Person of Jesus shows that He, the second Adam, is the Lord from heaven. As the sun demonstrates his existence, surpassing splendour, and power by his light, heat, and attraction; so Christ demonstrates Himself to be the Sun of Righteousness by the surpassing heavenly light and splendour, and the mighty, attractive power of His Person. His sompia or God-becoming impress of majesty, sovereignty, omniscience, independence, holiness, justice, goodness, wisdom, and power, is not only a sufficient and real, but in very deed the greatest objective light and evidence imaginable.'1 In the very act of looking at Him, we see Him to be not only a reality, but a supernatural, yea, a divine Person. fine, Christ as seen in the Gospels is His own best proof, and the best proof of the supernatural and divine character of His religion.

1 Halyburton, Nature of Faith, chap. iii.

In

XI.

SOME IMPORTANT CONVERGING LINES, AND THE

ARGUMENT THEREFROM.

THE object of the present study is to adduce some important facts and elements not yet discussed, and show how they converge on and in Christianity; to prove that, according to the Theory of Probabilities, they cannot well have united in Christianity by mere chance, but only by intelligent design; and to draw the reasonable conclusion therefrom, that its origin must be supernatural and divine.

The general principle of the argument is very simple. It resolves itself very much into the commonplace question, How can we distinguish whether an object or event is the outcome of mere chance or of intelligent design? It may be that the discovery of a single element in it which looks like the adaptation of means to an end, may not exactly prove it to have been the product of intelligence. But when two such elements, and still more when three or four, are plainly discovered, the likelihood that intelligence was present becomes

Person of Jesus shows that He, the second Adam the Lord from heaven. As the sun demonstrate existence, surpassing splendour, and power by his heat, and attraction; so Christ demonstrates Hin be the Sun of Righteousness by the surpassing h light and splendour, and the mighty, attractive: His Person. 'His OsoρETEIα or God-becoming of majesty, sovereignty, omniscience, inde holiness, justice, goodness, wisdom, and pow only a sufficient and real, but in very deed t objective light and evidence imaginable.'1 I act of looking at Him, we see Him to be reality, but a supernatural, yea, a divine I fine, Christ as seen in the Gospels is Hiproof, and the best proof of the supernatural character of His religion.

1 Halyburton, Nature of Faith, chap. iii.

1

7 1

281

Abraham

the know

t to answer

Here, then, Isand or more

, and the Jews entral current of

he 'one living and temptations from I even in the midst 1 powerful tendency, ly to apostatize into ained the grand peculireason of the national ng and undeniable fact, lain it.

in the Christian line of sacred books. In this at present the Old TestaThese sacred books form a 's unity, such as is found in tation. They begin with the h goes on developing by a growth, like that of some of fifteen hundred years, until or fruit in the form of Chrisunity with one spirit and life

vastly increased. When ten or twenty or more singular elements, all converging to the same end, have been discovered, the case becomes certain. Without any doubt we take it out of the category of mere chance, and set it down as the outcome of intelligence. In what follows we mean to adduce a number of singular facts, which converge and focus in Christianity, all contributing to one and the same end, and to conclude therefrom that Christianity cannot reasonably be supposed to be the outcome of mere drift and chance, but must be regarded as the product of a divine intelligence coming down upon history from above, and working within its current.1

We have now to look at the genesis and history of Christianity, to adduce some of the suggestive features and peculiarities referred to, and to consider their natural bearing and reading.

One of these peculiarities is the monotheism of the Jewish race in which Christianity emerged. We do not enter into any discussion as to whether monotheism was the primary religion of man or not. It is plain that if it was, it did not long continue to be so. Hume holds that ‘polytheism and idolatry was and naturally must have been the first and most ancient religion of mankind.' Rawlinson says, ‘It seems impossible to maintain that men are instinctively monotheists.' 'If we are

1 See Appendix, Note XIX.