Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	bind_v	law_n	moral_a	1,736	5	9.5201	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97232	Chonoyterion he Sion. The refinement of Zion: or, The old orthodox Protestant doctrine justified, and defended against several exceptions of the Antinomians, methodically digested into questions, wherein many weighty and important cases of conscience are handled, concerning the nature of faith and repentance, or conversion to God: of his eternal love, and beholding of sin in his dearest children: of justification from eternity, of of [sic] preparations to the acceptance of Christ, of prayer for pardon of sin, and turning to God: of the gospel covenant, aud [sic] tenders of salvation, on the termes of faith and repentance. For the establishment of the scrupulous, conviction of the erroneous, and consolation of distressed consciences. By Anthony Warton, minister of the word at Breamore in Hampshire.	Warton, Anthony.	1657 (1657)	Wing W987; Thomason E914_2; ESTC R207476	171,315	250

their conversion will prove no better than that of those heathen people whom the King of Assyria 2 Kings 2.17 when he had carried away the ten Tribes brought from Babylon and other places to inhabit the Cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel For as those heathen people when one of the Priests of the captivated Israelites was by the King of Assyria sent unto them to instruct them how the God of Israel was to be worshipped are said after this to have borh worshipped the Lord and the gods of those Nations whence they came So if the Gospel only be preached to men before they have been brought by the Law to see what miserable sinners they are they hearing that Christ by his death hath redeemed us from hell and purchased Heaven for us may readily receive him for their Saviour and professe his name but so that they will still retain the same ignorant and proud conceit of their own good deeds and good deserving as they did before For so we see many of our people that are ignorant of the Law in words to acknowledge Christ for their Saviour and yet if they be asked how they hope to be saved they will tell you for their good prayers and for their good meaning and good serving of God And thus indeed all men naturally are ready to rely upon themselves until by the Law they come to see their sins and the great wrath that is hanging over their heads for them Wherefore as the Law was first given and after that man had transgressed it Gen. 3.15 the Gospel or evangelical Promise of salvation by Christ was made known unto him So the Law is first to be preached unto men and set before them as a looking-glasse that they may by comparing themselves with it see their sins and see and perceive in what a woful state and condition they are And when they are humbled and do renounce and deny themselves altogether acknowledging that if God should enter into judgement with them they must needs be damned to the everlasting torments of hell now is the Gospel to be preached unto them and Jesus Christ and the merits of his grace are in their excellency greatest luster to be set forth before them For now when they are truly humbled with the sight sense of their sins and of that woful condition wherein they are because of them they will highly esteem of Jesus Christ and long and thirst after him and desirously lay hold on him and renouncing all other means of salvation will rest themselves only on him Yea now the more miserable they see themselves to be the more will they magnifie the riches of Gods mercy in their salvation by Christ and the more ardently and affectionately will they love Christ and study and strive to be so much the more thankful unto him for their salvation all their daies For what is it that enlargeth the heart in thankfulness but an hearty acknowledgment of the greatness of the benefit that is done us As long therefore as a man is ignorant of his sins and of the danger that he is in by the means of them he can never acknowledge how greatly he is indebted and beholding unto Christ for his redemption and salvation and therefore he can never truly love him as he ought nor be truly thankful unto him You see then how necessary it is that the Law should be taught as well as the Gospel Now whereas it was objected unto me Object That the preaching of the Law was so far from preparing men for Christ that it hindred the salvation of many To this I answered Answ That if any did preach the Law alone without the Gospel or if they offer Christ unto their hearers upon condition that they do exactly fulfil the Law and so urge and presse it on them as it is the Covenant of works by the practice and performance whereof and no otherwise salvation is to be had no doubt in thus preaching the Law they may drive some into desperation and hinder others from Faith in Christ but shall never be a means of the conversion of any because no man living can observe the Law to be justified by it Yea I will say more if any do preach the Law to those who have timoratas conscientias tender and trembling consciences which are so cast down with the sight and sense of their sins that it is high time to poure the oyl of joy and the balm of the Gospel into their contrite broken hearts such undiscreet preaching of the Law cannot but be a great means to weaken Faith where it is