by Ahab and the people A prophet is one that is inspired by the Holy Ghost which those Men were not but by a lying spirit Now Simon Magus was no more a true Believer ver 22. than those true Prophets Nor his faith any more of the right kind than their predictions true prophecies We also find that the Scripture makes the Coming-to-pass of the thing foretold to be the evidence of a true prophet According to which Rule Persâ—verance to salvation is to demonstrate the truth of faith and where-ever this follows not there faith was but pretended They profess to know God Tit. 1. 16. 2 King 17. 32. ver 34. but in deeds do deny Him As of those Samaritans before mentioned It is said They feared the Lord and presently after that They feared not the Lord They feared him in shew but not in truth 4. The Foundation of God standeth sure having this seal The Lord knoweth them that are His 2 Tim. 2. 19. He brings it in to comfort believers touching the Sureness of their standing when others of as glorious out-sides make Shipwreck of the faith It stands sure because the Lord knoweth them that are His He knows whom He hath Chosen For whom He hath received the Attonement whom He hath Called and caused to take hold of His Covenant And these shall surely be kept Notwithstanding the wofull backslidings of others If one that believes not Now may have faith hereafter Then one that is Now a Believer may lose his faith and turn Apostate It followes not That because Christ can bind Satan and cast him out therefore Satan can do so by Christ He can come into the Devil's Nursery when He will Take a Crab-stock and transplant it and Graff it with a Noble Cyons But Satan cannot come into God's Vinyard which is a Garden enclosed and take thence What him pleaseth One who is now dead in sin may be quickened but being once alive can dye no more It is Christ's own Assertion He that liveth Joh. 11. 26. and believeth in Me shall never dye Which cannot be meant of any other but a spiritual death which is all one with losing his faith A Righteous Man may turn away from his Righteousness and that so that he shall dye for it Ezek. 18. 24. There is a twofold Righteousness 1. Moral Such as Paul had before his Conversion This a Man may continuein to the last and yet not be Saved 2. There is a Gospel Righteousness 1 Imputed This is the Righteousness of Christ by which we are Justified 2 Infused This is the Divine Nature communicated by the Spirit of Chriâ—t whereby we are Sanctified These two go inseparably and can never be lost But The Righteousness spoken of in the place objected seems to be of the former Sort viz. Moral or Outward Righteousness For Outward Conformity to the Law was the Condition of their possessing the land of Canaan with long life and prosperity in it This if they retain'd it gave them a legal Right to those Promises If they turn'd from it they ran into a forfeiture And lose it they might for they had no promise That they should abide in it But the New Covenant undertakes for That as is evident by comparing Jer. 31. 31-33 with chap. 32. 40. But if any will yet suppose The Righteous Man spoken of in that 18. of Ezek. to be meant of a true Believer there is I hope in the Answers foregoing to Solve it If any should alledg But suppose a Believer be taken away in his Sin as perhaps Josiah was and hath not time to Repent of it I Answer 1. It cannot be proved that this was the case with Josiah He probably had time sufficient between his Wounding and his Death For he was carried from Megiddo to Jerusalem before he dyed But 2. There was That in him that would have Repented and God reckons of a Man according to what he would Do It being in David's heart to build him an House it was accepted as if he had done it The Root of the matter is in every Regenerate person which if it had time would put-forth it self in fruits and therfore They shall not be dealt with as barren trees which have not that substance in them The Promise of Perseverance is not made to Faith that That shall not fail but in reference to the favour of God viz. That if Men go-on to Believe they shall abide in his love Thus to give the sense of the Promise is 1. To enervate it to make it speak but according to the Covenant of works It bereaves it wholly of that Bâ—tternes the Scripture ascribes to it in Heb. 8. 6. 2 It renders the Promise as speaking fallaciously as making shew of That it intends not It would be but as if he had said You shall keep the favour of God if you do not lose it 3. Faith is the Soul 's Coming to God Unbelief its departing from Him The Promise therefore that secures against departing from God secures your Continuance in Believing He that undertakes you shall be Crown'd doth virtually undertake for your holding-out to the end of your Race Others agen dispose Otherwise of those Promises recorded in the 36 of Ezek. and 32 of Jeremy touching Men's notdeparting from God Restraining them to the Jewish Nation and to the last Dayes To this may readily be answered 1. That the Time which then was when the Apostles wrote is called The last time 1 John 2. 18. Acts 2. 17. 