for losse of faith he must meane iustifying and sauing faith and not that faith of the Romane Church hee alledgeth the 16. Article in these words After we haue receiued the holy Ghâ—st we may depart from grace giuen fall into sinne and by the grace of God wee way rise againe and amende our liues Now in all due remembrance to my blessed mother the Church of England is it not as lawfull for mee her Sonne to take her in a good sense as for another in a bad And if it be lawfull for me to interpret her words according to the letter it is one thing recedâ—re a gratia another excidere one thing to depart aside as out of the way erroniously another 〈◊〉 fall quite away and to abandon the way at least for the time to fall quite away from grace nor doth the Article speake of a totall falling away but of such slips as are recouered by repentance against the Doctrine of Nâ—â—atus as is there expressed It being one thing to fall into sin of infirmitie another to fall away from grace totally But if by departing be meant a totall falling away then how doth this accord with the Scripture that saith If such as were once enlightned c doe fall away it is impossible they should be renewed againe to repentance Againe for the words of the Homilie alledged by the Appealer they containe a wholsome admonition to pietie and perseuerance therein but they mention no totall falling away from true and sauing grace in any one particular true beleeuer Therefore by departing is meant some other thing then any totall falling away from grace so that howsoeuer wee imbrace and adore the generall Doctrine of the Church of England our deare Mother yet whatsoeuer she saith we must not presently take it at the first rebound according to our priuate fancie which what it affects and inclines to it can easilie as the corrupt stomacke assimilate euen wholesome meates and cause them to corrupt or as the Naturall thinkes the bells ring that which hee imagines so apt is mans fancie to take words rather by the sound then by the sense to feede his pre-conceiued opinion yet as neither the Church of England her selfe auoucheth or concludeth any thing for Doctrine and matter of Faith but so farre as is consonant to the word of God so that her Doctrines are to be called the Doctrines of God rather than of the Church so neither are we to measure her Doctrines but by the onely line and rule of the Scriptures But by the Scriptures there is either no totall falling away from grace or if there be as from the common grace it must necessarily be finall too for it is impossible saith the holy Ghost 〈◊〉 such as fall away should be renewed againe to râ—pentance Therefore the Church of Englands words speaking of dâ—pâ—â—ting from grace and yet of returning againe cannot be understood of a totall falling away of particular persons from 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 grace so that it appeaâ—es the Appeallâ—r hath wrested the words of the Article to his owne fancie he should first conclude out of the Scriptures that there is a falling away from grace totally But if the Scriptures teach the contrary let no man fasten such a reproach vpon the Church of England casting durt in his Mothers face as teaching otherwise then her heauenly Husband hath taught in his Word Babylonius But where doe the Scriptures teach that a man cannot fall away from grace and saâ—ing 〈◊〉 after he once hath it Orthodoxus In many places and that so pregnantly and definitiuely as the very Aduersaries of this truth confesse it may be waued and taken indifferently either way whither for a penny as we say their OpinioÌ„ or Gods Truth Babylonius But if Scripture say and gainsay how shall we beleeue them or how shall we reconcile them Orthodoxus Very easily for as there is but one truth so if wee first pitch vpon that truth where wee finde it clearely and positiuely laid downe in the Scripture then whatsoeuer places of scripture seeme to contradict yet the sense thereof must of necessitie bee reduced to that positiue truth For the purpose 1 Iohn 3. 9. Whosoeuer is borne of God doth not commit sinne for his seede remaineth in him and he cannot sinne because hâ— is borne of God Here is set downe a positiâ—e truth Whosoeuer is borne of God doth not commit sinne and the reasons are annexed first for the seede of God remaiâ—eth in him and secondly because he is borne of God he cannot sinne But this seemes a hard and a darke saying doe not Gods 〈…〉 sinne yoâ— surâ—ly for In many things we 〈◊〉 all saith Saint 〈◊〉 but the same Apostle cleares the sense in his 5. Chapter of the Epistle Verse 16 17. There is a sinne vnto death and there is a 〈◊〉 not vnto death now Gods children commit sinne which is not vnto death whereof ver 16. If any man see his brother sinne a sinne which is not vnto death he shall aske and he shall giue him life for them that sinne not vnto death But of the sinne that is vnto death of that the Apostle speakes ver 18. Wee know that whosoeuer is borne of God sinneth not that is not vnto death Now Gods child sinneth not vnto death that is falleth not from faith as Saint Augustinâ— vnderstands this sin vnto death neither totally nor much lesse finally for the seede of God remaineth in him The seede of God is the holy Spirit of God by which as a holy and liuing seede wee are begotten and borne of God This seedâ— is that annointing whereof the Apostle speakes 1 Iohn 2. 