the Creatures have at times deviated from their first Rule and settlement is no derogation to the Doctrine of Gods Sovereignty but rather an illustration of it as shewing that the Creatures are still in His hand as Clay in the Potters Hence we find their innate propensions to be sometimes suspended Otherwhiles acted beyond and at times again quite contrary to the law of their nature and this not casually nor by the force of created powers nor yet for any private or self concern but to serve some special and superiour End which their Lord had to be done To instance a few And 1. Of Creatures without life As the windows of Heaven opening Gen. 1 6 7. Ps 10â— 9. and the fountains of the great deep breaking â—p Notwithstanding the Firmament above and the bounds beneath Exod. 14. 21. 22. Josh 10. 13. Judg. 5. 20. 2 K. 20. 11. to drown the world of ungodly men Gen. 7. 11 and 12. The Red Sea's dividing and standing up as a wall to make way for his Peopl's escape The Sun and Moon 's standing still till they were avenged on their Enemies The Stars to the same end fighting against Sisera The Suns going back in Ahaz his Dial to help Hezekiahs Faith Dan. 3. 22 27. The fiery Furnace devouring those at a distance who cast in those holy Confessors and not so much as touching them that were cast into it The winds and the Seas which are such turbulent and lawless Creatures they stir not nor breathe but to fulfill his word Ps 148. 4. Mark 4. 39. 2. Of living Creatures that have not the use of Reason How readily went they by pairs into Noah's Ark at Gods appointment The Frogs Gen. 7. 8 9. Lice Locusts c. with what supernatural boldness did they assault and perplex the Egyptians That the Magicians themselves confessed Exod. 8. v. 13. 31. Num. 21. 29. 2 Pet. 2. 16. the finger of God was in it and as strangely withdrew when their work was done Witnessed also by the dumb Ass's reproving the Prophets madness 1 K. 13. 24 The Lion's killing the seduced Prophet for breaking God's command yet not eating the carcass nor tearing his Ass 1 K. 17. 6. A Ravenous bird bringing Elijah food in his solitary condition The Whales receiving Jonah and at Gods command casting him on dry Land without harm Jonah 1. Dan 6. 22 24. 17. with ch 2. 10. And the Lyons not hurting Daniel in their Denn yet greedily devouring his accusers It must needs be a Sovereign power which thus Intends Restrains Inverts the course of nature at his will Thirdly Another Ensign asserting Gods supremacy and Rightful Dominion is the general Vote and subscription of Men especially the most knowing and such as best understood him They own it 1 In their Practise or Actions Abel offers the firstlings of hâ—s Flock to God Gen. 4. 3 Abraham leaves his native Country Gen 12. 4. Gen. 22 2. at Gods command to go he knew not whether He also offers his only and innocent son Isaac ver 10. in whose life and posterity all Nations were to be blessed Job when stript of all falls down and worships Job 1. 21. When his two sons were destroyed by fire from Heaven Levâ—t 10. 2 3. Aaron held his peace Eli when that tingling sentence was denounced against his house It is the Lord says he let him do as seemeth him good 1 Sam. 3. 18. David when driven from Gods Sanctuary and his throne usurp'd by Absolom Behold here I am let him do to me as seemeth good to him 2. Sam. 15. 26. The men of Nineveh their destruction was pronounced peremptorily of which they had no promise of Remission and consequently no visible ground of hope yet they believed God fasted lay in sackcloth and turned from their evil way Jonah 3. 5. 2 They likewise own it in their confessions and attestations Melchisedeck stiles him The Mâ—st High God Possessor of Heaven and Earth Gen. 14. 19. and Abraham doth the like verse 22. Job professeth that though he were Righteous yet if Gâ—d will contend with him he will not answer but make supplication to his Judge Job 9. 15. The Lord hath made all things for himself Prov. 16. 4. For his pleasure they are and were creaated Rev. 4. 11. We are the Clay and thâ—u our Potter Isa 64. 8. He worketh all things after the Councel of his own Will Eph. 1. 11. He giveth not account of any of his matters Job 33. 13. In his hand is the soul of every living thing chap. 12 â—0 He is the God of the spirits of all flesh Numb 16. 22. All Nations before him are less than Nothing and Vanity Isa 40. 17. He stils the tumult of the people Ps 65. 7. If it be of God ye cannot overthrow it Ps 33 11. Acts 5. 39. The Councel of the Lord that shall stand Pro. 19. 21. The lot is cast into the lap but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord Pro. 16. 33. The Kingdome is the Lords and he is Governor among the Nations Ps 22. 28. Thou Lord art exalted above all Gods Ps 97. 9. Nehuchadnezzar that proud and potent Monarch whose greatness reached unto Heaven and his dominion to the end of the Earth All Nations trembled before him whom he would he slew and whom he would be kept alive who said in his heart I will ascend into Heaven I will exalt my Throne above the Stars of God I will be like the most high And who is that God that shall deliver out of my hand Yet even he this Child of pride is made to confess One higher than himself and to bow before him proclaiming to the World That the most High dâ—th according to his will in the Army of Heaven and among the Inhabitants of the Earth and none can stay his hand or say unto him what dost thou Dan. 4. 22. ch 5. 19. ch 3. 15. ch 4. 34 35 and 37 verses and Isa 14. 13 14. It might farther be instanced in Cain Pharaoh Baalam and other wicked men how they were forced against their wills to acknowledge the Sovereignty of God as appears by comparing Exod. 5. 2. with ch 9. 27 28. and Nuâ—b 22. 18. Darius also in Dan. 6. 26 27 2. Fourthly Another evidence or witness we have from the Angels who are great in power Notwithstanding which they do perfectly own and submit to the Sovereignty of God Where Subjects are numerous wise and magnanimous and withall perfectly submiss to the will of their Lord it argues their Lord is an absolute Sovereign And such are the Angels 1. The Elect or Good Angels These shew it by their ready submission to any service He is pleased to appoint them Zach. 6. 5. 6 7. They are Gods Inetlligencers Not that he needs their advises but to manifest his Sovereign greatness They are also his Messengers He sends them on His errands to negotiate His affairs among men and
ever Shaken you may be and tossed with tempest but never Over-turn'd because ye have an Eternal Root Electing love is of that Sovereignty That it Rules and Over-rules all in Heaven and Earth Christ Jesus our Saviour and Lord The Holy Ghost our Sanctifier Councellor and Comforter in all that they have done do or will do do still pursue that scope All Ordinances Providences Temptations Afflictions and whatever can be Named be it good or be it bad in it self Life death things present and things to come are all made Subservient to the Decree of Election And do all Work-together To compass and bring-about its Most glorious designment If the Course and Conduct of Common Providences were truly lined-out It would yield an illustrious Prospect How much more the Conduct Order and End of those special Providences which are proper to and conversant about Election When all the peeces therof shall be brought-together and set-in-order how beautifull will it be Angels and Men shall shout for the Glory of it Then 't will be evident God has done nothing in vain or impertinent to your blessedness That what ever hath befallen you here however contrâ—ry to your present sense and opinion of it was dâ—spensed in very faithfuâ—ness to you That if any of those manifold and seemingly Cross Occurrences you have been exercised-with had been omitted it would have been a Blank in your story a blot in your Scutcheon of honour When you shall see What Contrivances have been against you what Art Subtilty Malice and Power they were agitated-with How unable you were to Fore see prevent avoid or repell them And how all the Attributes of God and His Providences each one in its time and place which was always most seasonable came-in to your Rescue Retorting on your adversaries and safeguarding you yea how that which was death in it self was made to work life in you How amiable and admirable will the story of it be That when your faith was weak the Lord did not withdraw from you That when it was at its height and strength He then did for you above all you could believe or think and through an unspeakable Preass of Difficulties and Contradictions He carried-on his work in you even bearing you on Eagle's Wings until He had brought you to Himself How will you Magnifie His work and Admire it then Begin it Now. Secondly Infer II. Let us study more the Knowledg and Contents of this Great truth of Believers Invincible Perseverance the Rise Progress and Tendency of it and what advantages it yields us which indeed are many and very considerable 1. As it is a part of the Doctrine of Election which teacheth That Nothing in us but Grace and love in God was the only Original Cause of our Salvation The knowledge whereof will work in the Soul an holy Ingenuity and love towards God whom nothing offends but Sin Simon answered right Luke 7. 43. when he said He that had most forgiven him would love most Whence it follows That he who believes the Free Remission of all his sins from first to last must needs love God more than One who believes only the pardon of those that are past and that so as that they may all be charged upon him agen Or if not That yet he may possibly perish for those to-come perhaps in the last Moment of his life For he is not sure Nay 't is very doubtfull if dependent on his own natural will That Faith or Repentance shall be his last Act. Now This Grace of Love being the strongest and most operative Principle he that is led by it must act accordingly that is 2 Cor. 4. 16. Vigorously and without weariness as Paul did And Joseph having received large Tokens of God's love to him and expecting more yet argues against and with an holy disdain and sleight of hand puts-by the Temptation How can I doe this and sin against God who hath dealt and will deal so bountifully with me 2. As it teacheth the soul to Depend upon God for its keeping as having His Almighty Power absolutely engaged for it Whereas if the efficacy and event of all that God doth for Me should depend upon something to be done by Me who am a frail Creature and prone to Revolt I should still be in fear because still in danger of Falling and losing all at last And this Fear being an enfeebling passion must needs render my Resistance and all my endeavours both irregular and weak Whereas a Magnanimous and fearless spirit who sees himself Clothed with a Divine Power shall have his Wits as we say more about him to discern Dangers and Advantages and consequently how to eschew the one and improve the other 3. As it gives assurance Our labour shall not be in vain This made those believing Hebrews to endure that great fight of afflictions and to take joyfully the spoiling of their Goods Heb. 10. 33 34. because they knew they had in Heaven a better and more-enduring substance All manner of Accomplishments put-into-one and made your own would not so invincibly Steel your foreheads and strengthen your hearts as To be Sure of Success and to come off Conquerour The Apostle therefore brings it in as the highest encouragement in our Christian Warfare in Rom. 6. 14. and chap. 8. 37. And our blessed Lord Himself who of all others had the hardest Chapter to Run-through It made His Face as a Flint Isa 50. 7. because He knew He should not be Confounded Thirdly Infer III. Make it one and that a Mayn part of your business to foyl and disprove the Objections that are brought against this Doctrine And your Nearest way to it is Growing in Grace 2 Pet. 3. 18. with chap. 1. from the 5th verse to the 10th 1. Lay-aside and Cast-away every weight especially the sin that doth most easily beset you your bosom sin whatsoever it be Isa 2. 20. 1 Thes 5. 5 6 Cast them to the Moles and to the Batts They are not fit-Mates for Day-light Creatures It is a Noble prize you Run-for Therefore Clogg not your self with any thing that may hinder or retard your pace 2. Keep your selves in the Love of God that is keep-up and maintain a spiritual sense of His love to you and a lively answer of holy affections towards Him Whatever may tend to obscure or lessen your sense of it have nothing to doe with that unjust thing keep your self from Idols let nothing have an interest in your love but God and all things els but in subordination and with respect to Him onely 3. Watch against the Beginnings and first Motions of sin Nip it in the bud Abstain from all appearance of evil and walk not on the brink of your liberty It is easier to keep-out an Invader than to Expell him being Entred To keep-down a Rebel and prevent his Rising than to Conquer him when he is up Great and black Clouds have small beginnings the bigness
It is sometimes called The Way of life Prov. 12. 28. Sometimes the fountain and well-spring of life Chap 14. 27. And it tendeth to life Rom 11. 16. Chap. 19 22. For if the Root be holy the branâ—hes cannot be otherwise 'T is so likewise with Sin Death follows Sin not onely as a punishment for delinquency but as its natural off-spring Original corruption is the Root Pro. 23. 29 30. Sin the Stalk that grows next upon it and Death the finishing or full corn in the ear This pedigree of it ye have in James Chap. 1. 14 15. If there were no Justice to Revenge Sin Sin would be vengeance to it self Sinners lie in wait for their own blood Pro. 1. 18. Pro. 13. 21. It is their own wickedness that corrects them Jer. 2. 19. The way of Sin inclineth to death and its footsteps to the Dead Ch 2. 18. Ch. 5. 5. Its steps take hold on â—ell Vnbelief may be an instance for all as out of which all Sins else are derived This was the Root of Adam's apostacy Num. 14. 11. Rom. 11. 20. Heb. 3. 12. and of all that Peoples Rebellions in the Wilderness Faith is that which holds the Soul to God its life and blessedness Vnbelief its departing from Him or the letting go of its hold the loosing of the knot upon which the Soul falls off of its own accord And the first step from God sets in a way of Death As a branch breaking off from its Stock dies of itself This was Adam's unbelief In all Men since it is a Refusing to Return This Doctrine is still further confirm'd by the general unanimous consent and affirmation of Those best able to Judge Arg. 7. 1. They assert it Job a Man of great Wisdom and integrity Not his like in all the Earth Job 1. 8. and none so sorely afflicted yet sayes Elihu to him by way of Counsel as what himself would do in the like case I will ascribe Righteousness to my Maker Job 36. 3. And Surely God will not pervert Iudgement Chap. 34. 12. God is known i. e. He is known to be God by the Judgements which He executeth Psal 9. 16. The Lord is Vpright there is no Vnrighteousness in Him Psal 92. 15. He loveth Righteousness and hateth Iniquity Psal 45. 6 7. The Scepeer of his Kingdome is a Right Scepter ver 6. Righteousness and Judgement are the habitation of His Throne Ps 97. 2. Deut. 32 4. Rev 19. 2. That True and Righteous are his Judgements is the voice of those in Heaven 2 They submit to it even then when most provoked by Mens injurious dealings with them for His sake and when the Lord 's own hand hath been most severe towards them Aaron held his Peace Levit. 10. 3. It is the Lord saith Eli let Him dâ—as seemeth Him good 1 Sam. 3. 18. 2 K. 20 19. Hezekiah also Good is the word of the Lord. Yea they have done thus when by the light of natural Reason they could see no reason for it Witness Job who when plundred of all because he feared God and eschewed evill and could justifie himself to the height as to any hypocrisy Job 9. 15. yet sayes he I will make supplication to my Iudge Look on our Lord and Saviour Himself and see His confession Our father 's cried unto thee and were delivered But I Ps 222. 4. though day nor night I am not silent Thou hearest me not How does He close His complaint Not Thou dealest morâ— hardly with Me who less have deserved it but Thou art Holy Jeremy indeed began to object because the way of the wicked prospered and they were happy that dealt treacherously But he presently bethinks himself withdrawes his plea and yields the cause Ier. 12. 1. Bighteous art thou O Lord when I plead with thee I might instance the Suffrage even of wicked Men and of the most obdurate among them whose Consciences at times have enforced their confession of this Truth and the testimony of an Adversary proves strongly â— haraoh subscribes to it The Lord is Righteous I and my People are wicked Exod. 9. 