the Holy Scriptures against Impenitent Sinners and the Promises there made of Pardon to all such as shall truly Repent and return to their Duty as they ought to do Q. What is the next thing required in order to a true Repentance A. Confession of Sin Not that God has any need of being informed by us of what we have done amiss but to the end we may thereby both raise in our selves a greater shame and sorrow for our Evil Doings and give the greater Glory to God by such a solemn humbling of our selves in Confession before him Q. Is such a Confession necessary to our Forgiveness A. So necessary that we have no promise of any Pardon without it Prov. xxviii 13 He that covereth his Sins shall not prosper but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have Mercy 1 Joh. i. 8 9. If we say that we have no Sin we deceive our selves and the Truth is not in us If we confess our Sins he is Faithful and Just to forgive us our Sins and to cleanse us from all Vnrighteousness Q. To whom is our Confession to be made A. Always to God and in some certain Cases to Man also Q. What are those Cases in which we ought to confess our Sins to Man as well as unto God A. They are especially these Three 1. Iâ— case we have Offended or Injured our Neighbour and upon that account need to obtain hiâ— Pardon as well as God's 2. If by any opeâ— and notorious Transgression we shall happeâ— to have either deserved or it may be to havâ— fallen under the Censures of the Church anâ— so Confession to the Church be necessary to restore us to the Peace of it Or 3. If we shalâ— have any private reason that may move us to acquaint any Person with our Sins for Advice for Prayer for Absolution or for any the like Advantage which cannot be had without it Q. What think you of that Confession commonly called by them Auricular-Confession which the Church of Rome requires as necessary to Forgiveness A. I look upon it as a great and dangerous Imposition that has no warrant from God is a great Rack and Snare to the Consciences of Good Men and may be apt to encourage most Others in their Sins Whilst by the Absolution which is so readily given them thereupon and the Efficacy of which is so highly magnified in that Church they are taught to entertain a much less Opinion both of the Heinousness and Danger of their Evil-doings than either the Scripture Warrants or their own Interest should prompt them to admit of Q. Is there not somewhat yet required beyond this in order to our Forgiveness A. Yes there is for to all this there must be super-added an Actual forsaking of those Sins which we Confess and that Absolute and without Reserve so that we must firmly resolve and as much as in us lies heartily endeavour never to return again any more to them Q. But
ought there not beyond all this some Satisfaction to be made to God for the Sins which we have committed A. Yes certainly and such there has been made by our Saviour Christ for us who has fully satisfied the Justice of God in that kind and left nothing more for us to do in that behalf Q. What do you then say to those Satisfactions which the Church of Rome teaches we may and ought to make for our Sins A. That they are built upon a false Foundation are contrary to the Goodness of God and beyond the Capacity of Man Q. What is the Foundation upon which they are built A. It is this That when God forgives us our Sins whether upon our Own Repentance or by virtue of the Priest's Absolution He remits indeed the Fault and purges away our Guilt and by this acquits us from the Everlasting Punishment that would otherwise have been due to them But yet still retains us under an Obligation to some temporal Sufferings either by Satisfactory Works to be done for them in this Life or by undergoing a certain proportion of Pain for them after Death in a Place which they call Purgatory Q. How does it appear that this Foundation is false and erroneous A. Because in the first place it is Absurd to suppose that God should forgive the whole Guilt of our Sins and yet having done so should afterwards punish us for them And secondly It is injurious to the Sufferings and Merits of Christ whose Death was a sufficient Satisfaction for the Sins of the whole World and has left no room either for God to require or for us to Pay any thing more Q. Does Repentance then if it be sincere without any thing more restore us again to our State of Grace and reconcile us to God Almighty A. If it be sincere it does through Faith in Jesus Christ. Q. Does God allow Repentance to all Sins Jo. vi 29 Act. xiii 38 xvi 30 31. 2 Pet. i. 5 c. A. There is No Sin but what True Repentance washes away But there may be some Cases in which God may deny Us his Grace so that we shall not be able truly to Repent Q. What Cases are They A. They may All be reduced to this One General namely a Wilful Abuse and Resistance of the Divine Grace Whether it be by a long Habit of Sinning or by frequent Acting against the Dictates of our own Consciences and the Motions of God's Holy Spirit To say nothing of some Sins which are in an Eminent manner destructive of the Divine Grace such as Pride Covetousness Sensuality but especially that Sin which is particularly called in Scripture the Sin against the Holy Ghost Q. What is meant by that Sin A. I suppose it to have been the particular Sin of the Jews heretofore in not only obstinately refusing to receive our Blessed Lord for their Messiah after sufficient Proofs given by Him to convince Them that He was so but ascribing those Miracles which He wrought in proof of his Authority to the Help of the Devil when at the same time they either were abundantly convinced Or but for their Own Fault might have been that He did Them by the Power of God Mat. xii 31 Comp. Mark iii. 28 Luk. xii 10 Q. Do you look upon this Sin to have so wholly belonged to those Men as not to be capable of being Committed by Any Now A. That very Sin which in Scripture is so called cannot now be committed because Christ is not now upon Earth nor have we therefore any Occasion Given us thus to Blaspheme against the Holy Ghost Yet some Sins there are of a like Nature which may still be committed and which being Committed may prove no less dangerous to Those who are Guilty of Them than that Sin did prove to the Pharisees heretofore Q. What Sins are those which you suppose to come the nearest to it A. Apostacy from the Christian Religion after having been convinced of the Truth and made Partakers of the Promises of it Next to that an Apostacy from the Truth and Purity of the Gospel for the sake of some worldly Fears on the One hand or present Hopes on the Other to the Communion of a Church which not only obstinately resists the Truth but damns and persecutes all such as profess it And lastly Apostacy to Idolatry which seems to be the Sin unto Death spoken of by St. John 1 Jo. v. 16 and for the Remission of which He gives Us but little Encouragement to Pray V. 16 Q. What then do you think of Those who Go off from the Communion of the Church of England to That of the Church of Rome A. As of Apostates and Idolaters To whom God may by an Extraordinary Effect of his Mercy give Grace for Repentance and so for Salvation but of whom otherwise we have no Ground of Hope Q. Do you think such in a more dangerous Estate than those who were from the beginning bred up in the Roman Communion A. I do forasmuch as they have both rejected the Truth once known and received by them and cast off the Way in which the Providence of God had placed them and that it may be on some base grounds to be sure without any sufficient Reason to justifie their doing of it Q. What then do you think of those who have always been of the Communion of that Church A. I think them in general in much greater danger Now than they were before the Reformation And still those in more danger who have lived among those of the Reformed Church and so were in a better Capacity of being convinc'd of the Errors of their Way But most of all do I think the Estate of those dangerous or rather desperate who are Learned and know their Errors or are Priests and so called to instruct the People in the Purity of Christ's Religion The Sincere and Ignorant who want Capacity or want Opportunity to know the Truth I hope God will forgive The Careless the Prejudiced but most of all the obstinately blind among them I neither can acquit nor do I think that God will forgive Them SECT V. Q. WHat was the second thing which Your Godfathers and Godmothers promised in your Name A. That I should Believe all the Articles of the Christian Faith Q. Where are those Articles to be found A. In the Holy Scriptures and particularly those of the New Testament Q. What mean you by the Holy Scriptures A. I mean those Books which thro' the Assistance of the Holy Spirit were written by Moses and the Prophets under the Law and by the Apostles and Evangelists of Christ since the publishing of the Gospel to direct us in the Knowledge of God and of the Duty which He Requires of Us. Q. How do you know what Books were written by these Persons in order to these Ends A. By the Constant Universal and Undeniable Testimony both of the Jewish and Christian Church From the
