the true Sanctuary but is entred into the very Heaven Heb. 9. to appeare now in the sight of God for you The Apostle saith 2 Cor. 5.21 He hath made him to be sinne for you that knew no sinne that you might be made the righteousnesse of GOD in him Gal 3.13 Christ was made a curse for you that he might redeeme you from the curse of the Law Oh therefore how happy art thou that hast such a Mediatour and high Priest Rest therefore wholly upon him and upon that perfect eternall and propitiatory Sacrifice which he hath once offered Apply Christ apply his merits apply the promises to your selfe and to your owne conscience so shall they doe you good and bring great comfort to your soule For put case you had a most excellent and soveraigne salve which would cure any wound if it were laid to yet if you should locke it up in your chest and never apply it to your wound what good could it doe you Even so the righteousnesse and merits of Christ are a spirituall salve which will cure any wound of the soule but if wee doe not apply them to our soules by faith they can doe us no good You must therefore apply Christ and all the promises of the Gospel to your selfe by faith and stand fully perswaded that whatsoever hee hath done upon the Crosse hee hath done for you particularly For what is justifying faith but a full perswasion of Gods particular love to us in Christ The generall and confused knowledge of Christ and his Gospel availes not to eternall life Labour therefore to have the true use of all these great and precious promises and sticke fast to Christ for through him onely wee have remission of sins and eternall life Acts 10.45 To him all the Prophets give witnesse saith Saint Peter that through his Name all that beleeve shall receive remission of their sins Where the Apostle tells us that if a great Iury of Prophets were pannelled to testifie of the way and meanes to eternall life they would all with one consent bring in a verdict that remission of sins and eternall life are onely in Christ Let us heare the Fore-man speake and one or two of the rest for in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word stand The Prophet Esay saith Esay 54.5 He was wounded for our transgressions he was broken for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes wee are healed This great Prophet we see plainly affirmes that Christ suffered for our sins and by his suffering we are saved The Prophet Jeremy testifies the same thing Jer. 23 5. saying Behold the day is come saith the Lord that I will raise to David a righteous branch and a King shall reigne and prosper and shall execute judgement and justice in the earth In his dayes Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely and this is the name whereby they shall call him The Lord our righteousnesse This Prophet jumps with the other For he saith that Christ is the righteous branch and that he is our righteousnesse which is all one as if hee had said our sinnes are pardoned onely through him and through him we are made righteous Moreover hee affirmes that Juda and Israel that is the Church shall be saved by him The Prophet Zachary that I may speake it with reverence telleth the same tale word for word He avoucheth the same thing with the other two Prophets for hee saith In that day a fountaine shall be opened to the house of David Zach. 13.1 and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sinne and for uncleannesse The meaning of the Prophet is that in the dayes of Christs Kingdome the fountaine of Gods mercy in Christ should be opened and let-out to wash away the sinnes and uncleannesse of the Church So then we see that these three great witnesses doe all agree in this that through Christ onely we are washed from our sinnes and through him onely wee are made righteous Seeing then that eternall life is onely in the Sonne therefore he that hath the Sonne hath life Be of good courage therefore O Asunetus for no doubt you have the Sonne and therefore eternall life Feare not your sinnes for they cannot hurt you for as all the righteousnesse of Abraham Isaac and Jacob and all the most righteous men that ever lived on the face of the earth if it were yours could doe you no good without Christ so all the sinne in the world can doe you no hurt being in Christ Rom. 8.1 For there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus Plucke up a good heart therefore be no more heavie and sad for if you be found in Christ clothed with his perfect righteousnesse being made yours through faith what can the Divell say to you what can the Law doe They may well hisse at you but they cannot sting you they may grin at you but they cannot hurt you For who shal lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect It is God that justifies Rom. â— 33 who shall condemne It is Christ which is dead or rather which is risen againe who also sitteth at the right hand of God and makes request for us Phil. 4.4 Rejoyce in the Lord therefore againe I say Rejoice for greater is hee that is in you then hee that is in the world Our Lord Iesus is stronger then all None can pluck you out of his hands hee is a strong Mediator hee hath conquered all our spirituall enemies hee hath overcome hell death and damnation hee hath led captivity captive Col. 1.15 hee hath spoyled principalities and powers and hath made an open shew of them and triumphed over them on his crosse Hee hath most triumphantly said O death Hos 13.14 I will be thy death O grave I will be thy destruction O death where is thy sting 1 Cor. 15.55 O hell where is thy victory