2. Albeit that some particular times and persons are more peculiarly concerned in the Promises of the old Testament especially such as refer to temporal things yet is there no one Promise but in the spirituality of it belongs to Every one that belongs to Christ that is Jews in spirit No Scripture is of private Interpretation and therefore Not to be Confin'd to those particular times or persons when and to whom they were delivered They were written for the use of All 1 Cor. 10. 11. And 3. We find them accordingly apply'd in the New Testament The Promise made to Joshua touching the success of his Warfare in Canaan Josh 1. 5. with is by the Apostle applyed to Believers in general Heb. 13. 5. as an Argument against overmuch carefulness in a Married'state and for Contentedness with our present condition Isa 29. 13. with So likewise the Prophesie of Isaiah touching the hypocrites of his time is by Christ applyed to the Pharisees Math. 15. 7 8 And the Promises made to the Iews in Isa 54 13. and Ier. 31. 33 are applied to the Gentiles in John 6. 45. and Rom. 4. 15. 16. This Doctrine of Absolute Perseverance lays the Reigns of Security on the Neck of the flesh and of the old man in believers 1. This Objection is in effect the same with the first Only it speaks broader which shews That the farther Men go in opposing the Truth the worse language they give it That Many
can happen to His There can be no other Event of them but what He setly intended The least of His Purposes shall never suffer disappointment much less that great Design of Men's Salvation by the Death of Jesus Christ For 1. The Thing it self iâ— feasible Millions of Souls are gon to Heaven on His accompt 2. It was so wisely contrived That all Interests concern'd are secured and satisfied God is Just in Jâ—stifying The Sinner saved even whiles Vengeance is taken on his Sins and Christ well pleased with a Seed to serve Him 3. The way of obtainment is such as will certainly compass the End The Divine Power is engaged in it which rests not in the least on the concourse or compliance of any frustrable Instrument 4. His Heart cannot be taken off from it It is That which His blessed thoughts have run upon from Eternity and those Thoughts of His stand fast to all Generations And 5. No higher Power can supersede His Decree He is Sovereign Lord and controlleth all There he divers Arguments which readily offer to confirm the Matter in hand I. The first is from the Nature and Import of Redemption Arg. 1. It was not the mere depositing of the Ransom demanded as a pledge to secure the Creditor's Satisfaction in case the Treaty took effect Nor was it such a pledge as might be resum'd or paid-back in case it succeeded not Neither yet was the Price of that undervalue and imperfection as to need the addition of any thing from without it self to make it effectual But such a Price it was so paid so accepted and so qualified as for ever concludes all Parties and Interests concern'd in it It was in all respects Adequate to and worthy of the Purchase design'd by it Redemption is a term of large comprehension It is next to Election and carries in it All that Election hath Chosen us to It does not barely make Men Releasable or Capable of pardon but the Actual and Eternal Deliverance from Sin Satan Death and the Law together with the full and perfect Salvation of Redeemed Ones is included in it And this is not barely affirm'd but evident proof will make it good A Witness or two for each of these 1. The Redemption wrought by Christ imports Satisfaction Without this the World had not been Reconciled Nor could it be said the pleasure of the Lord had prospered in His hand But both these are affirm'd Isa 53. 10. 2 Cor. 5. 18 and 19. and Heb. 2. 17. expresly That He made Reconciliation for the Sins of the People Yea our Grand Creditour proclames Himself satisfied by His sending from Heaven to Release our Surety 2. Justification or Deliverance from Guilt Eph. 1. 7 In whom we have Redemption through His blood the forgiveness of Sins Gal. 3. 13 Christ hath Redeem'd us from the Curse of the Law being made a Curse for us He blots out the Hand-writing against us Nailing it to His Cross Col. 2. 14. 3. It imports the vanquishing and binding of the Strong Man who would not else have let-go the Prey By death He destroyed Him who had the power of death that is the Devil Heb. 2. 14. By the blood of His Cross He spoiled Principalities and Powers and triumphed over them Col. 2. 15. 4. Freedom from the power of sin Rom. 6. 6 Our old Man was Crucified with Him that henceforth we should not serve Sin Upon which it follows Sin shall not have dominion over you ver 14. 5. Inherent Holyness or Sanctification Col. 1. 21 You that were somtimes enemies in your mind now hath He reconciled in the Body of His flesh through death to present you Holy c. ver 22. We are sanctified through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ Heb. 10. 10. and Rom. 6 18 Being then made free from Sin ye became the Servants of Righteousness And that it was by virtue of Christ's death appears by ver Heb. 9. 14. 8 For if we be dead with Christ we shall also live with Him 6. It likewise imports Resurrection Joh. 6 54 55 I will raise Him at the last day For my flesh is meat indeed that is as Crucified Christ dying was the death of death Hos 13. 