27. As also doth Adonibezek and Saul Judg. 1. 7. 1 Sam. 24. 17 19. 3 The Saints triumph in the Righteousness of God as well they may and call upon others to do the like The Lord Reigneth Let the Earth rejoyce Psal 93. 97. 99. O Let the Nations be glad and sing for joy Ps 67. 4. Ps 96. 11 13. For thou shalt judg the People Righteously Let the Heavens rejoyce and the Earth be glad before the Lord For He cometh For He cometh to judge the Earâ—h Rom. 53. c. And hence it was that Paul and the rest of them though the present sense of their suffering was grievous yet they gloried in them And Rejoyced greatly in hopes of that Glory 2 Tim. 4. 8. and Crown of Righteousness which God as a Righteous Judge had prepared for them Eightly Arg. VIII The Righteousness of God is yet further illustrated by The End and Event of his darkest dispensations Isa 10. 22. The consumption decreed shall overflow with Righteousness and Nothing else shall be in it His people though long under oppression He brought them forth at last with the greater Substance His leading them about in the Wilderness as it were in a Maze fourty years together and bringing them back again to the place they had bin at many yeares afore Ps 107. 7. yet it proved to be the Right way And it was for their good in the latter end Deut. 8. 16. Davids long persecution by Saul made him the fitter for the Kingdom and adapted him for the Office of principal Secretary to the Great King opportunely acquainting him with all the affairs of the heavenly State and Councel that are fit to be known of men And by his hand and experience they are Firmed to us and this amongst the Rest Blessed is the Man whom Thou chastenest Ps 94. 12. and teachest him out of thy Law We see it also by the end the Lord made with Job Job 23. 10. 42. 12. He brought him forth like gold and doubled His blessings upon him The Basket of good figs were sent into captivity for their good Jer. 24. 5. Phil. 1. 19 Paul's afflictions turn'd to his Salvation Even Christ himself whose temptations sorrows and sufferings where such as never were known by Men Heb. 2. 17 18. they were intended and accordingly did perfect and inable Him for His Office of Mediator Lastly Arg. IX Consider the Elect those precious Soules whom the Lord had loved from everlasting and determin'd to bring them to Glory yet having sinn'd Not one of them shall enter there without satisfaction first given to His Justice Ro 3. 26. Heb. 6. 20. with Ch. 9. 12 23 Even These He will not Justifie but in such a way as to be Just in so doing The Mercy-Seat it self must
whom they appertain Levit. 20. 26. Ye shall be holy unto Me For I have severed you from other people that ye should be Mine Deut. 7. 6 The Lord thy God hath Chosen thee to be a special people unto himself above all people that are on the face of the earth Chap. 26. 18 19 The Lord this day hath Avouched thee to be His peculiar people and to make thee high above all Nations Deut. 10. 15 The Lord had a delight in thy fathers to love them and He Chose their Seed after them even you above all people c. But were they as farr above other Nations in goodness in greatness or excellent demeanor And was that it which intituled them to this honour No such matter As appeares 1 by the Reason there assigned Exod. 19. 5. Ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people For all the Earth is Mine It is as if the Lord had said There is no difference between you and other Nations All the earth is Mine and I may take where I will I am not tyâ—d to any I might take of them and discard you They cannot carry it more unworthily than you have done and will do I looked from Heaven and considered their works and yours I see that your hearts are fashion'd a like And 2 Their afterâ—demeanour did abundantly verifie it and the Lord foresaw it I know that thou wouldst deal treacherously Isa 48. 8. ver 4. and wast called a transgressâ—r from the womb That thou wouldst to obstinate thy Neck an iron sinew Jer 32. 30. and thy brow brass and that thou wouldst do only evill from thy youth up c. What then was the Cause or Motive of God's choosing them above others It was His undeserved love and favour to them Deu 7. 8. â—h 9 4. He loved them because He loved them Come to David God had provided Him a King among Jesse's Sons and Samuel must go to anoynt him but it must be Him whom the Lord should Name to him 1 Sam. 16. 1. 12. Not the eldest or good liest person And therefore sayes he when they pass before him The Lord hath not Chosen this Nor this Nor these But David 'T is true the Lord did not mention David's name to Samuel but He did what was equivalent for when David comes in He tells him This is He Anoynt him And observe This he was the youngest the meanest and most unlikely scarse reckon'd as one of the family for he was not brought in among the Rest Then Note his Circumstances Hâ—s employment was to keep the shéep His exercise what was it but such as is reckon'd effeminate He addicted himself to Musick see also his Complexion or Constitution of body White and Ruddy no promising character of a Martial Spirit And yet this Man or rather this lad and stripling thus qualified and thus educated he must be the Captain of the Lord's host who yet had the greatest enemies to deal with and therefore had need of a Man of courage and conduct to be over them Well! let David's birth complexion employment education be what it will Never so unlikely in all humane respects yet this David is and he must be the man whom the Lord will honour to Rule his people to fight their battels and to do exploits In this choice the Lord was pleased to set-by whatever is taking with men He seeth not as Man seeth i. e He regards not Men for their Natural accomplishments If for any thing it must be probably for some excellent endowment of the Mind and that of Wisdome is of as weighty consideration in the choice of a Prince as any other But this is no Inducement or Motive to God He respects not any that are wise of heart Job 37. 24. And if He did it Was not here to be had David had no Prince-like qualities above his brethren until afterwards Which thing is plainly intimated in the thirteenth verse where it is said The Spirit of the Lord came upon Him from that day forward Then for Jeremy The Lord ordains him to be a Prophet sets him over Nations and Kingdoms commissionates him to Root out and pull down To build and to plant c. Why what had Jeremy done that the Lord should call him to so Imperial a work Sure no great matter for this he was ordained to before he was born Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee I sanctified thee and ordained thee a Prophet Jer. 1. 5. It also appears by his own Confession how unmeet he was for such a work and how unwilling I cannot speak for I am a Child ver 6. Another Instance may be Cyrus This man was decreed to a great and noble work Isa 44. 28. Ch. 45. 1. 6. v. 13 It was in brief to destroy the Golden Monarchy To break in pieces the hammer of the whole Earth To Release God's people out of Captivity and to build His Temple and this more than an hundred years before Cyrus was born The Lord styles him his Anoynted His Elect Hâ—s Shepheard and One that should perform His pleasure ver 4 5. And He calls him by his Name too which is twice repeated as a thing to be remark'd And to inforce it the more He adds a note of Narrower observance I have called thee even by thy Name Was Cyrus thus chosen because he would be a puissant Prince Or did the Lord make him puissant and victorious because appointed to such a work Hear what the Lord Himself who best knows the ground of His own Designation says of him Ch. 45. 1. Thus saith the Lord to His anointed to Cyrus whâ—se right hand I have holden i. e. I gave him strength and taught him how to use it I will loose the loyns of Kings and open to him the two leafed Gates I will go before him ver 2. I will break in pieces the Gates of brass and cut in sunder the bars of iron c. But what shall Cyrus have done That the great God should do him this honour He did not so much as know the Lord which also is twice repeated as a matter worthy our observation Lastly Paul The Lord from Heaven commissionates him His Preacher General among the Gentiles to bear His Name before Kings To Mawl and Ransack the devil's kingdom and to turn the World upside-down Witness his doings at Ephesus Athens and other places And this he was called to even whiles in the heat of his persecuting fury against that Name which now he is sent to preach And that there was no motive on Paul's part himself is witness where speaking of that his Call he ascribes it to the pleasure and power of God as much as he doth his natural birth Gal. 1. 15. I might also bring in the Stories of Sampson Josiah John Baptist and others to the same effect but that time would fail Now These instances may not be valued as Historical
Believer but their Personal Names Reuben Simeon Levi So had our Great High Priest or He could not have made attonement for us And that place Rev. 13. 8. points at the same time for both Those words From the foundation of the World do refer as well to the writing of their Names in the Book of life as to the Lamb 's being slain And if it be said It must referr to that as was last named then let ver 8. of the 17. Chap. speak for it where deciphering those who shall wonder after the beast he sayes they are such whose Names were not written in the hook of life from the foundation of the World what can be more express II. The Design of God in the death of Christ Arg. 2. could not otherwise be secur'd Had the design been To Purchase Salvation for Believers without ascertaining the Persons that should believe it had been uncertain Whether any should be saved because uncertain Whether any would believe If Certain That some would believe This Certainty must be Decreed For Nothing future could be certain Otherwise And if it was Decreed That Some should believe The Individuals of that Some must be Decreed also For Faith is the Gift of God and could not be foreseen in any but whom He had Decreed to give it unto Which laid together are a good demonstration That those Christ should die for were as well Pre-ordain'd as That He should die for them and that definitely and by Name III. It may further be Argued Arg. 3. from the Fathers preparing a kingdom from the foundation of the World and Mansions or Places in it To prepare the way of this Argument Consider the Punctuality of God's disposements in things of a Lower Moment He did not Create the Earth in vain i. e. To stand empty and void as at its first formation Nor the several quarters thereof to be Inhabited indefinitely by some Nation or Other who should happen to get possession of them But He divided to the Nations their inheritance and the bounds of their Habitation Deut. 32. 8. Mount Seir was given to Esau Acts. 17. 26. and Ar to the Children of Lot Each Nation had its limits staked out Deut. 2. 5 9. and this from the dayes of old And if we may distinguish of Acts in God and of Time in Eternity His Purpose to firm and bring forth those Nations must needs be as early as to Create and furnish those parts of the World which they should Inhabit Now Earthly Settlements being of trivial Moment to the Heavenly Mansions it seems a good Consequent That if yet particular Nations were fore-appointed for particular Provinces on Earth Much more should particular Persons be design'd for those particular Mansions in Heaven And if either were appointed afore the other It must be the Persons For the Sabbath was made for Man and not Man for the Sabbath The Domestiques of God's House or Place of Glory are a sacred State and Order of Kings and Priests and Each individual Person hath his place or Appartiment set out for him Those Glorious Pallaces were not prepared for Believers indefinitely but for certain Determinate Persons particularly The Twelve Apostles shall have their Twelve Thrones and every One his Own This is evident by our Saviour's answer to the Mother of Zebede's children Math. 20. 23 To sit on my right hand and on my left is not Mine to give but it shall he given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father If for Believers indefinitely why not for these two Brethren as soon as any other especially since they first made request for them The Truth is those Places were not now to be disposed of it was determined who should have them long before even From the foundation of the World Matt. 25. 35. The scope of this Answer was not to shew That the places requested for were prepar'd for Believers for these were Believers who made request for them but that they were Appointed for Certain particular Persons and they must have them Much might be added in confirmation of these two branches But by these I hope it is clear That Election is Personal and from Eternity V. Election is in Christ. OR The Elect are Chosen in Christ It was requisite the New Covenant should have an Head and Mediatour as well as the Old That Righteousness and life might flow from Him into all the Elect Seed as sin and death had done from Adam In which respect Christ and He are set forth as Parallels in Romans 3. from ver 12. to 21. The benefits which the Elect are Chosen unto they are made partakers of by their Union with Christ He is the Root in whom the Fulness dwels Not only the Foundation on which the Church is built but the Rock which affords all the Spiritual Materials of the Heavenly Temple Even the Cement that holds one part to another and the whole to Himself and this by virtue of the Decree For we are to Consider that there is a Decretive Union before the Actual and That influenceth This into Being and that as really as the determined death of Christ did the Salvation of Those who died before Him Though Christ be not the Cause of Election yet He is the Grand Means by whom we obtain the blessedness we were Chosen unto By Him it is That We have Access into that Grace Rom. 5. 2. wherein we stand And we shall find that the Epistles generally when they speak of the Great things relating to Salvation do still bring in Christ as the Person principally concern'd about it Salvation indeed is a Gift Tit. 3. 6 it is perfectly Free yet not to be had Rom. 5. 18 19. but in Christ It comes upon us through His Righteousness As by One's disobedience many were made sinners so by the Righteousness of One by means of their Oneness with Him shall many be made Righteous Mankind by their Apostacy in Adam had destroyed in themselves the whole of that Principle which would have lead them to God as their life and blessedness And had withal contracted such an Eumity against Him and Repugnancy to all Overtures for Returning to Him And this Gulph was so fixed as would for ever have kept God and us asunder had not that blessed Project of Choosing in Christ been set on foot to dissolve it It could not be done by any Created Power Nor could Creatures so much as propound a Way for it And if they could who durst so harden himself as to Mention the Thing which onely could do it But The Great God blessed for ever He findes out a way for it And the same Love that ordain'd to Eternal life would also put it in such a way as should surely take effect And to this end viz. That Those Ordain'd to Salvation might be both Rightfully entituled to that Salvation and successefully brought into it They were put into Christ by Election He was the
