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to the Flesh, have fuffer'd Death; how much more Shall be fuffer, who by his wicked Doctrine hath defiled the Faith of God for which Jefus Chrift was Cru cify'd; fuch a polluted Wretch fhall depart into Fire unquenchable, both he and his bearer. Once more, "My Brethren, be not deceiv'd, if any one goes after a fchifmatical Teacher, he shall not inherit the Kingdom of God. But we will pafs over Fuftin Martyr, and Irenaus, who is particularly large upon this Head, and come to Tertullian. And here not to mention his other Tracts against particular Hereticks, I fhall take notice only of his Prefcription against 'em all in general, wherein he has accounted for the Being of Herefies, their Nature, their Caufes, and their Effects, with the Remedies against 'em, and a particu lar Description of the Way and Manner of fuch Tempters, who tho' they have not Cloven Feet, yet go about with the fame Defign as thofe that have, Seeking whom they may devour. This Prefcription I take to be the belt Primitive Receipt we have against that Itch of Novelty, that Luft of Curiofity, as Vincentius calls it, which is the Bane of Chriftianity, against the specious Poifon of fuch over inquifitive Spirits, fuch ungovernable Wits, as affect Noftrum's in Divinity, and will have fomething new, or nothing in Religion. For my part (fays he) I cannot but admire to find you thus furpriz'd that there fhou'd be fuch Diftempers of Mind among Chriftians as Herefies, and that they fhou'd do fuch a world of Mischief; for are not Fevers permitted to be, and to kill in abundance? But instead of lofing your felves in amazement at thefe Kinds of Evil, you ftrive all you can to prevent and cure 'em; whereas at the Sight of Herefie, which brings eternal Death, and the Burnings of a greater Fire, you stand still in helpless Wonder, when a little Confideration and Pains wou'd make you forbear won.

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" Μὴ πλανᾶ πε ἀδελφοί με, ἔτις χίζοντι ἀκολεθε, βασιλείαν Der nλnegroμe. Epift. ad Philadelph.

Prafcript. Cap. 1, 2.

dring either at their Being, or their Effects, and fe cure you against them. For we have a Rule of Faith which teacheth us what we are to defend, and by that Rule we believe; and then he recites the Creed at length, and adds, This is the Rule of Faith laid down by Christ, about which there have been no Questions rais'd among us, but what have been rais'd by Hereticks; and the Oppofition to this Rule is that which constitutes an Heretick. Now this Rule be ing kept entire and complete, you may feek and debate, and give your Curiofity its utmolt Range. He goes on likewife, and says, A certain Rule of Faith is given; you have a Law; and Obedience to that Law will fave you. Curiofity and an affected Oftentation of much Knowledge, is the Ground of all these vain Researches. But let Curiofity for once give way to Faith, and vain Glory to your eternal Salvation. Let us hear no more of thefe Clamours and Divifions, but learn at laft to be quiet; to know nothing con trary to the Establish'd Rule of Faith, is to know all things. Once more, From whence come Herefies? From the Devil, and they differ not at all from Idolatry, and both come from the fame Father of Lies; for either Hereticks feign another God in oppofition to the Creator, or if they confefs one Creator, they don't allow him thofe Perfections which are truly his, and therefore every Lye they tell of God is a fort of Idolatry. And in the Conclufion, he charges them as they tender their Salvation to preferve the Faith in the bond of Peace; for thefe are Things which no Body will forfake who is mindful of a future Judgement, when we muft all stand before the Tribunal of Chrift to give an Account of our Faith in the firft Place.

Towards the latter end of the fourth Century Epiphanius in three Books gave us the Anatomy of Fourscore Herefies; he laid open the Diseases for a Preferva

• Cap. 13. Y Cap. 14.

* Cap. 40. • Cap. 44.

tive against 'em. St. Auftin has given us an Abftra&t of the fame with an Addition of fome more Herefies in his own Time, in a Difcourfe ad Quod-vult-Deum. Vincentius makes no Scruple to affirm that Donatus and his Schifmatical Followers had their Portion with the Apoftate Angels; he has chalk'd out the way all the true Believers of old went in; he has pointed to the Rocks, the Temptations, and Occafions of many great Mens fplitting upon them; and charges us not to make Shipwrack of Faith and Communion, as we value our everlasting Happiness. The Defign of the Ecclefiaftical Writers, and all the ancient Councils, was for the fecurity of the Depofitum, the Faith once deliver'd; nor did it ever enter into the Head of any Primitive Catholick, that Toleration or Establishment alter'd the Nature of Herefie and Schifm, any more than that of Paganism. From all which it appears unquestionably evident, that according to the Sence of the Primitive Church, a Right Faith was as necessary to Salvation as a Right PraЯice.

