Of Fundamentals, Treatise · Chapter 3 – Chapter 4
CHAP. III. A particular view of Fundamentals, Jeſus Chriſt indefinitely.
§. 1. I Now proceed to a more particular view of this Foundation, which is ſometimes moſt compendiouſly ſet down in Scripture, either under the abbreviature of Jeſus Chriſt, Jeſus Chriſt the Foundation. 1 Cor. 3.11.or with the addition of his crucifixion or reſurrection, or other remarkable paſſages concerning him; Or elſe more largely and explicitely in the Creeds or Confeſſions of the Ʋniverſal Church.
§. 2. For the more compendious, it is S. Paul's affirmation, 1 Cor. 3.11. that Jeſus Chriſt is the one onelyonly Foundation, and no man can lay foreign any other, which is the interpretation of what is elſewhere ſaid, that Jeſus Chriſt himſelf is foreign the chief corner ſtone, or again the foreign, head of the corner, the principal ſupporter, on which the weight of the ſtructure reſts, the foundation of the foundation.
§. 3. In proportion to which it is that the deceivers, or falſe teachers, or Antichriſts, 2 Joh. 7. are expreſſed by this Character, they that confeſſe not Jeſus Chriſt coming in the fleſh, This one being a comprehenſive article that ſuppoſes and contains all others under it.
§. 4. For beſides that the Jewes to whom the Goſpel was firſt to be preached, and to ſome of whom this character of Antichriſt was given, believed in the one Creator of the world already, and ſo that article concerning the Deity, and the Attributes thereof needed not be preached either to them, or to the proſelytes from the Gentiles, It is farther manifeſt that the belief of Chriſt being founded on the teſtimonie of the Father, Mat. 3.17. and the doctrine of Chriſt containing in it the declaration and manifeſtation of the knowledge of the Father, ſo as he was never known to the world before this Son out of his boſome thus revealed him, the belief of Chriſt muſt neceſſarily ſuppoſe and pre-require the belief of the Father, and therefore it follows in S. John, v. 9. that he which abides in the doctrine of Chriſt, foreign, he hath both the Father and the Son.
§. 5. So again the miracles which Chriſt did were done in his father's name, and thereby gave all that teſtimony to his doctrines of piety and reformation, which the Father's proclaiming them from heaven would have been able to doe.
§. 6. And that being thus ſuppoſed of all in groſſe, and ſo giving a full authoritie to all that ſhould be revealed by Chriſt, the ſeveral parts of the revelations afforded us by him will ſoon be diſcerned to be extremely conducible to this end of reforming men's lives, ſuch as will anſwer all imaginable objections and exceptions of fleſh and blood againſt it, and make it perfectly reaſonable for any rational creature to undertake the ſervice of Chriſt, and moſt extremely irrational and unmanly to ſeek out or to continue in any other ſervice.
§. 7. Such are Chriſt's promiſes, divine, unconceivable promiſes, a bliſſe to be enjoyed to all eternity, and that by way of return for a weak obedience of ſome few years; ſuch are his threatnings, moſt formidable menaces of endleſſe woe, to them that will ſtill deſpiſe the riches of his goodneſs, and forbearance; Such is the treaty which he negotiates with us, an offer and tender of a reconciliation, a foreign, an act of oblivion, of all forepaſt ſins, and of a new Covenant, on moſt moderate, eaſie terms of ſyncere (without unſinning) obedience for the future; And Laſtly, ſuch are his precepts, a ſort of commandments, which are moſt agreeable, and gratefull to our reaſonable nature, and which tend, beyond all other means or inſtruments, to the improving and perfecting the moſt valuable part of us, that which alone denominates us men, and annexing incomprehenſible rewards (an eternal weight of glory) to the bare practiſe of thoſe things, which are at the very preſent, though they were not commanded, and if they ſhould not be rewarded in another life (I mean abſtractively from theſe enhaunſments of them) infinitely eſtimable and preferrable before the Contraries, which muſt farther coſt us ſo extremely dear, if we will chooſe and pitch our deſigne upon them, and reſolve to go through with that unthrifty purchaſe.
§. 8. So that this one corner ſtone, Jeſus Chriſt is a moſt competent, ample foundation, on which to ſuperſtruct the largeſt pile of building, to erect a Church of pious livers, and to bring all rational men within the compaſſe of it, and it is not imaginable what could have been added to this, or what method could probably have been effectual to any man, which is not wrought on by the concurrence of all theſe.
The Chriſtian foundation compared with the Natural.§. 9. This will more evidently appear, if we compare this one with all other waies which have been uſed at any time toward this end of inducing, and obliging, and engaging men to good life.
