to believe in him or to cast himself upon him for Salvation no more than the fallen Angels Now either Christ shed his Blood for all with an intent to save them unless they be their own destroyers or to damn them or for nothing pray tell me which of these three things Christ intended in dying for all Philet I cannot say to save all Philad For what then Philet Why truly I believe all that Christ did for the Reprobate was to effect for them the good things of this Life Philad But doth he not give his Grace to all Philet Yea common Grace Philad For what use is it given Philet For no use in respect of Eternal Life all that it effects for them is to make their Condemnation in Hell the greater or as some say if they use it well the lighter Mar. Others beside the Elect may have the inlightning and conviction of the Spirit and God hath wise and holy Ends in it to restrain some of them from being Persecutors of his Church and to restrain them from gross Idolatry and such-like Sins whereby they are less punished in Hell but if they abuse these common Graces it will make their condemnation in Hell the greater Philad Then was Christ's Death rather grievous than gracious and Christ came not that they might have life more abundantly but that they might have Hell and Damnation more abundantly Blush O ye Heavens at this How cruel do you represent the God of Love For if Christ shed his Blood for all and yet did not intend Salvation to all then he must needs shed his Blood not for them but against them and so God gave his Son to die for the condemnation of the World contrary to our Saviour's Expressions John 3. 17. 12. 47. 1. 29. So that here can be no potent Argument used to perswade all Men to love and live to him for he that shall pay for the ease and benefit of another what was sufficient to have eased me as well as him and yet shall neglect me in such a Paiment and leave me in misery when he might without the least trouble or charge to himself above what he voluntarily put himself upon for the sake of others have relieved me and of miserable made me happy what reason is there that I should wholly live to him who wholly neglected me in my greatest need or that he should expect service or thanks for doing nothing 'T is a sensless conceit to think Men are engaged in any Bond of thankfulness or service unto Christ for dying sufficiently for them unless he died intentionally also Philet What do you believe Christ shed his Blood intentionally to save all then if all be not saved Christ must miss of his Intention God shall be frustrated of his Design and Jesus Christ be defeated of that excellent Honour provided by his Father for him Now if one of those that Christ died with an intent to save should miscarry why not another and consequently all and so by this God's Counsel and Christ's Honour must be laid in the Dust Mar. For all you make such a noise about Christ's dying for all Adam's Posterity yet do you really deny that Christ died for any Man or Woman in the World in a true Scripture-sense for unless Christ died so for Persons as to make satisfaction for all their Sins and to purchase saving Grace here and Glory hereafter to be infallibly bestowed upon them all you talk of universal Redemption by Christ is a universal Nothing Philad It may very well be conceived that God may intend the Salvation of all Men by Jesus Christ and yet not all Men saved nay should all Men prove so neglective of themselves as voluntarily to deprive themselves of that great Salvation which Christ out of his great Love hath provided for them yet it doth not follow from hence that the Counsel or Design of God should thereby miscarry nor Christ's Honour be laid in the dust because of the wilful folly of Men to forsake their own Mercy and destroy themselves see Isa 49. 5. And now saith the Lord that formed me from the Womb c. Tho Christ was sent to save and make Israel blessed and as the Apostle saith Acts 3. ult Hath raised up Jesus and hath sent him to bless you and to turn every one of you from your evil ways here you see it was God's Mind to gather Israel and to turn them from their Sins yet all Israel was not gathered nor turned from their Sins yet no disparagement to Christ nor a defeating the Counsel of God Indeed if it had been the Design and Intent of God that the saving Benefits intended to Sinners by the Obedience and Sufferings of Christ should immediately become theirs upon the bare shedding of his Blood and that therefore God must needs pardon the Sinner and bring him in by head and shoulders that is by a strong and irresistible hand save him whether he will or no or whether they repent of their Sins believe in him or continue in impenitency then indeed if any should miscarry here would be a defeating of the Counsel and Intention of God but seeing that as the Grace and Mercy of God in Christ to Sinners is absolutely free so is the Lord free to apply the Merits of his Son's Blood to whom and in what way and upon what terms he in his Wisdom thinks fit for we must not conceive that God intended to save Man upon any terms or without any provision or exception at all but to put the World into a capacity of Salvation by removing those grand Obstacles which stood in the way of Mercy and obstructed its communication to the Offender and to afford unto the Sons and Daughters of Men means and opportunities to repent and believe and consequently to be saved so that whensoever Christ is faithfully and effectually preached to Men and the Holy Spirit convinces Men of Sin in order to their Salvation God obtains his end and intent concerning their Salvation whether they come to be saved or no so Christ is said 1 John 2. 2. to be the Propitiation for the Sins of the whole World it doth not therefore follow that the Sins of the whole World are so actually and compleatly atoned by him that they shall never be charged against them but that which Christ offered in order to atoning the Sins of the whole World is so full of Virtue and withal is so propounded and held forth by the Lord unto the whole World that if any Man's Sins remain actually unpardoned 't is through their voluntary neglect of this Sacrifice not from any intention on God's part that their Sins should not be atoned as well as others Many more such Testimonies I might add Dr. Holmes upon John 6. 37. pag. 13. saith That all the Sins of Mankind are become venial in respect of the Price paid by Christ unto the Father c. But all do not obtain actual remission
Death those Infants and Sucklings no more than to take away by Death many thousands which daily die through the World for Death reigns over all and when Infants are taken away either by a Natural Death or in any cruel manner 't is for Sin even that of Adam's yea many times their own Parents Sin hastens the Death of the Child and in Temporals very often the Children suffer for the Father's fault not only in the good things of this Life but also Death it self as in the Old World and in the overthrow of Sodom and are slain with the Sword as in this Case and likewise in those common Calamities which have befallen Nations and Cities But what will any one dare to say that such Infants and Sucklings are damned Who can forbear trembling at such a dreadful conceit And surely you that hold than Infants have sin enough from Adam to damn them to Hell had need bring good Scripture-proof for such a dreadful Doctrine But I need say no more to this than to refer you to what Mr. Grantham hath writ upon this Subject in his Answer to Mr. Petto and Mr. Firmin in his Presumption no Proof and his Infants Advocate First and Second Parts where if you be not wedded to your Opinion or blinded with Prejudice you will see that though all are guilty of Adam's Sin Rom. 5. 14. yet Infants by the presentment of the Satisfaction of Christ are and shall be sav'd for the free Gift cometh upon all Rom 5. 18. Mar. Come leave this Philetus you may easily perceive that Philadelphus owns that rotten and corrupt Opinion of universal Redemption a grand piece of Popery Philet Yea I see he 's an Arminian and I doubt a Free-willer too which is an old Pelagian Heresy and hath been condemned for an Error long since by the best and most knowing Christians Philad This is but the Devil's subtilty and delusion to hood-wink Peoples Eyes and to draw on a Vizor upon the lovely Face of true Religion to make it extremely deformed that so People may start at the naming of it Mod. Come pray let us have no Heats Philad There shall be none for me yet methinks they deal in our Day and Time by those that own the Truths of the Lord much like the barbarous Pagans did by the Christians under the persecuting Emperors who that they might have some Pretence to put them to death loaded them with odious Names and Imputations as if all the Troubles that were in the World happened for their Sakes As may be seen in Tertullian's Apology for the Christians Or as they did when they put them to death in their publick Theater they put upon them the Skin of some Savage Beast or put them into the shape of Monsters such as the nature of Man has the most Antipathy against that they might be the more excited to destroy them and the more expos'd to the fury of the Dogs Even so the noise of Arminians Pelagians Popery Free-willers and I know not what sounds so terrible to the Ears of some that they neither will nor dare examine either the Writings or Opinions of those that differ from them by the Word of God Mod. Neither will nor dare for what reason Philad Why only their Teachers whom they admire have drawn them into a dislike of the Truth of God by putting the Name of Ignominy and Reproach upon them What tho the Papists hold universal Redemption and are so unhappy to hold this part of Truth in unrighteousness Doth it therefore cease to be a Truth Or must I be ashamed or afraid to own it because held for a Truth by them May I not as well renounce the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament yea God and Christ too lest I should be accounted a Papist The Devil held that Christ was the Holy One of God and may not I do so too It will not excuse any in the Rejection of any Truth to say the Papists hold it Tho it was told Paul Acts 28. 22. That this Sect was every-where spoken against yet it did not turn him out of the way or make him out of love with the Truths of God neither ought it to do any and tho you may call this Truth Popery Arminianism c. yet was it owned for a Truth before Popery or James Arminius was heard of or had any being in the World and is indeed the ground of all Saving-Truth and Soul-establishing Comfort since the Foundation of the World and the contrary to it will be found to appear rotten and unsound having no firm footing in the Word of God let it be varnish'd over with never such dresses of Words or pretence of Zeal thereby to make the Face of it shine in the Eyes of others And I must tell you I look upon it to be a piece of daring Pride in any that shall confidently attempt to set bounds and limits to God's infinite Wisdom and Goodness acted towards all Men in the death of his Son Philet Well I am one of those that hold that God looking upon Man in the Fall did set his Love upon some of the fallen Race chusing some to eternal Life and Salvation for which he gave his Son to die for them and rejected others and never afforded them an Object to believe in nor power to believe but hath left them to perish Philad Pray prove what you affirm if you can Philet That God chuseth some to Life and leaveth others in the Fall of his meer Will and Pleasure I prove it by the Instance of Jacob and Esau Rom. 9. 13. As it is written Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated And this was done before they were born the one elected to eternal Life and the other reprobated to eternal Death and this at the meer Will and Pleasure of God Philad I know it is concluded from this Text that Esau in Person was damned but this is but Mens Rashness and Presumption there is not the least Syllable in all the word of God that I know of for Persons to ground such a Belief or from whence to draw such a dreadful Conclusion that Esau should be damned eternally Love and Hatred in this Text may be with respect to Temporal Blessings and so Esau may be said to be hated and Jacob loved because to Jacob was given the fruitful Land of Canaan and to Esau was given the barren Country of Mount Seir Or Love and Hatred may be with respect to Christ the promised Seed and so Jacob was separated or sanctified to be the Fore-father of Christ according to the Flesh and Esau with respect to that rejected and so was but a common or profane Person Now this was one end of Circumcision to distinguish the Family of whom Christ should be born and to keep that People of whom the Messiah was to come unmixt from the idolatrous Nations Now Esau very justly lost that Blessing for selling his Birth-Right at so base a Price for
