is well when they do and in many cases mighty prudent to seek the Law at his mouth consult him often in our doubts and difficulties and not be too peremptory in our own conclusions But yet I think no man can with reason believe that God ever intended these to be the only Oracles to which every Christian should repair and content himself with the responses of I think I could urge inconveniences against this which the whole Conclave would be something puzled to solve As God hath endued every man with a Soul and that Soul with an understanding and that understanding with power of judging and discerning things that differ and commanded every man to be faithful to this Talent and diligent in improving and encreasing his stock of light that thereby he may be able to take the better heed he be not deceived So doubtless he hath substituted a way by which every man may do this and hath not intended the benefit of it to be confined only to some few particular persons It hath been long since objected and designed to reproach the holy Scriptures that they are very plain and content themselves with familiar representations of things accommodated to vulgar capacities and not fit to satisfie the enquiries and exercise the curiosity of deep speculators and subtil Philosophers And the truth of the objection hath been willingly granted as to the main and yet the honour and excellency of them for that reason vindicated and Gods goodness thereupon magnified and exalted who foreseeing that the greatest part of his followers would not be great Clerks and deep Scholars but illiterate and plain men hath mercifully consulted their weakness and complied with it and provided for it And he that considers that God values the Soul of one man equally with anothers and desires equally the Salvation of all will presently conclude that therefore he hath consulted the benefit of all men and not set up a rule to judge truth by which should be mighty obscure and intricate and very few only some learned men should be able to reap benefit from Thus much therefore we have gained from this Text both that God hath left us a way by which to know Truth from Error and that this is such a way as all men may improve and make use of to the same end CHAP. III. Two ways propounded for the proof of the Assertion Scripture and Reason This Text improved largely to this purpose and Matth. 7.16 of which a full Explication is endeavoured HAving thus prepared the way to the proof of the forenamed Assertion in the preceeding Chapter I shall now address directly to it in this And two ways I shall endeavour to give strength to the truth of it by 1. By Scripture 2. By Reason and Argument warranted by Scripture 1. I begin with the confirmation of this from holy Scripture which indeed is the chiefest way of proving this truth and before all other things fit to determine this controversie For since we have reason with all due humility and gratitude to acknowledge this to be a full sufficient and perfect revelation of the will of God to man in which all necessary directions to happiness are contained and whatever else is needful to make the man of God perfect throughly furnished unto all good works 2 Tim. 3.17 as S. Paul warrants us to believe So if God have provided such a way for men to judge Truth and Error by he hath doubtless given some intimation of it in these Divine Inspirations and Records Now what these speak of this matter I shall endeavour to acquaint you And first as from this place of S. John I have taken occasion to raise 1 John 4.6 so I shall now try what there is in it to confirm the Assertion Which that I may distinctly and clearly do I must desire you to read the precedent verses and consider what the Apostle is designing in them And that you will easily find to be this an endeavour to confirm those he writes to in the true faith of Christ that they might not be drawn from it by any pretences and particularly by those great pretences to the Spirit that were then so common amongst all seducers especially the Gnosticks as indeed it hath been ordinary ever since almost amongst all Hereticks that have infested the Church This caution of not believing all these pretences he expresly mentions verse 1. and by an excellent Argument enforceth because there are many false Prophets are gone out into the world Now in order to this trial and discovery of the Spirits and the Doctrines issuing from them he layeth down these three chief rules in the following discourse The first whereof is the free confessing of Jesus Christ and faith in him in times of persecution the lawfulness and prudence of denying of whom when trouble and danger threatned a man for so doing was one of the great doctrines of the Gnosticks This he treats of verse 2 3. and then subjoyns a commendation of these Christians and congratulates with them that they had avoided the infection of these false teachers shewing withal what had assisted them to do so and why they should persist in their care against them verse 4 5. The second rule is laid down in this Text the intendment of which I shall presently acquaint you more fully with But because this is general he instanceth thirdly in a particular of Christian purity and obedience viz. true charity to our Brethren which he insists on in the following part of the Chapter I am not concern'd to insist upon either the first or third rule so as largely to explain them but chiefly upon the second for the ensuring of which there needs but only the right understanding