him not love in â—ord and tongue but heart love doth God require and where that is the eye will follow as â—he look thereof may be also both a mean to produce it and to nourish it and therefore he adds And let thine eye observe my wayes It s a vain thing to give thine eye without thine heart they see little or nothing when the heart is busied another way and not intentive to minde what thou beholdest with thine eye and where the eye is withdrawn from Gods wayes and espyes beauty in some other things the heart will be soon corrupted also therefore God calls for both for the heart first as the principal and then for the eye as the consequent of the hearts love and as a means to bring on nourish it in love He hath given thee his Son and in him received by thee thou hast his heart for the Father himself loves you because ye have loved me saith Christ and have believed that I came out from him Joh 16 27. thou art beloved by him in his beloved one and what a good exchange is this to have Gods heart for thineâ— to give him thy heart and receive his what a low requital is this for Gods heart that man give up to God his heart and yet this is the greatest man can give and the greatest that God requires And this is no other thing but what his love and heart discovered to us draws back again from us and leads us to return but because He sees that there are other suiters for it he is the more watchful over us and promps us in that his Grace requires by his written Word too and calls us to a more wist and earnest view and consideration or him in all his wayes towards us and of all his wayes prescribed by him for our walking before him Looking we say begets loving and love begets looking again and so there is a mutual intercourse of heart and eye give him thine heart and then thine eye will the readilier follow give him thine eye and let that observe his Paths and so shall thine heart be preserved chast with him too Consider and mind his love to thee in Christ in his gift of him and cost he was at there for thee the way he took to buy and sanctifie thee to himself and that will break thy heart and make thee willing that he should have it that gave so much of his to thee for it It s mens being taken with other beauties and so looking off from his that makes them slack in their love toward him Remember how thou hast heard and learnt and repent and do thy first works says he therfore to some who had lost their first love Rev. 2.3 that 's the way to recover their love again to call to mind how they have heard and learnt of him and if that be the way to recover love when lost then sure its the way too to preserve it before it be lost that it may not be lost Cleave then to him and his wayes with full purpose of heart and take heed that thou never deniest him that bought thee for that would be a most unloving and ungrateful part of thee Worship none but God in Christ in whom he hath loved thee and in the Spirit he hath given thee own no other name or object of confidence delight and satisfaction Follow not after other lovers and especially if thou wouldst have thine heart intire with him beware of two Corrivals especially that will sollicite thee 1. The world in its objects of profit honor pleasure c. let not thine eye look too wistly on its beauty lest thou lust after it for it will deceive thee And 2. The spirit of error presenting another name and doctrine then that once delivered to the Saints and promising greater liberties and advantages and spiritual glory to thee for as both of them so especially this latter may be and are in Scripture compared to a whorish woman James 4 4. Rev. 17.5 And a whore is a deep ditch and a strange woman is as a narrow pit Prov. 23.27 If thou fallest into her she will surely drown thee They that will be rich and that make themselves friends to the world in its pleasures and satisfactions here ingage God against themselves 1 Tim 6 9. and plunge themselves into snares and temptations and so drown themselves in destruction and perdition and they that have itching ears after Fables and doctrines of devils take not heed to the Apostolical Doctrine lose themselves in them being so infatuated through the strength of them that they arrive at last too at damnation by denying the Lord that bought them 2 Thes 2.10,11,12 2 Pet. 2.1 For few or none that go into her return again neither take they hold of the paths of life Prov. 2.19 Take heed therefore to your selves and beware of this spiritual adultery let not thine heart desire to eat their dainties for though they may say stoln waters are sweet and bread eaten in secret is pleasant yet know thou that the dead are there and their ghests in the depth of hell Prov. 9 17,18 Look thou then right forward to the things that God sets before thee in Christ and let not thine heart depart from him Desire more to know him and to enjoy his presence and fellowship with him and seek it not in thine own way but in his and when thou findest him â—old him fast and delight thy self in him and â—ever let his Truth depart from thee but let â—hy meditation â—t all times be sweet concerning â—im and thy desight day and night in his Law and Doctrine 3. