WIthout further Preamble , I shall take occasion from what passed at the Committee of Religion the other night , to give you my Thoughts upon the Book of John Toland's ; which indeed I never saw , till upon hearing it there spoken of , I procured it . I have since perused it with some Attention , but have not met with any of those learned Answers which , as is said , have been given to it ; so that I shall only give you my naked thoughts , without any dress of Scholasti●k terms : for I skill not the heavy weapons taken out of the Armory of the Fathers ; Eph. 6.17 . I pretend not to combat with any other weapon than the Sword of the Spirit , which is the Word of God . By That Luther overcame all his Antagonists , and by That , a greater than he , overcame the strong man arm'd , Mat . 4.4 , 7.10 . even Belzebub himself ; a Scriptum est to every temptation soon chased away the Tempter .

I must confess it is somewhat difficult to go about this matter , for the Adversary allows but a supposed Authority in the New Testament ; so that when he pleases to take away , or deny his Hypothesis , all my Arguments must of course fall to the ground . He will allow nothing but the blurr'd Book of Reason , which in every man is different , according to their natural Capacity , Constitution , Organs of Sense , or Education ; tho , as to that in himself , he thinks it most perfect , able to search the hidden things of God , being vainly puffed up in his own mind . 1 Cor . 2.10

First then , as to his Title , Christianity not Mysterious ; if that Position be not Heresy , I know not what is . Heresy is an Erroneous belief in Fundamentals , joyn'd with a Pravity of Will ; And that this is such , I shall prove . First , that it is an Erroneous belief ; That Christianity is Mysterious , that we know not of it , neither in the nature of the thing , nor in degree , more than what God has been pleased to reveal to us , is most certain . Could any one comprehend before it was reveal'd , that God would send his Son our Lord Jesus Christ , to be born of a Woman , to redeem us , and to take upon him our flesh ? Well , and now that it is reveal'd , pray how much more of that ineffable Mystery can our Reason make out to us than what is revealed ? Can we by Reason explain to our selves the Incarnation of the Son of God , tho that he was inca●nate is fully revealed to us ? Those words of his , John 14.20 . that I am in my Father , and you in me , and I in you , fully reveal to us the Mystery of our Redemption , and of the Trinity , * * In the Original it is not yet what can we add to that Revelation ? But further , the Operations of the Holy Spirit in our Souls what Reason can explain or conceive , it blows where it lists , and when , and how ; It is of that very thing that it is said , that it is not entred into the heart of man to conceive ; which yet God has revealed to us by his Holy Spirit . but No , every happy Soul that feels it must say , it is quod neque● monstrare & sentio tantum . 1 Cor . 2.9 , 10. I wish he himself had attended more to the Motions thereof within himse●f , he had not surely then come so near to that unpardonable Offence ; which proves the second part of my Definition , a pravity of Will ; That this is so is manifest , for his Errors tend to make Mankind miserable ; Rom. 8.16 . Joh . 16.13 For it is the Spirit of God that Testifies to our Spirits that we are the Sons of God : It is the Holy Spirit that leads us into all Truth . If then this our Faith be vain , and that the supposed Influences and Motions of the Holy Spirit in our Souls are but Dreams and Enthusiasms , we are wretched Creatures ; in the fallen Estate that we are , we had be●ter never have been Born . Lo then the inveteracy of that Heart that publishes this Doctrine , Eph. 2.12 . that leaves us without God in the World , that has wrapt him up from us , like Epicurus's God , in dark Clouds ; this is vastly enlarging Nero's cruel Wish , and cutting off the Neck of all Mankind at one blow . But further , the Pravity of his Will is manifest in this , That this Doctrine must necesfartly produce a Pravity of Will in Others ; for if we have no supernatural Assistance nor Guide , whatever our Reason does not Reproach us for , is no● ill ; ( for our Natural Conscience may soon be overcome and said asleep , by wilfu●●in wrought up into a Habit ) and then when a Man has Debauch'd his Reason ( as it is not difficult for Licentious Persons to deprave that to the highest Degree ) what Wickedness is he not fit for ? Indeed , Pravity of the Will is essential to Heresy . A Pious Heretick is a Contradiction . For if a Pi●us S●u● do Er● , his Piety gives him Humility to seek for further Information , and God does alway bless his Endeavours ; so that his Errors shall not be in Fundamentals ; for our blessed Saviour assures us , Jo . 7.17 . If any Man do my Will , he shall know of the Doctrine , whether it be of God . The good Man that fears God , that Loves him , and seeks him and his Direction by continual Prayer , cannot be left in Fundamental Error . Such Usage would be Barbarous from a Man like our selves , and therefore we can never impute it to the God of Truth . But it is Pride that makes your Sect Master ; and where Pride is , there is Contention and every Evil Work .