Jer. 37. 15. yea they proceed further for this enmity knows no bounds Some they Stoned Others they slew with the Sword Lu. 20. 10-15 When was there One that escaped them At last He sends them His Son Surely they 'l Reverence Him No This is the heir Come let us kill Him And thus they went-on Till there was no remedy 4. The World of Ungodly in Noah's time Gen. 6. 3. After warning of the flood they had the Spirit of God striving with them Sixscore years together And yet Not a Man in the whole Universe prevailed-upon The people in the Wilderness How many wayes did the Lord strive with them by mighty deliverances terrible Appearances Merciful Providences Dreadfull Judgments And this Fourty years together and yet still they went-on Rebelling against Him and vexing his holy Spirit Isa 63. 10. 5. Miracles will not do it What a Multitude of These mingled with Judgment where shewn upon Pharaoh All which did but further harden him Exod. 7. 14 22. Ch. 8. 19. Ch. 9. 7 c Then the People in the Wilderness Take but that one Instance of Korah and his Company The Earth clave asunder and swallowed-up the chief of the Mutineers with all that they had They went alive into the Pit Num 16. 32. ver 35. Two hundred and fifty more were consumed by fire from Heaven Which one would think should cause them to fear the Lord and do no more presumptuously and yet the next thing we hear of them ver 41 on the very Morrow they are at it again And that v. 41. not a Party of them but the whole Congregation All which considered and laid together It follows with much evidence III. That the New Creature is the Product of Divine Power alone The Evangelist John is clear on our side touching this Original and Pedigree of it Both Whence it is not and whence it is Joh. 1. 12. It is born 1 not of blood It belongs not to nor is brought forth in any as they are Men made of flesh and blood Ro. 9. 7. Nor as they are Abraham's feed according to the flesh Nor 2 is it born of the will of the flesh The carnal and sensual affections have nothing to do in the spiritual birth Nor 3 of the will of Man The rational faculties by which Men are set above the Rank of other Creatures these do not contribute towards our Divine Sonship But 4 It is of God i. e. It is His Work alone and the Natural Man has nothing to do in that birth he is perfectly unactive in it Ezek. 37. 5 9 14 even as the Dry bones in causing themselves to Live Or as Lazarus in Reviving himself of whom it is said Joh. 11. 44. He that was dead came-forth bound hand and foot Which was such a Demonstration of Divine Power that the Pharisees themselves acknowledge v. 48. If they now let Him alone all men will believe in Him And if it were not so the Lord alone should not be exalted And with this falls-in that other beloved Disciple James James 1. 18. 2 Pet. 1. 3. Of His own will begate He us i. e. By His Own Divine Power He forms and brings-forth the New Creation without any assistance from the Old or Co-operation of it Peter he also tells us It is born of Incorruptible Seed 1 Pet. 1. 23. John 3. 8. And John agen That It is born of the Spirit which is plainly to be of the Off-spring of God Of like tenour is that of the Prophet Isa 26. 12. Thou hast wrought all our works in us Eph. 2. 10. and that of Paul We are his workmanship Ps 100. 2. As also That of the Psalmist It is He that hath made us and not we our selves His people We find it here and in John expressed both Negatively and Positively as purposely and for ever to exclude what-ever is in Man from being so much as thought contributary to the New Creation and that the whole Work might be Father'd upon God only Which is indeed the natural Result of all those Scriptures which speak of this Work under the Notion of a Creature which necessarily implies That the whole of It both Matter and Form is from the Creatour For in truth a Creature 's foundation is Nothing besides the good pleasure of God It may further be Noted That in James The Father of Lights is said to beget it and in the Galathians Jerusalem which is above is said to be the Mother of it and in John as afore that It is born of the Spirit And if Father and Mother Begetter and Bringer-forth are both in Heaven what shall the Man of Earth found his pretensions upon as to the Parentage of the New Creature And further It is worthy of Remark 1. What sort of Instruments were mostly used in this Work Not the Learned but Illiterate Men And of These such most eminently as had neither elegancy of Speech 2 Cor. 10. 10. Nor Majestick presence And the End of this was That it might appear and Men might be Convinced That their Faith stood not in was neither made nor maintain'd by the wisdom of Men 1 Cor. 2. 3 4 5. but the Power of God 2. The natural unaptness of the Persons commonly wrought upon to Receive those high-born Principles Not many of the Wise and Noble but the poor base and foolish i. e. In comparison of Others And why These Truly it was to make good the Truth that 's here asserted viz. That no flesh might Glory in His presence ◠Cor 1. 26 27. And yet likewise take Notice That the Wise and Noble were not excluded Witness the wife of Herod's Steward Joseph Nicodemus and Sergius Paulus Acts 13 7. a Prudent Man Which further illustrates the Power of God in that He did by those weak and contemptible Means bring-in also such as These 3. The Scripture's so emphatically ascribing the Work unto God which kind of ascription were very improper if Faith and Holiness were things so Common and easily attain'd and the Natural Man so Able and Virtuous an Engine in that Work as most Men imagine Paul siles it The Faith of the Operation of God 〈◊〉 2 12. Isaiah makes it dependant on the Arm of the Lord Revealed i. e. Made-bare Isa 53. 1. and put-forth to the utmost Our Saviour He attributes it to God the Father as Lord of Heaven and Earth And Paul agen To the exceeding Greatness of His Mighty Power even the same by which He raised Jesus Christ from the Dead Even Then when the sins of all His People lay upon Him And all the Malice Strength and Subtilty of the Powers of Darkness were up in Arms against it Which was indeed the highest Indication of Divine Power that ever was put-forth or shall be III. Our next Enquiry is Who those blessed Ones are to whom these Requisites to Salvation do belong and
them in Egypt When opprest by the Egyptians and all means used to destroy them and that both with craft and cruelty Exod. 1. 12. the Lord so orders the Matter that the more they were oppressed the faster they grew and by an high hand brings them out at last In the Wilderness they carry themselves as unworthily towards God as ever People did doing all that in them lay to cut off the intail of that good land by their unbelief and dayly repeated Rebellions insomuch that the Lord threatens to dispossess them But for his Promise sake made with Abraham withdraws his hand and spares them I might instance also the great streights and dangers they were in at the Red-Sea which the Lord divided for them Afterwards for want of water which he brings them out of a Rock Then for Bread which also he gives them from Heaven How they were denied passage by some and way-laid by Others and yet carried on and delivered and at last how the Lord drove out those Gyants whom they despaired of Overcoming and so gave them the land in possession accord-to his promise hundreds of years afore There failed not ought of any good thing the Lord had promised It all came to pass Josh 21. 45. 2. Joseph Little Joseph is one whom the Lord will honour Gen. 37 7 9 11. which in several dreams he intimates to him His brethren do therefore hate him and to frustrate his dreams which signified their subjection to him they conspire to kill him v. 18. And how shall Joseph escape They are ten to one against him and he the least Reuben who being the eldest was most concernd v. 22. in point of honour to hinder Joseph's advancement he shall relent at the very motion of making him away and out of respect to his Father shall deliver him Well though they will not presently kill him they 'l cast him into a pit v. 24. where in all likelihood he must perish But in the good providence of God v. 28. the Ishmaelite Merchants pass by in the very nick of time ere any wild beast shall have found him or his brethren determin'd worse against him To them they sell him and by them he is brought into Egypt far enough out of Jacobs inquiry and sold to the Captain of Pharaoh's guard a person likely enough to deal roughly with him Gen. 37. 2 3 4. But here the Lord ownes him and to bring him into favour makes all that he doth to prosper which his Master observing puts the management of all his estate into Joseph's hands Now there 's fair hopes of his coming to honour But v. 7. how soon is it dash'd Joseph being a goodly person his lascivious Mistress tempts him to folly v. 9. Which the fear of God keeping him from v. 17. the misreports him to his Master charging her own wickedness upon him v. 20. Hereby Potiphar's favor is lost and Joseph cast into Prison and dealt so hardly with Ps 105. 18. that The Iron entred into his soul Now all hopes of preferment are gon and what will become of his dreams Yet still the Councel of the Lord that shall stand and this downfal of Joseph Gen. 40. shall prove another step to his rising And to make way for it two of Pharaoh's Servants shall fall under their Lord's displeasure be put in prison and committed to Joseph's keeping Here they shall dream Joseph shall interpret and the event shall answer it Now the day begins agen to dawn upon Joseph and by the chief Butlers restorement some hopes of his inlargement but this agen is soon overcast for the Butler forgate him Notwithstanding all which the providences of God do still pursue his Decree Gen. 41. chap. 42. 6. and cease not till Joseph is Lord over Egypt and his brethren bow down before him 3. David 1 Sam. 16. 12. God promiseth David to give him the Kingdom and anoints him to it What notwithstanding all possible interveniences Yes for the promise is absolute Hath the Lord said it and shall he not do it If therefore Saul cast a Javelin at him unsuspected to nail him to the Wall a sharpeness of eye and agility of body shall be given him to discern and avoid it If he determine evil against him Jonathan shall advertise him of it 1 Sam. 19. 20 24. If he send Messengers to Naioth to apprehend him they shall forget their errand and fall a prophecying And if he send others and others after them they shall do likewise yea Saul himself shall turn prophet for a day and a night together that David may have time to escape If he be in a City that will betray him and not a friend among them to advise him of it the Lord Himself will be his intelligencer 1 Sam. 23. 12. and send him Out If Saul's Army have encompass'd him and no way left to escape the Philistines shall invade the land v. 26 27. and tidings shall come in the very instant and take him off If an hoast do encamp against him Ps 27. 3. he 'l not be afraid Why so The Lord had made an absolute promise and therefore if no help on earth He shall send from Heaven and save me Ps 57. 3. Yea David's wavering at times and the weakness of his Faith shall not hinder it and the Reason of all we have in 1 Chron. 17. 7. and 8. The Lord took him to be Ruler over his People and therefore he was with him where ever he went 4. Josiah A Child shall be born to the house of David Iosiah by name 1 Kings 13. 2. who shall offer the bones of Jeroboam's priests upon his Altar If therefore Athaliah determine to destroy all the seed-Royal Joash shall be stollen from among the rest 2 Kings 11. 2. and reserved and by him Davida's line shall be continued Hezekiah though sick unto death he shall not dye 2 Kings 20. 6. with ch 13. 16. but be healed as it were by a miracle and fifteen years added to his life rather then Manasseh who must be Josiah's Grand-father shall be unborn 5. Paul Paul was a chosen Vessel appointed to preach Christ to the Gentiles and at last to bear witness of Him at Rome And this must be done altho' Bonds Imprisonments and Death it self do attend him in every place If they lye in wait for him at Damascus and watch the gates night and day Acts 9. 23-25 to kill him he shall be let-down by the Wall in a basket and so escape them If all Jerusalem be in an uproar to kill him the chief Captain shall come with an Army and rescue him chap. 21. 31-33 tho' no friend to Paul nor to his Cause If more than Fourty Men have bound themselves with an oath that they will neither eat nor drink till they have kill'd him his kinsman shal hear of it Acts 23. 14 23 and by
who disbelieve the Doctrine of Perseverance have given the Flesh its full Range and liberty Needs no proof But That any Believer hath made that impious improvement of it will never be made-out 2. The Objection deserves no Quarter because it highly Reproaches the Goodness and Faithfulness of God as if for a Fish He had gâ—ven His People a Scorpion For so it would be If His Giving them Absolute Promises should prove an Indulgence to the flesh 3. It also Contradicts the known and constant way of holy Men's Arguing and Inferring from Absolute Promises and the highest Assurance See a few Instances of this Col. 3. 4 When Christ our life shall appear then shall ye also appear with him in Glory The Result of it is Mortifie therefore your Members which are upon the Earth 1 Ioh. 3. 2 We know That when He shall appear We shall be like Him And what is the fruit of this knowledge Every Man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as He is pure The like ye have in 2 Cor. 5. 1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved we have a building of God an house not made with hands Eternal in the Heavens and what the effect of this great Knowledg was ye have in the 9. v. Wherefore We labour That whether present or absent we may be accepted of Him In 2 Cor. 6. 18. is repeated the Sum of the New Covenant I will be a Father unto you and ye shall be my Sons and Daughters saith the Lord Almighty See now the use he makes of it And all Believers have the same Mind Having therefore these Promises let us cleanse our selves from all filthyness of flesh and spirit perfecting holyness in the fear of God Job knew That his Redeemer lived and that he should live with him and yet as to holiness and integrity Not a man like him in all the Earth And that holy Man Asaph was fully assured of Persevering infallibly Psal 73. 24 Thou shalt guide me by thy Counsel and afterward Receive me to Glory This did not loosen the Reigns but made him cleave closer to God Renouncing all but Him and His service Whom have I in Heaven but thee v. 25 And It is good for Me to draw nigh to God v. 28. The like frame of Spirit we find in David Psal 23 Surely Goodness and Mercy shall follow me all the dayes of my life His Result also is I will dwell in the house of God for ever And that these were not temporary fits and flashes but from a stled Principle is further apparent by his manner of Reasoning in Psal 27. 5 6 In time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavillion no safer place on Earth nor in Heaven Luke 12. 19. and now shall my head be lifted up above mine Enemies round about me What follows upon this Mounted Assurance Soul take thy ease eat drink and be merry O No! But Therefore will I offer Sacrifices of Joy I will sing yea I will sing praises unto the Lord He was now upon his high-places out of the Reach of danger but did not grow Remiss upon it Restrain Prayer and give-over Calling upon God but falls the more servently upon that which shall be the Upshot of all in Heaven He would rather have been Remiss without this Assurance as himself confesseth at the 13. verse I had fainted unless I had believed to see the Goodness of the Lord in the land of the living Paul s assurance of obtaining what he ran-for was a Mighty strengthening to him in his Race Who so Crucified to the World as Paul so abundant in all kind of service or more ready to dye for Christ than he Who yet had the fullest Assurance of holding-out and of Receiving the Crown of Righteousness at last And that Nothing should separate him from it By these ye may gather That Believers are of a Nobler Extract than to love God the less because He loves them so Much and that 't is no trivial Slaunder to Insinuate That Believers especially such as have Assurance are most exposed and given to backsliding Which is sure an Unnatural consequent of their being Sealed to the day of Redemption Such objections do also argue the Authors of them Not well-acquainted with the good ways of God Nor with that spiritual obligeing sweetness that is found in them Which any One who hath tasted thereof in truth would not Turn-from altho his future happiness were not concern'd in it Nor do they Consider the frame and nature of the New Creature which hath spiritual senses fitted to discern what makes for its own preservation and what makes against it Had you Fifteen years added to your life and a Certainty of it Would you therfore forsake your food and disuse the ordinary means of preserving life The Jews had an Absolute Promise That God would save Jerusalem from the King of Assyria who then besieged it Did they setope their Gates and draw off their Guards upon it Sense and Reason would teach them Otherwise Which Grace does not destroy but perfect It is a sparkle of that Heavenly fire which cannot live out of its Element nor can all the Waters under Heaven quench it It is a part of the Divine Nature and so loves and hates as the Father of it doth and It will cleave to Him in every State If He save me Alive I 'l Serve Him If He kill me I 'l yet trust in him In life and in death I will be the Lord's This is the natural disposition of the New Creature It favours only the things which are of God And the higher-tasted They are by Assurance the more is he Aloft and above the lure of carnal Divertisements Not to be Reigned or led by them Therefore Let God be true and His Prophets and Apostles be reckoned for faithfull Witnesses And every one that speaks Otherwise a lyar The next thing in course is To consider What improvment may be made of this Doctrine Which one would surely conclude of very great usefulness since the Scriptures are so greatly concern'd about it In the General it affords Matter of eminent Support to Believers especially in difficult Cases It also evinceth Matter of Duty on the Believers part And from the Examples forequoted somthing of Direction in reference to both Which I shall here put intermixedly together First Infer I. Stand still and behold the Salvation of the Lord And at the sight of this great thing Say in your hearts with an holy Astonishment What hath God wrought Let your Souls be filled and inlarged with everlasting admirings of that Grace that Sovereign Grace which has thus impregnably secur'd the Salvation of His Chosen That no Manner of thing whether with in them or without them shall be able to hinder them of it Even the Gates of hell shall not prevail against it No Not so much as one of the stakes thereof shall be Removed and that for
