"are mighty," I Cor. i. 27. God thereby making "it clearly appear that" our faith doth not stand "in the wifdom of men, but in the power of God," 1 Cor. ii. 5. yet foon after the gofpel was preached abroad in the world, we find perfons of great rank and reputation for great parts and abilities, engaged in the profeffion of the christian faith. In the history of the acts of the apostles we read of Sergius, a proconful of Dionyfius the Areopagite, converted to the faith of Chrift. And in the fucceeding ages of the church, many persons of great eminency for their excellent learning and abilities, fuch as Juftin martyr; one, who before he became a chriftian, was very converfant with all the fects of the philofophers, ftoics, peripatetics, pythagoreans, and at last was profeffed platonift, till he was converted from Plato to Christ, and then found that true which he speaks of, in his dialogue with Trypho: that after all his enquiries into philosophy (speaking of the doctrine of Chrift) that he found chriftianity to be the only fure and profitable philofophy. And when Trypho derides him as a man of very eafy faith, for leaving the doctrine of Plato for that of Chrift, (for we find by him, the Jews then had a more favourable opinion of the Platonists than of the chriftians) Justin Martyr is fo far from being moved with fuch reproaches, that he tells him, he would undertake to demonstrate to him, that the christians did not give credit to empty fables, or any affertions that were not to be proved, but to fuch a doctrine as was full of a divine spirit and power, and flourished with grace. At At Alexandria we meet with a fucceffion of excellent perfons, who not only embraced christianity themselves, but became defenders of the faith. Eufebius informs us, that Pantonus was an excellent ftoick before he became a christian, who afterwards was very zealous for the cause of Christ: that, in imitation of the apostles, he went into India, in order to convert the inhabitants to chriftianity, and at his return was made rector of the school at Alexandria, which (as the fame author informs us) was much frequented by fuch, who were well skilled in human, as well as divine learning. The learning of Origen is fufficiently known, which was in fuch great reputation, in his own time, that not only christians but philofophers flocked to his lectures at Alexandria, as Eufebius informs us, where he read the mathematicks and other parts of philofophy, as well as the facred fcriptures. And the fame author informs us, that the philosophers dedicated their books to him, and frequently chose him as arbitrator, relating to matters of difpute. And Porphyry himself, in his book against the chriftians, fpeaks with great respect and veneration of Origen, and makes a high encomium on him for his excellent learning. In Origen's time, Hercules, a prefbyter of Alexanaria, for five years together, frequented the schools of the philofophers, and put on the philofophic pallium, and was very converfant in the books of the Grecian learning. At : At Cæfarea among the chriftians, there was an eminent school of learning for all branches of literature: fuch were the famous Pamphilus and Eufebius was fo great an admirer of him, that ever after he was called Eufebius Pamphili. At Antioch was Dorotheus, as Nicephorus informs us, a perfon verfed in all kinds of ingenious literature. Anetolius, bishop of Laodicea, one versed in geometry, aftronomy, and all kinds of philofophy, as well as in the doctrine of Christ. We find in thofe early days of the Greek church, what excellent perfons many of those were, who were zealous profeffors of christianity. As to the Latin churh, St. Austin was a star of the first magnitude among them. Tertullian, Arnobius, and several others, may be defervedly added to them. St. Austin justly obferves, that though the Ifraelitęs went rich out of Egypt, yet it was their eating the paffover, which faved them from destruction. And though these men had the ornaments of human learning, yet it was their eating the true paffover, (which was Christ, by their adhering to his doctrine) that was of more advantage to them, than all their other accomplishments. Therefore as we find in the first ages of chriftianity, not only innumerable multitudes of perfons of great integrity and fobriety in their lives and converfations, who embraced the doctrine of Chrift, but alfo many persons that were very inquifitive enquirers after truth, and the reafon and nature of things; we can find no juft caufse to distrust such a teftimony, which was received in fo unanimous a manner, by perfons as well 十 qualined to judge of the truth and reality of it, and as fearful of being deceived with reference to them, as any one in that prefent age poffibly can be, yea much better, by reason of their living almost fixteen hundred centuries nearer the time of the bleffed Jefus's appearance in the world. Therefore as this teftimony was received by perfons who were very curious fearchers after the truth and nature of things, fo the doctrine conveyed by it was a matter of the highest moment. Confequently we cannot but conceive, that persons originally inquifitive about other things, would be more than ordinary fo about this, because their eternal welfare and happinefs did depend upon it. All perfons that are in reality truly religious, must at least be suppofed to be very inquifitive after the state and condition of their fouls, especially upon a testimony, if they had little or no affurance of the truth of it. That none of all these persons who were rational and judicious in all human knowledge, fhould be able to discover the falfity, if any. It is not reconcilable with the general prefumption of mankind concerning Divine Providence, and the care God takes of them, to fuppose so many perfons who fincerely defire to ferve God in that way and manner which is most pleasing to him, to go on in fuch a continual delufion, and never have it at all discovered to them. If all those who have believed in the doctrine of Chrift to be the only way to falvation have been deceived, we muft either deny altogether a Divine Providence, or fay, the devil hath more power to deceive mankind, than God to direct them, which is worfe than the former; or else affert, that that there are no fuch beings as either God or Devil, but that all things came to pass by blind chance and fortune. If fo, it makes it ftill more inexplicable why fuch multitudes of rational creatures, the thoughful, ferious, inquifitive part of mankind, as to fuch things, should all be poffeffed with the truth and certainty of them; and the greater the reprobate, the more ignorant, wicked, and profane any persons are, the more prone they are to mock and deride the religious and inquifitive part of mankind, who believe them. If fuch perfons fee more into reafon and truth than the fober and judicious part of mankind, let us bid adieu to humanity, and adore the brutes, if we admire their judgments moft, who come the nearest to them. The multitudes of the beforementioned perfons confenting to the truths of the gospel of Christ, could have no other engagements to this confent, but only their firm perfwafion of the truth of the doctrine conveyed by it, by reason they who unanimously agree in it, are fuch perfons whose other defign and interest in the world differ as much as men's do. If it had only been a consent of Jews, there might have been fome probable pretence to have fufpected a matter of interest in it. But as to this thing, we find the Jews divided amongst themselves concerning it, do yet inviolably preserve those facred records amongst them, from which the truth of the doctrine of Chrift may be undoubtedly proved. Had the chriftian religion been enforced upon the world by the Roman emperors at the time of its mulgation, there would have been fome fufficient fuf H 2 pro picion |