of the word Hear He that is of God heareth us And that by this expression is intended obeying cannot seem strange to any that will remember that it is the common word by which obedience is generally expressed in the Sacred Idiom The places in which it is thus used are too many to be named and the commonness of the phrase too great to need it So that by hearing us is meant obeying our doctrine which is of God as he speaks i. e. pure and holy like its blessed Author hath nothing of worldly greatness or secular interest and design in it but only of piety and purity and self-denial and contempt of the world c. and this is an argument of its being truly Divine and a Rule by which also to judge whatever doctrine is so or the contrary That doctrine that is truly of God is all for holiness and obedience and purity while the other is for worldly advantages and suited to common Interests and hereby know we the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Error in all instances of doctrines i. e. all doctrines that are conducive to real holiness are of God proceed from the Spirit of Truth and every doctrine that inclines to the contrary doth certainly
pretences of knowledge bring them to the Law and to the Testimony and if in any thing they differ from that then there is no morning or light in them but they arise out of the infernal specus and are suggested by the Spirit and Prince of darkness This seems to me to be very clear and yet I shall add something more that this was not only appointed to be the Rule of judging in all ordinary differences about doctrines but in the most extraordinary also that could possibly happen I shall instance in Two that were the chiefest of all pretensions to Prophecy and working of Miracles These were indeed extraordinary cases and therefore though the judging of them did not belong to every private man but only to the great Sanhedrim as learned men have clearly proved yet it will be very much to our purpose if we can prove that even this great Consistory was to judge by this Rule of the Truth or Falshood of both of them And first for Prophets I think the case is sufficiently clear from that place of Moses Deut. 13. from verse 1 to 6. from which if you read and consider it well you will be able to make this Collection that neither the predicting of a future Event no nor the coming of that to pass according to the prediction are safe and warrantable things to judge a Prophet by for if that Prophet entice any way to Idolatry or deliver any thing that may draw them away from their duty in walking after the Lord and fearing him and keeping his Commandments and obeying his voice he is to be rejected yea to be stoned as an Impostor and a deceiver So that the truth of the Prophet and the divinity of his prophecy was to be judged only or at least chiefly by the consonancy thereof to the Law of God This is a thing that I judge worth our taking notice of at this time Alas if the bold pretenders to prophecy in this Age could make this plea for themselves that things fall out exactly according to their predictions what a great noise would they soon make how mightily would they boast and plead and perhaps believe too themselves to be true Prophets And yet God himself tells us this is no safe and sure Rule to judge men true Prophets by For the Spirit of Error may possibly predict many things and the Events answer the predictions and many times we know it hath been thus And we do not know how far the skill of the Devil may extend in this matter Besides God hath told us that he many times permits such things to come to pass that he may thereby try the love and fidelity of men Cause these to be a punishment unto all those that are unreasonably fickle and unconstant and on the other hand that as the Apostle speaks in case of Heresies those that are cordial and approved may be made known 1 Cor. 11.19 I know there are many Rules laid down by the Jewish Rabbies and others after them for the trial of Prophets and a great stir made about them But he that will considerately read them over as he will find this always mentioned as one Rule so he will find that it is the chiefest and safest and that to which all at last are forced to flee The Second case that I chose to instance in was the case of Miracles for that there are true and lying wonders the Scripture clearly assures us But how to distinguish betwixt these is really a very great and perplexing difficulty and some men have taken a great deal of pains to give directions herein And indeed must do so still until they come to fix and rest upon this For when all is done this certainly is the easiest and safest too namely to consider what the effects and designs of them are if they have Divine effects upon men especially if they only design to make men holy and good or to attest a doctrine that teacheth men how to be so then they carry the clearest stamp of Divinity upon them that can be but if they tend in any measure to the contrary either to encourage men in sin or attest any doctrine that teacheth any thing contrary to the holy Law and Precepts of God then they are to be suspected and rejected as immediate effects of the Spirit of delusion CHAP. V. A further discourse of Miracles and of their Evidence and how to know which are Divine and which not An addition to all from the Nature of Heresie and wherein the Notion of it doth chiefly consist BUT this Sir may perhaps by you be thought too little to be said on this great subject of Miracles for the whole World