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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	abundant_a	lord_n	merciful_a	1,635	5	8.8351	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A46995	An exact collection of the works of Doctor Jackson ... such as were not published before : Christ exercising his everlasting priesthood ... or, a treatise of that knowledge of Christ which consists in the true estimate or experimental valuation of his death, resurrection, and exercise of his everlasting sacerdotal function ... : this estimate cannot rightly be made without a right understanding of the primeval state of Adam ...; Works. Selections. 1654	Jackson, Thomas, 1579-1640.; Oley, Barnabas, 1602-1686.	1654 (1654)	Wing J89; ESTC R33614	442,514	358

before him his First Titles are The Lord The Lord God mercyful and gratious long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth keeping mercy for thousands forgiving transgression Iniquitie and sin c. Visiting the iniquitie of the fathers upon the children c. Exod. 34. 6. This Sense well fitts our Apostles Instance in Iacob and Esau See Geu 36. For God was mercyfull unto Esau whom he blest and made a Father at least of One considerable Nation but exceeding mercifull unto Jacob because his purpose was to give the world a manifest proof of his extraordinary Goodnesse in him as he did of his severitie in hardening Pharaoh who had made up the measure of his forefathers iniquitie which God as in the former place he had said to Moses did visit upon him But of this Instance concerning Pharaoh and the similitude which the Apostle borrowes from the Potter we shall speak if God permitt hereafter 13. See Chap. 42. Numb 9. If we put the former verses and the words of this verse together our Apostle saith neither more nor lesse in them then our Saviour implyed in that speech Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath he cannot be my disciple And not being his disciple it is impossible he should find mercy Or professing himself to be his disciple and not willing to learn this Lesson of denying himself the latter end shall be worse then the begining that is he shall be hardened But shall all that truely forsake themselves be assuredly his disciples and find that mercy which God promised unto Moses Yes Christ hath promised to all without exception There is no man that hath left house or brethren or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake and for the gospels but he shall receive an hundred fold in this life and in the world to come eternal life Mark 10. 29 30. 14. But if there be a possibilitie for All unfainedly to fly unto Gods mercyes and if All that fly unto them shall undoubtedly find them and make their Election sure See Chap. 32. how is not election ex Praevisis operibus seeing to fly unfainedly to Gods mercyes is truly a Work yea an industrious Work Now to make workes necessary or ordinarily available to our First Conversion may seem a point of Poperie if not a degree of Pelagianism To this purpose some sons of our common Mother would interpret My meaning should I utter this Doctrin in some publik Audience This was a Sermon preached in C. C. C. Chappel in Oxon 20 or 30. yeares since Howbeit in truth and veritie there is no doctrine under heaven with which my former Assertion may better stand then with the Doctrine of the English Church No Tenet or Principle of any other Religion whatsoever that can so directly clear the former Objection as doth the Fundamental Article of that Religion which is professed by all the Reformed Churches Do not all these expressly teach That men are Iustified by beliefe in Christ without works Now let any man rightly answer an Argument usually made by the Papists and as commonly denyed by every Protestant and I shall make his Answer as well fitt the former Objection or any inconvenience that can be pretended against the former Assertions The Argument used by our Adversaries is Works of Faith are true Workes and to believe in Christ is a true work of Faith Now if we cannot be Iustified but by believing in Christ it is impossible we should be Iustified Without good workes The Answer to this Captious Syllogism most used by the Reformed Writers is Fides justificat non quà Opus sed Relativè I like their Meaning well but their Manner of expressing is not so Artificial as it might be and therefore more Obnoxious to Exception I would answer as I take it more appositely to the same Effect To renounce all works and seek salvation only by Plea of mercy is the proper and Formal Work of Faith and therefore is essentially included in the Act of Justification not included in the universalitie of works which are excluded from justification Did not Priests as the Proverb is forget that they had been Clerkes Or rather could great Clerkes in Divinitie remember what they had learned when they were Punie Artists the former Objection or the like could never have troubled them the Form of it drawn into Mood and Figure being so childishly Captious as would be exploded out of the Schooles of Arts should it be stood upon in good earnest If such Divines as urge it most should come into our Per-vices and apply it to matters there discussed thus Omne visible est Coloratum Omnis color est visibilis Ergo Omnis color est coloratus I hope a meaner Artist then this Nursery God be praised hath any would quickly cut off their progress with a Distinction of Visibile ut quod visible ut quo and shew that the Major though universally true of every Subject or body that may be seen did not nor could not comprehend Colour it self by which they are made visible and by whose Formal Act they are denominated colorata The Fallacie of the former Objection drawn into Mood and Figure is the same but more apparent Every Will or Work of Man must be utterly renounced from the Act of Justification or Conversion But to deny our selves and renounce all works is a Work Ergo This work must be excluded from the suit of mercy as no way available Cujus contrarium verum est Seeing This is opus quo renunciamus the Formal Act by which all works must be renounced This Work must of Necessitie be included in the suite of mercy and is alwaies Precedent to every mans first Conversion whose calling is not extraordinary Neither may we that are Ministers of Gods word and Sacraments presume to give any man hope of being converted without this work or Act. Unlesse we thus distinguish between Works and Renouncing of Works and grant in man before his effectual Vocation or Conversion as true a possibilitie to do the One as want of abilitie to perform the Other we shall sett the soules of our hearers in a perpetual Backwater or cause them to flote Ambiguously as it were between the main Current of sacred Scriptures and the stream of antient Interpreters both gratiously inviting all to Gods mercy and the fierce Current of modern opinions which deny all possibilitie of running in any sort to Gods mercy before Grace infused do draw us The unseasonable overflow of Which newly-out-burst doctrine through out our Land doth more mischief to mens soules then the summer floods do to their fields But if we give that Vent or issue to this Eddye or whirlepool which the former Distinction naturally implies we shall lett our Auditors or Hearers at liberty to take sea-room enough And the breath of Gods spirit plentifully diffused throughout the whole Current of His Word will as a gentlegale impell