former of which we have Received the Scriptures of the Old from the latter those of the New Testament Q. How do you know that these Books were written by the Assistance of the Holy Spirit A. By the Authors who wrote them who were doubtless no less inspired in what they Wrote than in what they Taught of the Gospel of Christ. 2. By the Design of God in the composing of Them which was to leave thereby a Constant Infallible Rule of Faith to the Church in all Ages of it 3. By the Opinion which all Christians from the time that they were publish'd have had of Them and the deference which upon that account they have paid to Them And lastly By the Subject-matter of Them and those internal Marks of Divine Wisdom and Piety which are so conspicuous in all the Parts of Them Q. Do you look upon these Scriptures as the Only present Rule of your Faith A. I do Nor is there any Other certain Foundation on which to build it Q. What think you of the Tradition of the Church A. Could I be sure that any thing not contain'd in the Scriptures came down by a certain uninterrupted Tradition from the Apostles I should not except against it Nay I do therefore receive the Holy Scriptures as the Rule of my Faith because they have such a Tradition to warrant me so to do But because there is no such Tradition for any thing besides therefore neither do I build my Faith upon it But on the contrary do suppose that by the Providence of God the Holy Scriptures were purposely written to prevent those Doubts those Forgeries and Deceits which his Infinite Wisdom foresaw an Oral Tradition would always have been liable unto Q. Can the Holy Scriptures alone make your Faith perfect A. They Can Nor ought I to believe any thing as an Article of my Faith which is not to be found in them or cannot plainly be proved by Them Q. What do you think of the Church's Definitions A. That I ought to submit to them in whatsoever they define agreeably to the Word of God But if in any thing they require me to believe what is contrary to the Word of God or cannot be Proved thereby I ought absolutely to reject the One and am under no Obligation to Receive the Other Q. But is not this to make your self wiser than the Church A. No by no means but only to make the Word of God of more Authority with me than the Word of Man Whilst I chuse rather to Regulate my Faith by what God has deliver'd than by what Man Defines Q. Are the Holy Scriptures so Plain and Easy to be Understood that every One may be Able to judge for Himself what he ought to Believe A. In Matters of necessary Belief they are very plain even to the most Ordinary Christian Yet we do not deny but that every Man ought to hear the Church and attend to the Instructions of those who are the Pastors of it Only we say that neither the Church nor its Pastors ought to teach any thing as an Article of Faith or Require any Man's assent to it as such that cannot be shewn to have been either expresly deliver'd in the Word of God or by a plain and necessary Consequence be Proved thereby Q. But how shall the Unlearned be able to know what the Scriptures propose seeing they are written in a Language which such Persons do not understand A. By Reading them in their Own Vulgar Tongue into which every Church has or ought to have them faithfully translated for the Benefit of Those who do not understand the Languages in which they were Composed Q. Do you then think that the People ought to be suffered promiscuously to Read the Holy Scriptures A. Who shall forbid Them to Read what was purposely designed by God for their Instruction The Scriptures are as much the Voice of the Apostles and Evangelists to Us of these Times as their Preaching was to those of the Age in which they lived And it may with as good Reason be Ask'd Whether we think the People ought to have been promiscuously Suffer'd heretofore to hear the Apostles Preach as whether they ought to be Suffer'd promiscuously to Read their Writings Now. Q. But amidst so many Things as the Holy Scriptures deliver how shall the People be able to judge what is necessary to be Believed by Them A. Let them Believe All they meet with there and then to be sure they will Believe all that is necessary But for the sake of those who either want Ability to Read or Capacity to judge what is most necessary in Point of Faith to be known and profess'd by Them the Church has from the beginning collected it into a short Summary which every Person of Old was Required both to Know and assent to before he was admitted into the Communion of it Q. What is that Summary of which you speak and which you account to comprehend all the most Necessary Articles of our Christian Faith A. It is commonly called The Apostles Creed not that the Apostles Themselves Composed it at least not in the very Form in which we now have it but because it seems to come the Nearest of any to the Apostles Times and does with the Greatest Simplicity of Expression comprehend a short Summary of the Apostles Doctrine Q. What mean you by the Word Creed A. It is the same in Latine as Belief in English And it is so called in both from the first words of it I BELIEVE and which in Sense though not in Expression Run through every Article of it SECT VI. Q. REhearse the Articles of your Belief A. I Believe in God the Father Almighty c. Q. You said that those Words I BELIEVE were not only the First Words of your Creed but the most Material as running in effect through Every Branch of it Tell me therefore what do you mean when you say I Believe A. To Believe in the General is to Assent to the Truth of any thing upon the Sole Authority of the Person who delivers it Who if He be a Man only the Assent which I give to what He says produces in Me a Humane Faith if as here He be God then the Assent which I give to what is deliver'd by Him is properly a Divine Faith Q. What is the difference with respect to Us between these Two A. It is very Great For because a Man though never so Wise and Careful himself may yet not be honest and so Impose upon Me Or should he be never so Upright may yet after all his Care be Mistaken himself and thereby lead Me into Errour therefore in Assenting to what such a One proposes I can at the most give but such a Belief to it as is suitable to a meer Humane Testimony I may Believe what he says to be True but yet so as not to exclude a Possibility of its being Otherwise Whereas God
being neither capable of being Deceived Himself nor of Imposing upon any Other when I give my Assent to what he has Revealed I do it not only with a certain Assurance that what I believe is true but with an absolute Security that it cannot possibly be false Q. But why do you say I Believe and not WE Believe as when you pray you say OVR Father c A. Because though One Man may Pray yet One Man cannot Believe for another And however in Charity I may suppose every Christian to believe what is here delivered yet since 't is certain there are many Infidels and Hypocrites scatter'd up and down among the Faithful and I cannot certainly distinguish who are indeed Believers and who not neither can I with an Assurance of Faith say WE Believe because I cannot certainly tell whether another Man does truly believe these Articles or No. Besides that this Creed being intended to be the Form upon the Confession whereof Persons should be admitted to Baptism and in that Case every One was to make a distinct Profession of his Faith in order thereunto it was fitting the Creed its self should be penn'd after such a manner as was most proper for the main End for which it was Compos'd Q. Are all the things contain'd in this Creed to be proved by Divine Revelation A. They are all plainly deliver'd to us in the Holy Scriptures which being confessed by all Christians to be the Word of God what is deliver'd by them must be look'd upon to be delivered to Us by God Himself Q. What are the General Parts of which this Creed does consist A. They are these Four First It shews us what is most needful to be Believ'd and Professed by Us concerning God the Father Secondly Concerning our Lord Jesus Christ Thirdly Concerning the Holy Ghost And Fourthly Concerning the Church of Christ its Duties and Privileges here and the Blessings and Glory which God has prepared for it hereafter Q. Do you think it necessary not only to Believe all these things but also upon Occasion to Profess the Belief of them A. I do think it necessary whenever our Duty to God or the Edification of our Neighbour or the Honour of our Religion shall Require it of Me. Mat. x. 32 Whosoever shall Confess me before Men him will I Confess also before my Father which is in Heaven But whosoever shall deny me before Men him will I also deny before my Father which is in Heaven Rom. x. 9 If thou shalt confess with thy Mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thy Heart that God hath Raised him from the Dead thou shalt be saved For with the Heart Man believeth unto Righteousness and with the Mouth confession is made unto Salvation See 1 Pet. iii. 14 SECT VII Q. WHAT is the first Article of your Creed A. I Believe in God the Father Almighty Maker of Heaven and Earth Q. What is God A. He is an Eternal Infinite Incomprehensible Spirit Immortal Invisible most Perfect himself and the Giver of all Perfection to all Other things Q. How do you profess to Believe in God A. I do firmly Believe that there is such a Being as God Heb. xi 6 and that there is but One such Being so that besides Him there neither is nor can be any Other 1 Cor. viii 4.6 We know that there is none Other God but One To us there is but One God the Father Isaiah xlv 5 6. I am the Lord and there is None else there is no God besides Me I am the Lord and there is None else Q. Upon what Account do you give to God the Title of FATHER A. Upon several Accounts but chiefly on these Two 1. With Respect to our Lord Jesus Christ whom in the next Article we profess to be his Son And secondly as he may also be accounted our Father 2 Cor. i. 3 Blessed be God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. See Joh. x. 25 29 c. Q. How do you believe God to be our Father A. By Right of Creation so he is the Father of all Mankind 1 Cor. viii 5 To Vs there is but One God the Father of Whom are all things By Right of Adoption so he is the Father of Us Christians in particular Eph. i. 3 5. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Who hath predestinated Vs unto the Adoption of Children by Jesus Christ to Himself Q. What do you mean by the Attribute of ALMIGHTY A. I mean Two things 1 st That God has a Right of absolute Power and Dominion over all the World Dan. iv 34 His Dominion is an Everlasting Dominion and His Kingdom is from Generation to Generation And 2 dly That He has an Infinite Power of Action so that He can do all things and with Him nothing is Impossible Mat. xix 26 Q. Can God then Do All things A. He can do All things that are not either simply Impossible to be done as implying a Contradiction Or else contrary to his Goodness and Perfection to Do as to Sin to be Ignorant and the like Q. By what Act especially has God manifested Himself to be Almighty A. By Making the Heaven and the Earth Q. What do you understand by that Expression The Heaven and the Earth A. I comprehend under it All things that ever were made Visible and Invisible as being all Made and Created by God Q. How did God Make All these A. After Two different Manners Some He produced by an Immediate Creation Thus were the Angels form'd and the Spirits of Men And thus was that first Matter produced of which Moses speaks Gen. i. 1 That in the Beginning God Created the Heaven and the Earth To the Other parts of the Creation he gave Being by forming them out of an Antecedent Matter So he made this Visible World as we Read Gen. i. Q. By Whom did God make the World A. By his Son sometimes call'd The Word Job i. 3 All things were made by Him and without Him was not any thing made that was made And again vii 10 The World was made by Him Q. Was this Son the same JESVS who afterwards came into the World to publish the Gospel and Die for Us A. So the Scriptures expresly tell us Heb. i. 1 2. God who at sundry Times and in divers Manners spake in Time past unto the Fathers by the Prophets Hath in these last Days spoken unto Vs by his Son by whom also he made the Worlds And St. Paul speaking of him in Whom we have Redemption through his Blood even the Forgiveness of Sins Col. i. 14 tells us Ver. 16. That by Him were All things Created that are in Heaven and that are in Earth Visible and Invisible whether they be Thrones or Dominions or Principalities or Powers all things were Created by him and for him and He is before all things and by him all things Consist Q. Is there any thing
more comprehended in this Article with relation to God the Father A. This only That as God at the Beginning thus Created All things so having Created them he has ever since continued to Support and Preserve them Heb. i. 3 And that so particularly that there is not the least thing in the World to which his Providence does not extend it self Mat. vi 26.30 x. 29 30. Q. How do you profess to Believe all this of God A. Because though some part of it might have been discover'd by Natural Reason and accordingly was found out by the Wiser Heathens yet the full and perfect Knowledge of all this is due to Revelation And by the Accounts we have of these things in the Holy Scriptures we both more clearly Understand Them and are more firmly perswaded of the Truth of Them SECT VIII Q. WHAT does the Second Part of your Creed contain A. It contains a short Summary of all Such things as are Necessary to be known and believed by Us concerning our Lord and Saviour JESVS CHRIST Q. How is He here described to Us A. By his Person his Office his Relation to God and to Vs. And in Iesus Christ his only Son our Lord. Q. How is his Person set out in this Article to Us A. By the Name Which he went by whilst He was upon Earth JESVS Q. How came our Saviour to be called by that Name A. He was so called by the express Command of God deliver'd by an Angel first to the Blessed Virgin Luk. i. 31 and then to Joseph Mat. i. 21 Q. Is there any particular Significancy in that Name that should move God in such an Extraordinary manner to give it to Him A. There is For it denotes a Saviour and was given by God to our Blessed Lord to shew that He was to be the Saviour of the World and that No other was to be so Mat. i. 21 Thou shalt call his Name Jesus for He shall Save his People from their Sins Acts iv 12 Neither is there Salvation in any Other for there is none other Name under Heaven given among Men whereby we must be Saved Q. How was this Jesus to Save the World A. By delivering Us both from the Power and from the Punishment of our Sins and by putting us in a way of attaining unto Everlasting Salvation Tit. ii 11 c. Rom. vi 4 5 c. Q. What is the Title given to our Blessed Lord with respect to his Office Q. He is called CHRIST which is the same in Greek that MESSIAS is in Hebrew or Syriac And is as much as to say the Anointed Joh. i. 41 We have found the Messias which is being interpreted the Christ. Joh. iv 25 I know that Messias cometh which is called Christ. Q. Why had our Saviour this Title given to Him A. To shew that as by the Ceremony of Anointing heretofore God consecrated Those whom he called to some certain Offices so was this Jesus to be separated though not by a Visible Vnction yet by the Invisible Power and Grace of the Holy Spirit for all those Offices to which Men were Anointed by God's Command under the Law Act. x. 38 God Anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with Power Q. What were those Offices to which Men were consecrated by the Ceremony of Anointing under the Law A. They were chiefly Three to the Office of a Prophet a Priest and a King Q. Was our Saviour to be consecrated to All These A. He was and that by express Prophecies before his Coming into the World See Psal. xlv cx Deut. xviii 15 18 c. Isa. ix 6 lxi 1 Q. How did God Anoint him to these Offices A. The Holy Ghost came upon him and God by a Voice from Heaven declared him to be his Son and commanded all the World to Hear him Mat. iii. 16 17. And he Received the Spirit without Measure for the Discharge of all of Them Joh. iii. 34 Q. You say that God before Prophesy'd of such a Christ Did the Jews know that He had done so A. Yes and at that very time that Christ came into the World they Generally expected the coming of Him Mat. xi 2 Joh. iv 25 vii 31 Luke iii. 15 Q. How then came it to pass that They did not more readily Receive Him A. Because they had flatter'd themselves with the Expectation of a temporal Prince who should deliver them from their Enemies and Restore again the Kingdom unto Israel And therefore they could not bear the disappointment of Receiving such a Messias as our Saviour professed himself to be Luke xxiv 21 Act. i. 6 Q. What Security have we that this was indeed the Messias of whom Moses and the Prophets Spake A. The Greatest that can be Imagin'd a He came at the exact Time that the Messias was to Come a Gen. xlix 10 Malach. iii. 1 Dan. ix 25 26. He descended of the Tribe out of which the Messiah was to proceed Gen. xlix 9 10. Isa. xi 1 10. comp Mat. i. Luk. iii. He was born at the Place where the Messias was to be born Mich. v. 2 Mat. ii 1 He was conceived of a Virgin as the Messias was to be conceived Isa. vii 14 Mat. i. 25 Luk. i. 27 34. Besides all which he had such extraordinary Witness born to him as is not to be Gain-said God raised up a Singular Fore-runner to prepare the Way for him Being come into the World He Own'd him by a Voice from Heaven to be his Son Mat. iii. 17 He himself wrought such Miracles as no One ever did Joh. vii 31 He empower'd his Disciples to work the Same Miracles in his Name and for the Confirmation of his Authority Mat. x. 7 8. Mark xvi 17 18. Being put to Death at the Instigation of the Jews He was by God raised again the Third Day from the Dead and in the presence of his Disciples visibly taken up into Heaven where he now sitteth at the Right-hand of God Acts i. 3 9. Q. You said that Jesus was called Christ because he was to be consecrated by the Holy Ghost to the several Offices to which Men were Anointed under the Law Tell me therefore How does it appear that this Christ was a Prophet A. It is manifest that He exercised all the Parts of the Prophetick Office He foretold things to Come Jo. ii 19 Mat. xvii 22 23. xxiv 2 c. He declared God's Will to the World And he commission'd his Disciples to Go and Publish the same Doctrine of Salvation to all Mankind Mat. xxviii 19 20. Mar. xvi 15 Q. How do you believe Christ to have been a Priest seeing He was not descended of a Priestly Tribe or Family Heb. vii 14 A. As the Scriptures teach me to believe I believe him to have been a Priest not according to the Legal Institution but of another and more ancient Kind after the Order of Melchisedeck Psal. cx
