Treatise Earnest Appeal To Men Of Reason And Religion
| Author | John Wesley |
|---|---|
| Type | treatise |
| Year | None |
| Passage ID | jw-treatise-earnest-appeal-to-men-of-reason-and-religion-002 |
| Words | 396 |
Faith, according to the scriptural account, is the eye of the
new-born soul. Hereby every true believer in God “seeth
him who is invisible.” Hereby (in a more particular manner,
since life and immortality have been brought to light by the
gospel) he “seeth the light of the glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ; ” and “beholdeth what manner of love it is
which the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we,” who are
born of the Spirit, “should be called the sons of God.”
It is the car of the soul, whereby a sinner “hears the voice
of thc Son of God, and lives; ” even that voice which alone
wakes the dead, “Son, thy sins are forgiven thee.”
It is (if I may be allowed the expression) the palate of the
soul; for hereby a believer “tastes the good word, and the
powers of the world to come; ” and “hereby he both tastes and
sees that God is gracious,” yea, “and merciful to him a sinner.”
It is the feeling of the soul, whereby a believer perceives,
through the “power of the Highest overshadowing him,” both
the existence and the presence of Him in whom “he lives,
moves, and has his being; ” and indeed the whole invisible
world, the entire system of things eternal. And hereby, in
particular, he feels “the love of God shed abroad in his heart.”
8. By this faith we are saved from all uneasiness of mind,
from the anguish of a wounded spirit, from discontent, from
fear and sorrow of heart, and from that inexpressible listless
mess and weariness, both of the world and of ourselves, which
we had so helplessly laboured under for many years; especially
when we were out of the hurry of the world, and sunk into
calm reflection. In this we find that love of God, and of all
mankind, which we had elsewhere sought in vain. This we
know and feel, and therefore cannot but declare, saves every
one that partakes of it, both from sin and misery, from every
unhappy and every unholy temper. Soft peace she brings, wherever she arrives;
She builds our quiet, as she forms our lives;
Lays the rough paths of peevish nature even,
And opens in each breast a little heaven. 9. If you ask, “Why then have not all men this faith?