VIII CHAP. LIV. Three Errors Disparaging Christs Priest-hood 1. The Novatian denying the Reception of some Sort of Sinners 2. A Late Contrary Error affirming That every Sin which some sort of men Committ is pardoned before it be Committed 3. The Romish Doctrine of the Masse giving scandal to the Jew All of them Respectively derogating from the Infinite value or Continual Efficacie of Christs Everlasting Priesthood THe First Error in this kind which did grow into an Heresie was that of Novatus Qui negavit lapsis poenitenti●m who would not have Backsliders or Revolters from Christianitie Of Novatus See Euseb L. 6. c. 42. Socrates Lib. 4. ch 23. to be upon any Terms or testifications of repentance re-admitted into the Church or made partakers of Absolution This Heresi● as all others took its Original from a plausi●le Truth or practise of former times The Truth is that in those times wherein men professing Christianitie were every day called unto the Fierie Tryal This Backsliding or Relapse unto Idolatrie or outward Profession of Idolatrie even after Baptism was so rife that the Church would not admitt any such as had thus revolted unto the Estate or Condition of Penitentiaries nor give them Absolution upon private testifications of sorrow for their Revolt Now if Novatus did only deny that unto such backssiders or Revolters which the Church in her purest times would not Grant them why was he condemned by the Church in Ages following for an Heretick If his Opinion were an Heresie why was not the Practise of the Antient Church Heretical Some Grave and Learned late Writers would have the Novatas Heresie not precisely to consist in that he denyed Absolution or Communion with the Church unto Revolters but in that he maintained That the Church had no right or Power to grant Absolution unto such Backsliders as Cornelius then Bishop of Rome with the Advice and consent of his Clergie did grant unto but that this was a Case reserved to God himself That such Backsliders or Revolters might at the point of death be Absolved Novatian himself had once solemnly profest But after Cornelius his Competitioner for the Bishoprick of Rome being preferred to that Dignitie had authorized this Practise he begun to set abroach his Error whatsoever that were and to accuse Cornelius and his adherents as Authors of Heresie and Novelties in the Church Had this Novatian been constant to his former Tenets and Profession made before Cornelius was chosen Bishop of Rome against him he could not have denyed either of these Two Points of Truth Either that God had mercie in store for Revolters from Christianitie when they did repent or the Churches Power to grant Absolution or other comfort spiritual unto those to whom she might out of charitable discretion presume God was merciful or to whom God had not forbid her to shew mercy or compassion For Christ had commanded her to be merciful as her Heavenly Father is merciful But it were too much Charitie to presume that a man of such a proud and turbulent Spirit as Novatian was in the depth of such discontent as took possession of his spirit upon Cornelius his Preferment to so great a dignitie as the Bishoprick of Rome unto his prejudice would be constant to his former Principles either in whole or in part As either to grant that God had mercy in store for Revolters or that the Church had power to Absolve them upon such significations of repentance as belonged unto her Cognizance Nor can we without breach of Charitie think that either Novatian or any other Heretick in those times would be so gross as to deny the Churches Power to Absolve men from any sinne from which they were perswaded God had or would absolve them And it is a clear Case that the Novatians did ground their Errour or Contradiction to the Church wherein they lived upon that place of the Apostle Heb. 6. 4 5 6. It is impossible for those who were once enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and were made partakers of the holy Ghost And have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the world to come if they fall away to renue them again unto repentance seeing they crucifie to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame and grounding their Error or maintaining it by this place it is evident that they held Lapsos or Revolters from Christianitie unto Heathenism to be in the same estate Which modern Divines conceive all such to b● in as sin against the Holy Ghost But of the true meaning or extent of the Apostles words in the forecited place or how the absolute unpardonablness of sin against the holy Ghost may be thence concluded I have nothing for the present to say It sufficeth to know that this Error of the Novatians was by the Ancient Church wherein they lived Condemned for an Heresie Yet hence it will not follow that their Heresie in the Judgment of them which condemned it did properly or precisely consist in denying the Churches authoritie to absolve sinnes of what kind soever but rather in avouching this particular sin of Apostasie or revolting from Christianitie to be in it self unpardonable or uncapable of Repentance If it had been in it self unpardonable or so adjudged by the Primitive Church Navatian had been no Heretick in withstanding Cornelius Bishop of Rome and the particular Churches which consented with him or in denying to admit the Revolters from Christianitie unto the estate or Condition of Penitentiaries in the Church or in refusing to give them Absolution or to hold Communion with them after they had voluntarily or otherwise observed such a course of Life as the Church had appointed for Penitentiaries That the Antient Church did neither admit open Revolters to enter into this Course or Rule of life nor Absolve them after they had Uoluntarily though most strictly to the eyes of men observed it doth no way argue that the Church in which Cornelius lived or which lived after him did erre much lesse incurre the Censure of heresie which Novatian objected unto them in admitting open Revolters unto the estate and Condition of Penitentiaries or in absolving them from their sinnes after performance of such religious duties as were by the Church required of men admitted into that estate or Condition 2. The Primitive Church did hold both to be lawfull but not expedien for the present Times The Primitive Church did deny unto Revolters Both these Favours 1. Admission to the state of Penitentiaries 2. Absolution upon their good behaviour after testification of repentance onely de Facto not de Jure The Church in later times did onely alter the Practise or discipline as is to be presumed upon good cause or consideration And to conclude or limit the Authoritie of the present Church onely by Matter of fact or practise of the Church in former times is matter of Heresie at least of Schism And this it may be