14. 7. It also extends to the actual possessing of Redeemed ones with blessedness and Glory Rom. 8. 30. Whâ—m He justified them He glorified Liberty of entring into the holiest is by the blood of Jesus Heb 10. 19. and Rev. 5. 9 10. That hast Redeemed us unto God by thy blood and hast made us Kings and Priests It is the voice of Those in Heaven Now All these are in Redemption they proceed out of Christ's fulness as a Redeemer And for this cause it was that Paul cared not to know any thing but Jesus Christ and Him Crucified It is true That the Resurrection of Christ His Ascention Sitting at God's right hand and Intercession have their respective influence into every of those particulars aforenamed but they all spring from His Crucifixiâ—n If He had not dyed He had not been a Priest for ever as He is after the order of Melchisedeck Heb. 9. 12. II. Another Argument is from the inestimable worth and dignity of the Ransom that was given Arg. 2. It was the life of the Son of God Matth. 20. 28. Heaven and Earth will bear no proportion in value to this price of Redemption which therefore could not be parted-with for a doubtful or uncertain Purchase In this lies the stress of the Apostle's Argument Who when He would set forth the happy estate of God's Elect and prove them above the Reach of danger He doth it in two words but very significant ones Christ hath dyed Who shall condemn It is Christ that dyed Rom. 8. 38. The Eminency of the Person and the sufferings He submitted to as they greatly illustrate His love to Men So they strongly affirm and insure the event of His death If reconciled to God by the death of His Son much more Saved by His life Rom. 5. 10. It may truly be said of every one He died for Ezek. 18. 9. He is just He shall surely live But this in the same respect and sense as those then unborn were said to be sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ Heb. 10. 10. And their Old Man to be crucified with Him Rom. 6. No Man is actually justified till he actually believes But Repentance and Faith being purchased by Christ for those He died for They shall as certainly be made to Repent and Believe as that Christ died for them Phil. 1. 29. III. The Righteousness of Christ is more prevalent and effectual to His Seed Arg. 3. than Adam's transgression was to his All his Posterity indeed fell under the Curse by it yet so that there was still through the Intervention of Grace a possibility of Release But the Righteousness of Christ hath so perfectly recovered and ' stablished His Seed that their justified '
he puts the Lord in mind of His promise to their Fathers Of His Mercy in pardoning them â—forâ—time what reflection it would have on His honour among the Egyptians If He should now destroy them c. Not a word of Complaint That first to promise and then to threaten is a senseless thing It had been senseless in Moses thus to do and in no wise consistent with His duty But more directly It were no senseless part in a Father to purchase an Office for his Son and so to settle it on him that it sâ—all not be in his own power to Reverse it And yet keeping to himself the knowledge of that Settlement propose the injoyment thereof conditionally viz. upon terms of obedience to his fathers Commands The tendency of all which is but to prove himself the Son of such a father and to Meeteâ— him for his place And the more to oblige his Son to a studious preparing himself for it to lay before him the evil and danger of a Negligent course by which if persisted in he might render himself uncapable But surely supposing this Father to have the same power over his Son as God hath over the heart and Spirit of His people He will so order him by Instruction discipline and good principles that he shall not run into a Forfeiture Besides Threatnings of Damnation are not properly appliable to Believers who know themselves so to be For he that believeth Joh. 5. 24. is passed from death to life and shall not come into Condemnation However at times for want of a thorow knowing their State unthankfulness for it or some other miscarriage they bring themselves under doubtings of it But for such as have Compleat assurance under God's hand and seal as the Objection speaks They are sealed up to the Day of Redemption Eph. 4. 30. Rom. 8. 15. with a Seal that never shall be loosed In case any person were so adjudged to Eternal life from Eternity that there is no possibility of miscarrying then there was no necessity of Christs dying for him The Assertors of Absolute Election do hold with the Scriptures That Election is in and through Christ The same Decree that ordained to Salvation ordained also the death of Christ in order thereto That God might be Just in Justifying He hath appointed us to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Thes 5. 