in your eares this day Learn them and keep and do them And then in the sixth verse he begins to tell all the ten Commandements which God would have them learn and keep and do But God will exact of no man to keep and do that whieh is impossible ergo this by his grace is possible I will give my Law in theyr bowells And in theyr heart I will write it Ier. 31.33 The law of God is in his heart none of his steps shall stide Psal 37.31 And Rom. 8.4 God sending his Son c. That the Iustification of the Law might be fullfilled in us All these Texts prove that by Gods grace wee my fullfill his Law And therefore as S. Leo excellently sayth Serm. 16. de Passione Iustè Deus instat praecepto qui praecurrit auxilio God justly presseth upon us the doing of that to performance of which he offereth us his grace 2. And because some Protestants say that the Commandement of loving God with all our hart and soule is the Commandement impossible to us all in this life I will shew this to be flatly against Scripture For of David 1. Kings 14.8 it is sayd He kept my Commandements and followed me in all his hart So of Iosias 2. Kings 23.25 He returned to our Lord with all his hart and with all his soule and with all his might What more is commanded any were With my whole hart have I sought thee Psal 119.10 He who hath commanded us to do this hath promised grace enabling us to perform his command Deut. 30.6 Our Lord thy God will circumcise thy hart and the hart of thy seed to love our Lord thy God with all thy hart and with all thy soule And v. 11. This Commandement that I command thee this day is not farre of It is not in heaven where Protestants say it shall only be fullfilied that thou mayst say which of us is able to ascend to heaven to bring it to us that wee may hear it and do it as God required in the first Text neither is it beyond the sea that thou shouldest say who shall go over the sea for us and bring it unto us that wee may heare it and do it But the word is very nigh unto thee in thy mouth and in thy heart that thou mayest do it do it I say by the helpe of my grace making this possible even in the old Law So Psalm 119.55 I have keept thy Law 3. And this grace makes this really done and performed farre more in the new Testamēt God saying Ezech. 36.26 I will geve you a new hart and will put within you a new spirit and cause you to walk in my statutes and ye shall keep my Iudgements and do them And c. 37. v. 24. They shall walk in my judgements and observe my statutes and do them This then can be done Likewise this was done by Zacharie and Elizabeth Luke 1.6 They were both righteous before God walking in all his Commandements and ordinances of our Lord blameles or without blame Allso Matth. 19.20 The yong man sayth to him Christ all these have I keept from my youth and Mark 10. v. 20. All these things have I observed from my youth And Iesus beholding him loved him which he would not have done if he had been a lyer in what he sayd This yong man then was not a lyer But he that sayth he knoweth God and keepeth not his Commandements he is a lyer and the truth is not in him 1. Io. 2.4 For as it is sayd there Hereby wee do know that wee know him if wee keep his Commandements Again Io. 17.6 And they have keep thy word And yet further 1. Io. 3.22 Whatsoever wee shall aske wee shall receive of him because wee keep his Commandements and do those things which are pleasing in his sight Again Apoc. 14.12 Here are they that keep the Commandements of God It is the saying of Christ himself If thou wilt enter into life keep the Commandements Matth. 19.17 Mark 10.20 Luke 10.28 and Io. 14.15 If you love mee keep my commandements And v. 21. He that hath my Commandements and Keeps them he it is that loveth mee They may therefore be keept Yea Christ himself Matth. 11.30 My yoke is easy and my burden is light For 1. Io. 5.3 This is the love of God that wee keep his Commandements And his Commandemēts are not grievous Note allso that all the ensuing Texts which prove keeping of the Commandements in those who are of age to be necessary to our Iustification do prove allso that they are possible to be kept For no impossible thing can be necessary to our saluation 4. Secondly then I say to all who have the use of reason keeping of the commandements is necessary to saluation and consequently to justification This is taught in a number of Texts which I cited Point 27. to prove that faith alone doth not justify but chiefly requires Charity And S. Iohn sayth 1. Io. 5.3 This is the love of God that wee keep his Commandements And Matth. 