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if we consider first what a monstrous pitch of desperate and abandoned wickedness was necessary to carry a person the lengths he went, if he was not really what he pretended. The whole body of history cannot produce such another instance of daring impiety. For no impostor ever arrogated such high honours and characters as he does; which to think of as mere fiction and groundless pretence, is startling to human nature. To suppose a man in his senses to go on, constantly and invariably, for several years, giving out that he was the beloved Son of God; that he came down from heaven, whither he was again to return; that he had enjoyed glory with God before the world was; that he had power to forgive sin; that he was to judge the world; to hear him address the Deity as he does, John xviii. appealing to him for the truth of his pretensions, and keeping in the same strain to the last moment of his life; to suppose any man in his senses capable of all this frightful impiety, is imagining somewhat altogether unexampled, especially if we take along with it, that we have from this most impious of all impostors, the best system of laws that ever was given to the sons of men, the peculiar excellence of which, is their excluding all impiety, fraud, and secular views, teaching to avoid even the least appearance of evil, and to give up all for truth and conscience.

Again, what shadow or surmise of indirect dealing, what suspicion of any thing immoral, or unjustifiable, appears against his character? What fault were his enemies able to lay to his charge, when challenged by him, except that he had exposed their wickedness and hypocrisy? Even when Judas, who knew his whole conduct, desired to betray him, was he able to find any thing against him? Had his behaviour been at all suspicious or obnoxious, is there any reason to question whether Judas had it not in his power to have detected and informed against him? And is it to be supposed, that his inveterate wicked-ness would suffer any pretence for accusing his master, and justifying his own malice against him, to pass uninproved to the utmost?

Besides, if the author of our religion was an impostor, what was his scheme in deceiving mankind? Not any se

cular advantage: for it is notorious, that poverty, contempt, persecution, and death, were his portion, according to his own prediction; that his followers had no better treatment for the first three centuries! that the emperor Constantine's giving secular advantages to the Christians was the first blow struck to the original disinterested purity of that religion; and that from the time the world was thrust into the church, religion began to decline; which shows, that secular views were inconsistent with its true design and genius.

If it was set up with a view to worldly grandeur, how comes it every where to inculcate the contempt of riches, honours, and pleasures, and the pursuit of things, spiritual and heavenly? What steps were taken by Christ, or his followers, to aggrandize themselves? Was not, on the contrary, their practice suitable to their doctrine? Is not the whole of their character a perfect pattern of self-denial and abstinence? Who has ever convicted them of any one instance of worldly craft or design? It is certain, from all accounts, sacred and profane, that at the time of Christ's appearance in the world, there was a general expectation of the Messiah; and that the idea formed by the gross apprehensions of the people, of the character he was to appear in, was that of a great prince. What could therefore be more natural for an impostor, than to take the advantage of this prejudice, so favourable to a worldly scheme? Instead of which, we find him (and his apostles after they came once to understand the scheme he was upon) setting up on a quite different footing, the most unpopular plan that could have been thought of; disclaiming all worldly views, and declaring that their profession led directly to poverty and suffering. It is indeed evident, that considering the universal prejudice of the Jews, with respect to the character in which the Saviour of the world was to appear, it must have been impossible for a person of that nation to frame an idea of a suffering Messiah, but by inspiration, or from understanding the ancient predictions concerning him in a manner quite different from what was useful among them.

Farther; what probability is there, that he who had sagacity enough to contrive a scheme, which did in effect

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cular advantage: for it is notorious, that poverty, contempt, persecution, and death, were his portion, according to his own prediction; that his followers had no better treatment for the first three centuries! that the emperor Constantine's giving secular advantages to the Christians was the first blow struck to the original disinterested purity of that religion; and that from the time the world was thrust into the church, religion began to decline; which shows, that secular views were inconsistent with its true design and genius.

If it was set up with a view to worldly grandeur, how comes it every where to inculcate the contempt of riches, honours, and pleasures, and the pursuit of things, spiritual and heavenly? What steps were taken by Christ, or his followers, to aggrandize themselves? Was not, on the contrary, their practice suitable to their doctrine? Is not the whole of their character a perfect pattern of self-denial and abstinence? Who has ever convicted them of any one instance of worldly craft or design? It is certain, from all accounts, sacred and profane, that at the time of Christ's appearance in the world, there was a general expectation of the Messiah; and that the idea formed by the gross apprehensions of the people, of the character he was to appear in, was that of a great prince. What could therefore be more natural for an impostor, than to take the advantage of this prejudice, so favourable to a worldly scheme? Instead of which, we find him (and his apostles after they came once to understand the scheme he was upon) setting up on a quite different footing, the most unpopular plan that could have been thought of; disclaiming all worldly views, and declaring that their profession led directly to poverty and suffering. It is indeed evident, that considering the universal prejudice of the Jews, with respect to the character in which the Saviour of the world was to appear, it must have been impossible for a person of that nation to frame an idea of a suffering Messiah, but by inspiration, or from understanding the ancient predictions concerning him in a manner quite different from what was useful among them.

Farther; what probability is there, that he who had sagacity enough to contrive a scheme, which did in effect

prevail against all opposition, should yet be so imprudent as to hazard the disappointment of his whole design by overloading it with so many incumbrances? Why should he pretend to be the Son of God if it had not been true? How, indeed, could a mere human brain invent such a thought? How work out of itself the imaginations of his having enjoyed pre-existent glory with God, of his coming into the world to give his life for the life of the world; and of his being the appointed future Judge of the human race; There is something in this which lies wholly out of the way of mere humanity. And accordingly, those who heard him, at least the unprejudiced, owned that "he spoke as never man spoke." But farther; why should he forewarn his followers of the discouraging consequences of their adherance to his religion if he had been capable of deceiving? Why should he disappoint the inclinations and prejudices of the people, who wanted a worldly Messiah, if he himself aimed at worldly grandeur? Why should he prevent many from following him, who were disposed to do it, by undeceiving them, and informing them that his kingdom was not of this world? Why should he exert a supernatural power to withdraw himself from among them, when they were going to raise him to regal authority, if secular power was what he aspired after?

And, supposing Christianity an invention of later date, why should the Saviour of the world be represented, in the supposed fictitious history, as suffering a shameful death? Would it not have been more likely to take with mankind, for the inventors of the scheme to have represented the author of the religion they wanted to persuade mankind to the belief of, as a victorious prince, who had got the better of all opposition, than as one who appeared on earth in the most lowly station; despised and abused while he lived, and at last put to an infamous death between two thieves.

Let it now be considered, (if indeed it be worth while to consider what is so grossly absurd,) what possibility there is of Christ's having been an enthusiast, or phrenetic. In order to judge properly of this, let it be computed what degree of enthusiasm was necessary to bring a person to persuade himself that he was the Saviour of the

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