Seeing then you have such a Mediator and high Priest as hath conquered the hellish army and subdued all infernall power what need you to doubt what need you to feare any more Moreover you are to understand and to be perswaded that Gods mercy is exceeding great towards penitent sinners and all such as mourne for their transgressions according as hee saith At what time soever a sinner doth repent him of his sinnes from the bottome of his heart hee will put them all out of his remembrance The Prophet David doth most lively and fully describe unto us the mercifull nature of God in the 103. Psalme where hee saith The Lord is full of compassion and mercy slow to anger and of great kindnesse hee will not alwaies chide neither keepeth his anger for ever hee hath not dealt with us after our sinnes nor rewarded us according to our iniquities For as high as the heaven is above the earth so great is his mercy towards those that feare him
Booke of life For whom hee hath predestinate them hee hath called Rom. 8.30 and whom hee hath called them hee hath justified and whom he hath justified them he hath glorified Now therefore till wee feele these markes of election wrought in us we can be at no certainty in this point neither are wee to take any notice of it or meddle in it but we must strive according to that power and faculty wee have to live honestly and civilly waiting when God will have mercy on us and give us the true touch As for them that are carelesse and dissolute letting all at six and seven there is small hope that they are elected or ever shall be called Antil I thinke the preaching and publishing of this doctrine of predestination hath done much hurt and it had been good it had never been knowne to the people but utterly concealed For some it driveth to despaire and others it maketh more secure and carelesse Theol. You are in a great errour for this doctrine is part of Gods revealed Truth which hee would have knowne to his people And in good sooth it is of very great and comfortable use to the Children of God against all the assaults of the Divell and temptations of desperation whatsoever For when a man hath once in truth felt by the effects that God hath chosen him to life then though the Divell lye sore at him and the conscience of sinne and his owne frailties doe vehemently assault him yet he knoweth certainly that the eternall purpose and counsell of God is immutable and that because his salvation is not grounded upon himselfe or his owne strength but upon the unchangeable decree of GOD which is a foundation immoveable and alwayes standing sure and firme therefore doe the Divell and sin what they can yet he shall be upheld in righteousnesse and truth and even as it were borne up in the armes of God even to the end For whom God loveth to the end he loveth them Moreover when once the Lords people perceive by their sanctification and new birth both that the Lord hath rejected and reprobated so many thousand thousands and made choice of them to be heires of his most glorious Kingdome being in themselves of the same mould and making that others are and that he hath done all this of his free grace and undeserved mercy towards them oh how doth it ravish their hearts with the love of him Againe how frankly and cheerfully doe they serve him how willingly and faithfully doe they obey him Yea how are they wholly rapt and inflamed with the desire of him For it is the perswasion and feeling of Gods love towards us that draweth up our love to him againe as St. John saith 1. John 4. We love him because he hath love us first Moreover it is said of Mary Magdalen Luke 7. that she loved much because much was forgiven For after shee felt her many great sins freely pardoned her affections were kindled with the love and obedience of Christ So likewise the Church in the Canticles Cant. â— 5 after shee had beene in the banquetting house of all spirituall grace and felt the banner of Christs love displayed upon her forthwith shee was rape therewith and cryed out as it were in a swoun that shee was sicke of love So againe Cant. 5.5 when Christ put in his hand by the hole of the doore that is touched the very inward parts of her heart by his spirit then her heart yearned and her bowels were affectioned towards him This is it which St. Paul prayeth for upon his knees Eph. 18 19 that it may be granted to the Ephesians that they may bee able to comprehend with all the Saints what is the breadth and length height and depth of Gods love towards us and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge and to be filled with all fulnesse of God Thus then you see the great and comfortable use of this doctrine of election both in that it ministreth strength comfort against all temptations as also because it constraineth us to love God and of very love to feare him and obey him Phil. Well Sir I think now you have spent time enough in answering the objections and cavils of Antilegon In all which I doe observe one thing that there is no end of cavilling and objecting against the truth and that a man may object more in an houre then a learned man can well answer in a day Theol. You say truth And the reason hereof is because men have sin in them out of measure and the Spirit of God but in measure Therefore they can by the one object and conceive more against the truth then by the other they shall be able to answer and say for it Phil. It appeareth indeed that errours be infinite and objections innumerable and that there is no end of mens cavilling against Gods sacred truth It is good