9 10. It might be inferr'd with as much shew of Reason That if such an End be appointed to be wrought by such a Means then that Means is unnecessary to that end That if God hath Chosen Men to salvation through Sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the Truth then holiness and faith are Needless things These are absurd reasonings which the Truth never Owns We judge such an Election to be an open Enemy to Godliness For who will strain and toil himself for that which he knows he shall obtain by an easie pace The Doctrine of Conditional Election can be no friend to Godliness whatever it may pretend since all that a Man doth on that account ultimately ends in self Godliness is to Aim at God as our Chief End in all that we do Now One that holds the Elect sure of Salvation and believes himself to be one of them and yet goes on to fear God and obey Him Glorifies God more than he that performs the same duties for kind and perhaps greater in bulk in expectation of life thereby The Pharisees fasted oftner than Christ's Disciples but were not such real friends to Godliness as they Long prayers fastings and Alms-deeds are all Nothing without Love and who do you think will Love God more he that believes himself sure of God's Love unchangeably or One that holds That after all his toiling and straining he may possibly have Run in vain and lose all at last And who would think that a Master in Israel should Reason so absurdly who counts it a toil to eat his Meat when Nature requires it especially when 't is most agreeable both to his palate and constitution All the wayes of God are pleasantness to them that walk in them And these would not leave them again although their future happiness were not concerned in it If they be grievous to any it is from their unacquaintedness with His Love 1. John 5. 3. It must needs make men very remiss and loâ—se in the Service of God Christ knew that the Angels had charge over Him and that He should not dash His foot against a stone yet ne'r the less careful of His own preservation Paul was sure of the Crown of Righteousness and yet as diligent in beating down his body andâ— strain'd as hard in Running his Race as any of those who lay the stress of Salvation upon their works Such a Notion of Election layes the honour and necessity of that great Ordinance of Preaching the Gospel in the dust For if the Elect so called shall as certainly be saved by a weak simple or Corrupt Ministry and this it may be enjoyed but a day or two in all a Mans life or loosely attended upon wherein is the Ministry of the Gospel to be esteemed That peremptory Decree That Summer and Winter Day and Night shall not cease takes not away the Necessity of the Sun 's being in the World Gen 8. 22. Nor of its daily Risings Settings and various Revolutions For by these as the Necessary Means thereof must the Decree be made good So The Absoluteness of that other part of the promise That Seed time and Harvest shall not cease doth no whit discharge the Husbandman either of his ufefulness or duty but evinceth the One and inforceth the Other Giving also Encouragement to him in his Work The force of this Answer will not be evaded by alledging That God affords them Means proper and sufficient for seed time and harvest that is they have fitting Seasons with Seed-corn horses plows and other Utensils of husbandry and that 's all the Promise intends and if they improve them not the fault 's their own True it is so and they shall smart for their Neglect But what will become of the Promise and Sureness of the Covenant Therefore this is not All that God doth for Men in this point He that Decreed How long the Earth shall endure and what number of Men He will raise up upon it Did also Decree His own upholding thereof during that time and by what Means those Men should be propagated and kept alive and did accordingly put into Mankind the Principles of Self-preservation by which they are Naturally prompted to the use of them as they are to Eat Drink and Sleep He hath set the World in their heart Eccles 3. 11. As the Elect shall certainly be saved and also prepared for that Salvation so hath the Lord appointed them such a Ministry and for so long a time and their attendance thereon in such manner as best agreeth to His Own intent and which He will bless and
not lose it as some would give the sense had been a Comfortless and empty Notion and an injudicious way of speaking This is yet further confirmed by John 5. 24 He that believeth is passed from death to life and shall not come into condemnation The Reason of all which is that their Faith is founded on a Rock Math. 7 15. which Wind and Waves may beat and break themselves against But never the Rock it self nor That which is built upon it He that trusteth in the Lord is as Mount Zion which cannot be moved No Not so much as One of the stakes of that Tabernacle shall be removed Psalm 125. 1. Isa 33. 20. Chap. 45. 17 1 Pet. 2. 