4 Heb. v. 10 vi 20 vii 14 c. Q. What is the Order of which you speak A. It is evident that when God chose the Tribe of Levi and the Family of Aaron to minister unto him under the Law He took them instead of the First-born of Every Tribe and Family who by virtue of their Birth-Right had the Priesthood belonging to them Exod. xix 22 xxiv 5 Now Melchisedeck living before this was done was a Priest by that ancient Right and not According to the Law But then besides this He was a King too and so the High-Priest over his People Now such a Priest and Prince together was Christ over his Church Heb. vii 1 2. Again Of Melchisedeck we know not either who went before him or who succeeded Him in these Offices So that his Priesthood as to us was a solitary Priesthood in which as He succeeded None so neither does it appear that any succeeded Him And such also is the Priesthood of Christ There was never any such High-Priest before nor shall there ever Rise up Any like him Heb. vii 3 6. 23 24. Q. Wherein did He exercise this Office A. In all the Parts of the Priestly Function He offer'd up himself a Sacrifice for our Sins Heb. vii 27 ix 12 26 28. Having done this He Ascended into Heaven there to Appear in the Presence of God for Vs Heb. ix 12 24. And He Blesseth us not only by delivering Us hereby from the Punishment of Our Sins but by Sanctifying our Souls and so freeing Us in great Measure even from the Present Power of Them Heb. ix 14 x. 10 14 16 17. Q. How does it appear that Our Lord was not only a Prophet and a Priest but a King also A. The Scripture expresly calls him so Jo. xii 15 xviii 37 and that Authority which He has all along exercised over his Church proves him to have been so Q. What is that Authority A. While he was yet upon Earth He gave Laws unto his Church for the Regulation of the Lives and Actions of Those who should become Members of it Mat. vii 24 26. These Laws he establish'd with the Royal Sanction of Rewards and Punishments Mat. vii 19 21. He settled a Ministry for the Conduct of his Church under Him Jo. xx 21 22 23. He Rules in the Hearts of the Faithful by his Spirit He has already begun to subdue our Enemies Sin the Devil and Death And he will hereafter utterly destroy them 1 Cor. xv 24 25 26. He now sits in full Power at the Right-hand of God Interceeding for Us And at the End of the World he will descend from thence with Glory to Judge the World and so put in execution his Promises and Threatnings by Infinitely Rewarding Those who shall be found to have Observed his Laws and exceedingly Punishing those who shall have broken them Mat. xxv 31 c. SECT IX Q. WHAT is that Relation which Christ is here said to have to God A. He is His Only Son Q. In what Respect do you believe Christ to be the Son of God A. He is called so in the Holy Scriptures upon several Accounts * As he was Conceived by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary Luk. i. 45 * As He was anointed by the Holy Ghost to the Office of the Messiah Jo. x. 34 * As he was Begotten again of God when he Raised Him from the Dead Act. xiii 33 Rom. i. 4 And lastly * as being Raised from the Dead He was made by God the Heir of All things Heb. i. 3 Q. In which of these Respects do you here profess to believe that Jesus Christ is the ONLY Son of God A. Precisely speaking in none of them all though yet I acknowledge the most of them to be so proper to Him as not to be capable of being applied to any Other But when I here profess Christ to be God's ONLY Son I do it upon a much higher and more excellent Foundation namely upon the Account of his Eternal Generation and that Communication which God the Father thereby made of the Divine Nature to Him Q. Do you then look upon Christ to have been made by God Partaker of the Divine Nature and so to have been from all Eternity God together with Him A. If I believe the Scriptures to give a true Account of the Nature of Christ so I must believe For I find the same Evidences in them of the Godhead of Christ that I do of that of the Father Q. What be those Evidences A. First they give the Name of God to him and that in such a Manner as plainly shews it is to be understood in its most proper Import and Signification Jo. i. 1 xx 28 Rom. ix 5 1 Tim. iii. 16 1 Jo. v. 20 Phil. ii 6 Secondly they ascribe the most proper and incommunicable Attributes of God to Him Such as Omnipotence Jo. v. 17 Rev. i. 8 xi 17 Omniscience Jo. xvi 30 xxi 17 Luk. vi 8 comp Jo. ii 24 Rev. ii 23 Immensity Jo. iii. 13 Mat. xviii 20 xxviii 20 Jo. iii. 13 Immutability Heb. i. 11 12. xiii 8 and even Eternity it self Rev. i. 8 17. xxii 13 Prov. viii 22 Mich. v. 2 Isa. ix 5 To him Thirdly they ascribe such Works as can belong to None that is not God The Creation of the World Jo. i. 3 10. Col. i. 16 Heb. i. 2 10. The Preservation of it Heb. i. 3 Miracles Jo. v. 21 36. vi 40 The Mission of the Holy Ghost Jo. xvi 7 14. xiii 26 And in short all the Works of Grace and Regeneration Jo. v. 21 x. 16 xiii 18 Act. xvii 31 xx 28 Eph. v. 26 c. Add to this Fourthly that he is there shewn to be Honoured as God Jo. v. 23 Heb. 1.6 Prayer fs made to him Act. vii 59 1 Cor. i. 2 Faith and Hope are directed to be put in Him Jo. xiv 1 Psal. ii 12 Praises and Thanksgivings are Given to Him Jo. xiv 1 Rev. iii. 5 Glory and Honour are rendred to Him Rev. v. 13 compare iv 11 And no wonder since Lastly the Nature of God is therein also expresly ascribed to Him Heb. i. 3 Phil. ii 6 Col. ii 9 compare Col. i. 15 19. Q. But if Christ therefore be God as well as the Father how can He be called the Son of God A. Because he Received his Divine Nature from the Father who is the Beginning and Root of the Divinity and has communicated his Own Essence to Christ Who therefore though he has the same Nature and so in that is Equal with the Father yet is He in Order after him as being God of God Q. How does it appear that Christ Received his Divine Nature from the Father A. It can only be known by that Revelation which God has made of it in the Holy Scriptures Where he is for this Reason said to be the Brightness of his Glory and the express Image of his Person Heb. i. 3
The Image of the invisible God Col. i. 15 2 Cor. iv 4 to be from God Jo vii 29 to have Life from the Father Jo. v. 26 and the like And upon this Account it is that our Saviour himself says that the Father is greater than he Jo. xiv 28 That he can do Nothing of Himself but what he seeth the Father do Jo. v. 18 19. Or if this be not yet plain enough they tell us farther in express terms that he is the Begotten and the Only begotten Son of the Father Jo. i. 14 18. iii. 16 18. Heb xi 17 1 Jo. iv 9 v. 1 Q. But will not this make the Holy Ghost as much God's Son as Christ And how then is Christ his Only Son A. In Matters of this kind which are so far above our Capacities and of which we know Nothing but what God has been pleased to Reveal to Us we must speak as God in his Word has taught us to speak Now the Scriptures no where call the Holy Ghost the Son of God nor God the Father of the Holy Ghost And therefore though we know not what the precise Difference is yet because the proper Act of a Father is to beget we say that Christ Received his Divine Nature from God by Generation but of the Holy Ghost we say as the Scriptures do that He Proceedeth from the Father Jo. xv 26 and is the Spirit not of the Father only but of the Son also Gal. iv 6 Rom. viii 9 Phil. i 19. 1 Pet. i. 11 Q. What is the last Respect in which our Saviour is here Represented to Us A. His Relation to Vs OVR LORD Eph. iv 5 1 Cor. viii 5 Rev. x. 6 Q. How is Christ OVR Lord A. As he is God together with the Father and as by Him God Created the World so has he the same Original Right of Dominion with him and is Lord of All his Creatures Q. Is there not some Other ground for this Title and which Restrains it in a particular Manner to Mankind A. Yes there is Inasmuch as by his Coming into the World and Dying for Us he Redeemed Us from Death and so became Our Lord by virtue of that Purchase which thereby he made of Us. Q. When did Christ begin in this Respect to be Our Lord A. He entred in part upon this Authority before his Death though not without Respect to his dying for Us As is Evident from his publishing his Gospel abrogating the Law and setting out the Conditions of Life and Death to Mankind Hence before his Death he asserted to himself the Power to forgive Sins Mat. ix 2 6. But the full exercise of his Dominion he entred not upon till after his Resurrection when as himself declared to his Apostles Mat. xxviii 18 All Power in Heaven and Earth was given unto Him See Eph. i. 20 21. Q. How long will Christ continue in this Respect to be Our Lord A. Christ will continue to be Our Lord for Ever and of his Kingdom there shall be no End Luk. i 32 33. But then as the subject Matter of a great part of that Authority which he now exercises over his Church is proper only to the present State of it and will determine at the Day of Judgment so will all the farther exercise of such Authority cease together with it Christ as Mediator must Reign till he has put all his Enemies under his Feet till Sin Death the Devil and all Wicked Men shall be destroy'd and all his Faithful Servants be delivered from the Power of them Psal. cx 1 1 Cor. xv 25 But that being done Christ will deliver up this Authority to God even the Father 1 Cor. xv 24 Nevertheless still as God-Man he will continue to Reign with and over his Saints to all Eternity in Heaven And so make good what Daniel foretold concerning him Dan. vii 14 That his Dominion is an Everlasting Dominion which shall not pass away and his Kingdom that which shall not be destroyed SECT X. Q. WHAT does your Creed teach you farther to Believe concerning our Lord Jesus Christ in the following Articles which Relate to Him A. All such Matters as are necessary to be Known and Believed by Us with Relation to the great Work of our Redemption which was accomplish'd by Him Q. By what means did Christ accomplish the Redemption of Mankind A. By giving up Himself to the Death upon the Cross for Us. 1 Pet. i. 18 19. Q. How could Christ whom you believe to be God die A. He took upon him our Nature He became Man like unto one of Us and being found in fashion as a Man he yielded up himself to Death even the Death of the Cross for Us Phil. ii 7 8. Act. xx 28 Q. After what manner was Christ made Man A. Not by the Conversion of his Divine Nature into the Humane nor by any Confounding of the Two Natures together But by Vniting our Humane Nature to His Divine after a Singular manner and such as cannot be perfectly Express'd by Us. Q. Were then Two distinct Natures the Divine and Humane Vnited together in Christ A. Yes there were And that in such wise as to make the same Jesus Christ by the distinction of the Two Natures in the Vnity of the same Person become truly and really at Once both God and Man Q. How was Christ made Man A. He was Conceived by the Holy Ghost and Born of the Uirgin Mary Q. How could Christ be conceived by the Holy Ghost A. Not by the communication of any part of his Own Substance to Him but as that Blessed Spirit set Nature on Work and took away the need of any Human Concurrence to his Production And as having thus prepared a Body for him of the Substance of the Virgin he breathed into it a most Perfect Reasonable Soul Q. Wherefore was it needful for the Holy Ghost to do this A. Both for the Honour and Purity of our Blessed Saviour That so he might come into the World free from all tincture of Sin And also that by the extraordinariness of His Birth He might fulfil the Prophecies which God had before deliver'd concerning it Q. How was Christ born of the Virgin Mary A. The Substance of his Body was derived from that of the Blessed Virgin He grew in her Womb and at the full time of her Delivery she brought him into the World And upon all these Accounts she was as much his Mother as any Other Woman is Mother of the Child that is born by Her Q. Had our Saviour then a Real Body like unto One of Us A. He had both a Real Humane Body Luke xxiv 39 1 Jo. iv 2 3 and Rational Soul Mat. xxvi 28 Luk. xxiii 46 And was in all things like unto Us only without Sin Heb. ii 17 iv 15 Q. Wherefore do you give the Title of Virgin to the Mother of our Lord A. To testify our belief that
