Precious faith considered in its nature, working, and growth

But you will say, if this be so, how can a man of reason with the Gospel before him, arrive at so great a notion of Divinity, as is before admitted? I answer, the key to open this is in the Text, the natural man cannot know the things of God, because they are spiritually discerned. A man by reason and its furniture of learning may in the perusal of the holy Scriptures gather up a world of notions, and so know the things of God notionally; but he knows them not spiritually, and by consequence not congruously to their spiritual nature. For the opening of this, we must consider, that there is in the holy Scriptures something humane, or which may be inventoried among the things of man, as the letters and words made up of them, and sentences made up of words; not as if these were not dictated exactly by God himself, but that they are common to humane and profane Authors: I mean not for the divineness of the matter, but for the phrases and forms of speech. And there is in them something Divine, or which must be computed among the things of God, as the mysteries and spiritual things themselves, which are represented by those words and phrases. I may illustrate this distinction farther by that of our Saviour, If I have told you earthly things, and you believe them not, how shall you believe, if I tell you of heavenly things, ⟨p. 23⟩Joh. 3.12. I pray, what earthly things did our Saviour tell them? was not he there preaching on that divine Theme of Regeneration? Very true, but Christ spake to them of Regeneration under the shadow of a birth and a wind, and not according to the heavenly and spiritual nature thereof in it self. Thus the words and phrases in Scripture, being of common use, are as it were humane types and shadows, but the mysteries and spiritual things themselves are altogether divine. Now to apply this distinction, reason improved, reaching to the things of man as its proper line, may know the words and sentences in Scripture, and so gather up a great notion of Divinity: But, unless enlightened by the holy Spirit, which searcheth the things of God, it goeth not beyond its own line, it knows not spiritual things spiritually. Reason without the light of faith, Take it in a Jew at a Sacrifice, and it saw the type only, and not Christ in it. Take it in a Christian at the holy Supper, and it sees only the outward elements, and discerns not the Lords body.

But you will say, if this be so, how can a man of reason with the Gospel before him, arrive at so great a notion of Divinity, as is before admitted? I answer, the key to open this is in the Text, the natural man cannot know the things of God, because they are spiritually discerned. A man by reason and its furniture of learning may in the perusal of the holy Scriptures gather up a world of notions, and so know the things of God notionally; but he knows them not spiritually, and by consequence not congruously to their spiritual nature. For the opening of this, we must consider, that there is in the holy Scriptures something humane, or which may be inventoried among the things of man, as the letters and words made up of them, and sentences made up of words; not as if these were not dictated exactly by God himself, but that they are common to humane and profane Authors: I mean not for the divineness of the matter, but for the phrases and forms of speech. And there is in them something Divine, or which must be computed among the things of God, as the mysteries and spiritual things themselves, which are represented by those words and phrases. I may illustrate this distinction farther by that of our Saviour, If I have told you earthly things, and you believe them not, how shall you believe, if I tell you of heavenly things,