17. John 15. 19. but if by the World be meant the Elect only then it will follow that God gave his Son to dye for those that stood in no need of him for God by Virtue of his Absolute Prerogative might pardon Sinners without the Death of his Son Now for you that hold there was an absolute Election and an absolute Reprobation consider'd under the Fall and that without respect to Faith in Christ on the one hand or disobedience on the other what do you do but overthrow the Truth and real Expiation of their Sins by the Death of Christ for them For if God in his Elective Love did in the very Act of Election freely and of his meer good Will and Pleasure irrevocably assign and give to his Elect Justification and Salvation then Christ could not die to purchase these things for them because they were theirs truly and of right before and so he needed not die to bring those into Covenant with God and to make them near by his Blood and to make them dear Children to God who were all this before for those that were Elected unto Life upon the account of their being absolutely Elected to Salvation they are likewise upon the same account in actual favour with God and already beloved of him with the highest Love and such as is peculiar to those that are the Sons of God But again if by the word World be understood the Elect only then this word whosoever must needs imply that some of the Elect might possibly not believe and so Christ must be supposed to speak at no better a rate of Wisdom and Sense than thus God so loved the world of Believers that whosoever of the world of Believers believe on him shall not perish Nay further if there be Salvation in Christ for none but the Elect in your sense then it is not true that whosoever believes in him shall be saved But that it cannot be meant of the Elect only read the two preceding Verses 14 15. with this whole Verse and the words following for as Moses lifted up the Serpent c. and Ver. 17. for God sent not his Son into the World to condemn the World If then we must understand the Elect here by the World then we may read the words thus God sent not his Son into the World to condemn the Elect but that the Elect should be saved this was to affirm that which none was likely to deny or ever trouble themselves or the World about But again if by the World we must needs understand the Elect only then will the Parallel between Moses's lifting up the Serpent in the Wilderness and Christ's being lifted up upon the Cross run very lame for Moses did not lift up the Serpent with an intent that none should look upon it and receive healing by it save a small parcel but that whosoever was stung might look upon it and that whosoever did look upon it should receive healing thereby Numb 21. 8. Now you will hold that all without exception are stung with Sin will you not Philet Yea I do Philad Very well then unless Christ be lifted up with an intent that every Man might believe on him and every one that should believe on him should be saved by him he could not be said to be lifted up for the universal benefit of all those that were stung with Sin as Moses lifted up the Serpent in the Wilderness for the benefit of all that were stung with the fiery Serpent Thus you may see that by the World must needs be meant the whole Lump of Mankind and those that take it otherwise do greatly eclipse the Mercy Love and Goodness of God to all his Creatures Very well Musculus upon this place John 3. 15 16. by World understands the Universe of Mankind so that here his love of the World and his love of Man is the same After the same manner it is in this Redemption of Mankind whereof we spake that Reprobates and desperately wicked Men partake not of it 'T is not through any defect of the Grace of God nor is it meet for the sake of the Sons of Perdition it should lose the Glory and Title of a Universal Redemption since it is prepared for all and all are called to it De Redemption Gen. humani Yea Calvin himself upon this place with other more antient and modern Expositors take this word World in a universal sense But take another Scripture 2 Cor. 5. 19. God was in Christ reconciling the World to himself Philet Well pray read out the whole Verse and you may see cause to believe that by the World is there meant the Elect because he says not imputing their Trespasses Now it is plain he doth impute the Sins of all Men to them but the Elect only but unto them he doth not impute Sin therefore he reconciles unto himself none other but those he doth not impute Sin to which are the Elect. Besides the word World signifieth only some part of Men in the World and not the intire Universality of Men as Luke 2. 1. Acts 19. 27. Rev. 13. 3. Yea World is put sometimes for those that believe and are converted The Bread of God is he that cometh down from Heaven and giveth Life to the World that is to the Elect to Believers of all ranks throughout the whole World and no more is intended in any such-like Expressions Again John 14. 31. That the World may know that I love the Father And John 17. 21. That the World may believe that thou hast sent me By the World here we are to understand such as shall be saved Philad I know the word World signifies only some part of the World but where do you find the Elect called the World in opposition to those that are Enemies and Strangers unto God but it is rather put for the Wicked who are the greatest part of the World as John 1. 10. and 7. 7. 14. 17. 15. 19. 16. 20. 17. 9 14. 1 Cor. 11. 32. 1 John 3. 1. 4. 5. 5. 4 5. Hence the Devil is called the Prince of the World John 12. 31. 14. 30. 16. 11. But that this 2 Cor. 5. 19. cannot be meant only of the Elect may be proved from the word reconciling Reconciliation signifieth a making those Friends that were before at variance Now how can it be said That God was in Christ reconciling to himself those with whom he is not nor ever was offended Nay he was so far from being offended with them that he loved them with such a Love that he did absolutely purpose from the Fall which was long before the coming of Christ in the Flesh to confer Eternal Life upon them Besides the Apostle is not there speaking of any inward Act of God upon the Souls of Persons whereby they are brought to believe in Christ whereby they come to witness their Peace with God Being justified by Faith we have Peace with
are sanctified an unholy thing and make all the Precepts of the Gospel uncertain whether they be the Will of God or not or whether Christ when he prayed to his Father for his People or for Sinners prayed as a Mediator or as Man only yea give footing to that Opinion which begins to evidence it self too much in many even denying the personal Union of God and Man in Jesus Christ in whom the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily Col. 2. 9. which did influence and give a value and worth to all things done for us by the Manhood and therefore his Righteousness and his Blood was called the Righteousness and Blood of God Acts 20. 28. 1 John 3. 16. Rom. 10. 3. Christ as he was God-Man and our Mediator what he did upon this account in the Flesh he did in the Spirit also Now in this place where Christ bewailed Jerusalem's state with tears either they flowed from true inward compassion or they did not if the first then Christ in the Flesh and in the Spirit willed one and the same thing and had no distinct Will for Jerusalem's Salvation as Man different from his Will as God but if the second then his tears were only feigned and his bewailing nothing but dissimulation which is a capital Sin to affirm And tho the Lord was resolved to bring Jerusalem to desolation by delivering them into the hands of their Enemies yet as you say and say truly it was an effect of their Sins the neglect of the Day of their Visitation mocking his Messengers and stoning them that were sent to her to have drawn her from the evil of her ways and for crucifying the Lord of Life thereby filling up the measure of her Iniquity So tho the Lord brought her to desolation yet Punishment is rather his refuge than his choice and his defence against Sin than the hurt of his Creatures and the Sinner with his own hands most cruelly pulleth down punishment upon his own head for the evil of Sin and the evil of Suffering are Twins or rather Sin gives birth and being to the other God never inflicted the least punishment on any merely as Men but as workers of Evil as continuing sinful and disobedient So that it was Jerusalem's actual Sins and her refusing to be healed that brought her to ruin and not any irresistible Decree of the Almighty for you may as well deny the Being of a God as entertain a belief that he takes pleasure in the death and destruction of his Creatures His Nature is perfect Goodness and he is a stranger to Cruelty and all the expressions of Love and Good-will in Christ to poor Sinners are such that they neither admit nor are consistent with fraud or falshood so that yet you have not told me where the Attribute of God merely takes place upon those that God is resolved against all means possible to be used to punish by his Decree as you use to say But before I leave this let me ask you one Question more which is this Ought not or do not all Men stand ingaged to love God Philet To love God yea who should they love if they do not love God Philad Ay but I ask you for what Reason Mar. There may be many Reasons given the receiving the good things of this Life may engage all Men to love God Philad Yea but you will not own that God gives the good things of this Life with any good intention to the greatest number but rather gives them to them to heighten their misery doth God intend any good to the Souls of such by what he gives Mar. No yet are they to be accountable for the abuse of them Philad But you hold that God did decree they should abuse them accordingly and for that end were they given to them that so the abuse of them might heighten their misery this is but like the Proverb Give a Man Roastmeat and beat him with the Spit Can any Man become grateful or be tied in the Bonds of Love and Gratitude to such a Man that should feast him for a while yet after condemn him to Death and Destruction Philet The Apostle saith 1 John 4. 19. We love him because he first loved us but this is meant of the Elect only Philad Why should you go about to confine the Lor'd Mercy which is altogether Infinite and as incomprehensible as his Divine Essence why should you thus contract the Divine Goodness whose Mercies are not only exalted above our Conceptions but also above and over all his Works Therefore do not presume to measure the Lord 's Mercys by your narrow conceit nor labour to make it run into a lesser Channel than the Lord intended But God's great Love to all Men in giving his Son to die for them is the ground and cause of their Love to God again True love must first spring from the knowledg of God's Love to them neither can I think that any Men in the World will ever heartily and cordially love God unless they believe that God Almighty had designs of Love to them yea so far loved them as to send his Son to die for them otherwise instead of loving and living to God it would tend to a most horrid and desperate alienation of the Hearts of poor Creatures from their dear and ever-blessed Creator For how is it possible that the poor Creature should devest himself of those Delights and Pleasures of this Life and intirely love and delight himself in God and his blessed Will if he knew or had strong grounds of fear that before he made him or without respect to his Sins or unworthy carriage in the least he so far hated him as to resolve against all Mediation whatsoever to cast him out of his sight and to doom him to suffer the Vengeance of Eternal Fire You may preach up God's Sovereignty pronounce Justice and Judgment as some have done till they have brought Despair and Hell into the Souls of many and beget more Fear than Love make God feared as a Tyrant but 't is the making known Christ's meek Condescension Long-suffering and the superexcellent Amiableness of free Love and tender Mercy that soonest and most effectually works in us Repentance of our Sins and inclines us to love him that first loved us Wither's Paraphrase upon the Lord's Prayer Who is able to perswade Men by Arguments or move them by Threatnings to love God whose love to them in particular is doubtful Do you think it can or ever will be a motive for Persons to love God to tell them That before all Worlds or before they were born or there were any possibility of offending him in any manner it was decreed that the greatest number of Adam's Off-spring should be eternally reprobated and damned And tho he had provided means whereby Man might have been saved and that the worth and value was so great that it was sufficient for the Redemption of thousands of Worlds yet then it was