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and â—…an not to thine own understanding Pro. 3 5. He â—s worthy to bedepended on and trusted in at â—ll times and in all things for this life and that â—o come for teaching strengthning directing â—…pporting supplying comforting saving For 〈◊〉 him the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength â—…i 26.4 So that there is nothing too hard or â—…fficult for him to do that may concern thy welfare nor is there any unrighteousness or unfaithfulness in him Psal 92.15 He hath so richly â—nd abundantly already prevented us with his â—ove and mercy and given us so to behold his righteousness displayed in his Gospel as may challenge our most stedfast confidence in him and dependance on him for the performance of â—ll that further favour and mercy that is needful â—nd good for us and is promised by him Hath â—e not given his Son for us according to his anâ—ient saying by the mouth of his holy Prophets ye a hath he not also called and brought us to his Son and given us him to be ours our lot our portion our Prince and Captain of salvation our High Priest and Advocate c. and shall we not trust in him then for other things shall he not with him give us all things else that he hath spoken of and provided in
profess them Rom. 1.18 2 Cor. 6.1 Some hold the truth in unrighteousness and receive good doctrines in vain because not deep enough into the heart or because not singly so as to be acted by them Not every one that saith unto Christ Lord Lord shall inherit the Kingdom c. Matth. 7.21 of the same judgement or opinion many times some may be Saints in light others devils and walk in darkness Joh. 6.70 Christ hath Chaff and Wheate in the same floore of profession a Judas that was a Professor and Teacher of the same Doctrine with the other Apostles 4. They are not the sons of Hagar born of the bond woman Gal. 4.22,23,24 c. not every one that hath a zeal of God for some have a zeal of God but not according to knowledge Rom. 10.2 are zealously affected in a wrong way and think themselves to be knowing people too as the Pharisees that took it in great scorn that they should be accounted blind and unknowing Joh. 9.40 It s not every one then in whom much knowledge in their own and others apprehensions with much zeal and strictness for Ordinances Worship Religions Actions and Practises meet together that is a Saint of God The old Pharisees had all this according to the Church State then openly owned and judged true and right and yet not Saints but Hypocrites whited walls and painted Sepulchres There are that have been trained up in religious duties from their youth or that having been prophane and loose and meeting with the Doctrine of the Law consisting of Precepts Promises Prohibitions and Threatnings have been convinced of their wayes that they were sinful and tended to destruction and so for fear of hell and out of a desire to be saved have reformed their courses and conversations let go evil company and practises and set upon zealous and religious performances yea and perhaps espying some defects in the way of worship they have walked in have left society in such a way and put themselves into a purer as they have perceived and attaining to something in these ways do from their betterness of way walking from others judge themselves alive to God and call themselves the Saints and holy ones apply to themselves all the promises in Christ who yet are deceived herein the bottom of all this being not Grace or Love from God apprehended by them and springing up life in them but their own convictions sorrows changes reformations and alterations from the Law of God or the Precepts and promises of the Gospel in a Law way understood and minded is the ground of their hope though yet they will as also did the Pharisee Luke 18.10,11 put all these their convictions and conversion upon the grace of God and thank God for it Now these in as much as their Conversion and Religion is the product of a Doctrine of Works the Covenant given in Sinai answering to the bond maid Hagar and inasmuch as from their changes so wrought their hope is sprung up and their conclusion of Saintship is made they must indure the sentence that the Scripture gave upon the son of the Bondwoman Cast out the Bond-woman and her son for the son of the Bond-woman shall not inherit with the Free-woman and her son Gal. 4.30 As Hagar was to have been a servant to Abraham and Sarah but not for the generation of children so also did God appoint the Law for convincement of sin till the Seed came but not to beget sons to God or such Changes and Reformations as should be the ground for their judging themselves Saints and confident expectation of the Kingdom They then that are of the works of the Law Gal. 3.10 that hold by the title and lay claim upon that ground to Saintship be their knowledge never so much their zeal never great their profession never so accurate according to the Rule as pertaining to the appearance of their works yea be they of what name or profession so ever they are all under the curse and are to be separated from this Saintship and those to whom it is to be applied Saints they may perhaps judge themselves and be judged by others but none of Gods Saints they are according to the prime sense of the Word nor shall they be owned by him for such but judged theeves and robbers that have climbed over the wall and stokâ— the priviledges and pasture of Christs sheep unto themselves which shall therefore be taken from them Joh. 10. To all such of what society or profession soever is that to be applied to that was spoken to Nicodemus Joh. 3.3.5 They must be boâ—… of water and Spirit or else they cannot see or enter the Kingdom of God but have their portion with unbelievers 5. It s not every one that hath been in Trance or seen Visions and Apparitions of Glory and excellent things though from God himself for such was Balaam and yet no Saint 〈◊〉 God but a false Prophet Numb 24.4 Or thâ—… hath power to work some miracles or cast oâ— a devil Matth. 