is not such righteousnesse as may stand before God according to the Psal 143.2 Enter not into judgment with thy servant O Lord c. Secondly they who are converted can no further retaine good inclinations thoughts affections or purposes to persevere and goe forward therein then as the holy Spirit worketh and preserveth these in them for if he guide and rule them they judge and doe aright but if he withdraw they are blind and wander and slip and fall yet so as they parish not if so be they were ever truly converted according to these places 1 Cor. 4.7 What hast thou that thou hast not received c. 1 Philip. 4. and 2 Philip. 13. and John 15.5 and 1 Cor. 1.8 1 Cor. 10.13 and 1 Pet. 1.5 In the fourth estate after glorification after the end and consummation of this present life In this liberty the wil shal only be free to chuse good and not to chuse evil and this shal be the perfect liberty of our will by which we shall not only not sin but shall abhorre nothing more than sin and also shall not be able to sin any more No place shall be for ignorance or for error or any doubting of God or for the least stubbornnesse against God Because in the mind shall shine perfect knowledge of God and his will In the will and heart a most perfect and exceeding inclination to obey God an exceeding love of God a joy and resting in God and an agreeablenesse and conformity with God so much and in such manner as such Created vessells are capable of And this shall continue for all eternity they shall be continually ruled by the holy Ghost in all their actions So that it cannot possibly be that any of their actions there should once swerve from righteousnesse and therefore it is said they are as the Angels of God in heaven Mat. 22.30 The liberty of the will shall be truly conformed and perfected to chuse only good to obey and love God with unexpressible alacrity for ever And thus having laid down the four-fold state of man and the four-fold liberty of will answerable to his four-fold state it may serve for one ground to confirme the point in hand That sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as they are here Their renewed state upon earth being but begun not perfected their state being but a growing in grace and profitting more and more and prevailing in mortifying their corruptions but not attaining in this mortall life to have grace consummate nor corruption abolished but sin in part remaines and will remaine till they lay down the body and be compleatly sanctified in the state of glory And for farther confirmation I shall lay you downe the testimony of the Scripture the Confession of the Fathers and some Reasons grounded upon and backed with the Word of God First for Scriptures see Rom. 8.1 There is no condemnation c. In which words we may observe the Apostle doth not say that there is no sinne to them that are in Christ but he saith there is no condemnation to them In the fore-going Chapter he had confessed that he did the evill which he would not doe and that he saw a law in his members rebelling against the law of his mind But now he rejoyceth in Christ that sin in him is not able to condemn him But here I expect from my friend either Cajetan or Aquinas false exposition or that of Mr. Parker that the Apostle spake this when he was a Babe in grace But I desire withall that they will acquaint us what state it was when the Apostle acknowledgeth himselfe the chief of finners 1 Tim. 1.15 The glorious Gospel was then committed unto him enabled by Jesus Christ counted Faithfull and put into the Ministery as you may see in the fore-going verses And yet then saith he notwithstanding all this This is a true and faithfull saying JESUS CHRIST came into the World to save sinners Whereof I am chief Mark the present-tense not preterperfect-tense he doth not say whereof I have been but whereof I am Nay I pray see the second Epistle 1. from 6. to the 13. was all this when he was a babe in grace I would faine know how long it was between the time of writing these Epistles to Timothy and his Epistle to Philemon 1. for there verse 9. he was then Paul the aged But these Jesuiticall Cavillings and reasonings are too well known They never doe nor never shall prevaile against Gods truth Againe in the second verse for the law of the Spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus hath freed me from the Law of sinne and death Here we may observe that the Apostle saith not that we are fully freed from sinne in this life but from the law of sinne That is both from the commanding and condemning power of sinne Sinne doth not now reigns in our mortall bodies neither now hath it any more power to detaine us under death But as for temptations of sin Christian experience teacheth that there is no sort of men more troubled with them then they whom God hath begun to deliver from the law of sinne For Sathan being impatient of his losse seeks dayly to recover his former dominion By which it may appear That Our deliverance from sin is but begun now not perfected But we know our God is faithfull by whom we are called he shall also confirm us to the end Phil 1.6 even He who hath begun a good work in us Blessed be the Lord where before we were Captives of sin now the case of the Battell is altered and changed Sin is become our Captive through Christ It remains in us not as a Commander but as a Captive of the Lord Jesus The bolts of sin are yet upon our hands and feet to admonish us of our former miserable condition We draw the chains of our sins after us which makes us indeed goe forward the more slowly But they are not able to detein us in that bondage wherein we lay before We are delivered from the law of sin whilest we live and the nature of death the wages of sin is so changed That it is not the death of the man but the death of sin in the man mors est Sepultura vitiorum saith Ambrose Death is the buriall of all vices and as Chrysostome saith As the Worm which is bred in tho Tree doth at last consume it So death which is brought out by sin doth at last consume and destroy sin in the Children of God sin will remain though not raign Again in the 13. verse If ye mortifie the deeds of the body whereby the Apostle sheweth That after regeneration by Grace and before glorification Grace is not consummated nor is corruption wholly abolished For although the Apostle affirmed before in the 9. verse that these godly Romans were not in the flesh yet now he exhorts to a further mortification of the lusts of the flesh which exhortation