27. The annointing which yee haue receiued of â—im abideth in you and therefore yee shall abide in him Therefore none shall be able to seduce you v. 26. Now if thâ— the annointing abide in vs if the seede of God remaines in vs how then can we fall totally much lesse finally from grace for the Spirit of grace remaineth in vs. So long as this seed of God remaines in vs and being once receiued it abideth with vs Gods regenerate cannot so degenerate as by falling from grace to cease to be his sonnes He that is of the blood royall yea who is descended immediately from the Kings owne loynes cannot cease to bee the Kings sonne for the seede and blood of the King is in him And yet though a Kings sonne may degenerate from his Fathers vertues notwithstanding his Fathers blood bee in him yet the bâ—gotten of God as they haue his seede alwaies remaining 〈◊〉 them so it is an actiue quickning and pregnant seede springing vp to life eterâ—all wherin Gods child groweth in grace till he be a perfect man in Christ Iasus Againe this seede of God is immortall as the Father is immortall Now as a mortall father begets a mortall son So the immortall God can beget no sonne but is immortall as his Father is It is impossible for the
this cloud is ouer it sends forth new rayes of grace It is the soule of the soule which euen in the middest of extream fainting of the soule yet remaines intire without diminution by the aqua caelestis of Gods neuer failing mercy actuates euery faculty of the soule afresh to the atchieuing of greater workes It is the ship of good hope which when couered with waues sets prayers to awaken Christ asleepe in it who by and by stilleth the storme or sends his Angel as to Paul to assure him that none in this little barke of ours shall perish but safely arriue vpon the hony hauen of Melita euen that true hony-flowing land of Canaan It is a fire which while raked vp vnder the dead ashes of deepe contrition though it seeme dead yeelding neither light nor warmth to our weake senses yet it is but fostered for a new fire that though heauinesse for sinne may indure for a night yet ioy of faith commeth in the morning feeding it selfe with the fewell of new works of obedience flaming forth in a holy conuersation The faithfull man as Dauid as Peter may be ouertaken with a dead sleepe of faith but awakened by grace his soule is inlightned that hee sleepes not in death but as the Sunne arising reioyceth as a gyant to runne his course with greater alacritie and vigor Thus wee see the fruite of sauing faith may be for a time suppressed yet the roote not supplanted the act of it may be suspended yet the habit not lost it may be ecclipsed to our sense yet his light not lessened or his course stayed it may bee in a dead sleepe yet liue faint yet not faile sicke yet not to death weather beaton yet not wracked languish yet not perish Babylonins But the famous Schollar Doctor Ouerall alledged by the Authour late Deane of Pauls and Bishop of Norwich held that a man might fall from grace into the very state of damnation and so remaine vnder Gods wrath till hee did recouer Yea that he auouched this to his late Maiestie and what concertations hee had with other Doctors in the Vniuersitie about it Orthodoxus If we take vp all the Appealer faith vpon trust without further examination wee shall recken before our host for hee playes the shuffler egregiously Nor will he I perceiue to saue his owne stake sticke to pawne the best credit of the most famous of our Church for the security of his most shamelesse slaunders of the truth And if we had not all the better euidence to conuince him he would carry it away hand smooth with downe right daring Pardon my zeale hearein I cannot but be moued when not only Godscause and glory then which nothing ought to be more precious vnto vs but also the credit of our learned and reuerend Fathers is so traduced But the summe of the Conference before the Kings Maiestie at Hampton Court now newly published in print will tell vs the plaine truth of the matter And that we may not with the Appealer falsifie the truth in dealing by halfes I will giue you the intire words of that worthy Deane and reuerend Bishop as they are set downe in the 42 page of that booke Namely that whosoeuer although before iustified did commit any greeuous sin as adultery murther treason or the like did become ipso facto subiect to Gods wrath and guiltie of damnation or were in state of damnation quoad praesentem statum vntill they repented adding hereunto that those which were called iustified according to the purpose of Gods election howsoeuer they might and did sometime fall into greiuous sinnes and thereby into the present state of wrath and damnation yet did neuer fall either totally from all the graces of God to be vtterly destitute of all the parts and sccde thereof nor finally from iustification but were in time renued by Gods Spirit vnto a liuely faith and repentance and so iustified from those sinnes and the wrath curse and guilt annexed thereunto whereinto they are fallen and wherein they lay so long as they were without true repentance for the same Doe we not see plainely here how hee distinguisheth