Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	aaron_n	believe_v	church_n	12	3	3.2868	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86586	An exercitation concerning the nature of forgivenesse of sin. Very necessary (as the author humbly conceiveth) to a right informaion [sic], and well grounded decision of sundry controversal points in divinity now depending. Directly intended as an antidote for preventing the danger of antinomian doctrine. And consequently subservient for promoting the true faith of Christ and fear of God, in a godly righteous, and sober life. / By Thomas Hotchkis, Master of Arts of C.C.C.C. and minister of Gods word at Stanton by Highworth in the county of Wilts. To which is prefixed Mr. Richard Baxters preface.	Hotchkis, Thomas.; Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1654 (1654)	Wing H2891; Thomason E1518_1; Thomason E1632_1; ESTC R208563	133,342	405

and thing yet had not been continued under some new name e. g. Apollinis tripos Concessus Apostolicus Aarons Brest-plate Vrim and Thummim Englands Oracle The Church Vertual or the like Notio secunda as unto whom all dissenting persons and parties both in our own and in all the Nations throughout the world might have had recourse for resolution in the great things and truthes of God But seeing that it was concluded by themselves that their company so constituted was no longer profitable to the Commonwealth I believe that Mr. Eyre is now convicted that their longer sitting was not like to be profitable for the Church whereupon I shall conclude that it was for want of foresight that Mr. Eyre did so far luxuriate in their high praises as to say That of any company of men on earth they were the fittest to umpire in such Theological Disputes as are betwixt him and his old School fellow Mr. Benjamin Woodbridg Let the second Negative Proposition be this viz. No sin is actually pardoned till a person bee made capable of it or put into a capacity of receiving or enjoying it This Proposition carries its owne evidence in the body or bowels of it for nothing is before it can be I shall therefore immediately apply my self to the resolution of the following Question Quest When is a person capable of receiving the actual pardon of his sins Or When are the Elect capable of receiving or actually enjoying that pardon which was so long since purposed purchased promised to and for them Answ 1. When they need it Quest When do they need it Answ When they are or do become sinners have committed sin or are guilty of sin Till sin be past pardon is to come To pardon sin before it is committed is to pardon sin that is no sin it is to pardon that which is not which is a contradiction and a meere impossibility for where there is no guilt there can be no pardon As a man is not capable of an Almes till he be miserable and indigent so nor of pardon till he be peccant Or as a man is not capable of a cure by Physick and Chyrurgery till he be sick and wounded so nor of pardon till he be sick of sin and wounded by it These similitudes are the rather apt because Gods pardoning sin is said to be his taking compassion on us Mic. 7.19 Luke 18. 13. God compassionate me a sinner saith the Publican and his healing us Isai 53.5 Hos 14.4 This is a remote capacity The next particular doth declare and set forth the sinners proximous or immediate capacity of pardon 2. Then are the Elect capable of actual pardon when they are in Gods way fit or fitted for it Quest When is that Answ When they see their sins I speak of persons adult or of ripe age confesse them repent for them believe in Christ See Act. 10.43 To him give all the Prophets witnesse that whosoever beleeveth in him shall receive remission of sins Luke 24.47 And that repentance and remission of sin should be preached in his name among all Nations Acts 5.31 Him hath God exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance to Israel and remission of sin observe Repentance is given first and then remission As the ground is not capable of receiving the seed of the Husbandman till it be plowed so nor are the Elect capable of receiving the precious seed of pardon till the fallow ground of their hearts be plowed up by Repentance to speak in the metaphor of the Prophet Jeremy chap. 4.4 In this sense that saying of the Evangelist is most true according as by some it is interpreted John 1.16 Of his fulnesse we receive and grace for grace i. e. by reason of one grace we receive another even as the God of all grace doth give one grace in order to another e g. for or by reason of the grace of faith repentance and conversion all which were merited by Christ God gives us the grace of Remission according to that Proverbial saying among the Jewes and in this case appliable Habenti dabitur As God doth by Grace adapt or make us fit and meet for glory Col. 1.12 Giving thanks to the Father who hath made us meet for the inheritance among the Saints in light So by one grace God doth make us meet for receiving of another And as the Wedding Garment did fit and make meet the Guests for the Wedding Supper so doth Faith Repentance and new obedience being as the Wedding Garment fit or make meet the sinner for partaking in the pardon of his sins which is as the Wedding Supper This particular is the rather to be observed because it is useful as otherwise so specially for these two purposes 1. To prevent and redresse the presumption of impenitent and ungodly sinners who are apt to expect to reap where they have not sowed and to gather where they have not strawed I mean who do usually expect an harvest of comfort in the pardon of their sins and to reape in mercy when they have not sowen to themselves one seed the least mustard seed of grace or one graine of righteousnesse to speak in the phrase of the prophet Hos ch 10.12 2. It is useful whereby to obviate or answer the common objection of the Antinomians wherby they would involve us as guilty of impeaching the freedom of Gods grace in the pardon of our sins because we affirme with the Scriptures that pardon of sinne cannot actually be enjoyed without the performance of such and such conditions the performance of which said conditions is notwithstanding of and cannot be without Gods free grace given to us and enabling us for that end and purpose I shall close this particular with the words of that very Learned and godly man Mr. Anthony Burges in his book of justification p. 18. There goe more causes to the pardon of sin besides the meritorious cause faith the instrumental cause which is as necessary in its kind for this great benefit as the meritorious cause is in its kind that though Christ hath born such a mans sins yet they are not pardoned till he doe believe for as the grace of God which is the efficient cause of pardon doth not make a sinne compleatly forgiven without the meritorious cause so neither doth the meritorious without the instrumental but there is a necessity of the presence and the cooperation of all these Caution Though I have not expresly made mention of the merits of Christ through his bloud shed in order to a sinners being made capable of pardon Neverthelesse 1. I doe acknowledg and let it be knowne that the intervention of his merits are necessary to the said sinners capability of pardon Whether his merits be so absolutely necessary hereunto as that God could not have pardoned a sinner without it although that be a question in the resolution whereof Learned and Godly men doe differ Mr. Owen the Learned Deane of