you all the service it can even the whole of what it was ordained-for But shall I say That Faith will then be dissolv'd and go-to-nothing I would rather express it as the Apostle doth the state of the saints that shall be found alive at Christ's coming 1 Thes 4. 17. They shall not die but they shall be changed Faith shall Then be turned into Sight and we shall have the Real presence Full possession and Perfect immixed fruition of that Blessedness we have believed and hoped-for 7. Gather hence Phil. 1. 23. both the Reason and Rationality of the Saints desires to be dissolv'd They knew that when this Earthly Tabernacle went-down 2 Cor. 5. 1 2. they had a better and more capacious building in Heaven They also found That spirits whiles dwelling in Flesh are too-much streightned and infirm either to bear the Glory they were made-for or to express an answerable thankfulness for it And for this they groned Not to be unclothed as weary of their present state but to be Clothed-upon with their House from Heaven 1 Joh. 3. 2. They were NOW the sons of God but what they should be and fain would be-at did not appear to them Nor could till the vail were Rent which hung as yet twixt them and the Holy of Holies Rom. 8. 23. 2 Cor. 1. 22. Eph. 1. 14. Rom. 8. 21. The first-fruits of the Spirit which were both an Earnest and Foretast of future Glory inspired them with servent desires of liberty that glorious liberty which belong'd to them as being the Sons of God They had by faith laid-hold on Eternal life This they had still in their eye and earnestly pursued And so intent they were upon it that they even forgot what was behind tho very Memorable in its time The Much they had attain'd they counted for Nothing to what was coming Nor reckon'd for any Cost to gain that inestimable Pearl viz. The prize of the high Calling of God in Christ Phil. 3. 14. This they knew was a thing too-big for Mortal senses tho as highly Refin'd and sublimated as capable of whiles Mortal and therfore long'd for that day when Immortality should be their clothing The love of God shed-abroad in their hearts had given such a Divine Tincture Rom. 5 5. Cant. 5. 4. and so Transform'd and Wid'ned their souls as nothing could satisfie but that Immense Deep from whence it came Coll. 3. 4. They knew That when Christ their life should appear they should see Him as He is Not under shadows as of old Nor in a state of humiliation as when upon earth nor as since under Memorials and Representtations but in His state of glory The sight of which would make them like himself till Then they could not say It is enough They knew that the very Quintessence of Heavenly beatitude consists in the vision of God and that Heaven it self with all that Innumerable company of Angels and spirits of just Men made perfect tho' a very glorious and desirable society would not satisfie Heaven-born Souls if their Lord Himself were not there in His Glory Hence those holy exclamations and out-cries Psal 73. 25. Psal 42. 2. Whom have I in Heaven but Thee and When shall I come and appear before God! Good Jacob would go and see his Beloved afore he died and These would die to go and see Theirs This is the second time that the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence from the heirs of Salvation Math. 11. 12. They know it is theirs and that they were wrought for that self same thing 2 Cor. 5. 5. and being theirs they might lawfully take it by force 8. Infer VIII 2 Pet. 3. 12. And for a close of all ye have seen what Paul and others did Go you and do likewise Hasten to the day of God and wait for it as they that watch for the Morning 1. Affectionately as a thing greatly desirable especially after a dark and toilsom night 2. Patiently and with Quietness Not precipitating but as knowing it will come and that in the duest season 3. Attentively as not willing to loose the smallest sound of your Master's feet 4. With Diligence also and Preparedness that neither Oyl nor Lighting may be to-seek when the Cry is made Be always Ready and Then Grone Grone I say for that day of Glory when life and Immortality shall be brought to light in Perfection When your self with all the Elect of God meeting in that Great and General Assembly Heb. 12. 23. the Church of the first-born which are written in Heaven may be intirely vniversally and everlastingly taken-up in admiring Electing love which so gloriously and happily shall have wrought all our works for us and brought us to the ultimate End it designed us for which was To be ever with the Lord To see Him as He is and to experiment the sum of that great Petition in the 17. Joh. 17. 21. Iohn That they may be One in us And in your way thither Carry this assurance still afore you That the same hands which laid the Foundation will also lay the Top-stone and that with shoutings And you shall lift-up to Eternity Zach. 4. 7 9. Deut. 33. 29. that loud and joyfull acclamation Grace Grace unto it Happy art thou O Israel who is like unto thee O People saved by the Lord the shield of thine help and the sword of thine Excellency 2 Sam. 22. 1 7. All thine enemies shall be found lyars unto thee and thou shalt tread upon their high places And which is more than Angels and Men can utter besides GOD shall be all in All 1 Cor. 15. 28. To proclaim which was the End of this work Amen FINIS
blessing you most desire for them But be not Over-solicitous and east down because you see not yet the Marks of Election upon them The Lord doth not indeed bind himself to take all a Believers Children Nor doth He limit Himself from taking any others There is Nothing declared â—ouching His Purpose to Take All the One â—â—est they should from thence take occasion to be Remiss in their Duty which still Conversion is very natural to us nor doth He exclude the Children of others For that â—ight discourage and weaken their hands to that as is good In this various dispensing of His everlasting love He is pleased 〈…〉 His liberty and sovereign Prerogative That 〈◊〉 greatly manifests his love to Believers in so frequent 〈◊〉 Choosing of their Seed And the Freeness of His Grace in Not-rejecting altogether the Seed of Others Inference 3. Thirdly How happy and sovereignly blessed are Those who have an Interest in this Great and Sovereign Lord Which Every One is blessed with that has in truth taken hold of His Covenant For That takes in all between the Two Eternities and Eternity it self withall And the spirits or strength of the Whole lies in those few but very Compendious Words I will be your God When the Lord would comfort His People to purpose and pâ—t on their Eagles wings What a glorious Narrative doth he make of His Power and Sovereign Greatness in Isa 40. from v. 12. to v. 26. And then tells them That all this is Theirs v. 27. And if God be yours All things are yours Who and where is he that can supplant you of His blessing yâ—u may rejoyce in His Highness the thoughts whereof are Matter of terroâ—r to other Men. After the rehearsal of all the happiness and Glory that Men or Angels are capable of it shall all be comprised in this as the Original thereof and summ of the whole Blessed are they whise God the Lord is Psa 144. 15. Inference 4. Fourthly We may see here the Reason Why God doth sometimes defer to Answer the Doubts and Querie's we stick at and most desire to be Resolv'd about It is not only to shew His Sovereignty But to bring our hearts to a submiss and practical acknowledgment of it Moses was very unwilling to go on his Message to Bharaoh Many pretences he had to put it by when as the danger he might be in for killing the Aegyptian was the bottom-Objection though he speaks it not Out Indeed the men who sought his life were now dead Which if the Lord had told him of at first all those excuses had probably been spared But He was pleased to conceal it from him until He had brought him to a full compliance with His Will Exod. 3. 11. with Ch 4. 10 13 19 and then reveals it to Him Vnask'd So likewise He would not take off His hand from Iob until He had well learn'd him this lesson Job 42. 2 6 7. Say not therefore because you hear not from God so soon as you would The Lord hath â—orsaken me My Lord hath forgotten Me But follow that good Resolution recorded in Isaiah I will wait upon the Lord who hâ—deth his face for the present from the House of Jacob Isa 49. 14. and I will look for Him v. 17. Inference 5. Fifthly Let no Man then who will Say The Lord He is God presume to intrench on His Sacred Royalty by seeking a Reason of His Decrees beyond or besides the Good pleasure of His Will Even Sovereigns of dust will not admit it in Subjects though of the same Mould with themselves It is an Imperial Secret The Chief of the wayes of God It belongs to himself alone to know it and the knowledg thereof would not profit us Now. Besides There is enough revealed of great importance to us at present On which to imploy the utmost of our time and strength By Over-grasping we may sprain our hands and unfit them for service which lies within their Compass But we gain Nothing Therefore go not about to fathom this Great Deep Who but one of shallow understanding would think to measure the Sea by handfulls or to give a Demonstrative Reason of its various and convertible Courses Remember That you Magnifie His Work Job 36. 24. but lessen it Not by pretending to Comprehend it Eccles 8. 17. Sanctifie the Lord in your heart and fear before Him Inference 6. Sixthly This gives a Reason why Men of the largest Capacity for Learning and Natural understanding are so mightily Puzzelled and Labyrinth'd in Spiritual Matters particularly The Doctrine of Election Why they do so strongly oppose it and are so hardly Reconcil'd with it They are not in truth subdued to the Doctrine of God's Sovereignty And therefore whiles in discussing those points of Faith they judge as their Natural Optick represents them they lose both themselves and the Truth Which yet in some degree is made known unto Babes Men of low stature to them whose spirits the Lord hath subdued to rest contented with what their Father is pleased to tell them And for the Rest as namely the Manner and Reason of God's Disposements and Dispensations they live by Faith in His Righteousness Waiting for the day that shall Reveal all things when the Tabernacle of God which yet is in Heaven shall be let down among Men or They taken up into it and these hidden things of Sovereignty shall be more openly known amongst them Inference 7. Lastly This Doctrine of God's Absolute Dominion Clears away all that Made-ground and Rubbish which the Principles of Free-Will-Grace do found their Election upon and shews us the only true and Proper foundation of Scripture Election with those other Important Truths which hold upon it or are Consequents of it All which have their Head in the Sovereignty of God and Derived thence as Rivers are from the Sea As through his blessing and Grace may appear afterwards And so I shall close up this first particular with that holy Rapture of the Psalmist Be thou Exalted Lord in thy own strength so will we sing and praise thy Power The Lord hath prepared His Throne in the Heavens and His Kingdom ruleth over all Bless the Lord ye His Angels that Excel in strength Bless the Lord all ye His Hosts ye Ministers of His that do His pleasure Bless the Lord all His works in all places of his Dominion Bless the Lord ô my Soul OF THE RIGHTEOVSNESS of GOD. HAving founded this Discourse on the Sovereignty of God as the best and most natural ground of Satisfaction or captivation to Reason touching Election So now as a means to qualifie our Spirits and Reconcile them with the Doctrine of Sovereignty it seemeth expedient to annex that of His Righteousness and I think there is not a more evident Proposition than That there is no Vnrighteousness with God Prop. This as we are indispensably bound to believe So to be well grounded in the faith of it
too Else All will be in disorder at once One Act of Faith shall sooner Remove the Mountain than all the Cattle on a Thousand hills Lastly Inference You that have closed with this Truth and having made diligent search do finde in your selves those Marks of God's Elect sit down and take the Comfort of it Let this Joy of the Lord be your strength Eat your bread and drink your wine or Water either with a Merry heart since God hath accepted you If David's heart was so taken with that love which chose him to be King afore the house of Saul how should our Souls be rapt into the third Heaven That We poor unworthy wretched We should be taken into that peculiar favour in which the generality of Men have nothing to do How should it affect our hearts Art thou of those who are Wise or Noble according to the flesh Be filled with an holy Amazement and exultation Rejoyce with trembling That the Great GOD to whom thou wast no more than others thy Consorts that are left and who commonly Chooses the base and foolish thereby to Magnifie His Grace should thus go out of His way to call in thee And hath also made His Call effectual to thee even then when thou wast inviron'd with a world of temptations to obstruct it And if thou be a Man of low degree poor weak foolish of no account among Men even as one that is Not and hath the Lord regarded thee in thy low estate and Magnified thee by setting His love upon thee Hath He taken thee from the dunghill to set thee among Princes even the Princes of the World to come This is that Exaltation which the poor should always Rejoyce in according to James 1. 9. Were you the head instead of being the tail Were the Necks of your enemies under your feet yea were the Devils themselves made subject to you It could not afford you the thousandth part of that Cause of Rejoycing as that your Names are written in Heaven Are other men prosperous in the world and free from trouble whiles you are reduc'd to a low estate and chastened every Morning Have perhaps but an handful of Meal and a little oyl in a Cruze c. yet think not your Portion Mean or hardly dealt out your good things are to come They are growing in the other World And at the time of harvest the Lord will send his Angels for you yea your Lord Himself will come and fetch you thither And you shall be for ever with Him In whose presence is fulness of joy and at whose Right hand are Rivers of pleasures for evermore And then you will Sing The lines are fallen to me in pleasant places At least say so Now. As Abraham dealt by his Concubines children so doth God by the Ishmaels of the world He gives them portions and sends them away But the Inheritance He reserves for His Isaacs To them He gives all that He hath yea even Himself And what can we have more OF REDEMPTION IN this Point we are equally concern'd with that of Election as the Great Comprehensive Means of bringing-about the Greatest End viz. the Glory of God in the Salvation of His Chosen That our Lord Jesus Christ hath a Body or Church to whom He is Head and Saviour is not supposed a Question But Who they are that do make-up this Body Whether the Whole of Mankind universally or Some particular Persons Whether He had in His death the same respect to All as to Some And whether Any of those he died for may miss of the benefits accruing by His death are questions of great Import and worthy a serious deliberation To Resolve which is the scope of the present Discourse The Substance whereof is in three Positions I. That the Body or Church of Christ consists of Elect Persons II. That for These it was that He laid down His life III. That the intent of His death cannot be frustrate For the I of These By this Body or Church of Christ I understand the Designed Subjects of his Spiritual Kingdom or Members of His Mystical Body to whom He was appointed by the Father to be Head and Saviour and They to stand related to Him as their Prophet Priest and King Which threefold office He bears peculiâ—rly towards the Elect The Church of the First-born and heirs of the World to come And of These doth His Body consist i. e. It is made-up of These exclusive to Others Their number is certain and intire and cannot be broken either by Addition or Diminution Of this the Tabernacle was a figure 1. In respect of its Symmetry or Proportion of parts which induced a singular beauty upon it Towards which Nothing could be added nor any thing abated 2. In that all the parts and Dimensions thereof were predetermined of God and not left in the least to humane Arbitrement or Contingency And these are expresly said to be Patterns of things in the Heavens Heb. 9. 