decreed that very few should have any benefit thereby when they had done their utmost they could do to obtain it Is it possible that Men should truly love God while they apprehend him as an Enemy bent in an unappeasable manner to destroy them and that to Eternity can any thus be induced to love him or live to him Thus your Doctrine cuts asunder the very Sinews of Religion discourageth Holiness and encourageth Profaneness for by your Opinion Heaven shall unavoidably be obtained by those that are elected and Hell must be as certainly endured by those that are reprobated and a Man may as well stop the Sun in its course and mete out the Heaven with a Span as force the Lord to revoke his Decree Truly if poor Man lies under such a rigid Fate all that he can do for the obtaining Heaven or avoiding Hell is but a piece of industrious Folly Why should we take upon us a strict course of Life why should we submit to Divine Precepts or address our selves to God by Prayer and like good Jacob wrestle with him for a Blessing to what purpose should we maintain a warfare against Satan Sin and all Vice when the greatest industry in the use of means to obtain them signifies nothing if not decreed to it May not this cause Persons to be swelled up with sorrow and destroy the chiefest inducements to Holiness when they shall seriously reflect upon all they had done to be purely in vain And again if Persons be absolutely appointed by the immutable and irreversible Decree of the Almighty to destruction 't is not all their hearing reading praying Works of Charity nor all mourning for Sin nor believing neither that can possibly procure their Salvation damned they must be And on the other side if Persons be absolutely ordained to Salvation their open contempt and neglect of all Holy Duties their living in pleasure and walking in ungodly courses cannot bring Damnation upon them they must be saved See God's Love to Mankind What Man rightly master of his own Reason will ever trouble himself about such impossible or unavoidable things 't is in vain to repent fruitless to weep yea madness to add to my own Infelicities by denying my self of any Pleasure or Profit which I might enjoy by closing with the World and in gratifying the sensitive Part Or why should we take upon us a strict course of Life endeavouring to keep God's Commandments and fighting with the Temptations of the Devil and keep them under our Bodies and bring under subjection when all we effect by it is an honourable Nothing What compass we by striving therewithal Why spend we time in rising up to fall Why linger we to act so many Crimes To suffer over Grief so many times And live so many several Deaths to taste To be no worse nor better at the last Or wherefore have we prayed since we know What must be must be tho we pray not so Wither's Britain's Rememb p. 54. So that your Doctrine makes all Endeavours and Undertakings of Persons in order to the attaining Heaven and Eternal Felicities fruitless and highly gratifies the Devil's Interest such an Opinion frames and fits a Soul for the Suggestions of Satan by which he draws Souls with more ease into Eternal Misery for will not Persons be ready to say I am one of those that are absolutely elected to Grace and Glory one of those that Christ died for or I am ablolutely cast away and left in the Fall to die and perish without a power to believe or a Christ to believe in If I lie under a necessity of either why should I trouble my self about Means or Ends since if I perish by my Sins I did but what was natural for me to do and which I was compelled to by an overpowring necessity and therefore I 'll take my ease and swim down the Stream of all Delights so that your Opinion overthrows the very Foundation of all true Piety and gives Persons the greatest discouragement to Duties and quite breaks the Anchor of the Soul that it cannot fix it self upon any Offers of Grace and Invitation nor stay it self upon any Promise of Heaven upon their repenting believing or obeying the Lord. Hope stirs up Men to begin and to continue in well-doing Hope is a patient and well-grounded Expectation of the fulfilling of whatsoever God hath promised But how is the Anchor well-grounded when notwithstanding the Promises of Heaven to all those that by patient continuance in well-doing seek for it Men by the most vigorous undertaking for Heaven shall be rewarded with the Wages of Death and crowned with eternal Shame for all they have done in their Christian Progress Is not this enough to shipwrack the Soul upon despair Yea I dare say This is the nearest and the straitest way To all Profaneness if the Bridle gives To Carnal Liberties and makes the Lives And Hearts of many Men so void of care From hence Distractions hence Despairings are Hence Mischiefs hence Self-murders do arise Hence is it that such multitudes despise Good Discipline yea this contemned makes The Life of Faith if once it rooting takes Disableth pious Practices out-right And where it roots destroys Religion quite Britain's Remembrancer p. 56. Which I could prove by many Instances from the Writings of others and the known Experiences of our Age one in my knowledg when reprov'd for his wicked loose Life would answer God might have made him better And in God's Love to Mankind pag. 204. we have it recorded concerning the Landgrave of Thuring who being reproved for his debauched Life and warned of the dangerous consequence thereof that so it might move upon him to consider his miserable condition and return gave this Answer If I am absolutely predestinated to Heaven the committing of the vilest Crimes will never exclude me And if I be reprobated let me manage my Life never so carefully let me steer my course never so prudently and piously I shall never arrive at Heaven and Happiness Philet But our Doctrine is not as you say a hinderance to Piety and a godly Life for those that hold it are Men of singular Piety indued with a Spirit of Prayer and live according to the strictest Rules of Holiness far beyond any that hold the contrary who are a company of loose livers Philad I know there are many of your opinion of late flown very high in their own conceit and condemn others we are apt on all hands according to the old Proverb to count our own Geese for Swans and every Fowl thinks its own Bird the fairest yet I doubt not if Persons of the one Judgment and the other were but truly compared together and an estimation made of the religious worth and holiness of each those that own General Redemption need not count it robbery to make themselves every way equal with their Opposers General Redemption having been not only avouched by our Blessed Saviour and his Apostles but also owned
faithful to him The question is of the continuance of our Love to him John 8. 31. If ye continue in my Word c. John 15. 9 10. As the Father hath loved me so have I loved you continue ye in my Love And if ye keep my Commandments ye shall abide in my Love Now if there were no danger of losing their Love to Christ there were no need for Christ to exhort them to keep his Commands in order to their abiding in his Love But this place shews that Christ having loved his own he loved them to the end of his days 't is not said of their days but all the time of his abode in the World here 's nothing of the final perseverance of the Saints how desperately wicked soever they be but what if the Lord should so set his Love upon these his beloved Disciples that were given him out of the World by his Father that maugre all the Frailties of the Flesh and the Temptations of the World and the Devil yet none of them should be lost but that they should be carried on through all Difficulties to the fruition of Eternal Glory Doth it prove that because some shall never fall that therefore no true Believer can fall away Pray consider the Parable of the Prodigal Son the lost Groat the lost Sheep doth it not shew that a true Believer may be lost and being lost may be found Moderat I believe God hath elected a certain number to Salvation and those that are given out of the World to Christ he will not fail to keep them to himself but will by interposing Grace so preserve them that they shall never perish But the others that Christ died for upon condition of their repentance believing and persevering therein to the end I dare not say but some of these may believe for a time and that with a true Faith believe and yet fall away so as to perish these times have afforded many sad and shaking Examples of this kind and I am not strictly certain of my perseverance and so not fully or strictly certain of my own Salvation Philet O what an uncomfortable Doctrine is this of falling from Grace Philad This Doctrine doth not destroy all Christian Comfort but a Life of much Christian Comfort may be had out of it seeing it is the unchangeable Purpose of God to give Life and Salvation to all those that shall persevere in Faith and Holiness to the end and that if they will but quit themselves like Men abstain from all foolish and hurtful Lusts and not wilfully stab their own Souls nor pull Misery upon their own Heads they shall be happy And what tho true Believers may be under a possibility of perishing yet seeing God hath through his bounty vouchsafed unto them so rich and such full proportion of Means thereby to prevent their perishing and to preserve them from Apostacy so that they need not apostatize or perish except they themselves please why should it abate any of their Comforts or Hopes of Salvation because under a possibility of perishing Men may possibly fall into the Fire and be burnt or into the Water and be drowned from the top of Houses and be dashed in pieces yet no Man lives ever a whit the more uncomfortable because under a possibility of suffering these Evils because they know God hath given them Reason and Understanding to preserve them from these things The Apostle Paul knew that he was under a possibility of being a Cast-away 1 Cor. 9. 27. yet how chearfully and at what an excellent rate of comfort did he live I am perswaded saith he Rom. 8. 