22. v 40. On those two Commandements of Christ hang all the Law and Prophets Our Iustification therefore cannot but depend upon those two Commandements 5. Hence S. Paul 1. Cor. 7.19 Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing but the observation of the Commandement of God So that if this be nothing or a thing impossible all comes to be nothing Again what wee cited in the 27. Point n. 4. evidently proves works to be necessary to saluation But no works are more necessary then those that are commanded these therefore are chiefly necessary to justification THE XXXI POINT How still wee have free will to do good or evill 1. WE are fouly slandered by those who make us to teach that it is in our power to do that which is able to advance us towards heaven as if wee sayd this without adding or at least understanding that this is in our power only by the help of God first moving and exciting us and then lending us his helping hand even all the while that wee art doing any worke which can advance us towards heaven By this helpe wee say our free will is still enabled to do good or avoyd evill and that by this helpe it is in our power allso either to omit our dutie or to do it a sufficiency of this grace being still affoarded us according to that 2. Cor. 12.9 My grace is sufficient for thee Hence 2. Tim. 2.21 If a man purge himselfe he shall be a vessel into honour By vertue of this grace it is in our power to approach to God Iam. 4.8 Draw nigh to God and he will drave nigh to you Clense your hands ye sinners and purify your hart Wee may allso by the free will wee have to resist this grace harden our hearts 2. Hence Pharao his obduration is ascribed often to his free will Exod. 8.15 And Pharao seing this he hardned his hart And 1. Samuel 6.6 Why do
whom they committed the Churches To which ordinance many Nations of those barbarous people who have believed in Christ do consent with out letter or inke having salvation that is soul-saving doctrine written in their heartes For a world of the first believers did never so much as see all scripture It was the yeare 99. before S. Iohn writt his Gospell And when the Canon of Scripture was fully ended there is no meÌ„tion made euen of the lâ—â—st care taken by the Apostles to divulge the Scripture in barbarous languages no nor to divulge it in latin it selfe as you must needes say who deny primitive Antiquity to all Latine Editions All this cleerly proves that Tradition was relyed upon as upon the word of God it selfe Whence S. Paul did not only counsel but also commaÌ„ded the Thessalonians to with draw them selves from all who walked not after the Tradition they had received of their Pâ—stors 2. Thâ—s 3.6 Now sayd heâ— wee comaund you Bretheren in the name of our Lord that ye with draw your selves from every brother that walketh discorderly and not after the Tradition which he receaved of us 5. It was for the keeping this Tradition and forme of Faith why he praysed the Romans Ch. 6.17 You have obeyed from your heart the forme of doctrine what was delivered you This forme could not be a forme conteyned in the whole Canon of Scripture for the whole Canon was not finished when S. Paul did write this It was therefore the forme of uniforme TraditioÌ„ delivered in each church which taught by word of mouth all th nges necessary For this he praysed the Corinthians 1 Cor. 11.2 Now I prayse to Bretheren that you keepe the Traditions so you put in the margenâ— but in the Text you read Ordinances as I eliverded them to you This Forme these Traditions these Ordounances are inculcated again and again 1. Tim. 6.20 O Thimothie keep that which is committed to thy trust And v. 3. If any one teached otherwise he is proud knowing nothing Again 2. Tim. 1.13 Hold fast the good forme of good words which thou hast heard of me That good thing which was committed to thee keep by the H. Ghost Again Ch. 3.14 But thou continue in those things which thou hast learned and been assured of knowing of whom thou hast learned them learned I say by word of mouth for by writing he had received but title So also when as yet by writing he had taught the Romans nothing he in his first and only Epistle to them wrote thus Rom. 16.17 Now I beseeeh you Bretheren mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned Likwise when as yet he had written nothing to the Galatians for where is any such writing he begines thus Gal. 1.6 I maruel that so soon you are removed from him who called you into the grace of Christ unto an other Ghospell I say removed that is changed from the forme of Faith which I delivered which was a true though not a written Ghospel into an other Ghospel taught by these new otherwise teathers yet sayth he with all earnestness Although wee or an Angel from heaven preach any other Ghospel unto you then that ye have receaved let them be accursed v. 8. S. Paul as yet had preached nothing to them in writing but they had received all by Orall Tradition and yet not with standing once again more vehemently v. 9. As wee have sayd before so I say now again if any man preach any other Ghospel unto you theÌ„ that you have received be he accursed Note the word Received intimating that they