6. and that for ever They shall not be ashamed nor confounded World without End It would very much allay that superlative cause of Rejoycing That our Names are written in Heaven If possibly they might be blotted out agen since we find in our selves such a proneness to Revolt which every one acquainted with his own heart must acknolwedge But we are sure Christ would not propound to us a failable ground of rejoycing For that would have been an inviting us to lean on a breakable staff which kind of dependence He is evermore calling us from Believers indeed are sometimes foyl'd but never overcome Though they fall and that seaven times in a day as was said As often do they rise agen And it 's no disparagement to their leader yea it is the Glory of a General to give his enemy advantages and take them agen at his pleasure to his enemies greater confusion and overthrow Satan got nothing by his Winnowing Peter Peter lost some of his Chaff which well might be spared and the Tempter lost many an after-advantage For the World of Believers have been the warier ever since To this second sort of evidence I shall onely add That of the Holy Apostle in Rom. 8. He was perswaded that is He was throughly swayed in his faith to believe it for himself and deliver it down to the Ages to come as a Truth infallible That neither Height nor Depth Nor any other Creature shall be able to separate from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom. 8. 38 39. He reckons up all that can be named and lest any thing might have slipt him he brings in Height and Depth as being those two extreams that take in All and more than Men can think and then resolves That even These shal not be able to do it And surely if the super-celestial height of God's Holiness Nor the infra-infernal Depth of sin shall separate from that day of Glory which the sons of God were Predestinated to and for which they were both made and Redeemed called into and groan for then are Believers Roundly secur'd against final Apostacy III. A third sort of evidence for Confirmation are certain Arguments or Reasons why the Saints must needs Persevere in Faith and Holiness By this word Needs must I do not understand any other kind of necessity than well consists with perfect freedom such a Necessity as was upon Paul to preach the Gospel which was a work he rejoyced in such as was upon Jesus Christ to bring-home his sheep and to lay down his life for them Luke 12. 50. How was He streightned till it was accomplished That it was written in his heart was no hindrance to the freedom of his will The expression is well warranted also where it is said That the Scripture speaking of Judas his fact must needs be fulfilled Acts 1. 16. The first Argument Arg. I. John 1. 13. in proof of Perseverance is founded on the Saints Extract or Original They are born of God And this hath the force of a double Argument 1. As God is their Father and Eternal Root Our Saviour holds forth this Relation as the ground of our Faith in prayer Math. 6. 9. And He begins with it Himself when He prayes for His own Glory and that His Disciples might be partakers of it John 17. 1. To the same end He frequently useth that style of Father in the Gospel of John as in particular That He ascends to His Father and our Father John 20. 17. It is to strengthen our Faith in God thro' Himself on the account of His Fatherhood to us The Father loveth the Son John 3. 35. And He loves His Believers as He loveth Christ Himself Iohn 17. 23. On which ground the Apostle concludes That He cannot but give us all things else Rom. 8. 32. Believers are in truth the product of His love both in respect of Election and Regeneration and being so He cannot but have a paternal affection for them to administer to them what-ever tends to their sustentation and growth and to keep-off what ever would intercept or weaken His gracious influences towards them Having once loved them John 13. 1. He loves them for ever They may therefore be confident That what He hath begun in the Spirit He will not let end in the flesh That having begun a good work in them Phil. 1. 6. He will also perform it For As they have their spiritual Being from Him as the Father of it so 't is Natural to Him to derive his virtues into them without intermission as for a Vine to send up its sap into its own branches or the Sun to cherish the plants of its own production All the natural affections that are in Creatures towards their own are but drops of His Immense fullness A Mother may possibly forget the Child of her Womb but the Lord cannot forget His Off-spring That none may hurt them nor they themselves He will keep them night and day Isaiah 27. 3. chap. 46. 3 4. and water them every moment They are born by Him from the Belly and carried from the Womb and even to their old age He will carry them and deliver them 2. The new Creature as it comes from God so it exists in Him and lives upon Him and it is Natural to it to seek its nourishment where it had its Original Nothing can satisfie it but that great Deep from whence it sprang As a New-born child that has not the use of Reason will hunt for the breast by natural instinct and not be qulet without it As soon as ever Paul was converted Behold he prayes Acts 9. 11. Having once received the Spirit of Christ they cannot but incline after Him as Elisha did Elijah upon the casting of his Mantle on him It is natural to them 1 K. 19. 19 20. as for sparks to fly upwards They are said To be baptized with fire Not onely because of the purifying Nature of fire but in respect of its Aspiring quality it will be Mounting and not rest till it come to its own element Obstructions many it meets withall but still it presseth onwards and by degrees bears-down all afore it and carries that with it in which it