Selected quad for the lemma: life_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
life_n	believe_v	eternal_a	see_v	6,178	5	3.7252	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86612	The pagan preacher silenced. Or, an answer to a treatise of Mr. John Goodwin, entituled, the pagans debt & dowry. Wherein is discovered the weaknesse of his arguments, and that it doth not yet appear by scripture, reason, or the testimony of the best of his own side, that the heathen who never heard of the letter of the Gospel, are either obliged to, or enabled for the believing in Christ; and that they are either engaged to matrimonial debt, or admitted to a matrimonial dowry. Wherein also is historically discovered, and polemically discussed the doctrin of Universal grace, with the original, growth and fall thereof; as it hath been held forth by the most rigid patrons of it. / By Obadiah Howe, A.M. and pastor of Horne-Castle in Lincolnshire. With a verdict on the case depending between Mr. Goodwin and Mr. Howe, by the learned George Kendal, DD.	Howe, Obadiah, 1615 or 16-1683.; Kendall, George, 1610-1663.	1655 (1655)	Wing H3051; Thomason E851_16; ESTC R207423	163,028	140

wisedome of the world but the wisedome of God in a mystery the hidden wisedome of God which none of the Princes of the world knew Now I hope that whatever it be that is seen and discovered by the light of nature and by every one that hath but reason and understanding as Mr. Goodwin saith that the sum of the gospel and Christ is cannot extend it selfe far beyond the wisdom of this world nay it is the very same And how that Christ or that gospel that is made manifest by the rain and fruitful seasons to every heathen man can be truly called the hidden wisdom of God yea to be hidden from Ages and Generations Col 1.26 I see nor Col. 1.26 These and infinite more do ex diametro oppose Mr. Goodwins fond glosse upon this text Act. 14.16 Argum. 7 If every heathen man by the raine and fruitful seasons and workes of providence have a sufficient meanes of believing in Christ and to salvation Then all the Evangelical dispensations in the oral preaching of the gospel by his Son is no way requisite to faith and salvation But his latter is impious and absurd therefore the former is so also The proposition of this Syllogisme is thus grounded upon the true import of the tearme sufficiency which conteineth in it all requisites to that thing in reference to which there is a sufficiency As to instance here is no sufficiency to faith except all requisites to faith be present so to Salvation it selfe and this the Remonstrants upon the p●inciples of reason roundly give us for speaking of sufficient means to conversion Acta Synod Art 4º pag. 91 they say thus Sufficiens gratia nihil aliud est quam ea gratia qua ad conversionem efficiendam ita adhibet quae sunt necessaria ut quod ad actus praestationem necessarium nihil ultra requiratur Gratia sufficiens adhibet omnia necessaria tolle aliquid quod necessarium sit et non erit gratia sufficiens Wherein they grant that nothing can be called sufficient in any respect but that which puts forth all requisites and necessaries then it must follow that if the raine and fruitfull seasons be sufficient meanes for faith there needs no more And therefore the Scriptures are not to come under the notion of requisites to faith and salvation and so by consequence to be uselesse to those ends and purposes The Scriptures and all Evangelical dispensations tend but hitherto to make men wise to salvation and to be but sufficient means to lead men to faith in Jesus Christ and by that to Salvation But what need any thing to this purpose seeing every heathen man hath sufficient meanes of believing and so of being saved even by the raine and fruitful seasons and stand in no need of the Scriptures to make him wise to salvation because the sound of the heavens are the words of eternal life as well as those that Christ spake and are sufficient to beget faith in us and so to save us But how would this overturn the whole series of gospel discoveries and cal the wisdom of the Almighty to the test of humane presumption What will Mr. Goodwin say to that of the Apostle 1 Cor. 1.21 1 Cor. 1.21 After that the world by wisedome knew not God it pleased God by the foolishnesse of preaching to save them that believe Why was all this waste why did God use this method and way of foolish preaching was there no need of it Let us heare the Apostle speak The world by wisedome knew not God verse 20. Christ crucified to the Greeks was foolishnesse v. 23. It was the hidden wisedome of God which none of the Princes of this world ever knew cap. 2 v 7 8. Such words as mans wisedome never teacheth v. 13 Such things as the natural man cannot receive therefore by the foolishnesse of preaching he saveth them that believe Let not Mr. Goodwin then say that the raine and fruitful seasons are sufficient meanes of faith in Jesus least he at unawares bespeak this ordinance of preaching foolishnesse indeed But Mr. Goodwin I feare hath given much occasion to the world to think that he esteems it but a light thing to prostitute the authority necessity weight of the holy Scriptures to the credit of his own opinion Argum. 