38 39. that neither death nor life nor things present nor things to come c. The assurance he had that upon a diligent use of the means which God of his Grace had vouchsafed to him he should prevent his being a Castaway made him live at that height of confidence and courage which he did What can no one injoy comfortable hopes of Heaven unless they have a full and perfect assurance of the continuance of the Love of God to them how loosely and profanely soever they live and that if they commit all manner of Sin and Wickedness affront Heaven defy the Almighty laugh Jesus and his Gospel to scorn yet they run no hazard of losing their Souls Indeed such a Doctrine as this and such is the Doctrine of Absolute and Unconditional Perseverance contributes to the peace and comfort of the carnal part in Men and indulgeth to them a liberty of Sin but no Child of God that hath received of that Spirit whereby it can cry Abba Father either wisheth or desires Heaven or Salvation but in the way of holiness and upon that condition which the Lord Christ injoyned it John 15. 10. Nor is it possible that any Man should have comfortable hopes of Heaven or any assurance of being saved unless he hath through Grace discharged those Duties to which the Blessing and Privileges are therein promised This is the Foundation whereupon through Christ to build our Hopes and Comforts and not that God loves us for we know not what reason and that we cannot possibly sin our selves out of his Love but he will infallibly bring us to Heaven no but saith the Apostle 1 John 2. 3 5. Chap. 3. 18 19 20 24. Chap. 5. 18. hereby we know and are assured that we are in God and that he loves us But how comes Persons to this why if we love him and keep his commandments which if we do we shall never fall 2 Pet. 1. 10. But I must beg your excuse at this time I cannot stay only I desire you to consider this one thing concerning falling from true Grace If we consider Faith and Regeneration in themselves they may be lost because nothing in it self is unchangeable but God it cannot be said of any but God that he cannot lie and if so then all Men may lie and that Lie may be our ruin for ought we know Rev. 21. 27. And tho I do not doubt but that there is a State of Grace attainable in this Life from which Persons by the Grace of God shall never fall yet I would not have you affirm of your selves or any others that you cannot fall how wicked soever you live but rather remember we all stand but by Faith and therefore ought not to be high-minded but fear working out our Salvation with fear and trembling not lest God should forsake us but lest we should forsake God FINIS
is proper to perswade or invite them to it Mar. Well for all you think these words of mine are such hard sayings yet I do farther affirm that all Men that are not by true Faith grafted into Christ but remain in an unconverted state all their Mercies are cursed to them yea they are cursed in every thing in their Name in their Estate in their Food for if they receive Food they are Usurpers of that which is none of their own if they receive no Food they are self-Murderers yea their Prayers the Word and Sacraments are cursed to them Phil. The Psalmist saith Ps 145. 9. That the Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works Martha God is good to all during the day of our Patience and long-Sufferance and what Mercy he affords to them may be called tender Mercy considering their sinfulness who deserve every moment to be cast into Hell But how the tender Mercy of God can be said to be over those when whatsoever God doth for them in a providential way he doth all with an intent to harden them that so he might bring destruction with the more severity and terror in the end will Men or can they call Health Peace Liberty Food Raiment given with an intent to become a Snare unto them and to bring unavoidable damnation upon them the tender Mercies of God Doth the Lord cause the Sun to rise upon the bad as well as upon the good and send Rain upon the Unjust as well as upon the Just in wrath and with a curse What can infinite Goodness and Perfection be implacable to his Creatures God forbid Ah Martha What would have become of you and I long before this time if God had not sought the good of his Creatures Consider we are all called the Lord's Off-spring Acts 17. All his Children by Creation Mar. What by that What would you prove from thence Phil. What Why then I think that the Lord must needs have a very tender regard to all as they are his Creatures the workmanship of his hands and is not implacable to them in this World Why may not God deal with his Off-spring as we deal by ours Goodman's Parable of the Prodigal Son which of us that have Children tho' they should prove very undutiful to us and we could not love them with the love of delight as we do those that are very dutiful and are good and vertuous yet at the worst we cannot chuse but pity them and heap favours upon them Why thus doth the Lord to the Sons and Daughters of Men though his delight is with them that fear him yet those that are the worst he pities And how can you think otherwise when there is not one Soul but is dearer to him than the whole World Neither did he count the Blood of his own Son too great a price for their Redemption but I doubt you are one of those that hold that God did from all Eternity fore ordain the greatest part of Adam's Off spring to everlasting destruction Mar. What if it was the Pleasure of God to make a thousand Worlds and then destroy them all Is it meet for Man to say unto God Why hast thou made me thus or what dost thou For he might glorify his Justice in the Damnation of all for their Sins who shall question God about this Phil. I say that God is so far from destroying one whole World that he is not willing that so much as one Soul should perish 2 Pet. 3. 9. and indeed who can think that our good and gracious God whose Name and Nature is Love should provide means of Life and Nourishment for Man in his Mother's Womb when he could neither breath nor eat should after he is born not provide as sufficient Means to nourish his Soul and Body to eternal Life I may say in this case as the Apostle in another doth God take care for Oxen hath God such a tender regard for the Bodies of Men and hath he none for the Soul surely he is every way as desirous of the welfare of the Soul as the Body and hath declared by Oath that he takes no pleasure in the Destruction of any Ezek. 33. 11 12. Who then is he that dare charge the God of Love with so much Cruelty as to expose his own Children at least by Creation to be a prey to the Devil What saith our Saviour Luke 11. 11. which of you having Children if they ask Bread will you give them a Stone c. Can we that are evil have Compassion upon our Children and will God harden himself as an Ostrich against his Off-spring Job 39. 16. Doth God condemn Cruelty in others and can we think he will harbour it in himself No the Scripture of Truth doth every where abound in giving Testimony of the Love Goodness and Bountifulness of God to all his Creatures and to Mankind above all other Works of his Hands in this lower World in so much as our blessed Saviour recommends him in his Carriage towards the worst and most unworthy of Men as an absolute Pattern for us to imitate in doing Good and shewing Mercy even to our Enemies Matt. 5. 44 45. Be ye therefore perfect even as your heavenly Father is perfect that is be you true Imitators of the Lord Followers of God as dear Children in these works of Mercy and Kindness Now Martha pray you observe this if we should suppose that God hath irreversibly from Eternity doomed to everlasting Destruction and without any respect to their Sin those unjust ones upon whom he causeth the Sun to rise c. it must necessarily follow that while he did these good things to them he intended the greatest Evil that can be inflicted or imagined even the Vengeance of Eternal Fire which if so then must those that imitate him in such ways be the most accursed Hypocrites and Dissemblers under Heaven making shews of Love and Kindness while War and Blood are in their Hearts and so by this a Man may be most unjust unmerciful full of Dissimulation hating most Men without any Cause and yet be most like God O horrid and most unworthy a true Christian Believer Mar. What will you deny God to be omnipotent hath not he an absolute Soveraignty and Lordship over his Creatures with full Power to dispose of them as he pleaseth and you that contend with God about his Soveraignty unless you repent Phil. It cannot be denied but that God hath an absolute Soveraignty and Lordship over his Creatures that is a lawful Power to dispose of them as he pleaseth yet it is a horrible Indignity put upon him and a great Injury done to the Goodness Mercy and fatherly Compassion of our good and gracious God to affirm that he exerciseth this his Power upon the hardest Terms and the most grievous unto his Creatures that is or can be imagined and that which no ways is conducing to his own Honour and Glory nay
and not as Believers or as their being in Christ by Faith then for God to love a Person to Day and hate him to Morrow would evidently shew a change in his Affection according to the change made in the Creature And I must needs tell you I like this plain dealing the best you are herein truer to your Principles than many of your Brethren that hold this Point of personal Election But for my part I believe that God loveth and accepts more of Actions that are good than of mere Persons and contrary to what you say that such and such Actions do therefore please him because the Person pleaseth him but rather because their Actions please him therefore their Persons please him tho God hates all the Workers of Iniquity Psal 5. 5. yet said he to Cain Gen. 4. 7. If thou dost well shalt thou not be accepted and Heb. 11. 5 6. Before his Transgression he had this Testimony that he pleased God but without Faith he could not Read John 14. 23. and 15. 14. and 16. 27. These are those that he will love yet may those that were once beloved of God by reason of Sin come to be the object of his hatred Isa 63. 9 10. But they rebelled and vexed his Holy Spirit therefore he was turned to be their Enemy and fought against them Now you that say that where once God loves he must never cease to love Pray you what think you of the Angels that fell Do you think God did not love them while they stood in that pure and holy State in which they were created and if he did do you think that he loves them now in their Apostacy So God is said to love Jacob and Israel yet at another time he is said to hate Israel Jer. 12. 7 8. Amos 6. 8. yet is this taken off again Isa 60. 15. whereas they were hated God loved them again So that God may love at one time and hate at another without the least change in him in respect of Love or Hatred because no Person of Man is supposed to be the Object of elective Love but only as Righteous nor any Person the Object of Reprobation but only as Wicked so that the Love of God being set upon such kind of Persons as are true Believers those who have Christ formed in them whose Souls are regenerated and formed into the Image of Jesus and Partakers of the heavenly and divine Nature having received that heavenly and divine Anointing by virtue of which they become Christians 1 Cor. 6. 17. John 15. being wrought into a Conformity to Jesus this is that State in which the true Election stands Christ being the elected Root and Believers the elected Branches These are those whom God doth justify and will glorify these are those whom the Lord hath set apart for himself Psal 4. 