sinful and vain and no Saving Benefit is dispenced to any of us by this Rule 2. The Gospel includes the Moral Preceptive part of the first Law with some additional Precepts which suppose our Apostate state as Faith in an atoneing Saviour and Repentance for Sin These could not be enjoyned as Duties on innocent Man by a Rule of Happiness and Misery nor could they be necessary to his Right to Life because they would suppose him a Sinner The Gospel is taken in a large sence when I say it includes all the Moral Precepts but yet the Gospel doth so and they are the Commands of Christ as Redeemer to whom all Judgment is committed as well as the Law of the Creator 3. The Gospel hath another Sanction to the Preceptive part of the Law than the Covenant of Works had Though nothing be abated in the Rule of Sin and Duty yet Blessings are promised to lower degrees of Duty and a continuance in a state of Deuth with a barr to the Blessing are not threatned against every degree of Sin as the Covenant of Works did Can any doubt this to be the Grace of the Gospel-Promise Doth it promise Life to all Men however vile and impenitent they be Or doth it threaten Damnation or a Continuance of it on any true penitent believing godly Man because he is imperfect This Change of the Sanction supposeth the Death of Christ and his honouring the Law by his perfect Obedience wherein God hath provided for his own Glory while he promiseth Life by Forgiveness to imperfect Man and yet he insists on some degree of Obedience to which of his mere Grace he enableth us This the Covenant of Redemption secures to the Elect tho' the Grant therein is pleadable only by Christ as the stipulating Party for us and our personal Claim depends on the Gospel-Covenant whereof Christ is Mediator 4. This Gospel-Sanction determines as certain a Rule of Happiness and Misery as the Law of Works did though it be not the same For while it promiseth Pardon to all believing repenting Sinners and declares a barr to pardon to the impenitent Rejecters of Christ and Gospel-Grace it fixeth true Repentance and Faith unfeigned to be the Terms of Pardon So when it promiseth Heaven to the sincerely holy persevering Believer it fixeth sincere Holiness and perseverance in Faith as the Terms of possessing Heaven Hence the Use of Faith Holiness c. to these Benefits is not from their Conformity to the Precept but their Conformity to the Rule of the Promise Our applying Christ's Righteousness and relying on it would no more Justifie us than our sincere Holiness would Save us were it not for this Gospel-Promise That God will Justifie for Christ's sake all such as believe 5. Hence by Gospel-Grace there is a great difference between perfect Faith and utter Unbelief between sincere Holiness and formal Profaneness or Wickedness True Love to God and prevailing Enmity imperfect spiritual Duties and rebellious Neglects c. By the Law of Works nothing was Holiness but what was perfectly so c. But read the Bible if thou doubtest whether there is not a true Faith Holiness Love c. which be short of Perfection 6. God in the dispensing of Gospel-promised Blessings doth judicially determine a Conformity to this Rule of the Promise When he forgives he judicially declareth a Man hath true Faith when he admits into Heaven he judicially declares a Man sincerely Holy and Persevering As upon a view of his Guests he cast out him that had not on the Wedding-Garment viz. True-uniting Faith so he judicially determined That they who were not cast out but admitted to share in the Marriage Feast viz. made Partakers of Union with Christ and the Benefits thereof had True Faith and not a mere Profession As by keeping out the foolish Virgins for not having Oyl in their Lamps viz. the Spirit of Grace and persevering Holiness so by admitting the wise Virgins he judicially declared they had a Spirit of Grace and persevering Holiness Can any think that Forgiving Adopting Glorifying or the conveyance of every other promised Benefit given on God's Terms are not judicial Acts of God as Rector If so doth he dispence these blindly and promiseuously without any regard to our being Believers c. or no Or whether our Faith be true or no Any one would blush to affirm it With respect to what 's above declared the Gospel is called a Law of Faith a Law of Liberty c. and it especially insists on that sincerity of Grace and Holiness which the Rule of the Promise makes necessary in its Description of the Person whom it makes Partaker of its included Benefit And the main of our Ministry consisteth in pressing Men to answer the Rule of the Gospel-Promises and disswading Men from those things which the Gospel threatens shall hinder their Interest in all or any of its Benefits with an Aggravation of their Misery if they be final Rejecters of its Grace We call Men to be reconeiled to God upon which we know God will be at peace with them These things will help thy Conceptions still remembring that the Merits of Christ are the cause of this Gospel-Ordination His Righteousness imputed is the cause for which we are justified and saved when we do answer the Gospel-Rule And I exclude not this Righteousness when I affirm That the Righteousness of God Phil. 3. 