solidly answered The onely or chiefe thing that is like to be offensive to some of the Orthodox is the Authors too free declaring his dissent about certaine Propositions from many of his brethren and that by name Had he beene as well acquainted with mens impatiencie of contradiction as I am I believe he would have declined this way That none of the brethren excepted against have reason to suppose me to be interessed against them or to subscribe to such exceptions may appeare in that it hath pleased the Author to put me also in the number In Chap. 2● Cons 16. where hee labours to shew the insufficiencie though not the falsehood of my discovery how Pardon is a transcient act but indeede it was another kind of pardon that I spake of and of which I was to resolve that question I have oft declared that there is little reason we should take it so ill to be questioned of imperfection or charged with a m●stake in lower controvertable points especially when it s more about words and method then the matter it selfe But most detestable is the practice of those men that under pretence of being Orthodoxe and enemies to errour are carried so violently in the stream of their party that they are not able with any patience to hear or read a line that accuseth that party of mistake or that differeth from them though but in method or terms and though it be with the greatest humility submissivenesse and hatred of dissensions yea though it be directly for peace by reconciling the differences of several parties that by their divisions have long troubled the Church These men look not far beyond the borders of their owne party but live among them as if they were all the Church or the world Like the fellow that having never gone out of the City he was born in imagined that the wo●ld was all inclosed in those walls they think he that doth but keepe the unity and peace of their party doth keepe the unity and peace of the Church Be it but one schismatical congregation of Separatists Anabaptists or Antinomians who themselves have divided from almost all the Churches of Christ on earth yet they seeme to affect a unity in their own separated body and wil condemne a man for disturbing the peace of their Church So is it with many of the greater parties called Lutherans Calvinists c. But none so horridly guilty of this as the Papists who wil needs have it to be all one to be of the Roman Church and of the Catholick and to differ from the Roman as to differ from the Catholick Shall we imitate them in this and make a Popery of our owne whilst we contend against theirs Yet alas how common is it with us Who can deny it The Lutherans are more perversely guilty of it then wee Yet I must speak to those that are within hearing of mee If a true Catholick Christian that understandeth the unity of the Church and abhorreth the name of parties and desireth their reconciliation for a recovery of unity do but take on him to shew any party that they have run into some extreme in some lesser points and how that mistake hath occasioned division and still alienates the other party and that the reversing of that errour would tend to a reconcilement How furiously do a sort of factious though godly and Learned men rise up against him and charge him with innovation with bringing new light and breaking the peace of the Church as if he were the schismatick and had a mind to head a Party whose mind is to endeavour that there might be no parties but a unity as if all the kernell of the Church were within our nutshell as if all were new that is new to the eares of that society And as if he did charge the whole Church with errour or thought himselfe wiser then the whole Church or did disturbe the peace of the whole Church who doth but suppose one party to have some mistakes and seeke to cure them As if in a separated congregation of Anabaptists or Antinomians they should charge me with innovation and thinking my self wiser then all the Church because I say that infants must be baptized or that elect infidels are not in Christ nor pardoned nor absolved from the guilt of sin were not this ridicilous vanity yet can these same men that seem so zealous for unity and peace and the credit of divines not only be well contented that we be zealous against all others but their party but also doe applaud that man as Orthodox that will clamour and raile against them and cry them downe as hereticall or most furiously censure them to be none of the Church or so desperately corrupted that there must be no talke of reconliation and he that flies furthest from their opinions as if there were no extreme on the other hand doth best escape the censures of this sort of men when reconcilers are stil suspected as guilty complyers And thus godly and zealous men while they are too confident of the judgment of themselves and their party are made the great enemies of truth and the unity of the Church and lay those grounds which would make the wounds of the Church uncurable And though they are disabled from laying violent hands on dissenters yet by their keene and furious censures of all that step out of the road of their party they have brought things to that passe that students lie under a strong temptation to study no further then to know what is the opinion which is most in credit and which their leaders hold and to take heed of knowing any more then others in the least point and to shun all things that tend to a reconciling of the Churches yea and to make some raving onset on others if they mean to be glorious among their own They say If this should keepe out some truthes yet withall it will keep out heresies whilst all innovations are kept in such disgrace But I doubt it rather occasioneth heresies seeing it is the property of hereticks to affect singularity and to make it their glory among their own party to be vilified by others For my part I believe one Catholick Church and the Communion of Saints and when I preach to one congregation I remember how smal a part of the Church they are And when I write of the opinions of any one party I remember how many there be of another mind But these men object that the number of the erroneous is not to be regarded seeing it is our party only that is in the right and hath the Scripture on their side their doctrine and unity is to be defended and the rest if they wil have unity must come over unto them To which I answer that I doe confidently believe that no one party on earth is so sound in Doctrine and way of worship as those called Calvinists But to think that any one party is infallible or hath