23. ch 12. 23. that is Of the Heavenly Temple or Church of the First-born which are written There This Couclusion is drawn from sueh premises as these 1. In that our Lord and Saviour so manifestly shews Himself concern'd for the Elect as having some peculiar Interest and Propriety in them and charge of them With These his delights were from Everlasting Prov. 8. And as soon as they were actually in being He began His actual Converses with them and therein did even confine Himself to the Elect Seed With what unbelievable Patience and Goodness did He superintend the Church or Elect Nation Aâ—ts 7. 46 48. fourty years together in the Wilderness bearing them as on Eagles wings and tendring them as the Apple of His eye And when he dwelt upon Earth He went not beyond the bounds of the Holy Land where also all His delight was among the Saints Ps 16. 3. These He made his Consorts and Men of His Councel And when ye find Him with others it was for the Elect's sake that were among them How frequently and with what well-pleasedness doth He speak of These Professing His love to them and that according to the highest patern John 15. 9. As the Father bath loved Me so have I loved you And how great things He would do for them Not to the Halfing of His Kingdom Joh. 10. 15 16. ch 6. 40. but the laying down of His life for them Gathering them in Raising them up and giving them to sit with Him in His Throne Rev. 3. 21. But for the World He takes litle notice of them except with a kind of contempt and comination Let them alone Shake off the dust off your feet Joh. 7. 34. Give not that which is holy unto dogs c. Yea though they seek Him they shall not find Him Isa 65. 1. But for His Elect He is found of them even whiles they think not of Him The Instances of Matthew the Woman of Samaria the possessed
Consequent of Redemption so Election is the Root of them both as ye have it in 1 Pet. 1. 2. Elect unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ To be Holy is to be sacred selected and set apart for holy uses by appointment of God And they were Actually sanctified by the sprinkling of blood Heâ— 9. 19. 23. In both which respects the People of Israel the Tabernacle Temple Priests Altars c. are all said to be Holy In Luke 1. 72. God's sending of Christ is said to be In performance of His Holy Covenant Gen. 3 15. which was first proclam'd in Paradise as made with the Womans Seed and afterwards renewed with Abraham Gen. 12. 3. and is therefore term'd The Merâ—y promised to Abraham and to His Seed And who are Abraham's Seed Not the World but Believers that is The Elect For These onely obtain Faith Rom. 11. 7. And Gal. 3. 29. Saith plainly If ye be Christ's then are ye Abraham's Seed and Rom. 9. 8. In Tit. 2. we read That it was a Peculiar People that Christ gave Himself for and purchased i. e. A People peculiarly His Own It denotes some special propriety He hath in Them above Others and so a special Cause for His giving Himself for them We also find That Peculiar and Purchased are so nearly allied that one word is used to signifie both 1 Pet. 2. 9. According with this is that in the 1 Pet. 1. 20 where Christ is said to be Manifested for those He writes that Epistle to That they were persons Elected is evident by the 1. â—nd 2. ver And Elect unto the sprinkling of His blood And as they were Elected to it so in the 17. John He professes to make it good ver 19. ver 11 15. For their sakes sayes Christ I sanctifie my self and twice in the 10. John That He laid down His life for the Sheep Which is perfectly exclusive of others as where He saith My Righteousness extendeth unto the Saints and he that believeth shall be Saved that is Such and None else It also appears from Acts 20. 28. That it was the Church of God that He purchased with His own blood Now the Church and the World are plainly distinct as a Garden inclosed is from the Common Fields That the Church consists of Elect persons is proved afore and that it was the Church He dyed for is proved by this Scripture As also from Eph 5. 25 Where Husbands are required to love their Wives as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for it which shews That as the Husband's love to his Wife is another kind of love than what he bears to others of the same Sex So is Christ's love to His Church and therefore His death which was the special effect of that His love is peculiar to the Church only In Revel 5. we Read that the Elders sing a New Song to the Lamb because He Redeemed them to God by His blood ver 9. Among other Reasons for that Stile of Elders this may be one That they were Chosen from the dayes of old For their Names where written in His book of life from tâ—e foundation of the World Rev. 1â— 8. They are also said to be Redeemed out of every Kindred and tongue and People and Nation which Rationally implies That the Bulk of those People and Nations were not Redeemed with them And again in the 1â— Ch. A certain Number are said to be Redeemed from the Earth and from among Men If Some from among Others It follows of course That those Others were exempted Here note by the way That these Elders were now in Heaven above the Clouds of misconception and prejudic'd Opinion and therefore no Reason to misdoubt their testimony And further These Redeemed Ones are there also stiled The First Fruits unto God and to the Lamb which appellation insinuates That they were seperated from the Rest as the First Fruits under the Law were by God Himself Who took them for His Own portion Numb 2. 13. and Chap. 8. 16. They are likewise said To have the Father's name written in their Foreheads Rev. 14. 1. Election marked them out for Christ And to be written in the Lamb's Book of life and that as a Lamb slain Rev. 13. 8. And on that account sayes to His Father Thine they were and Thou gavest them Me Joh. 17. 6. Where also in His prayer for those whose Sacrifice He was now to offer He stiles them The Men which the Father had given Him out of the World And in ver 10 All Mine are Thine and Thine are Mine i. e. All that were Christ's in order to Redemption were first the Father 's by Election It is as if He had said All that I undertake for are Thine Elâ—ct And All Thine Elect I undertake for He therefore reciprocates the terms of Relation Turns them to and again To shew the Sameness of the Persons concerned in both From all which it seems undeniably evident That as a certain Number were Elected so a Certain Number and Those the very same Persons were Redeemed The Ground and Truth of this Assertion is further confirm'd by such Arguments as these I. The Levitical Sacrifices were offered for the House of Israel Arg. 1. exemptive of other Nations Save only such as became Proselytes And These being a Type of the Spiritual Election It followes That this Sacrifice of Christ typified by Theirs was also Peculiar to Jews in Spirit or Spiritual Jews So Aarons's making atonement for his Household and bearing the names of the twelve Tribes on his breast-plate were typical of our Great High Priest's bearing the Names and sustaining the persons of those for whom He offered Himself on the Cross Of all those legal shadows Christ and the Church of the first-born are the Body and Substance II. The Right of Redemption among the Jews which shadowed this was founded on Brotherhood Arg. 2. Hence I infer That that Relation spiritually taken was both the Ground and Limit of Christ's office as a Redeemer The Apostle's discourse in Heb. 2. seems to point at this where he sayes They were Brethren Children and Sons whom Christ should deliver from bondage Make Reconciliation for their Sins and bring to Glory But how came they to be God's Children and Brethren to Christ above others It was by Predestination and That was it entituled them to Redemption as is evident by comparing the 5 and 7 verses of Eph. 1. Having predestinated us to the Adoption of Children by Jesus Christ In whom we have Redemption through His blood And 't is worthy your notice That by the law of Redemption a stranger that is One that was not of the Brotherhood might not be Redeemed Levit. 25 46. 48. with 41. 54. But One that was though he were not Redeemed must yet go free in the year of Jubile which shews the peculiar respect the Lord has for his peculiar People III. The Saving benefits of
is due to those for whom it was Merited He was not cut off for Himself Now The Principal thing intended and Merited by the death of Christ was the Justification of Sinners Rom. 3. 26. And That God might be Just in Justifying of them If therefore He Merited this for All then All must be Justiâ—ied and it cannot be justly denyed to Any For it is their due by virtue of a Price which also was paid to that very end and this by God's own appointment Who we know cannot condemn any for whom Christ died Rom. 8. 34. His Justice shall not be liable to such a Reflection Whence it seems to be safely concluded That if All men are not Justified justification doth not belong to all and consequently That Christ did not give Himself for All. And as touching Efficacy Adam's transgression was efficacious on the Will and whole Man to Deprave why not then the Righteousness of Christ to Restore since the Preheminence in that very thing is given to Him Rom. 5. 17. VIII Arg. 8 The Doctrine of Special and Peculiar Redemption is further confirm'd by those Inglonious and hurtful Consequents which do attend the Doctrine of General Redemption as it is commonly held forth which 1 seems to reflect on the Wisedom of God as imputing to Him such a Contrivance for Men's Salvation as was altogether frustruble 2 It also seems to tax God of Injustice Isa 53. 8. as Not discharging Those whose transgressions are answer'd for by their Surety or else That the Sufferings of Christ were not sufficient to make a Discharge due to them Or 3 It insinuates a deficiency of Power or want of good will to prosecute His design to perfection 4 It suspends the virtue and success of all that Christ hath done for Men upon something to be done by themselves which He is not the Doer of and consequently that Men are Principals in procuring their own Salvation And so Christ shall have but His Thousands in truth His Nothings whiles Freedom of Will shall have its Ten Thousands to cry up the praise of Men This is not That the Lord alone should be exalted 5 It would also follow That those who are Saved and gone to Heaven have nothing more of Christ's to glory in and to praise Him for than those who are perished and gone to Hell For according to the Principles oâ— General Redemption He did and doth for all alike and not a jot more for the one party than for the other 6 It makes Men presumptuous and carnally secure How many have sooth'd-up themselves in their impenitency and hardness of Heart and fenced themselves against the Word upon this very Supposition That Christ died for all and therefore for them And why then should not they look to be saved as well as any other and so they lean pretendedly on the Lord and transgress Not considering that those for whom Christ died He purchased for them a freedom from sin and not a liberty of Sinning Nor impunity but upon terms of Faith and Repentance And that the Tempter disturbs them not in their rest upon such a foundation may be a principal Reason why Men so stifly adhere to it and that those of the General principle are so seldom troubled with terrours of Conscience But yet notwithstanding all this it is not denied that all Men even those that never heard of Christ's Redemption have benefit by His death and more might have did they not stand in their own light albeit He had not in His death the same respect to all as to some The mix'd Multitude that came up with Israel It was not for them that Moses was sent to Pharaoh That the Sea was divided and the Egyptians drowned That the Rock followed the Camp and that they had Mannah from Heaven c. though these being in company with Israel had a share in those outward benefits So the Lord gives water in the Wilderness by which the Beasts and Owls have benefit in their kind and yet it is not for their sakes that the Lord doth it but for His People His Chosen Those whom He had formed for Himself I should now come to the Inferences But finding this Doctrine of Peculiar Redemption as much opposed as that of Election and upon the same grounds Observing also a great readiness in Men to embrace the Notion of General Redemption which proceeds partly from Nature's unableness to discern a Reason why One Man should be Redeemed and not Another Partly for that it is grateful to lapsed Nature to fancy it self active in its own Recovery Partly also from an aptness to catch at any thing that pretends to give quiet under Convictions â— hope it shall not be time lost to see their exceptions against Our Doctrine What they alledge in defence of their own and how groundless in both In the doing of which I shall take but the substance of what I have heard and not intermeddle with jangling disputes Is it not plain by Rom. 5. 14 15. That the Restauration by Christ is as large and extensive as Adam's sin The Comparison there stated is Not put Extensively i. e. in respectâ— of the objects of Sin and Grace but Intensively i. e. in respect of the different efficacy of the several Means by which those several Effects are produced The Apostle therefore to obviate such objections Restraynâ—s it in ver 15 But not as the offense so also is the free Gift i. e. The Free Gift of Righteousness and life doth not extend to Men Vniversally and Efficaciously as sin and death did And he gives the Reason of it For if through the offense of One Many be dead Much more the Grace of God and the Gift by Grace hath abounded unto Many q. d. If the Free Gift had took-in All as the offense did Then All must have been Saved For that Grace hath abounded more than the offense Which must be Meant of the powerfull and prevalent efficacy of Grace For as to the Objects It could not take-in more than All And therefore those towards whom it hath thus abounded shall surely partake of the benefits of it As All in Adam dy'd so All in Christ shall be made alive But if some onely are Redeemed And Those but a Few in Comparison Then all ground of Believing is taken away from the most of Men 1. The Makers of this Objection will not say That All Men are Saved albeit they hold That All are Redeemed And therefore to hold and affirm That Christ did not Dye for All hinders None from believing any more than That Many of Those He dyed for are not Saved yea To teach That Christ dyed for all and that yet the Generality of Men shall dye in their sins and Perish for ever is a greater impediment to bâ—lieveing than to teach That He dyed onely for Some and that every One of this Some shall certainly be Saved 2. He that will know his own particular Redemption before he