10.1.4 for so had Judas anâ— those in Matth. 7.22 Some such also may henâ— be discharged and yet it s to be feared that many of those that in these times call themselves Saints have no better foundation then one or other or at most all of these last forementioned false grounds in whom is fulfilled what in former times the true Churches of Christ met with they are such as say they are Jews men interested in the Covenant of God and of Christ but are not but do lye and are many of them of the Synagogue of Satan Rev. 2. Take heed my friends that none of you that read these things lean upon so weak foundations as that you are of such or such an opinion either really or in your apprehension right that you are are zealous reformed of such a Church or Congregation having all Christs Ordinances purely have had such visions of glorious things concerning Gods Church and people c. thence concluding your selves to be Saints But I shall come to the Discription of a Saint affirmatively Sect. 2. Who are Saints A Saint hath his name from Sanctification Now to sanctifie is to separate or set apart from common and prophane to holy use from being a mans own and for himself to be Gods and for God which in reall Saints is done by God and according to his Will Heb. 10.10 And God doth it by his Spirit and in the Name of his Son who hath fore-offered up himself to God for men 1 Cor. 6.9.11 The Spirit of God in the Word or Name of Christ preached or unfoulded to them discovering the Grace or good will of God towards men in the Gift Death and Sacrifice of Jesus Christ and thereby killing and crucifying them to the flesh all fleshly birth parts wisdom righteousness goodness affections and lusts of their own and in drawing them to Christ to believe in him and his bloud and so to communicate with
perish in the smoothness of their own Psal 81.10,11,12 2 Thes 2.10,11 The Serpent deceived Eve parling with him alone she listning to him and eating of the Tree before any mention made of advising with Adam and being her self deceived she became an instrument under pretence of her experience or knowledge of its goodness to lead Adam also into the transgression and verily the Apostle intimates that the forsaking the Assemblies of each other is the leading way to that wilful sinning that excludes from all further benefit of Christs Sacrifice and mediation and layes open to devouring judgement And Jude exhorting earnestly to contend for the faith once delivered to the Saints against ungodly men that deny the onely Lord God and our Lord Jesus after many Badges and Characters of them he gives this as the last vers 19. these are they that separate themselves sensual not having the Spirit these are withdrawers of themselves from the Gospel and its Ordinances and the Assemblies of faithful men and are sensual that is judge of Gods Wayes by sense and not by faith the spirit of which they want and so give not God the glory of his Wisdom and Truth they see no form or beauty in the Gospel in prayer in breaking bread in mutual helping and provoking one another what is in these things say they we have used them so and so long and we feel no good in them like those in Mal. 3.15 What profit is it that we have observed his Ordinances and walked mourfully before the Lord So stout are their words against the Lord though they will not see it but run from the simplicity of Gods appointments and so deprive themselves both of that preservation and growth in the faith that in patience continuance and holding fast their profession and confidence they should meet with and also of that future reward that God gives to those that fear his Name whose often speakings to one another he hearkens to and hears and sets down in his book of Remembrance according to that of Solomon Eccles 4 9. Two are better then one because they have a good reward for their labour and if they fall the one will lift up his fellow but wo to him that is alone when he falleth for he hath not another to lift him Such a one is both more easily overturned and thrown down and being gone is the less recoverable Again If two lie together they may have heat but how can one be warm alone In Christian Communion and abiding together in the fellowship of the Gospel there is spiritual heat and fervor one whets up and provoketh another to love and good works of which the forsakeing of the Assembly depriveth a man yea if one prevail against him two shall withstand him One may watch over another in Christian Communion yea and a threefold cord is not easily broken where two or three are gathered together in the Name of Christ there he comes in and twists them faster in his Spirit so that unless by untwining them they are not easily broken Take we heed then to watch over one another and frequent Gods Ordinances together And indeed God hath appointed such Ordinances as will put us upon mutual walking together as exhorting one another joint prayers in the Name of Christ breaking of bread c. so that we must despise and kick against Gods Authority if we will not walk in the faith together yea he hath so measured out his Gifts and Grace amongst his Saints that none might say to other I have no need of thee and that we may not attain to comprehend the depth length heighth and breadth and know the love of God that passeth knowledge but in unity with all Saints Ephes 3.17,18 Despise not Prophesying then nor forsake not the assemblies of your selves