8 Those things that have no cognation or kinred with or relation at all to a Saviour and Mediator cannot by their owne natural import discover Christ or life upon repentance But the raine and fruitful seasons have no natural kinred to Christ as Mediator or any relation to him Therefore they cannot by their natural import preach Christ or be sufficient meanes of faith in Christ The proposition of this argument is thus strengthned there is nothing can naturally and rationally discover any thing that is not naturally and rationally contained in it that by a rational resolution of causes and effects into their natural principles we may be led by the one to the other in a rational processe But there is no such natural relation or kindred betwixt the raine and fruitful seasons and Christ Thus I prove it Those things that in a course of providence had their ends and uses and were to have their beings although Adam had never sinned and so there had been no place for such a person as Christ have no natural relation to Christ neither can naturally import him But the former is true of rain and fruitful seasons Therefore the latter is true of them also Adam was set to till the ground and after the first creation Gen. 2.5 the fruits of the earth were to be propagated by the help of the influences of heaven as well as mans industry as appeareth by the text A mist went up from the earth to water the face of the ground Gen. 2.6 True it is they are continued to us by vertue of the merits of Christ but this is not natural and from their first original Fruitful seasons are not peculiar to man as fallen nor yet to man restored but were also in common with Adam standing Now I demand whether rain or fruitful seasons had discovered such a person as Christ Such a work as satisfaction life upon such a condition as repentance in his integrity in which condition I know Mr. Goodwin will say he was not capable either of the work or discovery of a Mediatour If they did not then I demand what alteration is there in their faces now or how can men make a rational deduction of Christ from them now more then in his integrity I say by their own natural import without the help of further meanes to acquaint us with all the transactions betwixt God and fallen man Thus I have by a few arguments labour'd to prove that raine fruitful seasons do not cannot preach Christ discover life upon repentance and by these I conceive I have refelled his first reason wherby he would prove that the Apostle in Acts 14.16 affirmes that

spiritual death the will according to its natural freedome can act as the understanding dictateth and the affections move all which are very contradictious to themselves in other places and the holy Scriptures every where yet upon this ground I proceed against them with their own sword The will needs no life to be infused anew it is enough if the understanding and the affections be rectified but as for the understanding that hath the knowledge of God and the truth naturally which Arminius calleth Lumen naturale natural light and Corvinus Scinitilla luminis sparks of light which light is called the law of Nature and so often by the Arminians and Mr. Goodwin called natural light and in the affections there is a desire of good fighting with inordinate desires and by both they come to do the things conteined in the Law and that by nature what need then of a principle of assisting grace conferred anew to enable them to do any of these True indeed the Remonstrants often use the word grace as Pelagius did Gratiae vocabulo invidiam frangens offensionem declinans of whom it was said by the word grace he indeavoured to break the cloud of envy and avoid offences so these meerly to serve them at this turn and to carry on their own interest are strong sticklers for the grace of God to assist man in doing the least thing towards grace and salvation When they would prove man not to be wholly dead they urge some Reliques of life whereby he is able to know God desire good fight against his lusts govern his locomotion do the things conteined in the Law Textus non dicit eos dispositos esse à Deo Coll. Hag. 109. and so to dispose themselves to grace and eternal life for thus they say when they speak of or rather pervert that text Acts 13.48 As many as were ordained to eternal life beleeved they say that ordained in the text is no more then disposed to eternal life and that the text saith not they are disposed by God to eternal life Now not to be disposed by God is not to be disposed by the grace of God for by that we say men are disposed to eternal life but it seemeth they say men are disposed to eternal life and yet not by God or his grace and what can this be but by nature and the natural powers of man and so of themselves without any new principle of assisting grace And yet when they come to make out a general and universal grace then no man must be disposed to do any thing or know any thing but by a principle of assisting grace without which nature is wholly blind and are now become as absolute patrons of the grace of God as may bee Oh the fraud and jugling of these supporters of the doctrine of universal