A brief discourse of justification. Wherein this doctrine is plainly laid down according to…

1. That he have the understanding or apprehension of the things that are promised, and of the terms of the promise: there can be no justifying Faith without this; the object must be revealed to the man, or otherwise it can not be relied upon by him; without the knowledge he cannot close in with the good of the promise, an ignorant faith is a great contradiction: Paul knows whom he hath trusted; our Saviour Christ speaking to the woman of Samaria, tells her, John 4. 22. Ye worship ye know not what? we worship what we know: Faith is the act of a reasonable creature; now the natural motion of the will in man, is by the light of the understanding, which is to be eyes unto it, and hence Faith is said to come by hearing, Rom. 10. 17. and that there is no believing in him of whom men have not heard, ver: 14. now hearing is counted the sense of discipline, because by it the understandings of men are ⟨p. 87⟩wont to be informed in the notion of the things that they are told of:

2. That in his Judgment, he yield a credit and assent to the Truth of these things that he knows, for although an historical Faith alone, will not amount to a justifying Faith, yet there must of necessity be such a Faith in order to the other, and without this there cannot be any of that in the man.

He that doth not give credit to the truth of the promise, will never rely upon it for mercy and salvation; he that comes to God, (i. e, in Faith) must believe that he is, and that he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him, Heb, 12.6. It is therefore one great part of Gospel work, to enlighten […] understandings in the knowledge of Christ, and of the great things purchased by him to be conferred upon his people,