state can never be lost And the Reason is because Grace hath out-done Sin and gone beyond it Grace hath abounded much more Rom. 5. 20. Which super-abounding of Grace cannot referr to the Subjects of Grace as if they were more in number than the Subjects of Sin for sin came upon All and Grace cannot come upon more than all But 't is meant of the prevalent efficacy of Grace and the permanency of its effects towards all that are the Subjects of it Rom. 5. 21. And thence it is that Grace is said to Reign and that to Eternal life IV. If the End of Christ's death might possibly be frustrate Arg. 4. as possibly the very end of God's making the World might suffer disappointment All things were made for Himself and by this scale they ascend to Him The World for the Elect 1 Cor. 3. 22 23. The Elect for Christ and Christ for God All His works praise Him but above all that of Redemption as of highest note and eminency Most conspicuously doth the Glory of God shinâ—-forth in the face of Christ as Dying and as dying for such an End viz. the Salvation of His People It is the chief of the wayes of God the very Meridian and height of His Glory not essential but manifestative both in this world and that to come It therefore behoved Him so to lay it that of all his designments This might be sure to succeed For do but subtract the sureness of its Effect and leave His Redeem'd in a perishable condition and it draws a blemish instead of beauty upon all the Divine Attributes 1. The end of God's setting forth Christ a Propitiation Rom. 3. 25 26. was to declare His Righteousness in the Remission of sins which it does doubly 1. That without satisfaction sin could not justly be remitted 2. That satisfaction being given it could not justly be imputed Who shall condemn It is Christ that dyed Rom. 8. 34. But if those for whom this plenary satisfaction has been given should not be justified and effectually saved Divine Justice would be as liable to impeachment as if He had saved them without And so the thing designed for the honour of His Righteousness would turn to its disparagement 2. It would not accord with the love and goodness of God towards His Elect that That which was meant for their Recovery Joh. 3. 19. and was also a price well-worthy their Ransom should possibly turn to their deeper condemnation for so it must if they be not effectually saved This could not be that Pleasure of the Lord which should prosper in the hands of Christ 3. It would not be according to the Faithfulness and Truth of God that Christ should fail of That He was promised and earnestly looked-for as the fruit of His Sufferings which was a Seed to serve Him Isa 49 6. ch 53. 10. Prov 8. 31. The thoughts of which were matter of complacency to Him from Everlasting But if those He died for should not only abide in the same condemnation He came to deliver them from but under a much sorer vengeance than if He had not undertaken for them How grievous would it be to Him and contradictious to the Faithfulness of God! 4. Another End of Redemption was That the manifold Wisdom of God might shine-forth in the sight of Angels and Men. Christ crucified is the Wisdom of God 1 Cor. 1. 24. But if it were so contrived that the Thing chiefly design'd might possibly miscarry it would be no illustration of Wisdom Will one of common prudence part with His Jewels and choycest treasure and that in such manner as never to be regain'd and leave his purchase knowingly under hazzard Men â—â—deed may possibly waste their Estates in Tryals and Essayes that come to nothing but did they foresee the success they would not so expose their prudence to reproach 5. The Greatness and Power of God would suffer an eclipse if it were in the power of Creatures to defeat His most wise and holy Designments and hinder the accomplishment of His greatest work What would the Aegyptians say but that He destroyed them because not able to go through with what He undertook Numb 14. 16. 6. Lastly If the end of Christ's death might possibly be frustrate Then that blessed project for glorifying the Grace of God might possibly be disannulled and come to nothing For None but Saved Ones do or can glorifie that Grace V. Another Argument for the Sure effect of Christ's death Arg. 5. is because He hath the Management of the whole work committed to Himself as well the Application or Redemption as the procurement of it He is the Repository Root and Treasury wherein all the benefits of Redemption are laid up and the Great Almoner by whose hand they are dispensed Adam was no more a publique Person after his fall The new Stock was not intrusted with him but put into the hands of Christ who will give a better account of it For VI. There is Nothing wanting to Him who is our Redeemer which might any way conduce to the final Compleatment of His Work Arg. 6. There are Five things mainly requisite to make a great undertaking Successeful viz. Authority Strength Understanding Courage and Faithfulness All which the Captain of our Salvation is eminently invested with Joh. 3. 35. The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hand 1. Authority He was appointed to His Office For as Mediatour the Father is Greater than He He came not of Himself but the Father sent Him Joh. 9. 42. He was called of God Isa 42. 6 Heb. 7. 21. Heb. 5. 4 5. It was laid on Him and undertaken by Him in the way of a Covenant And Confirmed hy an Oath Never to be Reversed which also may partly be the Meaning of God the Father's Sealing Him Joh. 10. 18. Isa 61. 1. Joh. 6. 27. The Government is laid upon His Shoulder He hath the Key of David committed to Him Rev. 3. 7. Which shewes the absoluteness of His Authority Gen 41. 44. Without Him No man can lift up his hand or his foot in all the Earth 2. Strength or Power These cannot be wanting to Him if All in Heaven and Earth be sufficient for it Matth. 28. 18 And this he hath That He might give Eternal life to as many as He dyed for Joh. 17. 2. Which if they should miss oâ— it would be said That all power was not able to Save them He that made the World is surely well able to Govern it and to over-rule whatever comes into it He would never have suffered sin the onely enemy to invade it if He could not have quell'd it at pleasure Isa 63. 1. Ch. 9. 6. Their Redeemer is strong The Lord of Hosts is His name He shall thorowly plead their cause Jer. 50. 34. He must reign until He shall have put all enemies both under His own feet and ours 1 Cor.
15. 25. Rom. 16. 20. 3. Vnderstanding or Knowledge This cannot be wanting to Him who is the Wisdom of the Father The Lord hath given Him the tongue of the Learned that He might speakwords in season to him that is weary Jsa 50. 4. He knows His work what it is How to effect it and who they be that are concern'd in it 1 He knows what His work is that it is To seek and to save that which was lost Not to bring Men into a salvable condition as some speak but to Save them Mat. 1. 21. His work was To open the blind eyes To bore the deaf ears To restore the withered Limbs To cleanse the Lepers To heal the Sick To raise the Dead To cast out Devils To preach the Gospel and to cause those it belongs unto to hear and receive it he knows they are Dead and He knows as well that He is to Quicken them and thence we have it in Joh. 5. 25 The Dead shall hear and live And Chap. 10. 16 Other Sheep I have Them also must I bring and they shall hear my voice He is also to keep them Joh. 17 12. 22. Ch. 6. 39. and look to them so as that one be not lost and sinally To raise them up at the last day and to take them to Heaven with Him All which He is perfectly acquainted with His work is before Him Isa 40 10. 2 As He knows His work what it is so the best season and method for its performance He came in the fulness of time when things were ripe for His coming He came Then when there was most need of Him the Devil's Kingdom at the highest his Oracles in greatest credit the World most oppressed by the Roman Power and the true Religion near quite depraved among the Jews It argues a Dextrous understanding To take an enemy in his Ruff at his highest pitch of strength and confidence and throw him on his back To succour a distressed Friend or Ally when brought under foot and set him on his high places This the Scripture calls A strengthening of the Spoiled against the Strong Amos 5. 9. And thus doth our Lord Jesus Christ Who is partly therefore said to be of Quick understanding Isa 11. 3. Ch. 52. 13. In all His Vndertakings He deals prudently And to This it is that Hannah ascribeth success The Lord is a God of knowledge and His Purpâ—ses come to pass 1 Sam. 2. 3. 3. He knows Who they are for whom He is to do it The fruits of his death are not as things to be given in common They fall not indifferently upon Men as Rain upon all sorts of ground He knows Whom he came to Redeem Not their Number only but their Names They were all written in his boâ—k And so well is He vers'd in it Joh. 10. 3. That He calleth them all by their Names He does not omit any nor call One for Another He knows Whom the Father hath Chosen and Given to Him ch 13. 18. He can neither forget them Nor Mistake them They are written in His breast and on the palms of His hands Isa 49. 16. 4. To a Great undertaking is required Courage or Greatness of Spirit to confront opposition and cutthrough difficulties And if this be wanting all other Endowments will signifie little as to success And how was our Lord and Redeemer qualified as to this When He was entring into his passion against which He prayed If it were possible that Cup might pass from Him He then needed Courage in the Abstract and we find That He had it answerably In Isaiah 50. 7 the Prophet brings Him in as putting on His Armour of proof Therefore have I set my face as a Flint and I know that I shall not be confounded In the greatness of this His strength did He travel through all those Contradictions of Sinners Temptations Reproaches Blasphemies c. And when His hour was come He did not Recoil nor hide Himself from them No nor stay till they came where he was Joh. 18. 4. but goes to meet them And though He might have had more than twelve Legions of Angels for asking He waives their assistance and in His own single person Undertakes both this World and the Powers of darkness yea and the Wrath of His Father too which was much more grievous and of far Greater terrour than all the Rest And in all this He was Alone there was None with Him And that an Angel appear'd to Him from Heaven strengthening Him It was rather a Token and Part of His deep humiliation That the Mighty God should seem to want and so admit the profered service of His Creature than a lessening of His sufferings Luke 22. 43. Now all this was for the Procurement of Redemption And can He then be wanting to the Effectual application of it He cannot shrink at the sight of stragling parties that hath Won the pitcht battel and remains absolute Master of the Field For this also we have a sure word of Prophecy in Isa 42. 4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged until He have set Judgment in the Earth 5. Faithfulness This also is a grand and Necessary qualification for an high Undertaking And for this our Redeemer is also signally Eminent To do the Father's Will was That He came for from Heaven And this was His Will Joh. 6. 38 39. That of all He had given Him He should loose nothing but should Raise it up at the last day that is That He should give them Eternal life as it is in the 17 John 2. And we find Him professing That He had done it accordingly v. 12. and that He will do it v. 26. according to His Promise so often repeated in the 39 40 44 54. v. of John 6. And He keeps them in Faithfulness to His trust viz. That the Scripture might be fulfilled Joh. 17 12. Judas was let-go to fall by his own transgression Whom doubtless He could and would have kept as He did the Rest had he been as they were committed to His Charge For He gives to every one according as He received for them as is seen by comparing Psal 68. 18. with Ephes 4. 8. In the one place it is said He received Gifts for Men and in the other which is a quotation of the former He gave Gifts to Men Those therefore for whom He Received Eternal life cannot fail of it unless He should fail of His Trust which indeed He cannot do for He is Faithful in all His house and That as a Son Heb. 3. 5 6. and joynt-interest you know is a Natural and prevalent Obligation to Faithfulness If any should offer to dispossess Him He would answer as Naboth did Ahab 1 Kings 21. 3. God forbid that I should part with the Inheritance of my Father And His Faithfulness further appears in that He makes it a Main part of His business now in Heaven to have this work perfected He
But the difference lyes in this That the New Covenant consists of better Promises And this Betterness stands in the Free Absolute Independent engagement of God Himself to Invest His Covenanted Ones with all things conducing to the Blessedness held forth And that as well what is to be done on their part as on His Own upon their doing of it That is plainly To Give to them and Work in them Whatever in this Covenant He requires of them The law shews matter of Duty but gives not where-with to perform it The Covenant of Grace does both by writing the law in the heart And without this it would still have been but a Covenant of works be the Duties enjoined whatever you will It therefore runs not upon Conditional or Failable terms I will If ye will but Absolute and Sovereign I will and ye shall This Covenant does not only give life upon terms of Believing but Faith also and Holiness as the necessary means of attaining that life And this not upon your ingenuous complyance as some term it or better improvement of what you have in common with other Men such allegations the Lord disallows and often Cautions against but of Grace It 's a Covenant made-up of Promises and Promise by Scripture intendment is alwayes Free both freely made and freely perform'd without the desert or procurement of Men. Take Isaac for instance Abraham's body was now dead Gen. 18. 11. ver 14. and Sarah besides her natural barrenness it ceased to be with her after the manner of Women and yet Sarah shall have a Son But How The Promise had in it though Abraham and Sarah had not whatever might tend to Isaac's conception and birth Gal. 4. 23 28. and for this cause He was called The Son of the Promise as also Believers are Rom. 9. 8. Gal. 3. 29. They are also termed Heirs of Promise Heb. 6. 17. And on this account Christ is called The Promised Seed and the Holy Ghost The Spirit of Promise viz To shew the Independent freeness of those Divine Gifts The Promise of sending them Their actual Coming and Effectual operations are all free and free in all respects This Dew from the Lord waiteth not for Men. Mic. 5. 7. For further illustration the Jews are a pertinent Instance as ye read in Jer. 32. from v. 30. to the 36. They had done nothing but evil from their youth up and were a continual provocation And when scattered among the Nations they were no-whit bettered but caused even the Heathen to blaspheme And yet notwithstanding all this the Lord will Gather them and give them an heart to fear Him for ever v. 37. to v. 44. And this even whiles they were not moved neither could they blush chap. 8. 12. See also with what inexpressible freeness of Grace the Lord deals with them in Isa 43. v. 25. I even I am He that blotteth out thy transgressions and will not remember thy sins But what 's the Introduction to this so great a Promise See it and wonder at it Thou hast not called upon Me O Jacob Miâ— v. 22. ver 23. ver 24. but thou hast been weary of Me O Israel Thou hast not brought Me the small Cattel of thy burnt Offerings Thou hast bought Me no sweet Cane with thy money but hast made Me to serve with thy sins and wearied Me with thine iniquities I even I whom thou hast dealt so ingratefully with Isa 64. 3. and disingenuously even I am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake And this was a Great thing they looked not for As indeed considering themselves and what their demeanour had been they had no Reason to look for it Hence 't is cleer That Grace respects not the worthiness of Men in what It does for them Nay it must respect their Vnworthiness rather as that by which Grace is more illustrated and the glory thereof more advanced according to Rom. 5. 20. Where sin abounded Grace did much more abound And Paul proclaims it as verified on himself 1 Tim. 1. 13. I was a Blasphemer and a Persecutour and Injurious But I obtained Mercy and the Grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant v. 14 and hereupon he falls to Adoring that Grace Now to the King Eternal Immortal Invisible the only wise God be honour and Glory for ever and ever Amen v. 17. The Richeâ— of Mercy is made-out by Saving the Chief of sinners and in quickening us when dead Ephes 2. 1 4. And it is very observable That the Apostles when ever they mention the Grace of God in Saving Quickening c. do not give the least intimation of Mens Worthiness Preparedness Compliance or any such thing but Dead in Sins and Quickening come one in the neck of the other as light does upon darkness which in no sort induces the light or prepares the dark Earth or Ayr for it as is abundantly evident in all their Epistles And how oft and in good earnest does the Lord declare against all the pretensions of Men as to their activeness in this Matter in Isaiah Jeremy Ezekiel Hosea c. And as a barr to those pretensions The Holy People He calls A People sought-out and that He is found of them that sought Him not with many others This I shall end with a very observable Instance within my own Memory and I bring it not in for proof but Illustration I knew a Man who when he came under convictions endeavoured with all his might to stifle them His Convictions grew stronger and he hardned himself against them He saw their tendency but so opposite to it that he resolv'd in express terms He would not be a Puritan what-ever came of it To the Church he must go His Master would have it so But this was his wont To loll oâ—r the seat with his fingers in both his ears Here General or Conditional Grace was surely non-plus'd But a Chosen Vessel must not so be lost Now steps-in Electing Grace and by a casual slip of his Elbows drew-out the stoppers and sent-in a Word from the Pulpit which like fire from Heaven melted his heart and cast it in a New Mould Surely in this the Lord did not wait for the Man's complyance or improvements His work was not Originated thence nor dependent thereon II. II. If all that pertains to Salvation were not given freely Salvation it self should not be of Grace For to him that worketh is the Reward not reckoned of Grace Rom. 4. 4. but of Debt But Salvation is of Grace Ephes 2. 5. By Grace ye are saved And agen v. 8. By Grace ye are saved through Faith Where also lest the adding of Faith should occasion in their esteem a lessening of this Grace or seem to detract from the Freeness of it he cautiously subjoyns That this Faith is the work of that Grace Not of your selves It is the Gift of God For if Grace be perfectly free in Choosing it must be answerably