doth look upon them to be Divine Testimonies sufficient Evidences of truth and able to assure the verity gain assent to and entertainment of any doctrine that they are intended to attest The Christian Church in all Ages hath spoken great things of them and gloried in them and argued with great assurance the Divinity and Truth of the Christian Religion from them And he would certainly do a great disservice to Christianity that should go about in any measure to weaken the testimony of them And therefore Sir that I may not suffer under any of these prejudices I shall a little further enlarge this discourse of them and what I have to say that it may be distinct and plain shall be contained in these subsequent propositions 1. I do most readily grant and cordially believe that Divine Miracles are certain Evidences of Truth For it is no way reasonable to suppose that God should annex his Seal to attest any thing that is untrue Whatever God asserts must needs for that very reason be true were there none else and all the World is agreed in their belief of this So that I take it Miracles are not added to confirm the truth of what God hath declared but rather to convince men that he doth declare such things or to attest the Divine Commission of those that are his Instruments therein 2. But then secondly I do as assuredly believe that they are not the only Evidences of truth A Divine doctrine may carry in it many things that may be as clear signatures and ought to be as convincing characters of Truth as immediate Miracles are This may in some measure be collected from that parabolical discourse of Abraham to the rich man in Hell Luke 16.31 If they believe not Moses and the Prophets neither will they believe though one rose from the dead Intimating that those doctrines in Moses and the Prophetick writings had as much Evidence of Truth and as clear Convictions thereof in them as the miraculous appearance of one from the dead could give to them But there is a clearer place in the Gospel to assure this upon for our Saviour doth in one place viz. John 15.22 as much aggravate the guilt of the Jews Infidelity in not believing his heavenly pure doctrine
as he doth in another viz. verse the 24. of the same Chapter For their not believing the unparalell'd Miracles which he did among them which certainly he would never have done but that the Evidences and Convictions of truth were equal in both 3. But then thirdly I add that every Miracle is not an unquestionable Evidence of truth nor a sufficient warrant for men presently to believe upon its sole account All the world I think is agreed about this also For all men unanimously believe that only true and really Divine Miracles are sufficient to assure the credibility of things And all Miracles are not so for there are lying wonders as well as true and it is not safe to believe equally in both cases 4. And therefore fourthly there is an absolute necessity that a man be assured the Miracle is truly Divine before he can safely believe upon the authority thereof otherwise he may believe the lying wonder as well as the other and believe what Jannes and Jambres say as well as Moses 5. It is so very difficult that it is almost next to impossible by any thing immediately in the Miracles themselves to know which is truly Divine and which is not so I say in the Miracles themselves I mean they do not carry such signatures upon them that a man by them only can easily make a judgment 1. I have no reason to doubt but that evil Spirits by God's permission may effect things that are truly miraculous or if you require it plainly true Miracles For my part I do not see any reason why the same things done by the forenamed Sorcerers were not as true Miracles as when done by Moses and it will be hard for any man to shew a difference If the turning a Rod into a Serpent was a Miracle they did it as well as Moses If converting water into bloud was a Miracle it was so when done by them as well as when done by Moses and though it be true that Moses did some Miracles which they could not yet that relieves us little for though they did not all Miracles which he did yet they did some So that still they wrought true Miracles as well as Moses 2. Nor secondly shall men be relieved by saying some are lying wonders and some are true For it is probable those wonders are called lying wonders not because they were not really wonders or Miracles for the word signifieth equally both but because they were designed to attest an untruth a lie For so the Greek seems especially to mean 2 Thess 2.9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 miracles or wonders of falshood as our own Translators put it in the Margent and so the learned Grotius expounds it and justifies the Exposition by a known truth Nam quod vice genitivi est apud Hebreos saepe finem significat where you have a Learned discourse to the purpose I am now upon And Beza also expounds it to the same pupose too Mendacii stabiliendi causâ edita Wonders wrought on purpose to confirm a lie 3. Nor thirdly will it any more help us to grant that some are lying wonders in the other sence unless we could certainly tell which were so Whether the wonder be real or no it is all one to me unless I be able to distinguish betwixt them Suppose those of the Egyptian Sorcerers or Simon Magus or Apollonius Tyaneus whom the Heathens set up to vye with Christ I say suppose these were not real Miracles but prestigious and delusive yet how shall any man know and make it appear they were