wrought already and to hinder others from believing who by the comfortable Promises of the Gospel might be incouraged to lay hold of Christ by Faith and to cast themselves confidently on him for their salvation But though this be so yet the preaching of the Law is as necessary to humble those that see not their sins and the danger of them but live securely in them that so despairing of salvation in themselves they may seek it by Christ only Again after that men do deny themselves and their own works altogether and rely only on Christ for salvation although the Law is not to be pressed on them as it is a Covenant of works nor preached in the full latitude thereof yet that they may not turn the grace of God into lasciviousness as St. Jude speaketh but carry themselves so that they may glorifie the name of God and not cause it to be blasphemed it shall be necessary for them to set the Law before them as the Rule of their actions or as a directory according whereunto they are to frame and conform their life and conversation In this regard the moral Law for of that only I speak is not abrogated but subordinated unto the Gospel yea and after a sort incorporated into it For all the duties of the moral Law may be reduced to these three heads 1. Piety towards God 2. Justice or Righteousness towards a mans neighbour And thirdly Sobriety or temperance in ordering of himself Now all these the Gospel prescribeth and requireth as well as the Law ● 2.11.12 For as St. Paul saith the grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men to wit in the preaching of the Gospel not of the Law teaching that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godlily in this present world Thus both the Law and the Gospel do bind us to the practice of all moral duties Whereupon it is that St. Paul saith that he did herein exercise himself Acts 24.16 to have alwaies a conscience void of offence toward God Object and toward man But I know that some of those with whom I now deal will confesse that such duties are taught in the Gospel but that we are not bound to them by the Law it being wholly abrogated Answer To whom I return this answer That the

Law indeed is abrogated to Believers as it is the Covenant of works or in respect of the condemning power thereof or of any power we receive thence to do the duties therein prescribed Thus as St. Paul hath told us VVe are not under the Law but under Grace But otherwise the moral Law hath not lost its power nor its authority to bind us to to our duties that we owe to God and man For in this regard St. Paul alledgeth the authority of the Law to prove that children ought to honour their Parents Eph. 6.2 and that Christians ought by love to serve one another For saith he all the Law is fulfilled in one word Gal. 5.13.14 even in this Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self And by alike Argument from the authority of the Law he proveth that we ought to love one another Rom. 13.8 9 Owe no man any thing but to love one another for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law For this thou shalt not commit adultery thou shalt not kill thou shalt not steal thou shalt not bear false witness thou shalt not covet And if there be be any other Commandement it is briefly comprehended in this saying Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self Jam. 2.8 9 10 11. St. James also teacheth that believers are bound to the obedience of the Law when he saith If you fulfil the Royal Law according to the Scripture Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self ye do well But if ye have respect to persons ye commit sin are * If believers be not bound to the obedience of the Law they cannot thereby be convicted as transgressors though they fail never so much in the duties that are therein required convinced of the Law as transgressors c. Now let any reasonable man judge whether the Apostles of Christ would thus have alledged the Law to stir up believers to mutual love and the offices thereof if the moral Law were altogether abrogated and had no authority to bind us to the obedience of it no more than the ceremonial If any one should tell Christians that they are bound to be circumci●ed or to abstain from the eating of Swines flesh because the Ceremonial Law forbiddeth the eating of Swines flesh and commandeth every male-child to be Circumcised the eighth day every one would laugh at such reasoning as this because the Ceremonial Law is abrogated and is of no force to bind us to the obedience of it Now thus ridiculous would these men make both St. Paul and St. James to be in pressing us to love one another by that precept of the moral Law which saith Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self if the moral Law be of no authority now to bind believers to obedience but altogether abrogated as is the Ceremonial But far be it that any Christian should thus blasphemously slight or extenuate the force of the Apostles Argument It standeth us upon therefore all of us to say and to acknowledge every one 1 Cor. 9.21 for himself as St. Paul doth That he is not without Law to God but under the Law to Christ that is as it is Regula vitae et morum the Rule of our life and of our actions In this respect St. Paul said of himself That he did with his mind serve the Law of God Rom. 7.25 acknowledging that he was subject unto