not believinge Therfore if a quaestion be made why the wicked doe not this or that which is good his answeare is quia nolunt but sayth he if you further demaund Quare nolunt Imus in lâ—gum sayth Austin yet without prejudice to a more diligent inquisition of the truth I answere sayth the same divine that the reason is eyther because it appeares not unto them what it is or appearing what it is yet it doth not delight them Sed ut innotescat quòd latebat suave fiat quod minime delectabat gratiae Dei est quae humanas adjuvat voluntates But to prosecute this argument farther then this Author dreames of we say there are but three sorts of supernaturall acts and they are eyther faith devine or hope devine or charitie divine all other acts are naturall and performable by a naturall man whether they be the acts of all morall vertues or an â—xterior conformitie to the meanes of grace wherby it comes to passe that some doe proficere ad exteriorem vitae emendationem but none of these acts are acceptable with God unles they proceede from and are rightly qualified by those three theologicall vertues faith hope and love all which are divine and supernaturall the love of God being such as is joyned with the contempt of our selfes as for faith and hope it appears how supernaturall they are by the supernaturall condition of theire objects Now suppose that a man were so exact both in naturall moralitie and in an outward conformitie to the meanes of grace as not to fayle in any particular as he hath power to performe any particular hereof naturally in this case I say if there were any such he shoulde be in the same case with those that are guilty of no sinne but sinne originall which yet the word of God teacheth us to be sufficient to make all men to be borne children of wrath though as Austin speaketh their poena be omnium mitissima and that such perhaps for so as remember he proposeth it ut mallent paenamillam subire quam non esse As for the necessitie of sinning which he saith God hath imposed upon them Corvinus confesseth that all men by the sinne of Adam are conjecti in necessitatem peccandi and that out of the opinion of Arminius his wordes are these Fatetur Arminius hominem sub statu peccati necessariò peccare nisi Deus istam necessitatem gratiose tollat And this he calls a litle after necessitatem peccandi But yet to cleare this necessitie which he doth not we doe not say that any man sinnes any particular sinne as the sinne of lying whoring swearing stealing necessarily for undoubtedly it is in the power of man to absteyne from any of these but this we say whatsoever they doe they sinne in some sort or other whether they committ fornication or whether they absteyne from fornication or from any other act forbidden in as much as they doe not absteyne from it in a gracious manner and acceptable unto God For they that are in the flesh cannot please God as in not absteyning from it for Gods sake in conscience of his word in reference to his glory out of the sence of his love towards them in Christ in acknowledgment that all power of doing things pleasing in his sight proceedes from him c. As for the imposing of this necessitie of sinning upon man When a man by defiling his body through incontinency bringes some filthy disease upon him which he propagates to his posteritie shall we say God imposeth this disease upon him and his though it cannot be denyed but even the course of nature is the worke of God in the like sort when Adam by sinning against God corrupted his owne nature and therewithall his whole posterity shall we lay the blame of this on God and call him the imposer of it and not on Adam yea on our selves who sinned in Adam as the Holy Ghost teacheth us to speake We speake plainly in saying that the love of God to the contempt of our selves is not naturall to any man unlesse he be indued with the Spirit of God but Adam was created and we in him in the state of grace and indued with the Spirit of God by vertue whereof the soule of man was fixed upon God as upon his end to enjoy him and to use all other things even our selves and all for him and in reference to his glory But whan man by the practise of Satan circumvented did voluntarily avert himself from God and converted himself first inordinately to the love of himself and then to the eating of the forbidden fruite for the acquiring of a state of better perfection It was just with God to withdraw his Spirit from him and leave him in that condition wherein he found him that is averted from God as his end and convert to the love of himself and to the creature â—o use not for Gods sake but for his owne sake and for the satisfying of his owne lusts 1. Thus were we all in Adam averted from the love of God to the contempt of our selves unto the love of our selves joyned with the contempt of God and consequently in an inordinate manner converted to the creature which is the originall corruption wherein we are all borne bereaved and that justly of the Spirit of God Wherefore let us not blaspheme God and blame him as the imposer of this necessity upon us but blame our selues as the corrupters of our selves Or at least if we cannot concoct this yet let us deale plainly and deny originall sinne and give Paul the lye to