had all by Tradition For what as then had they received from him in writing And he sayth no more then other Apostles Who did write nothing but delivered all by Orall Tradition might truly have sayed of the Ghospel so delivered by them Neither did S. Paul speake of what they should receive many yeares after but of what they had as theÌ„ received For that was as true as any thing they should receive by writing And therefore for theyr forsaking of what they had received thus he most deservedly sayth unto them O Foolish Galatians who hath bewitched you c. 3. v. 1. For indeed they seeme bewitched out of theyr senses who to follow the private judgment of some otherwise teachers reject what they had received by the full and still-continued report of all Christianity from the first teachers of the faith 6. They object Tradition to be the word of men but all these arguments shew this Apostolicall Tradition for which only wee now contend to be the word of God A forme of sound words And 1. Thes 2.13 Ye received the word of God which ye heard of us ye received it not as the word of men but as it is in truth the word of God Behold what was heard by them by only word of mouth was in truth the word of God Therefore a fitt Rule of Faith even before it was written 7. They aske how wee know a true Apostolicall Tradition from a false one which is the tradition of men I answer that a true Apostolicall Tradition cometh downe handed by a full unanimous report of all Catholike Nations in all ages attested by thyr universall practise and uniforme doctrine what is thus delivered is the Doctrine of the Church diffused and therefore infallible upoÌ„ this ground for other infallible groundes you have none you receive only such and such Scripture for Canonicall and such and such copies of the Scripture for Authenticall We can therefore to the full as well distinguish true Traditions from false ones or Apostolicall Traditions from Traditions of Ordinary men as you can distinguish the Authenticall copie of theyr writings from such as are forged or corrupted for you must first distinguish the truth of the Tradition which recommend such bookes unto you from all false Traditions THE THIRD POINT Of the never fayling of the Church which beeing perpetuall can preserve perpetuall Traditions Also of succession of true Pastors and Professors 1. IF the Church of Christ could fayle or cease to be it is evident Tradition might fayle and not be preserved in its purity The true Church is both infallible as long as she lasts of which see Point 5 and is allso sure to last to the end of the world Yea she is assured all this time to have a lawful succession of true Pastors and under them true Professors of the faith in a vast number find any such Church besides the Roman if you can and I give you leave to call that the true Church And lest perhaps the great number of powerfull Texts which we are to cite should worke smale effect with minds prepossest with one or two objections to the contrary we will first cleare them and then passe to the manifold cleere Texts which demonstrate the true Church at no time to be in a lurking Invisibility 2. The prime objection is from the wordes of Elias
and Iacob So that we shall be as sure not to faile of faithfull Princes and Governors in the Church for none but such as are truely faithfull can be truely sayd to be the true sonnes of Iacob and David As we are sure to have night and day the heaven turning over vs and the earth standing still vnder vs. 17. Eeightly The Prophet Ezech. Ch. 34.22 I will save my flock and it shall be no more into spoile But what spoile would that scabb of error make over all Christs flock if it so infected it all as Protestants say it did yea they will have even Idolatry it selfe the most deadly murraine to have infected the whole Church this last thousand yeares and more 18. The third and last sort of Texts to prove this infallibility containe such as plainly say that God will still direct his Church to follow truth or that it shall not revolt from the truth but be a most direct way to the truth that the spirit of truth shall be as it were entailed vpon the doctrine of the Church with which Church this spirit shall ever abide teaching her all truth So first Isa 61.8 I will direct theyr worke in truth and I will make an everlasting Covenant with them of preserving this never fayling truth Secondly Behold how plaine and direct a way to truth is promised the Church of Christ Isa 35. v. 5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened c. And a high way shall be there and it shall be called the way of Holynesse the Holy Catholicke Church the way-faring men though fooles shall not erre there in It is therefore a way infallibly leading to truth Thirdly the same Prophet Chap. 59. v. 20. There shall come a Redeemer to Sion and to them that shall returne from iniquity in