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A63272 Scripture redemption, restrayned and limited, or, An antidote against universal redemption in ten reasons or arguments deduced from plain Scripture ... : Whereunto is added The saints declining state under gospel administrations ... / by William Troughton ... Troughton, William, 1614?-1677? 1652 (1652) Wing T2320; ESTC R33853 29,739 82

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efficacie in Christs blood for thee to comfort pacifie and save thy soul then for others that are damned That which a flords real comfort and peace is distinguishing grace and love and I pray you what distinguishing grace is there to one more then another according to the doctrine of Universal Grace and Redemption What peace joy comfort What ground of assurance can a poor soul draw from this Doctrine Herein I shall appeal to a wounded spirit a broken heart that will with meekness hearken to good counsel but as for such as go on in a way of pride and carnal presumption as I cannot but pity them so I shall not wonder though they scoff at the Doctrine of special and effectual grace and redemption special grace will not be prized by men that are full of self confidence but by the self denying soul Lastly The vigorous promoting this doctrine of universal redemption in City Country Army is a ready way to reconcile us to Rome oh what an introduction it makes what an inlet it opens to the worst of popish opinions as conditional elections See Eph. 1.4 5 9 11. 2 Tim. 1 9 Rom 9.11 1 Cor 2.14 Eph 2.1 Phil 2.13 Eph 1.18 19 Ioh 5.25 Rom 8.7 Iohn 7.44 45. Ioh 3.6 Rom 5.12 14 Psal 5.5 that somthing in the creature or done by the creature in time is the cause or condition of Gods decree in predestination That the natural man hath free will and power of himself without spiritual grace to believe in Christ to eternal life if the word of faith be morally propounded to him in the external ministry That there is no such thing as original sin and that all infants dying in infancy are saved not only the infants of believers but of Jews Turks Heathens Atheists How inconsistent this is with Antipaedo-baptisme I shall not now dispute but I suppose the most sober and rational of that judgement will easily apprehend that these two cannot hang together namely that all infants are in a covenant of grace and in a state of salvation and yet that the outward visible seale belongs not to them This opinion of universal redemption is accompanyed with that sad black See Rom 8 38 39 Ier 31.3 Ioh 13.1 Heb 8 12 Iohn 10 27 1 Iohn 5 12 1 Ioh 3 9 dismal and uncomfortable doctrine that a man may finally apostatise and fall away from a state of grace and salvation he may be a true believer a member of Christ in a state of grace and justification to day and yet a limbe of Satan and in a state of wrath and condemnation to morrow Oh how sad and uncomfortable is this to a poor soul what sad discouragements an dispondencies of spirit may this expose a broken heart unto Hence also it is that the Scriptures are debased and vilified For if Christ as mediator be savingly revealed in and by the inanimal creatures the Sun Moon Stars and fruitful seasons as one of the ablest and most daring of that way publikely affirmed in a dispute in London Mr John Goodwin in a dispute with Mr Sym now printed Is not this a ready way to render the glorious word of the Gospel contemptible and may it not well harden the Jews Turkes and Heathens and keep them off from hearing the Gospel preached to tell them that Christ dyed for every man and that salvation through Christ is revealed by Sun Moon and Stars though they have not the written words Here is a doctrine indeed that will please the papist well and therefore we need not wonder that the late innovators a As Dr Laud Mountag Cozens Pockling Heyling did contend so furiously for universal redemption freewill apostacy from grace and other points of Arminianisme and that they preserred such as incline thereunto discountenancing the most faithful and Orthodox ministers of the contrary judgement for they knew that these points would be as so many fit expedients to bring us over and reconcile us to the papacy But as this doctrine was promoted and propagated by formall superstitious men who were enemies to the power and spirit and life of godliness and the preachers and professors thereof so it was much opposed and the contrary asserted by the most reverend ministers of Christ * Preston Sibbs Bayne Hooker Twisse Pemble Ames Cotten Who have left behind them a sweet savor many of them being at rest with the Lord and for whom the whole Church of Christ have and will ever have cause to bless his name But if Christ did not dy for every man and woman in the world Object then I have no ground to believe that he dyed for me This is but a meer fiction Answer for first It is no where said in Scripture that Christ dyed for thee by name John Thomas Robert c. there is no such particular personall scripture revelation and therefore that cannot be the ground of thy faith but that which thou art bound to believe and to rest upon is that Christ dyed for all those sinners that shall truly believe on him whether Jews or Gentiles and if thou believe on him and accept him for thy Saviour Husband Lord and King and resigne up thy seif to him thou mayst then conclude to the comfort of thy soule that Christ dyed for thee and that thou shalt be saved The argument lies thus whosoever believeth on Christ shall be saved But I believe in Christ therefore I shall be saved God so loved the world Ioh. 3.16 18. that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on him should not perish but have everlasting life 1 Tim. 1.15 He that believeth on him is not condemned he that hath the Son hath life This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners By him all that believe are justified from all things Acts 13.39 from which they could not be justified by the law of Moses Secondly It belongs to the Will of God's purpose and good pleasure and is a secret voluntas propositi aut beneplaciti whom Christ dyed for in particular neither canst thou comfortably know it as to thy owne soule till thou hast a particular faith of assurance and therefore you are not to fetch the ground of your faith from thence but you are to look to the will of Gods precept commanding and incouraging you to believe they are to obey the command of God to have a respect to the generality of the offer of Grace and to this call and invitation of God in the ministry of the word Come unto me all ye that are weary and I will give you rest Mat. 11.28 Rev. 22.27 Whoever will let him take of the water of life freely This is open and revealed the other is secret and hid nor ca●t thou have a particular evidence of Christ dying for thee til the spirit of God come work special faith in thy heart and