his face in saying we were all boâ—ne children of wrath Yet know and consider that Gods power in thus abandoning all mankinde for their sinne 〈◊〉 Adam is farre inferior to that power he shewed in cruciating his owne Sonne his most innocent and holy Sonne in making his soule an offering for our sinne And that God hath power not only to annihilate the holiest which is without all question but to inflict upon him any payne Medina is bolde to professe Ex concordi omnâ—um Theologorum Sententia And Vasques the Iesuite acknowledgeth as much though herein they say he should not cary himself as Iudex but as Dominus vitae mortis What that Zanchy is who is here mentioned as one of the principall Doctors of that Synod of Arles for so I presume is his meaning and not of the Synod of Dort I know not but had he alleaged the booke and quoted the place I would have returned my answer thereunto and shall be ready to doe as much as soone as I shall be made acquainted with the particulars out of the Author Zanchy himself It is as cleare as the Sunne that God in his word makes himself the lover of Iacob and the hater of Esau before they were borne and that as the Potter at his pleasure makes of the same lumpe vessells some to honour some to dishonour so God
Lord hath not given you an heart to perceave and eyes to see and eares to heare unto this day And is it possible that men can see that have no eyes or heare that have no eares And yet on the other side it is true as Gods word is true that It had beene better for some never to have knowne the way of righteousnesse then after they have knowne it to depart from the holy Commandement given unto them Now this Authors practise is to sett these doctrines of holy writt together by the eares because forsooth it is not suitable with the Spirit of this old Evangelist Indeed if men would beleeve but could not would repent but could not would obey but could not then this their impotency should not improve their condemnation by resisting the meanes of grace but we say this impotency is meeâ—ely morall consisting in the corruption of their will wherein they take such delight and are so well pleased with it that they are ready to fly in their faces that tell them of it they will not be knowne of anie such impotency They thinke themselves able enough to discerne the things of God to be subject to the law of God For they finde themselves to have will enough in all their courses I would they had not too much for Libertas sine gratia non est libertas sed contumatia And in all the sinnes that we committ we finde our selves free enough yet we have learnt to give God the glory of ruling ouâ— wills keeping us from any sine by his grace That every one before he comes into the world is allready enrolled in one of the two registers either of life or death I had thought no Christian had the face to deny Doth not the Apostle professe that God hath chosen us before the foundation of the world Eph. 1.4 And is not reprobation as ancient as election which in the formall notion thereof connotates reprobation But Paul belike was a new Evangelist and this Author affects to be an old one or an Atheist rather for in disputing against this what doth he but dispute against the expresse word of God Surely it is no more possible that Gods decrees should be changed then that God should deny himself neyther yet doth it follow that labour is in vaine for God who ordeynes man unto salvation ordeynes him unto faith also to be wrought by certaine meanes Had not God ordained what Children a man should have before he came into the world What therefore is it vaine for him to kâ—epe company with a woman as if by vertue of Gods decree he should have children whether he companyed with a woman or no This vile sophistry was confuted long agoe as Cicero sheweth in his booke de Fato acknowledged by Carneades himselfe though a great stickler against the Stoicks by Origen after them as Turnebus shewes on Cicero de fato Act. 27.22 Be of good cheare sayth Paul to those that sayled with him for there shall be no losse of any mans life among you save of the ship only This was spoken to heathen men but did they herupon accoumpt all labour in vayne to save themselves Nothing lesse for first the marriners they practised to provide for themselves by stealing out of the shippe and S. Paul professed v. 31. except these men stay in the ship ye can not be safe and verse 42. the Centurion commanded that they that could swimme should â—ast themselves first into the Sea and goe out to land And the other some on boardes and some on certeyne peeces of the ship and so it came to passe that they all came safe to the land These heathens were better acquainted with Gods providence as it seemes then this old Evangelist This is our Answeare and not as this Author feignes it to serve his owne stage For what secret is there in this that all are enrolled in one of the two registers of life and death before they come into the world Who they are that are enrolled in the one or in the other is a secret indeede Yet that our names are written in heaven is a thing knowable in this life otherwise to what purpose shoulde our Saviour admonishe his disciples not to reioyce in this that devills were subdued unto them