betweene a common iustification in regard of the externall and ordinary meanes of the Word and Sacraments and the true and reall iustification according to Gods purpose yet in the first he maketh no mention of a totall falling away Or if the Appealer will contend that so much is implyed we will not contend for that for such as are not truely and really iustified according to Gods purpose but onely according to the externall vocation no maruaile if they both totally and finally fall away But for those that are iustified according to Gods purpose to wit the elect and praedestenate vnto life he saith expresly that though they may and doe fall into greiuous sinnes yet they neuer fall either totally or much lesse finally from the grace of God but are in time renewed by Gods Sririt vnto a liuely faith and repentance A golden speech which all the Apealers chimicall counterfeit Philosophers stone cannot so easily transmute into his base copper alcumy coyne how brauely and boldly soeuer he braze it on according to his rule Caluâ—niare audacter aliquid barâ—bit To conolude this point of perseuerance in true grace it stands firmely built vpon sure grounds and euident reasons set downe in the Scriptures such as no wit of man or deuill can ouerthrow For the purpose one reason of the elects perseuerance in grace vnto glory is taken from the nature of that holy feare which God puts in the hearts of all his faithfull ones as Ier. 32. 39 40. where the Lord saith I will giue them one heart and one way that they may feare me for euer c. And I will make an euerlasting couenant with them that I will not turne away from them to doe them good but I will put my feare in their hearts that they shall not depart from me So here is a double reason of the Saints perseuerance first on Gods part He will not turne away from them to doe them good and that by an eternall couenant And secondly they shall not depart from him Vpon which words Saint Augustine saith Quod quid est aliud quam talis actantus erit timor meus quem dabo in cor coruÌ„ vt mihi perseueranter adhareant which what is it else but that my feare which I will put in their hearts shall bee such and so great that they shall perseueringly cleaue vnto me A second reason is alledged Ioh. 13. 1. drawne from the immutabilitie and eternity of Christs loue to his elect saying Hauing loued his owne which were in the world he loued them vnto the end * And as the Apostle saith The gifts and calling of God are without repentance A third reason of the Saints perseuerance is taken from the power of Christ and of the Father Ioh. 10. 28. where Christ saith I giue vnto
speech of the Appealer you giue mee occasion to call to minde a flat contradiction of his in that place to what he had said before cap. 2. his words as I remember bee these Doth Arminius â—â—intaine touching finall perseuerance that sometime the called and elect of God the chosen â—â—â—s and iustified by faith such as Peter was though they doe full totally for a time shall yet recouer necessarily againe and not fall away finally or for euer If this be Armenianisme and so his conclusion then therein he to wit the Appealer holdeth with Arminius Yet in his foresaid forth Chapter hee contradicts himselfe and saith that the recouery of such is possible not certaine and necessary Is he such an enemy to perseuerance as himselfe will not perseuere longer in his owne opinion Or rather will he be an Arminian by holding with Arminius a totality of the elect falling from grace for a time with a necessuit of their recovery than an orthodox Christian while he alloweth onely a possibility but no certainty and necessity of recouery Oportet Appellatorem esse memorem But for the Appealers two instances of Dauid and Peter I deny that they fell totally Fall they did both and that fearefully yet not totally Neither of them Is there no other kinde of fall not a third yes there is a fall whereby a man gets some hurt in a limbe as Mephebosheth did and there is a fall whereby a man breakes his neck as it befell old Eli and there is a fall wherein a man is strucke stone dead for the time as befell 〈◊〉 Now if by Elies break-neck fall may be exemplified the finall falling away and by Eutychus his fall the totall falling for the time why not as well by Mephebosheths fall may we conceiue of such a fall of Gods Saints as whereby they may bruise or breake some limbe and not necessarily with Eutychus so to fall from the third lost as falling totally to be strucke stoned ad or with Eli to breake their necks by falling away finally and irrecouerably as Lucifer that fell from the third heauen Now we say that the fall of Dauid and Peter was like that of Mephibosheth whereby they did breake or bruise a limbe the fear whereof they might carry to then graue though by Gods â—yle and wine of grace and mercy they were â—fâ— soonees receiued and recouered Againe a member brused or broken or put out of â—oynt ceaseth not instantly to be a member of the body nor is it by and by cut off from the body vnlesse it be incurable and endanger the whole Immedicabile vulnâ—â— ensâ— reeidendum est ne part sincera trabatur as that incurable sinne against the holy Ghost and that committed with a high hand with a full concent and malicious contempt of the blood