It appears as evident likewife from exprefs Scripture; Te believe in God, believe alfo in me. He that believeth, and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. There is none other Name under Heaven given among Men, whereby we must be faved, but that of Chrift. He that hath the Son, bath Life, and he that hath not the Son of God, bath not Life. Examine your felves, whether ye be in the Faith. There is one Body and ane Spirit, one Lord, one Faith, one Baptifm. Till we all come into the Unity of the Faith, and of the Knowledge of the Son of God, That we henceforth be no more Children, toffed to and fro, and carried about with every Wind of Doctrine, by the Slight of Men, and cunning Craftinefs, whereby they lie in wait to deceive. Holding Faith, and a good Confcience, which fome having put away, concerning Faith have made Shipwreck; of whom is Hymeneus and Alexander; whom I have deliver'd

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liver'd unto Satan, that they may learn not to blafpheme. Having Damnation because they caft off their first Faith. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common Salvation; it was needful for me to write unto, and exhort you that ye should earneftly contend for the Faith which was once deliver'd unto the Saints. For there are certain Men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordain'd to this condemnation, ungodly Men, turning the Grace of our God into lafcivioufnefs, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jefus Chrift. These be they who Separate themfelves, fenfual, having not the Spirit. But ye beloved, building up your felves on your most holy Faith, praying in the Holy Ghoft, keep your felves in the love of God, &c.

From the Authority of Scripture as understood by the Fathers, let us go a little to the Reafon of the thing; and if we confider the Nature of the Chrifti an Covenant, we find that a publick Profeffion of Faith, in the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft, is the Cóndition without which we cannot be Chriftians; and therefore unless we can be fav'd by Chrift without being Chriftians, fuch a Faith is neceffary in the first Place, and then a good Life muft follow. Nay, if a Heathen Man and a Sinner was baptiz'd in this Faith, and dy'd before he had time to perform the other Part of the Covenant concerning a good Life, he was juftified by Faith, without Works. From whence I think 'tis very evident, that we are first to fhew our Faith, and then our Works, before we can claim any Title to the Promifes of the Gofpel. And confequently, 'tis the highest Arrogance and Prefumption in fome Moralifts to ftand fo much upon the Goodnefs of their Lives, and at the fame time make a Jelt of Orthodoxy; for were they ten times better Men than they are, their Morality makes 'em not Chriftians, and they have perform'd but one half of their Covenant; for as Faith without Works is dead,

fo

fo on the other hand is it as true, that Works without Faith are dead alfo.

2dly. A good Life alone does not answer one of the great Defigns of Chrift's coming into the World. For he came not merely to plant among us a more perfect and fublime Morality, but for his own greater Glory, to fet us right in our Notions of the Divine Nature, that we fhou'd laud and magnify the ever bleffed Trinity of Perfons in the Unity of the Godhead, with that Tri-une Glorification here on Earth, as Angels do in Heaven, faying Day and Night, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty; and for this end are we baptiz'd in the Name of thefe Three Perfons and One God. Chrift came into the World to demonftrate God's infinite Juftice and hatred of Sin, that wou'd be propitiated with nothing lefs than the infinitely meritorious Sacrifice of his beloved and only begotten Son, and thereby to ftrike us with a proportionate Horror of Sin, and to comfort us again with the fulness of his Satisfaction and Atonement, and to make us able to comprehend what is the Breadth, and Length, and Depth, and Height; and to know the Love of Chrift which passeth Knowledge, that we might be filled with all the Fulness of God. But this admirable Temperament, this whole ftupendous Fabrick of divine Juftice, Wisdom and Mercy, drops in a manner to the Ground, and dwindles comparatively into nothing, if we believe Chrift to be a mere Man only: For where was that love of Chrift which passeth knowledge? where was that allSufficient Satisfaction for the Sins of the whole World, if Chrift was but a Creature? For as a Creature, he was oblig'd to do all he poffibly cou'd do for his Creator, and had all poffible Helps and Encouragements for fo doing. And who can expect to efcape that neglects to inquire into this wonderful Project of divine Love, and the valuable Reafons of fo great Salvation? Shall a bare Moral Life, or the Profeffion

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