but in this rather that their names were written in heaven And to what purpose should S. Peter exhort us to make our election and vocation sure if it be not possible for a man to be assured herof as long as he lives in this world And the Apostle was assured of the election of the Thessalonians by observation of the worke of their faith the labour of their love and the patience of their hope And the Evangelist professeth Act. 13.48 that as many believed as were ordeyned to everlasting life But as for assurance of reprobation wee knowe none but finall infidelitie or impenitencye and the sinne against the holy Ghost What the infidell or the Arminian Catechumenist will say or thinke we have no reason to regard but with what judgment and soundnes he caryâ—th him selfe in his discourse We say it is very materiall for the confort of a mans conscience to be able to distinguishe himselfe in particular from a reprobate and this he may be inabled to doe by faith repentance and holines and by no meanes els Neyther is it sufficient for a mans comfortable walkinge to know in general that everie one is necessarily eyther of the one or of the other We willingly professe that before God hath called a man out of darkenes unto light and from the power of Satan unto God he is able to doe nothing that may please God or further his salvation For in that state he is led captive by the devill to doe his will 2. Timo. 2. last and thâ— divill workes effectually in the children of unbeliefe Eph. 2.3 and S. Paul hath testified that they that are in the flesh cannot please God Rom. 8.8 that the naturall man perceiveth not the things of God they are foolishnes unto him neyther can he knowe them because they are spiritually discerned That the affection of the flesh is enmitie against God it is not subject to the law of God nor can be As for the deferring of all thinges till theÌ„ if it be spoken of vocation outward by the word of God it is a very absurde speech considering that till such a vocation commeth man neyther knowes God nor Christ nor the powers of the world to come any more then an infidell doth no nor so much as the name of Gods election and reprobation If it be delivered of vocation inward and effectuall for we are driven to distinguishe for this Author who affects to walke in the cloudes of confusion and if confusion be his portion it is nothing strange it is as absurde in another respect For doth he know the time of his vocation that he speakes of deferring his labour till then Why may not
you into the bond of the covenant Thus the Lord caryeth himselfe towards them in their first conversion and taking them off from their ungodly and wilfull courses as he tooke off Saul from his persecuting courses even then when he breathed out threats against the Saints of God and had gotten him a commission from the high Priests to goe to Damascus and bind all that called on the name of Iesus But when he hath converted them which is my third answere then he putts his feare into their hearts that they shall never depart from him so that by restrayning them from sinne and preserving the feete of his Saints he keepes them unto him not suffering such wilde thoughts as these which this Author feigneth to have place in them Fourthly that which here he fitteneth is incompetent to a naturall man that hath but any sparke of naturall ingenuitie in him For suppose a Father shall be resolved concerning a debaucht and lewde sonne never to disinherit him though he shoulde continue to the ende in his disobedient and rebellious courses if the Sonne should herupon take occasion to be the more riotous and disobedient would not the world of naturall men generally condemne such a Sonne as most unnaturall and voyde of all sparkes of common ingenuitie How much more incompetent is such a disposition to him who is ruled and governed by the Spirit of God an earthly Father being not able to change the heart of his rebellious childe but God our heavenly Father being sufficiently armed with power for this who hath gifts even for the rebellious to make them a fitt habitation for him that so the Lord God may dwell among them Fiftly albeit the Spirit of this Author should perhaps serve him to be so much in love with this temporall life as by any vile meames to prolong it as namely by committing one mortall sinne as he calls it upon the necke of another yet why shoulde he be so charitable towards us his adversaries as to thinke so well of us as he doth of himselfe and of those of his owne sect who coumpt it our duetie to endeavour to be so possessed with the love of Christ and to enjoy him as to desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ in such sort that if he shoulde give us leave to choose whether we would live Methusalehs yeares in all happines to serve him glorifie him or for the triall of our Christian faith to be burnt at a stake and as it were in a fiery charet to goe to Christ we ought to accoumpt that God doth farre more honour us in this then in the other and we have good reason to make choyse of this to suffer for him who was so well content to leave as it were the glory he had with his Father and to empty himselfe for us and to take upon him the shape of a servant and be crucified upon