hear and obey the voice of Christ Why then is it said Rev. 3.6 Rev. 2.19 He that hath an ear to hear let him hear what the spirit of God speaks intimating that there are not many that have a hearing ear so as to hear spiritually and savingly why doth Christ thank the Father Mat. 11.25 26. because he hath hid these things from the wise and prudent and hath revealed them to babes for so it seemed good in his sight Why is it said that the stone which the Builders refused 1 Per. 2.7 8. is made the head of the corner and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence even to them which stumble at the word being disobedient whereunto also they were appointed Oh the blindness of the heart of man Is it not plain from this Scripture if men would not shut their eys against the light that Christ so laid down his life for his sheep as that he excludes the goats If he laid down his life for them as sheep surely then that which belongs to them as such belongs only to such If for sheep as sheep then not for goats If for the elect as the elect then not for reprobates Those for whom Christ died he died for them as for their Shepherd as himself saith Iohn 10. verse 11. Now will the shepherd lay down his life for wolves who will ever remain of a wolvish nature and persecute the lambs I lay down my life saith he for my sheep He makes you see a plain division and contradistinction between his sheep and such as are not his sheep Ye believe not verse 26. because ye are not of my sheep as I told you And this is in effect as if he had said I lay down my life for my sheep only These sheep whom he laid down his life for are all his elect whether called or uncalled for there is but one shepherd and one sheepfold Other sheep I have them I must also bring and they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd The distinction here is not between believers and unbelievers as a great corrupter of Scripture would perswade us but between sheep and goats T. Moor in his Vniversality for they are called sheep who did not then actually believe nor were not actually gathered into Christ's fold verse 16. They are such as the Father gave Christ from eternity who must and shall come to Christ being drawn to him by the cords of his fathers love nor will Christ cast out them that come to him but will give them eternal life Now if these properties and priviledges appropriated to Christ's sheep can with any colour of truth be applyed to those souls that shall be damned to eternity let the godly and sober Reader judge For my own part I must profess that if there were no other Scripture besides this against Universal Redemption it should through the grace of God fortifie me against that error I come now to another Argument ARGUMENT VIII MY eighth Argument against Universal Redemption shall be taken from John 10.27 28 29. compared with John 6.39 the words be these My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand My Father which gave them me is greater then all and no man is able to pluck them out of the Fathers hand And this is the Father's will which hath sent me that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing but should raise it up again the last day Hence I may further argue thus Those whom the Father gave to the Son and for whom Christ died to them he gives eternal life none shall be able to pluck them out of his hands he must not lose one But now all the posterity of the first Adam every man and woman in the world have not eternal life they have not everlasting union and fellowship with the Son of God they have not eternal glory communicated to them And therefore it is plain that Christ did not by the counsel and appointment of God lay down his life nor give himself a ransome for every man and woman in the world Do but observe the reason why many believe not why is it Iohn 10.26 but because they are not of the number of Christ's sheep Behold here is a higher cause why men believe not to salvation and so have not eternal life then the stubbornness of man's heart though that be the only faulty cause and the only meritorious cause of damnation Deut. 29.3 4. Ye have seen all that the Lord did before your eys in the land of Egypt the signes and the miracles yet hath not the Lord given you a heart to perceive and eys to see and ears to hear unto this day And as many as are ordained unto life and no more shall believe to salvation Acts 13.48 Murmur not among your selves let it not seem strange that so few believe and come to Christ no man can come to me Ioh. 6.43 44 45. except the Father draw him every man that hath learned of the Father cometh unto me ARGUMENT IX ANother Argument or Reason against Vniversal Redemption may be grounded upon Heb. 9.12 Neither by the blood of Goats and Calves but by his own blood he entred once into the holy place having obtained eternal Redemption for us compared with 2 Thes 5.9 10. Those whom Christ hath redeemed and bought by his death and blood shed 1 Thes 1.10 Luke 1.74 75. he hath redeemed and delivered them for ever from the wrath to come That they being delivered out of the hands of their enemies might serve God without fear in righteousness and holiness all the days of their life The servant abideth not in the house for ever but the Son abideth ever Iohn 8.35 36. If Christ make you free you shall be free indeed If he purchase a liberty and freedom for you by his death it is and will be a real spititual and everlasting freedom and we being put into possession of this freedom which Christ hath undertaken to do for all them whom he dyed for shall never be brought into a state of bondage and wrath again Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear Rom. 8.15 but the spirit of Adoption whereby we cry Abba father But now all the men and women in the world are not thus everlastingly redeemed Christ hath not obtained eternal Redemption for every one for out of hell there is no redemption as Cain and Judas and the damned spirits can certainly relate Shall we say that those poor miserable souls are everlastingly redeemed who shall remain in hellish prison and bondage to eternity Oh Object But there be many who will not accept of Redemption by Christ though it be wrought for them Yea Answer but herein Christ