9. principally intends the Gospel-Holiness of a Person justified by Christ's Righteousness both which by Faith in Christ all his Members shall be perfect in The Grace of God is hereby stated as free as is consistent with his Government and Judicial Rectoral Distribution of Rewards and Punishments and none need the Riches of Grace more than I. Reader Note That in this Book I still speak of the Adult and not Infants When I say The Difference is not I state my own Concessions and mean not that the Doctor is in all these of my mind Thou must expect to take up my full sence by a view of several Chapters and not only one because sundry Chapters referr to the same Points more or less And forget not That though the Doctor oft in his Book speaks to Men as Believers yet every thing is true of the Elect viz. They have as much a Title to all Saving Blessings only they do not know it This was his Judgment I have carefully avoided any Reflexion on Reverend Dr. Crisp whom I believe a holy Man and abstained exposing many things according to the Advantage offered if by any means this Book may become useful to such as most need it That the Father of Lights would lead us into all Truth and Love is the Prayer of thy Servant in the Gospel London May 4. 1692. D. Williams ERRATA PAge 3. Line 7. add 365. p. 5. l. 8. for ew r. we p. 8. l. 15. for 289. r. 274. p. 10. l. 17. r. Propogation p. 28. l. 4 for Chaist r. Christ p. 38.
man draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him But we are not of them that draw back unto perdition but of them that believe to the saving of their souls Heb. 10. 38 39. Is this a Threatning or not VVill not Christ deal with Men according to it Is it not true of all Persons Do not say the elect Believer will not fall away I think the same but yet is it the less true that even he shall perish if he fall away Nay Doth not God by these Threats contribute to keep him from Apostacy Ask thy self Is not this Threatning such as should govern our Expectations if we should turn Apostates So Heb. 12. 14. Without holiness no man shall see the Lord. This is used as an Argument to persuade us to follow Holiness and can you suppose it argueth at a lower rate than this Be Holy or you shall never see God's Face Unholiness will keep you from God's Presence Consider such places as For these things the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience Eph. 5. 6. If you live after the flesh you shall die Rom. 8. 13. 2. Salvation is promised to Perseverance True Holiness Sincere Obedience or Good Works And the Accomplishment of these Promises to these is called an Act of Righteousness These are Gospel-Promises because Salvation is promised on Terms so below Perfection The Texts are innumerable that include these Promises Rev. 2. 10. Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a crown of life 2 Tim. 4. 7 8. I have fought a good fight I have kept the faith henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord the righteous Judge will give me in that day Rom. 18. 3. If you mortifie the deeds of the flesh by the spirit you shall live Heb. 6. 10. God is not unrighteous to forget your labour of love c. 2 Thes. 1. 6 7. The Righteousness refers to the Truth of the Promise not the Proportion of the Work Obj. These describe the Men whom God will save Ans. True but not as mere Natural Signs but as Moral instituted Signs They are Qualifications which God appoints as Pre-requisites to the Blessings They are not Meritorious but they are made by the Promise Necessary to our partaking of these Gifts and the Neglect of them would exclude our Interest in the Blessing Obj. These are Concomitants of them thâ—â— shall be saved Ans. The same Answer thaâ— is given to the last will serve to this And I add They are not instead of Christ they cannot add to what is proper to a Christ nor will they suffice without Faith or an Interest in Christ or without Pardon But they still signifie more than such Concomitants as some esteem them They are not like the Place of one's Birth or our Names or ouâ— Parents or Death c. All which are Concomitants of a Man that is saved but theâ— are Characters designed by the Promise theâ—â— are things without which the Gospel-Rule will exclude Men from Heaven and condemn Men into Hell let their Pretences be what they will Rev. 22. 