TESTIMONIES TO THE DEITY OF CHRIST VINDICATED. 331
as to his nature wherein he is God ; which appears by the event, expounded in the books of the New Testament. The Scripture doth not say in the New Testament of Christ what was said in the Old of God, but evinces those things which were so spoken of God to have been spoken of Christ. So that, 3. The folly of that pre- tence, that what was spoken of God is referred to Christ upon the account of the conjunction mentioned, — which, whatever it be, is a thing of nought in comparison of the distance that* is between the Creator and a mere creature, — is manifest; for let any one be in never so near conjunction with God, yet if he be not God, what is spoken of God, and where it is spoken of God, and denoting God only, can- not be spoken of him, nor, indeed, accommodated to him. 4. The in- stances of Moses are most remote from the business in hand. It is said of Moses that he brought the children of Israel out of Egypt ; and so he did, as their chief leader and ruler, so that he was a re- deemer to that people, as he was instrumental in the hand of God, working by his power and presence with him those mighty works which made way for their deliverance and redemption. But where is it said of Moses or any one else that he was God ; that what God said of himself was said of Moses and accomplished in him? or where ever did Moses speak in the name of God, and say, "I, Jehovah, will do this and this, or be so and so, unto my people V 5. It is true, men may be said to do in their place and kind of operation what God doth do, — he as the principal effijcient, they as the instru- mental cause, — and so may every other creature in the world, as the sun gives light and heat ; but shall therefore that which God speaks in his own name of himself be so much as accommodated unto them? 6. The conjunction that is between God and Christ, according to our catechists, is but of love and favour on the part of God, and of obe- dience and dependence on the part of Christ; but this in the same kind, though not in the same degree, is between God and all be- lievers, so that of them also what is spoken of God may be spoken.
And thus, through the presence of God, have I gone through with the consideration of all the testimonies given in the Scripture of the deity of Christ which these catechists thought good to take notice of, with a full answer to their long chapter " De persona Christi." The learned reader knows how much all the arguments we insist on and the testimonies we produce in this cause might have been im- proved to a greater advantage of clearness and evidence, had I taken liberty to handle them as they naturally fall into several heads, from the demonstration of all the names and properties, all the works and laws, all the worship and honour of God, to be given and ascribed to Jesus Christ; but the work I had to do cast my endea- vour in this business into that order and method wherein it is here presented to the I'eader.
oo2 VINDICI-E EVANGELICiE.
The conclusion of our catechists is a long harangue, wherein they labour to insinuate the prejudicialness of our doctrine to the tnie knowledge of Christ and the obtaining of salvation by him, with the certain foundation that is laid in theirs for the participation of all the benefits of the gospel. The only medium they fix upon for to gain both these ends by is this, that we deny Christ to be a true man, which they assert. That the first of these is notoriously false is known to all other men, and is acknowledged in their own con- sciences ; of the truth of the latter elsewhere. He that had a perfect human nature, soul and body, with all the natural and essential pro- perties of them both, he who was born so, lived so, died so, rose again so, was and is a perfect man ; so that all the benefits that we do or may receive from Jesus Christ as a perfect man, like unto us in all things, sin only excepted, there is a way open for in this our confession of him. In the meantime, the great foundation of our faith, hope, and expec- tation, lies in this, that " he is the Son of the living God ;" and so that " God redeemed his church with his own blood," he who was of the fathers " according to the flesh being God over all, blessed for ever: " which if he had not been, he could not have performed the work which for us he had to do. It is true, perhaps, as a mere man he might do all that our catechists acknowledge him to have done, and accomplish all that they expect from him; but for us, who flee to him as one that suffered for our sins, and made satisfaction to the justice of God for them, who wrought out a righteousness that is reckoned to all that believe, that quickens us when we are dead, and sends the Holy Ghost to dwell and abide in us, and is himself present with us, etc., it is impossible we should ever have the least consolation in our fleeing for refuge to him unless we had this grounded persuasion concerning his eternal power and Godhead. We cannot think he was made the Son of God and a God upon the account of what he did for us; but that being God, and the Son of God, herein was his love made manifest, that he was " made flesh,'" " took upon him the form of a servant," and became therein for us " obedient imto death, the death of the cross." Many, indeed, and inexpressible, are the encouragements unto faith and consolation in believing that we do receive from Christ's being made like to us, a perfect man, Avherein he underwent what we were obnoxious unto, and whereby he knows how to be compassionate unto us; but that any sweetness can be hence derived imto any who do refuse to own the fountain whence all the streams of love and mercy that run in the human nature of Christ do flow, that we deny. Yea, that our adversaries in this business have any foundation for faith, love, or hope, or can have any acceptance with God or with Jesus Christ, but rather that they are cursed, on the one hand for robbing him of the glory of his deity, and on the other for putting their confidence