in the Production of our Saviour she had no knowledge of any Man but was at once a Mother and a Virgin Not to determine any thing of her Condition afterwards though we piously suppose and it has been Generally Received that she still continued as she then was a Virgin Q. Should not this Relation of the Blessed Virgin to our Saviour oblige Us to pay a more than Ordinary Respect to her A. No doubt it should And therefore it will become us always to mention her with Honour to imitate her Vertues and to give thanks to God for that extraordinary Favour which he was pleased to bestow upon her that she should be the Mother of our Lord. Luke i. 48 Q. What think you of that Worship which upon this Account is paid to Her in the Church of Rome A. As of the grossest Idolatry that it may be was ever committed in the World Such as no Good Christian can think of without horrour nor any One partake of without the hazard of his Salvation Q. What is that Worship of which you speak such hard Things A. It is the most proper Worship of God * They pray to her in all their Religious Service * They put their trust in her they Rely upon her for * Grace and * Salvation * They consecrate particular Offices of Devotion to her * They erect Societies to her Honour * They depend more on her Mercies than Christs and * Recur much oftner to her than to him for Pardon and Forgiveness SECT XI Q. YOU said that the End of Christ's being Born of the Virgin Mary was that he might thereby be in a Capacity of Dying for Us Tell me therefore how did Christ do this A. He Suffer'd under Pontius Pilate was Crucified Dead and Buried Q. Who was Pontius Pilate A. He was Governor of Judaea under Tiberius the Roman Emperor at the time of Christ's Death and condemn'd our Saviour to be Crucified Q. Why do you take notice of the Person under Whom Christ Suffer'd A. For several Reasons 1. To fix the time of his Suffering which had been particularly foretold by the Prophet Daniel 490 Years before it came to pass 2. To shew that at that time the Sceptre was departed from Judah and so the time of Jacob's Prophecy concerning the Coming of the Messiah accomplish'd And 3. To account for the Manner of Christ's Death which was also extraordinary and foretold by the Prophets Crucifixion being not a Jewish but a Roman kind of Punishment Q. How came Pontius Pilate to condemn our Saviour to this Death A. He did it to satisfy the Importunity of the Jews after having plainly declared that he was not worthy to die Mat. xxvii 24 Luk. xxiii 14 15. Q. What do you Observe from this A. The same which the Providence of God evidently design'd to declare by it viz. That Christ suffered for Our Sins not for any Evil that Himself had done Q. Did Christ suffer any thing before his Crucifixion that you say first he Suffer'd and then that he was Crucified A. Yes very much He was Betray'd by One of his Own Apostles was Deny'd by Another was Forsaken by them All. He was Accused as a Rebel and False-Prophet by the Jews was Evil-intreated by the Souldiers Hurried from the Chief Priests to Pilate thence to Herod from him back to Pilate again He was Blind-folded Buffeted Scourged Crown'd with Thorns Spit upon He carry'd his Own Cross through the City And besides all this underwent that Inward Grief and Anguish of Mind in the Garden which much surpass'd all that he endured upon Mount Calvary Mat. xxvi 37 38. Mar. xiv 33 34. Q. Wherefore was Christ Crucified A. To fulfil both the Types and Prophecies concerning his Death Gen. xxii 6 Numb xxi 9 comp Jo. iii. 14 Psal. xxii 17 Zach. xii 10 And in the next Place to deliver Us from the Curse of the Law by Making himself a Curse for Vs. Gal. iii. 13 Q. How did Christ suffer all this A. Only in his Humane Nature His Body bore all the Inflictions of the Jews and Souldiers without His Soul was the Seat of all his Fears and Horrours and Pains which he felt within The Divine Nature only gave worth and value to what the Humane bore The same Person was God and Man who underwent all this But the Man only Suffer'd the Divine Nature neither did nor could Suffer any thing Q. Wherefore to his being Crucified do you add that he Died A. Because though Crucifixion 〈◊〉 was Capital Punishment and extended unto Death yet it was not necessarily in its self Mortal So that Christ might have been Crucified and yet for all that not have Died. Q. Was it necessary to our Redemption that Christ should Die A. It was For the Wages of Sin is Death Rom. vi 23 and without shedding of Bloud there could be no Remission Heb. ix 22 And therefore we could not have been deliver'd from Death on any other Terms than by Christ's dying in our stead Whereas by dying He has made a full Satisfaction for our Sins has taken away the Sting of Death And conquer'd him who had the Power of Death that is the Devil Heb. ii 14 ix.x. Rom. v. 6 8. 1 Cor. xv 55 57. Q. How was Christ's Body disposed of after he was Dead A. It was decently and honourably Buried by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus principal Men among the Jews and that according to the Prophecies of God to that purpose Mat. xxvii 60 Mar. xv 46 Jo. xix 38 c. comp Psal. xvi 9 Isa. liii 7 8. Q. What became of his Soul while his Body lay in the Grave A. He therein Descended into Hell Psal. xvi 10 Act. ii 31 Q. What does the Word Hell signify A. It is diversly Used in the Holy Scriptures Sometimes it signifies the Grave Sometimes the State of the Dead And sometimes especially in the New Testament it denotes the Place of the Damned wherein they are to be tormented for Ever and Ever Q. In which of these Significations do you here understand it A. In the first it cannot be taken For of the Burial of Christ's Body there was mention before and a Soul cannot Go into the Grave Neither can it be taken in the last for Christ finished all his Sufferings on the Cross Jo. xix 30 and had nothing to undergo in the Place of Torments Q. But might not Christ descend thither to triumph over the Devil in his Own Place Or to deliver from thence all such as should there Believe in Him A. Something of this I confess has been suggested but without any sufficient Arguments to support it Q. What then do you take to be the true Meaning of this Article A. It is evident that it must Refer to the Place whither Christ's Soul went in its State of Separation Acts ii 31 Now what that Place was seems clearly pointed out to us in the
Holy Scriptures For First Our Blessed Saviour promised the penitent Thief but a little before his Death that That Day he should be with him in Paradise Luk. xxiii 43 And Secondly As he was Expiring he gave up the Ghost with these Words Father into thy Hands I Commend my Spirit Christ therefore having now finish'd his Passion expired upon the Cross. His Body was laid in the Sepulchre his Spirit Return'd unto God that gave it and together with the Soul of the Penitent Thief was carry'd by the Holy Angels into Paradise where the Souls of the Righteous rest till the Day of the Resurrection And from thence it return'd on the third Day and was again Reunited to its Body as Ours also shall be at the Day of Judgment Q. What is your Opinion of the Limbus Patrum or Prison in which those of the Church of Rome suppose the Souls of Holy Men who dyed before the time of Christ to be shut up And to deliver whom they say our Saviour now went down thither A. As of a meer Fiction for which there is not the least ground in Scripture but much to the contrary and fit to keep Company with their Other Dream of Purgatory since SECT XII Q. WAS Christ to continue always under the Power of Death A. No but the contrary was foretold concerning Him That God would not leave his Soul in Hell nor suffer his Holy One to see Corruption Psal xvi 10 Acts ii 31 Q. How was he deliver'd from the Power of the Grave A. He Rose again the Third Day from the Dead Q. How do you understand these Words A. That upon the Third Day after his Death his Soul and Body which had been separated from One Another were by the mighty Power of God brought together again and vitally United to One Another And so the same Jesus who was dead became again alive or as it is in my Creed Rose again the Third Day from the Dead Q. Did Christ Raise Himself from the Dead A. I before said that he was Raised by the mighty Power of God Nor could any thing less than a Divine Power have done it Eph. i. 19 20. Yet as Christ was God as well as Man so he did also upon that account concur to his Own Resurrection And thus the Scripture tells us Jo. ii 19 Destroy this Temple says Christ to the Jews and in Three Days I will Raise it up Jo. x. 17 18. Therefore doth my Father Love me because I lay down my Life that I may take it up again