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mercy_n father_n sin_n sinner_n 3,110 5 7.5131 4 false
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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A45470 Tracts Hammond, Henry, 1605-1660.; Hammond, Henry, 1605-1660. Of conscience. 1645 (1645) Wing H608; ESTC R9409 37,736 38

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And the first of these will be That 36 Acts and habits of sinne in the former heathen or unregenerate part of the life of what nature and clothed with what aggravations soever if they are now retracted and renounced by repentance as that signifies not onely a sorrow but a thorow change are reconcileable with a good conscience The truth of which is cleare first because the Gospel allowes place for repentance and promises rest to the heavy laden so he come unto Christ and mercy to him that confesseth and forsaketh Secondly because the sincerity of resolution and endeavour now which is all that is required to a present good conscience is reconcileable with past sins even of the largest size Thirdly because Saint Paul himselfe which was once a Saul can yet say confidently that he hath a good conscience And fourthly because which I shal a little enlarge on the sinne against the holy Ghost which alone is by the Gospel made uncapable of remission is as I conceive no act no nor course of any speciall sinne but a state of final impenitence a continued persevering resistance of all those saving methods which are consequent to the descent and are part of the office of the holy Ghost 37 To which purpose I shall give you one hint which may perswade the preferring of this opinion before the contrary and it is by observing the occasion of Christs delivering those words concerning the irremissiblenesse of speaking against the holy Ghost Those words are delivered by Christ both in Saint Matthew and Saint Mark upon occasion of that speech of the Jewes that Christ cast out Devils by the Prince of Devils which was clearly a blaspheming or speaking contumeliously against Christ himselfe or the sonne of man and there is no passage in the Text which can conclude that that speech of theirs was by Christ called the blasphemy against the holy Ghost but rather the contrary that it was a blasphemy onely against the sonne of man for t is apparent that Christ Mal. 12. 15. for the space of six verses sets himselfe to convince them of the falsity of that speech which probably he would not have done if they to whom he sp●ke had been in an irrecoverable irreversible estate of blasphemy For that he should take such paines onely to leave them unexcusable 1. there was no great need in this case they were so already 2. it is a mistake to think that Christ doth so at any time they are bowels of mercy and not designes of mischieving or accumulating their sinne and judgements which incline him to call and knock and labour to convince sinners and having done that doth both invite them to repentance by shewing them the possibility of pardon yet and give them an admonition able to shake th●m out of all impenitence by telling them the danger which attended if the only last method of working on them which was yet behind did not prosper with or work upon them This is the importance of that 31 and 32 verse concerning the speaking a word i. e. standing out against the sonne of man on one side and the Holy Ghost on the other the summe of which is this there shall be by the coming of the Holy Ghost a possibility of pardon and meanes of reformation for those that resist and hold out and even crucifie Christ as by the coming of Christ there was for those that should beleive on him though they had formerly lived disobedient unto God the Father resisted those methods of mercy used on them under the old Testament for them that speak a word i. e. by an Hebraisme doe an action of affront of injury of contumely against Christ yea that resist and beleive not on him but conceive and affirme him to cast out Divels by the power of Beclzebub which was as contumelious a thing as could be said of him but when Christ shall be taken from the earth and the Holy Ghost shall be sent down to convince the world of that great sinne of crucifying Christ and to s●ttle in the Church of God such an orderly use of all Gospell-meanes that may tend to the bringing sinners to repentance the use both of the word and sacrament and censures and all other things necessary to that great end of working on the most contumacious that if this prevaile not there is little hope left of ever working on such perversenesse then it is to be resolved that those that thus stand out against all those saving methods of Gods last oeconomy shall be left uncapable of any good of any whether meanes of yet-farther working on them or of pardon either in the Church or in heaven there being no more persons in the God-head now behind unlesse we will change the christians Trinity into Pythagorasses {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} nor consequently meanes in the providence of God for the reducing of or obtaining mercy for such By this it will appeare that this blasphemy against the Holy Ghost is not any one act no nor habit of sin particularly not that speaking against Christ there which you will also guesse by Saint Luke who mentions not that speech of theirs concerning his casting out Divels by the Prince of Divels and yet sets down this speech of Christ of the irremissibility of this blasphemy against the Holy Ghost Luke 12. 10. which argues that this hath no neare relation to that but a finall holding out against and resisting the whole office of the Holy Ghost and all those gracious methods consequent to it 38 To which I shall only adde in reference to my present purpose that there may be no place of doubting even to him which will not receive my interpretation of this place that even by those which conceive it to be some speciall kind of sinne yet the unpardonablenesse of it is acknowledged to arise from thence that it is impossible for any such to repent yet not for any that repents to find pardon and mercy which is sufficient for the confirmation of my present proposition 39 'T is true indeed that he that is sold a slave of sinne the unregenerate carnall man is whilst he is so in a most hopelesse comfortlesse estate and if he have any naturall conscience left him it must needs be a kind of feind and fury with him No peace to such wicked saith my God and it is as true that the recovery of such a man out of the grave of rottennesse that Lazarstate in sinne is a miracle of the first magnitude a work of greatest difficulty Christ groanes at the raising of him that was 4 dayes dead and putrified in the grave and costs the sinner much dearer to be raised out of it Saul is strucke down in his march towards Damascus blind and trembling before his conversion but yet still when this conversion is wrought he may have a good Conscience what ever his foregoing sins were And although the Apostles Censure Heb. 6. 6. and 10. 26.