14. Blessed are that that do his commandments that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter in for without are dogs Mat. 5. 20. Except youâ— righteousness exceed the righteousness of the scribes c. 3. Consider the respect to Glory which ouâ— Good Works have in Scripture-dialect They are as Seed to the Harvest Gal. 6. 7 8 9. As 〈◊〉 Way to one's proposed place Eph. 2. 10. As Means to an End Mat. 5. 8. As Work to one's Wages Mat. 20. 1 7. Foundation to 〈◊〉 Building 1 Tim. 6. 19 c. The Gospel declares no less a Connexion between Good Works and Glory though they merit nothing 4. God declares the Obedience and Works of Believers as rewardable of Grace through Christ. They shall walk with me in white for they are worthy Rev. 3. 4. Great is your Reward in Heaven Mat. 5. 12. If I do this willingly I have a Reward 1 Cor. 9. 17. Col. 3. 24. Rev. 22. 12. Come ye blessed of my Father c. For I was an hungry and ye gave me meat c. Mat. 25. 34 35. It 's true it 's a Reward from the Benignity of a Father not from the Dignity of the Work It 's from the Ordination of the Promise which is owing to the Merits of a Christ and not any Claim of the Performance And so tender is God of the Honour of his Goodness herein that the Second Article of our Creed must be That he is a Rewarder of them that diligently seek him Heb. 11. 6. 5. By perseverance in these Exercises we are to work out our Salvation Phil. 2. 12. We lay hold of Eternal Life 1 Tim. 6. Lay up a treasure in heaven Luk. 12. 33. We run the race for the prize 1 Cor. 9. 24. VVe fight for the Crown c. And is it as good sit still as to be doing thus for to help us Heaven-ward Reader Lay these things to heart and canst thou account persevering Holiness and Obedience useless things Are they so indifferent to Happiness as the Doctor represents them How much of the Bible must be expunged ere his Opinion deserves credit Though I know our corrupt part too well likes a Dispensation from striving to enter in at the strait Gate III. The Third thing I should prove is That many other Blessings besides mere Eternal Life are promised to the Exercise of several Graces and Performance of Duties This is so easie a Task that I would leave it to the most ignorant but to read the Bible with his own Eyes VVhat mean such places The effectual fervent Prayer of a righteous man availeth much Jam. 5. 16. VVill no Prayer or cold Prayer avail as much If these things be in you and abound they make you that you shall neither be barren nor unfruitfull in the knowledge of Christ 2 Pet. 1. 8. VVill the want or scanty degrees of Grace do the same So 2 Pet. 1. 10 11. Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure c. for so an entrance shall be administred to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of Christ. May one be assured without diligence Or shall we enter Heaven with the same full sail though we be negligent and unassured 2 Cor. 9. 6. He that soweth bountifully shall reap bountifully he that soweth sparingly shall reap sparingly But then shall we reap as liberally if we sow not at all or sow sparingly VVhere shall I stop when the Scriptures are so full of Instances And sure I need not prove that Repentance and earnest Prayer contribute to preserve a Nation when God so many times urgeth these to this end when he hath promised and performed Deliverance hereupon when he complains so oft that he must destroy for want of these and lays the Destruction of places always on neglect of these Jer. 18. 7 8 9 10. Isa. 1.
5 15 16 17 18 19. It 's the same with Churches see the 2d and 3d. Chap. of the Revelations IV. Men should govern their Expectations and Fears according to the Conformity of their Hearts and Behaviour to the Rule of the Promise It 's Unbelief not to expect the Good promised when we answer the Condition of it It 's obstinate Hardness and Security not to expect the threatned Evil when we are guilty of the Sin or Neglect threatned There 's no grounded Hopes or Fears but this way all else are Enthusiastick The End of God in these Declarations of his Will are not otherwise complied with God often condemns all Hopes as vain that are not thus regulated and by this Rule the Servants of God governed themselves I need not cite Texts for things so plain V. God is better pleased with his People in the exercise of Grace and Holiness than when they neglect these and do the contrary What Notions have Men of God of Grace and Sin that they should need Proof for this Is it not by the Exercise of Grace and Holiness that we approve our selves to God 2 Tim. 2. 