Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	free_a	grace_n	love_n	2,934	5	6.6495	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45835	Vindiciæ veritatis, or, An impartial account of two several disputations the one being on the 12th. and the other on the 26th of February, 1671. between Mr. Danson a non-conformist minister, and Mr. Ives, upon this question, (viz) whether the doctrine of the possibility of some true believers final apostacy, be true, or no? Published to prevent false reports. Together with an appendix; in which the said question is more fully resolved in the affirmative, and the absurd[i]t[i]es of the negative opinion detected from the pens of divers of the patrons of it. By a lover of truth and peace.; Contention for truth	Ives, Jeremiah, fl. 1653-1674.	1672 (1672)	Wing I1106A; ESTC R218068	84,282	219

disobedience we are not under Christ but under the Law but he that is freed from the Covenant of Works is freed from expecting Salvation or fearing Damnation for what he doth and p. 96 97. Lastly the Soul doth not claim his right unto any conditional Promises by his performing the Condition Nor doth he deny himself the blessing that the Promise may reach forth to him though he may be wanting in obedience to this or that Commandment This is the freedom of a christian Soul whereas another man if he have kept the Commandments and performed the Condition he then looketh for acceptance with God as if the Lord had made this promise that he that confesseth and forsaketh his sin shall find Mercy this man confesseth his sin unto God and forsaketh it and therefore he looks for mercy BUT THIS IS NOT THE MANNER OF GODS PEOPLE No marvail they cannot perish if they have a way to salvation without either confessing or forsaking sin but from such people of God whose manner is neither to confess nor forsake their sins in order to salvation or finding mercy this shall be my Letany Libera nos Domine Another like ●his we have in Mr. Bridges's Book entituled The sinfulness of Sin pag. 34. Humble your selves for your sins saith he though they be never so small but do not question your condition though your sins are NEVER SO GREAT I do not saith he speak this to those that are unconverted for they have cause to question their condition for every sin though never so small but being converted I say humble your selves for your sins though never so small but never question thy condition for ANY SIN THOUGH NEVER SO GREAT I do not wonder that men have run into Ranterism and all the abominations of the Gnosticks of old under the pretence of their being the darlings of God and favourites of the Court of Heaven having sancied they have absolue promises of Salvation and therefore have no reason to question their condition or fear their Damnation though their sins be never so great No marvail Mr. Danson in the dispute told us that True believers such as Mr. Bridges Calls onverts cannot sin as other men do for other men must question their condition though their sins be never so small as Mr. Bridges tells us but True believers and Converts must by no means question their condition though their sins be never so great Indeed if this be true I must needs confess that believers cannot sin as others do for others must fear damnation for the least sin but believers may sin cum privelegio and not fear damnation for the grossest and greatest sins though they should be Drunkards or Incestuous persons Murderers Adulterers or denyers of Jesus Christ in times of persecution to this agrees the forecited Doctor Crisp in his Sermon of Christ is the way page 36. Give me saith he a believer that hath truly set his footing upon Christ he blasphemes Christ that dares serve a writ of damnation upon that person Suppose a believer be overtaken in a gross sin Suppose it be Murder or Adultery denying of Christ or Blasphemy It is a desperate thing in any man so much as to serve a writ of Damnation upon a beliver and he doubles it with an ingemination I say unto thee whoever thou art that art ready to charge Damnation upon thy self when thou art overtaken thou dost the greatest injury to the Lord Jesus that can be for in so doing thou overthrowest the fulness of the grace of Christ It seems then that when men are believers and have once the priviledges to set their foot upon Christ as the Doctor phrases it they may after wards trample upon him and offer him the greats est indignities imaginable and not fear damnation from him Mr. Bridges and Doctor Crisp make one heart and soul at this turn for Mr. Bridges saith they must not QUESTION their condition though their sins be NEVER SO GREAT and the Doctor saith they do the greatest dishonour to Christ imaginable if they charge Damnation upon themselves though they shoula be overtaken with gross sins To this agrees the Learned Doctor Owen in his Sermon before the Parliament at Westminst Feb. 28. 1647. It is not saith he the greatness of thy sin nor thy continuance in thy sin nor thy back-sliding into sin that is the true cause of thy staggering but solely from thy unbelief This agrees with Mr. Bridges and Doctor Crisp that if they be believers and once set their footing upon Christ they need not stagger for the greatness of their sins nor their continuance in them 〈…〉 by no means after they have set their foot upon Christ they may be as bold as they please with him and sin at what rate and to what degree their lasts shall at any time pro●ence them this is but the sense sum and substance of the forecited doctrines To all this may be added some doctrins laid down in a Treatise of Justification published by Mr. Eyres with Doctor Owen's Commendatory Epistle see Chap. 12. He lays down this doctrine That in the new Covenant there is no condition required to intitle us to the blessings of it and thence he draws this Corrollary that Faith is not a condition of the new Covenant he further saith That the Elect Corinthians that were Idolaters Fornicators Thieves Covetous Drunkards Revilers and Extortioners had no more right to Salvation after their believing then they had before Then it seems they had a right to Heaven if they had died in this condition and never believed for Faith he says is no condition of the Covenant that is the doctrin and that men in the height of their impieties and excess of wickedness have if Elected as much right to Heaven then as when converted that is the application so that if they can set foot upon Christ by Election they may be saved though they dye unbelievers for Faith he saith is no condition of it Somewhat to this purpose Mr. Edward Bagshaw dogmatizeth in his book Intituled The Doctrine of free Grace in pardoning Sin without conditions page 25. he explains himself what he means by free Grace By free here I do not mean free as excluding Christ but as excluding our selves or any thing we can do as a cause procuring or as a condition qualifying us for the receiving of it Lord Whether will these opinions lead us or rather whether will they not lead us sometimes they tell us if we are believers we need not question our condition though our sins are never so great Now we are told that if we are Elected we are well enough for Faith is no condition of the covenant of Grace and that we are no nearer Salvation after we believe then we were before for that is the sense for saith he The Elect Corinthians had no more right to Heaven after their believing then they had while they were unbelievers Whoremongers and Adulterers Thus they make even our

