The saints everlasting rest, or, A treatise of the blessed state of the saints in their enjoyment of God in glory wherein is shewed its excellency and certainty, the misery of those that lose it, the way to attain it, and assurance of it, and how to live in the continual delightful forecasts of it and now published by Richard Baxter ...

* 1.1SECT. V.

2. ANd as I have evideently discovered the full certainty of this Testimony of man concerning the forementioned matter of Fact: So I will shew you why I chuse this for my first and main Argument; and also that no man can believe without the fore∣said Humane Testimony. First then, I demanded with my self; By what Argument did Moses and Christ evince to the world the verity of their Doctrine? And I finde, it was chiefly by this of Miracles; and sure Christ knew the best Argument to prove the di∣vine Authority of his Doctrine, and that which was the best then, is the best still. If our selves had lived in the dayes of Christ, should we have believed a poor man to have been God, the Saviour, the Judg of the world, without Miracles to prove this to us? Nay, would it have been our duty to have believed? Doth not Christ say, If I had not done the Works that no man else could do, ye had not had sin? That is, Your not believing me to be the Messias, had been no sin: For no man is bound to believe that which was never con∣vincingly revealed:* 1.2 And (to tell you my thoughts, If you will but pardon the novelty of the Interpretation) I think that this is it which is called the sin against the Holy Ghost, when men will not be convinced by Miracles, that Jesus is the Christ. That which some Divines judg to be the sin against the Holy Ghost (an op∣posing the known Truth onely out of malice against it) Its a Question whether Humane Nature be capable of it. And whether all Humane opposition to Truth be not through ignorance, or pre∣valency of the sensual lusts? And so all malice against Truth, is one∣ly against it as conceived to be Falshood, or else as it appeareth an enemy to our sensual desires; Else how doth mans Understanding, as it is an Understanding, naturally chuse Truth (either real or appearing) for its object? So that I think none can be guilty of malice against Truth as Truth; And to be at emnity with Truth for opposing our sensuality, is a sin that every man in the world hath been in some measure guilty of: And indeed our Divines do so define the sin against the Holy Ghost, that I could

never yet understand by their definition what it might be: some placing it in an Act incompatible with the Rational soul; and others making it but gradually to differ from other sins, * 1.3 which hath cast so many into terror of soul, because they could never finde out that graduall difference.

The sense of the place (which the whole context if you view it deliberately will shew you, seems to me to be this; As if Christ had said; While you believed not the Testimony of the Pro∣phets, yet there was hope: The Testimony of John Baptist might have convinced you; yea, when you believed not John, yet you might have been convinced by my own Doctrine: Yea, though you did not believe my Doctrine, yet there was hope you might have been convinced by my Miracles: But when you accuse them to be the works of Beelzebub, and ascribe the work of the Divine Power, or Spirit, to the Prince of Devils, what more hope? I will after my Ascention send the Holy Ghost upon my Disciples, that they may work Miracles to convince the world, that they who will believe no other Testimony, may yet through this believe; But if you sin against this Holy Ghost (that is, if they will not believe for all these Miracles) (for the Scripture frequently calls▪ Faith by the name of Obedience, and Un∣belief by the name of sin,) there is no other more con∣vincing Testimony left, and so their sin of (unbelief) is in∣curable, and consequently unpardonable: And therefore he that speaketh against the son of Man (that is, denieth his Testimony of himself) it shall be forgiven him (if he yet believe by this Testimony of the Spirit) but they that con∣tinue unbelievers for all this (and so reproach the Testimony that should convince them, as you do) shall never be for∣given (because they cannot perform the condition of forgiveness.)

This I think to be the sense of the Text; And the rather when I consider what sin it was that these Pharisees committed; for sure that which is commonly judged to be the sin against the Holy Ghost, I no where finde that Christ doth accuse them of; but the Scripture seemeth to speak on the contrary a 1.4 that through ignorance they did it, b 1.5 for had they known they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. And indeed it is a thing to me altogether incredible, that these Pharisees should know Christ to be the Messiah whom they so desirously expected, and to

be the Son of God, and judg of all men, and yet to crucifie him through meer malice: charge them not with this, till you can shew some Scripture that chargeth them with it.

Obiect. Why then there is no sin against the Holy Ghost now Miracles are ceased.

Answ. Yes: though the Miracles are ceased, yet their * 1.6 Testi∣mony doth still live. The death and Resurrection of Christ are past, and yet men may sin against that death and Resurrection. So that I think when men will not believe that Jesus is the Christ, though they are convinced by undeniable Arguments, of the Miracles which both himself and his disciples wrought, this is now the sin against the Holy Ghost. And therefore take heed of slight∣ing this argument.

Notes

• * 1.1

  §. 5.
• * 1.2

  What the sin against the Holy Ghost is.
• * 1.3

  How Hun∣nius was as∣saulted with this tempta∣tion [that he had sinned a∣gainst the ho∣ly Ghost] you may read in his life and death.

  And it is stil a common temptation. Matth. 12.24. &c. Mar 3.28. Joh 5.39 33. 45, 46, 47. Joh. 15 22.24.
• a 1.4

  Act 3.17.
• b 1.5

  1 Cor. 2.8.
• * 1.6

  Nunc non ut olim sunt necessaria miracula: pri∣usquam crede∣ret mundus ne∣cessaria fuere ad hoc, ut mundus crede∣ret, ut August de Civit. Dei. lib. 22. c. 8.