No Man taketh it from me but I lay it down of my self I have Power to lay it down and I have Power to take it again Which is also by the way another Evident Argument to prove that Christ is God Q. How does it appear that He did thus Rise from the Dead A. By the Testimony of Those who were Eye-witnesses of it And saw Him first cruelly put to Death and afterwards beheld Him Alive again Q. Are the Persons who give testimony hereunto such as may be securely Rely'd upon in a Matter of this Moment A. They are For First we have the Testimony of his most bitter Enemies as well as of his Friends to prove his Death Mar. xv 39 44 45. Mat. xxvii 62 c. Nor will the Sufferings which He underwent permit Us to doubt of it Jo. xix 33 34. And Secondly as for his being Alive after the Jews who set a Guard upon his Sepulchre on purpose to prevent his being Stollen away and the Pretence of his Resurrection which they were afraid his Disciples had design'd to Raise thereupon yet could not deny but that in despight of all their Care He was Gone out of the Sepulchre and what was become of Him they could not tell Mat. xxvii 62 c. xxviii 11 c. Q. But what positive Witness have you of his being Alive after his Crucifixion A. We have the Witness of his * Apostles of his * Disciples of above * Five hundred Persons who saw him and conversed with him and many of which died for the Testimony which they gave unto it None ever went back from it We have besides this the Witness * of Angels The Witness * of a Persecutor by this very Assurance converted into an Apostle And lastly the Witness * of God Himself who without all dispute enabled the first Preachers of this very Article to work wonderful Miracles in Confirmation of it and thereby as effectually as could be desired Gave his Own Evidence to the truth of it Q. Why do you add the Circumstance of the Time of his Resurrection that He Rose the Third Day A. To shew that he Rose according to the Types and Prophecies that had gone before concerning Him and upon the very Day that He himself had foretold he would Rise Jon. i. 17 ii 10 compare Mat. xii 38 Mat. xvi 21 Jo. ii 19 20. Q. How does it appear that it was the Third Day on which he Rose A. He Suffer'd on the Sixth Day being Our Friday between Nine and Twelve a Clock in the Morning He Rose on the First commonly called Our Sunday Morning after and so was Dead part of Friday all Saturday and part of Sunday For the Jews computed the Day from the Evening and so Saturday Night Six a Clock the First Day of the Week according to them began Q. Was there any thing Remarkable in the Day on which he Rose A. It was the Day on which God had before designed he should Rise And therefore on this Day the Sheaf of the First-fruits by which their Harvest was to be consecrated was lifted up before God among the Jews Lev. xxiii 10 to signify that Christ our First-fruits should on this Day be Raised up by God from the Dead and so become a Surety to Us of our future Resurrection See Rom. xi 16 1 Cor. xv 20 23. Q. What is the special Importance of this Article to Us A. It is very great Inasmuch as First It does beyond contradiction confirm the Divine Authority of our Blessed Lord Rom. i. 4 and the Truth of our Religion Rom. viii 33 34. And in the next Place does Assure Us that the Price of our Redemption was fully paid by Him Rom. iv 25 and is a Pledg to Us that as Christ was raised from the Dead so shall our mortal Bodies be quickned also by the same Spirit of Christ which dwelleth in Vs. Rom. vi 5 9. viii 11 SECT XIII Q. HOW did our Blessed Lord dispose of Himself after that he was Risen from the Dead A. He continued upon the Earth Forty Days with his Disciples both to Confirm them in their Belief of his Resurrection Jo. xx 19 25 27. Act. i. 3 and to Instruct them more fully in all those things which they were afterwards to preach to the World Acts i. 3 And then at the End of them He Ascended into Heaven
for which the Holy Spirit was given by Christ to his Church A. No His Operations are very many and can hardly be particularly Enumerated He not only Regenerates and Sanctifies Us Disposes us to our Duty and Fortifies Us against Temptation but moreover Directs us in Our Doubts Comforts us in our Afflictions Supports us in our Troubles Arms us against the Fear of Death Gives us Strength and Courage in Trials and Persecutions And in such Cases as he sees needful Seals our Souls with such an Inward Sense and Assurance of God's Favour as makes us firmly satisfied of our future Everlasting Salvation Rom. v. 5 viii 14 17. 2 Cor. i. 22 Eph. i. 14 Gal. iv 6 Q. How long shall the Holy Ghost continue thus to Comfort Sanctify and Guide the Faithful A. As long as there shall any Faithful Remain in need of his Assistance Which because there will be to the End of the World therefore Christ has promised that He shall also till then continue to Conduct and Govern his Faithful Servants Jo. 14.16 Mat. xxviii 20 SECT XVI Q. WHat does the FOVRTH and Last Part of your Creed Relate to A. To the Church of Christ Its Duty and Privileges here and its future Hope of Glory and Immortality hereafter Q. What is the First Thing which you are taught to believe concerning Christ's Church A. That there is a Holy Catholick Church Q. What is that Church of which this Article speaks A. It is the Vniversal Church of Christ the General Assembly of All those who from the time of the first publishing of the Gospel to this Day have believed in Christ or shall hereafter profess his Faith to the End of the World Q. How can such a Church be the Object of our Faith A. Not as to that part of it which we see and communicate with but chiefly in these Two Respects First As we Believe by the Word of God that those who have Gone before Us in the true Faith of Christ and the Fear of his Holy Name though out of all Visible Communion at present with Us do yet Live to God and are still Members of Christ's Church though in a different State from Us and shall together with Us be gather'd into One Glorious Society at the last Day And Secondly As upon the same Grounds we do also farther believe that in all the Ages yet to come to the End of the World Christ shall continue to have a Church upon Earth So that no Power of Men or Malice of the Devil shall ever be able utterly to Root it out or to destroy it Q. How can a Society consisting of such different Members and those at so great a distance both in Time and Place from One Another yet all together make but One Church A. Because how different so ever the Members of this Church may otherwise seem to be yet they are all * United together under One Head the Lord Jesus * Are * Sanctified and Ruled by the same Holy Spirit * Endued with the same Love to God and towards One Another * Live by the same Laws * Profess the same Faith * Partake of the same Sacraments * Have the same Hope of Salvation set before them * Worship the same God by the same Advocate and Saviour Jesus Christ And as to what concerns all the true and lively Members of this Society * shall one Day be Gathered together into One actual Place and Portion in the Glorious Kingdom of God for Ever Q. Wherefore do you give this Church the Title of Catholick A. Upon several Accounts but chiefly these Two First To distinguish it from the Jewish Church which was confined to a certain People and was to continue but for a certain Time Whereas the Christian Church takes in all Mankind and is to last to the End of the World Psal. ii 8 Acts x. 34 35. Mat. xxviii 19 Mark xvi 15 Luk. xxiv 47 1 Cor. xii 13 And Secondly To shew that in this Creed which comprehends what is to be Believed by all Christians we profess not our Faith of any One determinate Church which may cease and fail such as the Church of England or Church of Rome but of the Catholick or Vniversal Church of Christ as that which shall never fail and to which alone the Promises of God belong Q. May not any One determinate Church be called the Catholick Church A. No it may not any more than London may be called England or England the Whole World The Catholick Church is the Vniversal Church and that neither Ours nor any other particular Church is nor whilst there are more such Christian Churches in the World can be But a Catholick Church a Particular Church may be called And such Ours is though that of Rome I doubt will hardly be able to make a Good Pretension to this Title any more than to the Other Q. Do you make a difference then between A Catholick Church and THE Catholick Church A. There is certainly a wide difference between them THE Catholick Church is as I before said The whole Church But A Catholick Church implies no more than a Sound part of it a Church in Communion with the Catholick Church of Christ in opposition to the Conventicles of Hereticks and Schismaticks Who whatsoever they may pretend are really no parts of the Catholick Church nor shall be consider'd by Christ as such Q. Whom do you account Hereticks and Schismaticks And how does it appear that they are not Parts of the Catholick Church A. The Catholick Church is that Church which professes the true Faith which Christ and his Apostles deliver'd to it and that if not free from All Errour whatsoever yet without any such Errours as destroy the Foundation of that Doctrine which was committed to its Custody Now a Heretick is One who not only Errs in some Matters of lesser moment but in Matters of such Consequence as subvert the very Foundation of Christianity But he who does this can never be a Member of that Church whose Doctrine he not only does not Receive but rejects And who by his Errours destroys that very Faith by which alone he can be intituled to the Character either of a true Disciple or a sound Member of Christ's Church Q. But why may not Schismaticks be accounted true Members of Christs Church A. Because none are Schismaticks but such as forsake and cut themselves off from the Communion of the Catholick Church Now it is a Contradiction that those should continue Members of the Catholick Church who by their Own voluntary departure from it have renounced the Communion of it Q. Do you look upon the Church of England to be a true part of the Catholick Church A. It certainly is Inasmuch as it professes the true Catholick Faith deliver'd in the Holy Scriptures and drawn up in the Creeds of the Church and by the most ancient Councils acknowledged to be sufficient to denominate those who profess'd according thereunto
