Wesley Corpus

Thus their joy was made full, and their love perfected by the highest enjoyments it was here capable of Every believer finds a refreshment to his mind, far superior to all the comforts of this life. They stand in God’s presence, and have their joy made full in beholding the light of his countenance.” (Page 402.) Allow this, and we will never dispute, whether the Spirit does or does not “whisper anything to their hearts.” It is enough, that they have “the Spirit of adoption, crying in their hearts, Abba, Father;” and that this “Spirit witnesseth with their spirits that they are the children of God.” “The chief time of this agency of the Spirit is, while the Preachers are declaiming. And the people are in continual expectation of the season of power in hearing them.” (Page 38.) Yea, and reason good, if, as you affirm, “hearing is the only mean whereby God gives faith.” (Page 391.) But we do not affirm so much. We only maintain, that “faith” generally “cometh by hearing.” But you go on : “They who partake of Christ's Joy, receive the highest evidence that he is the Christ. Thus then faith is greatly confirmed by a kind of presence of its object. Their love is joyfully inflamed, and they obtain the assurance of hope, by having in themselves an experimental foretaste of their eternal enjoyment.” (Page 415.) Why, then, what are we disputing about, seeing you are 302 ANSWER TO LETTERS To now so kind as to allow, not only the possibility, but the real existence, of all that we contend for? “O, but this is not faith. Faith is quite another thing.” What is it? Let us hear your account of it. “The essence of true faith is the eternal God.” (Page 288.) “What is faith? It is the blood of Christ.” (Page 330.) Stark, staring nonsense ! Sir, you can talk sense, if you please. Why should you palm upon your readers such stuff as this? Very little better than this is your third definition: “The truth which a man believes is his faith.” (Page 301.) No, it is not; no more than the light which a man sees is his sight. You must therefore guess again. “To believe this fact, Christ rose from the dead, is faith.” (Page 169.) “Ask a man, Is the gospel true or not?