The Conclusion in short is this , if there be no Mystery in our Re●igions , ●ay aside your Bibles , those lively Oracles , ( after you have Read the Histori●al part of them ) and let Rea●on only be your Guide ; and since , Nihil est in Intellectu quod non fuit prius in sensu , if we must have a God it must be the Object of our Sence , a God to go before us , like Aarons , Lo these are thy Gods , and then we are come to a fine Pass with our Reason . St. Paul tells us , Rom. 1.21 . That even the Philosophers among the Heathens in matters of Religion 〈◇〉 became Fools by their* Reasonings , and so their foolish Hearts were Darkned , and so they fell into Idolatry the greatest of all Fo●ly .

Why Reason ye among your selves , Mat . 16.8 . Mat . 9.33 . I shall now proceed to consider the Book ; wherein , First I would take Notice of his Treatment of the Holy Scriptures . He says indeed in one place , That they have the brightest Characters of Divinity ; but he has for once given them that Character , that he might with the more Impunity Stab them afterwards as often as he pleases , P. 33. which he does not spare to do three times , with his If the Gospel be the Word of God . Just the same way does he use our Blessed Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ ; Edit. 2d p. 25. 46. 170. whom once in his Preface he calls the Lord Jesus Christ , that he may be taken the less Notice of afterward for his familiar Treatment of him .

The word Lord is the Adjunct to the Name of our Saviour Jesus Christ near 600 times in the New Testament ; it is often used alone without Jesus or Christ , to denote our Saviour , as being his peculiar Title , and I shall prove it to be a Declaration of his Divinity .

At his Birth the Angels told the Shepherds , * * Mat . 2.11 Luk . 24.34 to you is Born a Saviour , who is Christ the Lord : At his Resurrection the Disciples told each other , the Lord is Risen , Joh . 20.25 28. and they to●d Thomas , We have s●en the Lord : and Thomas crys out , My Lord and my God : And when he appear'd to them as they were F●shing , they said one to another , 1 Cor . 12.3 it is the Lord : The Apostle tells us , That no Man can call Jesus Lord ( that is , believe him to be God ) but by the Spirit of God : How often do ●e find in the Apostles Writings , The Day of the Lord , our Lord Jesus , and our Lord Jesus Christ . Nay , Let us look back into the Old Testament , and we shall find the same ; That David in Spirit called him Lord , in the 110th Psalm ( and elsewhere ) our Saviour himself Testifies : And that that Memorable and Glorious Vision of Isaiah , Chap. 6. I saw the Lord Sitting upon his Throne , &c. had Relation to our Saviour St. John affirms , Chap. 12.41 . St. Jude tells us , v. 5. That the Lord having saved the People out of Aegypt , afterward Destroyed them that believed not ; and that this is spoken of the Lord Jesus Christ is plain , not only from 1 Cor 10.9 . where St. Paul speaking of the Children of Israel in the Wilderness , says , Neither let us tempt Christ as some of them also Tempted . &c but also , that in the Vulgata , in the Aeth●opick Manuscript of Ludolphus in the Alexandrian MS in the King's Library at St. James's , beside two other Celebrated Mss at Rome , it is read , That the Lord Jesus having saved the People out of Egypt , &c. The Lord's day 〈◇〉 Rev. 1.10 , is not the day Sanctify'd to the Jehovah , for that is Sabbatum , but it is the day of our Lord Jesus Christ's Resurrection , 1 Cor . 11.20 , 11. 1 Cor . 10 . 2● . 〈◇〉 is his Supper , and 〈◇〉 is his Table . And now I think I have pretty well proved that * * Phil . 2. ●1 . every Tongue ought to confess that Jesus is Lord , yea that he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords . Yet this Author having named him about eight and twenty times in his Book , has not vouchsafed him therein the Title of Lord or God .