A VINDICATION OF THE Orthodoxe Protestant Doctrine Against the INNOVATIONS OF Dr. DRAYTON and Mr. PARKER Domestique Chaplain to the Right Honourable the E. of Pembroke In the following Positions LONDON Printed for Richard Royston at the Angel in Ivie-lane 1657. To all the Lovers of Gods Truth Grace and Peace through Jesus Christ the faithfull Redeemer of all his Saints BELOVED FRIENDS THese are the times foretold wherein there shall be a falling away and defection from the Faith as a meere fore-runner of the great and terrible Day And there are many false Prophets arisen amongst us whose study and labour is to deceive poore soules if it were possible even the very Elect. Men confident in an arme of flesh Goliah-like defying the whole Israel of God Some of which number we have to deale with as may appeare in the ensuing Treatise I shall not much regard how I be esteemed of in the world for engaging in the quarrell Applause should not swell us and dispraise should not deject us neither greatnesse affright us When the glory of God lies at stake and his truth opposed his people must not stand by with a guilty silence but are bound by many obligations to defend the truth and withstand gain-sayers For my selfe I am neither worthy of note nor noted the unworthiest I confesse amongst the thousands of Levi. But though I be the meanest of Gods servants yet my witnesse is in heaven I have ever desired to doe the best service I could in Gods Church And this part I presume to present to those that desire to fear the Lord not begging Patronage from Greatnesse For what is good deserves acceptance and wherein I erre I desire pardon not defence The occasion of the publication hereof was a Dispute or rather Contest lately betwixt one Dr. Drayton and one Mr. Parker domestique Chaplaine to the Earle of Pembroke at Wilton in the County of Wilts and my selfe Where in the publique Congregation they stood up endeavouring to beat down the truth of the following Positions and to maintain the contrary as may appear by the proceedings betwixt the Doctor and my selfe which I have placed at the beginning Now although the points in controversie have been so fully and clearly asserted and vindicated by the Worthies of blessed memory and by our yet living Reverend Clergie That to any not puft up with spirituall pride admission of addition may seem superfluous and unnecessary And notwithstanding although dici non potest quod non dictum est priùs Yet in regard there are many people that have been much disturbed and dis-setled by reason of the audaciousnesse and impudence of the opposers of the ensuing truths and many of them are not able to buy Volumes Neither by reason of the weaknesse of their capacities can so readily apprehend the perspicuity and clearnesse of the truths upon the hearing of them nor yet easily distinguish betwixt them and Falshood vayled under Truth 's vizard I have therefore for their satisfaction and confirmation in the truth presented unto the publique some few collections which being seriously weighed and digested I doubt not by the blessing of God may enable the meanest if willing to discover truth from falshood That which others have done we desire to blesse God for it And if that which I have now done shall be any thing serviceable it hath obtained the end of him who is not unwilling to spend and to be spent for the Israel of God that being the end for which we are what we are Your selves are now upon the Stage be couragious fight the good sight of Faith And I assure my self and you that our victory shall be glorious through Jesus Christ our Lord to whom be glory for ever Amen An obedient Son of the Church John Tendring Doctor Drayton's first Letter To his honoured Friend Doctor Tendring These Reverend Doctor I Have here sent you the two questions to be debated between us in a friendly way truly stated as I conceive whereof if you maintaine the first of them affirmatively and the second negatively I have engaged my self to defend the contrary in both That sinne must of necessity have a being in the Saints while they live in the mortall body That the righteousnesse of the law consisting in the love of God above all and of our neighbour as of our selves cannot in this mortall life be fulfilled in the Saints by the grace of Christ If I have not stated them according to your mind send them as you would have them stated to Your loving friend THO DRAYTON Doctor Tendring's Answer to Doctor Drayton's first Letter Reverend Doctor I Much marvell that you should so much alter the state of the Questions propounded to be debated As you have laid them down I assure you I understand them not The language is too intricate for one that desires to deale plainely and onely stands up for the defence of Gods truth according to the grace that is given Though your greater light hath discover'd it to be the doctrine of hell as