the direction and commanding power and authority of it And doth not St. Paul also say That the Woman that hath an husband is bound by the Law to her husband as long as he liveth Rom. 7.2 The Law therefore is not abrogated as it is the rule of righteousness whereby our actions are to be regulated but we are thus still bound unto the obedience of it SECT V. Other Objections answered whereby Mr. S. endeavoureth to prove that sinners as sinners are called to believe in Christ without any precedent Qualifications or Preparations These for the avoiding of tediousness I do divide into several ranks Object 1. That Faith is not the only work of the Gospel FIrst he objecteth thus Faith is the only work of the Gospel This is the work of God that ye believe on him whom he hath sent John 6.29 And this is his commandement that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ 1 John 3.23 Whence his Conclusion seemeth to be therefore no Preparations nor any thing else is required of us but Faith only For answer hereunto I say Object that it is one thing to say as our Saviour doth that Faith is the work of God and another thing that it is the only work of God or of the Gospel as Mr. S. avoucheth For when our Saviour saith this is the work of God that ye believe in him whom he hath sent his meaning is as St. John in the latter place alledged by him expresseth it that Faith in Jesus Christ is a work commanded and required of us by God Now so is repentance also for as St. Paul saith Acts 17.30 Now that is in these daies of grace the Lord commandeth all men every where to wit to whom the Gospel is preached to repent The Lord also in the Gospel commandeth good works as necessary effects and fruits both of Faith and Repentance For Faith worketh by love Gal. 5.6 And hereupon the Apostle saith Tit. 3.8 This is a faithful saying and these things I will that thou affirm constantly that they which have believed in God might be carefull to maintain good works these things are good and profitable unto men And afterwards ver 14. he layeth down this precept Let ours also that is believers learn to maintain good works for necessary uses that they be not unfruitful By these places it appeareth that there are other works commanded of God in the Gospel beside Faith and that as Faith hath its necessary uses so have they also theirs It doth not follow therefore because Faith is called the work of God nor because it is said this is his Commandement that we believe in his Son Jesus Christ that it is the only work of the Gospel as Mr. S. inferreth for St. John even in the place which he alledgeth speaketh the same of charity and saith 1 John 3.23 This is his Commandement that we should believe on the name of his son Jesus Christ and love one another as he gave us commandement Again Faith is also called the work of God not as if Repentance and all other good works were either to be contemned or neglected but because it is the only act or work prescribed us by God whereby we are to apprehend and receive Christ the bread of life that we may live eternally by him Christ in that chapter calleth himself the living bread which came down from Heaven 1 John 3.23 and saith that if any man eat of this bread he shall live for ever Whereas then our Saviour said unto the Jews this is the work of God

evident unto us as our severall sins do require For so it is there are hardly any of Gods Children whose consciences are not more troubled with the remembrance and remorse of some of their sins then of others It will be necessary for them therefore to pray dayly as for the pardon of their other sins so especially of these that so they may grow more and more assured of the pardon of them considering what gratious promises Christ hath made to these their paayers Verily verily I say unto you Joh. 16.23 whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name he will give it you And what things soever ye desire when ye pray Mar. 11.24 believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them Sure I am there is no man living upon the face of the earth that attaineth unto such a perfect assurance of the remission of his sins that he cannot have that assurance of his increased For all graces are here imperfect in us 2 Pet. 3.18 Whereupon we are all of us commanded to grow in grace In this regard therefore he that is most assured of the remission of his sins hath still need to pray for the pardon of them Thirdly We do all of us daily commit new sins Thirdly we have need therefore daily to solicite the Lord for the pardon of them Jam. 5.16 St. James exhorteth and stirreth us up unto this when he saith Confesse your sins one to another and pray one for another For I would know of these men what he would have us to pray for Not unlikely they will say for increase of grace to conquer and overcome our sins and for health in time of sicknesse It 's true no doubt but not for these onely but for pardon of those sins of ours which do pull down Gods judgments upon us for so he giveth us to understand when he saith Is any sick among you let him call for the Elders of the Church and let them pray for him And the prayer of faith shall save the sick and if he have committed sins they shall be forgiven him Here first the Apostle excepteth none no no not the best Christian that is but speaketh universally and saith Is Any man sick