the crosse between two theeves that so he might overcome death and open the gate to us of everlasting life Let this Montabanke of discourse goe then and applaude himselfe for the subtiltie of his invention and sacrifice to his witt and burne incense to his artifice and cry 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and solace himselfe in the sport he makes amongst his consorts and make themselves merry with their Ambrosia beyond Paracelsian drugges For these are his inventions not ours manifesting withall how savoury they shoulde be to his affections but that he wants faith to embrace our doctrine And no mervaile if such as is their faith they unadvisedly declare that such like are their affections That God is not angry for ever is for substance the phrase of the Holy Ghost And it is as true of some that their worme shall never dye their fire shall never goe out and there is no greater kinde of Gods anger then that and consequently his Anger shall never end towards them and if we devide the world of men into Elect and reprobates who can these be but reprobates and consequently they towards whom God is not allwayes angry must needes be his elect and not reprobates Yet I nothing merveyle at this Authors Spirit who throughout passeth his scoffes and scornes upon that which is the cleere doctrine of the word of God as on that which he conceaves to be the doctrine of the Synods of Dort and Arles And therfore I commende his wisedome that to avoyde the appearance thereof medles so litle with taking notice of any passage out of Gods word alleaged by any of us to addres any answer thereunto for if he had his blasphemous scoffes had been more apparantly terminated upon the doctrine of the Holy Ghost as well as upon the doctrine of Dort and Arles I finde this Author is a very kindhearted Gentleman towards himself and to the Helena he cherisheth in his bosom For whatsoever his premises be he will be sure to be full for his owne cause in the conclusion Yet will we neyther forsake our owne principles by the grace of God nor give over our course of reformation of any that is under our charge to draw him from his profane courses taking our president direction herein from the holy Apostles admonition unto Timothy The servant of the Lord must instruct them with meeknesse that are contrary minded 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 if so be at any time therfore it becomes us continually to wayt for this time and not to prescribe unto God God will give them repentance that they may acknowledge his truth and come to amendment out of the snare of the devill of whom they are taken prisoners to doe his will The THIRD PART The first Section BVt perhaps he will acquit himself farr better in undergoing the office of a Comforter to one that is afflicted then he did in playing the Converter of an Infidell or Corrector of the profane Christian. The ground of all comfort and consolation to each afflicted soule hath been ever sought and found in the death and passion of our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ whereby having satiâ—fyed the justice of his Father he obteyned reconciliation for all mankind actualâ—y appliable to all those who acknowledging the infinitenes of the benefite doe therupon imbrace the Author of it with a true and lively faith Neyther can our comâ—orter find any other foundation wherby to consolate assure his patient against the terrors of Godâ— justice the condemnation of the lawe and accusation of his owne conscience But the sicke or otherwise afflicted can never make this true foundation of Gods word agree with the false foundations of the second article of the Synod of Dort to witt that Christ dyed not but for a very small number of persons allready elected unto salvation by the heavenly Father who in his decree did no more consider the death of his Sonne then the faith of the elect How shall I truely know will the patient then say that I am rather of the small number
that worketh in us every thing that is pleasing in his sight doth the Physician sett the mans leggs whom he hath cured I thinke he hath enough to doe to sett his owne legges members going according to their severall motions was holy Paul nourished in his sloath who both professeth that he laboured more abundantly then they all yet in the same breath acknowledgeth that nevertheles it cannot he but rather the grace of God in him Nay how is it possible that God should bring a man to a sermon while he lyes lazy in his bed How is it possible he should continue that excesse which brought him to his sicknes when God workes in him that which is pleasing in his sight and fullfills the good pleasure of his goodnes towards him and the worke of faith in power But we may easily proceave the Spirit of his Author he would not be a child still he would goe on highe alone and not have any neede of the leading of his heavenly Father his owne Spirit serves his turne to performe any holy duetie any gracious worke And as Plato discerned the pride of Antisthenes through his patcht coate so may we thorough these wilde expressions as if God did mans worke for him while he lay in sleepe we may easily perceave the pride of his heart requiring no more succour from God to the