IV. ART. the report that the watch had brought them of Christ's rising again. When they had this certain reason to believe it, and yet resolved to oppose it, the only thing they could do was to seem to neglect the matter, and only to decry it in general as an imposture, without going into particulars; which certainly they would not have done, if they themselves had not been but too sure of the truth of it. When all this is laid together, it is the most unreasonable thing imaginable to think that there was an imposture in this matter, when no colour nor shadow of it ever appeared, and when all the circumstances, and not only probabilities, but even moral possibilities, are so full to the contrary. The ascension of Christ has not indeed so full a proof: nor is it capable of it, neither does it need it; for the resurrection, well proved, makes that very credible. For this we have only the testimony of the apostles, who did all attest that they saw it, being all together in an open field: when Christ was walking and discoursing with them, and when he was blessing them, he was parted from them: they saw him ascend, till a cloud received him, and took him out of their sight. And then two angels appeared to them, and assured Acts i. 11. them that he should come again in like manner as they had seen him ascend.' Here is a very particular relation, with many circumstances in it, in which it was not possible for the apostles to be mistaken; so that, there being no reason to suspect their credit, this rests upon that authority. But ten days after, it received a much clearer proof; when the Holy Ghost was poured out on them in so visible a manner, and with most remarkable effects. Immediately upon it they spoke with divers tongues, and wrought many miracles, and all in the name of Christ. They did often and solemnly disclaim their doing any of those wonderful things by any power of Acts iii. 12, their own: they owned that all they had or did was derived to them from Jesus of Nazareth, of whose resurrection and ascension they were appointed to be the witnesses. 16. Christ's coming again to judge the world at the last day is so often affirmed by himself in the gospel, and is so frequently mentioned in the writings of his apostles, that this is a main part of his doctrine; so that his resurrection, ascension, together with the effusion of the Holy Ghost, having in general proved his mission, and his whole doctrine, this is also proved by them. Enough seems to be said in proof of all the parts of this Article; it remains only that somewhat should be added in explanation of them. As to the resurrection, it is to little purpose to inquire, whether our Saviour's body was kept all the while in a complete organization, that so by this miracle it might be preserved in a natural state, for his soul to re-enter it: or whether by the course of nature the vast number of the inward conveyances that were in the body were stopped; IV. Matt. iv. 4. and if all of a sudden, when the time of the resurrection came, ART. all was again put in a vital state, fit to be animated by his soul. There must have been a miracle either way: so it is to little purpose to inquire into it. The former, though a continued miracle, yet seems to agree more fully to these words, "Thou wilt not suffer thy Holy One to see corrup- Ps. xvi. 10. tion.' It is to as little purpose to inquire how our Saviour's new body was supplied with blood, since he had lost the greatest part of it on the cross: whether that was again by the power of God brought back into his veins; or whether, as he himself had formerly said, that 'man lives not by bread Deut. viii. alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of 3. God,' blood was supplied by miracle: or whether his body, that was then of the nature of a glorified body, though yet on earth, needed the supplies of blood to furnish new spirits for serving the natural functions; he eating and drinking so seldom, that we may well believe it was done rather to satisfy his apostles, than to answer the necessities of nature; these are curiosities that signify so little, if we could certainly resolve them, that it is to no purpose to inquire about them, since we cannot know what to determine in them. This in general is certain, that the same soul returned back to the same body; so that the same man who died, rose again; and that is our faith. We need not trouble ourselves with inquiring how to make out the three days of Christ's being in the grave; days stand, in the common acceptation, for a portion of a day. We know the Jews were very exact to the rest on the sabbath, so the body was without question laid in the grave before the sun-set on Friday; so that was the first day; the sabbath was a complete one; and a good part of the third day, that is, the night, with which the Jews began to count the day, was over before he was raised up. As for his stay on earth forty days, we cannot pretend to give an account of it; whether his body was passing through a slow and physical purification, to be meet for ascending; or whether he intended to keep a proportion between his gospel and the law of Moses; that as he suffered at the time of their killing the passover, so the effusion of the Holy Ghost was fixed for Pentecost, and that therefore he would stay on earth till that time was near, not to put his apostles upon too long an expectation without his presence; which might be necessary to animate them, till they should be endued with power from on high. As to the manner of his ascension, it is also questioned whether the body of Christ, as it ascended, was so wonderfully changed, as to put on the subtilty and purity of an ethereal body; or whether it retains still the same form in heaven that it had on earth; or if it put on a new one: it is more probable that it did; and that the wonderful glory that appeared in his countenance and whole person at his transfiguration, was a manifestation of G IV. 1 Cor. xv. 50. ART. that more permanent glory, to which it was to be afterwards exalted. It seems probable from what St. Paul says, (that flesh and blood shall not inherit the kingdom of God,' which relates to our glorified bodies, when we shall bear the image of the second and the heavenly Adam,') that Christ's body has no more the modifications of flesh and blood in it; and that the glory of the celestial body is of another nature and Ver. 40. texture than that of the terrestrial. It is easily imagined how this may be, and yet the body to be numerically the same: for, all matter being uniform, and capable of all sort of motion, and by consequence of being either much grosser or much purer, the same portion of matter that made a thick and heavy body here on earth, may be put into that purity and fineness as to be no longer a fit inhabitant of this earth, or to breathe this air, but to be meet to be transplanted into ethereal regions. 