Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	act_n	effect_n	will_n	1,670	5	6.6468	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53669	A brief declaration and vindication of the doctrine of the Trinity as also of the person and satisfaction of Christ / accommodated to the capacity and use of such as may be in danger to be seduced, and the establishment of the truth by J. Owen.	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1669 (1669)	Wing O718; ESTC R30760	85,616	276

impeach the freedom of pardon and forgiveness Whether then we respect the pardoner or the pardoned Pardon is every way free namely on the part of God who forgives and on the part of sinners that are forgiven If God now hath besides all this provided himself a Lamb for a Sacrifice if he hath in Infinite Wisdom and Grace found out a way thus freely to forgive us out sins to the praise and glory of his own Holiness Righteousness and severity against sin as well as unto the unspeakable advancement of that Grace Goodness and bounty which he immediately exerciseth in the pardon of sin are these mens eyes evil because he is good Will they not be contented to be pardoned unless they may have it at the rate of dispoiling God of his Holiness Truth Righteousness and Faithfulness And as this is certainly done by that way of pardon which these men propose no reserve in the least being made for the glory of God in those holy properties of his nature which are immediately injured and opposed by sin so that pardon it self which they pretend so to magnifie having nothing to influence it but a meer arbitrary act of Gods will is utterly d●based from its own proper worth and excellency And I shall willingly undertake to manifest that they derogate no less from Grace and Mercy in pardon than they do from the Righteousness and Holiness of God by the forgiveness which they have feigned and that in it both of them are perverted and dispoiled of all their glory But they yet say If God can freely pardon sin why doth he not do it without satisfaction if he cannot he is weaker and more imperfect than man who can do so Answ. First God cannot do many things that men can do nor that he is more imperfect than they but he cannot do them on the account of his perfection He cannot lye he cannot deny himself he cannot change which men can do and do every day Secondly To pardon sin without satisfaction in him who is absolutely Holy Righteous True and Faithful the absolute necessary supream Governour of all sinners the Author of the Law and sanction of it wherein punishment is threatned and declared is to deny himself and to do what one infinitely perfect cannot do Thirdly I ask of these men why God doth not pardon sins freely without requiring faith repentance and obedience in them that are pardoned yea as the conditions on which they may be pardoned For seeing he is so infinitely good and gracious● cannot he pardon men without prescribing such terms and conditions unto them as he knoweth that men and that incomparably the greatest number of them will never come up unto and so must of necessity perish for ever Yea but they say this cannot be neither doth this impeach the freedom of pardon For it is certain that God doth prescribe these things and yet he pardoneth freely And it would altogether unbecome the holy God to pardon sinners that continue so to live and dye in their sins But do not these men see that they have hereby given away their Cause which they contend for For if a prescription of sundry things to the sinner himself without which he shall not be pardoned do not at all impeach as they say the freedom of pardon but God may be said freely to pardon sin notwithstanding it How shall the receiving of satisfaction by another nothing a● all being required of the sinner have the least appearance of any such thing If the freedom of forgiveness consists in such a boundless notion as these men imagine it is certain that the prescribing of faith and repentance in and unto sinners antecedently to their participation of it is much more evidently contrary unto it than the receiving of satisfaction from another who is not to be pardoned can to any appear to be Secondly If it be contrary to the holiness of God to pardon any without requiring Faith Repentance and Obedience in them as it is indeed let not these persons be offended if we believe him when he so frequently declares it that it was so to remit sin without the fulfilling of his Law and satisfaction of his Justice Secondly They say There is no such thing as Justice in God requiring the punishment of sin but that that which in him requireth and calleth for the punishment of sin is his Anger and Wrath which expressions denote free Acts of his Will and not any essential properties of his nature So that God may punish sin or not punish it at his pleasure Therefore there is no Reason that he should require any satisfaction for sin seeing he may pass it by absolutely as he pleaseth Answ. Is it not strange that the great Governour the Judge of all the world which on the supposition of the Creation of it God is naturally and necessarily should not also naturally be so righteous as to do right in rendring unto every one according to his works 2. The Sanction and penalty of the Law which is the Rule of punishment was as I suppose an effect of Justice of Gods natural and essential Justice and not of his Anger or Wrath. Certainly never did any man make a Law for the Government of a people in anger Draco's Laws were not made in wrath but according to the best apprehension of right and Justice that he had though said to be written in blood And shall we think otherwise of the Law of God 3. Anger and Wrath in God express the effects of Justice and so are not meerly free acts of his will This therefore is a tottering cause that is built on the denyal of Gods Essential Righteousness But it was proved before and it is so elsewhere 3. They say that the Sacrifice of Christ was Metaphorically only so That he was a metaphorical Priest not one properly so called And therefore that his Sacrifice did not consist in his death and blood-shedding but in his appearing in Heaven upon his Ascersion presenting himself unto God in the most Holy Place not made with hands as the Mediator of the new Covenant Answ. When once these men come to this Evasion they think themselves safe and that they may go whither they will without controll For they say it is true Christ was a Priest but only he was a Metaphorical one He offered Sacrifice but it was a Metaphorical one He redeemed us but with a Metaphorical Redemption and so we are Justified thereon but with a Metaphorical Justification and so for ought I know they are like to be saved with a Metaphorical Salvation This is the substance of their plea in this matter Christ was not really a Priest but did somewhat like a Priest He offered not Sacrifice really but did somewhat that was like a Sacrifice He redeemed us not really but did somewhat that looked like Redemption And what these things are wherein their Analog●e consisteth what proportion the things that Christ hath done bare to the things that