§. 10. In the courſe of nature, (the firſt way of Oeconomie ▪ under which the world was governed, by a Law written in men's hearts, naturale judicatoriū, lumen ſuper nos ſignatū, a natural judicatorie, a light ſealed upon us, in our firſt compoſure) though there were a competent revelation of our duty, and a double obligation to perform it, 1. that of piety to our maker, 2. that of reverence to our own ſouls, the foreign, the ſuperiour ruling part of us, and theſe two improveable into many other, and thus actually advanced and improved by natural men, upon ſtudy and conſideration, (and ſo all the heathen wiſdome was the farther explaining of thoſe obligations, their natural philoſophy was but a kinde of comment on the creation, and is therefore by the Jewes entituled foreign the firſt word of the Book of Geneſis, that ſtory of the creation, and that a moſt proper groundwork of obedience to that Almighty Creatour, and their moral philoſophy, eſpecially that of Epicurus, a conſideration of the moſt raviſhing beauty and delight and joy, the reſult of the practiſe of every virtue, that of Socrates (which had the Oracle's Teſtimony and admiration) a comment on the foreign, the knowledge of a man's ſelfe, that of Pythagoras on the foreign, the revering of a man's ſelf, and that of Ariſtotle, the placing of all humane felicity in the continued actions of virtue, and that alſo a foundation very fit to ſuperſtruct virtue upon) yet there were great defects and vacuities and imperfections in this Oeconomie.
§. 11. Firſt, the preſcribed duties wanted of their full ſtature, eſpecially if compared with Chriſt's foreign his ſuppletories and ſuperadditions.
§. 12. Secondly, there remained very advantageous acceſſes for temptations to enter and invade men, the fortifications being very ſlender to ſecure their reſiſtance, little knowledge of the immortality of the ſoul, or any thing beyond this life, whether reward or puniſhment, no aſſurance that repentance would be admitted for any ſin, an abſolute deſperation of any good without the help of purgatives, and a perfect ignorance of all means of purging, and many other ſuch wants, which are all abundantly ſupplied in the Chriſtian's foundation, Jeſus Chriſt.
§. 13. And upon that account the Apoſtle could ſafely challenge the wiſe men of the heathen world with his foreign; Where is the wiſe man of the world? 1 Cor. 1.20. Let all the Philoſophers, moraliſts or naturaliſts, bring forth their richeſt proviſions, ſhew ſuch engines of approach and batterie, for the ſupplanting or beating down of vicious life, for the engaging men to reform, and live like men, as this fooliſhneſs of preaching' this deſpiſed, but ſaving doctrine of the Goſpel hath afforded us.
§. 14.with the Judaical. So likewiſe for the Judaical or Moſaical oeconomie, though that brought many additions to the light of Nature, and was a foreign, an obſcure repreſentation as of that Goſpel, and promiſes of everlaſting life, ſo of thoſe precepts which are now moſt clearly revealed by Chriſt, yet was that obſcurity a very great defect, the ſhadow was ſo extremely dark, that the vices of men made advantage of it to ſhrowd and ſecure them in their ſins.
§. 15. The ceremonie and Law of circumciſion &c. which was meant by God ſacramentally to impreſſe the duty of ſtrict purity, to cut off the foreign, the ſuperfluity of naughtineſſe, all inordinate exceſſive luſts of the fleſh, was yet but a character impreſſed on the fleſh, and did not explicitely deſcend to the prohibiting of the deſires, but was on the contrary made advantage of by luſt, Rom. 7.8. and the outward circumciſion in the body of a childe of Abraham was thought to commute for all impuritie.
§. 16. So again the Phylacteries on their wriſts and foreheads were look'd on as ſpells and charms, which would yeild them impunitie for their diſobedience, And the ſtrict ordinances againſt converſing with Gentiles, leſt they ſhould learn and joyn in their abominations, bred more of pride, and contempt, and uncharitableneſſe to their perſons, then of alienation, or deteſtation of their ſins.
§. 17. And ſo that way of Oeconomie, in many reſpects, was not foreign blameleſſe; The clear commands and the explicite promiſes of Chriſt and the proclaimed neceſſity of real, ſubſtantial fruits of repentance, in ſtead of the leaves, the arrogance, and hypocriſie of external performances, were a neceſſarie ſuppletorie to the Law of Moſes, and to that may belong alſo the Apoſtle's foreign; Let all the Scribes, or Doctors of the Law, the ſearchers or profound interpreters of the ſcriptures, bring forth ſuch evidences of their efficacie, or good ſucceſſes in the reforming and purifying of men's lives, as the Apoſtles had done by theſe ſo contemptible deſpicable means, the Goſpel of the Croſſe of Chriſt.