of the couenant c. as that Heb. 6. which sinne is impossible to be renewed by repentance such a grangreend member is cut off Now Dauid and Peter were the members of Christ they were wounded by a greeuous stroake of sinne yet such as was curable and so during the maladie they were not cut off from Christs body but still continued members though sicke for the time not totally fallen or cut off The Prophet Dauid himselfe inspired by Gods Spirit sets downe a notable and manifest difference betweene fall and fall hee saith of the righteous of the â—â—stified by faith of the elect Though he fall he shall not be vtterly be cast downe for the Lord vpholdeth him with his hand Though hee fall therefore the righteous may fall yet though he fall he shall not be vtterly cast downe therefore he shall not fall totally or finally not totally for that is to be vtterly cast downe for the time at least Not finally for that is to be vtterly cast downe to wit for euer But if by beeing vtterly cast downe the Appealer would haue not the totall fall meant but the finall let him remember that as he saith in one place he is of the minde with Arâ—imius that the elect may fall totally from grace for the time so he saith in another that their recouery is possible not certaine and necessary Contrary to Dauid here who saith Hee shall not be vtterly cast downe not finally fall away if the Authour will restraine it to that but he shall certainly recouer And he adds a strong reason For the Lord vpholdeth him with his hand If the Lord vphold him with his hand then how can he either fall finally or yet totally which in either were to be vtterly cast downe The manner of speech seemes to be taken from a father holding his sonne in his hand and to 〈◊〉 his childe see his owne weaknesse to make him vse the more warinesse for the time to come suffers him to fall yet so handles the matter as with his hand he preserues him â—rom being vtterly cast downe And as Lyranus saith on this place Huius autem manus suppositio est diuinae gratiae conseruatio thâ— putting vnder of Gods hand is the preseruation of diuine grace Obiect But some will obiect that according to the same glosse of Lyranus in that place this fall is meant of a veniall sinne not of a mortall such as Dauids and Peters sinne was To which I answer first that the word for fall in the originall signifieth such a fall as when a man falleth prostrate or flat vpon the ground not to slip as men account of a veniall sinne but to fall downe all along And for veniall sinne we know there is no sinne committed by any servant of God but through Christ vpon repentance it is veniall yea Dauids sinne and Peters sinne for they were both pardoned And veniall is that which may be pardoned And there is no sinne be it never so small in mans conceit but it is mortall deserving death eternall As Adam sinne in eating the forbidden Apple which to a carnall mans conceit might seeme to be but a veniall sinne as the Pope accounted it in comparison in stealing of the his Peacocke But first for Davids sinne it was grievous indeede yet sinne is to be weighed not so much by the Act of the sinne as by the affection of sinning Dauid and Ahab both committed the like sinne of murther the fact was the same but not their affections Ahab sold himselfe to worke wickednesse Dauid not so Ahabs humiliation procured the delay of his punishment onely not the remouall of his sinne Deus dâ—stulit paenam non abstulit culpam But Dauid vpon his peccani heard The Lord hath put away thy sinne Saint Chrysostome compareth Dauids case in lusting after Batâ—sheba to a sea-storme fore afflicting the Martiners for the time so that he suffered a vehement perturbation of his passions during the temptation not knowing well what he did though his brittle Barke of carnall lust and humaine frailtie went to wracke yet the gulfe of a
passe wee to the last Chapter touching the Synod of Dort It is but short wherein the Authour saith The Synod of Dort is not our rule And Priuate opinions no rule Doth he not herein say truely Orthodoxus Why then should his owne priuate peruerse opinions be reputed as the rule of the Church of England For it is true no doubt that no Synod or Councell much lesse any priuate mans opinion is the rule of our faith Yet all Synods and Councels so farre forth as their Decrees are grounded vpon the Scriptures we are to imbrace and reuerence But of all other passages in the Appealers Appeale I muse at none more then this his eleuating and slighting the Synod of Dort And what spirit trow we is that man of or possessed with that stands so much for the Councell of Trent and so little esteemes the Councell of Dort I wot well the Synod of Dort is an aduersary to his Arminian Pontifician opinions and therefore no maruaile if he beare it no great good will But considering next vnder God the prime and principall mouer of that Synod his late Excellent Maiestie of eternall memory yea how He promoued it what Princely and prouident care what liberall cost He was at to adorne the Synod with some of the choicest and solidest Diuines that He had in His Kingdome what a zealous desire Hee had by that meanes to quench those fiery flames of dissention blowne by the factious spirits of Inâ—endiaries which threatned the ruine of those