Reference: Christianity
Fausets
(See JESUS CHRIST.) The law and Mosaic system, though distinct from the gospel, yet clearly contemplates the new dispensation as that for which itself was the preparation. The original promise to Abraham, "in thee ... and thy seed ... shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Ge 12:3; 22:16), still awaited its fulfillment, and the law came in as the parenthesis between the promise of grace and its fulfillment in Christ the promised "seed." Ro 5:20; "the law entered (as a parenthesis, incidentally, Greek) that the offense might abound." Ga 3:8-25; "the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith; but after that, faith is come we are no longer under a schoolmaster."
Jacob's prophecy contemplated the theocratic scepter passing from Judah, when Shiloh should come as the gatherer of the peoples to Himself (Ge 49:10). Many psalms (as Psalm 2; Psalm 72; Psalm 22; Psalm 67) and all the prophets (compare Isaiah 2; Isaiah 53) look forward to the Messiah as about to introduce a new and worldwide dispensation. Nay, even Moses himself (De 18:15, etc.) announces the coming of another Lawgiver like him, about to promulgate God's new law; for to be like Moses He must be a lawgiver, and to be so He must have a new law, a fuller development of God's will, than Moses' law, its germ. Psalm 110 declared that His priesthood should be one "forever, after the order of Melchizeded" (the king of righteousness and king of peace), to which the Levitical priesthood did homage in the person of Abraham their ancestor, paying tithes to Melchizedek (compare Hebrew 6-7).
The law was the type; the gospel was the antitype (Heb 10:1-10). Christ came not to destroy it (i.e. its essence) but to fulfill (complete) it (Mt 5:17). The letter gives place to the spirit which realizes the end of the letter (2Co 3:3-18). As also Jeremiah foretells (Jer 31:31-34; compare Heb 8:4-13; 10:15-18). If Christianity had not been of God, it could never have prevailed, without human might or learning, to supersede the system of the mightiest and most civilized nations (1 Corinthians 1-2). Its miracles, its fulfillment of all prophecy, and its complete adaptation to meet man's deep spiritual needs, pardon, peace, holiness, life, immortality for soul and body, are the only reasonable account to be given of its success.
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I will bless those who bless you. I will curse whoever curses you. All the people on earth will be blessed through you.
I will bless those who bless you. I will curse whoever curses you. All the people on earth will be blessed through you.
He said: I am taking an oath on my own name, declares Jehovah, that because you have done this and have not refused to give me your son, your only son,
He said: I am taking an oath on my own name, declares Jehovah, that because you have done this and have not refused to give me your son, your only son,
The royal scepter shall not depart from Judah. His descendants will always rule. Nations will bring him tribute and bow in obedience before him. This, until Shiloh comes and all will obey him.
The royal scepter shall not depart from Judah. His descendants will always rule. Nations will bring him tribute and bow in obedience before him. This, until Shiloh comes and all will obey him.
Jehovah your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. Listen to him!
Jehovah your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. Listen to him!
The time is coming, proclaims Jehovah, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
The time is coming, proclaims Jehovah, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the promise that I made to their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of Egypt. They rejected that promise, although I was a husband to them, says Jehovah.
It will not be like the promise that I made to their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of Egypt. They rejected that promise, although I was a husband to them, says Jehovah. This is the covenant (agreement) that I will make with Israel after those days, declares Jehovah. I will put my teachings (Law) inside them. I will write those teachings (Law) on their hearts (inner man) (mind) (will) (conscience) (understanding). I will be their God, and they will be my people.
This is the covenant (agreement) that I will make with Israel after those days, declares Jehovah. I will put my teachings (Law) inside them. I will write those teachings (Law) on their hearts (inner man) (mind) (will) (conscience) (understanding). I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will each person teach his neighbors or his relatives by saying: 'Know Jehovah.' All of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me, declares Jehovah. I will forgive their wickedness and I will no longer hold (remember) their sins against them.
No longer will each person teach his neighbors or his relatives by saying: 'Know Jehovah.' All of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me, declares Jehovah. I will forgive their wickedness and I will no longer hold (remember) their sins against them.
Do not think I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I came, not to destroy, but to fulfill (perfect) (execute) (accomplish).