so they are as Convictive as true ones unless they could be plainly discovered not to be so and how to do this from any thing in the things themselves I profess my self wholly ignorant 4. For fourthly I shall receive little satisfaction by what is commonly said in this case that 's a true Miracle which can only be effected by a Divine power for suppose that were granted true yet how shall I know what can only be effected so and what not No man knows the limits of Satan's power nor can say hitherto can he go and no further unless he can tell more than ever man yet did nay perhaps no man can exactly tell the utmost reach of natural power or define precisely how far natural causes when rightly applied can work And if he know not this he knows little in order to satisfaction in this matter 5. Nor truly is there much more relief in flying to the evident greatness of Miracles though I gladly confess there is something in it and it ought to be adored as a signal act of Divine Providence that Moses and especially Christ herein have the eminency above any other pretenders to Miracles in the world for Moses his Rod swallowed up the Magician's Rods and Apollonius could not heal all diseases as Christ did c. But still this is short of fully relieving us for perhaps some things may seem greater Miracles to us which are not so indeed And subtil wits would say many things to make it seem at least that all Miracles are equally great And suppose it to be so that many people might see some of these Miracles only and not the other As suppose the Samaritans that saw the Miracles of Simon Magus did not see those of Christ or the Apostles nor those that saw the wonders of Apollonius to have heard of the other I ask now what they should do in this case If a Miracle be a good ground of truth then they had that warrant to believe as grand falshoods as ever were in the world But further yet if you look into the Gospel you shall find Christ telling his Apostles Mat. 24.24 that the false Christs that should arise after him should shew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 great signs and wonders and so great as to deceive the very Elect were they not mightily assisted to avoid that deception 6. From all which I collect that a bare Miracle is not enough to assure the truth and warrant the belief of every Doctrine attested by it for then the doctrine of Apollonius and Simon Magus had the same credibility as that of Christ Rev. 13.14 And if you look into the Revelations of S. John you shall find mention of a Beast which deceived men by Miracles which he had power to do And in another * Rev. 16.14 place we read of the Spirits of Devils going forth to work Miracles and ‖ Cap. 19.20 again of a false Prophet that wrought Miracles If Miracles therefore warrant Faith of every Doctrine then they do also warrant that of the Devil and his Spirits which God forbid 7. Upon the strength of all which Considerations I say that Miracles themselves need something to attest them and shew men when they are to believe them and when not to do so and I mistake much if what hath been said do not make this apparent 8. And therefore lastly to bring all to a final
full of what I mean when I thus speak For as the Text speaks both of the Spirit of truth and of error so I shall understand the Proposition both ways with reference to both these 1. Directly and positively The Spirit of truth enclines to holiness and every doctrine that proceeds from this Spirit doth some way or other conduce to that great end And when doctrines upon trial are found to be subservient to make men good and regularly holy then they bear the stamp and impress of truth upon them and this is a safe way by which to judge the truth of them and conclude them Orthodox 2. Oppositely or negatively Whatever Doctrine or Opinion doth tend to the contrary either teaching or encouraging sin and disobedience in all or in any one particular instance of it is certainly false and proceeds from the Spirit of Error and let men be never so zealous for it and confident in recommending and obtruding of it upon others yet this is a sufficient warrant for every private Christian to reject it and condemn it as spurious and dangerous For the Spirit of Error inclines men to disobedience and whatever doctrine doth so doth proceed from it 3. Comparatively Thus where different Doctrines and Opinions offer themselves to us it is a safe way to examine carefully which of them conduceth mostly to make men good and accordingly to make our estimate of them accepting that which is best attended with holiness and a necessity of it and rejecting that which is any way failing herein And now by this you may see my sense of the Proposition how I make obedience and holiness the Shekel of the Sanctuary by which all other measures are to be tried I make Gods Law not only the Rule of what ought to be done but I would have every thing that is to be believed brought unto it examin'd how it comports with it and is subservient to the great design of it and according either to be accepted or rejected But before I come to shew the truth and reasonableness of this Assertion and to prove this to be the safest Rule for all Christians to judge and examine Truth and Error by there are Two things which I shall lay down as Postulata's or things intimated to us from this Text and of great advantage in order to the assuring the truth of the great Proposition 1. That God hath left us some Rule to judge the truth and falshood of Opinions and