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after it spoke not again. When I was self-destroyed, self-condemned, and by its power beat from all pleas, so that I durst neither deny, excuse, nor extenuate, nor quarrel the hardest sentence which I dreaded most; and was hereon cast in the greatest agony of trouble: when I was ready to say with Job," If I had called, and he had answered me; yet would I not believe that he had hearkened to my voice:' when, with him, I refused to be comforted, and scarce did think comfort possible: yet whenever he sent his word, it healed me, and my soul was 'commanded to be at peace, a glorious calm ensued. Whereas, on the other hand, when I or others endeavoured to speak to myself, mine enemies boldly repelled all, and flew on me, as the devil did on the exorcists." To have such a sense, conviction, and reverence of divine authority, is a distinguishing fruit of the Spirit of God, and altogether peculiar to a real Christian.

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3. It is the peculiar character of true believers, that they receive the word of God in its genuine sense, because God has revealed it. They are taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus; and they receive it, not as the word of man, but as it is the word of God. They do not only assent to the truth of the divine record, but they depend upon it; they live by it, and they judge it faithful, and worthy of all acceptation. "God's giving, or making over Jesus Christ, in the record of grace, is the warrant and rule of receiving him; hence the record is believed, because divine authority is interposed; and Jesus Christ, with his whole salvation, are accepted of, because they are offered by the Father in the quality

of a free and unconditional gift. To whatever, therefore, God hath spoken in his holiness, they set their amen; in whatever terms the record of grace runs, their souls agree to them, and, by believing obedience, comply with them; and in setting to their seal that God is true, they appropriate all the spiritual riches, righteousness, and redemption, for the giving whereof to perishing sinners, his faithfulness is plighted in the record. God is true, says faith, when he gives Jesus Christ to sinners in a word of record; and therefore, as a sinner, to whom that record is presented, Jesus Christ is mine for all the purposes of my salvation."* No man can thus receive the ingrafted word, without the immediate and powerful influence of the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, enlightening his understanding, and opening his heart.

But as

I might also show, that those who understand the meaning of the word, who perceive the authority and faithfulness of God speaking in it, and who receive the word at his mouth in faith and love, will keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. these things refer to the fruits of faith and its practical influence, it would be improper to enlarge upon them in this place, especially as they will come to be considered afterwards.

Mr. Muir's Parable of the Sower, p. 281.

SECT. III. The difference of Saving Faith_from" the other kinds of Faith, does not lie in any act of the mind.

WHEN persons are awakened to consideration about the salvation of their souls, it is very common for them to have a great anxiety about their faith in particular. They hear that devils believe the truths of the Scripture; and that many of the children of men," who have no root in themselves, receive the word gladly, and for a while believe;" whereupon they become solicitous to know, whether their faith is of the right kind, and whether they believe in a right manner. This solicitude is highly necessary; it ought to be encouraged and directed, so as they may be enabled to obtain satisfaction in a proper channel, concerning this important inquiry. Here a most interesting question must be attended to, namely, Whether there is any thing in the act of a person's mind, who believeth to the saving of his soul, that is really different from the acts of the mind in a historical and temporary believer?

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If there be something in the very act of the true believer's mind, that is really different from the acts of the mind in historical or temporary faith; then it is proper to direct persons to judge of these distinguishing differences in the very act of believing on Christ. An attention to these differences would enable them, upon this supposition, to determine the important question, Whether they are unfeigned believers in Christ, or not? But if the difference between saving faith and every other kind of believ

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ing, lies in the things which are respectively believed, and in the authority upon which they are believed then we ought only to examine what we believe, and upon what authority we believe, in order to know whether our faith be the faith of God's elect.

To set this point in the best light I am able, I shall, 1. Ascertain the nature of the mind's activity in believing any proposition; 2. Prove that the mind of a believer in Christ has such an activity in believing on him; and, 3. Show that there is no difference in the very act of saving faith, considered merely as the act of the mind, whereby we can distinguish it from the acts of historical and temporary faith, considered merely as acts of the mind.

1. I proposed to ascertain the nature of the activity of the mind, in believing any proposition. I know it is strenuously denied by some, that the mind is at all active in believing.* They consider the mind of a believer as entirely passive, in receiving conviction of the truth he believes; just as the eye is passive in receiving impressions of the objects presented to it, or the ear in receiving impressions of sounds that strike upon it. It is readily granted on our part, that believing is exceedingly simple; and that the bare supposition of its being compounded of many acts and operations of the mind, is contrary to experience in every case where we believe any thing, be what it will. But still we maintain, that believing includes some activity of the

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This is the opinion of Mr. Sandeman, Letters on Theron and Aspasio, third edition, vol. ii. p. 7-9. et passim ; of Mr. Barnard, a preacher of that party in London, Simple Truth Vindicated, p. 4042. and of all the rest of their connections.

mind about the truth or proposition that is believed, and about the evidence upon which it is believed. This activity of the mind is indeed exceedingly simple; so very simple, that we cannot distinguish it into any compounding parts: it may be properly enough compared to the simple acts of seeing and hearing. We can distinguish the several objects we see, or the different sounds we hear; we can easily judge whether these objects of our sight and hearing are pleasant or offensive: but we cannot make the same distinctions concerning our seeing and hearing, that we can do concerning the things we see and hear, because these distinctions are entirely founded in the objects of our sight and hearing, and not in the faculties that see and hear, nor in the exercise of these faculties. The act of seeing is the same, whether we look up to the heavens, or cast our eyes down to the tearth; whether we see a mountain, or a mole-hill. The things we behold are very different and various, but our seeing them is the most simple act. I call our seeing an act, because in seeing the object we behold, we are really active in receiving the impression of it; though the impression is made only by the object we behold, and the medium wherein that object is presented to our view. Such is the activity of the mind in believing a testimony. A believer of any proposition made to him by a report, credits that proposition according to the sense wherein he understands the report, and according to the degree of certainty he thinks there is in the testimony whereby it is reported to him. He is convinced of the truth of the report, and has a persuasion that the -thing reported to him is really what it is said to be;

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