but build up your selves in your most holy faith praying in the holy Ghost walking in and provoking one another to love and good works firmly believing his Promise of blessing who hath said In every place where I record my Name I will come to thee and I will bless thee Exod. 20.24 And again Blessed is he that heareth my words and watcheth daily at the posts of my gates for he that findeth me findeth life c. Prov. 8.33 And where brethren dwell together in unity there God commandeth his blessing even life for evermore Psal 133.1.4 Sect. 9. That the Ordinances of Christ are yet in force and none ought to slight or exempt themselves from subjection to them BUT forasmuch as here thou art in danger to be incountred with many specious words tending to withdraw thee from the fellowship of the Gospel and with brethren in the Ordinances of Christ needful it is that something more be spoken thereabout to warn thee of some dangerous principles that do great service herein to Satan for thou mayst meet with them that will not onely deride at the simplicity and seeming weakness of the Ordinances of Christ not considering that it is the usual way of God to make choice and use of the weak things of the world to be the mediums of glorifying his power and of confounding the things that be mighty that so the power might be known to be of God and not of the medium or outward ordinance and so consequently that they that contemn the Ordinances of God for their weakness and sorriness do therein despise and condemn the wisdom of God and deprive themselves of the blessing that he holds forth by and â—nd in them But also will tell thee that they for their parts are got into a higher Form or to be under a more glorious dispensation above all Forms or Ordinances so as that they are of nouse or profit to them so that God is throwing them down or hath cast them by and it s a far happier and higher state to be and live above them then under them so intising thee from attendance to God in them to aspire Eve-like to that better and higher condition but therein they play the Serpent with thee and therefore beware of them Indeed there are Ordinances that believers are not under viz. the ordinances of mans invention in the worship of God for otherwise we are to be subject to the civil Ordinances of man for the Lords sake 1 Pet. 2.13 such as Touch not tast not handle not c. according to the traditions commandements of men Col. 2.22 as also the Ordinances of the Law of Moses and Jewish observations Christ hath freed us from but of these is not the question but of the Ordinances of the Lord even of the Lord Jesus such as Preaching Hearing Prayer Baptism the Supper of the Lord c. Concerning which also that 's not to be denied that they are not the matter we are to live upon the meat we are to feed on The Lord Jesus himself as he is the great Witness of the love of God to us and the Revealer of his minde is the true Lord of
according to some other more mystical way that the Scriptures had not declared if the testimony of Paul be valid as they seem to make it in the other place which they wrest to their harm then listen to him explaining himself in that place and the rather because he tels us in holding those things fast not according to some more spiritual understanding as is pretended but according to his preaching and declaration of them we shall be saved to wit from running into erroneous conceptions such as that of the denial of the Resurrection there by him faulted and by consequence from loose and evil practises and which is the issue of both from eternally perishing for indeed it is an undeniable truth that according to the judgement men make of Christ so is their judgement of other things they that believe not the first fruits of our nature really to have died and to be raised again and glorified in the person of Christ they deny the resurrection of the rest of the lump or body of Christ and of mankind in general and they that deny that must needs deny the judgement with its rewards and punishments following then what will hinder that piece of Epicurism Let us eat and â—rink for to morrow we shall die for take away the Resurrection and the judgement as we have said before and you take away the life of all Religion If then thou shouldest ever be so far corrupted as under pretence of not knowing Christ after the flesh to make nothing of and to be waved from the Doctrine of Christ as in the flesh dying for us and by the power of the Spirit raised again in that his body from the dead thou art in the way to fall from all Christian Religion and into all profaneness and Atheism there being so great a connexion between the foundation Doctrines as those concerning the person of Christ and the things suffered by and done to him of God are and the superstructures as the things that are to be done to and in us are and so great a dependency of these latter upon the former that if the former the fundamental be shaken the latter will soon fall but if the former stand firm the latter will be upheld by them or we rather in the faith and practise of them his Death being the foundation of all our hope his Resurrection a certain pledge of ours and an argument of the judgement in which all shall be judged by him and his glory the forerunner and pledge of that that shall be manifested on all that love and waite for his appearing Acts 17.31 Chap. 6. Concluding with exhortation for the Saints walking worthy of their calling Sect. 1. That exhortations are usefull and needfull to Believers TO all this that 