neighbour reformed Churches the tayles of which smoking firebrands are not altogether quenched but begin to reuiue hauing for want of vent till now lyen smoathering euen in our Church of England the smoake whereof hath blinded a great many and now the flames threaten to burne moe what a religious care He tooke to establish true religion and to abolish that Arminian roote of bitternesse springing vp and spreading abroad wherewith many were defiled which one act of His Maiestie shall no lesse eternize His name then the most famous and vnparalleld actions Hee atchieued in all His Princely gouernment this I say strikes me with an exceeding wonderment that the Appealer would euer suffer himselfe so farre to be transported with the spirit of contradiction as to fall foule vpon such a learned Synod a Synod of Protestants a Synod of many reformed Churches and which if nought else might haue most moued him a Synod assembled managed concluded by the most auspicious Peace-making spirit zeale wel-wishes and prayers of His late Maiestie yea and to fill vp the measure of his all-daring hardinesse to presume to thrust this booke in the name of An Appeale vnder the protection of our most Excellent patrizing Caesar here I am at a stand What so to disrepute the Synod of Dort O spare it either speake not at all of it or reuerently and honorably at least for the thrice noble religious zealous louer of the truth King IAMES He that so honoured that Synod imbraced those orthodox conclusions of it as that He aduanced those to Ecclesiasticall honours whom Hee had selected and sent to represent the Church of England Which also by the way addes to my wonderment that the Appealer should and that vnder the name of the Church of England dare to oppose the Councell of Dort if he had considered that his late Excellent Maiestie did vnderstand no other but that all the conclusions of that Councell did consent with the Doctrines of the Church of England as also the representiue Church of England as they were of the number of the primest and actiuest Agents in that Synod so with the rest they were the first still in order who by their subscriptions sealed vp their vnanimous assent to all the Conclusions Or can the Appealer taxe the incomparable judgement of that famous King of ignorance either in the choise of that representatiue Church of England or in the state of the Doctrines of it Farre be it His Maiestie knew as well the true state of the Doctrine of the Church of England as the most and greatest Scholars in England that I may not disparadge his Excellency so much as to say He knew it better then the Appealer himselfe And if I might pin my faith vpon any mans sleeue or referre the judgment of the Doctrine of the Church of England to my one man I would haue chosen His Maiestie as the â—â—pire oracle of it before any man liuing And yet He that professed protested writ wrought studied liued and dyed in the maintenance of that one truth wherein by His auspicious vnanimity the Church of England and the Councell of Dort haue confented according to the rule of faith Gods word shall He He I say His sacred ashes be raysed vp againe and by an Appeale be vrged to recaut His former profession to reuerse His iudgment to cancell or to bâ—râ—â— His bookes which no antiquity no iniury of time no elementary flames shall euer be able to abolish I might better appeale to those who were so happy as dayly to heare the wisdome of that our Salomon euen at His ordinary repast They can testifie what zealous protestations He made for the truth and with what vehement derestation He had of the contrary As for instance how did He abominate those that writ de apostasia Sanctorum Which very title of Bertius His Maiestie often in His pious zeale professed His indignation against as a blasphemous doctrine And as in His vsuall and ordinary discourse at table and at other times He shewed His Princely diuine spirit in refuting and refelling all the vanities of Popery and Pelagian Arminianismo so at His death He protested His owne constancy and finall perseuerance in that truth which He had formerly professed All this I say duely waighed I am still in a muse what should imbolden infatuate rather the Appealer to insert any such passage as the depressing and deprizing the Synod of Dort in his Appeale Yet doing so he is not more guilty of ingratitude towards our late Caesar as also of ignorance that I may not say starke folly in addressing this his Appeale to our present Caesar. Doth not the Appealer remember that Hee is the Son the onely Son of such a Father Yea a Son of that naturall and pious affection to His Father as all can witnesse with me Hee might well be a Princely myrrour of filiall piety to many Sonnes whose naturall affection commonly descends rather then ascends Nor only the Sonne the onely Sonne the most naturally and graciously pious Sonne but the very viue and expresse image of such a Father inheriting not onely His Fathers Kingdomes Crownes but which is the Crowne of all and more precious then all His Kingdomes His vertues and graces His wisdome His iudgment and aboue all His religion yea His loue care and zeale in maintaining the same This religion Hee first suckt in with His Nurses milke therein also bred brought vp vnder a religious