Iacob sayth our Lord. As for me this my Covenant with them My spirit that is in thee and my words that I have put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth nor out of the mouth of thy seed nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed from this present and for ever With what clearer words could the spirit of truth be entailed vpon the Church present in each age or be more clearly said to Reside ever in her mouth with which she delivers all her doctrine 19. Fourthly Most clearly Ier. 32.39 I will give them one heart and one way that they may feare me for ever I will make an euerlasting Covenant with them that I will not turne a way from them but will putt feare in theyr hearts that they shall not depart from me Note I pray these words I will putt my feare in theyr hearts that they shall not depart frō me Wherefore they did not revolt from him they did not depart from him Fiftly no lesse fully speakes the Prophet Ezech. 37.24 My servant David King over them and there shall be one sheapheard over them all They shall walke in my judgment and observe my statutes and do them Moreover I will make a Covenant of peace with them it shall be an everlasting Covenant with them and I will set my Sanctuary in the middest of them for ever more How fully is all this spoken of a visible Church haveing one theapherd over all Yea the very Heathens shall know who they be as there is sayd Sixtly that according to the Prophet Micheas Ch. 4.5 All people will walke every one in the name of his God and we will walke in the name for our Lord God for ever Which they doe not who walke in a labyrinth of grosse errors for a thousand yeares togeather it followeth I will make Her who was cast of a strong nation and the Lord shall reigne over the from hence forth and for ever 20. Seaventhly Matth. 16.18 The gates of Hell shall not prevaile against it If Hell could ever come to make the Church a Mistris of errours so as to hold them forth for divine verities so many ages togeather the gates of Hell should highly prevaile against her Now I pray note that for many ages there were no Christians which were not eyther manifest Hereticks and held so by the Protestants themselves or which did not as all Roman Catholicks now doe worship and adore Christ as much vnder the shape of bread in the Eucharist as they worship him sitting at the right hand of his father If this be Idolatry the gates of Hell have prevailed against the Roman Church yea and against the Churches in Greece in Armenia in Aethiopia c. who all ever since they were Christians have held this our doctrine and doe still hold it though they adde a world of other errors Where then shall the Protestants find Christ a Church against which the gates of Hell have not a vast long time togeather prevailed They must eyther be forced to make Christ false in this his doctrine or to confesse our doctrine true If it be not how was this Covenant everlasting as hath been so often sayd in the now cited Texts and allso the Text following in which Christ made the everlasting Covenant formerly promised to be made Eightly S. Iohn Ch. 14. v. 16. And he will give you an other Paraclete that may abide with you for ever the spirit of Truth whome the world knows not but you know him because he dwells with you and shall be in you Now the Apostles not being to be for ever and the spirit of Truth being promised for ever we cannot but say that the promise of this spirit of Truth is made also to the successours of the Apostles the Governours of Christs Church to abide in them and be in them as the spirit of Truth directly opposite to the spirit of errour So ninthly Iohn 16.12 Many things I have to say unto you but you cannot beare them now hence appeares how weighty those thinghs were but when the spirit of Truth cometh he will guide you into all Truth To private persons the Holy Ghost is given as the spirit of sanctification but to the Church he is given as the spirit of Truth guiding her into all Truth and so directly excluding all errour from her 22. Tenthly that convincing place of S. Paul shall end all these Texts 1. Tim. 3.15 where speaking of the visible Church in which he teacheth Timothie how to Converse the speakes thus That thou mayst know how to behave thy selfe in the house of God which is the Church of the liveing God the Pillar and ground of Truth Can I leane more assuredly then vpon the Pillar of Truth Can I even wish to have a surer ground then the ground of Truth And yet such a ground is the Church acknowledged in this Text if it be not perverted by such interpretations as be the inventiōs of mē but of men vnable to confirme theyr interpretation by any Text clearer thē this Here thē behold we have produced no fewer thē thirty texts for the infallibility of the Church Whereas not halfe so