act of sinne presently retracted againe even a generall Apostacie in their practice if not in their faith a return to their former unregenerate sinnes as the phrase {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} they being entangled are overcome notes 2 Pet. 2. 20. a place perfectly paralell to this and as in this place the ancients have generally interpreted And then though such indulgence in sinne such retu●ning to the vomit or mire againe in that other place doe provoke God to withdraw his grace necessary to enable them to repent yea and cast them back into a worse estate then they were in not onely before such sinning but even before their conversion 2 Pet. 2. 20. Yet that God will so punish with totall desertion any one act or commission presently retracted againe it is not affirmed here nor anywhere else that I have observed but rather on the contrary that he will visit them with chastisements which are a grace and a meanes to recall them without any utter forsaking or taking of his loving kindnesse from them Psal 89. 33. 35. 50 That this matter may be throughly cleared I shall suppose this objection made against what hath hitherto been said of it that it may seem by this doctrine that the regenerate man may bee under Gods displeasure that hee that remaines sanctified may be unjustified for so he will be if all his sinnes be not forgiven him which they are not if this act of sinne not yet repented of be not forgiven In answer to this I shall reinforce my affirmation that of necessity it must be granted if we believe the Scripture that any such act of sinne unretracted by repentance doth certainly stand upon the sinners score unremitted for that God as some affirme doth at the first act of my being justified forgive all my sinnes not only past present but also future too cannot be said but upon a supposition that that man will never commit any such sinne against which the Gospell threatens perishing i. e. any deliberate presumptuous sinne which supposition if it were true would inferre an impossibility of the regenerate mans thus sinning not an assurance of his pardon without or abstracted from the consideration of his repentance which is the only point in hand for if he doe then upon confession and forsaking there is promise of mercy and not otherwise and in briefe without repentance there is no remission and therefore it is observeable that they which thus affirm find themselves enforced to fly to Gods omnipotence and immensity to whom all things are present by help of which they can conceive and resolve that at the time of that sinnes being upon him unrepented of God yet seeing his future repentance as present may seale his pardon and then may by the same reason do so also before the commission the weaknesse of which arguing I shall no farther demonstrate then by this rejoynder that by the same reason it might be said that a man is justified before he is borne which yet the objectors doe not affirme but that at the time of his first conversion be it as such a Sermon or the like he was justified and then all his sins past present and to come forgiven him which is as contrary to the notion of all things being present with God as to say that this act of commission is not forgiven till it be repented of for sure the time before that mans birth and the time after it are as truly present to God before all eternity as the time of this commission and that repentance 51 The onely way for us to understand our selves or any thing that belongs to Gods actions concerning us is that which the Scripture supposes and commands us to walk in not the way of Gods secret counsels which if we knew were no longer secret not the way of Gods immensity which if it were intelligible by us were not imm●nsity but the way of his revealed will which is that whensoever the sinner repenteth him of his sinne and amends his life he shall have his sin blotted out and put out of Gods remembrance i. e. forgiven unto him and not till then and to suppose he may have remission before such repentance is to suppose God perjured who sweares he shall not and to lay falsity to the charge of the whole Gospel which resolves Except ye repent ye shall all perish 52 To all this I might farther adde that Gods justifying the faithfull man is the approving his fidelity upon tryall of it and so acquitting him upon a {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} or probation from suspicion of hypocrisie pronouncing him faithful or Evangelically righteous and upon that owning him as a friend entring into League with him as might appeare by Gods justifying Abraham and calling him friend in the sense wherein they are Christs friends which doe whatsoever he commands them so approve themselves unto him if it were now seasonable to examine that businesse This being supposed it would be most evident that such an act of knowne deliberate sinne committed in time of tryall is quite contrary to justification even as contrary as Abrahams refusing to beleeve Gods promise first or after to sacrifice Isaac you may suppose would have been Of which the least that can be said will be this that such a failing is a shrewd blemish to sincerity which will make it necessary for him that is guilty of it to repaire his credit with God by expressing a great sence of his miscarriage and by many future performances of constancy and resolution if ever he hope to be approved or justified by him 53 But now having thus far confirmed this and so rather strengthned then weakned the objection the next thing I shall desire may be observed is this that every non-remission of a sinne for some time every displeasure of Gods every not-imputing to righteousnesse is not an utter intercision of justification is not a calling all the former forgotten sinnes to remembrance for to such onely an Apostacy or continued falling away from God betrayes the soule For the whole current of my life may approve my sidelity to God though some one action be very contrary to it Nay secondly a Father may be displeased with his Sonne for some one fault and yet not disinherit him nay upon farther provocation he may cast him out of his family and yet afterward receive him into it againe 54 So that there are three degrees observable in this matter first displeasure secondly wrath thirdly fury First withdrawing of the Fathers favour suspension of pardon so t is in case of any such single act of sinne presently repented of considered before its retractation Second casting out of the family totall intercision of mercy for that present so t is in case of such sin persisted in indulgently Third utter finall irreversible abdication so t is in case of finall obduration 55 This may be illustrated 1. by a vulgar then by an ecclesiasticall resemblance