Do not think I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I came, not to destroy, but to fulfill (perfect) (execute) (accomplish).
The law came that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased God's loving kindness increased even more.
The law came that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased God's loving kindness increased even more.
It is known that you are a letter of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is not written on tablets of stone, but on tablets of flesh that are of the heart.
It is known that you are a letter of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is not written on tablets of stone, but on tablets of flesh that are of the heart. We have such confidence through Christ toward God.
We have such confidence through Christ toward God. We are not adequate by ourselves to account for anything. Our adequacy is from God.
We are not adequate by ourselves to account for anything. Our adequacy is from God. He also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant. This is a covenant not of the letter, but of the Spirit: for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
He also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant. This is a covenant not of the letter, but of the Spirit: for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. The ministry of death was written and engraved on stones. Glory came with it so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly upon the face of Moses. And this glory was passing away.
The ministry of death was written and engraved on stones. Glory came with it so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly upon the face of Moses. And this glory was passing away. How shall the ministry of the Spirit not be with glory?
How shall the ministry of the Spirit not be with glory? For if the ministry of condemnation has glory then the ministry of righteousness would exceed in glory.
For if the ministry of condemnation has glory then the ministry of righteousness would exceed in glory. Even what was glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the greater glory.
Even what was glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the greater glory. If that which passes away was with glory, that which remains is even more glorious.
If that which passes away was with glory, that which remains is even more glorious. Since we have such a hope we use great boldness of speech.
Since we have such a hope we use great boldness of speech. We are not like Moses, who put a veil upon his face, that the children of Israel should not look steadily on the end of that which was passing away:
We are not like Moses, who put a veil upon his face, that the children of Israel should not look steadily on the end of that which was passing away: Their minds were blinded. Until this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It is not revealed to them that Christ voided it.
Their minds were blinded. Until this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It is not revealed to them that Christ voided it. But to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies upon their heart.
But to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies upon their heart. When one turns to God, the veil is taken away.
When one turns to God, the veil is taken away. Now God is the Spirit and where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty (freedom).
Now God is the Spirit and where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty (freedom). We all, with unveiled face, behold as in a mirror the glory of God and are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, exactly as from God's Spirit.
We all, with unveiled face, behold as in a mirror the glory of God and are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, exactly as from God's Spirit.
The Scripture revealed ahead of time, that God justified the people of the nations by faith. He preached the good news beforehand to Abraham. He said: In you will all the nations be blessed.
The Scripture revealed ahead of time, that God justified the people of the nations by faith. He preached the good news beforehand to Abraham. He said: In you will all the nations be blessed. So then those who have faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham.
So then those who have faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham. Those who are of the works of the Law are under a curse. For it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the Law, by obeying them.
Those who are of the works of the Law are under a curse. For it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the Law, by obeying them. The fact that the Law justifies no man before God is evident. The righteous will live by faith.
The fact that the Law justifies no man before God is evident. The righteous will live by faith. The Law is not based on faith. He that does them will live by them.
The Law is not based on faith. He that does them will live by them. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. It is written; Cursed is everyone who is hung on a stake.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. It is written; Cursed is everyone who is hung on a stake. This way the blessing of Abraham might come upon the nations through Christ Jesus and we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
This way the blessing of Abraham might come upon the nations through Christ Jesus and we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Brothers, I speak like a man speaks: Though it is only a man's covenant, yet when it has been confirmed, no one makes it void, or adds to it.
Brothers, I speak like a man speaks: Though it is only a man's covenant, yet when it has been confirmed, no one makes it void, or adds to it. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He did not say to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to your seed, which is Christ.
The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He did not say to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to your seed, which is Christ. Now this I say: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise.
Now this I say: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. If the inheritance is based on the Law, it is no longer based on a promise. However God granted it to Abraham by means of a promise.
If the inheritance is based on the Law, it is no longer based on a promise. However God granted it to Abraham by means of a promise. What then is the law? It was added (to cause awareness of sin) because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise has been made. It was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
What then is the law? It was added (to cause awareness of sin) because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise has been made. It was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator. A mediator is not a mediator of one; but God is one.
