defign to perfuade them, that the church of Rome is the one true catholick church. I fhall not now reckon up all the notes and marks which they give of the true church; but only obferve, that one of their principal marks of the true church is this, that the faith and doctrine of it be agreeable to the doctrine of the primitive and apoftolick church, i. e. to the doctrine delivered by our Saviour and his Apoftles. And this Bellarmine makes one of the marks of the true church. And they must unavoidably make it fo; because the true faith and doctrine of Chrift is that which indeed constitutes the true church. But if this be an effential mark of the true church, then no man can poffibly know the church of Rome to be the true church, till he have examined the particular doctrines and practices of it, and the agreement of them with the primitive doctrine and practice of Christianity and this neceffarily draws on and engages them in a difpute of the particular points and differences betwixt us; which is the very thing they would avoid by this method; and which I have now plainly fhewed they cannot do, because they cannot poffibly prove their church to be the true church, without fhewing the conformity of their doctrines and practices to the doctrine and practice of the primitive and apoftolick church: and this will give them work enough, and will, whether they will or no, draw them out of their hold and fastnefs; which is to amufe people with a general inquiry, Which is the true church? without defcending to the examination of their particular doctrines and practices. But this they muft of neceffity come to, before they can prove, by the notes and marks of the true church, that theirs is the true church.

And this is a demonstration, that their method of fatisfaction, as it is unnatural and unreasonable, fo it cannot serve the purpose they aim at by it; which is, to divert men from the examination of the particular points in difference between the church of Rome and us, and to gain them over to them by a wile and trick; because the very method they take to prove themselves to be the true catholick church, will inforce them to juftify all their particular doctrines and practices, before they can finish this proof.

And

And here we fix our foot, that the fingle question and point upon which they would put the whole iffue of the matter, cannot poffibly be brought to any reasonable iffue, without a particular difcuffion and examination of the points in difference betwixt their church and ours. And when they can make out these to be agreeable to the primitive doctrine and practice of the Christian church, we have reafon to be fatisfied, that the church of Rome is a church in the communion whereof a man may be fafe. But till that be made out, they have done nothing to perfuade any man that understands himself, that it is fafe, much lefs neceffary, to be of their communion. But if particular points must be difcuffed and cleared, before a man can be fatisfied in the inquiry after the true church; then they must allow their intended convert to be a judge likewife of particular points; and if he be fufficient for that too, before he comes into their church, I do not fee of what use the infallibility of the church will be to him, when he is in it.

SERMO N LXII.

Of constancy in the profeffion of the true religion.

HE B. X. 23.

Let us hold fast the profeffion of our faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promifed.

I

The fifth fermon on this text.

Have already made a confiderable progress in my dif courfe upon these words; in which I told you there is an exhortation to hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; and an argument or encouragement thereto, Because he is faithful that promifed. I am yet upon the first of these, the exhortation to hold fast the profession efour faith without wavering. By which, I told you, the Apostle doth not intend, that thofe who are capable of examining

amining the grounds and reasons of their religion, fhould not have the liberty to do it ; nor that when, upon due inquiry, they are, as they verily believe, established in the true faith and religion, they should obftinately refuse to hear any reason that is fairly offered against their prefent perfuafion.

And then I proceeded to fhew pofitively,

I. What it is that we are exhorted to hold fast, viz. the confeffion, or profeffion of our faith; the ancient Chriftian faith, of which every Christian makes profeffion in his baptifm for it is of that the Apostle here speaks; as appears plainly by the context.

II. How we are to hold faft the profeffion of our faith. And of this I gave account in these following particulars. 1. We fhould hold faft the profeffion of our faith, against the confidence of men, without fcripture or reason to fupport that confidence.

2. And much more against the confidence of men, contrary to plain fcripture and reason, and the common fenfe of mankind; of which I gave you particular inftances.