15 Is it not With such Sacrifices God is well-pleased Heb. 13. 16. Was it not by his Faith and Divine Walk that Enoch pleased God Heb. 11. 5. What meaneth the Apostle You have received of us how you ought to walk and to please God 1 Thes. 4. 1. The Saint's Charity is called An Odour of a sweet smell a Sacrifice acceptable well-pleasing to God We are charged to walk worthy of the Lord to all pleasing Col. 1. 10. Of the Obedience of Children he saith This is well-pleasing to the Lord. What great things of this Nature are spoken of Prayer Praises and other Good VVorks VVhereas God is fretted grieved vexed provoked to anger and abhorrence by our Sins and Neglects How can we apprehend that God is as well pleased with us when testifying our Enmity as our Love when rejecting his Authority as doing his Will Are the Fruits of the Spirit alike to him as the Fruits of the Flesh And can the Image of the Devil render us as grateful as his own Image and the Life of his Son Obj. It 's for Christ's Incense these are accepted Ans. But Christ's Incense will not be applied to our Sins but to our Graces and Duties and that shews they are more pleasing to God than our Sins be And again They are these Graces and Duties which are accepted for the sake of Christ His Incense will not be denied to them and thereby they are well-pleasing to the Lord and tend to render us so Davenant de Justitia Actuali and Others say much more VI. The Holiness Graces Perseverance Obedience and Good Works of Believers do them much Good and are profitable to them Read over what I have proved at large and canst thou doubt whether they benefit us when they are the VVay to Heaven the Means of Happiness c. A wise Man may be profitable to himself though not to God Job 22. 2. Godliness is profitable to all things having the promises of this life and that which is to come 1 Tim. 4. 8. These Things are profitable to Men Tit. 3. 8. Not only to other Men but principally to our selves Though I have all Faith if I have not Charity I am nothing and whatever else I suffer yet without this it profiteth me nothing 1 Cor. 13. 2 3. Circumcision or Uncircumcision is nothing but keeping the Commandments of God 1 Cor. 7. 19. Sure that 's something In keeping these there is great Reward Psal. 19. 11. Glory Honour and Peace to every one that doth good to the Jew first and also to the Gentile for there is no respect of Persons with God Rom. 2. 10 11. Nehemiah and Hezekiah pleaded a false Plea if it were true there 's nothing to be gotten The Care of Saints to adapt their Actings to the Rule of the Promise is a very needless thing So run that ye may obtain 1 Cor. 9. 24. If a Man strive for Masteries yet is he not crowned except he strive lawfully 1 Tim. 2. 5. The Galatians must be but little moved when told Ch. 3 4. Are ye so foolish c. Have ye suffered so many things in vain for all is in vain Is Peace of Conscience nothing Is inward Rejoycing nothing Yet how Paul came by these he tells you 2 Cor. 1. 12. For our Rejoycing is this The Testimony of our Conscience that in Simplicity and godly Sincerity not with Fleshly Wisdom but by the Grace of God we have had our Conversation in the World His Directions for inward Joy and Peace you have Gal. 6. 4. Let every Man prove his own Work and then shall he have rejoycing in himself alone I shall not trouble thee with Reasons to prove that Grace Holiness and Obedience are useful to prevent Evil. I leave it to thy Experience if thou art a good Man and referr it to what thou wilt feel hereafter i thou art a bad Man If there were no more these do prevent Sin which in Chap. 17. I hope to prove is not so innocent as to do us no harm Reader To summ up all I appeal to thee 1. Whether God doth require any more of any Sinners for Salvation than that they believe in Christ repent of Sin persevere in true Holiness sincere Obedience or good Works internal and external and if we do so can we perish hath not Christ provided all else and doth not the Promise secure Life upon doing these 2. If any Sinner believe not and repent not hath Christ ever promised to save him Will any decree or the Merits of Christ secure him Again if any penitent Believer shall apostatize prove ungodly and unfruitful hate God or neglect to love God and his Neighbour wholly c. Shall this Man be saved Hath not Christ determined the contrary Will his first Faith save him A Resolution of these two things according to the very Scope of the Word will decide the Main of this Controversie These assert the Rule of Christ's rectoral Distributions and the Decree comes not in opposition to the Methods of