Tempt. V. When this faileth, the tempter would persuade them, that godliness is nothing but a matter of mere opinion or belief: to believe all the articles of the faith, and to be no papist nor heretic, but of true religion, and to be confident of God's mercy through Christ; for "he that believeth shall be saved," Mark xvi. 16.
Direct. V. To this you must answer, that it will not save a man, that his religion is true, unless he be true to it. Read James ii. against such a dead faith. Saving faith is the hearty entertainment of Christ as our Lord and Saviour, and the delivering up of the soul to him to be sanctified and ruled, as well as pardoned. "Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth." "He that knoweth his master's will and doth it not, shall be beaten with many stripes," Luke xii. 47. It is sad that men should think to be saved by that which will condemn them; by being of a right opinion, and a wrong conversation; by believing their duty, instead of doing it; and then presuming that Christ forgiveth them, and that their state is good. Opinion and presumption are not faith.
Tempt. VI. But, saith the tempter, holiness is the excellency of holy persons; but vulgar, unlearned people may be saved, without such high matters, which are above them.
Direct. VI. But God telleth you, that "without holiness none shall see him," Heb. xii. 14. The unlearned may be saved, but the ungodly cannot, Psal. i. 6. Holiness is to the soul, as life to the body: he that hath it not, is dead; though all have not the same degree of health: sin is sin, and hated of God, in learned or unlearned. All men have souls that need regenerating at first: and as all bodies that live, must live on the earth, by the air, and food, &c.; so all souls that live, do live upon the same God, and Christ, and heaven, by the same word and Spirit; and all this may be had by the unlearned.
Tempt. VII. But, saith the tempter, God is not so unmerciful as to damn all that are not holy: this is but talk to keep men in awe; and not to be believed.
Direct. VII. But if God's threatenings be necessary to keep men in awe, then are they necessary to be executed. For God needs not awe men by a lie. He best knows to whom he will be merciful, and how far. Did you never read, Isa. xxvii. 11, "It is a people of no understanding: therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them will show them no favour." And Psal. lix. 5, "Be not merciful to any wicked transgressors." Is he not just, as well as merciful? Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7. Do you not see that men are sick, and pained, and die, for all that God is merciful? And do not merciful judges condemn malefactors? Are not angels made devils by sin for all that God is merciful? The devil knoweth this to his sorrow. "And if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell," 2 Pet. ii. 4, will he be unjust for you?
Tempt. VIII. But Christ died for all; and God will not punish him and you both for the same fault.
Direct. VIII. Christ died so far for all that have the gospel, as to procure and seal them a free and general pardon of all their sins, if they will repent and take him for their Saviour, and so to bring salvation to their choice. But will this save the ungodly obstinate refusers? Christ died to sanctify, as well as to forgive, Eph. v. 27, and to "purify to himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works," Tit. ii. 14; and to "destroy the works of the devil," 1 John iii. 8; and to bring all men under his dominion and government, Rom. xiv. 9; Luke xix. 27. "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, the same is none of his," Rom. viii. 9.
Tempt. IX. No man can be certain of his salvation; but all must hope well: and to raise doubts in men's hearts, whether they shall be saved or no, will not help them, but puzzle them, and cast them into despair.