grace I urge these two things to them First when they urge that man by the relicks of life hath abilities to all those things before mentioned and this to prove man not to be wholly dead I demand whether they understand man to have those abilities by the reliques of life with the assisting grace of God or without it if they meane with it then it is very impertinent to prove man not to be wholly dead for no man is so simple to plead man to be so dead by sinne that hee cannot do anything being excited and assisted by the grace of God and if they meane the reliques of life without that grace then I have what I desire that all men have not grace so universal grace falleth Secondly I urge if those words in Act. 13.48 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which text according to their own glosse is to be read thus as many as were disposed to eternal life if those words I say disposed to eternal life doe not necessarily import thus much that men are disposed by God to eternal life Then what ground have they to say that no man is able to do the things contained in the law or any thing whereby hee is disposed to faith and regeneration but as he is assisted by the grace of God de novo How necessarily is this doctrine inevitably involved When they would prove man not to be wholly dead then we have it only thus they do by nature the things contained in the law but when they come to prove universal grace we have it with a comment thus they do the things contained in the law by nature as it is helped and assisted by grace let them adhere either to the one or other either that man hath no such reliques of life by which he is able to dispose himselfe to faith or else that a new principle of assisting grace is not needful nor given to every man The one wil help in the point of the manner of working of Gods grace in mans conversion the other in the point of universal grace And until they can reconcile those reliques of life in every man wherby they are enabled to do those things contained in the law to prepare themselvs for faith and the necessity of the assisting principle of Gods grace to be imparted to man anew for those ends purposes I shal conclude that they do but usurp the name title of universal grace Thus I have endeavoured to prove that that which they pretend is given to everie man cannot be called Grace In the next place I shal examine whether that which is given to every man although it be granted to be grace be truly said to be sufficient Now this must be proved as wel as the former if they wil carry up to the height an universal sufficient grace Now that this business may be perspicuously decided it is requisite that we first consider the nature and definition of sufficiencie in general and then apply it to particular cases The Remonstrants give us a general definition of suffiencie tending to this result Sufficiencie is a position of things necessary and requisite to that thing in respect of which it is said to be sufficient and this I willingly receive as rationall Upon that text Isa 5.1 2.3 They say thus (a) Sufficiens gratia nihil aliud est quam ea gratia quae omnia necessaria ad regenerationem adhibet ut quod ad actum praestationem necessarium nihil ult a requiratur Definitio gratiae s●ffie ent●s hoc habet ut omnia necessaria adh●bet Tolle aliquid necessarium no● erit gratia sufficiens pone omnia necessaria erit gratia sufficiens Act. Synod acr 4. pag 9. Sufficient grace is nothing else but that grace which affordeth all requisites and necessaries to the effecting of regeneration so that to the performance of the act nothing can be beyond it required as necessary the very definition of sufficient grace containeth this in it that it afford all necessaries take away any one necessary requisite and we take away sufficient grace grant all and wee grant sufficient grace And true

regenerations and improvements and abilities but I expect that Mr. Goodwin give me as fair an accompt of the increase of saving grace given to any of them according to this stāding course of providence so much pretended whereupon Mr Goodwin either doth or may know that the best of his owne side have verbis disertis declined this standing course of providence in a text before cited the conclusion whereof is this We freely acknowledge that God the giver of all good useth such a liberty in giving Script Synod Art 2. Pag. 528. inequall grace to equall men and equall grace to inequall men calling those that are more evill and passing by those that are lesse evill that we freely confesse that there can be no exact account given of his dispensations of grace either by the use or abuse of more generall gifts and yet Mr. Goodwin will needs have a standing course of providence whereby God faileth not to give grace to him that improves naturalls well And yet although by these clouds of witnesses they are forced to confesse that there can be no exact reason given of Gods dispensations of grace either by the use or abuse of natural gifts yet they can to make out that intention in God to save all affirm that (a) Nullus corum quos communi vocatione vocat quem non ex primâ intentione ideò vocet ut eos specialioris gratiâ vocationis