27, 28. ji. 9. 34. John xiv. 2. Christ as he went up into heaven, so he had the whole government of this world put into his hands, and the whole ministry of angels put under his command, even in his human 1 Cor. xv. nature. So that all things are now in subjection to him.' All power and authority is derived from him, and he does Colos. i.19. whatsoever he pleases both in heaven and earth. "In him all fulness dwells. And as, the Mosaical tabernacle being filled with glory, the emanations of it did by the Urim and Thummim enlighten and direct that people, so, out of that fulness, that dwelt bodily in Christ, there is a constant emanation of Rom. viii. his grace and spirit descending on his church. He does also intercede for us at his Father's right hand, where he is preparing a place for us. The meaning of all which is this, that as he is vested with an unconceivably high degree of glory, even as man, so the merit of his death is still fresh and entire; and in the virtue of that, the sins of all that come to God through him, claiming to his death as to their sacrifice, Eph. i. 13, and obeying his gospel, are pardoned, and they are sealed by his Spirit until the day of redemption.' In conclusion, when all God's design with this world is accomplished, it shall be set on fire, and all the great parts of which it is 2 Pet. iii. composed, as of elements, shall be melted and burnt down; and then when by that fire probably the portions of matter, which was in the bodies of all who have lived upon earth, shall be so far refined and fixed, as to become both incorruptible and immortal, then they shall be made meet for the souls that formerly animated them, to re-enter every one into Dan.vii. 9, his own body, which shall be then so moulded as to be a 10. habitation fit to give it everlasting joy or everlasting torment. Then shall Christ appear visibly in some very conspicuous place in the clouds of heaven, where every eye shall see him: he shall appear in his own glory,' that is, in his human glorified body: he shall appear in the 'glory of his angels,' having vast numbers of these about him, attending on him: 14. 10, 12. Rev. i. 7. Matt. xxv. 31. IV. but, which is above all, he shall appear in his Father's ART. glory; that is, there shall be then a most wonderful manifestation of the eternal Godhead dwelling in him; and then Luke ix. shall he pass a final sentence upon all that ever lived upon 26. earth, according to all that they have done in the body, Rom. xiv. whether it be good or bad. The righteous shall ascend as he Matt. xxv. did, and shall meet him in the clouds, and be for ever with 31-46. him; and the wicked shall sink into a state of darkness and 2 Cor. v. misery, of unspeakable horror of mind, and everlasting pain 1 Thes. iv. and torment. 10-12. 10. 17. Dan. xii. 2. Matt. xxv. 46. ART. ARTICLE V. Of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost proceeding from the Father and the Son, is of one Substance, Majesty, and Glory, with the Father and the Son, very and eternal God. In order to the explaining this Article, we must consider, first, the importance of the term Spirit, or Holy Spirit; secondly, his procession from the Father and the Son; and, thirdly, that he is truly God, of the same substance with the Father and the Son. Spirit signifies wind or breath, and in the Old Testament it stands frequently in that sense: the Spirit of God, or wind of God, stands sometimes for a high and strong wind; but more frequently it signifies a secret impression made by God on the mind of a prophet: so that the Spirit of God and the spirit of prophecy are set in opposition to the vain imaginations, the false pretences, or the diabolical illusions, of those who assumed to themselves the name and the authority of a prophet, without a true mission from God. But when God made representations either in a dream or in an ecstasy to any person, or imprinted a sense of his will on their minds, together with such necessary characters as gave it proof and authority, this was an illapse from God, as a breathing from him on the soul of the prophet. In the New Testament this word Holy Ghost stands most commonly for that wonderful effusion of those miraculous virtues that was poured out at Pentecost on the apostles; by which their spirits were not only exalted with extraordinary degrees of zeal and courage, of authority and utterance, but they were furnished with the gifts of tongues and of miracles. And besides that first and great effusion, several Christians received particular talents and inspirations, which are most commonly expressed by the word Spirit or inspiration. Those inward assistances, by which the frame and temper of men's minds are changed and renewed, are likewise called the Spirit, John ii. 3, or the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost. So Christ said to Nicodemus, that 'except a man was born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God;' and that his heavenly Father would give the Holy Spirit to every one that asked him.' By these it is plain, that extraordinary or miraculous inspirations are not meant, for these are not every Christian's portion; there is no question made of all this. 5, 6. Luke xi. 13. The main question is, whether by Spirit, or Holy Spirit, we are to understand one person, that is the fountain of all those gifts and operations; or whether by one Spirit is only to be |