A mediator is not a mediator of one; but God is one. Is the Law then against the promises of God? God forbid! If a law had been given which could impart life, righteousness would have been from the Law.
Is the Law then against the promises of God? God forbid! If a law had been given which could impart life, righteousness would have been from the Law. But the Scriptures shut up (imprisoned) (pictured) all things (mankind) under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
But the Scriptures shut up (imprisoned) (pictured) all things (mankind) under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came the Law held us in custody. We were locked up until faith was revealed.
But before faith came the Law held us in custody. We were locked up until faith was revealed. The Law was our schoolmaster (Greek: paedagogue: a combination of schoolmaster, instructor, servant and guardian in charge of us) to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
The Law was our schoolmaster (Greek: paedagogue: a combination of schoolmaster, instructor, servant and guardian in charge of us) to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law.
If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law. The work they do as priests is only a copy and a shadow of what is in heaven. It is the same as it was with Moses. When he was about to build the sacred tent, God told him: Be sure to make everything according to the pattern you were shown on the mountain.
The work they do as priests is only a copy and a shadow of what is in heaven. It is the same as it was with Moses. When he was about to build the sacred tent, God told him: Be sure to make everything according to the pattern you were shown on the mountain. Jesus has obtained a more excellent ministry. The covenant that he arranged between God and his people is a better one, because it is based on promises of better things.
Jesus has obtained a more excellent ministry. The covenant that he arranged between God and his people is a better one, because it is based on promises of better things. If there had been nothing wrong with the first covenant, there would not have been a need for a second one.
If there had been nothing wrong with the first covenant, there would not have been a need for a second one. God finds fault with his people and said to them: 'The time is coming,' says Jehovah, 'when I will draw up a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. (Jeremiah 31:31)
God finds fault with his people and said to them: 'The time is coming,' says Jehovah, 'when I will draw up a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. (Jeremiah 31:31) It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt. They were not faithful to the covenant I made with them, and so I paid no attention to them.
It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt. They were not faithful to the covenant I made with them, and so I paid no attention to them. This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,' said Jehovah: 'I will put my teachings (laws) in their mind, I will write them upon their hearts (deep thought) (understanding). I will be their God, and they will be my people. (Jeremiah 31:32)
This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,' said Jehovah: 'I will put my teachings (laws) in their mind, I will write them upon their hearts (deep thought) (understanding). I will be their God, and they will be my people. (Jeremiah 31:32) They will not teach a neighbor or brother saying: Know Jehovah. All will know me from the little one among them to the great among them. (Hosea 2:20)
They will not teach a neighbor or brother saying: Know Jehovah. All will know me from the little one among them to the great among them. (Hosea 2:20) I will forgive their wickedness and I will remember their sins no more.'
I will forgive their wickedness and I will remember their sins no more.' By calling this covenant new, he has made the first one old (obsolete). That which grows old and aged will soon disappear.
By calling this covenant new, he has made the first one old (obsolete). That which grows old and aged will soon disappear.
The Law is a shadow of the good things to come. It is not the actual things. The continual yearly sacrifices can never make those who worship perfect.
The Law is a shadow of the good things to come. It is not the actual things. The continual yearly sacrifices can never make those who worship perfect. If it could, it would cease to be offered. Once the worshipers were cleansed they would have no awareness of sin anymore.
If it could, it would cease to be offered. Once the worshipers were cleansed they would have no awareness of sin anymore. These sacrifices are an annual reminder of sin.
These sacrifices are an annual reminder of sin. It is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take away sins.
It is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take away sins. When Christ came into the world he said: 'Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but you have prepared a body for me.
When Christ came into the world he said: 'Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but you have prepared a body for me. You have no pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin.'
You have no pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin.' Then I said: 'I have come in the scroll of the book. It is written about me, to do your will, O God.'
Then I said: 'I have come in the scroll of the book. It is written about me, to do your will, O God.' Then he said: You did not want nor did you approve of sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin; which are offered by the Law.
Then he said: You did not want nor did you approve of sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin; which are offered by the Law. He also said: I come to do your will, O God. He takes away the first in order to establish the second.