afficiat Script Synod Art 2. Pag. 327. No man that enjoyes that generall and common Call which is the same with the generall gifts they before spoke of but God calleth them out of his primary intention to endew them with the grace of his more special call how miserable is the division of that house that the strengthening of one part is the confusion of another true indeed if they did grant any such standing or exact rule for Gods dispensations of grace then they might thus evade us all things propounded and intended by his primary and antecedent will fall not out so in execution by his consequent because man is wanting to himself there is the intervening peccancie of mans free wil but they take this evasion out of their own mouths for if no such exact or standing rule be so that we cannot tell how grace shall be dispensed either by the use or abuse of general gifts then how God may be truely said to give general gifts intentionally that by improvement of them he might in dew men with more special grace let them that can divine for I professe my self unable to do it Again one thing more if there be such a method which out of the fluttering expresses of our Adversaries may be made out that general gifts are given to every man with an intention that they might improve them and upon the inprovement of them be compensated with the revelation of Christ and the improvement of that with more grace till they come to be saved and that all this method from nature to glory by the reason of the irrefragable contignation betwixt all the parts thereof be but one entire way to Heaven and eternal glory then I demand of Master Goodwin whether those that believe in Christ are more truly said to have life then those that have only the gifts of nature and how Christ is said to be the way When yet the Heathen are in the way and yet are without Christ and how the Heathen are said to have gone out of the way and not to have known the way of peace when Mr. Goodwin can tell us they have the light of nature which is a part of that way that leads to life what doth he think is the difference betwixt the believers in Christ and the Heathen Gentiles Doth he think them alike in this that they are both in the way to life and only this difference that the one hath gone further in this way then the other Those that are believers may in Mr. Goodwins judgement finally fall away and perish and the Lord Christ hath not promised to preserve them from their voluntary defections and their faith in Christ may yet so fail them as that they shall not come to life and yet on the other side a Heathen man hath general gifts given to him with this intention that he might improve them and improving them have an increase of grace till they come to be saved how shall we herein discry any difference betwixt them and that the one shall appear to be more truly in the way to life then the other his decisions herein wil be acceptable and provoke me to further explanations in this particular only I must advise him to be casting about for sufficient proofs for this that those Heathen men that have only the light of nature can be said to know the way of peace and to be in the way of eternal life otherwise I shall not yield to this standing course of providence so much and so confidently urged by him But then in the next place he will urge us with that text Matth. 25. the Parable of the talents in which it is said To him that hath it shall be given from this text they deduce this generall or standing course of providence and hence say they it appears that God bindes himself to give increase to him that useth those gifts well that he hath received nay Mr. Goodwin saith expresly that here by talents are meant natural gifts and in that saying To him that hath shall be given God promises to give an increase of grace to him that shall use the light of nature well Now because this text is the whole proof by the strength of which the whole fabrick of Vniversal Grace seemeth to stand I shall a little expatiate upon it and truly were it so that either Mr. Goodwin or the Remonstrants were but at unity with themselves it would be possible for us in sometime to shape them out some answer looking towards satisfaction but the intricacies and uncertainties of our adversaries render our work herein very difficult If this text prove their pretended method they must prove that these talents are natural gifts and abilities or at least necessary to take them in But to take a survey of their constancy in this particular Arminius would have the talents be the light of nature he saith thus (a) Vide mihi annon isto dicto Habenti dabitur promissio ista contineatur quâ Deus spondet se gratiâ supernaturali illuminaturum eos qui lumine naturali rectè utuntur Antiperkins pag. 218. Doth not that saying of Christ To him that hath shall be given contein the promise by which God bindeth himself to give supernatural grace to him that useth the light of nature well But Corvinus tempers the text to a greater latitude thus (b) Quod attinet ad proverbialem illam sententiam Habenti dabitur confirmemus sententiam nostram de remunerando recto usu prioris gratiae per majorem subsequentem in Molin Cap.