He says in his Pre●ace that he is a Christian ; according to the old Distinction of believing , Credere Christum ( fu●ss● ) , and Credere in Christum , I believe he may be called a Believer of the former sort , that believes there was such a Man as he whom we call Christ . But in my Judgment he is hardly come up even to N●codemus's belief , that John 3.2 . Jesus was a Teacher come from God , or then he would not put such a doubtful Expression as , if the Gospel be Really the Word of God . But whatever he believes of him , it is plain he believes not Christ to have been the Author of what we call the Christian Religion , otherwise he would never have compared it all along with the O●gia of Bacchus , in that contemptible manner that he does .

God has promised Jam . 1.5 . to give Wisdom to them that ask it ; but there is reason to fe●r this Author is among those that call not upon God . I think he cannot be supposed at least to say the Lords Prayer , Joh . 5.23 . for our Saviour has told us that all Men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father , can he then say , Hallowed be thy Name , who makes a Coffee-house ●est of the Trinity .

I shall now proceed to shew you how he treats our Church and our Sacraments . In page 107 he says , that as far as any Church allows o● Mysteries , it is so far Antichristian , and of Kin to the Scarlet Whore . If this becomes one of his Years , or Station , or Learning , or Experience , and be not Another Dogma arising ●rom his Pride and Vanity let the World Judge .

Our Religion and Liturgy are made a part of our Laws ; and our Rubrick and our Divine Service are made Act of Parliament , viz. 2 do Elizabethae ; notwithstanding which , and even without regard of our Laws or being afraid of the Power , ( which is the Ordinance of God ) and which he ought to obey for Conscience sake , he boa●ts in defaming ou● Religion and Sacraments . Our Church , upon the Foundation of the Holy Scriptures , has declared there are two Sacraments , that they are generally ( that is , Chur . Cat . where they may be had ) necessary to Salvation , that they are ordained by Christ himself , and the means whereby we receive Grace . But this Author defeats us of all these blessed Benefits at once , by calling them Ceremonies ; which are but Rites , and generally of human Institution . But if we should say that they were of Divine Institution , as many of the Ceremonies of the Jews were , yet still as Ceremonies they are only Significative , and not Operative , as we believe , and many o● us know and have felt the holy Sacraments to be . Here also see another Instance of the Pravity of his Will , in depriving all Mankind of this Means of Grace , and of the blessed Union thereby wrought between Christ and his Members .

There are no particular Ceremonies made necessary under the Gospel ; but our Lord has made his Sacraments necessary . He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved . Mark . 16.16 . So that where Men come to the knowledge of Christ , it is not a belief alone tho never so Orthodox , no nor a good life joined to it , that will save them . For tho St. Peter declared to Cornelius that in omn● Gente , among all the Gentiles , he that fears God and works Righteousness is accepted of him , yet Cornelius must be baptized , tho he was a most devout and holy man and a Believer . Act. 10.35 And as for the Lord's Supper the Evangelists and St. Paul assure us it was ordained by our Saviour ; and that it is the means o● conveying Grace , our Saviour in the 6th Chap. of St. John's Gospel declares at large , and St. Paul also , The Bread which we break is it not the Communication ( 〈◇〉 ) of the Body of Christ . 1 Cor . 10.17 . And tho this Author labours so much to expose the solemnity of its celebration , we know that it was from the beginning the most essential part of the Christian Worship . We find the Apostles in Acts 3.1 . went up to the Temple at the hour of Prayer , to pray with the Jews ; but their breaking of Bread , this holy Communion , was 〈◇〉 in the houses , Act. 2.46 , ( not from house to house as it is improperly Translated ) the Christian Congregations , of which it is probable every one of the Apostles held one in Jerusalem in a separate house , ( for so we find when Peter got out o● Prison Acts 12.12 . he went to the house of Mark , where a Congregation were together praying , and bids them to send to James and the rest of the Apostles , that by all their Congregations of Christian Believers there might a general Thanksgiving be offered to God for his deliverance ; that 〈◇〉 is so to be rendred , I could give many undeniable Proofs out of the New Testament .