you have been pleased to call it Our doctrines are plaine and we desire in the sincerity of our hearts the glory of God and the good of souls without carrying on of any interest that your doctrine relates to We are not ignorant from whence it comes and who they have been that have endeavoured to carry it on in this nation I shall say no more but with Gamaliel si sit à Deo c. But that you shall see our plainenesse lest peradventure you did not take a copy of what you wrote I have transcribed it word for word That which I should affirmatively maintaine you say you conceive is this That Sin must of necessity have a being in the Saints while they live in the mortall body Doctor the words were these to be witnessed by the Auditors and this God assisting I will maintaine That Sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as their soules have a being in these houses of clay Then the second which I should negatively maintaine you say you conceive is this That the righteousnesse of the Law consisting in the love of God above all and of our Neighbour as of our selves cannot in this mortall life be fulfilled in the Saints by the graee of Christ. Sir I have a long time since been acquainted with Mults and Jus and Saints and such like words My words were as plaine as my meaning and this God assisting I will stand to maintain Negatively I deny that any man by grace can in this life perform such perfect obedience to the law of God as not to offend against the same It was your owne language Or to be thereby justified otherwise then in and through Christ of grace given Doctor many at the meeting will affirme this to be my language And this I have taught as the truth of God and I hope if I shall be thereunto called shall be enabled to seale it with my blood
Doctor give me leave as a Brother though unworthy to give you this Christian Animadversion Call to mind whose doctrine it is which you stand up for and who they have been that have still done the same Pelagius Bellarmine c. I doubt not of your acquaintance with the many more But how cleerly this is against the Fathers of our Church and some of their owne Doctors I know you cannot be ignorant as Augustine Gregory Lactantius Ierome Bernard Anselme and all Moderne Divines except Bellarmines Fraternity I am sorry that Doctor Drayton should be contrary minded but they and we are all men I shall pray to God to discover our Errors and that in the end God may have glory his Church reap benefit and Christian brotherly love may be increased betwixt Doctor Drayton and his unworthy fellow labourer in the Lords Vineyard John Tendring 30. March 1657. Doctor Drayton 's second Letter To his honoured Friend Doctor Tendring These Reverend Sir I Did not desire to alter the State of the Questions nor have I either wittingly or willingly done it All errors in doctrine must come from hell and not from heaven Therefore if I prove the doctrines erroneous which I reproved you will I hope no longer quarrell the expression You say your doctrines are plaine and that you desire in the sincerity of your heart the glory of God and the good of souls neither of which can consist with the continuance of sinne in our mortall bodies nor doe I carry on any interest but what directly tends to the designe which you pretend to ayme at You further say you are not ignorant from whence our doctrines come but to that I crave leave to question for I am sure it came from heaven if the Prophets and Apostles had theirs to come from thence Nor who they are who have endeavoured to carry it on in this nation who doubtlesse were the best men that ever were in this or any other nation But I will with you take up Gamaliels counsell and conclusion si sit à Deo Good Sir forbeare the aspersions of the truth with the obloquies that have been cast upon any that have held it forth For the first Question I see no difference betwixt your first stating of it which I sent unto you in your own words and your last I shall therefore admit it in these new expressions That sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as their souls have a being in these houses of Clay For the second I expressed my selfe again and again in the words which I sent unto you as all impartiall and understanding Auditors will attest But I will take it in your owne words so far as they are plaine viz. That you deny that any man by grace can in this life performe such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same I mentioned nothing concerning the work of Satisfaction nor shall that come into dispute unlesse by necessary consequence I thank you for your good advise I shall next after Scriptures avouch no other Authors but the Fathers of the Church and perhaps some of our owne Modern Divines of the best note and concluding with a note of your own prayer rest March 3. A servant and lover of the truth that is according to godlinesse and your Fellow-servant in Christ THO DRAYTON I pray you let me heare in a line or two whether we are now agreed upon the stating of the questions Doctor Tendring's Answer to Doctor Drayton's second Letter Reverend Doctor As the Questions are now stated I agree to them and doe hereby joyne Issue I require your Rejoynder and let it be at your pleasure whether I shall begin or you So I rest Yours in the Lord Iohn Tendring Send your Answer by this Bearer Doctor Drayton's Third Letter For his much honoured Friend Doctor Tendring These SIR I Am very glad that we are thus far agreed viz. about the state of the Questions I hope we shall goe on in the same correspondency if you please to begin because you are perhaps at better leisure and so will send one or both of the Questions with your respective