Goodwin It is well known that the Doctrine of Universal sufficient grace is the standing Pillar of their Doctrine in the second Article and hence is it that all that hold universal redemption do also hold universal suffici●nt grace and their mouths and pens do every where savour of this Doctrine Let us therefore see in the first place how they prove that God gives that to all men without exception which may truly be called grace And any that are exercised in them may see that they do professe this very roundly without hesitation True indeed in their Synodical writings in the forementioned place they give it the name of More general Grace but Arminius a little more laxely in the description of their general call before mentioned he saith thus (a) quibus bonis si recte usi fuissent Deus ulteriorem gratiā ill●s concessurus est Arm. antiperk 259. All men have some knowledge of the power and goodnesse of God and such gifts which if they use well God is ready to give further grace where we have it called grace onely by intimation not expressely he saith God would give more grace which phrase More Grace implies some preceding grace yet in another place he saith more largely thus (b) Vide mihi annon isto dicto Habenti d●bitur promissio ista contineatur quâ spondet Deus e supernaturali g●at●â illumm●turum qui lu rine naturali rectè utitar aut saltem minùs malè Antiperk 218. Consider with me whether or no in that saying To him that hath shall be given that promise is not herein contained whereby God binds himself to give supernatural light to them that use the light of nature well or at least lesse evilly So that now hee makes the Talents that are to be used to be natural light and the increase to be supernatural grace when if he had spoken home to the point of Universal grace he should have made the Talents as wel as the increase that which is originally given to improve as well as that which is given by way of reward to be supernatural grace for the argument is good against him out of his own words for thus we may argue if supernatural grace be not conferred but upon the right use and improvement of natural abilities then all men have not supernatural grace and the reason is clear because they do not use the light of nature well which expresses of Arminius when Molineus undertaketh to Anatomize and urgeth against Arminius thus God in Scripture is no where said to bind himself to give increase of grace to them that use the light of nature well Corvinus who defendeth him saith thus by way of reply (c) 1. Non ab Arminio dici simpliciter à Deo dari incrementa gratiae lumine naturali rectè utenti sed luce illâ recte utenti per ad jutotium gratiae 2 Nec dici ab illo Deum teneri incrementa dare sed tantum quod Deus vult sine ullâ obligatione 1. It is not said by Arminius simply thus that God gives increase of grace to him that useth the light of nature well but to him that useth nature well by the help of grace 2. Neither is it said by him that God is bound to give the increase of grace but onely that God will do it without any obligation But here Corvinus doth not defend but chastise his Master good reason if he do not expresse himself in such a fundamental point modo decenti in such a manner as becometh it and I must tell also Corvinus that both th●se replies are far from truth For clear it is 1 That he affirms simply that God gives increase of supernaturall grace to him that useth the light of nature well without any mention of the least syllable of assisting grace as any may judge that revieweth the forementioned quotation our of him if any for Corvinus can extract out of that text the least syllable leading to assisting grace I shall then say that Corvinus defends but if not he sheweth not what he doth say but what he should have said Now if any shall say to this that Arminius is so to be understood becuse sometimes he expresseth himself to the su●l I find him indeed thus in other places speaking (d) Anne natura prorsus destituta gratiā Spiritu Dei instructa est notitia veritatis c. non Arbitror ista dona naturae sine gratiâ spiritu Dei tribui posse citra injuriam gratiae divinae Arm. resp ad A. Art 31. Artic. 15. But can nature altogether destitute of the grace and spirit of God be instructed with the knowledge of God c. I do not think that such natu●al gifts without the grace and spirit of God can be granted without manifest injury to the grace of God But this doth not at all reduce him to any clear discovery of the truth but rather detect his fraud for they may have the Spirit of God and gifts of it originally and yet no supernatural grace given them de novo to use the gifts of nature well because according to their own principles every man hath Reliquias vitae Spiritualis the Reliques of spiritual life whereby they know something of God and are enabled to do the things contained in the law which yet the Apostle saith the Heathen do by nature and this not onely Arminius but Corvinus himself saith as I shall shew presently so that seeing his clearest words are liable to this charge of aequivocation it savours of too much levity and inconstancy to treat or the use of natural light in so many places without the least hint of any new principle of assisting grace and I cannot but judge thus that because they cannot make good their Doctrine of Universal grace without this pretended assisting grace he therefore sometimes scatters such expressions carrying