forgotten by Them And therefore it was highly necessary that the LORD should in the very first Place caution his People against this Folly and Idolatry Q. How many ways may a Man have Others for their Gods besides the LORD A. By as many ways as we are capable of shewing that We have Him for our God Namely First by Thinking of them as God and Secondly by Worshipping of them as Such Q. Is it possible for any Man who knows and worships the LORD to have any Other God besides him A. So this Commandment evidently Supposes and so indeed it may easily enough be There being nothing so Unreasonable which an immoderate Superstition is not capable of leading sometimes even Wise-men into And therefore not only God here gives this Caution to the Jews but St. Paul in like manner forewarns even the Christians to whom he preached to flee from Idolatry 1 Cor. x. 14 and not to keep Company with a Brother that is a Christian who was Guilty of it 1 Cor. v. 11 Q. How can this be seeing He who knows and believes aright of God must know and believe that there neither is nor can be any God besides Him A. Would Men always Act consistently to their Own Knowledge and Profession it would then indeed be Impossible for those who had a Right Notion of God to have any Other God besides Him But as in Other Cases Men may know very well what their Duty is and yet Act contrary to it so it is certain that they not only may but have done in the Case before Us. In short Whosoever gives Divine Honour to any Being does thereby profess that Being to be God as much as He who swears Allegiance to any Person does by such his Action Recognize that Person for his Prince Now such an Honour Religious Prayer and Invocation without all controversy are Yet these the Church of Rome does publickly and solemnly Pay to Others besides the LORD and by so doing shews to all the World that She has Other Gods besides Him Q. What do you then suppose to be the full import of this Second Part of the present Commandment A. That we should neither Believe in Account of or Worship any Other as God besides the LORD Whether it be by Forsaking Him and Falling off altogether to Idolatry or by Giving the Honour of God to Any Other Being together with Him SECT XXIII Q. WHAT is the Second Commandment A. Thou shalt not make to thy self any Graven Image c. Q. How does this Commandment differ from the Foregoing A. The Design of the First Commandment was to determine and set us Right in the Object of our Religious Worship and to prevent Us from giving Divine Honour to any besides the true God The Design of this is to direct Us in the Manner of worshipping Him that so we may not only serve the true God but may serve him after such a Manner as he Requires and is most sitting for Us to do Q. What is the full Import of this Commandment A. It is this First * That we must not make any Image of God at all be our Design what it will in making of it Nor Secondly * That of any Other Being with an Intention to pay any Honour or Worship to it Q. Do you think it utterly Unlawful to make any Image at all of God A. It is certainly Unlawful and is in many Places of Scripture expresly forbidden as being highly dishonourable to the Infinite Nature and Majesty of God and of Great danger and harm to Us. See Deut. iv 15 Isai. xl 18 xlii 8 Rom. i. 23 Q. What think you of the Image of Christ may that be made without offending against this Commandment A. Christ being Man as well as God his Body may certainly be aptly enough Represented by an Image nor would it be any Sin so to do provided that No Use were made of any such Image in any part of our Religious Worship But to Represent God the Father in a Graven Image to paint the Holy Trinity and that in so profane a manner as it has often been done in the Church of Rome is certainly a Great Sin and a Great Scandal and directly contrary to the Intention of this Commandment Q. Do you then look upon all Vse of Images in God's Service to be Vnlawful A. I do account it contrary to the Prohibition of this Commandment and by consequence Vnlawful And therefore when Aaron first and afterwards Jeroboam made Use of them for this purpose we find how highly God was pleased to Resent it and with what detestation it is condemn'd in the Holy Scriptures Exod. xxxii 1 Kings xii 30 xiii 34 Psal. cvi 20 Q. What say you to the Practice of the Church of Rome in this particular A. That it is Scandalous and Intolerable There having never been greater Idolatry committed among the Heathen in the business of Image-Worship than has been committed in that Church and is by Publick Authority still practised by it especially in the Ceremony of their Good-Friday Cross-Worship Q. Do you think they are so foolish as to Worship the Cross or is it Idolatry to worship Christ in presence of the Cross A. If we may either believe their Own Words or judge by their Actions they Adore the Cross as well as Christ and Both alike and with the same Worship As for the new pretence of worshipping Christ in Presence of the Cross it is a meer delusion contrived only to cheat ignorant People And carries just as much sense in it as if you should ask whether it were lawful to say your Prayers in Presence of a Post or to write a Letter in the Presence of a Candlestick the Nonsense of which there is no One so dull as not to discover Q. What is the Positive Duty Required of Us in this Commandment A. To worship God after a manner suitable to his Divine Nature and Excellencies God is a Spirit and whoso will Worship Him aright must do it in Spirit and in Truth Jo. iv 24 Rom. xii 1 Comp. Mat. xv 8 9. Q. How has God enforced these Commandments A. He has done it after a very singular Manner By declaring 1st That He is a jealous God Acts xvii 29 and will not suffer His Glory to be given to Another neither his Praise to Graven Images Isai. xlii 8 But 2dly Will Visit this Sin not only upon Those who commit it but on their Posterity also to the Third and Fourth Generation As on the Other side 3dly To those who are Careful to Worship Him as they ought to do He will shew abundant Mercy in this present Time and in the World to come Give them Life Everlasting Q. Can it consist with the Justice of God to Punish One for the Sin of Another A. No certainly nor does God here threaten any such thing But God who is the great LORD of the whole World may so punish a Man for his Sins
there any thing more intimated by that Expression A. Yes there is namely that this Sacrament ought not to be Celebrated only Once in the Year as the Passover was but to be Administred from time to time so as to keep up a Constant Lively Remembrance in our Minds of the Sacrifice of the Death of Christ. Q. Wherefore do you call it the Sacrifice of Christ's Death A. Because Christ by his Dying became an an Expiatory Sacrifice for the Sins of Mankind Q. Did Christ then suffer Death for the Forgiveness of our Sins A. He did He took upon him our Sins and died for them that by his Death we might be free'd both from the Guilt and Punishment of them Q. Was it necessary that Christ should die in order to his being such a Sacrifice A. It was necessary for without shedding of Blood there is no Remission Heb. ix 22 And Death being the Punishment of Sin he could no Otherwise have free'd us from Death than by Dying himself in our Stead Q. Can Christ any more Suffer or Die now since his Rising from the Dead A. No St. Paul expresly tells us that he cannot Rom. vi 9 10. Christ being Raised from the Dead dieth no more Death hath no more Dominion over him For in that he died he died unto Sin Once but in that he liveth he liveth unto God Q. How then do those of the Church of Rome say that he is again Offer'd for Us as a true and proper Sacrifice in this Holy Sacrament A. This Sacrament is not a Renewal or Repetition of Christ's Sacrifice but only a Solemn Memorial and Exhibition of it To talk of an Expiatory Sacrifice for Sin without Suffering is not only contrary to Scripture but is in the Nature of the thing its self Absurd and Unreasonable Every Sacrifice being put in the Place of the Person for whom it is offer'd and to be treated so as that Person in Rigour ought to have been had not God admitted of a Sacrifice in his stead And therefore the Apostle from hence concludes that Christ could not be more than Once Offer'd because he could but Once Suffer But to suppose that Christ in his present Glorified State can Suffer is such a Contradiction to all the Principles of our Religion that the Papists themselves are ashamed to assert it Q. What think you of the Sacrifice as they call it of the Mass A. We do not deny but that in a large Sense this Sacrament may be called a Sacrifice as the Bread and Wine may be called the Body and Blood of Christ. But that this Sacrament should be a true and proper Sacrifice as they define the Sacrifice of the Mass to be it is altogether False and Impious to assert Q. What was then the Design of our Saviour in this Institution A. To leave to his Church a Perpetual Solemn and Sacred Memorial of his Death for Us. That as often as we come to the Lord's Table and there join in the Celebration of this Holy Sacrament we might be moved by what is there done at once both to Call to Our