Confirmation to Mr. Parker you shall soone after God willing receive mine who in the interim and I hope ad interitum shall remaine Your loving friend to serve you in the Lord Tho Drayton The Positions be these Posit 1 THat Sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as their Soules have a being in these houses of clay Posit 2 That no man by grace can in this life performe such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same or to be thereby justified otherwise then in and through Christ of grace given NOw to the end that the er suing Discourse may be proper and profitable for the informing the judgments of the weak and for the establishing them in the faith of the truth which next to the glory of God and the advancement of his truth is the onely thing intended I shall observe this method First I shall define what Sin in generall is Secondly what the first sin waâ— Thirdly the causes of the first sinne Fourthly the effects thereof And lastly what Originall Sin is And so I shall proceed to confirmation of the first position And first of the first what Sin in generall is The word in Hebrew which is traâ—slâ—ted sinne signifi th properly misdoing or missing of the mark or way as in Judg. 20.6 it is said that the men of Benjamin could sling a stone at an nares breadth and not sin that is not misse And in Prov. 19.2 it is said that he that is hasty with his foot sinneth that is misseth or swerveth In Religion Gods Law is our mark or way from which when we swerve we sin and therefore Sin is defined to be the transgression of the Law as in 1 John 3.4 or whatsoever is repugnant to the Law that is a defect or inclination or action repugnant to the Law of God Which is the generall nature of sinne Or defect is this generall nature and inclinations or actions or rather the matter of sin The difference and formall essence of sin is as I said a repugnancy with the Law The property which eleaveth fast unto it is the guilt of the creature offending that is to say the binding of the creature to temporall and eternall punishments which is done according to the order of Gods Justice And hence it is that we commonly say there is a double formality or two-fold nature of sin Repugnancy with the Law and guilt Or that there are two respects of which the former is a comparison or dissimilitude with the Law the other an ordaining to punishment In the second place the fall or first sin of man was the disobedience of our first Parents Adam and Eve in Paradise or the eating of the apple and sruit forbidden Gen. 2.16 17. This Commandment of God
because we are never able to perform the condition For although Bellarm. saith We can keep Gods Word that is fulfill his Commandement yet he proves it not And for to say his Commandements are not grievous and to say that we can keep them is not the same For a thing may be very light and yet heavier than I can bear For the Commandements are just and holy and good Rom. 7.12 And the yoke of obedience is easie and light Mat. 11.30 yet it is more than we can doe and a great deale heavier than we can beare Acts 15.14 And that not in regard of the heavinesse of the things required but in respect of the weaknesse of us that should perform them It must therefore follow where there is imperfection of Grace there must needs be sin but in this life Grace is not consummate and perfect Ergo c. Lastly that which is the priviledge of the Saints in Heaven is not to be attained here on Earth but to be exactly perfect to be filled with God to have no defect or imperfection remaining is the priviledge of the Saints in Heaven Therefore not the priviledge of the Church Militant Here we pray Enter not into Judgement with thy Servants O that my waies were so directed that I might learn thy Statutes Make me a cleane heart O God Here we still finde our need of Christ our Mediator who is our Advocate with the Father 1 John 2.1 2. What need of an Advocate if no sinne When shall he exercise his Office if not for us in this life c. Here we have cause to admire Gods Mercy to bewaile our sinnes to goe forward to rise after falls to be kept by the mighty power of God 1 Pet. 1.5 But in Heaven sinne and feare shall be gone and all tears wiped away from our Eyes I hope what I have written may suffice for satisfaction to them whose eyes the God of this World hath not blinded that sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as our souls have a being in these houses of clay As to our adversaries I shall pray all that are faithfull to pray with me for them that God would open their eyes that they may see their sinne and then I doubt not but that they will be ashamed of their Doctrine Considering out of what puddles they draw them either from Pelagius or Bellarmine Bayly Becanus the Jesuits or from the Adamits who are conceited that they are renewed to that purity which Adam had before the fall Daneus on Aug. de heresibus 6. cap. 31. or else from some of Romes fraternity that are now crept in amongst us who are very well versed in the old trade of Arch heritiques falsifying truths to maintain lies But I doubt not but God will discover them in due time and in the intervall will keep them that are his from being deluded by them What Men without sinne It was good hap for the woman that was taken in adultery John 8. that her accusers were none such as these Preachers for if they had been such they would have obeyed our Saviour And the woman had not scaped without a volley of stones about her eares And if it be true that they say that a man may live and not sinne then that Article is in vain to believe the forgivenesse of sinne What need I believe the forgivenesse of sinne if I be without sinne But to