a covert intimation thereof but because they find the proof of it from Scripture to be but slender they most frequently let that passe untouched But however if the question turn upon this hinge it is very improvidently done of them to let the whole credit of their cause hang upon their bare assertions for they do not produce one Scripture in all their writings to prove that God gives divine assisting grace to inable men to use the light of nature well and here the question concerning universal grace sticks betwixt us They affirm that God gives to all men assisting grace to use the light of nature well We on the other side deny it and provoke them to produce one place of Scripture to prove it and they have not produced it yet to his day When Molineus in his Anatomy of Arminianisme Quod dicis falsum est chap. 39. sec 2. chargeth them thus God it no where said to give to all men supernatural grace to use the light of nature well Corvinus onely answers thus That which thou saiest is false when it had

the regulating of our lives which he can no ways prove God doth by the Gospel in any proportionable discovery But he undertaketh to prove by a twofold Argument that nature bindeth all men to believe on Christ if reduced to form it would run thus If nature binds us to use the best means for our welfare and peace then it binds us to believe it being the only way to life But nature bindeth all men to use the best meant for their welfare Therefore c. The Argument is plausible enough if he had not himself laid the ground of its confutation the same notions will answer it that I gave before nature teacheth no man to use any means for his welfare but what he knoweth to be in such a tendency but the question presupposeth that they do not yet know and when they come to know true then they are bound to observe it but the state of the question is altered A second Argument which he useth is deduced from Acts 4.12 where the Apostle saith that There is no name under Heaven by which a man can be saved but Iesus Christ but how the Argument must be formed or where the strength of it lyeth he puts us to the labour to seek it out He saith that this text crosseth two main Pillars of his Adversaries doctrine the first I own with a little correction thus That the law of Salvation viz. He that believeth shall be saved respecteth those that are Evangelized onely that is such as have the discovery of the Gospel by some way and means beyond and above the light of nature So that this be understood of Adults for as for Infants how God dealeth with them whether they be saved by faith or whose faith or what faith or how I leave it to Mr. Goodwin to determine Let him understand me thus and then I challenge him to prove how that text Acts 4.12 overthroweth this it seemeth Mr. Goodwin thinketh that this Law of Salvation as he calleth it He that believeth shall be saved doth not respect men Evangelized onely I know not what sophistical sense he may retein of those words doth not respect he may know that the point in hand is about obligation to believe so that he ought to have exprest it thus That Law of Salvation respecteth not onely men Evangelized as a bond or obligation to believe but thus it is very liable to scruple for this Law of Salvation as he calleth it He that beleeveth shall be saved must be considered as conceived in God onely in his minde and purpose whereby as the Remonstrants say he did certam rationem statuere appoint a certain way by which he would save men and thus considered it is not to come under the notion of an obliging principle because thus it is hidden in God and so nothing to us Secondly it is considerable as discovered and pronounced to the world whereby the Lord acquainteth us with his gracious award concerning us and thus will Mr. Goodwin say that it respects not only persons Evangelized when the very discovery of this to us is Evangelization and the discovery of the Gospel and it becomes an obligation to none but them that have it discovered to them But in his next I expect that he produce his argument in form that I may know what he intendeth and I shall return answer But he proceeds in his magnificates of the light of nature thus My principles will not allow we to gratifie you with my bel●efe of your position which is that the light of nature cannot discover to mankinde that there was or ever would be such a Mediatour or man as Jesus Christ What principles they are which thus obstruct his faith or belief of the truths of God are best known to himself the principles of saving truth will tell us that we may read of a naturall Theology but of a naturall Christianity no where This is revealed by a new way hence the Jews stumbled at it and the Greeks derided it as inconsistent with their Philosophicall and naturall principles the World by their wisedome knew not God how then can the light of Nature discover a Christ it is not by wisdome of the world but the foolishness of preaching that he saveth men and that the preaching by men not the heavens for this last preaching involves the wisdome of the world But because he will leave no stone unturned he by way of concession thus saith Suppose it cannot discover a Christ in such particularities as now under the Gospel yet it cannot be denied but that it may so far discover him as that a man may be rationally perswaded through him to depend upon God for the pardon of his sins and salvation But this is meer trifeling