Doctrines by 2. That this Rule is obvious and plain and intended for the guidance and benefit of all men 1. That God hath not left us without some sure Rule to judge the truth and falshood of Opinions and Doctrines by This is a truth which no man that hath any honourable and becoming Sentiments of the goodness and wisdom of God can in any measure doubt of He whose gracious Providence watcheth over all things certainly is regardful also of man He that hath implanted and put such an instinct into the nature of all other things as enables them to know what is beneficial and hurtful to their respective natures and according to pursue and embrace the one and avoid and arm themselves against the other hath certainly not been wanting to man in this great Instance but enabled him to discern truth from falshood as well as good from evil and to do both these in Morality as well as Nature i. e. to judge for his Soul as well as his Body And the truth is if it were otherwise man were of all things certainly the most miserable and a Religious man were the most miserable and pitiable above all other men And it would reflect great dishonour upon God to provide for the safety and conduct of man in all his little concerns but to leave him wholly unprovided for and exposed to deception in that which is the most sublime and momentous of all And such we know is his Religion it being the way in which he is to serve his God and assure his blissful love and favour and thereby secure the Everlasting welfare and happiness of his Soul I shall only desire Two things further to be considered in this case 1. That God hath plainly told us that there ever will be Errors in the world and that no age shall want Impostors and deceivers to broach them and endeavour to entrap people with them This he hath resolved for wise ends to permit still to be And can it then be supposed that God should not furnish his servants with an Antidote against them Can any think so unworthily of God as to believe that he hath exposed the beloved of his Soul and the objects of his tenderest compassions and regards naked and wholly defenceless without any thing to secure themselves against these plagues This were indeed to overact the savage cruelty of the Hircanian Tiger and transcribe the weakness of the silly Ostrich Job 39.14 which leaveth her Eggs in the Sand exposed to the foot of every Beast or Traveller to be crushed at pleasure Nothing can well be thought of that is really more injurious and reflective upon Divine Providence than this is 2. God hath not only told us of these things but cautioned us against them and strictly commanded us to beware of them as is evident to any that consults the holy Scriptures Now can it enter into the hearts of men to believe that God that commands this should not provide some way by which it might be done I could never yet though educated when such doctrines were much in vogue bring my thoughts quietly to believe that God would command utter impossibilities which were far to exceed the cruelty of the Egyptian Task-masters which himself hath condemned and so tragically declaimed against And I no way doubt but that if he have commanded us to prove all things to try the Spirits to keep our selves from being infected with the error of the wicked that he hath also furnished us with power and provided a means how we may do all these things God certainly never commands things in vain nor will he tantalize the endeavours of his people nor make himself sport to illude the hopes and endeavours of poor mortals by putting them upon Acquists whose glories though they may excite yet their impossibilities do discourage and frustrate the most vigorous endeavours And that man would have a strange notion of God that would fancy his commanding us to take heed of being deceived and yet not direct us to means by which we might do so 2. That this Rule is obvious and plain and intended for the guidance and benefit of all men Hereby know we c. And certainly he intends not hereby only himself or Apostles like himself but all those whom in verse 1. he had exhorted to try the Spirits and not presently to believe every pretence of it which is equally the interest and duty of all men It is true the Priests lips should preserve knowledge and 't
observed carefully by us in this matter 1. That in our judging by this Rule we consider the doctrines only and not the men that profess and maintain them 2. That we consider doctrines not only in themselves and specious appearance but in their natural and direct consequences 3. That we be sincere and unprejudiced in considering and do not allow our selves to pervert or wrest them 4. That doctrines or modes of Religion be not considered only in some single instances but complexly and fully 5. That men have a right notion of holiness and consider duly both in what things it doth consist and all those things too 6. That holiness be considered not only in its immediate exercise but together with all the helps advantages and encouragements to it These are Rules enough to be observed by us in this matter and I cannot easily foresee any great inconveniences that we shall be pressed with or incident unto if we keep us close and attend carefully to them 1. The first is that in our judging of things by this Rule we consider only the doctrines themselves and not the men that make profession of them for otherwise we shall be greatly intangled and perplexed in our thoughts and in great danger of pronouncing wrong judgment we may acquit the guilty and condemn the innocent we may be ensnared to embrace the worst and to cast off the best and truest doctrines There are few things more common than to see Hereticks and venters of strange and pernicious Doctrines to behave themselves with the greatest seeming strictness and caution of any men Our Saviour therefore represents them as wearing sheeps cloathing Matth. 