§. 18. I might farther extend the compariſon to all poſſible pretenders, the Idolatrous heathens, with the heathen and Mahomedan.the corrupters of the Law of Nature, and the Mahomedans, that have ſuperſtructed on, and added to the Law of Moſes; But both of theſe are ſo ſcandalouſly known to have laid grounds for all impuritie, the former in their myſteries and devotions, the latter in their ſenſual carnal paradiſe, the one allowing it their votaries in the preſent poſſeſſion, the other promiſing it them in a reverſion, that I ſhall not need enlarge on ſo remote conſiderations, but conclude and ſhut up all that might be ſaid on this ſubject, with that judgment of an heathen Philoſopher paſt on this matter, Chalcidius in his comment on Plato's Timaeus, whoſe writings have come to us only in Latine, Ratio Dei (no queſtion, in the Original foreign in S. John's ſtyle) Deus eſt, humanis rebus conſulens, quae cauſa eſt hominibus benè beatéque vivendi, ſi non conceſſum ſibi munus à Summo Deo negligant, The reaſon, or Word of God is God taking care of humane affairs, and is the cauſe unto men of their living well and happily, if they doe not neglect that gift granted by the Supreme God. A ſaying that contains in it the ſumme of our Chriſtian Goſpel, (which, it ſeems by this and other paſſages, he had gotten a ſight of, and underſtood in the ſimplicity of it) that Chriſt the eternal Word or reaſon of his Father, had two great deſignes in his proſpect, effects of his providence and care of mankinde, the firſt to bring men to good life, to reformation of every evil courſe, ſubduing of paſſions, &c. the ſecond to render them happy hereby ſo doing, and bleſſed eternally, and this managed ſo powerfully, and effectually for them, that nothing, but their own ſtupid, and obſtinate negligence and contempt of this divine donative, can deprive them of theſe benefits of it.
CHAP. IV. JESƲS CHRIST Crucified.
§. 1. AND as Jeſus Chriſt indefinitely taken is ſet down to be this Foundation, Chriſt crucified the Foundation.ſo elſewhere is Jeſus Chriſt Crucified, 1 Cor. 1.23. & 2.2. and accordingly the whole Goſpel is ſtyled foreign, the word which is of the Croſſe of Chriſt, c. 1.18. and that (ſuppoſing it be believed) ſufficient to ſuperſtruct on it the converſion of the whole world to a new and Chriſtian life, and accordingly it is there ſtyled foreign, to thoſe that eſcape out of the deluge of infidelity, the very power of God, & ver. 24. the power of God, and the wiſdome of God, the powerfulleſt and wiſeſt method toward the accompliſhing of this work, which is farther explained Rom. 1.16. by foreign, the power of God to ſalvation to every one that believeth, to the Jew firſt, and alſo to the Gentile. If this doctrine of the Croſſe be once received, there is no more wanting to engage and oblige all rational men to that renovation of their lives, which is oft called foreign ſaving or delivering them out of their evil waies, and will aſſuredly bring them to ſalvation, in the notion, wherein we vulgarly take it.
What propriety the Croſſe hath to this.§. 2. That the croſſe of Chriſt hath this propriety may appear by theſe five effects or branches of it, 1. it is the higheſt confirmation imaginable of the truth of all that he had delivered from his Father, He laid down his life for the teſtifying of it. 2. It is the exemplifying (and that is the moſt Rhetorical argument, the moſt powerful way of perſwading) the higheſt and hardeſt part of the Chriſtian's duty, that of laying down our lives for the truth, reſiſting unto blood in our foreign our ſpiritual Olympicks, our ſtriving againſt ſin. 3. It is a ſealing that Covenant betwixt God and us, which he came to preach, a Covenant of mercy, and pardon, and everlaſting ſalvation to all that perform the condition of it, and to none elſe, and that is of all others the greateſt and moſt effectual engagement to that performance. 4. It is the ſacrifice for the ſinnes of the whole world, the foreign or means of expiation or pardon, upon our unfeigned return and change, and that is abſolutely neceſſary to found our hope, as that hope is neceſſary to excite our indevours, 5. It was the ceremonie of conſecrating Chriſt our high Prieſt, to his great Melchiſedekian office of bleſſing us, in which as his reſurrection inſtated him, ſo that was by way of reward to his ſufferings, Phil. 2.9. and ſo all that ſufficiencie of ſtrength which is required for the turning every one from iniquity, Act. 3.25. being an effect of that bleſſing of his, the doctrine of his death, from the merit whereof this quickning power doth flow, is a foundation of all cheerfull attending on his ſervice, to which he is ſo ſure to afford his aſſiſtance.