He also said: I come to do your will, O God. He takes away the first in order to establish the second. We are sanctified by his will through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
We are sanctified by his will through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
The Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after that he said:
The Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after that he said: This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,' says Jehovah; 'I will put my laws in their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.' (Jeremiah 31:33)
This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,' says Jehovah; 'I will put my laws in their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.' (Jeremiah 31:33) I will not remember their sins and unrighteousness.
I will not remember their sins and unrighteousness. Where there is forgiveness for these, there is no more offering for sin.
Where there is forgiveness for these, there is no more offering for sin.
Hastings
When the name 'Christian' (see preceding art.) had come to be the specific designation of a follower of Jesus Christ, it was inevitable that the word 'Christianity' should sooner or later be used to denote the faith which Christians profess. The word does not occur in the NT, however, and first makes its appearance in the letters of Ignatius early in the 2nd century. But for 1800 years it has been the regular term for the religion which claims Jesus Christ as its founder, and recognizes in His Person and work the sum and substance of its beliefs.
Christianity presents itself to us under two aspects
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Woe to me! I cried. I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips (a sinner) and I live among a people of unclean (filthy) lips (speech) (language). My eyes have seen the King, Jehovah of Hosts.
She will give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus (Jehovah (YHWH) is salvation), because he will save his people from their sins.
Jesus walked all over Galilee teaching in the synagogues. He preached the Good News about the Kingdom. He also healed every kind of disease and infirmity among the people.
Do not think I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I came, not to destroy, but to fulfill (perfect) (execute) (accomplish).
You were told in the past, do not murder (kill). Any one who murders will be brought to trial.
You were told in the past, do not murder (kill). Any one who murders will be brought to trial.
You have heard it was said, 'You should not commit adultery.'
You have heard it was said, 'You should not commit adultery.'
You were also told that you should keep a promise (oath). Always keep your promises (vows) to Jehovah.
You have heard it said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
You have heard it said, 'You should love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' (Leviticus 19:18)
You have heard it said, 'You should love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' (Leviticus 19:18)
You have heard it said, 'You should love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' (Leviticus 19:18)
Be perfect (mature), even as your Father in heaven is perfect (mature). (Leviticus 19:2)
Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who calls me Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven. He who does the will of my Father in heaven will enter.
When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were astonished at what he taught.
Jesus went to all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the good news of the kingdom. He healed every sort of disease and every sort of infirmity.
The queen of the south will rise up in the judgment with this generation, and condemn it. She came from the ends of the earth to hear the Wisdom of Solomon. Someone greater than Solomon is here!
The Son of man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all who stumble others and commit lawlessness.
You are Peter (Greek: petros: piece of rock), and on this rock-mass (Greek: petra: mass of rock) (referring to Jesus) I will build my congregation. The entrance to the grave (Greek: Hades) will not have power to stop it.
If he will not listen to them, let it come to the attention of the congregation. If he will not listen to the congregation, let him be to you as a heathen and a tax collector.
They asked him: Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, to send her away?
Teacher, Moses said if a man dies having no children, his brother should marry his wife, and bring up seed for his brother.
The Pharisees were gathered together, so Jesus asked them a question.
After John was locked in prison Jesus went to Galilee and preached the Good News of God to the people.
The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost.
The true light, which gives light to every man, came into the world. (Isaiah 49:6)
You worship what you do not know. We worship what we know. Salvation is from the Jews.
Jesus responded: I speak the truth! It was not Moses who gave you the bread out of heaven. My Father gives you the true bread out of heaven.
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying: I am the light of the world. He that follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.
Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died! The prophets also died. Who do you make yourself out to be?
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another.
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another.
Jesus responded: Have I been with you so long a time and you do not know me Philip? He who has seen me has discerned (experienced) (perceived) the Father. And you say, show us the Father?
Remain with me, and I with you. The branch cannot bear fruit by itself. It must remain on the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain with me.
My Father is glorified when you bear much fruit. You will be my disciples.
This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you.
This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you.
These things I command you, that you may love one another.
Therefore let all the house of Israel know for sure that God has made that same Jesus, whom you impaled, both Lord and Christ. (Acts 10:36)
Then Peter said: Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
You killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead. We witnessed this!