7.15 the shew of a mighty innocence and putting on the disguise of all possible sanctity And S. Paul informs us of much-what the same thing when he lays down among their other characters this of having a form of Godliness 2 Tim. 3.5 And the truth is they were very imprudent and silly if they should appear otherwise this is the surest way they can possibly take to gain esteem to themselves and reputation to the doctrines they would proselyte men into a belief of well knowing that error in its native dress and true colours would never be entertain'd by men and therefore it is carefully apparell'd in a false and specious garb by which it steals mens affections and cheats them into a love and esteem of it And as designing men cloath their doctrines so commonly they do themselves for the first great business of a Seducer is to gain a reputation of being holy and good which when it is once gotten will easily insinuate and make way for his doctrine for men easily believe and follow such men and do not fear Imposture from those that they esteem holy and good And on the other hand it is often too often God knows seen that men detain the truth in unrighteousness believe well and Orthodoxly and yet are false to their own faith and treacherous to their avowed principles and never live consonantly to either And by this means greatly reproach and scandalize their own most holy profession as the impure Gnosticks did Christianity at the first And if the faith of such men were to be measured by their lives and the effects it hath on them they were doubtless the greatest Hereticks in all the world This is a suggestion which as it reflects a great deal of reproach and shame upon such men so it bespeaks the great heed and care of others that they be not hasty presently to judge mens Religion only by their actions For many men wear paints and disguises to conceal a rotten faith and too many are careless and foolish and unmindful of adorning a true one It were easie to cite the best Antiquity to vouch the reasonableness and prudence of practising this Rule For therefore the primitive Fathers of the Church when the seeming Sanctity of Heathens and Hereticks was objected to them did strongly endeavour to expose their doctrines and to shew that such things were not really the effects of them but fucus's and paints on purpose to give reputation to them And when on the other hand they were pressed with the profane lives of some of their own way they presently appealed to the principles of their Religion and throughly vindicated them from any way influencing or inclining men to such evil things And having done so proceeded to disclaim these men as false Brethren and no true Catholicks and therefore pleaded it an unjust thing to argue against Christians from the impure lives of some that professed but begged it as a reasonable thing that they would allow them the same favour which they themselves challenged in the like case viz. that the failings of some pretended Christians might no more be objected against the divinity and truth of that Religion than the vices of some Philosophers were thought meet to disparage the credit and truth of all Philosophy 2. The second Rule is that we consider doctrines not only in themselves and specious appearances but in those consequences that naturally and directly issue from them For it is not more true of men than of doctrines sometimes that they put on a very specious and fair outside and in their present appearance seem mighty innocent which yet if a man closely inspect and search into he will soon find to be very poisonous and destructive in the consequences of them This is always in some measure true of all Errors and Heresies that are one way or other they are pernicious in their intendments and if they be pursued to their just consequences certainly destructive Let me give you one specimen of this instead of many I would fain know what seems more innocent and of better effect than that all men should attend to that measure of light that is in their own breasts Hearken carefully to that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as some Ancients called a mans Conscience that good Genius in a man 's own Bosom And doubtless it were good men did this and if they did so they would act much better than many do But yet who sees not the danger that lurks under this fair pretence and what horrid consequences flow from it when driven to its true purpose How it wholly evacuates the satisfaction of Christ and all necessity of a Saviour Decries all need of Divine assistance and Grace Renders wholly useless the Divine Inspirations Makes every man his own infallible Oracle and Teacher Exposeth a man to the deceptions of that subtil and watchful Spirit and finally opens a way for every man to do that which is right in his own eyes It were as easie to instance in some other doctrines of this mad Sect and all others among us at this day and shew how even the most innocent of them I mean in which they differ from the Church to be deadly and mighty mischievous when pursued and driven home to their proper consequences and perhaps Sir that may be