let him call for the Elders of the Church and let them pray for him Secondly he setteth down a double consequent of these their prayers when he saith the prayer of faith shall save the sick and Secondly if he have committed sins they shall be forgiven him It is most evident and manifest therefore from hence that prayer is to be made for the forgivnesse not onely of the sins of those that are unregenerate and unbelievers as St. Stephen prayed for his persecutors saying Lord lay not this sin to their Charge Acts 7.60 but as well also for the sins of believers Fourthly Lastly we are daily to pray for the pardon of our sins because the day of judgment is not yet come when Christ with his own mouth will pronounce sentence of absolution on believers and of condemnation on all unbelievers and ungodly men There is none of us I presume that will say that he is holier then Epaphroditus or that hath more assurance of his sins then he had Notwithstanding Paul as much as he commendeth him prayeth heartily for him that the Lord would shew mercy unto him at that day the day of judgment in which he should be presented and appeare before Christ Now what meaneth he hereby but that the Lord would be mercifull unto him in blotting out his sins 2 Tim. 1.18 then as St. Peter speaketh that is in passing sentence of absolution upon him See Acts 3.19 and in freeing him from the dreadful sentence of condemnation which he will then passe and pronounce on the ungodly For that there shall then be not only an execution of the sentence already given in the word but a reall judgment the Scripture maketh plain Acts 17.31 God hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousnesse by that man whom he hath Ordained 2. Tim. 4.1 that is by Jesus Christ And I Charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom St. Peter also speaking of himself and of the other Apostles saith that God commanded them to preach unto the people and to testifie that it is he Acts 10.42 that is Jesus Christ which was Ordained of God to be the judge of quick and dead Here in the courts of this world the judgment goeth before the execution followeth after the former is the act of the judge himself the other of his Ministers that do it by his Authority and never till the judgment is past So Christ himself will sit in judgment on all the world at the latter day Math. 25.31 Math. 13.41 42. but the execution of his judgment he will commit to the Angels As long therefore as we live here who seeth not that we have all need to pray that our sins may be pardoned and that we may stand in judgment at that dreadfull day when we shall appear before the judgment Seat of Christ Psal 1.5 and every one receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad 2 Cor. 5.10 SECT VI. Another Objection answered AFter I had thus finished this Question a friend of mine acquainted me with an argument drawn a Simili from a similitude which he heard a Souldier use to prove that he was not to pray for rhe pardon of his sins it was this If one give me a garment shall I still after I have it petition and pray him to give it me It were absurd so to do Seeing therefore God upon my repentance and faith in Christ hath forgiven me my sins it will be no lesse absurd in me still to pray for the pardon of them Whereunto I answer that an apt similitude doth excellently illustrate a matter after it is proved but otherwise there is little or no force in it at all of it self to prove any thing that is doubtfull or called into Question especially Si illo pede claudicat if it do halt on that foot wherein the force and strength of the Argument lieth Now so fareth it with this Similitude of his For that garment he speaketh of was absolutely given and he put into possession of it without being further bound to the performance of any thing for the time to come unlesse it were to a duty of thankfulnesse But our sins are not forgiven us absolutely by God but upon condition that we do repent and believe in Christ and pray for the pardon of them yea and this pardon is also granted not to one individuall act of repentance or of faith and prayer but to perseverance and continuance in all these as long as we live here as I have shewed already We can

teachers have revolted and departed and therefore in this perticular are but half Protestants if so much His words are these Colleg. theol 2. de faed Dei part 2. There were three conditions of the covenant of grace without which there could have been no peace between God and Man The first was That some one should be a purchaser or procurer of this peace that is a Mediator who upon a way agreed upon should make peace between God and man That way was that he should proceed or come forth from God unto mankind not only as an herald or as a Messenger between them for he could not come forth from men declaring Gods will concerning peace but that he should both pacifie Gods wrath by the dignity of his person merit and intercession and that he should also by his divine efficacy confer upon men grace righteousness and life eternal by him obtained for them The former of these was necessary in regard of Gods justice and truth the latter in regard of mens imbecility The second condition was That God for the intercession satisfaction and merit of the Mediator should receive sinners into his grace or favour of enemies should