of Mr. Ives's perswasion about the matter debated speak not one word either by way of interruption or meddling with the question in debate nor by way of tumultuous or any other disorderly carriage did they appear to disturb the audience Unless one person who was desired being nearer the light to read a passage in Mr. Danson's book which Mr. Ives could not so well see to do Vale I should not have ventured to have published this it looks so like partiality but that it was ● thing publickly taken notice of in the dispute by Mr. Ives who did mention it to Mr. Danson as a thing praise worthy in his Friends for which he then gave them publick thank as ●ny one can witness that was there present AN APPENDIX Reader THat many Godly and Righteous Men in these late times have held and believed That it is impossible for any True believer to cease to be such and fall away and perish I do not deny I am also sensible that their perswasion in this matter is grounded as they think either upon Gods Election the Scripture Promises and Christ's Prayers or else upon the absurd consequences that follow upon the contrary opinion Now as touching Gods Election I shall freely grant and it may easily be assented too that those whom God hath from the beginning chose to Salvation through the sanctification of the Spirit and the belief of the truth shall never finally fall away and perish according to 2 Thes 2.13 but though this be granted yet it doth not follow from hence that no True believer or that none who sincerely believe can finally fall away and in this case let Mr. Baxter who in this point discents from me speak for me I dare not saith he say I am certain that all who do sincerely believe and are justified are Elected to Salvation and shall never finally fall away It is my opinion saith he but I dare not put it in my Creed c. I know saith he how learned and godly Men do differ from me and deny the certainty of perseverance I know how many sad and shaking examples these times have afforded and therefore I am not certain properly strictly certain of my perseverance and so not fully strictly certain of my Salvation See Mr. Baxter's directions page 16. And in the end of his Appology I am not saith he So certain of this doctrine of perseverance as I am that Christ is the Son of God and the Redeemer of the World I never saith he found the doctrine of certain perseverance in any Creed of the Church I hope none dare say that all the Lutherans Arminians and Anabaptists who are otherwise minded are no Christians much less in the first Ages of the Christian Church which thought otherwise And again in his account of his thoughts touching perseverance Page 5. he saith That it was the judgment of St. Augustin that though the Elect should never fall away finally yet he also believed and was perswaded that some that were effectually called regenerated and justified might fall away and perish And further in the same page he faith That because some are so immodest as to question whether this was St. Augustin's opinion I add further that I did ask the Reverend Bishop ●●sher in the hearing of Dr. Kendal whether this was not plainly the judgment of Augustin and he answered undoubtedly it was and further saith he Bishop Usher was as likely to know as any man I am capable of consulting with and if any be still in doubt the passages following which are transcribed out of St. Augustine may end his doubts August de bono persever Capt. 8. 9 ex duobus autem piis cur huic donetur perseverantia usque in ●●nem illi autem non donetur instructabil●ora sunt judicia dei That of two both being GODLY perseverance unto the end should be given to the one and NOT GIVEN UNTO THE OTHER belongs to the unsearchable judgments of God Again Propter hoc Apostolus com dixisfet c. For this cause the Apostle when be had said We know that all things work together for good to those that love God knowing that some LOVE GOD WHO DO NOT PERSEVERE in this good Mr. Baxter in the last forecited book of perseverance tells us page 16. That though he presumes in this point to discent from Augustin and the COMMON judgment of the teachers of that and MANY former and later ages yet saith he I find my self obliged by the reverence of such contradicting Authority and forced also by the consciousness of my Ignorance to suspect my own understanding and dissent with modesty honourring the contrary minded and being willing to receive any further evidence c. and page 17. I dare not say that I have attained to a certainty in understanding this point c all the texts of Scripture that concern it better then St. Augustin and the common judgment of the Church for so many ages and therefore I dare not say that I have attained to a certainty that all the justified shall persevere and further in the same page that can be no very easie point which ALL or ALMOST ALL THE CHURCH FOR SO MANY AGES and which not only most of the Christians of the World but also so many Nations of Protestants themselves do erre in and which the choicest Men for learning and disigence and those that were the leaders in defending the grace of God against Pelagius as Augustin and others and besides abundance of Protestant Divines could never attain the understanding of but resisted the contrary opinion meaning that it was possible for any True believer to fall away findly As error yea when they were and are as holy as we and so as like to have divine Illumination all this being in the case it seemeth to be high self-conceited arrogancy for such a one as I to profess such a point to be so evident and easie and to imagine that ALL THE MOST HOLY and JUDICIOUS writers for so MANY AGES and SO MANY at this day are so far below me in the understanding the Scriptures and that even in points which they had so much occasion to search into and so many and great advantages to understand I do not saith he I dare not presume of this thus far and much farther to the same purpose the learned though in this point the dissenting Mr. Baxter in his book of the Sain●s Perseverance so that not only from Scripture but from the general consent of all Antiquity the docrin of the possibility of some ●rue believers falling from Grace finally may consist with an election of Grace and Gods choosing men from the beginning through the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth from whence we may see that though there is a number that shall certainly be saved according to an election of Grace yet there may also be many that may have true justifying Faith that may fall away and perish who never