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clusively to the person of the Spirit, under the one name of OUR FATHER; and certainly, he also is our Father, of whom we are begotten and born, even of the Spirit: and again, as many as are LED by the SPIRIT of God, they are the SONS of God. Rom. viii. 14. See. Art. I. of this chapter.

2 Cor. i. 3.

XII.

Blessed be GOD, even the

GOD of ALL COMFORT.

If all spiritual comfort (sent from heaven) be of God, how is it consistent, that the churches had rest-walking in the COMFORT OF the HOLY GHOST,a unless the Holy Ghost be a person in the unity of God? and how can he be styled by way of eminence, THE comforter, if there be a God distinct from him, who claims that title? for then he is not the comforter, but one of the two: and two divine comforters, like two almighties, would make two Gods; which is not a principle of Christianity, but of Heathen idolatry. And the same reasoning will hold good as to another of his titles. For the Holy Ghost is called, by way of eminence,THE SPIRIT,c i. e.

a Acts ix. 3. b 'O wapanλyr✪, John xiv. 26.
c 1 John v. £

the true and principal, the head and Father of all other spirits. Yet we are told that God is a Spirita so that unless the Spirit be also God we must believe in two supreme, distinct and independent Spirits. And thus we justly argue for the divinity of Christ; that because GOD is LIGHT,b and Christ is the LIGHT. Therefore, he is and must be God; even the TRUE God,because he is the TRUE light.d

XIII.

1 Cor. ii. 11. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the SPIRIT of a man which is in HIM? EVEN SO the things of GOD knoweth (dis) none but the SPIRIT OF GOD.

The spirit of a man knows the things of a man for this reason, because it is in him. For the same reason, the Spirit of God knows the things of God, because it is in the godhead; than which nothing farther need be desired to prove the co-essentiality of the Holy Ghost.e

a John iv. 24.

b 1 John i. 5.
d Ibid. i. 9.

c John i. 4. 7, 8. & viii. 12. e The scripture uses the same preposition to denote the co-essentiality of Christ-John xiv. 11. I am (EN TØ Пarp in the Father. And xiii. 32. God shall glorify him (EN EαvTw) In himself.

If you take it otherwise, there can be no parallel between the two cases. For how strange would it be to say-the human spirit knows the things of a man, because it is in him; EVEN SO, the divine Spirit knows the things of God, because, it is out of him. This text brings the matter to a short issue. The

church affirms the Spirit to be in God, as a person of the same divine nature: the Arians deny it, and will understand him to be out of God; not a person of the divine nature, but To see one inferior to, and distinct from it.

on which side the truth lies, a man needs no - other qualification but that of faith, to receive the scripture as the infallible word of God: which the Arians, in most of their writings have freely confessed it to be. If once they come openly to deny this, they are no longer Arians, but infidels of another denomination, with whom a different course is to be taken.

XIV.

1 Cor. ii. 11. The THINGS OF GOD knoweth no man.

Ibid. vi. 14. But the natural man receiveth not the THINGS OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD.

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Here again, the scripture makes no distinc tion, farther than that of personality, between God, and the Spirit of God; but renders unto God the things that are God's, by rendering them to the Spirit, who is God.

XV.

Deut. vi. 16. and Matt. iv. 7. Thou shalt not TEMPT the LORD thy GOD.

Acts v. 9. How is it that ye have agreed to TEMPT the SPIRIT of the LORD?

The Spirit is here substituted as the object of that particular act of disobedience, of which, according to the law and the gospel, the only object is the Lord our God: therefore the Spirit is the Lord our God.

Dr. Clarke denies that in "any place of scripture there is any mention made of any SIN against the Holy Ghost but only of a BLASPHEMY."a He that can distinguish BLASPHEMY from SIN, must be an acute reasoner; when it is of all sins the greatest. But is it no SIN against the Holy Ghost to lye to him to grieve him,b or to tempt him? b Eph. iv. 30.

à S. D. p. 112.

Why then did the Lord swear in his wrath against those that grieved him, if it were no SIN? And why was that commandment given in the law, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God? And if the Spirit be tempted, is not the Spirit the object offended by that temptation? This is the very thing that learned man was afraid of. He would have proved blasphemy to be no sin, lest the Spirit should appear to be the object of sin; for that would have proved him to be God, the author and giver of the law: and that, again, would have spoiled his scripture doctrine: so the short way was to deny it.

XVI.

Gen. vi. 3. And the LORD said, MY SPIRIT shall not always strive with

man.

The Spirit of the Lord strove with the inhabitants of the old world, endeavoring to reclaim them by grace, and waiting long for their repentance. But this is called, 1 Pet. iii. 20. the long-suffering of GOD that waited in the days of Noah.

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