3. These are those whom the Lord hath chosen from the rest of the World to be his own peculiar Favourites upon whom he intends to bestow an heavenly Inheritance and as Persons decline from Christ living in a State of Unbelief and Impenitency being Strangers to the Life of God disobedient and to every good Work reprobate they remaining such are in that state in which Reprobation stands not being brought over to Christ in whom the Father is well pleased So that I conceive that Unchangeableness which the Scripture asserts of God is to be considered with respect to his Essence Attributes and Decrees and not in his constant loving the same Persons how wicked soever they prove For suppose God should dearly love a Person while he is faithful to him and in case this Person should apostatize and die in a state of Impenitency and he should destroy him with eternal Death this doth not shew the least Alteration in any of the Lord's Attributes either of Love Goodness Mercy Justice c. And suppose a Man passeth from a State of Sin wherein he lived to the Displeasure of the Lord to a State of Faith and Holiness and in this Condition comes to injoy the Love and Favour of God yet his Love and Hatred cannot be said to be changed tho the Persons of Men change never so often from Good to Evil or from Evil to Good This shews indeed a change in Man but no change at all in the Lord he still loves and hates but what he loved and hated before Pray consider Ezek. 18. at what Instant I spake c. if it doth Evil I will repent Here you see God is said to repent so he is said to repent that he made Man upon the Earth Gen. 6. 6. he is said to repent that he made Saul King 1 Sam. 15. 11. And yet the Scriptures cannot be broken which testify that with God is no Repentance or shadow of change 1 Sam. 15. 29. Num. 23. 19. James 1. 17. Mal. 3. 6. Psal 102. 25. yet here is no real Contradiction And as I said before in respect of his Essence Attributes and Decrees God cannot repent yet after the manner of Men he is said to repent in respect of his Works for as Men when they repent alter their Works so when God alters his Work he is said to repent as in Gen. 6. 6. I will saith God destroy Man from the Earth for it repents me c. God made Man to dwell upon the Face of the Earth but now coming to destroy Man from off the Earth seems to repent and so concerning Saul I repent that I have made Saul King that is I have determined to depose him and to prefer another And so concerning Ely c. Delawn Sacr. p. 50. So that no such Conclusion can reasonably be drawn from God's once loving he must for ever love how wicked soever the Person proves afterwards or else be mutable for I do not find in Scripture that God hateth any of the Works of his Hands as they are his Creatures nor any thing but Sin and Sinners for the cause of Sin and there is the same Consideration or the like Reason of his Election being placed upon Faith and obedient Persons or Persons really brought over to Christ Philet The Elect are justified in the Eternal purpose of God and tho the Elect do sin yet the Lord sees it not so as to condemn them for it neither can it do them any hurt or make them less lovely in the sight of God Philad Hold one word before you go any farther you seem to say God was never an Enemy to the Elect Do you not by this make the Fall of Adam in whom the Elect were included a mere Fiction and the whole Story of the Gospel concerning Christ's Suffering a Fable and the Passion of Christ if you grant he suffered for the Elect a mere Vanity more than needs to die to reconcile and bring those into Friendship with God which were never out of his Love nor with whom he was never offended Philet I say all the Sins of the Elect both past present and
none think that God will do all our Works for us while we sit still and do nothing For as God must blow upon the Spark of Grace by his Spirit so we should be storing up Holy Endeavours God will not bring his People to Heaven sleeping but praying in the use of Means and Holy Ordinances yet may Means and Duties be greatly abused if we be not careful Philad Yea they are abused when we do not look through them all to Jesus or when we make them as Mediators set them in the room of Christ or when Christ is not eyed sought to admired and trusted in Alas What can poor Sinners do without a Jesus There is no Salvation in any other the highest measure of Believing Doing or Suffering cannot turn away God's Wrath for the least Sin All our Prayers Tears Alms Duties do not pacifie God no we must with Holy Paul count all as nothing to win Christ so that had not Christ perfectly fulfilled the Law and have been made a Curse for us Gal. 3. 13. the exactest Christian could have no grounded hopes of Heaven there is no escaping the Curse but by Christ so that all that do or have escap'd the Curse have cause to say that not their own Graces nor their own Works but Christ hath delivered them from Wrath to come 'T is Christ's precious undertaking that gives us a right to Heaven but yet our walking in the Holy Commands of God fits us for it For without holiness none shall see the Lord Heb. 12. 14. Rev. 21. 27. Philet If Christ be our Righteousness and Sanctification as 1 Cor. 1. what need we have any Righteousness of our own Nay there is no Qualification or Condition in the New Covenant required on our part 't is all free 't was free Love in God to send his Son to die for his People and free Love in Christ to lay down his Life for the Elect neither is it the Elect but Christ that stands engaged to God by the New Covenant free Grace wholly excludes Self or any thing we can do as a Cause procuring or as a Condition qualifying us for the receiving of it Here 's a comfortable difference between the New Covenant and the Old the Old was such that in case Man did fail to perform his Condition the Covenant was broke and God was free from giving Life but in the New Covenant Man is tied to no Condition that he must perform which if he doth not it will make the Covenant void to him and those that teach otherwise detract and lessen the free Grace of God and attribute something to the Creature Philad Tho' the Love Grace and Mercy of God in our Redemption be wholly free no one sought out to him for a Saviour but he alone was moved by his own Love to a poor lost Creature and first sought after him when he was fallen God was not bound to bring forth a Saviour for any he was not laid under any necessity to cast an Eye of Pity upon Man it was an Act of free Grace to save Sinners by the Obedience and Suffering of Jesus Yet is nothing to be accounted free Grace without the Lord for the sake of Christ pardon the Sins of the most Impure and Impenitent and bring them to Heaven whether they will or no Was not God at liberty to pardon Sinners in what way and upon what terms he pleased such as he in his Wisdom should judg most meet and most consistent with his Justice Mercy Truth and Holiness God hath no where promised to save Men by Jesus Christ that I know of but by Repentance Faith and Obedience as the means as you may see John 3. 16 36. Mark 16. 16. Luke 13. 3 5. Mat. 4. 17. Acts 3. 19. Rev. 22. 14. Rom. 2. 7 8 9 10. and in Heb. 5. 9. Christ is there said to be the Author of Eternal Salvation To whom To those that continue in their Rebellion and Impenitency No but to such as obey him 't is true Christ came into the World that the Sentence of Eternal Death might not be executed upon us yet 't is ungrateful wickedness and no better than to tread under foot the infinite price of Forgiveness to think because his Blood hath purchased a Pardon therefore we are freed from our Duty to him And whereas you say that in the New Covenant Man is tied to no Condition that he must perform c. and that not Man but Christ stands engaged to God c. methinks 't is a very sine way to acquit your self of all Sins and consequently of all punishment for Sin but if Christ stands ingaged to repent believe and obey the Gospel how comes it to pass that Persons are exhorted to them and charged with Sin upon the omission of them Surely then all the Sins of the Elect for they sin as well as others must be charged upon Christ and he stands guilty of all the breaches of the New Covenant how an you endure to speak this without abhorrence But is there no Condition no Qualification required on our parts in order to come to partake of the Great and Gracious Promises Then what 's the meaning of all these Scriptures John 15. 10. Prov. 4. 5. Rom. 8. 13. Mic. 7. 21. prov 28. 13. Rom. 2 8 9. and what are all those Blessed and most Gracious Promises in Mat. 5 Do they not include Conditions something to be done on our parts if we would find acceptance with the Lord Pray read Luke 13. 3. John 6. 53. Mat. 18. 3. John 3. 5. Mat. 5. 20. John 15. 20. Nay view those many Expressions which you find in the Word of God in the Commands Exhortations Instructions Threatnings and Promises and then see whether we come to injoy the great Blessings of the Gospel without conditions Mar. Doth not the Scripture say Isa 64. 6. That all our Righteousnesses are as filthy Rags yea as a menstruous Cloth Philad I am satisfied that this Scripture is greatly abused for want of a right understanding and rightly distinguishing between that Righteousness which doth justisie us at the Bar of God's Justice and that Righteousness which is God's Requirement and so the Creatures Duty now taken in one Sense they are no better than filthy Rags and in the other they are now if we expect to merit Heaven and obtain Eternal Salvation for well doing this is to overthrow the blessed undertaking of Jesus Christ and lessen the free Grace of God as if Persons could go to Heaven without being beholden to Jesus And here it is that they are no better in the sight of God having no worth or value but are rejected of the Lord as filthy Rags but now as they are the Holy Commands and Appointments of the Lord and the Creature 's Duty who dare say that they are in the sight of God as filthy Rags or as stinking Carrion What hath God required his Creatures to perform such and such Duties and hath promised
he ever will his Will is regulated and is acted forth agreeable to his Wisdom Righteousness and Justice and according to his Divine Nature and as God hath made Man a rational Creature so he very seldom forceth Man to repentance against his will yet is the Lord pleased so to will the Salvation of all yea with such an effectual Will that he doth that which is of a proper tendency and sufficient thereunto that unless they wickedly and wilfully oppose the Means they should be saved yea so far as is any ways meet for him to act or assist towards their Salvation Isa 5. 4. What could I have done more that is tho God could have done more than he did yet it was not consistent to that method and stated order of things but more of this hereafter Mar. No Text of Scripture must be understood as to make God Impotent instead of Omnipotent or in the least reflect upon the Soveraignty Immutability and Omnipotency of God as if he could be disappointed in bringing to pass what he hath purposed and intends to do Philad Nor no Scripture must be so interpreted as to disparage or undervalue the Love and Bounty of God to all Men the general tenour of them representing in the highest degree the Goodness of God and as God is perfect in Power perfect in Wisdom so also perfect in Goodness yea Perfection it self any Defect is inconsistent with a perfect Being and above all a Defect in Goodness which gives a Value to the other Attributes of God If therefore some things in Providence or some Passages appear in Scripture that we cannot exactly reconcile but that they seemingly oppose this Point we ought to impute that to our deficiency in understanding and to try if they may not reasonably bear another sense or reserve them to be understood hereafter than to adhere to them in contradiction to the general Tenour of Scripture and the Light of Nature and Reason seeing nothing can be alledged which with that same clearness oppugns the perfection of Goodness in God as others may which assert it And seeing the Nature of Goodness consists in the taking a pleasure in the Happiness of others and in promoting it We must conclude from hence that God hates no Man but loves and desires the Happiness of all Men and that for his Will-sake he reprobates none either from Eternity or in Time to think otherwise greatly opposes God in all his Attributes it opposes his Mercy God is in Scripture declared to be a merciful God Exod. 34. 6. 1 John 4. 16. God is Love yea called the Father of Mercy and God of all Consolation yea rich in Mercy Ephes 2. 4. abundant in Mercy Pray see Psal 33. 