's before said I shall add onely some exhortations and directions to you to walk as becometh Saints that you may glorifie God who hat hitherto called you preserve your selves in his Love and be useful unto others which I beseech you to suffer and think not that in exhorting you hereunto I put a burthen upon you that you are not fit to bear or that I put you under the Law Christianity consists not onely in Speculation but also and that rather too in divine vertue and action wherein God deals not with his Saints with Herbs and Plants that have no sense nor â—ason as they are intelligent reasonable creaâ—res so he governs them by his Word and Spiâ—…t and puts them upon an exercise of those faâ—…lties given them that they might not appear to â—eidle and to no purpose in them He doth not â—… take all upon himself to do in them that they â—re thereby left without all action nor doth he â—act them by force and violence transporting â—…em beyond themselves that they need no adâ—ce counsel or exhortation It s true they are â—ot under the Law of Moses either the types â—ad shadows to be instructed to wait for Christ 〈◊〉 come nor under the precepts and injunctiâ—ns as ministred by Moses to be shut up under 〈◊〉 and curse much less to be left to seek to obâ—…in righteousness by endeavouring after them â—ot yet neither are they without Law to God â—…ey have a royal thoughtâ— not a rigid Law a Law â—f Liberty and Freedom of spirit to serve God â—hough not a Law of bondage under sin and death 〈◊〉 law of grace they have in them and the soveâ—…gnty and government of God over them they have the Spirit to guide them and the Law of the Spirit which is to be obeyed by them that which the Grace of God received by them requires again of them and leads them to both towards God and man Grace and Love from God as well teaching and obliging to duty as Mosaical precepts and indeed the believer hath no other Law but such as springs from Grace and leads to answer Grace The Law of Christ which is a Law of Love even of Gods Love in him and that 's a Royal Law indeed for it giveth first what it requires again of us It gives power and spirit for acting as well as puts an obligation and ingagement upon us so and so to act The Spirit writes it and prompts to walk as we receive to work out as he works in us and to yield up our members and powers to him that he may write in us and act forth by us his whole pleasure and confirm us to his minde and yet we are not to put a fancy upon his writing the Law in us as some do that strain their wits to shew how God writes all the Bible over in man the Books of Genesis Exodus Leviticus and so on the Creation of the world of heaven earth light firmament herbs plants fishes fowls beasts and man himself and so of the Paradise woman tempter c. which yet they cannot strain cleaverly to their purpose in all matters but are fain to catch at here there a picce as their wits serve them and let the rest alone This is to turn the Truth of God into a fancy and secretly to withdraw the heart from giving glory to God in the belief of the Truth of the sacred story But this writing the Law in man is his framing the heart unto his own Heart and Will putting into it heavenly principles and dispositions of love and holiness and whatsoever the Law requireth That denying ungodliness and wordly lusts we may live godly soberly and righteously in this present world Tit. 2.11,12 nor yet because God writes thus in man do they put too much upon man that exhort to these things for we may the better exhort to them because men have principles to act them no man would exhort a dead man to walk because he wants a principle to inable him but to living men such an exhortation is agrecable though it be God that makes themwalk or that hath printipled or inabled them thereunto no man would blow upon wood without fire put to
God made to rule day is but one and its the Sun and yet that light is after one manner in the body of the Sun and after another in the glorious ray and beam the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or shining forth of the Sun in another manner yet in the air illuminated by the beam from the body of the Sun and yet all these but one light not three lights yet that one light hath a threefold manner of subsisting the Sun is not one light and the ray or beam of the Sun another and the clearness or bright shining in the air illuminated through the beam a third but one day light or light of the Sun The Sun is the fountain and generateth or begetteth its â—ray or beam and worketh by it whatever it doth by way of illumination heating quickning c. yet is not the body of the Sun its ray or beam Again the ray is begotten and generated in a sort by the Sun and yet its cotemporary with it It evidences the Sun lives by its dependence on the Sun is in the Sun and the Sun in it after a sort so as that it doth nothing of it self without the Sun nor the Sun without it which comes down from the Sun and is not the body of the Sun nor subsists of it self without the Sun Again the clearness or light difâ—used into the air proceeds from the Sun the fountain of light by with in and through the ray or beam yet is it neither the body of the Sun nor its ray for it is and may be where the ray is not but is intercepted as to the proper substance of it as in a cloudy day or in a room where the Sun beam comes not and yet these cannot be divided one from the other for this clearness cannot be but from and by vertue of the ray and of the Sun So that if either of them were taken away