is or can be due to those sinns yet Christ out of his Prudence and Iustice thought fit to order so that this full fruit of his Passion should not be applyed to any but such as should performe severall things which he requires at theyr hands for this effect Not that there is neede of this to supply any want of value in his Passion but there is neede to do all this to fullfill on our parts the Covenant and conditions upon which this benefitt is graunted As you must say of all those five severall things which you yourselves require to be superadded by us on our part that we may enjoy the full fruit of his Passion To these five things we Roman Catholicks adde a sixth and we have Scripture for this sixth as well as you have for the other five That sixth thing is that Christ requires of us severall penall and laborious works which though in themselues and as they meerely proceede from us they have no sufficient proportion to cancell the paines due unto our sins as allso you must confesse all that is done by us in Baptisme or in believing or in repenting or in receaving his body or in endeavouring to keepe his Law hath allso no such proportion yet each of them have vertue to this effect But this vertue is meerely from the vertue of the Passion of our Saviour which is communicated to us by the performance of these things For wee so magnify the vertue of our Saviours Passion that we say a most satisfactory vertue or a speciall efficacy to cancel paine due to sinns is not only communicated by it to Faith but the like efficacy in order to this effect is by the same Passion communicated to our painfull and laborious works of fasting hayrecloath watching praying almesdeedes and therefore this our doctrine is so farre from derogating to our Saviours Passion that it honoureth it more then yours which doth deny the Passion of our Saviour this praise of being sufficient to elevate and rayse our poore endeavours of satisfying to any ability of making reall satisfaction 3. The force and vertue of these actions was well known to H. David who did practice them so much as I shewed in the last point n. 4. His knees were weakned with fasting he laboured in sighing he every night washed his bed and watered his couch with his teares The voice of his perpetuall groaning for his sins with other austerities joyned therewith made his boanes cleave to his skin he being meerely skin and boanes for did eate ashes as bread and mingle his drinke with his most frequent teares he gave himselfe to prayer night and day Every night washing his bed with teares rysing at midnight to confesse to our Lord and then preventing the dawning of the day by the cry of his morning prayers Seven times in the day he sayd praise to God all this he did being a King Almesdeeds may seeme lesse wonderfull in a Royall person yet his bountifull Almes considering the charge of so continuall warrs were even incredible Towards the building of the Temple 1. Chron. 22. v. 14 Behold sayth he I in my trouble prepared the charges of the house of our Lord. Of Gold a hundred thousand talents and of silver a thousand thousand talents and of brasse and of iron without weight for the number is surpassed by the greatnesse timber and stoanes I have prepared to all the charges To all this in the 29. Ch. v. 3 Above all these things which I have offered into the house of my God I give of myne owne peculiar goods gold and silver unto the Temple of my God besids those things which I have prepared for the Holy House Three thousand talents of the gold of Ophir and seven thousand talents of most approved sylver Thus he excelled in all the three satisfactory works Fasting Prayer and Almesdeeds to which three all other satisfactory works are reduced Who commaunded David this The excellency of his Charity to God 4. In like manner Iob of himselfe I abhorre my selfe and repent in dust and ashes Iob 42.6 And as for Almes c. 31. v. 17. If I have eaten my morsels alone and the pupil hath not eaten with me If his sydes have not blessed me and he was not warmed with the fleeces of my sheepe The straunger tarryed noth without my doore was open to the wayfaring man If I have bene affrayde of a very great multitude In another place he was an eye to the blinde a staff to the lame c. Of Holy Iudiths actions we spoake in the former point Heare what is sayd to that wicked King by Daniel 4.24 Wherefore ô King lett my counsel be acceptable to thee break of thy sinns by rightiousnesse and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poore Behold the sinns even of Nabuchodonozar might be cancelled by Almes For Prov 16.6 By Mercy and truth iniquity is purged Ioë 2.12 Convert to me in all your hart in fasting and in weeping and in mourning and rent your harts and not your garments Ionas 3 5. The men of Ninive proclaymed a fast and were cloathed with sackcloath c. And God saw theyr works and had mercy c. Why He saw theyr works 5. In the new Testament we are exhorted to approve our selves Ministers of God in labours in watching in fasting in Chastity 2. Cor. 6.4 We have S. Iohn Baptist neither eating nor drinking Matth. 