for we say that the light of Nature alone is unable not onely to discover a Christ in particularities but at all and upon that ground no man can be perswaded to depend upon God through him for thus suppose that a man know that Christ is it is strange that he should recede from the first position and suppose that the light of nature did not and could not discover that such a man as Christ ever was and yet to suppose that by the light of nature a man may be perswaded to depend upon God for life through Christ but he attempteth to prove that the light of nature doth discover so much as that men may be so rationally perswaded to depend on God through Christ for life and this he proved by two Arguments 1. His first Argument is from the Jews who he saith The sum of what they believed concerning Christ was this that God had found out a way and pleased himself in a means how to shew mercy and forgive sins and save their souls that put their trust in him and live righteously yet they believed to salvation though Christ not discovered to them in such particularities as now wherein he doth egregiously prevaricate for 1 That which he is to prove was this that men by the light of nature can so farre discover Christ as that they are rationally perswaded to depend on God for salvation through Christ but in all this abstract which he produceth what syllable is it that gives the least hint of Christ It is only thus that they beleeved that God pleased himself in a way and means to shew mercy forgive sin to save the soules of them that trust in him and live righteously now let the World judge whether any or all of these do infer a dependance upon God for life through Christ 2 Suppose it did so what pertinency hath this instance to the case in hand He instanceth in the Jews who had the written Word or vocall discoveries of Christ proportionable to their faith in Christ a generall and indistinct knowledge of Christ being every way proportionable to a generall and indistinct faith Now suppose they had a generall and indistinct faith in Christ yet if this faith came by a generall

the grace of God in the intendments of salvation to the small number of Gods elect because they judge the Scripture clear in this that God gives to all men sufficient means whereby to be saved thus they say Pag. 34. of that Treatise it will be somthing digressive and irrelative to my present task to engage with them in that confinement of divine grace and so to state it truly how we would have that grace to extend the task I have in hand is only to answer Mr. Goodwin who would extend that grace as far as nature or else make the grace of God to be no grace and so I am fairly led to look upon their first Argument that moveth them to dissent which they express to be this That God gives all a sufficiency of means whereby to be saved a position which few before them have asserted and proved yea the best of their side have and do expresly deny it but Mr. Goodwin and his Church think they have Scriptures clear for it And what Scriptures I pray we read them from their pens 1 Tim. 2.4 Who will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of his truth 2 Pet. 3.9 Not willing any should perish but should come to repentance But 1 Are these Scriptures produced to prove an actuall bestowing of sufficient means for salvation and why not of actuall salvation too for they run in equipage and he willeth that all men be saved as well as that they should come to the knowledge of the truth So that by these texts they may as well prove that God actually saves all men 2 Have neither the Pastour nor people of that Church this in consideration that these texts are expounded by the best of their own side of the antecedent will of God which in respect of mens malice and wickedness doth not always come to pass and they will grant that God by his Antecedent will intendeth to give sufficient means but because they use not nature well or God fore-seeth them incorrigible or their fore-fathers have refused the Gospel therefore God doth not reveal Christ 3 These texts favour not Mr. Goodwins one whit if they think that God gives sufficient means to be saved to those that never had the letter of the Gospel for these texts presupposeth the letter of the Gospel so runneth the text And come to the knowledge of the truth No sufficiency to be saved until they have the knowledge of the truth and as not by these Scriptures so neither by any other or any colour of reason do they prove that daring assertion viz. That God gives to all men sufficient means whereby to be saved And thus to conclude with his own expression I have in the midst of many pressing occasions in my Pastoral Charge impartially endevoured to ventilate the truth whether any thing I have said will turn to so happy an account as satisfaction I cannot prophesie However until in case he receive not he give satisfaction to the premises I must put in a Caveat against his Claim which he makes Pag. 61. and I shall make a legitimate Claim so far as that he surrender up the cause until he prove that all men are bound to believe in Christ for till that be proved or at least that Christ hath made some proportionable discoveries of that purchase made that so men may be enabled to believe and so have that purchase applyed I shall conclude that Christ did not lay down the price of his own blood to purchase life and salvation for all men without exception Soli DEO Gloria