draw towards conclusion of this point I shall say as the Eunuch answered Philip Acts 8.30 31. When he asked Vnderstandest thou what thou readest How can I saith he understand without a guide So we may answer the Lord when he commands us to walk in his wayes How can we walk in thy wayes O Lord without a guide I shall therefore commend this counsell to all people that desire to serve the Lord and to walk in his wayes as a point of good Religion To turn the Lords precepts into prayers and to say with holy David Psal 43.3 Send out Lord thy light and thy truth and let them lead us into thy holy Mountain and thy Tabernacle and as in the 143.10 Let thy good Spirit lead me into the land of righteousnesse And from blinde Jesuiticall Guides with their false pretended new lights in a dark Lanthorn their feigned lies pretended Revelations but delusions Good Lord deliver us Much good may their perfection on earth doe them The Lord in mercy discover unto me my imperfections more and more and humble me in the sense of them so long as I live on earth that I may alwayes with the poor Publican say Lord be mercifull unto me a sinner And that with St. Paul I may still forget what is behinde and still press forwards towards the Marke putting forth all the strength that the Lord shall be pleased to lend me and improve all opportunities that the Lord affords me to the best advantage for the mortifying of sinne and sinfull corruptions in me and for the growing in grace untill I attain unto the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ which shall be after grace consummate in heaven hereafter And for him that can finde perfection here on earth let him never look for it in Heaven Now in the last place I shall lay you down some of their arguments against this truth and some of the Scriptures that they wrest to maintain their error First They deny originall sinne and say it is taken away from the Saints of God on earth and therefore they cannot derive it to their posterity Unto the antecedent we answer that we must distinguish of sinne There are three things therein the Offence the Obligation the Pollution For the first Although God hates sinne in his dearest Saints yet this to the regenerate man is abolished and blotted out by the mercy of Jesus Christ Secondly For the Obligation of the Sinner to punishment this likewise is pardoned to such a man through Christ But as concerning the pure essence of sin the pollution thereof that is the vitious inclination or pronenesse which that sin leaves in us to fall into it or the like this remaineth in them Although the power and strength of this be taken away that it cannot reign in a regenerate man yet the life and being of sinne is not quite taken away And thus we say God forgiveth all our iniquities and healeth all our infirmities Psalme 103.3 quatenus as to the fault guilt and strength yet this is not done all at once but gradually by degrees he begins this cure here and goes on from day to day But this renewing is not perfected in this life otherwise then as I have shewed you Wherefore the godly doe derive such a corrupt nature to their posterity as they themselves have But they reply That which Parents themselves have not they cannot derive to their posterity But the guilt of originall sinne is taken away from regenerate Parents therefore at least the guilt is not derived Unto
of Adam is destroyed and passed away and all things are become new Quia Christianus renevatus est per omnia because a regenerate man is renewed in all things throughout in every part and power both of body and soul and therefore the Regenerate are quite free from all corruption of sinne and indued with all perfection of grace Resp I answer that it is not the meaning of the Holy Ghost in those or the like places to shew that sin is quite abolished and grace perfected in the Saints no otherwise then I shewed unto you before Inchoative non perfective by way of inchoation not perfection But the spirit of God by these formes or phrases would give us to understand two special things First To assure us that now sin is like a serpent crushed in the head according as God said Gen. 3.15 That the promised seed should bruise the Serpents head and therefore can never recover his former strength nor any wayes hurt the regenerate man but only to bruise his heel that is by the wrigling of her tail to cause some temporary affliction to light upon them Secondly to signifie unto us that this should be the main scope of all Saints to strive continually to mortifie the deeds of the flesh and to doe their best endeavors to be clean rid of them and for to perfect holiness in the fear of God 2 Cor. 7.1 And this is plainly intimated unto us in all the exhortations of the Scriptures as where we are advised to abstain from filthy lusts and mortifie the deeds of the flesh and the like For if there were no lusts no deeds of the flesh in us to what end are we bidden to mortifie them Script 3 1 John 3.9 quoted before He that is born of God sinneth not therefore say they the regenerate sin not Answ First He sinneth not to death For they doe not wholy forsake God albeit they may sin against their Consciences but they retein still some beginnings of true godlinesse by which as by sparks they are stirred again to repentance as David Peter and others Secondly He sinneth not as he is regenerated but he sinneth as long as he abideth in this life sin not reigning in him and yet sometimes reigning too as he is regenerated but in part and in part carnall For regeneration or renewing us to the Image of God is not perfected in an instant but is begun only in this life as I have formerly shewed you and in the life to come is at