for us therefore to be thorowly settled in the truth that we be not entangled or snared with any cavils or sophistications whatsoever And I doe verily thinke notwithstanding all his objections and exceptions that he doth in his conscience desire with Balaam to dye the death of the righteous and to be as one of them whom he seemeth to despise Theol. I am so perswaded too For this is the triumph that vertue hath over vice that where she is most hated there she is often desired and wished for And this is the great punishment that God bringeth upon the wicked Virtutem ut videant intabescantque relicta as saith the Poet That they shall see vertue and pine away having no power to follow it Phil. But now let us returne to the point wee were in hand with before wee fell into these objections and cavils which was concerning the small number of them which shall be saved and as you have shewed us many reasons thereof so proceed to speak yet more unto that point Theol. As I have shewed you of sundry lets both within us and without us which doe keep us backe from God and hold us fast in our sinnes so now unto all that hath been said before I will adde nine great hinderances unto eternall life which may not unfitly be termed nine bars out of Heaven and nine gates into Hell Phil. Which be they Theol. They be these Infidelity Nine gates into Hell Presumption of Gods mercy Examples of the multitude Long custome of sin Long escaping of punishment Hope of long life Conceitednesse Ill company Evill examples of Ministers Phil. These indeed be strong bars out of heaven and wide gates into hell I pray you therefore prove them of the Scriptures and lay them forth somewhat more largely Theol. The first which is Infidelity is proved out of the fourth chapter to the Hebrewes verse 2. where it is written Unto us was the Gospel preached as unto them but the word which they heard profited them not because it was not mixed
The answers of ignorant men to the grounds of religion pag. 334 The meanes to get out of ignorance pag. 346 347 Ignorance a most dangerous thing pag. 348 The charge of Ministers exceeding weighty and most carefully to be looked unto pag. 353 What is the best course for Ministers to take to bring the people out of ignorance pag. 357 What is the best course for the people to take that they may be brought out of the bondage of sinne and captivity of Sathan pag. 358 359 Preaching a matter of absolute necessity unto eternall life pag. 363 Without preaching the people are in great danger of losing their souls pag. 364 Satans cunning in frustrating the hearing of the Word and making all preaching utterly unprofitable pag. 365 The Preachers counsell to the ignorant man pag. 367 Six great dangers of sin pag. 368 Six most fearfull events of sin pag. 369 God in all ages hath severely punished the transgressors of his Law pag. 370 371 Every sin though never so little in our eyes is hainous and capitall because it is against a person of infinite Majesty pag. 371 Nine profitable considerations pag. 372 If men would leave words and fall to doing great good would come of it pag. 374 Nine things much to be thought upon pag. 376 The description of Christs comming to judgment pag. 376 377 The terror the suddennesse the end the manner and the use of Christs second coming described pag. 378 379 The torments of hell with the extremity perpetuity and remedilesnesse thereof described pag. 389 The ignorant man upon the hearing of the day of judgement and hell fire laid open is pricked in his conscience bewailes his former life repents earnestly for his sin and ignorance and desires spirituall physicke and comfort of the Preacher pag. 398 The Preacher ministers unto him much spirituall comfort and doth in ample manner lay open unto him all the sweet promises of the Gospel and the infinite mercy of God in Christ to all true penitent and broken-hearted sinners pag. 402 403 The ignorant man being afflicted in his conscience is exceedingly comforted with the hearing of Gods abundant mercy preached unto him and thereupon gathers great inward peace converts unto God with all his heart and exceedingly blesseth God for the Preachers counsell pag. 422 FINIS A Morning Prayer to be used in private Families O Lord our God and heavenly Father we thy unworthy children do here come into thy most holy and heavenly presence to give thee praise and glory for all thy great mercies and manifold blessings toward us especially for that thou hast preserved us this night past from all the dangers and fears thereof hast given us quiet rest to our bodies and brought us now safely to the beginning of this day and dost now afresh renew all thy mercies upon us as the Eagle reneweth her bill giving us all things abundantly to enjoy as food raiment health peace liberty and freedome from many miseries diseases casualties and calamities which we are subject to in this life every minute of an houre and not onely so but also for vouchsafing unto us many good things not onely for necessity but even for delight also But above all dear Father wee praise thy name for the blessings of a better life especially for thy most holy Word and Sacraments and all the good wee enjoy thereby for the continuance of the Gospel amongst us for the death of thy Sonne and all that happinesse which wee have thereby also because thou hast chosen us to life before wee were and that of thy meere goodnesse and undeserved favour toward us and hast called us in thine appointed time justified us by thy grace and sanctified us by thy Spirit and adopted us to