Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	age_n	church_n	time_n	2,142	5	3.6322	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41777	The forerunner to a further answer (if need be) to two books lately published against Tho. Grantham of Norwich wherein the spirit and temper of the Calvinists is discovered, particularly Mr. Calvin, Mr. Finch, and his little præcursor : to which is prefixed, the solid testimony of Mr. George Wither, against Calvinism, the worst of doctrines / by Tho. Grantham ...	Grantham, Thomas, 1634-1692.; Wither, George, 1588-1667.	1691 (1691)	Wing G1532; ESTC R39423	9,810	7

The FORERUNNER to a further Answer if need be to two Books lately published against Tho. Grantham of Norwich Wherein the Spirit and Temper of the Calvinists is discovered particularly Mr. Calvin Mr. Finch and his little Praecursor To which is prefixed The solid Testimony of Mr. George Wither against Calvinism the worst of Doctrines By THO. GRANTHAM Preacher of glad Tidings to all Men in the City of Norwich MR. George Wither a Man of great Judgment in many things and a faithful Monitor of the English Nation for many Years did in the Year 1666 publish his Parallellogrammaton wherein he does much perswade to Repentance and Brotherly-Love And observing some great Impediments to both in p. 61 c. he considers the Doctrine of the Calvinists in denying universal Redemption to be a very great Obstruction thereunto And thus he declares himself I will be bold to aver that the brotherly Love and true Repentance whereto I would perswade will never be effectually attain'd unto by them which knowingly premeditately and wilfully persevere in denying the universal Redemption of Mankind by Jesus Christ seeing thereon depends God's most glorious Attribute and in regard it is that for which we are much more obliged to him than all the rest of his Creatures he cannot but be highly displeased with all those who confine the extent of that Mercy I know many in these Times some of them in other respects very good and learned Men who think universal Redemption to be a New Doctrine terming it Arminianism and Popery but it is neither new nor repugnant as is pretended to the Orthodox Doctrine of Election and Reprobation and the free Grace of God nor ascribes ought more to Nature by the Consequences thereof than tends to our justifying of God and to our self-condemnation if that which he hath given us be not husbanded according as he hath and doth enable The holy Scriptures evidence it to all who rightly understand them So far is it from being a Novelty as ignorant Hearers are made to believe that it was received and professed for a necessary Truth by the Churches of God in all Ages since Christ's Birth and contradicted by very few in the first Times of Christianity Yea it was believed many hundreds of Years before Arminius was born or Popery had any being in the World and will be professed when the Opposers and Traducers of that Verity shall be quite rooted out of the Evangelical Kingdom It is the well-counterfeiting of Truth and Holiness which must compleat the Designs of Antichrist and there is not any one single Heresy or Wickedness which doth so secretly and so mischievously supplant Christ it undermines the Foundation of that Structure which open Blasphemies above-ground cannot endanger and hath already sprung a Mine to the dividing of Lutherans and Calvinists that they will hardly be reconciled until all Controversies are at an end Let us therefore consider well what depends upon it how much it concerns the Glory of God how much he is dishonoured by a contrary Belief and how much it detracts from our own Privileges and Consolations God's Mercy is above all his Works It is the Crown and Dignity of the King of Kings and the highest of all Treasons to clip it A professed denial of the universality of humane Redemption seems to me a cursed Counter-Callol made and sung by Devils in opposition to that blessed Nativity-Song which was sung by Angels at the birth of Christ Glory to God on High on Earth Peace and good Will to Men. For how was God likely to be glorified Peace to be upon Earth and good Will to Men manifested by the Incarnation of his Son if Man's Redemption had not been Universal But so narrowed that it extended to a very few and those few also left without assurance they were of that small number whatsoever they should endeavour if there should be an Exception from the Act of Grace as many fancy Doubtless if it had been so it would have given occasion rather of howling than of singing and been rather sad than glad Tidings in regard of that great Terror which might have seized upon all Mankind and caused an universal Lamentation when they considered how many millions of millions were certainly exposed to everlasting Damnation how small a number in possibility to be saved and how few of their dearly beloved Parents Children and Friends might be of these few for whom Christ took upon him humane Nature O horrible and unparallel'd Blasphemy But blessed be God's Name it is not so When the Children of Israel were redeemed out of their Egyptian Bondage which was a Type of our ●●●versal Redemption there was not one Soul no not a Hoof left behind them nor was one soul absolutely excluded from the benefit of Christ's Incarnation and Passion but they only who by their own Defaults and unrepented Sin should fall away as they did who perished in the Wilderness For God hath many a time upon several Occasions pa●sed his Word to ascertain the Universality of his Love to Man without personal Respects where personal Sins without Repentance have not first made the Person uncapable Nay our Incredulity hath put him to his Oath to assure every Sinner And if nevertheless we still distrust him continue in our misbelief of his Word and Oath and labour to draw others into the same Crime it cannot be an ordinary Punishment which God will at last inflict for so extraordinary and so high an Affront it being a Sin more hainous than Murder Adultery and all other meer carnal Sins put together yea more hainous than those the Jews committed by their Idolatries killing the Prophets and crucifying Christ in the Flesh for the last was but a Sin against his Humanity and their Idolatries but the ascribing some part of that Honour to the Creatures which was due to God only Whereas the limiting God's universal Grace in Christ with the concomitant Doctrines and the Consequences thence raised and the imputing to God an eternal Reprobation of the greatest part of Mankind before they had done Good or Evil for those Sins also which they blasphemously say he necessitated them to commit to shew his Justice and manifest his hatred to Sin is a despoiling God of his Divine Nature of his Goodness and an ascribing unto him that which belongs only to the Devil O the Patience of God! what can be so abominable They do not only make Reprobation older than the Father of it the Devil but make God also the Author of his Wickedness in necessitating him to be a Devil and consequently Author of all the Wickedness committed by all the Devils in Hell and all the wicked Men upon the Earth which appears to me so horrible an Impiety that I wonder not to see the World so full of Plagues and Sins and Sins and Sinners become such Plagues to each other as they are Nor can I believe there will ever be less Plagues where that Blasphemy is professed