length finished for so doth John himself pronounce of himself and all the Saints in this life 1 John 1. If we say c. And if we acknowledge our sinnes he is faithfull and just to forigve us our sinnes this therefore is the meaning of St. John that the regenerate indeed doe sinne but yet not so as that they make much of their sinne Or doe so at any time yeeld and assent to evill desires that they cast away all love of godlinesse and repent not For alwayes in the regenerate there remaineth some remnant of a regenerate nature Which causeth either a strife against sinne or else true repentance that is it suffereth them not to sinne to everlasting destruction Or thus more briefly He that is born of God makes not a trade of sinning he lives not in his sinne he lies not in his sinne he delights not in his sinne he sinnes not with purpose with pleasure with malice with perseverance sinne raigneth not but as the Apostle saith the evill that I doe I would not doe c. Object It is said His seed remaineth in him neither can he sinne because he is born of God Sol. The Spirit of God remaineth in him so that he cannot sinne a sinne unto death he cannot come under the power of sinne Script 4 1 Pet. 1.23 Bring born a new not of mortall seed but of immortall by the word of God who liveth for ever If therefore say they the seed of Gods word never dieth in them that are born a new they ever remain regenerate and ever retain Grace neither ever fall into sinne Answ I answer first that the regenerate may loose and doe often loose Grace and the holy Spirit as concerning some guifts sometimes more somtimes fewer although they loose it not if we respect all the guifts For still there abideth in them some beginning or print of true Faith and conversion which although when they yeeld to evill inclinations or desires it is so oppressed and darkened that it neither can be known of others neither confirm them of the Grace of God and their own Salvation for the present yet it suffereth them not wholly to forsake God and the known Truth and to cast away their purpose of embracing by Faith the Merits of the Sonne of God So David prayeth Psal 51.10 11. Create in me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit within me and restore me to the joy of thy Salvation He had lost therefore cleanness of Heart rightness and newness of Spirit and the joy of Salvation which he beggeth of God to be restored unto him and yet he did not wholly want them for otherwise he would not have asked neither would he have looked for from God this renueing and restoring Secondly The Seed of God that is the Word of God working true Faith and Conversion in the Elect abideth and dyeth not in the regenerate as concerning their coversion and finall perseverance how ever they may fall often grievously and foully before their end If they had been of us they would have continued with us saith the Apostle 1 John 2.19 Script 5 A good tree cannot bring forth evill fruit Answ I answer it cannot as it is good which shall so come to passe in the life to come But if it be partly good and partly evill such is the fruit also whereof we have sufficient tryall and experience in this life Script 6 Eph. 5.25 26 27. This shews us how Christ in this life by the Word Sacrament and the operation of Grace doth cleanse us that in the state of glory we may be perfectly holy without spot or wrinkle and that the words are to be understood of the state of glory I shall prove by these ensuing Reasons Reas 1 First Reason Because here we are absent from Christ and know but in part and so although we love inchoatively yet we love not perfectly Reas 2 Second Reason Because otherwise there would be no distinction between the state of Glory and the state of Grace if Grace were consummate in this mortall life Reas 3 Third Reason Because the Saints on Earth have sinne remaining in them and they that deny it are lyars and no truth in them And we shall finde that all the Fathers against the Novatians and Donatists so understand the place The Church Triumphant without spot or wrinkle and not the Church Militant Script 7 2 Tim. 4.7 Paul had fought a good fight and finished his course And
say our adversaries had he not subdued his body and brought it into subjection 1 Cor. 9.27 I answer first Paul fought a good fight and finished his course being now ready to be offered up yet not so as to obtein exact perfection of Grace and so as to be without all sinne inherent of which he complains Ro. 7. Peter also led whither he would not when he was to suffer John 21.18 Paul kept the Faith and he who said to him my Grace is sufficient for thee my power is made perfect in weaknesse enabled him to overcome though he had corruption remaining and buffettings of Sathan Secondly Paul by fasting and prayer kept down his body to bring it into subjection that he might not be rejected of God And this shews his continuall warfare against the flesh as Aug. saith of himself I have continuall warr with fasting c. noting that by fasting prayers and tears he fought against corruption remaining Script 8 Eph. 4 from the 10. ver to the 15. God gave guifts and teachers from Heaven to bring us to a stature of perfection in Christ for the edifying of the body of Christ c. I answer We grant that the ministry of the Word is given not only to convert men from sinne but after to perfect them in holinesse But yet as the same Paul speaketh Acts 20.32 which is able to build you up This is all to edifie and build up the Saints more and more Yet though they grow under the Word and Ordinances they doe not attain to exact and compleat perfection so as in this lâ—fe to be without sinne or to have Grace consummate but still grow and