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A48461 A treatise of particular predestination vvherein ar[e] answered three letters. 1. Tending to disprove particular predestination. 2. To shew the contradiction betwixt Christ dying for all, and Gods election of some. 3. To prove that the soule doth not come from the parent, and consequently that there is no originall sinne. By Thomas Lamb. Lamb, Thomas, d. 1686. 1642 (1642) Wing L212A; ESTC R216650 13,022 22

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A TREATISE OF PARTICVLAR PREDESTINATION VVherein ar● answered three Letters 1. Tending to disprove particular Predestination 2. To shew the contradiction betwixt Christ dying for all and Gods Election of some 3. To prove that the soule doth not come from the parent and consequently that there is no Originall sinne By THOMAS LAMB LONDON Printed in the yeare 1642. To the unpartiall Reader Grace and Peace Courteous Reader FOr as much as the glory of God ought to bee most deare in our eyes which wee ought to seeke and preferre more then our lives I could not with good conscience and reason but publish these few lines following especially being earnestly desired by some of my deare friends and the reasons are Reas 1 first because the truth of the Gospell which holds forth Christs giving himselfe a ransome for all men 1. Tim. 2.6 A propitiation for the sinnes of the whole world 1 Iohn 2.2 and that he tasted death for every man Heb. 2.9 which is such a glorious truth as without which first the Gospell of Gods free grace cannot bee preached to all men secondly neither can wicked men nor unbelievers be required to believe and thirdly neither can the not beleeving in Christ be concluded to be a sinne all which being professed by the people of God who desire in all sincerity to walke in all the wayes of God and to bee led wholy by the rule of his word what ever the hazard be thereby they are thereby scandalized to hold free-will and to denie particular election of persons and persons hereby kept from the truth to the end therefore that these stumbling blockes might be taken out of the way these following lines doe manifestly declare Christs dying for all and particular Election to stand together which therefore can be no let to hinder people from the wayes of God nor yet from discerning this particular truth of Christs dying for all the excellency whereof none can prize but those that know it the which excellency if others could know I am confident they would not bee such enemies to their owne soules as to slight it Reas 2 2. Because those that do deny particular election doe presse upon us as if we were behind hand to defend our selves and our principles against them wheras it is manifest and they know it to be true that they have had these three Letters in way of answer to their Letters and have made no reply and therefore to the end that it might appeare that we doe not comply with them secondly that we are not behind hand to defend our selves against them and thirdly that we might provoke them to reply and to manifest their reasons to publicke view if they have any for the defence of themselves in answer to what I have written to them which I conceive they cannot doe I have therefore adventured to put forth the same to prove whether they can or not and lastly conceiving that some may be staggering and not so well established as were to be wished and conceiving that these may be some stay to them and meanes to give them further light then yet they have which if they lie in obscurity would doe no such good for whose sakes in speciall J doe endeavour that they should bave this for present till further occasions bring forth further labours accept therefore I intreat you in love this small endeavour read it over with earnest intention meditate of it and trie it by the Scriptures with pious devotion and if any good light and divine knowledge comes to thee by it I shall have my desire give God the glory of it let me have the benefit of thy faithfull and fervent prayers and I shall ever rest Thine in any service of love to my power THOMAS LAMBE AN ANSVVER TO A short writing for the disproving of particular Predestination made by T. S. in which answer particular Predestination is cleared and proved by T. L. IT is said that God hath predestinated that those that will beleeve in Christ shall bee saved and those that will not shall be damned To which I answer that this is to short a description of Predestination because Predestination is not a conditionall but an absolute Decree as the Scripture holds it forth Rom. 8.30 In which place two things are to be noted and the first is the definition of the Subjects of predestination and they are onely those which are in time called justified and glorified and the second is the order of the causes where we are to note that glorification is not the cause of our Justification but Iustification is the cause of glorification so likewise Justification is not the cause of vocation but vocation is the cause of Iustification so likewise vocation is not the cause of Predestination but Predestination is the cause of Vacation and there is no cause of Predestination but the meere will of God and therefore Predestination is absolute not conditionall promises and threatnings may be found conditionall but a conditionall decree the Scripture maintaineth not And where it is further said that many doe affirme that God hath decreed some to doe wickedly and so to fall under condemnation I answer that God hath decreed to permit some to doe wickedly and to refuse grace and accordingly to pun●sh them and to prevent others and to create them in Christ Iesus Ephes 2.10 unto good workes and accordingly to save them and to this accords Rom. 9.22.23 what and if God will to declare his wrath and make his power knowne suffer with long patience the vessels of wrath prepared or fitted to destruction that hee might declare the riches of his mercy upon the vessels of mercy which he hath prepared unto Glory and they have not prepared themselves thereunto Now to disprove this kind of Predestination something is said concerning Adam how that he was created after the Image of God in the faculties of his soule and disposition of his body and set by God in the Garden of Eden who gave him a Law concerning the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evill decreeing that if he did obey he should live but if hee did eat he should die and that although God foresaw that Adam would break his Law yet it will not follow that God decreed he should break it To which I answer that it doth follow that God decreed hee should break it else he would not have suffered him to break it having power to hinder him if it were his will hee could easily doe it but he will not therefore it is his will to permit Adam to break his Law And where it is said that if it were so then Adam had no meanes to resist sinne I answer I deny the consequence for it doth no more follow that Gods Decree that Adam would or should certainly fall by his permission doth take from Adam power of resistance of sinne then Gods infallible foresight th●● Adam would fall doth the later you grant and prove Acts 15.18
