J75 



I have instanced in the fundamental truth of 

 both ; which, though founded upon the utmost mo- 

 ral evidence, so as to render a dissent from it inex- 

 cusable, yet appears not to be strictly demonstrable. 

 Indeed, were there one demonstrative argument for 

 it, all others would be entirely needless. 



2. Tiiat natural religion includes faith, founded 

 on moral evidence. When, upon full proof to our 

 understanding, we assent to this, There is a God, 

 then the hearty concurrence of the will coinpleats 

 that assent into faith. Faith, therefore, is altogether 

 as necessary in natural religion, as in revealed : for, 

 though we have a mortal certainty for the existence 

 of a Deity, which so far is knowledge only ; yet still 

 because the- intrinsic nature of God is utterly incom- 

 prehensible, and can be no immediate object of hu- 

 man understanding, men must give the assent of the 

 intellect here, together with the consent of the will, 

 to the truth of things as mysterious as any in all re- 

 vealed religion ; and which they are obliged to con- 

 ceive by the same analogy, by which we conceive all 

 the mysteries of Christianity. 



3. That evangelical faith is no precarious or im- 

 plicit assent, but founded on the utmost evidence we 

 are capable of receiving, for a truth of that nature. 

 To see this clearly, we must well distinguish two 

 things ; 



First, The assent of the understanding to a propo- 

 sition upon moral evidence, which is r thus far, merely 

 knowledge. Here we are to fix our foot, and join 