14. His Disciples fasting often Christ promising that after his death his allso should fast as S. Iohns did that is should fast often Matth. 9.15 We have S. Anne by fasting and prayers serving night and day Luk. 2.37 S. Paul chastizing his body his Disciple Timothy drinking still water And as for Almes after so many woës denounced to the most uncleane Scribes and Pharises Christ himselfe sayth But yet what remayneth give Almes and behold all thinges are cleansed unto you Luk. 11.41 So that to cleanse them by his blood he would have theyr Almes joyned with the vertue of his blood which blood gave this cleansing power to theyr Almes And S. Paul promiseth us Rom. 8.17 That we may be Heyres of God and Ioyntheyres with Christ if so be we suffer with him that we may allso be glorified with him Note the condition if so be that we suffer Though Christs suffering of its owne selfe be more then enough yet he will have ours joyned upon these tearmes he covenants to communicate the full fruit of his Passion to us and therefore without this be done on our part something is sayd to be wanting to the Passion of Christ in order to its full effect 6. This is cleare out of Col. 1.24 I Paul who now reioyce in suffering for you and do fill up what is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body which is the Church Notwithstanding Christs Passion as I declared n. 1. and 2. some scores are left behind so that some things are wanting not wanting on Christs part
as farre from us as that which is not now is distant from that which is now which is a greater distance then East from West though that be farre enough to declare a true perfect remission by quite abolishing the sin forgiven by infused grace according to Ezech. 36.25 I will sprincle clean water upon you and ye shall be clean from all your filthines And 1. Io 1.7 And the blood of Christ clenseth us from all sin So that by this his blood the body of sin is destroyed Rom. 6.6 And thus he will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea Mich. 7.19 THE XXIX POINT Whether our justification may not be lost 1. THe hart is deceitfull above all things who can know it Ier. 17.9 Yet Protestants placing justification in such a speciall faith as assures each man of his saluation by the merits of Christ are hence enforced to teach two strange Paradoxes The first is that this speciall faith breeds a full assurance grounded in a reall truth wherefore wee need not feare our salution The second which is contained in the former or thence clearly deduced is that this justification of ours cannot be lost for else that assurance might have had a lye for its ground and sole fundation 2. Wee teach first that no man without a speciall Revelation is assured to be saved and so all ought to worke theyr saluation with feare and trembling S. Paul every where proveth our doctrine Thou by faith doest stand be not high minded but feare Rom. 11.20 Again 1. Cor. 4.4 he sayth he knew nothing by himselfe concerning any guilt but I am not justified herein But he that judgeth me is our Lord. I dare not judge my selfe though I know nothing by my selfe how then darest thou Again 1 Cor. 9.27 But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection lest that by any meanes whilst I preach to others I my selfe may become a cast away or reprobate Again c. 10. v. 12. Therefore he wh◠thinketh himselfe to stand as Protestants do lett him take heed left he fall Again Phil. 3.11 If by any meanes I might attain to the resurrection of the dead He found no security in that speciall Faith you speak of Therefore he sayd Phil. 2.12 Work your own saluation with feare and trembling Apoc. 3.11 Hold that fast which thou hast that no man take thy crowne For Luke 8.13 There be those who for a time believe and in time of temptation fall away 3. Secondly conformably to all the Texts wee say that those who were just may come finally to be damned For exod 32.33 Whosoever hath sinned against mee him will I blot out of my Book Those who are baptized are born again of water and the Holy Ghost Io. 3.5 Yet how many thousands of these once regenerated men sin afterwards and never rise again and truth sayth of him who riseth not again whosoever hath sinned against mee him will I blot out of my Book out of which he could not be dashed unles his name had once been enroled in it Salomon his saluation is much doubted of by Holy Fathers yet there could be no doubt thereof if your opinion were true for God himself sayth he once was just 1. Chron. 