5. He loveth Righteousness and Judgment the World is full of the Goodness of the Lord And Mica 7. 18. He retains not his Anger for ever because he delighteth in Mercy And Psal 145. 9. the tender Mercies of God are over all his Works But how God could delight in Mercy and how his tender Mercies are over all his Works I do not understand What doth God delight in Mercy when he hath made such a Decree which sheweth more Severity towards poor Man than Mercy Are his tender Mercies over all his Works when for one only Sin and that once committed and that not in their own Persons he hath shut the greatest part of Mankind up under invincible Sin and Damnation not affording them a Mediator which was the greatest and most choice Act and Manifestation of God's Mercy that he could bless the World withal Now all the Attributes of God must take place upon Man And I beseech you tell me where the tender Mercy of God takes place upon those for whom Christ did not die for you will own there is Mercy in God as well as Justice do you not Philet Yea I do and God by his Decree doth fully manifest both Mercy and Justice his Justice to the Reprobate and his Mercy to the Elect. Philat Well but do you think that one Attribute of God destroys another Doth Justice in God wholly devour and eat up his Mercy leaving no room to take place upon some Persons Philet God who is the Supreme Lord of all may do what he will with his own when Man had sinned he was at perfect liberty whether he would shew Mercy to any or not and if he had made no provision at all for any of fallen Man it could not be termed an Act of Unmercifulness Philad I did not ask you what an Almighty God can or might do but I ask you how or wherein the Goodness and Love of God is manifested to those for whom Christ did not die Or how God who is the Perfection of all Goodness Mercy and Bowels of Pity can be said to bear any Love Good-will or Affection unto those before any personal or actual Sins by them committed upon whose ruin he was so bent that he hath wholly left them without all possibility of escaping Eternal Misery and Torment How can Mercy stand with such a Decree Doth not the Apostle Paul Tit. 3. 4. speak of the appearance of the Love of God our Saviour toward all Men But can there be any appearance of Love and Kindness to those for whom Christ did not die and whom God was resolved from Eternity to exclude from all parts and fellowship in Eternal Life Was not there as much Mercy Kindness and Good-will shewed to the very Devils as to such Men Nay Mr. Keach tells us That if Christ did not die for all God deals more severely with many of Adam's Off-spring than he dealt with the Devils because they were excluded from all terms of Reconciliation for their own actual Disobedience but Mankind only for the Sins of Adam made theirs by Imputation and as they partake of the same Nature Neither is their Condemnation aggravated by Christ's coming as those Persons are for whom Christ did not die Youth 's Celestial Guide Much to the same purpose you may see God's Love to Mankind pag. 136 137 138. That altho the Devils are set forth in Scripture for the greatest Spectacles of God's ireful Severity yet is God more merciful to them than to such Men and though they are both sure to be damned yet in three things Man is in a far worse condition by such a Decree 1. In their appointment to Hell not for their own personal Sins for which only the Devils are damned but for the Sin of another that lived and sinned long before they were born 2. In their unavoidable destination to endless Misery under a colour of the contrary the Devils as they are decreed to Damnation so they know it and look for no other But Men that are appointed to Wrath are yet fed up with hopes of Salvation and made to believe that if they perish 't is not because God would not have Mercy upon them but because they will not be saved when indeed there is no such
matter 3. In their Obligation to believe and the aggravation of their Misery by not believing The Devils because they must be damned are not commanded to believe in Christ nor is their punishment heightned by their not believing but miserable Men who by this Decree have no more liberty to escape Hell than the Devil must yet be tied to believe in Christ and have their Torments increased if they believe not May we not say Where was the sounding of the Lord's Bowels and his Mercy Were they not restrained Isa 63. 15. Now tho I grant you that God's Mercy is his own and he might give it to whom he please I do also grant that when Man had sinned God was not obliged but was absolutely free and at perfect liberty whether he would shew Mercy to any or not The Love of God in Christ was undeserved undesired and every way free indeed neither had it been unmerciful if God had made no provision for fallen Man But now seeing he was pleased to enter into a Covenant of Peace with Man tho under no constraint or Obligation and to give his Son a Ransom not for a few but all as a means whereby his poor Creatures might be saved and hath promised Mercy without exception should be vouchsafed to all that believe in his Son and hath bound it with an Oath that he desireth not the death of a Sinner that no cruelty is in him but that he is a God gracious and merciful thereby to beget in us such amiable thoughts of himself as might incline us to love him with all our heart and strength and without the least scruple resign up our selves to his Will Now I say since God who was absolutely free hath made such Promises of Mercy to all that believe in his Son this his Promise binds him to perform it he cannot deny himself he 's not like unto frail Man he will not eat his own words so that now he is not at liberty to deny Mercy to those to whom he in his Word hath promised to shew Mercy neither can he do it for we may modestly affirm there are some things God cannot do God cannot lie he cannot deny himself neither can he deal unfaithfully and unjustly in his Promises nor go contrary to his Will revealed in his Word so till you prove by the Word of God that he hath made no provision for the Salvation of all Men by the death of Christ all you say proves nothing neither do you yet shew me where the great Attribute of God's Mercy takes place upon those for whom Christ did not die Philet Doth not the Mercy of God wonderfully appear in this that when Man had sinned and thereby run himself so far in debt beyond any possibility to pay but was liable to have been eternally a Prisoner without any redemption from thence till he had paid the utmost Farthing neither Men nor Angels being able to make God amends for the wrong Man had done him Psal 49. 7 8. And whereas God being the most Soveraign Lord and no ways a Debter to any of his Creatures being not constrained by any inward Necessity or outward Force to shew mercy to any being wholly at his own choice whether he would shew Mercy to any having cause enough to cast off Man for his disobedience as he did the fallen Angels doth it not argue and prove more abundantly the rich Grace and Goodness of God in providing for the Salvation of a few than in making no provision for any but leaving them to perish in their Sins Philad 'T is true 't is an act of Grace and Mercy for God to make provision for the Salvation of any by Christ and to cast his Love upon any of the degenerate Sons of Adam when he passed by the Apostate Angels being invested with a power to shew Mercy to whom he please But certainly if to shew Mercy to a few amongst the many millions of millions of poor perishing Creatures renders God gracious and merciful how prevailing must that Love be which hath made such rich and full provision for the Salvation of all Men who unless they wilfully neglect so great Salvation shall most certainly be saved for if the providing for the Salvation of a few out of many renders him most gracious and lovely then if he had refused to make provision for any certainly the greater the number for whom this provision was made is the more lovely and gracious doth God appear Pray take heed you do not bring your Soul under guilt by denying Christ's Death for all which is the greatest illustration of his Love and Mercy to Sinners for in my understanding 't is a great injury done to the Goodness and Mercy of God to affirm that he hath eternally decreed the reprobation of all mankind except a very few in comparison of the rest Mar. None can be damned but those whose damnation God wills to glorify his Justice for God wills the Salvation of all that are saved and he wills the Damnation of all that are damned and tho it is certain that the Lord is gracious and full of compassion and of great mercy yet he hath mercy on whom he will have mercy and whom he will he hardeneth Rom. 9. 18. It 's true there is such infinite Mercy in God that he could have pardoned all the Angels that sinned and could have saved all Adam's Posterity if he had pleased there might have been no Hell no place of Torment for Devils or Men if he had pleased there might have been no place but Heaven for all the Angels and all the Children of Men to sing Hallelujahs to Eternity but we must not order what God shall do how he shall exert and put forth his Mercy but let his Grace and Mercy be adored for ever in that he saves any that have sinned and his holy Justice ador'd in punishing so many with Eternal Damnation for Sin And God hath his Glory not only from them that are saved but also from them that perish in the one the Glory of his Grace in the other the Glory of his Justice Philad Who questions these things but you still avoid the Question so often urged viz. Wherein the great Attribute of God's Mercy takes place upon those for whom Christ did not die Philet You asked me if I thought one Attribute of God eat up another And I may ask you this Question whether you think God is made up of Mercy without any Justice Philad No I do not think so I believe that Justice and Mercy were essentially in God before all time and both beloved and favoured by him and to maintain the favour and love God bore to Justice he hath caused whole Nations to drink of the Cup of his Wrath in this he threw the sinful down from Heaven drowned the old World rained Fire and Brimstone out of Heaven upon Sodom c. yea such love doth God bear to Justice that not only Men and Angels Citys