therefore the former stands upon the same ground And whereas it is said that if Adam had resisted the Tempter and stood he had crossed the decree of God which is impossible because Gods Decree is unalterable I answere and affirme the like of his prescience or foreknowledge which is as infallible as his decree for if Adam had resisted the tempter and had stood God had beene deceived in his foresight concerning his fall and this Argument is as much as if the skie fall wee shall have Larkes but it doth not fall and therefore they be not easily had And where it is further said that if it should bee granted that God decreed that Adam should eat and die and yet commanded him that hee should not eat to the end that hee might live this were to make the Lord contrary to himselfe I answer denying the consequence for these things are not contrary namely for God to command Adam not to eat as having Authority so to doe to the end hee might trie his willing obedience and in case he fell to discover the hainousnesse of his sinne and disobedience and God foreseeing hee would fall to permit him so to doe is no contradiction at all but a pure truth for if men were elected in Christ before the foundation of the world then was the fall presupposed and that they were so Paul affirmeth it Ephes 1.3.4 and therefore in this point there is no danger at all And where it is further said if there were no such decree concerning Adam then not concerning his posterity neither To which I answer that there is such a Decree concerning Adam to permit him to doe the evill which was forbidden Ergo there is such a Decree concerning his posterity Also to permit them to doe those things which they doe that are forbidden And whereas it is further said that if any still will hold that God decreed any mans condemnation then it is for transgression of the Law which no man could doe before he was created I answer that although no man could transgresse the Law befor hee was created yet God could foresee that man would transgresse a Law before man was created and decreed to suffer him so to doe and decreed to punish him accordingly And wherereas it is further demanded whether God decreed the condemnation of Adams person and supposed the answer will be no because God decreed to send his sonne to redeeme him from Death and if him why not all his Posterity seeing it is written Ioh. 3.16 That God so loved the World that he gave his onely begotten Sonne that whosoever beleeved in him should not perish but have Everlasting Life To which I answer that it doth not follow from hence that God hath decreed to doe for all alike in causing of them to beleeve Ezek. 3.6.7 Mat. 11.21 for though it may be concluded that God gave Christ and Christ gave himselfe for all alike yet he doth not give the Doctrine of the same to all alike Ephes 2.8 Phil. 1.28 much lesse doth he give Faith which is the effect of the same Doctrine to all alike and therefore is said to be the gift of God not in common as the Preaching is but in speciall and peculiar as the Election is Rom. 11.7 and therefore true Faith is called the Faith of Gods elect Tit. 1.1 given onely to some and not to others Mat. 13.11 as being those that are Predestinated and therefore effectually called justified and glorified Rom. 8.30 but others he suffers to walke in their owne wayes Act. 14.16 as the Vessels of wrath fitted to destruction Rom. 9.22 And the Reprobates and wicked of the World could not do such wickednesse as they doe but that it pleaseth God to suffer such dishonourable wayes and practises to be for a time as knowing how to bring forth his owne glory in their just deserved damnation But he doth not suffer his Elect to walke in their owne wayes but doth prevent them that they escape Eternall Damnation 1 Cor. 11.32 That he might glorifie himselfe in them in his mercy as upon the Vessels of mercy which he hath prepared unto glory Whereas you conclude with this request that your positions against particular Election may be either receiv'd or answered I now conclude with the like having as I suppose sufficiently answered this that you would either shew wherein the insufficiency of my answer lies or yeeld thereunto An Answer to a Letter written by R. H. sending to shew the contradiction that is betwixt Christs dying for all and Gods Election of some The which Answer sheweth that there is no contradiction betwixt these two but a sweet concord by T. L. First you say you write to shew the contradiction that is betwixt universall redemption and particular election and how doe you doe this you aske the question how Christ died for all men seeing he never intended salvation to them To this I answer that Christ may be said to have died for all men although he never intended to make all men to believe in his death for salvation you say if God hath onely elected some persons and rejected all the rest then there is no way of recovery made for them that are rejected But Christ hath made a way of recovery out of the lost estate for all those for whom be died Ergo. To this I answer that Christ hath made or purchased away of recovery for all men if they doe not reject him and it also but election is a fore-apointment that such persons are elected shall believe and be recovered and if the rest doe not it is their owne fault because they beleeve not the truth which preached Rom. 11.5.7 Iohn 16.9 Mar. 3.5 You say generall redemption extends it selfe to all particular Election it opposeth it and saith no not to all but to some onely This I deny and say Election doth effect that some doe believe but it doth not oppose any in point of beleeving and so it doth not follow that although man doe not effect in himselfe in himselfe faith and cause himselfe to be elected as is imagined that he is not the cause of his owne destruction by the refusall of grace offered and I put the case that none were elected at all would it then come to passe that generall redemption which extends it selfe to all would save all because you say particular Election intends onely the salvation of some if not then would I aske the reason why if you say because all doe not believe then you say true and what if none believe then none should be saved whereby you may see that although generall Redemption extends it selfe to all to all yet neverthelesse if none beleeve none should be saved and that none would beleeve unlesse they were elected appeares in that none would beleeve unlesse God worke it such evill is in mans nature as doth continually oppose the Doctrine of grace untill they bee overcome thereby which Doctrine for God to afford to