his Government by which we are to govern our Hopes and Fears TESTIMONIES The Assembly Confess Chap. 19. a. 6. and the Elders at the Savoy declare Chap. 19. a. 6. The Promises of the Law in like manner shew them God's Approbation of Obedience and what Blessings they may expect upon the Performance thereof although not as due to them by the Law as a Covenant of Works so a Man's doing and refraining from Evil because the Law encourageth to the one and deterreth from the other is no Evidence of his being under the Law and not under Grace Both the Assembly and the Elders say Chap. 15. a. 6. The Persons of Believers being accepted through Christ their good Works also are accepted in him not as though they were in this Life wholly unblameable and unreprovable in his Sight but
a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory Were all Doing for Life and an Eye to gain by Service such a legal and wicked thing as some represent it sure the blessed Jesus would have admonished his Disciples and not answer them as he doth Mat. 19. 27 28 29. Then answered Peter and said unto him behold we have forsaken all and followed thee What shall we have therefore And Jesus said unto them verily c. Ye shall sit upon twelve Thrones judging the twelve Tribes of Israel c. 4. The Doctor 's Argument from the Vanity of proposing our own Gain by Labour and Duties because all is fixed and given already is to make the Decree an effectual Means to overthrow the Government of Christ and brand all his Offers to Sinners with Weakness and Falshood Should not poor Sinners pray as they can abstain from Sin consider and apply the Word with an Eye to Conversion Why doth God call them to this Should not they wait and strive to believe and repent with an Eye to Forgiveness and escaping VVrath VVhy else should God encourage them with an Offer of these upon such Terms and tell the Unbelievers that they refuse these Mercies by new Forfeitures But by the Doctor 's Scheme the Elect may be idle and the Non-elect do best when they despair for there 's no Connexion between these Benefits and these Graces or Duties And so the Non-elect are in the same Case with Devils there being no serious Offer to them nay their Case is worse than Devils for these Offers are made to them for no other Design but to increase their Condemnation Nay every Sin of their's is the Sin against the Holy Ghost that is every Sin is alike the Unpardonable Sin and not only that Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost To say no more Christ hath no Rule of distributive Justice but his own eternal Purpose and Men's Regards to his promised Benefits are all forbidden even when our Respect to them is that which subserves his Government and is supposed in all the Methods of it 5. And why should we intend the Glory of God the Service of Christ or the Good of others Are not these as determined as our own Good Hath not God fixed and secured his own Glory Doth Christ need our services more than our selves Shall any other Persons receive more Good than God hath already given and provided for them Why should we intend these in our Duties more than our own Profit the very same Reason excuseth from all and so we ought to intend nothing at all I could shew had I Room that we cannot sincerely aim at our Souls good but we therein aim at God's Glory Nor doth God ever require us to intend his Glory but in a Concurrence with an Eye to our own Salvation TESTIMONIES You have seen in the last Chapter the Assembly's and Congregational Elders Judgment and that we are not the less under Grace for being encouraged to do good by the Promises c. The Case is so plain that I shall only give the Judgment of the greater part of those Reverend Divines whose Names are set in the Front of Dr. Crisp's Works and interpreted by the VVeak to a contrary purpose than what they intended These Divines in the Preface to Mr. Flavel's Book against Antinomianism which they approve of inform us That to say Salvation is not the End of any Good VVork we do or VVe are to act from Life and not for Life were to abandon the Humane Nature it were to teach us to violate the great Precepts of the Gospel it supposeth one bound to do more for the Salvation of others than our own 't were to make all the Threatnings of Eternal Death and Promises of Eternal Life we find in the Gospel of our blessed Lord useless as Motives to shun the one or obtain the other It makes the Scripture-Characters and Commendation of the most Eminent Saints a Fault Had I seen this sooner it might have spared some of my Reasons The Grounds of the Doctor 's Mistake Because we ought not to do any thing from Carnal Self-love therefore we