and removed from the Horizon the luster or illumination in the air ceaseth and they cannot be but this is and follows too Here is an unity of light in a threefold way of subsistence by which we may darkly see into the glorious mysterie of Trinity in Unity which no similitude can fully illuminate the Father is as the fountain of the Deity and to the Son or Word as the body of the Sun to its beam not to be seperated from each other or divided so as the one can be without the other though the Father is first in order of nature he of whom are all things and doth all by and nothing without the Son or Word as the Sun doth nothing without its beam The Word or Son in the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heb. 1.2 The brightness or offâ— shining of the Fathers glory Lumen de lumine light shining for discovering and leading up to the fountain of light always with the Father and yet came down from the Father and doth all from him and yet is not the Father but the Son yea and forther as the beam of the Sun may be contracted and as it were so incorporated in a burning glass or the like so as the glass by vertue of the beam and the beam by the glass worketh otherwise then either glass or beam by themselves could have done and yet neither the light nor the body of the Sun is to be so contracted but only the beam so was it with the Son or Word he was imbodied or incarnate in the nature of man and the man Christ Jesus by vertue of the Word so contracted as it were or incorporated in him did such glorious things and got such a glorious conquest over sin death and hell as man of himself â—ould never otherwise have done or gotten nor was the Word in and by it self perfected for and yet neither the Father nor the holy Spirit was so incarnate or made man and yet further the Son had all his vertue in himself from the Father and in the Spirit without which he â—ould do nothing as the ray contracted derives all its vertue that it shews forth in and through the glass from the body of the Sun without which it could neither be nor do any thing The holy Spirit is the power vigor and divine verâ—…e proceeding from the Father that fountain of divine glory from and through the Word by which we have and enjoy the benefit of the Sun and its beam when both of them are otherwise interpreted and clouded out of our sight I mean the Father and the Son even in a day of temptation and spiritual hiding of himself in his more glorious shinings But these things I bring onely to shew that there may be such a thing evidenced even to reason and sense as a three-fold way of subsistence of the same created being that so we might not stumble at that which the Scripture hints to us so abundantly about the Trinity in the Unity of the divine Being Concerning which I needed not to have multiplyed so many words were it not that the old Serpent not abiding in the truth is so prevalent in blinding men and corrupting them from the unerring Oracles of Divine truth to listen rather to the shallowness of their own purblind reason For the Saints are not without experience in themselves did they well mind it of this distinction in the glorious workings and operations of God in and upon themselves in their believing they prove the Father calling them to himself by the Son in the power of his Spirit they have believed the love of the Father in sending forth his Son and in the word of his Gospel they have felt his power and Spirit drawing and inabling them to believe in Christ and to approach by and through him unto the Father according to that Eph. 2.18 We both that is Jew and Gentile have access through him to wit Christ by one Spirit unto the Father namely to call upon him trust in him and have fellowship with him Indeed they that depart from the Son they both lose the operations of his divine Spirit and fall from the right worship of the Father into Heathenism or such philosophical speculations of God and of his Being as were found with the ancient Heathens that had not the light of the Gospel to instruct them and no marvel then if they fall from or deny the mysterie of the Trinity as in the Apostolical doctrine is held forth with those divine operations that should evidence the truth thereof unto them But now to return again to the matter whereto I was exhorting viz. the doctrine of the Gospel to be held forth to men as it supposes the Being of God and he but one though thus distinguished so is it not only the bare affirming him to be but one or in that Unity so as before to be distinguished that 's to be delared but his Name according to that Unity and distinction the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost viz. how God
Scriptures do hold forth to the world another manner of doctrine telling them that some few are and were Elected from Eternity and others the most part of men even where the Gospel is sent too were from Eternity reprobated and must inevitably be damned because God hath so appointed to them and hath not appointed or sent forth any Mediator for them to approach to him by nor that Mediator done any thing for them in his Death and suffering only those few he hath elected he would have saved and for them onely Christ hath given himself a ransom and is a Mediator all the rest God hath no good will to nor hath provided any remedy for but hath left them in their fall that they might there sink and perish thus mistaking and preposterously holding forth those decrees of Election and Reprobation which they rightly understand not making of them dangerous and unprofitable