performance of to velle agere of that which is good then Pelagius of olde did Yet the Lord by his prophet playnely professeth of himselfe that he causeth us to walke in his statutes and judgments and to doe them and the Apostle as playnely teacheth us that God workes in us both the will and the deede according to his good pleasure yea that he workes in us that which is pleasing in his sight through Iesus Christ. The meaning whereâ—â— Pelagius his opinion was only this that suadet omne quod bonum est and in all liklihood no other is the meaning of the Apostle in the opinion of this Author though he comes not so farre as to the discussing therof and to treate of Gods concourse For which kinde of exercise this comicall witt of his is nothing accommodated and like enough this discourse of his is plausible to none but such comicall witts as himselfe is of and no merveyle if it be magnified of them For Lactucas similes labra simillima habent like lettice like lips Yet he doth us wrong in saying we are not content that God should furnish us with necessary and sufficient grace to preserve and keepe us from sinne For albeit we doe require that God should immediately and irresistibly worke all our good workes in us yet surely we acknowledge this to be necessary unto every good act and no grace without this sufficient ad velle agere though there may be without this a grace sufficient ad posse and the word of God it selfe we acknowledge to be sufficient in its kinde to witt in the way of instruction but the ministery therof we willingly professe goes no farther then Pauls planting and Apollos wateringe over and above all which unles God be pleased to give the encrease we shall continue unfruitfull still only there is a sect that have a better opinion of their activitie unto that which is good then so Sure I am the Apostle tells us that God doth fulfill the good pleasure of his goodnes in us and the worke of faith with power and if he fulfill the worke of faith with power doth he not fulfill the worke of love of repentance of obedience of all holy conversation and godlines that with power Molira will have Gods concourse to be simultaneous with the will not antecedaneous in nature to the wills operation least otherwise God should not be the immediate cause of the act of the maintenance wherof he was zelous and it seemes Arminiâ—â—s tooke his conceyte from him of making God in the same manner an immediate cause of every act But Suares his fellowe Iesuite doth not approove of that Molinaes conceyte and is of opinion that albeit God doth worke the will to her operation yet this nothing hinders the immediate condition of Gods causalitie So that all of them stande for the maintenance of Gods immediate causalitie which this Author very judiciously and profoundely out of the depth of his scholasticalitie rejects and after his manner takes it in scorne that God shoulde be required to performe an immediate operation in producing any good worke he would have that left to the will of man not that he desires to have wherof to boast for he will be ready in great plerophory of wordes to professe that he gives God the glory of all but how Forsooth of working him so to that which is good as to leave it to his will at the pleasure therof to be the immediate operator in all Otherwise he should worke irresistibly which is a phrase of an ill accent in their eares and stickes as a burre in their throate it will not downe with them for they are verily persuaded it would breede no good blood in them not for feare least herby they should ascribe too much to God and too litle to themselves farre be that from the Spirit of their humilitie but they would have the Allmightie cary himselfe decently in dealing with them and sith he hath indued them with free will not to damnifie the free course therof which were to disanull his owne workmanship For as yet they are not arrived to any such faith as to believe that it is in the power of the Almightye to make them to worke this or that freely But let me have leave to spurre this Author one quaestion Cannot he endure that God should so powerfully worke them unto that which is good that the world should have no abilitie to resist him nor the divill and his Angells of darkenes We knowe the course and fashions of the one and the practises and suggestions of the other are prest and forward enough to hinder us in the good wayes of the Lord as much as ever the Angell of God was to hinder Balaam in his wicked courses Now why should you be so zealous of maynteyning the power eyther of the world or the divill to corrupt your soule and overthrowe your faith were it not rather cheifly to be desired that God should so worke us by his holy Spirit unto every thing that is pleasing in his sight that it shoulde not be in the power of the very gates of hell to prevayle against us that is I trowe to worke us unto that which is good irresistibly that is so that the world nor the divill should not be able to resist Gods operation though they much desire it I shoulde thinke it is not the genius of this Author to oppose irresistible operation divine in this sense though it may be he was never cast upon this distinction untill now In respect of whom then would he have this