Blood for those which when he had done all should have no benefit by it because not elected For the benefit provided in Redemption extendeth to none with respect to Eternal Life but such as are elected otherwise these things would follow 1. That he must love those in Redemption that he never loved in Election 2. That Christ died for all alike which contradicts these Scriptures Rom. 8. 33. John 11. 52. Ephes 5. 23 25. Tit. 2. 14. John 10. 15. Rev. 14. 14. in which Scriptures who can deny but there are expressions of singular respect and love for all are not Christ's Elect Children peculiar People given Ones redeemed from amongst Men. Moderatus I believe Election is absolute of particular Persons not the chusing of Believers only to be saved as Philadelphus speaks but the chusing Persons to believe and for those that are these peculiar Ones Christ died for them in a more peculiar manner and to such he will give Faith and Repentance to carry them safe through all that so they shall never perish yet Christ died for all and loved all Men in a sense being the Saviour of all Men 1 Tim. 4. 10. Yet did not Christ die for all alike some he died for with an intent to adopt for Sons others he died for to purchase Pardon and Salvation upon condition of their Repentance believing and obeying the Lord. Philet But have all Men a power to perform these Conditions Moderat No 't is not from the power of our own Free-will Philet It seems then Christ dying as well for those that shall perish as for those that shall be saved I see you are for the middle way you hold absolute Election of some with universal Redemption of all likewise the purchasing a power to believe only for some and the tenders of Salvation to all upon condition they believe repent and obey the Lord without a power to believe so that many thousands shall nay must perish notwithstanding Christ died for them Will you say that Christ died with an intent to save all Moderat Tho he died for all yet not with an intent to save all Philad Pray let me interpose I perceive there is no great difference between you Philet I must confess I was for the middle way my self till I found that Universal Redemption would not comport with Particular Election Philad Moderatus I perceive can play fast and loose and deceive us both being true to neither sometime we think we have him fast on our side and you think him as fast for you and yet he is as slippery as an Eel to us both as I could shew but time will not give me leave to day But pray tell me how you hold Christ died for all and yet did not intend their Salvation thereby Moderat Then I 'll tell you how I hold it 1. Christ died so far for all as to purchase for them the Blessings and Benefits of this World 2. He died so far for all that there is a potent Argument from thence to perswade all Men to live to him 2 Cor. 8. 15. 3. He died so far for all that the Gospel should be preached to all 4. He died so far for all that all should be raised from the Grave Rom. 14. 9. Philet I hold the same Philad So do I but did Christ die for all in such a manner and yet never intend their Salvation thereby this justly seems strange Philet Why 't is one thing to die for the Reprobate in some sense and to die for them with an intention to save them Philad As to the first I suppose you mean that God is so bountiful a God that he will not let the least act of Charity or the least appearance of Good in any go unrewarded in this Life And that Christ died for the obtaining of these lesser Mercies but yet had no love for them in order to their Salvation I have already disproved But as to your second you say that Christ died so far for all that there is a potent Argument from thence to perswade all Men to live to him but then I must prove beyond all Exceptions that God Almighty hath designs of Love to all Men and a desire after their Eternal Well-being seeing that true Love to God must first spring from the certain knowledg of God's Love to us And the Holy Ghost teacheth us 1 John 4. 19. that love to God must or ought to be kindled in the Hearts of Men by the sense of this Affection in God to Man neither as I said before can I think that any Man can heartily and cordially love God unless he believes God had a love for him And how can any use Arguments to perswade all or any Man to love and live to God whose love to them is doubtful Neither doth any Man stand bound either to use Arguments or believe them when used unless he hath a sufficient reason to do so seeing the Apostle saith Rom. 14. 23. Whatsoever is not of Faith is Sin whatsoever a Man doth not having sufficient reason on which to ground his belief of the lawfulness thereof is sinful and an irregular Act and displeasing to God Prov. 19. 2. 14. 15. All Arguments are out of doors neither will wise Men use them to Persons who are necessitated by an over-ruling Power to be what they are seeing you will not say that Christ died with an intent they might be saved Philet I believe Christ's Death was sufficient for all that is to say the Death of Christ simply and in it self considered was sufficient to redeem and save all Men yea many Worlds as well as those who are redeemed and saved by it and so there is sufficient ground to perswade all Men to love and live to him Philad 'T is true the Satisfaction that Christ gave to Divine Justice was infinite his Righteousness infinite and therefore sufficient for the Redemption of this and many Worlds had they been made In this sense it is sufficient to save the Apostate Angels that fell but have the fallen Angels any sufficient ground or reason to hope for Salvation upon the absolute worth and merit of Christ's Satisfaction Philet No Christ never died to free them from their Chains of Darkness and to readmit them into the Love and Favour of God and as Moderatus told us he took not upon him the Nature of Angels therefore there is no ground of hopes for them God never by Christ provided for the Salvation of the fallen Angels this was besides the Lord's Intention Philad Well you grant that Christ died sufficiently for all yet unless you grant that he died intentionally for all that is Christ by his Death hath purchased such Grace and Favour in the sight of God for all Men that upon their repentance and believing in him they should be justified and receive forgiveness of their Sins and persevering therein shall be eternally saved the sufficiency of his Death is no sufficient ground for any Man
the Flesh partake of the real Virtue of his Death as if he had been already slain So also Christ came into the World not to condemn the World but that the World through him might be saved John 3. 17. and came to seek and to save that which was lost to shed his Blood to bear unutterable dolours not only for them that were saved but for those also who through their unbelief and impenitency were not saved their unbelieving and rejecting of Gospel-Grace rendred them obnoxious to just punishment for saith the same Apostle the Gospel was preached to them that were dead 1 Pet. 4. 6. tho they had not the Letter of the Gospel preached to them as with us at this day yet they had the spiritual Substance and Effect of the Gospel preached to them and therefore 't is said that Christ went by his Spirit and preached to them and their unbelief and rejection was a Sin against the Covenant of Grace for those before Christ and those since Christ came are for the main under one and the same Covenant yea essentially and for substance the same the same Christ exhibited thro Types and Shadows which we have revealed in the Gospel with open face and the same substantial Duties as Repentance Faith and Obedience with the same spiritual Blessings as pardon of Sin Justification and Eternal Life So that all Persons being under one Covenant of Grace made with all Mankind in the Promised Seed and this Covenant the same for Substance both before and since Christ's coming and all Persons that were saved before Christ being saved by a Covenant of Grace and through believing on him that was to come it necessarily follows that the want of Faith and Obedience to the Lord Jesus according to their measure of knowing him and believing on him was the cause of their condemnation see Heb. 4. 2. compared with Chap. 3. 18 19. So that I cannot see how it should sound more harshly in the Ears of all Christians that Christ should sweat drops of Blood and bear the Curse of the Law for those that were in Hell if you will have it so when he died than that he should sweat drops of Blood c. for those that after his coming in the Flesh shall go to Hell notwithstanding all that Christ hath done for them so that Christ did really intend the Good and Benefit of those that perished through unbelief before his coming in the Flesh as well as after if not so I know not how any could use potent Arguments to perswade them to love and live to him Moderat Come Philadelphus the thing to be proved is this whether Christ died equally for all and every Man this I suppose you will not easily grant for if Christ died equally for every Man they would have equally the means of Salvation granted to them Philad This is but a lame proof that Christ died not for all Men equally c. as if difference of Means vouchsafed to Men should argue different Intentions in God touching their Salvation You may as well prove by this Rule that Christ died not equally for the Elect themselves as the other they do not equally alike injoy the Means of Grace nay by this a Man but meanly read in the Scriptures may prove that God bore more good-will to many that perish than towards many of the Elect for many perish under more excellent and greater means of Salvation than are vouchsafed to many that are saved stretching out his hands all the day long to a disobedient People Isa 65. 2. Mat. 15. 28. 11. 20 21. 8. 10. 1 Pet. 3. 20. And in Mat. 22. 3. our Saviour by that Parable holds forth to us these two things 1. That the Death of Christ signified by the Oxen and Fatlings slain was provided by the King for those that never came to partake of the Feast but were rejected because they made light of the Invitation and went away one to his Farm c. yet Jesus Christ with the Blessing accruing thereby to Mankind was equally intended for those that perish through their unworthiness as well as for those that are saved for they did neglect so great a blessing and when there was a prize put in their Hands they had no heart to use it Pro. 17. 16. yet notwithstanding the neglect on their part God was not wanting one his paâ—… to provide good things for them The 2d Thing observable is this the King's Servants took more pains with those that never came to partake of the Supper than with those that came for those that rejected the Invitation were again and again called whenas the other came at the first Philet but if the Feast had been provided for all and God had called them in good earnest they would have come or been compelled to it as those were that tasted of it Philad If the King had intended that those who were invited should never have tasted of his Supper questionless he would never have invited them for it 's but mockage to use Arguments to perswade Persons to accept of a Feast that was only and wholly provided for another with as intent to exclude those that were invited Thus do you make the God of Truth a meer Deluder of poor miserable Mankind to cause his Ministers to proclaim throughout the World the glad tidings of Grace and Salvation prepared for all Flesh and by the Gospel open the Bosom of his Love to all poor Sinners and by sweet loving and gracious words offer to them forgiveness of Sins Life and Salvation and yet never intend to bestow it upon them what is this but to represent God as hollow-hearted But it is clear that in the ministry of the Word God doth as well perswade the obstinate and many of those that never believe as he doth those that do as it is said 2 Chron. 36. 15 16. That the Lord God of their Fathers sent to them by his Messengers rising up betimes and sending because he had compassion on his People c. But they mocked the Messengers despised his Word and misused his Prophets till the Wrath of the Lord rose up against them And thus doth the Lord in this Gospel-day being every way as serious in his pressing the Gospel upon those that remain obdurate to the last as upon those that in time come to believe as Paul preached the same Gospel at Athens to those that mocked as to those that clave to him and believed Acts 17. 32 34. so that difference of Means doth not argue different Intention in God touching their Salvation Yet it is not denied but that God doth in his providential Dispensations put a difference between one man's spiritual Opportunities and another's all do not injoy equal Conveniencies and Opportunities nor have Ministers the same efficacy and power for conversion and edification c. Nor are Men equally free from or subject to temptations and occasions of Sin with many such I do not say