edifie one another in love But the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ is attained in the state of Glory not in Earth in the state of Grace we are growing but not exactly perfected till we are glorified in Heaven Here we have perfection of parts there perfection of degrees The last objection which hitherto I have met with that is necessary to be answered is this They say That the Apostle prayed for the perfecting of the Saints Heb. 13.20 2 Cor. 13.9 1 Pet. 5.10 and surely they prayed for things feasable and attainable nor can the prayer of Christ for the same be in vain John 17.25 I in them and they in me that they may be made perfect in me I answer the Apostles prayed for the perfecting of the Saints and so did our blessed Saviour and they obteined what they prayed for that is to say to have them sincere in this life and to have Grace consummate in the state of Glory Rep. But they reply Is sinne pardoned and mortified and yet remains I answer It is so pardoned as not to be imputed it is so mortified that the power and dominion of it is taken away Yet it remains to be more and more mortified and wholly cast out at the death of the body the last enemy that shall be subdued is Death sinne shall be cast out at the death of the Body and Death shall be destroyed at the generall Resurrection and so be the last enemy destroyed Rep. But say they when must sin be purged out if not here in this life Must we carry the remainder of sin into the Kingdome of Heaven whereunto no unclean thing shall enter Rev. 21.17 I answer Men shall not carry the remainder of sinne into Gods Kingdome with them but they shall lay it down at the death of the Body The Theif only converted shall be that day in Paradise the souls of Saints departed goe home to God and Grace is consummate into Glory and as for that Rev. 21.17 It is confessed by their own fraternity is the state of the Saints in Patria not in via And thus briefly have I proved unto you the truth of the point That sinne will have a being in the best men so long as their Souls have a being in these houses of clay and this I hope may be sufficient to satisfie the people If I shall meet with any new argument from my Friend against the truth of the point God assisting I shall endeavour to answer them by way of replication for their full satisfaction as for the old arguments truly they are so stale that they stink before God and good men Romes good Creatures excepted They have been so fully answered and confuted that were not men past shame set on work by Hell and engaged for wages to Rome they would forbeare thus to disturbe the peace of Gods Church But we doubt not but maugre the malice of Men and Devils truth shall be hereby made more manifest and shall prevail And the folly of those that resist the truth shall be made manito all men The Lord grant that we may obey the Apostles command From such to turn away and the Lord in mercy strengthen our faith in the beliefe of that promise 2 Tim. 3.9 that in Gods good time it shall be performed The promise is They shall proceed no further Come we now to the second Position which is this I deny that any man by grace in this life can perform such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same or to be thereby justified otherwise than in and through Christ of grace given And this God assisting I shall clear as the former dividing the same into three branches First That no man by grace can perform such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same Secondly That no man can be justified by the works of the Law or by his obedience thereunto Thirdly That we are only justified by the righteousnesse of Christ And first of the first No man can by grace in this life perform c. For the better understanding the point we must know that grace is an equivocall word and it is taken two waies in Scripture First pro gratia gratis data For the free guift of God infused into our hearts by the Holy Ghost And secondly pro gratia gratum faciente for the free favour of God whereby he makes us acceptable to himself and in this sense we say that we are justified by Gods grace that is by the free favour of God whereby he imputeth not our sin unto us But accompteth us as just by imputing the justice of Christ unto us Now according as grace is taken in the first sense I say that so no man by grace can perform in this life such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same or to be thereby justified c. God never gave or ever will give such grace to any to fulfill the righteousnesse of the Law in their own persons and so thereby justified or found righteous by the same for it stands not with the glory of Christ that any such grace should be given from above And the reason may be this If by our infirmities the strength of Christ is made
made our selves unable so much as to think a good thought 2 Cor. 3.5 But our Adversaries have and doe further object That a regenerate man hath sufficientia principia rectae operationis sufficient causes and means of well doing as knowledge to understand what is good will to desire what is good and power to effect what is good his soul being enlightned sanctified and assisted by Gods Spirit therefore he may doe what is good and all what God commands I answer That we grant a regenerate man to be enabled to doe good but how farre enabled Surely not perfectly for our knowledge is but in part obscured with ignorance our will is distempered with many turbulent affections and our power hindred to doe many good things we would doe by many lustfull temptations And therefore these principia operationis being not perfecta principia our actions cannot be perfect which proceed from them