ought to do nothing from Rational and Spiritual Self-love Because Christ redeemed us that we may not live to our selves as our own Lords therefore we must not in obeying him regard the Rewards he promiseth us as he is our Lord. Because we must aim at God's Glory above all therefore we must not at all intend our own happiness in the enjoyment of this God Because we must aim at the good of others therefore we must not aim at our own good Because we should obey God from Gratitude and Love therefore we should not obey him from any Hope or filial Fear Because God hath engaged to give Life and Happiness to the Elect when they have finished their warfare and work therefore they must not intend the obtaining that happiness in any part of that work or warfare CHAP. XV. Of the way to attain Assurance TRUTH THe ordinary way whereby a Man attaineth a well-grounded Assurance is not by immediate objective Revelation or an inward Voice saying Thy Sins are forgiven thee But when the Believer is examining his Heart and Life by the Word the holy Spirit enlightens the Mind there to discern Faith and Love and such other Qualifications which the Gospel declareth to be infallible Signs of Regeneration And he adds such power to the Testimony of Conscience for the Truth and In-being of these Graces as begets in the Soul a joyful sense of its reconciled State and some comfortable freedom from those Fears which accompany a doubting Christian and according to the Evidence of these Graces Assurance is ordinarily strong or weak ERROUR Assurance is not attained by the Evidence of Scripture-Marks or Signs of Grace or by the Spirits discovering to us that he hath wrought in our Hearts any holy Qualifications But Assurance comes only by an inward Voice of the Spirit saying Thy Sins are forgiven thee and our believing thereupon that our Sins are forgiven Proved that this is Doctor Crisp's Opinion P. 491. Would you know that the Lord hath laid your Iniquities on Christ you must know it thus 1. Is there a Voice behind thee or within thee saying particularly to thee in thy self Thy Sins are forgiven thee Dost thou see this Voice agree with the Word of Grace that is Dost thou see it held out to most vile and wretched Creatures as thou canst be and upon this Revelation of the Mind of the Lord by his Spirit according to that Word doth the Lord give thee to receive that Testimony of the Spirit to sit down with it as satisfied that upon this thou makest full reckoning thou hast propriety in this particularly to thy self If thou dost receive that Testimony according to that Word here is thy Evidence Thou hast thy Propriety and Portion in this On this Point the Doctor spends much time Serm. 15. is to prove That Love to the
Our Spirits witness in the light of the Spirit as 1 Cor. 9. 1. My Conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost 5. A Testimony of the Spirit giving an Evidence of Pardon without any Evidence of Grace is not according to the Word of Grace for the Word of Grace never declareth any Sinners are pardoned but believing penitent Sinners It is not as mere Sinners the Word pardoneth for it flatly condemneth and leaves Guilt on all impenitent Unbelievers as I have proved chap. 8. 12. Therefore if there should be a Voice a true Voice of God carrying it 's own Evidence saying Thy Sins are forgiven it doth at the same time and by the same Voice witness to the truth of our Grace because he forgives no other according to the Word of the Gospel And if the Spirit should say to an impenitent Soul Thou art pardoned while such it is no Promise in the Gospel nor according to it but a new Promise and not to be tried by the VVord and the Writers thereof having had more of the Spirit than any now can pretend to it 's dangerous to rest on that Voice which will not bear the Tryal by the VVord c. 6. To have the ordinary way of Assurance to be as it 's stated by the opposite Errour hath very dangerous Consequences Most Saints must quit their Hopes and Assurance for they never had this Voice though they have greater stamps of the Spirit than any I ever knew pretend to this It makes all Examination useless and vain It overturneth one of the great Uses God hath assigned to the work of his Grace on the Heart It makes Assurance impossible without this miraculous Voice which can hardly carry its Evidence to a Soul that hath no Grace at all It 's a way too far Enthusiastick to be allowed in so stated a Case It gives the Devil a great advantage against Sinners to live in Sin and against honest People if once they find cause to question this Voice Yea it sets up the Spirit against it self if any can boast of Assurance by this Voice when their