More believers were added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.
Philip said: If you believe with all your heart, you may. He answered: I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Those circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of Holy Spirit was also poured out on the people of the nations.
Some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene. When they came to Antioch they spoke to the Greeks and preached the Lord Jesus.
When he found him, he brought him to Antioch. They met with the congregation for a whole year. They taught many people. The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.
You should know, men and brothers that it is through this man Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.
The unbelieving Jews stirred up the people of the nations and poisoned their minds against the brothers.
He has not left himself without witness. For he did good and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.
Paul arrived at Derbe and Lystra where he saw a disciple named Timothy. He was the son of a Jewish woman, and his father was a Greek.
He brought them out and asked: Sirs, what must I do to be saved? They said: Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your house.
Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus, and said: Men of Athens, in all things, I perceive that you are very religious.
God did this so man could seek him and might find him. He is not far from each one of us. In him we live, and move, and have our existence. Your own poets have said: For we are also his offspring.
His invisible attributes are clearly seen since the creation of the world. The things made prove His eternal power and divine nature. Mankind has no excuse, for when they knew God, they did not glorify him as God. They did not thank him and were vain in their reasoning, for their foolish hearts were darkened.
They show the work of the law written in their hearts. Their conscience also bears witness, and their thoughts accuse or excuse them.
But God demonstrates (commends) his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
While we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son. Being reconciled, we will be saved by his life.
These many members are one body in Christ, and every one, individually, is a member one of the other.
Owe no man any thing but to love one another. He that loves another has fulfilled (obeyed) the law.
Love works no ill to his neighbor. Therefore love is the law's fulfillment.
God said: Light will shine out of darkness. He shined in our hearts. He gave the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face (presence) ((person) of Jesus Christ.
God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ. He was not imputing their trespasses against them, for he had committed the word of reconciliation to us.
God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ. He was not imputing their trespasses against them, for he had committed the word of reconciliation to us.
The Law was our schoolmaster (Greek: paedagogue: a combination of schoolmaster, instructor, servant and guardian in charge of us) to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
When the full time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that he might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
In him we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.
He (God) put all things in subjection under his feet, and made him head over all things to the congregation,
May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith to the end that you will be rooted and grounded in love.
By speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in all things to him. For he, Christ, is the head.
For the husband is the head of the wife, and Christ also is the head of the congregation, he being the savior of the body.
So he will be able to present the congregation to himself as a glorious congregation, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing. It should be holy and without blemish.
Have this attitude (mind-set) (understanding) (mental state) in you that was also in Christ Jesus.
When the kindness of God our Savior, and his love toward man, appeared,
Look to (consider without distractions) Jesus, the Leader (Predecessor) and Finisher (Perfecter) of our faith. He despised the shame. He endured the stake for the joy that was set before him. Then he sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
He carried me away in spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy city Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.
Watsons
CHRISTIANITY, the religion of Christians. By Christianity is here meant, not that religious system as it may be understood and set forth in any particular society calling itself Christian; but as it is contained in the sacred books acknowledged by all these societies, or churches, and which contained the only authorized rule of faith and practice.
2. The lofty profession which Christianity makes as a religion, and the promises it holds forth to mankind, entitle it to the most serious consideration of all. For it may in truth be said, that no other religion presents itself under aspects so sublime, or such as are calculated to awaken desires and hopes so enlarged and magnificent. It not only professes to be from God, but to have been taught to men by the Son of God incarnate in our nature, the Second Person in the adorable trinity of divine Persons, "the same in substance, equal in power and glory." It declares that this divine personage is the appointed Redeemer of mankind from sin, death, and misery; that he was announced as such to our first parents upon their lapse from the innocence and blessedness of their primeval state; that he was exhibited to the faith and hope of the patriarchs in express promises; and, by the institution of sacrifices, as a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, so that man might be reconciled to God through Him, and restored to his forfeited inheritance of eternal life. It represents all former dispensations of true religion, all revelations of God's will, and all promises of grace from God to man, as emanating from the anticipated sacrifice and sacerdotal intercession of its Author, and as all preparatory to the introduction of his perfect religion; and that as to the great political movements among the nations of antiquity, the rise and fall of empires were all either remotely or proximately connected with the designs of his advent among men. It professes to have completed the former revelations of God's will and purposes; to have accomplished ancient prophecies; fulfilled ancient types; and taken up the glory of the Mosaic religion into its own "glory that excelleth;" and to contain within itself a perfect system of faith, morals, and acceptable worship. It not only exhibits so effectual a sacrifice for sin, that remission of all offences against God flows from its merits to all who heartily confide in it; but it proclaims itself to be a remedy for all the moral disorders of our fallen nature; it casts out every vice, implants every virtue, and restores man to "the image of God in which he was created," even to "righteousness and true holiness."