28 7. I will establish his Kingdome for ever if he be constant to my Commandement and Iudgements as at this day At that day then he was in a state pleasing to God and yet you see doubt of his perseverance is even here intimated Yea by and by David his Father tells him but if you forsake him he will cast the of for ever v. 9. David did not judge Salomon to be at this time out of Gods favour yet his words shew he feared that he might hereafter come to loose Gods favour What Salomon after did the Scripture tels us 1. Kings 11. v. 3. Weomen turned away his hart And when he was now old his wives turned away his hart to other Gods He worshiped Astarthee the Goddesse of the Sidonians and Moloch the Idol of the Ammonites he built a Temple to Camos the Idol of Moab and in this manner he did to all his wives who where strangers Therefore our Lord was angry with Salomon because his heart was turned from the Lord. v. 9. Did he not cease to be just when his heart was turned away from our Lord David sayth Psal 5.7 Thou hatest all workers of iniquity God then did hate Salomon I dispute not whether he repented or no whether he were saved or no but without all dispute he once lost his former Iustice his hart and minde being turned away from God and our Lord therefore bearing wrath against him and hating him Let us proceed 4. The Apostles Act. 6.3 Commanded seaven men full of the Holy Ghost to be made Deacons One of them was Nicolas a stranger of Antioch These they sett in the presence of the Apostles and praying they imposed hands upon them Yet this Nicolas did fall finally into Heresy and began the Heresy of those who from his name are called Nicolaites Apoc. 2.6 S. Paul allso Hebr. 6. v. 4.6 tels us the sad condition of those who were made partakers of the Holy Ghost if they shall fall away which is manifestly to suppose that even such men may fall away So the foolish Galatians having begun with the spirit ended with the flesh Gal. 3.3 It is therefore sayd to them You did run well who hindred you not to obey the truth Gal. 5.7 Behold they came not to obey the truth who before did not only walk well but allso run well Hence allso it is that the Scripture useth to speak thus fearfully and conditionally concerning our perseverance in Iustice Io. 15.6 If a man abide not in me he is cast forth And Rom. 11.22 If thou continue in his goodnes otherwise thou allso shall be cutt of And 2. Io 8. Look to your selves that wee loose not those things which wee have wrought Evident therefore is our Doctrine thus delivered by Ezechiel c. 33. v. 12. The righteousnes of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression Neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousnes in the day that he sinneth All his righteousnes shall not be remembred But for his iniquity which he hath committed he shall dy for it He then may die for iniquity who once was just Hence he taught his just Apostles to pray Lead us not into temptation for feare of falling into it Let us therefore when wee have faith Hold faith and a good conscience which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwrack 1. Tim. 1.19 THE XXX POINT To Iustification it is necessary to keep the Commandements This is possible 1. I Say first that it is possible to keep the Commandements by the helpe and assistance of Gods grace sufficiently afforded us to that end Deut. 5. v. 1. Moyses called all Israël and sayd to them heare Israël the statutes which I speake
done pennance in hairecloath and ashes long ago Though the Iewes wold not repent yet hence I am sure that Christ did sufficient for that end Hence that most just exprobration both here and Matth. 23.37 Ierusalem Ierusalem how often would I have gathered together thy Children as the hen gathereth together her chickins and thou wouldest not I would thou wouldest not therefore justly it followes Behold your house shal he left desert Again Rom. 10 21. All the day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people Again Apoc. 3.20 Behold I stand at the dore and knock if any man heare my voice and open the dore I will come in to him Whence again 1. Tim. 2.4 Who will all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of truth And therefore the same Apostle Rom. 2. v. 4. Doest thou contemne the riches of his goodnesse Patience Longanimity but according to the hardnes of thy hart thou heapest up to thy selfe wrath Behold a free will able to contemne the very riches of Gods goodnes in still giving graces and with so much patience and longanimity expecting the effect of them still by mans voluntary malice made fruitles Of such a soule it is sayd Apoc. 2.21 I gave her space to repent of her fornication and she repented not You cannot blame a poore man for not dining because you gave him space to dine unles you allso give him meat wherewith to dine so God could not complain of our not repenting because we had time unlesse allso he offered us grace to repent THE XXXIII POINT This sufficient grace is denyed to none Christ dying even for reprobates 1. IT is evident in Scripture that no grace is givē