3. Against all the temptations and terrors of the world. 4. Against all vain promises of being put into a fafer condition, and groundless hopes of getting to heaven upon easier terms, in fome other church and religion. I am now upon the

5. Fifth and laft particular I mentioned, namely, that we are to hold fast the profeffion of our faith without wavering, against all the cunning arts and infinuations of bufy and difputing men, whofe defign it is to unhinge men from their religion, and to make profelytes to their party and faction. I have already mentioned fome of the arts which they ufe (I mean particularly them of the church of Rome) in making profelytes to their religion; and I have shewn the abfurdity and unreasonableness of them. As,

I. In allowing men to be very competent and fufficient judges for themselves in the choice of their religion, (i. e. which is the true church and religion, in which alone falvation is to be had?); and yet telling them, at the fame time, that they are utterly incapable of judging of particular doctrines and points of faith. As for thefe,

thefe, they must rely upon the judgment of an infallible church; and if they do not, they will certainly run into damnable errors and mistakes.

And they muft of neceflity allow them the first, a fufficient ability to judge for themselves in the choice of their religion: otherwife in vain do they offer them arguments to perfuade them to theirs, if they cannot judge of the force of them. But now, after this, to deny them all ability to judge of particular doctrines and points of faith, is a very abfurd and inconfiftent pretence.

2. Another art they ufe, in order to their making a right choice of their religion, is, earneftly to perfuade them to hear and read only the arguments and books on their fide which is juft as if one fhould go about to perfuade a judge, in order to the better understanding and clearer decifion of a caufe, to hear only the counsel on one fide.

:

3. They tell them, that the only thing they are to inquire into is, Which is the true church, the one catholick church mentioned in the creed, out of which there is no falvation and when they have found that, they are to rely upon the authority of that church, which is infallible, for all other things. And this method they wifely take, to avoid particular difputes about the innovations and errors which we charge them withal. But I have fhewn at large, that this cannot be the first inquiry; because it is not the true church that makes the true Chriftian faith and doctrine; but the profession of the true Chriftian faith and doctrine which makes the true church.

Befides, their way of proving their church to be the only true church, being by the marks and properties of the true church, of which the chief is, the conformity of their doctrines and practices with the primitive and apoftolical church; this unavoidably draws on an examination of their particular doctrines and practices, whether they be conformable to thofe of the primitive and apoftolical church? before their great inquiry, " Which "is the true church?", 'can be brought to an iffue; which, it is plain, it can never be, without entering into the ocean of particular difputes, which they defire above all things to avoid. So that they are never the nearer by this method they can neither fhorten their work by it, VOL. IV.

K

nor

nor keep off the examination of their particular errors and corruptions; which are a very fore place, and they cannot endure we should touch it.

I fhall now proceed to discover some other arts and methods which they ufe in feducing people to their church and religion, and shall be as brief in them as I

can.

4. They pretend, that the Roman church is the catholick church, i. e. the vifible fociety of all Christians, united to the Bishop of Rome, as the fupreme paftor and visible head of Chrift's church upon earth: from whence it clearly follows, that it is neceffary to all Christians to join themselves to the communion of the Roman church; otherwife they cannot be members of the catholick church of Chrift, out of which there is no falvation.

We grant the confequence, that if the Roman church be the catholick' church, it is necessary to be of that communion; because out of the catholick church there is ordinarily no falvation to be had. But how do they prove, that the Roman church is the catholick church? They would fain have us fo civil, as to take this for granted; because if we do not, they do not well know how to go about to prove it. And indeed fome things are obftinate, and will not be proved without fo much trouble and difficulty, that it is better to let them alone; and, by the confident affertion of them, by importunity, and by any other fair means, to get them believed, without proof of this stubborn fort of propofitions, which will admit of no proof. This is one, That a part is the whole; or, which is all one, That the Roman church is the catholick church. For that it is but a part of the Chriftian church, and not the best part neither, but perhaps the very worst and most corrupt of all the reft, is no difficult matter to prove, and hath been often done. But now to prove the church of Rome to be the catholick church, that is, the whole fociety of all true Chriftians in the world, thefe following particulars ought to be clearly fhewn and made out.

Ift, A plain conftitution of our Saviour, whereby St. Peter, and his fucceffors at Rome, are made the fupreme head and paftors of the whole Chriftian church. For St. Peter first: Can they fhew any fuch conftitution