A26951:700
The life of faith in three parts, the first is a sermon on Heb.…
The life of faith in three parts, the first is a sermon on Heb. 11, 1, formerly preached before His Majesty, and published by his command, with another added for the fuller application : the second is instructions for confirming believers in the Christian faith : the third is directions how to live by faith, or how to exercise it upon all occasions / by Richard Baxter.
London: printed by R.W. for Nevil Simmons, 1670
Part 3 › Chapter 3: Directions to live by Faith on the Holy Ghost.
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.
Not that the Essence of God, or the person of the Holy Ghost, is capable of being contained in any place, or removing to or from a place, by local motion: But 1. The Holy Ghost is given to us Relatively, as our Covenanting Sanctifier in the Baptismal Covenant: We have a Covenant-right to him, that is, to his operations. 2. And the Spirit it self is present as the immediate Operator; not so immediate as to be without Means, but so immediately as to be no distant Agent, but by proximate attingency, not only ratione virtutis, but also ratione suppositi, performeth his operations: If you say, so he is present every where; I answer, but he is not a present Operator every where alike. We are called the Temples of the Holy Ghost, both because he buildeth us up for so holy a use, and because he also dwelleth in us, 1 Cor. 6.19.
Direct. 10. By the sanctification commonly ascribed to the Holy Ghost, is meant that recovery of the soul to God, from whom it is fallen, which consisteth in our primitive Holiness, or devotedness to God, but summarily in the Love of God, as God.
Direct. 11. And Faith in Christ is oft placed as before it, not as if the Spirit were no cause of Faith, nor as if Faith were no part of our saving special grace; nor as if any had saving Faith before they had Love to God; but because as Christ is the Mediator and way to the Father; so Faith in him is but a mediate grace to bring us up to the Love of God, which is the final perfective grace: And because, though they are inseparably complicate, yet some acts of Faith go before our special Love to God in order of nature, though some others follow after it, or go with it.
Direct. 11. And Faith in Christ is oft placed as before it, not as if the Spirit were no cause of Faith, nor as if Faith were no part of our saving special grace; nor as if any had saving Faith before they had Love to God; but because as Christ is the Mediatour and way to the Father; so Faith in him is but a mediate grace to bring us up to the Love of God, which is the final perfective grace: And because, though they are inseparably complicate, yet some acts of Faith go before our special Love to God in order of nature, though some others follow after it, or go with it.