to any but by the merits of Christ consummated with his death He hath blessed us with all spirituall blessings in heavenly things in Christ Eph. 1.3 So that if you see Point 30. Grace given to all to make the keeping of the commandemēts possible to all if you see point 31. That our free will is still by Gods grace able to do good if you see Point 32. This free will still helped by sufficient Grace to avoid evill and do good you must needs by all this see that this grace can come only from Christs death and therfore this grace being so oftē proved to be offered to all by the same Texts it is allso proved that Christ dyed for all Call to minde how many according to what was proved Point 29. do become reprobates who by vertue of Christs death once received the guift of heavenly grace in Baptisme The like grace was by Christs death given to that just man of whom Ezechiel cited there n. 5. sayth That his Iustices shall be forgotten because he persevered not and in his iniquities he shall dye He therefore became a Reprobate And thus it is true which God sayd to Abraham Gen. 12.3 In thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed And Gcn. 22.18 In thy seed shall be blessed all the nations of earth Now as S. Paul sayrh Gal. 3.14 The blessing of Abraham comes on the Gentiles through Christ Iesus There is none therfore to be excepted from being partaker of this blessing seing that all the families of the earth and all the nations of the earth do enioy it Yct it is evident that many among these families and nations be Reprobates Reprobates therfore enioy many blessings by Christs death which eould not be if Christ did not dye for them By the merits of Christs death many are called yet of these many few are choosen Matth. 22.14 Hence Ezech. 18.23 Why Is the death of a sinner my will sayth our Lord God and not that he convert from his wayes and live Which without grace from Christ he could not do Again c. 33.11 I will not the death of the impious but that the impious convert from his way and live Why will you dye ô house of Israël And so Prov. 1.24 To those to whome he sayd I have called and you have refused I have stretched out my hand and you have not regarded He shall say likewise I will laugh when your destruction cometh as a whirlewind v. 27. They therfore shall be destroyed and perish who by Christs death and merits had many graces helps and callings given them Note that in Christ the will with which he called them was a serious will of which 1. Tim. 2.4 He will all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of truth See in the former Point the many evident Text cited to this effect Hence it is sayd Rom. 2.4 He shewed the riches of his goodnes to those who dispised it treasuring up wrath to themselves Who be those but the Reprobate Again 2. Pet. 3.9 Willing that none should perish And Rom. 5.6 Christ did dye for the impious or ungodly And most cleerly 1. Io. 2.2 He is the propitiation of our sinns And not for ours only but allso for the whole world The whole world comprehends more reprobate then elect He then who dyed for the whole world did allso dye for the Reprobate Wherfore S. Paul more then once warneth us not to be occasion of damnation to those for whom Christ dyed So Rom. 14.15 Do not with thy meat destroy him for whom Christ dyed He therfore for whom Christ dyed may be destroyed and perish eternally Again 1. Cor. 8.11 Through thy knowledge shall thy weak Brother perish for whom Christ dyed And again 2. Pet. 2.1 False teachers bringing in damnable Heresies even denying the Lord who bought them and bring upon themselves swift destruction Hence you see that even those who have brought upon themselves destruction have done this by denying him who bought them at the price of his blood and death He therfore even dyed for those Children of perdition Whence Holy Fathers often say that son of perdition Iudas did shedde that blood with which he was redemed Let us then all be as is sayd 2. Cor. 5.14 Iudging this that if one dyed for all then all were dead S. Paul had not proved by Christ his dying for all that all were dead if any man could be found for whom Christ did not dye And that no one should presume to say that any such man could be found S. Pauls next words are Christ dyed for all v. 15. The Councel of Trent Sess 6. c. 3. citing these words sayth But though he dyed for all yet all receive not the benefit of his death but only those to whom the merit of his Passion is communicated Hence it is sayd 1. Tim. 4.10 We trust in the liveing God who is the Saviour of all men especially of those who believe Saviour he is to all men by giveing what sufficeth to save all mē but this sufficiency is effectuall to saluatiō only in the truly faithfull whose works answered to theyr beliefe and therefore chiefely he is theyr Saviour Yet it is true that speaking generally of us all 1. Cor.