1 Chr. 29. 14. sayes he and what is my People that we should be able to offer thus willingly For all things are of Thee He acknowledgeth their Willingness to offer to be as much of God as the Offering it self And Paul having laboured more abundantly than all the Apostles puts from himself the honour of it 1 Cor. 15. 10. Not I but the Grace of God that was with Me. Three or four Things in seeking for spiritual blessings be sure to keep still in your mind 1. That you must be Nothing in your self New Wine is not for old bottles The Bottles must first be Vndone and made-up Anew Math. 9. 17. Or els The Wine will be spilt and the bottles perish All your imaginary Righteousness Wisdom Strength c. must be parted from you And to part with them is as necessary as to leave your Made-ground and build on the firm Rock 2. That Spiritual Blessings are a Gift and will not admit of any Plea which may seem to make them Wages What the Scriptures hold-forth as a Motive with God That you may plead and that is His Name And indeed Nothing els is pleadable at the Throne of Grace Esteem not your self the better for what you may carry with you Think not to be accepted because of your present It is not your Money nor your double money in your hand that Isa 55. 1. will fetch you Corn from Above tho it may from Egypt Silver and Gold Joh. 7. 37. Works and Worthiness are of no value at the Mint of Free-Grace There it is and Thence ye must have whatever may render you welcom at the Court of Heaven 3. Be not over-solicitous how you shall speed Nor think you shall fare the worse for coming in so tatter'd and pittiful a Condition Free Grace is Compassionate Rich Bountiful you are not the less welcom because you bring Nothing The best qualification is to finde your self ill-qualified Empty Hungry Poor Naked Blinde Miserable Electing-love hath provided Enough and More Not bread and water onely though these are very welcom to an hungring and thirsty soul but Wine and Milk Wine on the lees Isa 25. 6. Rev. 19. 8. A feast of fat things Not Aprons made of fig-leaves or Coats of Beasts-skins but Long Robes of Linnen fine and white money made of Leather or base Mettal that would burthen One to carry a Month's provision of it But Gold Rev. 3. 18. and of That the finest and tryed in the fire which hath nothing of Dross or Cankering Rust adhering to it And if thou have but little look on that little as an Earnest of More To him that hath shall be given Is 42. 3. Altho' thou be but smoaking flax He will not quench thee 4. Be sure you leave not Out your Mediatour the Lord Jesus Christ Electing love doth All in Him and so must you Ask all in His Name and then say Lord He is Worthy for whose sake Thou shouldest doe this And withall Take heed of Patching Joyn not Law and Grace together lest the Rend be made worse The Righteousness wherein you must appear before God is not made-up of divers sorts and peeces partly His and partly your own but a Seamless Vesture wrought throughout of one kinde of substance and by One hand In this you may appoach with boldness and touch the top of the Golden Scepter VI. Infer VI. Having so Firm and Impregnable a Rock to found your faith upon why should the Greatest of Difficulties even the power of Innate Corruption Discourage any Soul from Casting it self upon Electing love As that which is perfectly Able and the very design of it is To Subdue iniquity as well as to pardon it It chose us not because we were or would be Holy Eph. 1. 4. but That we might be so And to that End Undertakes the whole of our Work for us It is between us and Sin as it was between Israel and the Canaanites Untill the Lord began to Drive they did not stirr They were Gyants too big for Grass-hoppers to deal with Had iron Charets and Cities walled up to Heaven And yet that Company of Grass-hoppers turn'd them out And this because the Lord who gave them that Land was in the head of them He went before them and cut-out their way for them Whiles He drove they were driven When He ceased Psal 44. 2 3. Exod. 23. 28. the work stood-still Nay His own People were Routed and put to the worse And we shall find both Moses and Joshua still using Arguments fetch'd from the Covenant that God had made with them by which alwayes they were Supported Let us do likewise Make Election our All Our Bread Water Munition of Rocks and what ever els we can suppose to Want Here we are sure of Supply and Safety It 's a Tower that 's really walled up to Heaven A Never-to-be-emptied Cloud of Mannah and a Jacob's Well that is Never dry 'T is deep indeed and you have Nothing to draw-with yet be not disheartned Stay by it and the Well it self will Rise-up to you Numb 21. 17. rather than you shall want VII Infer VII Having done all you can and in the midst of your Doing Walk humbly as living on Another's bounty Assume not to your self but ascribe the whole of your Salvation and of all the Conducements thereto to Electing Grace and hang-on that Root alone Even Faith it self as it is the Believers act is not to be Rested in Nor to share in this Glory We may say of Faith as he to Foelix Acts 24. 2 3. By thee we enjoy much quietness but the honour thereof chiefly belong'd to Caesar who gave them that Governour Give unto Faith its due Accept alwaies and in all places the benefits you have by it with all thankfullness For it does you many good Offices and you cannot live without it Onely in the Throne let Grace be above it For That 's the Potentate which puts Faith in that Capacity and maintains it there And the truth is True Faith is best contented with its proper place To this End the Lord tells His People It was not their Sword nor their Bow that drove out their Enemies But say some It was the Sword and Bow which God put into their hands and which they Manfully employed No God will not have Men arrogate so much to themselves Psal 60. 12. Judges 7. 2. but to acknowledge It is God that subdues our enemies under us The People with Gideon He reckons too many to give the Midianites into their hands Lest they should Vaunt themselves against Him Faith and other Graces are Mighty onely through God As they are His Workmanship so 't is He onely can keep them Going as a Watch or other Engine cannot wind-up it self To frame a Perpetual Motion no Man hath ever attain'd No not in trifling Matters As thou hadst no hand in changing thy heart at first So neither
Balaam's curse into a blessing to Israel Phil. 1. 19. and Paul's afflictions to his salvation Luke 21. 28. They are to Them a Cause of lifting up the head And if it were not so the Apostle would never exhort us To count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations Jam. 1. 2. In the midst whereof 1 Sam 2. 9. He keepeth the feet of His Saints For surely sayes God They are my People Children that will not lye Isa 63. 8. i. e. They are of Those I have Chosen and set apart for my self and therfore they shall not frustrate my Purpose in Choosing-them which seems implyed in that word So So He was their Saviour q. d. I will Save them because I have made them my People And for further confirmation take Notice That this Sovereign Decree is alwaies Regnant Dan. 2. 44. It is that Kingdom which Ruleth over all and shall never be broken Psal 89. 34. My Covenant will I not break Nor alter the thing that is gon out of my lips and v. 18. My Covenant shall stand fast with him It is meant of the Covenant made with David and his house Or rather with Christ and His Spiritual Seed Of whom David was a Type And that we might have strong Consolation the Lord binds it with an Oath Once i. e. Once for all and Once for ever it was so full and perfect that it needed no Alteration Amendment or Repetition Once have I sworn by my Holiness That I will not lye unto David v. 35. And how Impossible it was That this Covenant should be over-ruled or broken appears also in Jer. 33. 20 21. where speaking in the Name of God he delivers it thus If you can break my Covenant of the Day and my Covenant of the Night that there should not be Day and Night in their Season Then may also my Covenant be broken with David my Servant Here note by the way That Day and Night take their turns but still it is in their Season And David himself sayes of it That it is a Covenant Everlasting â— Sam. 23. 5. Ordered in all things and sure i. e. What ever might possibly fall-in to Interrupt it There was that Order observed in the composition of the Covenant such a Power layd up within it as should certainly over-run and bear-down those Impediments triumph over them all and hold on its way As all the Tempests and tumults that may happen in this lower World can in no wise Obstruct the course of superiour Orbs He therefore declares in high yet humble expressions He desired no other or better security for his Salvation And it is not unlikely That David and Solomon were both of them left to those great backslidings to give a proof of the Sureness of this Covenant which indeed was sufficiently done by them and tryed to the utmost For they both broke the Covenant on their part yet the Covenant was not Null'd No thanks to them but to that Sovereign Grace that had laid-in Provision afore to prevent it by making it Absolute and Vnrepealable Yet the Lord will not Connive at their miscarriages but If his Children forsake my law and break my Statutes I will visit their transgressions with the Rod Ps 89. 31 32. Nevertheless my loving-kindness will I not utterly take from him Nor suffer my Faithfulness to fail ver 29. It must be granted There was at times a seeming to make-void this Covenant and great complaints are made upon it But it revives again and joy comes in the Morning as is evident by the Close of that 89 Psalm Blessed be the Lord for evermore Amen and Amen It s return was the more welcom for its temporary absence and therefore he meets it with a double Gratulation Amen and Amen! It was but in a litle wrath that He hid His face from them and that but for a Moment too but with everlasting kindness will I have Mercy on thee Isa 54. 8. saith the Lord thy Redeemer The Mountains shall depart and the hills be removed ver 10. But my kindness shall not depart from thee Neither shall the Covenant of my peace be removed saith the Lord that hath Mercy on thee In Jer. 31. 37. another Impossibility is instanced in to shew the Eternal Validity of this Covenant Thus saith the Lord If heaven above can be measured and the foundations of the Earth searched out beneath I will also cast off all the seed of Ifrael for all that they have done saith the Lord. The Lord Himself you see is both the Alpha and Omega of this great sentence To shew That both ends of the Covenant are in His own hands By these Scriptures with many others it is apparent that there shall be no Faileur on God's part and if so Then there shall be None at all because He hath taken on Himself the performance of the whole Believers therefore shall invincibly be carried-on Notwithstanding all kind of impediments unto the End of their Faith the Salvation of their Souls Yet doth not this Doctrine go free of Contradiction And truly considering how cleer and pertinent the Scripture is for it It seems to me That if the first Impugners of Perseverance had not found themselves in a Toyl and so Necessitated to oppose it for the maintenance of other principles they had before taken up and espoused and which would not consist with this They would never have set themselves against it But Errours like Truths in that doe hang on a string Or as links in a Chayn The first Mover draws the rest after But I trust thro help from Above all the objections that are laid against this Doctrine shall prove a further confirmation of it by one hand or other The chief that I have met with are these that follow The Doctrine of Absolute Perseverance deprives Men of the sharpest bit which God hath given them to Curb the unregenerate part of the Soul We mean the fear and dread of Eternal fire The Law is good if a Man use it lawfully So is Fear in its time and place Out of which it is as a Bone out of joint The Law works by Fear as a School-Master unto Christ It is ordinarily the first occasion of our motion towards believing The heir whilst a Child may be under the tutorage of fear But when Faith is grown-up then cast-out the Bondwoman and her Son Fear shall not be heir with Faith For tho' it be a good servant 't is an ill Master For Fear to predominate Faith is for servants to ride Eccles 10. 5. 7. whiles Princes walk on the Earth which is an Errour the Earth cannot bear Believers who know themselves so to be receive not the spirit of bondage agen to fear They are acted Now by another principle as a horse that is throughly broke and well-wayed is better Managed by a gentle hand than a biting Curb Faith works by love It is not
and Prun'd-off Joh. 15. 2. the true Branches are preserved and Cherished They shall bring-forth fruit in their old age Pâ— 92. 14. 1 Joh. 3. 2 9. chap. 2. 27. 2 ep Joh. v. 2. They that are Now i. e. Once They that are Once the Children of God shall never be Otherwise save only in a greater likeness to their Father And tho' their living on Him and their likeness to Him be very weakly especially at times as the Natural life of Infants is yet being born they must be kept And the Will and Care of their Father is Eph. 4. 13. To Nurse them up to a Perfect Man You ' I say perhaps That never had any such cause of Complaint as you and possibly it may be so To be sure you know not that They had And those you compare your self with have said as much of themselves and they had the like Cause for our hearts are fashion'd alike Onely each one best knows the plague of his own Agur a Man of great Wisdom and Holiness says of himself That he was more brutish than any Man Prov. 30. 2. But suppose it be true That Others corruptions have not broke-out as yours have done yet May not this put your faith to a â—tand Much less Make you weary Recoil or to faint in your Minds For the same Grace that prevented them can pardon you and will if you cast your self upon it Ye may indeed be allow'd to complain of your sins for Nothing els have ye to complain of Therfore Complain and Cry-out as loud as you will Rom. 7. 24. Oh wretched Man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death But withall Betake you to the same Refuge that he did ver 25. abide by it I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord Here you may triumph over all both Complaints and the Causes of them It must always be granted That to Overcome Sin Combin'd Intrench'd and fortifi'd as it is is a great Undertaking and must be gon-through with There is no Retreit to be sounded Nor Armour provided for your back Every Mother's son must either kill or be kill'd in this Combate There 's no Compounding the Difference Nor discharge in this Warfare till the day be perfectly Won But What a Recruit is there levied and always stands ready as a sure Reserve viz. That though the Conflict be sharp the success is sure In order whereto amongâ—t other Rules and Articles of War bear in mind these few following 1. Intangle not your self but shun and avoid whatever may prove a clog or unfit you for duty 2. Exercise yourself in things that will teach you to handle your Arms and tending to Nourish your faith 3. Stand on your Guard watchfully that ye be not surprised by sudden excursions or under pretence of friendship 4. Arm your self with the same Mind that was in Christ set your face as a flint and conclude That ye shall not be confounded 5. Submit to the place your General hath set you in It must have been some bodie 's lot and why not yours and the hotter it is the more honourable 6. Look that ye fight with proper weapons which are onely to be had at the Covenant of Grace and the Cross of Christ And There they are never wanting And be sure ye go not down to the Philistines either to forge or sharpen 7. Fight not as one that beats the ayr but as having indeed a sturdy adversary to deal-with whom yet you are sure to Overcome 8. Look still on your Captain to observe what He says and Does and do likewise To take-up your Cross and endure hardship are necessary accoutrements to a Soldier of Christ 9. Wait on the Lord to Renew your Strength who then bestirrs Himself most when your strength is gon Then He lays hold upon Shield and Buckler Ps 35. 