2. The universal Confent of Mankind. 3. All fupernatural and miraculous Occurrences. 1. We may justly believe that God is, from the Make, Order and Government of the World, and all things in it: The invifible things of God (faith the Apostle) from the Creation of the World, are clearly feen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal Power and Godhead; Rom. 1. 20. Whoever cafts an Eye on a well-built Houfe, will presently conclude that an Artificer hath been there: he cannot be fo, fottifh, as to imagine that the Stones and other Materials came there of themselves, and rofe up by chance into fo fair and beautiful a Structure. And can it be conceiv'd, that fo noble and glorious a Fabrick as this of the World, fhould be rais'd and preferv'd without an All-wife and All-powerful Archite&t? No, as Every House (faith the Apostle) is built by fome Man, fo he that built all things is God; Heb. 3. 4. We fee many things receive a Being, that once had none. Now this must neceffarily lead us to a first Cause that had no Beginning, and gave a Being to all things elfe: for every thing we fee is of another, and hath fome Caufe of its Being; and nothing can give a Being to itself. For fince the Čaufe must be always before the Effect, if any could give a Being to itself, it must have been before it was; yea, it must be and not be at the fame time, which are flat Contradictions: and therefore if there be any thing that had a Beginning, there must be fomething that had none, because nothing can give Beginning to itself. But befide that the Dependance of all inferior Beings does neceffarily lead to one that is independent, upon whom they all depend: I fay befide this, The admirable Order and Beauty of the Univerfe; the wonderful Usefulnefs and Subferviency of all the Creatures in it to one another; the ample Provifion and Care that is taken of them, efpecially of Mankind; the curious Structure and Needlework of our Bodies, the wonderful Frame and Operations of the Soul; in a word, the wife difpofing of all things, and directing them to their particular Ends, lead us to the Knowledge of God, and may abundantly fatisfy us in the Belief of his Being. 2. The Univerfal Confent of Mankind in this Belief, may farther confirm us in the Truth of it; for there is VOL. I. M ne no Age, Place, or People, where this Belief has not generally obtain'd: the most barbarous Nations that have little or no Knowledge of any thing else, have yet retain'd the Knowledge and Worfhip of a God; and tho they have been without Commerce or Correfpondence with other Parts, yet they have not been without fome Religion or other. Now whence fhould this proceed, but from a common and natural Principle, inclining all Men to worship a God, and bear Witnefs to his Being? Which is another Ground for our Belief of him. 3. The extraordinary and miraculous Occurrences that have happen'd in the World, are a farther proof of the Being of a God, and may eftablifh us in the Belief of him for fuch miraculous Actions cannot be perform'd_but by Almighty Power. The Works of Nature are uniform and regular; and there is a certain Sphere of Activity, wherein all natural Agents are limited and confin'd: fo that when any thing comes to pafs, which is out of the reach of their Power, as raifing the Dead to Life again, giving Sight to thofe that are born blind, curing all Difeafes with a word fpeaking, without the ufe of any Means, and the like; thefe things being above the Power of any Natural and Second Caufes, are wholly to be afcrib'd to the Firft, and are a plain Demonftration of a Deity, whofe Power is unlimited, and can do whatever pleafes him. Thus Miracles prove their Author to be Divine, and all fupernatural Acts of Omnipotence demonftrate a fupreme tranfcendent Being, that over-rules all his Creatures, and difpofes all their Operations: which is a farther proof of this Article, and may confirm us in the Belief that God is. 4. The predicting future Events, or foretelling things to come, argues fuch an All-wife and Omnifcient Being, as is call'd God, and may further convince us, that he is. By future Events here, we understand not fuch as come to pafs in the ordinary and common Courfe of Providence, or depend upon any natural and neceffary Caufes; as the rifing of the Sun and Moon, the Motion of the Planets, or the Eclipfes that happen to thofe heavenly Bodies, and the like; for thefe being under a conftant Law, he that knows their Courfes may eafily forefee and foretel them. But by future Events we mean fuch cafual and contingent Effects, as depend upon Caufes not yet in being, or upon the arbitrary Will and Power of voluntary Agents: as what will be the Fate of Families and Kingdoms in fu ture Ages; what will betide the Church, or fall out in all parts of the World. Thefe things being the Effects of remote, occult and uncertain Caufes, can be forefeen only by fuch an infinite and unlimited Understanding as knoweth all things. Again, By foretelling things to come, we mean not any probable Gueffes or Conjectures about them, where things may happen to be as fome prefag'd them; but fuch a certain and infallible Fore-knowledge of cafual and fortuitous Events, as never did or can err in the Prediction. And this being above the reach of any created Understanding, must be afcrib'd only to an infinite Mind; for all human Knowledge is limited and finite; and there is a certain Sphere of Science, beyond which it cannot go. Tho fome may have a farther Reach and deeper Infight into things than others, yet fill there are bounds fet to them, and the wifeft Men do know but in part. Our Knowledge is confin'd to things paft and prefent; and none but he who made and orders all