Remembrance all the Passages of his Passion to consider him as there set forth Crucified before our Eyes and to Meditate upon the Love of Christ thus dying for Us and upon the mighty Benefits and Advantages which have accrued to Us thereby SECT XLVII Q. YOU before said that in Every Sacrament there must be Two Parts an Outward and an Inward What is therefore the Outward Part or Sign of the Lord's Supper A. Bread and Wine which the Lord hath Commanded to be Received Q. Did Christ Institute this Sacrament in Both these A. Yes He did He first took Bread gave Thanks and Brake it saying Take Eat this is my Body which is broken for you This do in Remembrance of me And then After the same Manner he took the Cup saying This Cup is the New Testament in my Blood This do ye as oft as ye drink it in Remembrance of me 1 Cor. xi 24 25. Q. For what End did Christ appoint these Outward Signs of this Sacrament A. The Words of his Institution plainly shew it that those who celebrate this Sacrament might Eat of the One and Drink of the Other at his Table Q. Is it necessary for all those who join in this Holy Sacrament both to Eat of that Bread and to Drink of that Cup A. It is so necessary that they cannot without violating our Saviour's Institution come to to the Holy Table unless they do it For Christ appointed Both to be taken and he who takes not the Cup as well as Bread does not Communicate in Christ's Body and Blood at all Q. May not a Person who only looks on and sees the Priest Officiate Commemorate Christ's Death and meditate upon the Benefits of it as well as if he received the Elements of Bread and Wine A. I will answer your Question with Another May not a Person who is not Baptized when he sees that Holy Sacrament administred be truly penitent for his Sins and believe in Christ and desire to be Regenerated and Adopted into the Communion of his Church as fully as if he were himself wash'd with the Water of Baptism But yet the bare looking on in this Case would not intitule such a One to the Grace of Regeneration nor will it any more intitule the Other to the Communion of Christ's Body and Blood In all these Cases the Question is not what we think we might do but what Christ has commanded us to do And we must observe what he Requires if ever we mean to be made Partakers of what he Promises Now that in the present Instance is not idly to look on but to do this i. e. to Eat this Bread and Drink of this Cup in Remembrance of Him Q. Do you think it necessary that Every Communicant should Receive this Sacrament in Both Kinds A. I do think it Necessary for so our Saviour has appointed it Thus he gave it to his Disciples and thus they Received it at his Hands Q. But his Disciples were Priests and therefore their Receiving this Sacrament in both Kinds does not argue that it is necessary for the People to do likewise A. Whether all who were then present at the Table with our Saviour were Priests is very Uncertain The Blessed Virgin we are sure was at that time at Jerusalem and no doubt did eat the Passover according to the Law with him yet she was certainly but a Lay Communicant And many Others for ought we know there might be in the same Circumstances But not to insist upon this Our Saviour made no distinction between Priests and Lay Communicants as to the Business of Receiving of this Sacrament in One or Both Kinds He Gave both the Bread and Wine himself to All that were at the Table and He has left a General Commandment to Us to do likewise And his Words and his Action together evidently
Revealed in Vs And finally are strengthned against the Fear of Death its Self which we are hereby taught to look upon as a Passage only to a Most Blessed and Everlasting State SECT XLIX Q. IS this the only way in which you suppose Christ's Body and Blood to be Really Present in this Sacrament A. It is the only way in which I conceive it possible for them to be present there As for his Divine Nature that being Infinite he is by virtue thereof Every where present But in his Humane Nature especially his Body he is in Heaven only nor can that be any otherwise present to Us on Earth than by Figure and Representation or else by such a Communion as I have before been speaking of Q. Does not Christ expresly say that the Bread is his Body the Cup his Blood A. He does say of the Bread and Wine so taken blessed broken and given as they were by Him in that Sacred Action that This is my Body c. and so they are The Bread which we break is not only in Figure and Similitude but by a Real Spiritual Communion his Body The Cup of Blessing which we bless is by the same Communion his Blood But this does not hinder but that as to their own Natural Substances they may and indeed do still continue to be what they appear to Us the same Bread and Wine that before they were Q. What think you of those who believe the very Elements of Bread and Wine by the Words of Christ to be really changed into the Body and Blood of Christ and to have nothing of their own Remaining but the meer Appearance or Species of what they were before A. If any Really do believe this I think they contradict both Sense Reason and Scripture in so doing Q. Do you suppose that we ought to judge of a Thing of this Nature by our Senses A. I know no Other way of judging of Sensible Objects but by our Senses And if I must not believe what I See and Taste and Smell to be Bread and Wine to be truly Bread and Wine I must Resolve to turn Sceptick and not believe any thing at all Q. Is not the Word of God to be more Rely'd upon than Our Own Senses A. I do not at all doubt but that We ought without all Controversy to believe whatever the Word of God proposes to Us. But where does the Word of God require me to believe any thing in Opposition to my Senses which it is the proper Business of my Senses to judge of Q. Does not the Word of God say This is my Body A. It does say so of the Bread So Blessed Given and Received as it ought to be in this Sacrament And accordingly I believe that it is so But does the Word of God any where say that it is not Bread Or that I am not to believe it to be Bread though my Senses never so evidently assure me that it is Q. Can the same Thing be Christ's Body and Bread too A. I have before shewn you not only that it may be so but that it truly and really is So Bread in Substance The Body of Christ by Signification by Representation and Spiritual Communication of his Crucified Body to every faithful and worthy Receiver Q. How is Transubstantiation contrary to our Reason A. As my Reason tells me it is a Contradiction to say of One and the Same Natural Body that it should be in Heaven and on Earth at London and at Rome at the same time That it should be a true Humane Body and and yet not have any One Part or Member of such a Body To omit a Hundred Other Absurdities that are the necessary Consequences of Such a Belief Q. How does the Scripture contradict this Belief A. As it tells us that Christ's Body is in Heaven absent from Us That there it is to continue till the Day of Judgment That he has now a Glorified Body and is not capable of Dying any more Whereas the Body we Receive in this Holy Sacrament is his Crucified Body his Body given for Us his Blood shed for Us which can never be verified in his present Glorified Body Q. Do not those who believe Transubstantiation believe the Bread and Wine to be changed into Christ's Mortal and Passible Body A. No they do not but into that Body in which He now sits at the Right-hand of God in Heaven Q. How then does their Belief of Transubstantiation contradict the Sense of the Holy Scriptures as to what concerns the Nature of Christ's Body in the Eucharist A. Because by Supposing Christ's Glorified Body to be that which we receive in this Sacrament they utterly destroy the very Nature of it It was the Design of this Sacrament to exhibite and communicate to Us the Body and Blood of Christ not any way but in the State of His Suffering as He was given for Vs and became a Sacrifice for our Sins Now this he neither was nor could have been in his present Glorified Estate So that if the Body and Blood of Christ be in this Sacrament it must be not that which he now has in Heaven but that which he then had when he Suffer'd for Us upon Earth and they must not only bring Christ down from above but must bring him back again to his mortal and passible Estate or they will never be able to make Good any such Change as they pretend to and that I think is sufficiently contrary to Scripture as well as in the Nature of the Thing its self Impossible SECT L. Q. WHAT have been the Ill Effects of this Errour A. Chiefly those Two which I before mentioned that it introduced the Doctrines of the Mass Sacrifice and of the Half Communion to which may be added Thirdly The Adoration of the Host. Q. What do you call the Host A. It is the Wafer which those of the Church of Rome make use of instead of Bread in this Sacrament Q. Do those of that Church Adore the Consecrated Wafer A. They do and that as if it were really what they pretend to believe that it is Our Saviour Christ himself Q. Is there any great harm in such a Worship A. Only the Sin of Idolatry For so it must needs be to give Divine Worship to a piece of Bread Q. Ought not Christ to be Adored in the Sacrament A. Christ is every where to be Adored and therefore in the Receiving of the Holy Communion as well as in all our Other Religious Performances Q. How can it then be Sinful for Those who believe the Bread to be changed into the Body of Christ upon that Supposition to Worship the Host A. As well as for a Heathen who takes the Sun to be God upon that Supposition to Worship the Sun Q. But he intends to Worship Christ and that can never be justly said to be Idolatry A. And so the Other intends to Worship God But to put another Case which may