2. and stands-up for your help 10. Lastly and to Influence all Mind the Lord of his Covenant even Then when it may be your self think on it with trouble as doubting your interest in it Pray Him to remember it for you and with the same Good-will wherewith He made it Beseech Him to look-on His Bow in the Cloud which Himself hath set there as a sure sign between God and you That tho' the skies be Red and lowring The Clouds return after the Rain and the Billows go-over your head you shall not be deluged by them By this it is that ye are hedged-about and walled-up to Heaven Therefore Stand not like Men in suspense as unresolved to fall-on or doubtful how to come-off But On On the day 's your Own The Lord of Hosts pursues them And let all the Sons of God shout for joy Sixthly Infer VI. since Believers onely are interessed in the Covenant and that Faith is a Necessary Instrument which the Covenant wil not work without without which you cannot work with it Nor see your Interest in it Look-well to your Faith first That it be of the right kind viz. such as Renounces Self lives upon Grace And then having found it such Be sure ye keep it well and improve it to the utmost Two uses especially are to be made of it 1 As your Shield to supply the place of all other peeces of your Armour when broken or loose as well as to safeguard them when they are whole and Tite about you If your helmet be out of the way and fiery darts come pouring down Hold up your Faith between your head and them Faith is the truest quench-coal to the fire of hell If your Sword be forgot or laid-aside or wants an edge c. your Shield if well applyed will Retort your enemies weapons on his own Pate 2 Faith is your spiritual Optick which shews you things of Greatest Moment and Not Otherwise Visible Even Chariots and horsmen of Fire are not discernible without it If temptations from the World do indanger you Turn your Faith that way and through it view and consider how Shallow and short-liv'd the pleasures of it are and how Momentany your sufferings Then look-at the World to come The Glory of it and your interest in it And how much your Crown will be Brightened by the scowrings you have pass'd-under here and dwell on the contemplation of it Bend not your eye so much on the peril or length of your passage as on the long'd-for shore that lies beyond it And reckon the Surges of that dreadfull gulph which is yet betwixt you and It but as so many strokes to waft you Thither Heb. 11. 26. This was the course that Moses took and Christ Himself Nothing so blunts the edge of Satan's temptations Chap. 12. 2. or the World's as this Faith of God's Elect. Therefore see that you hold-fast your Faith Keep it as your life keep That and it will keep you and let it not go until ye die Then indeed it will leave you because then it will have done
in Spirit or the Elect Nation Heb. 8. 10 11. Jer. 31. 34. And if these terms Vniversal All and Every are sometimes applied to the Elect exclusive of Others why not as well in the place whence the Quere is taken I have instanced these to shew what Contradictory Notions would follow should the vocal sound of words be adhered to What a Sandy foundation Vniversal Election is built upon And how likely we are to lose the Truth whiles we listen to an uncertain sound the meaning whereof may yet be had from the Context and General Current of the Scripture 2. How shall this kind of Election be reconciled with Acts 10. That God is no Respecter of persons 1. This shews the inconvenience of Minding the literal sense of words above the Scope The former Exception takes-in All and now This excludes All for if literally taken God should have respect to None 2. The Jews were an Elect Nation and so this objection will lye against that Election as much as this we are upon 3. The scope of the place plainly intends That God respects no Man's person either less or more for his outward condition or Carnal privileges Till Then the partition was up and the Lord seemed to Regard only the Jewish Nation suffering All besides to Walk in their own Wayes Acts 14. 16. But Now had God to the Gentiles also granted Repentance unto life Acts 11. 18. You 'l say They were Fearers of God whom He thus accepted True but That was not it which firstly induced His Acceptance or intit'led them to it although it was their Evidence for it If Men fear not God till He hath put His fear within them Then their fearing Him doth not precede His Respect towards them but follows upon it Job 15 16. And this is the Favour which he bears to His Chosen Psal 106. 4. 3. If Men be ordained to Salvation absolutely What need or use is there of good works There are divers good Uses and Ends of good works and good Reasons for God's ordaining them to be walked in without supposing our Walking in them the Ground Condition or Motive of our Election As 1. To shew forth His virtues whose Off-spring we profess our selves to be Mat. 5. 45 That ye may be i. e. that ye may appear and approve your selves to be the Children of your Father which is in Heaven 2. To Convince Those without That they by our good conversation may be won over and learn to do well Or else be compelied to Glorifie God in the day of visitation 3. For Encouragement and Example to Weaker Christians who yet are but Children in the good wayes of God and are aptlier led by Example than Precept 4. That by having our Senses exercised about holy things we might become more holy and so more capable of Communion with God here and meetened for our Heavenly Inheritance 5. Good works are a part of Election and the Elect are as absolutely ordained to them as to Salvation it self Joh. 15. 16. Objections I did not intend to meddle with But considering that That which follows of this kind though done for another account may help to discover the lightness of what is alledged against our Doctrine of Election I have therefore inserted it here And hope it shall prove to its further Confirmation There is no Election nor Decree of Election of particular persons as such but of the intire species of Men from Eternity Election is the Choosing of Some from among others and it alwayes supposeth a greater Number out of which the choice is made And consequently The taking or Choosing of All is quite besides the nature of Election The Scripture sayes They are chosen out of the World Joh. 15. 19. Then the World is not Chosen i. e. The intire Species of Men is not the object of Election God hath not decreed from Eternity to Elect any person of Mankind upon any terms but that in case he liveth to years of discretion he may possibly perish This is excepted against 1. Because the person of Christ Himself is not exempted 2. Because as possibly the death of Christ might be in vain 3. It makes the Decree and Election two things and divers in respect of time That Election was from Eternity is proved from Eph. 1. 4. And that the Elect shall not perish is absolutely promised John 10. 28. Threatnings of Damnation are absolutely inconsistent with a peremptory Decree to conferr Salvation No more then the threatning of death upon Adam was inconsistent with God's purpose to send him a Saviour Gen. 2. 17. with Ch. 3. 15. Act. 27. 22. with v. 31. So likewise that Caution That Except the Mariners stayed in the ship they could not be Saved was well consistent with that peremptory Promise That there should be no loss of any Man's life The Promise of safety was absolute but their actual obtainment of it was Conditional Yet so as That the performance of the Condition on their part was as Certain by the Decree as Safety upon their performance of it For He that determin'd the safety of their lives Determin'd also That it should be Effected by their abiding in the Ship and That this Caution or threatning of danger in case they went out should be a means to prevail with them for that abiding and so it did In like manner that saying of the Apostle Rom. 8. 13. If ye walk after the flesh ye shall die was very consistent with what he had said afore in Chap. 6. 14 That Sin shall not have dominion over them and That Nothing should separate them from the love of God Chap. 8. 39. For as the Lord deals with reasonable Creatures So He makes use of Rational Arguments Motives and Cautions to work upon them Both End and Means and Inducements to the use of those Means were all determin'd together We judge it a very senseless pant â—n a further to give his child compleat assurance under hand and Seal that he will make him his 〈◊〉 against all possible interveniences and yet presently threaten him if he be not dutiful to disinherite him Undutiful Children may dare to judge thus of their Fathers actions and Children that otherwise are dutiful and good yet whiles Children may have Childish conceptions of what their Ancients do But Men grown up and acquainted with their Fathers prudence and goodness will lay their hand upon their mouth The promise and purpose of God to give Canaan to Abraham's seed was so absolute That by the Objectors own confession all their unworthyness would not deprive them of it It is also evident by their demeanour and the Event at last Exod. 32. 10. Num. 14. 12. Deâ—t 9. 14. yet how often does the Lord threaten to disinherite them and to blot out their name from under Heaven Did Moses now go and charge God foolishly Did he tell Him 'T is a senseless part thus to threaten after so absolute an engagement to the Contrary No
he puts the Lord in mind of His promise to their Fathers Of His Mercy in pardoning them â—forâ—time what reflection it would have on His honour among the Egyptians If He should now destroy them c. Not a word of Complaint That first to promise and then to threaten is a senseless thing It had been senseless in Moses thus to do and in no wise consistent with His duty But more directly It were no senseless part in a Father to purchase an Office for his Son and so to settle it on him that it sâ—all not be in his own power to Reverse it And yet keeping to himself the knowledge of that Settlement propose the injoyment thereof conditionally viz. upon terms of obedience to his fathers Commands The tendency of all which is but to prove himself the Son of such a father and to Meeteâ— him for his place And the more to oblige his Son to a studious preparing himself for it to lay before him the evil and danger of a Negligent course by which if persisted in he might render himself uncapable But surely supposing this Father to have the same power over his Son as God hath over the heart and Spirit of His people He will so order him by Instruction discipline and good principles that he shall not run into a Forfeiture Besides Threatnings of Damnation are not properly appliable to Believers who know themselves so to be For he that believeth Joh. 5. 24. is passed from death to life and shall not come into Condemnation However at times for want of a thorow knowing their State unthankfulness for it or some other miscarriage they bring themselves under doubtings of it But for such as have Compleat assurance under God's hand and seal as the Objection speaks They are sealed up to the Day of Redemption Eph. 4. 30. Rom. 8. 15. with a Seal that never shall be loosed In case any person were so adjudged to Eternal life from Eternity that there is no possibility of miscarrying then there was no necessity of Christs dying for him The Assertors of Absolute Election do hold with the Scriptures That Election is in and through Christ The same Decree that ordained to Salvation ordained also the death of Christ in order thereto That God might be Just in Justifying He hath appointed us to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Thes 5. 9 10. It might be inferr'd with as much shew of Reason That if such an End be appointed to be wrought by such a Means then that Means is unnecessary to that end That if God hath Chosen Men to salvation through Sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the Truth then holiness and faith are Needless things These are absurd reasonings which the Truth never Owns We judge such an Election to be an open Enemy to Godliness For who will strain and toil himself for that which he knows he shall obtain by an easie pace The Doctrine of Conditional Election can be no friend to Godliness whatever it may pretend since all that a Man doth on that account ultimately ends in self Godliness is to Aim at God as our Chief End in all that we do Now One that holds the Elect sure of Salvation and believes himself to be one of them and yet goes on to fear God and obey Him Glorifies God more than he that performs the same duties for kind and perhaps greater in bulk in expectation of life thereby The Pharisees fasted oftner than Christ's Disciples but were not such real friends to Godliness as they Long prayers fastings and Alms-deeds are all Nothing without Love and who do you think will Love God more he that believes himself sure of God's Love unchangeably or One that holds That after all his toiling and straining he may possibly have Run in vain and lose all at last And who would think that a Master in Israel should Reason so absurdly who counts it a toil to eat his Meat when Nature requires it especially when 't is most agreeable both to his palate and constitution All the wayes of God are pleasantness to them that walk in them And these would not leave them again although their future happiness were not concerned in it If they be grievous to any it is from their unacquaintedness with His Love 1. John 5. 3. It must needs make men very remiss and loâ—se in the Service of God Christ knew that the Angels had charge over Him and that He should not dash His foot against a stone yet ne'r the less careful of His own preservation Paul was sure of the Crown of Righteousness and yet as diligent in beating down his body andâ— strain'd as hard in Running his Race as any of those who lay the stress of Salvation upon their works Such a Notion of Election layes the honour and necessity of that great Ordinance of Preaching the Gospel in the dust For if the Elect so called shall as certainly be saved by a weak simple or Corrupt Ministry and this it may be enjoyed but a day or two in all a Mans life or loosely attended upon wherein is the Ministry of the Gospel to be esteemed That peremptory Decree That Summer and Winter Day and Night shall not cease takes not away the Necessity of the Sun 's being in the World Gen 8. 22. Nor of its daily Risings Settings and various Revolutions For by these as the Necessary Means thereof must the Decree be made good So The Absoluteness of that other part of the promise That Seed time and Harvest shall not cease doth no whit discharge the Husbandman either of his ufefulness or duty but evinceth the One and inforceth the Other Giving also Encouragement to him in his Work The force of this Answer will not be evaded by alledging That God affords them Means proper and sufficient for seed time and harvest that is they have fitting Seasons with Seed-corn horses plows and other Utensils of husbandry and that 's all the Promise intends and if they improve them not the fault 's their own True it is so and they shall smart for their Neglect But what will become of the Promise and Sureness of the Covenant Therefore this is not All that God doth for Men in this point He that Decreed How long the Earth shall endure and what number of Men He will raise up upon it Did also Decree His own upholding thereof during that time and by what Means those Men should be propagated and kept alive and did accordingly put into Mankind the Principles of Self-preservation by which they are Naturally prompted to the use of them as they are to Eat Drink and Sleep He hath set the World in their heart Eccles 3. 11. As the Elect shall certainly be saved and also prepared for that Salvation so hath the Lord appointed them such a Ministry and for so long a time and their attendance thereon in such manner as best agreeth to His Own intent and which He will bless and