break off at this time only give me leave to ask you and your Friend Martha this Question viz. What is the reason you go about to perswade your selves and others that God is so severe with the greatest part of Mankind as to leave them in the Fall without giving his Son to die for them but leaving them to perish is it to make your own Salvation doubtful for if Christ died for scarce one in a thousand what grounds have you to believe Christ died for you or that you were elected and chosen to Life Philet I do not question but I was beloved of God and chosen in Christ before the Foundation of the World Philad I suppose that you must needs have a high Opinion of your self that you are one of the Darlings of Heaven one beyond all possibility of miscarrying one that shall never behold the angry Countenance of the Almighty otherwise I believe you would be glad to hear the joyful Tidings of Peace and Reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ for tho you represent God at so dreadful a rate towards others yet you would not have him appear in such Wrath and Fury to your self nay your Doctrine would not be so readily imbraced by so many if they thought they themselves were of that number that God had by an absolute Decree of Reprobation shut under Wrath from all possibility of obtaining Life and Salvation And should the Lord awaken your Conscience under a sense of the dread and horror of your being absolutely rejected from Grace and Glory from having any saving benefit by the Death of Christ this might so amaze you that all Means and Arguments used to comfort you might be of no value your Opinion walks Antipodes to all words of comfort What would it avail you then at such a time to tell you of God's great Love to his Elect and that he had such a Love for some few of the degenerate Sons of Adam that rather than they should perish he would give his Son a Ransom for them and with him give them Faith and Repentance and by a strong hand of irresistible Grace carry them through this World to Glory but that far the greater number are left of the Lord to die and perish for the manifestation of his Justice and Displeasure against Sin Would this fasten any comfort upon you when you behold the Lord's angry Countenance only speaking Blood and Ruin to you Come Philetus this hath been so dreadful to many that they have run some to the Sword and others to the Halter Now seeing that you make the number of the Elect so small as not one in a hundred or one in a thousand how can you have any comfortable assurance that you are one of those that Christ died for unless you prove it by his dying for all and so consequently for you including a part in the whole Philet What rotten stuff have we here at what a pitiful rate do you talk would you have me believe Christ died for me because he died for the whole World if I had no other assurance and hopes for Heaven than this I should be in a miserable state I injoy saving Grace there is an inward Work of God upon my Heart and I am really brought over to Christ this is a better proof that I am not one of those that are left in the Fall to perish but one of those Christ died for Philad I own that there are Marks and Signs which may be sufficient proof of a Person 's Regeneration and may be a good Mark of Election and a sound Evidence for Heaven Rom. 8. 16. the Spirit witnessing with our Spirits But now in this weighty concern of our Souls and Salvation nothing ought to be believed by any but what they have grounds to believe from the Word of God and from that inward Witness which if true never contradicts but is always sutable and agreeable to the Word Now since by your Doctrine the Death of Christ did not extend to one of a thousand how is it possible for you to know that Christ died for you unless it be revealed in the Word of God since he that Christ did or did not die for must be built upon the Testimony of the Lord therefore I say shew me if you can a proof from the Scripture that Christ died for you or if you cannot do that shew me that Man now living in the World for whom Christ did not die Philet I cannot shew you my Name written in the Scriptures nor no place that saith that he died for I. S. but if I can prove my self a Believer I can prove that I am no Reprobate but an Elect Person and consequently one that Christ died for for believing is an infallible Fruit of Election Philad But what if you mistake and think you have true Faith when you have not there is a Faith which is only sancy nay mere presumption a Faith besides the Word of God 't is easy for Men to deceive themselves and others with false Appearances and deceivable Marks in this case since all saving Graces in the Saints have their Counterfeits in Hypocrites yea oftner furnished and set forth with more gaudy paint in Hypocrites than real Christians the Devil can shew himself to be an Angel of Light But come to your Marks of Election Are you the Child of believing Parents this is not sufficient to prove you in the Love and Favour of God for so was Cain Ishmael and Esau yet you say they were reprobated Have you been baptized and so initiated into the visible Church of Christ so have many thousands who by their Conversation shew themselves to be of the Synagogue of Satan Have you done Miracles so did Jannes and Jambres yet they were Cheats Do you outwardly partake of the Lord's Table so do many that have no part in him as Judas Do you preach the Word to others prophesy in Christ's Name so may many to whom Christ will say Depart you cursed and while they preach Salvation to others miss it themselves Philet These are outward Marks which may very well stand with Hypocrisy mine is a supernatural spiritual and inward Work the saving Effect of the sanctifying Spirit of God What say you to Faith is not that a Fruit of the Spirit Philad Yea true justifying Faith is but what would you prove that Christ died for you because you are a Believer Philet No Christ did not die for me and elect me because I believe but because God elected me and gave his Son to die for me therefore I believe I being to prove that God loved me and gave his Son to die for me and that Faith is a Fruit of God's electing Love Philad But what if your Faith be the Faith of the Hypocrite which will perish Simon Magus Acts 8. 13. believed the Doctrine preached by Philip and professed his Faith publickly by being baptized in Water according to our Lord's Command and yet in the
those that walk after their detestable things may bring ruin upon themselves Philet John 10. 29. there you have the Omnipotent God ingaging himself to preserve the Saints or sheep of Christ from either total or final Apostacy Philad John 10. 27 28. My Sheep hear my Voice and I know them and they follow me and I give unto them Eternal Life and they shall never perish c. Now I believe that those that are the Sheep of Christ which hearing his Voice follow him perseveringly to the end he will give unto them Eternal Life there 's no danger of perishing so long as they remain the Sheep of Christ Philet This cavil is cut off in the next Words neither shall any pluck them out of my hands therefore neither Sin the Devil the World nor Flesh can by any Temptation draw the Sheep of Christ from their Faith Philad How who told you so I give them Eterual Life neither shall may be able to pluck them out of Christ's hands when once they are landed upon the Celestial Canaan they may then say Now Sin Satan and wicked World do your worst But if you would have it respect the Saints as to this Life yet here is not the least shew of the great power of God ingaged for the compelling or necessitating of them to continue such to the end of their days and that they cannot cease from following him or any promise made to those that for the present hear his Voice and follow him yet if they shall quit the Faith and draw back from him they shall never perish how sinful and wicked soever they be Neither is it to be conceived as if Sin Wickedness Looseness and Profaneness could not unsaint Persons or pluck them from under the Lord's protection or separate them from the Love of God but that Sin will separate between Men and their God is evident from Isa 49. 2. But this rather shews That those that continue following of Christ shall be safe under the protection and safeguard of the Lord so as no Creature whatsoever shall be able to separate them from God Martha As God the Father looks for nothing from Man to partake of Christ so it is not Sin nor Evil that can debar any true Believer from a part in Christ It is a desperate thing in any so much as to serve a Writ of Damnation upon a Believer for in doing so they injure the Lord Jesus overthrowing the fulness of his Grace Philad That God hath made an assurance to any of injoying his Love and Favour but upon condition of their Love and Loyalty to him I suppose the Scripture is wholly silent nay such assurance is not honourable for God to make nor meet for a Creature to expect or desire for who can imagine that an infinitely wise and righteous God should ever ingage himself to any People to be their God unless they be also willing to be his People to love and live to him or what ingenuous Soul that truly loves God doth desire to be pardoned and protected and delivered from eternal Misery and injoy all the Blessings of his Child and yet pay nothing of that love and reverence that is due to him for such Mercys And whereas you speak as if it were not Sin and Evil that can make him that was once a Believer less beloved of God the Lord having once loved him he cannot cease to love him this I have answered before But such Expressions as these cannot be short of Blasphemy to put such a Saying as this in the Mouth of the Lord Tho thou addest Drunkenness to Thirst tho thou committest Whoredom Adultery Incest Murder and every ways cast my Commandments behind thy back yet shalt thou be precious in my Eyes and my heart shall be towards thee in the greatest Love and dearest Affection for ever And tho this may seem harsh yet your opinion leads directly to such horrid conceits of God For if Christ be not given Covenant-wise but the Promise of Life is made absolutely without any condition or proviso at all of Persons Love and Loyalty to him then it follows that the obstinate and resolved Sinners the loosest and most debauched Persons may as well lay claim to the Promise of Eternal Life as the most faithful and virtuous in the World and if you say 't is not Absolute it follows that it is Conditional for the wit of Man cannot shew a Medium between these two Philet We do not say that no Believers can fall into Sin fall they may fearfully but not totally and finally Philad Who ever said that the Elect such that believe and persevere to the end ever fell away finally I know none that say any such thing the Question is Whether the Grace of God may not be so resisted Isa 5. 4. Acts 7. 51. Mat. 23. 37. as to cause the Lord to take away his Holy Spirit from them and to suffer them to fall into a state of Perdition I would know why our Saviour hath told us that from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he seemeth to have if it be not for this reason because he hath lavished out his Talent and hath rejected the Power of doing well which was offered him surely there is no better arguing than that Man can resist the Grace of God because he doth and 't is a wonder that such as you are are not confuted by your own experience that Grace is resistible unless you will deny your self to be of the number of the Elect. Surely David had Grace to have done better than he did in the matter of Vriah but he resisted it and lay in his Sin a long time which shews that the precious Vessels of Election may fall away from Grace whether we take it for a gracious Life or for the Love and Favour of God for had he been taken away in his Sin without Repentance he might have perished Philet Ay but David being an elected Person tho he did fall into Sin God almighty decreed that David should repent and return neither could he die until he had repented Philad By these words you seem to hold that had David died before he had repented he had perished which he could not have done if he had not fallen from Grace Mar. The Apostle John 1 John 3. 9. saith Whosoever is born of God cannot commit Sin for his Seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God he that cannot sin cannot fall either totally or finally Philad What cannot sin at all what then saith the same Apostle That if we say we have no Sin we deceive our selves Chap. 1. 8. And so James 3. 2. In many things we offend all we Apostles that are born of God which are regenerate and have the Seed of God abiding in us as much as any yet in many things all of us offend Mar. I do not say commit no act of sin but they sin not as wicked Men