A25294:279
The substance of Christian religion, or, A plain and easy draught of the Christian…The substance of Christian religion, or, A plain and easie draught of the Christian…
The substance of Christian religion, or, A plain and easy draught of the Christian catechism in LII lectures on chosen texts of Scripture, for each Lords-day of the year, learnedly and perspicuously illustrated with doctrines, reasons, and uses / by that reverend and worthy labourer in the Lord's vineyard, William Ames ...The substance of Christian religion, or, A plain and easie draught of the Christian catechisme in LII lectures on chosen texts of Scripture, for each Lords-day of the year, learnedly and perspicuously illustrated with doctrines, reasons, and uses / by that reverend and worthy laborer in the Lord's vineyard, William Ames ...
London: printed by T. Mabb for Thomas Davies, 1659
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Reas. 5. Lastly, all right reason confirms the same, because in all order of causes, and things existent, common reason brings us to one first cause, and to one first existence. Besides it implies a manifest contradiction, to conceive the world to have been eternal. For if the world was from eternity, then infinite days were before this day, and so these days are not yet ended, and consequently this day exists not, because it cannot exist but after the other days before it were ended, and gone. Also, if the world was from eternity, there was no one day of the world, before there was a thousand years of the same world, because in eternity no point or moment of time can be defined, before which there were not many thousand of years: But this is a manifest contradiction, that one year of the world that is made up of many days, should be together, at once with the first day; or that there is no day of any year before which there was not a thousand years; or lastly, that there were as many thousands of years already, as there were days in the world.
Reas. 5. Lastly, all right reason confirmes the same, because in all order of causes, and things existent, common reason brings us to one first cause, and to one first existence. Besides it implies a manifest contradiction, to conceive the world to have been eternal. For if the world was from eternity, then infinite dayes were before this day, and so these dayes are not yet ended, and consequently this day exists not, because it cannot exist but after the other dayes before it were ended, and gone. Also, if the world was from eternity, there was no one day of the world, before there was a thousand years of the same world, because in eternity no point or moment of time can be defined, before which there were not many thousand of years: But this is a manifest contradiction, that one year of the world that is made up of many dayes, should be together, at once with the first day; or that there is no day of any year before which there was not a thousand years; or lastly, that there were as many thousands of years already, as there were dayes in the world.
Use 1. Is of Instruction, that in this part of our faith, we study more and more solidity to ground and strengthen our selves, because this ground being well laid, our faith and affiance doth much more easily & freely make progress about all such things, as God hath revealed in his Word, that either he hath done, or will do about this world, or some parts of it, or other things that require the like might and power to that which was showed in the creation of the world.