make them his friends and Sons and blesse them with eternal joy and happiness with himself The third condition was that men should acknowledge this comprehensive grace of God towards them receive by faith the benefits purchased by the Mediator offered and given in the Gospel and be thankful unto God in all holy obedience Let every one that readeth these things see and consider whether it be Protestant Doctrine to teach that there are on our part no conditions at all in the covenant of grace but that all the conditions thereof belong unto Christ as Mr. S. will have it SECT VIII That the promising or passing over of a thing not absolutely but upon a condition doth not infer merit in him that performeth the condition but is onely a bar to the injoying of the thing promised whilest the condition is not performed But against this that hath been said Object it is further thus objected If God should exact or require any thing by way of condition of us then our salvation should not be of grace but of merit But no such thing followeth hereupon Sol. for we are bound to serve and to obey God both by right of Creation and of Redemption Now what may not God require of us that which is his own yea and upon condition also of our Faith and Repentance if we will be partakers of the reward which he freely promiseth unto our obedience Methinks this should not be denyed especially seeing it is for our good that God doth offer salvation unto us upon such conditions for hereby we are stirred up to use the means of our salvation the more carefully and diligently that so we may be both for the present assured and hereafter pertakers of the thing promised to our endless comfort Again God in his Gospel requireth no other conditions of us but what we in duty are bound to perform now what can we be said to merit any thing by doing of our duty I trow not for our Saviour teacheth us when we have done all that is required of us yet to say that we are unprofitable Servants we have but done that which in duty we were bound to do Luk. 17.10 Moreover God hath elected and chosen us to the means as well as to the end for by the meanes we come to the end And hereupon it is that the end that is eternal salvation is not promised absolutely but upon condition of the means that lead unto it that is of Faith and Repentance which God of his grace worketh in us and we by the grace of God are to perform because we are elected unto them as well as to the end it self which is our eternal salvation by Christ Now that which we thus obtain by the free election of God and for the merit of Christ and not by any power of our own but by the work of his grace it would be too much pride in us to think that we do any way merit it by this that hath been said it appeareth that the thing which is made over unto us upon a condition non transit in meritum doth not become meritorious upon our performance of that condition unless it be res indebita a thing to be done by us whereunto we are not bound and unless also there be some proportion and equality between it and the reward otherwise a condition is only a barre to the receiving and injoying of the thing promised until it be fulfilled or if the condition be not fulfilled at all by us or in the time appointed and set down then we loose the thing promised and deprive our selves of it A Gentleman as I heard some few years since from a Servant of his did promise to give unto the Vicar in an impropriate Rectory that belonged unto him 40 l. per annum if he would receive it as his free gift and testifie this under his hand Now I demand whether this requiring of him to receive it as a free gift did turn it into a merit Doubtless it did not for unless the Vicar would under his hand acknowledge that he received it as a free gift he was to forfeit it and to lose it as indeed he did not because he did think that he should have merited some thing if he had fulfilled this condition but out of pertinacy and stomack because his predecessor had more or out of the pride of his heart contemning this gift as too small and mean for a man of that worth which he took himself to be Now the same is to be said concerning eternal life which God offereth unto us upon condition of our faith and repentance for the exacting of this condition doth neither make eternal life to be any whit the lesse the free gift of God nor doth it any whit diminish or destroy our bond of thankfulness to God for this his unspeakable and unconceivable blessing and benefit SECT IX Although Salvation is not promised to any but upon condition of Faith and Repentance yet the Lord hath absolutely promised to his Elect Grace to perform both these YEt notwithstanding Because I would not willingly conceal any part of the truth I do freely grant that the promises of the Lord are in some sort absolute that is in respect of the grace promised by God unto his people whereby they may be inabled to keep his Covenant and his Commandements or in respect of his spirit which he hath promised them With Dr. Field therefore and other learned Protestants I say that the promises of the Gospel are absolute in respect of the means but conditional in regard of the end Their meaning is that salvation which is the end of our hope is no where offered us but upon condition of our Faith and Repentance Where these therefore are wanting there can be no hope