things, that rules and directs the Operations of Mankind, and upon whofe Will all their Actions depend, can poffibly know and foretel things to come. And therefore we find God Almighty thus upbraiding the Folly of Idols, and the Heathen Gods; Let them fhew us things to come. peculiar to him that governs the World, and gives all Creatures in it a Power to work as he pleafes. So that all the Prophecies extant in Holy Scriptures, where things were foretold many hundred Years before they came to pass, and yet the Event fill anfwer'd the Prediction; all thofe Prophecies, I fay, are a clear Proof of a Deity, who fees and knows all things, and may farther confirm us in the Belief that God is. This is Laftly, The Teftimony and Acts of Conscience, are another Proof and Demonftration of a Deity. If we confult our own Breafts, we fhall find there both a Witnefs and a Remembrancer of a God; our own Confciences accufing or excufing us, according as our Actions please or displease him: we feel a certain Pleafure and Peace in our Minds upon the doing of good and virtuous Actions, and we are haunted with Fears and Terrors when we have done any Evil. Now these can be no other than the fecret Notices and Alarms, which Conscience, as God's Deputy, gives us of him; for if there were no fupreme Being to reward or punifh, and confequently to be lov'd or fear'd by us, there could be no Reafon or Account given of these things. M 2 Thus Thus I have fhew'd, as well as the Greatness of the Object, and the Slendernefs of our Faculties will admit, what God is, and likewife what good ground there is to believe the Existence of fuch a Being. But, Because this Object of our Faith is exprefs'd in the fingular Number, I believe in God; we are here, Thirdly, To confider the Unity of the Godhead, which is more fully exprefs'd in the Nicene Creed, I believe in one God. Tho in a large fenfe there be Gods many and Lords many, yet to us there is but one God and one Lord. The Heathens indeed had a Multiplicity of Gods, according to the Variety of Blefings they fuppos'd to receive from them; but the wifeft of them worship'd only one fupreme Numen with the highest Acts of Adoration: and Chriftians are frequently taught to believe in one God, and that there is none befide him. Indeed the Unity of the Godhead is neceffarily included in his Existence, and a Plurality of Gods is utterly inconfiftent with the Nature and Notion of a Deity; for the Notion of a God supposes him to be the first original Caufe of all Things, or an independent Being, upon which all Things elfe depend. Now 'tis utterly impoffible there fhould be two firft Caufes; and that there fhould be more independent Beings, upon which all Things depend, is a manifeft Contradiction. Befides, if there be one God that hath all Perfections, there cannot be more; for if there could, either those Perfections would be divided, and fo become lefs, or both would have all, or there might be more than all: all which are grofs and irreconcileable Abfurdities. Moreover, the Government of the World cannot admit of a Plurality of Gods; for two rival Deities might have different Counfels and Refolutions, which would deftroy Order, and introduce Confufion: they might give different Commands, and then, fince no Man can ferve two Mafters, Mankind would be unavoidably distracted in their Duty and Obedience. In a word, if (as one hath well obferv'd) it be better that the Univerfe be govern'd by one than many, we may be affur'd that 'tis fo, because nothing must be conceiv'd of God but what is beft. So that 'tis as neceffary to believe the Unity as the Existence of a Deity; it being no lefs abfurd to affirm that there are many Gods, than 'tis that there is none. Thus Thus we fee upon how good grounds we believe both the Being and the Unity of the Godhead: it remains that we learn and practise the Duties that naturally flow from both. As, 1. If there be fuch a fupreme Being that hath all Perfections in the most eminent degree, let us learn to act and demean ourselves towards him accordingly. That is, if he hath all Goodnefs, let us love him with the moft fuperlative Affection; if he hath all Power, let us put our whole Trust and Affiance in him; if he be all Juftice, let us have an awful Fear and Dread of him always before our eyes: In short, being an Object so tranfcendently great and excellent, let us account him worthy of the highest Acts of Worship and Adoration; always honouring his Greatness, and making frequent Acknowledgment of his unfpeakable Goodnefs. And fince we all depend upon him, let us daily pray to him for what we want, and as often praife him. for all that we receive. 2. From the Unity of the Godhead, we are taught to worship one God, and no more, and to confine religious Worship only to him. The Heathens worship'd many Gods, and by that means paid their Adorations to thofe that were no Gods; but to us there is but one God, and therefore we are to worship none befide him. The first Commandment forbids us to have any other Gods but him. And our bleffed Saviour hath laid on us that ftrict Precept, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only halt thou ferve; Mat. 4. 10. Hear, O Ifrael (faith Mafes to the Ifraelites) the Lord our God is one Lord: and therefore he wills them to love him with all their Hearts, and with all their Minds, and with all their Strength; Deut. 6. 4, 5. Where, from the Unity of his Nature, he preffes them to an entire and undivided Affection, making him the fole Object of their Love, Fear and Adoration: This, his fingular and tranfcendent Excellency may challenge from us, and is no more than what is included in this firit Article, when we fay, I believe in God. |