State is justly challengeable by the Gospel as wanting all sight of Gospel-Marks TESTIMONIES The Assembly in Confes. ch 18. a. 2. say It 's an Infallible Assurance of Faith founded upon the Divine Truth of the Promises of Salvation the inward Evidences of those Graces unto which these Promises are made the Testimony of the Spirit of Adoption witnessing with our Spirits that we are the Children of God And a. 3. they tell us A Believer being enabled by the Spirit may without extraordinary Revelation in the right use of ordinary Means attain thereunto And therefore it is the Duty of every one to give all diligence to make his Calling and Election sure that thereby his heart may be enlarged in Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost c. as say the Cong Elders chap. 18. a. 3. See a. 4. Both shew how Assurance may be revived from the Graces in the Heart The Synod of New-England oft confute the contrary Errour which it seems was one that sadly troubled them Errour 44. No createâ— Work can be a manifest Sign of God's Love Errour 47. The Seal of the Spirit is limited only to the immediate witness of the Spirit nor doth ever witness to any Work of Grace or Conclusion by a Syllogism Errour 67. A Man cannot evidence his Justification by his Sanctification but he must needs build upon his Sanctification and trust to it Errour 72. It 's a Soul-damning Errour to make Sanctification an Evidence of Justification Errour 77. Sanctification is so far from evidencing a good State thâ—â— it darkens it rather and a Man may more clearly see Christ when he seeth no Sanctification than when he doth The darker my Sanctification is the brighter is my Justification The Synod shew at large how each of these are contrary to the Scriptures And one 〈◊〉 the evil Speeches they confute p. 19. I may know I am Christ's Not because I do crucifâ—â— the Lusts of the Flesh but believe in Christ that crucified my Lusts for me See Errour 63 69. The Grounds of the Doctor 's Mistake Because the Spirit of God is a Comforter therefore he cannot comfort us by helping us to see the VVork of his Grace in order to Joy in his Blessings Because the Spirit was to convince the World of Christ's Righteousness as what alone could procure Life therefore he tells Men that they have an Interest in it without shewing them any change on their Hearts Because he was to take of Christ's Fulness and shew it to his Disciples therefore he immediately speaks peace to the hearts of such as are or at least appear his resolved Enemies Because by the Spirit of Adoption we cry Abba Father therefore we need not find any love to God to know that we are his Children Because the Spirit witnesseth with our Spirits that we are the Children of God therefore he witnesseth alone without so much as revealing to our Spirits that we have the temper of Children Whereas there are many great Effects of the Spirit manifest on the Souls of them to whom the Apostle speaks Rom. 8. 11 12 14 15 16. And the design of the place is more to express our Dignity and free Access to God under a Gospel-state than mere Assurance of Forgiveness Because a Natural Man cannot perceive the Riches of the Promise and the Spirit enableth a Spiritual Man by his Teachings to perceive the nature of them therefore by an immediate Voice he discovers to the Natural Man his Propriety in them even while he is and appears Natural Because there is Imperfection in the Graces of a Saint therefore he cannot see the Sincerity of them by the help of the Spirit without an immediate Voice CHAP. XVI Of God's seeing Sin in Believers and their Guilt by it c. TRUTH THe Sins of Believers have the Loathsomness of Sin adhering to them which God seeth and accounteth the Committers guilty thereby And they ought to charge themselves therewith so as to stir up themselves to Repentance and renew their Actings of Faith on Christ for Forgiveness Nevertheless they ought not thereby to fear their being out of a Justified State further than their Falls give them just cause of suspecting that Sin hath dominion over them and that their first believing on Christ was not sincere ERROUR God seeth no Sin in Believers though he see the Fact neither doth he charge them with any Sin nor ought they to charge themselves with any Sin nor be at all sad for them nor confess repent or do any thing as a Means of their Pardon no nor in order to assuring themselves of Pardon even when they commit Murther Adultery or the grossest VVickedness Proved that this is Dr. Crisp 's Opinion Reader Note That the Doctor speaks most of this concerning a Person as Elect though he uses the word Believer sometimes because he alone knows that he is Elect by