3. Its promises both to individuals and to society are of the largest kind. It represents its Founder as now exercising the office of the High Priest of the human race before God, and as having sat down at his right hand, a mediatorial and reconciling government being committed to him, until he shall come to judge all nations, and distribute the rewards of eternity to his followers, and inflict its never-terminating punishments upon those who reject him. By virtue of this constitution of things, it promises pardon to the guilty, of every age and country, who seek it in penitence and prayer, comfort to the afflicted and troubled, victory over the fear of death, a happy intermediate state to the disembodied spirit, and finally the resurrection of the body from the dead, and honour and immortality to be conferred upon the whole man glorified in the immediate presence of God. It holds out the loftiest hopes also to the world at large. It promises to introduce harmony among families and nations, to terminate all wars and all oppressions, and ultimately to fill the world with truth, order, and purity. It represents the present and past state of society, as in contest with its own principles of justice, mercy, and truth; but teaches the final triumph of the latter over every thing contrary to itself. It exhibits the ambition, the policy, and the restlessness of statesmen and warriors, as but the overruled instruments by which it is working out its own purposes of wisdom and benevolence; and it not only defies the proudest array of human power, but professes to subordinate it by a secret and irresistible working to its own designs. Finally, it exhibits itself as enlarging its plans, and completing its designs, by moral suasion, the evidence of its truth, and the secret divine influence which accompanies it. Such are the professions and promises of Christianity, a religion which enters into no compromise with other systems; which represents itself as the only religion now in the world having God for its author; and in his name, and by the hope of his mercy, and the terrors of his frown, it commands the obedience of faith to all people to whom it is published upon the solemn sanction, "He that believeth shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned."
4. Corresponding with these professions, which throw every other religion that pretends to offer hope to man into utter insignificance, it is allowed that the evidence of its truth ought to be adequate to sustain the weight of so vast a fabric, and that men have a right to know that they are not deluded with a grand and impressive theory, but are receiving from this professed system of truth and salvation "the true sayings of God." Such evidence it has afforded in its splendid train of MIRACLES; in its numerous appeals to the fulfilment of ancient PROPHECIES; in its own powerful INTERNAL evidence; in the INFLUENCE which it has always exercised, and continues to exert, upon the happiness of mankind; and in various collateral circumstances. Under the heads of Miracles and Prophecy, those important branches of evidence will be discussed, and to them the reader is referred. It is only necessary here to say, that the miracles to which Christianity appeals as proofs of its divine authority, are not only those which were wrought by Christ and his Apostles, but also those which took place among the patriarchs, under the law of Moses, and by the ministry of the Prophets; for the religion of those ancient times was but Christianity in its antecedent revelations. All these miracles, therefore, must be taken collectively, and present attestations of the loftiest kind, as being manifestly the work of the "finger of God," wrought under circumstances which precluded mistake, and exhibiting an immense variety, from the staying of the very wheels of the planetary system,
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Those who gladly received his word were baptized. About three thousand persons were added the same day.
Many who heard the word believed. There were about five thousand men.
The word of God increased. The number of the disciples greatly multiplied in Jerusalem. Even a great number of priests became obedient to the faith.
Saul agreed to his death. There was at that time a great persecution against the congregation at Jerusalem. All but the apostles were scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.
Saul was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. He went to the high priest.
He preached in the synagogues immediately. He preached Christ the Son of God.
At that time Herod the king mistreated those of the congregation.
Those who heard it glorified God. They said to him: You see brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews who have believed. They are all zealous for the law.