Who can tell saith David how oft he offendeth Cleanse thou me from my secret sinnes You see Gods Saints have secret sinnes I may have many sinnes and fail in many things which no man knoweth of nor my self but only known to God I may sin and not know mine own sin yet God seeth the same We cannot judge mens hearts for we know not our own it is Gods preroagative to search and try the Reines Jer. 17.9.1 John 3.20 And it is our duty to pray with Nehemiah 13.12 Accept my obedience but pardon mine iniquity That chosen vessell was compelled to say this although he knew nothing by himself yet he knew that thereby he could not be justified And this I hope may suffice for the cleering the first Branch of the second Position That no man can perform such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same or by his obedience thereunto be justified before God And for further confirmation of the truth thereof I dare appeale to any mans conscience if he be not too arrogant how upon the confirmation of Gods strict Judgement and his own manifold infirmities he dares justifie himself in any one act against God And I doubt not but the proudest heart would soon tremble and the boldest face would blush and be ashamed and affraid to have his best works even his prayers scan'd according to the strictnesse of Gods Law or the rigor of Gods Justice And of the adversaries to this truth I require this one thing That they will either produce a man and prove it That hath ever performed in his own person such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same Or else let them acknowledge their error with shame and forbear opposing the truth and disturbing the peace of Gods Church Lest by persisting in their malicious wickednesse their sinne become unpardonable I shall pray for them as for my self that the Lord would be pleased to convince us of the errors of our waies humble us in the sense of our sinnes and be mercifull to our poor Souls Come we now to the second Branch of the second Position which hath in it these two parts to be considered First That no man can be justified by the works of the Law Secondly That we are only justified by the righteousnesse of Christ And first of the first In part I have cleered it before but for further confirmation The Apostle Paul reasons admirably and plainly in this point saying Rom. 15.6 If Salvation be of Grace it is no more of works for else were Grace no more Grace And if it be of works it is no more of Grace for else works were no more works But Salvation is of Grace for by Grace yee are saved through Faith and that not of your selves It is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast Eph. 2.8 And our Saviour tells us plainly that when we have done our best We are but unprofitable Servants Ergo Salvations is not of works Again Reason it self drawn from the Scriptures doth sufficiently prove that we cannot be justified by our works For if any works doe justifie us they must be done either before or after justification But First no works done before the Grace of justification can justifie us Because evill trees cannot bring forth good fruit and being not done of Faith they must needs be sinne for whatsoever is not done of Faith is sinne and without Faith it is impossible to please God Heb. 11.6 Whereupon Saint Paul saith That all men before they be ingrafted into Christ by Grace are the Servants of sinne farre from righteousnesse and bringing forth nothing but fruits deserving shame and death Rom. 6.20 Secondly Our works done after Grace Reason it self sheweth That they cannot be the cause of Grace for how can that which commeth after be any cause of that which goeth before The cause must precede the effect And so August tells us That good works doe not goe before him that is to be justified but doe follow him that is already justified And therefore as good fruits cannot be the cause of the goodnesse of the tree so good works cannot be the cause of justification And that place of the Apostle which I cited before Rom. 3.20 makes it cleer By the works of the Law no flesh shall be justified For first in the 9. ver he tells us That both Jews and Gentiles are under sinne because all are transgressors of the Law Therefore all the world must be guilty before God and can no wayes be justified by pretending innocency in keeping the Law Secondly He sheweth the Reason why no flesh can be justified by the Law because the Law convinceth us of sinne for by the Law commeth the knowledge of sinne But the Law convinceth them that are under Grace and which hath the greatest measure of Grace to be sinners Phil. 3.9 Therefore they that doe the works of the Law by the help of Grace cannot be justified by the Law because the Law sheweth them likewise to be sinners as well though not as great as they that endeavour to keep the Law without the help of Grace And therefore the Apostle concludeth That we are all justified by the righteousnesse of God without the Law as you may see in Rom. 3. from 2. ver therefore not by any righteousnesse of the Law done either by the help of Grace or without Grace For he that obeyeth the Law how ever he doth it with the help of Grace or his own strength yet he hath the same righteousnesse The righteousnesse of the Law because the different manner of obteining it altereth not the nature of the thing But the Apostle sheweth a great difference betwixt the righteousness of the Law and the righteousness of Faith For Moses describeth the righteousnesse which is of the Law That the man which doth these things however he doth them by his own strength or some other help if he doth them he shall live by them Rom. 10.5 But the righteousnesse of Faith speaketh on