doctrines which otherwise in due place and manner propounded are very wholsom for herein they go beside their Commission preaching an uncertain sound to men which the world can have no good use of for when they hear it what use have they of it but to trouble or harden them for what other consequence can they naturally draw from thence then this Either I am elected or not if I be then I am well enough no sin can or shall hurt me Christ hath wholly taken if off and will not suffer it to condemn me no matter whether I hear or not nay though I swear and drink or whore or do what I please if there be any Christ for me I shall and must have him and in due time be brought to him and to life by him do what I can if otherwise I shall but here torment my self with a melancholy and religious life in vain what profit is it to pray to him and seek him seeing if I may obtain life I shall have it thrust upon me yea and if I be Elect I shall be made religious too when Gods time is and till then no evil shall harm me otherwise no duties will profit me Till I be compelled then and constrained to do otherwise I will take my pleasure and do what I pleas no actions of mine can either help or hinder me Now if it work not thus with all in the world yet then they are busied to know their Election which being indeed in Christ cannot rightly be known but in him nor till men be in him and in the mean time the Gospel is withheld from or made doubtful to them by which they should be drawn in to him and in which they might see good ground for them to believe in him for how shal any know that there is good news from God for them while they know not that Christ was sent of God for their sakes or hath given himself a ransom for them seeing God makes out his Love to men onely through him in whom and none else there is salvation And how shall these things be known by any according to that way of doctrine but by knowing first of all their Election though yet according to the Gospel and Scripture-tenor delivered by the Apostles this is a thing not precedent but consequent to their being in Christ and believing on him Now what is it to believe in Christ but through the hearing and receit of what God hath done for them in him and he suffered and done by the appointment of God for them and the fulness in him to trust in him and through him for all their future saving the working all their works in them preservation of them here and bringing them to glory hereafter according to that Rom. 5.9,10 God hath commended his love to us in this that while we were sinners yet Christ died for us whence as follows springs up that believing exercise and reasoning of the heart for his future saving them if while enemies God hath reconciled us through the death of his Son how much more shall he not save us by his life we being through what he hath done reconciled to him The hearing and belief then of what God hath done for men in Christ is the medium of drawing men in to believe on Christ and thence faith is called a faith in the bloud of 01 Christ Rom 3 25 but now in that way of doctrinating men that medium to this believing is made a consequent of it that that should draw them in to him made to follow their being in him and so in stead of believing through Grace as the phrase is Acts 18.27 that is through the good will of God held forth in the Gospel and there made to appear to them they are required first to believe in Christ that they might be perswaded that there is grace and good will with God toward them they are required to trust in his Name that they may know there is something in it that they may trust in and not first taught to know his Name as meet to be trusted in by them that so they might trust in it whereas right trusting in him springs from the very power of the Spirit working in the opening and declaration of his Name unto them Pal. 9.10 And onely such a faith a faith of the right stamp a faith that springs from and worketh by Love is sufficient to evidence mens Election but such a faith I say none can have till the goodness of God is first discovered to them and they see and believe his love to them for our love to him and so by consequent the faith that works by love springs from the appearance of his love to us according to that We love because he loved us first That faith is dead which the Word of the Gospel declaring the goodwill of God in Christ and so the appearance of his Love therein inlivens and quickens not such a faith can never evidence a mans Election and yet such a faith they must build the thoughts of their Election upon that that should produce a living faith in them being not to be apprehended by them as true for them till that be first known except they will run themselves and their hearers upon a gross 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of producing the fruit before the tree the effect before the cause a living faith before they receive that that should make it living rest in the bloud of Christ for remission before they can tell whether that bloud was shed for them that in resting in it or in God through it they might have their sins remitted one of these they necessarily put men upon they knowing it to be unsafe to pry immediatly into the secrets of God and indeavour à priori to find out that their Election as a way that leads to delusion and destraction and yet such an inconvenience many so doctrinated are ready to run upon Besides that while they indeavour to bring men to apply the Gospel to themselves only upon some conceived fruits of Election they