be thine owne children and heires apparent to the great Crowne O Lord open our eyes every day more and more to see and consider of thy great and marvellous love to us in all these things that by the due consideration thereof our hearts may be drawne yet neerer unto thee even more to love thee feare thee and obey thee that as thou art enlarged towards us in mercy so we may be enlarged towards thee in thanksgiving and as thou dost abound towards us in goodnesse so we may abound towards thee in obedience and love And sith deare Father thou art never weary of doing us good notwithstanding all our unworthinesse and naughtinesse therefore let the consideration of thy great mercy and fatherly kindnesse towards us even as it were force our hearts and compell us to come into thy most glorious presence with new songs of thanksgiving in our mouthes Wee pray thee O most mercifull God to forgive all our unthankfulnesse unkindnesse profanenesse and great abusing of all thy mercies and especially our abuse and contempt of thy Gospel together with all other the sinnes of our life which we confesse are innumerable and more then can be reckoned up both in omission of good things and commission of evill We most humbly entreat thee to set them all over to the reckoning which thy Son Christ hath made up for them upon his Crosse and never to lay any of them to our charge but freely forget all and forgive all Naile down all our sinnes and iniquities to the Crosse of Christ bury them in his death bathe them in his bloud hide them in his wounds let them never rise up in judgement against us Set us free of the miseries that are upon us for sin and keep back the judgements to come both of soule body goods and good name Be reconciled unto us in thy deare Sonne concerning all matters past not once remembring or repeating unto us our old and abominable iniquities but accept us as righteous in him imputing his righteousnesse to us and our sins to him Let his righteousnesse satisfie thy justice for all our unrighteousnesse his obedience for our disobedience his perfection for our imperfection Moreover wee humbly beseech thy good Majesty to give us the true sight and feeling of our manifold sins that we may not be blinded in them through delight or hardened in them through custome as the reprobates are but that we may be even weary of them and much grieved for them labouring and striving by all possible meanes to get out of them Good Father touch our hearts with true repentance for all sinne Let not us take any delight or pleasure in any sinne but howsoever we fall through frailty as wee fall often let us never fall finally let us never lye downe in sin nor continue in sin but let us get up on our feet againe and turne to thee with all our hearts and seek thee whilest thou maist be found and whilest thou dost offer grace and mercy unto us O Lord increase in us that true and lively faith whereby wee may lay sure hold on thy Sonne Christ and rest upon his merits altogether Give us faith assuredly to beleeve all thy great and precious promises made in the
his opportunity against us that hee may infect and breathe into us all filthy lusts and adulterous desires when wee lye open unto him by idlenesse Wisely therefore to this point saith the Greeke Poet Hesiodus Much rest nourisheth lust And another Poet saith Quaeritur Aegystus quare sit factus adulter In promptu causa est dâ—sidiosus erat Slothfull lazinesse is the cause of adultery And therefore another saith Eschew idlenesse Our 〈…〉 and cut the very sinews of lust The fourth cause of Adultery is wanton apparell which is a minstrellesse that pipes up a dance unto whoredome But of this enough before The fift and last cause of adulterie is the hope of impunity or escaping of punishment For many being blinded and hardened by Sathan think they shall never bee called to any account for it and because they can blear the eyes of men and carry this sinne so closely under a cloud that it shall never come to light they thinke all is safe and that God seeth them not And therefore Job saith Job 24.15 The eye of the adulterer waiteth for the twi-light and saith No eye shall see mee And in another place Job 23.13 How shall God know Can hee judge thorow the dark cloud But verily versly though the adulterer do never so closely and cunningly convey his sinne under a canopy yet the time will come when it shall be disclosed to his eternall shame For God will bring every work to judgement Eccl. 12.24 with every secret thought whether it be good or evill Psal 9â— For hee hath set our most secret sinnes in the sight of his countenance 1 Cor. 4. And hee will lighten the things that are hid in darknesse and make the counsels of the heart manifest For this cause Job saith Job 10. When I sinne thou watchest mee and wilt not purge me from my sin Phil. Now you have shewed us the causes of adultery I pray you shew us the remedies Theol. There be six remedies for adultery which no doubt will greatly prevail if they bâ— well practised Phil. Which be they Six remedies of adultery Theol. Labour Abstinence Temperance Prayer Restraint of our senses Shunning of womens company and all occasions whatsoever Phil. Well Sir now you have waded deepe enough in the second signe of damnation I pray you let us proceed to the third which is Covetousnesse And as you have laid naked the two former so I pray you strip this stark naked also that all men may see what an ugly monster it is and therefore hate it and abhor it Theol. I would willingly satisfie your minde but in this point I shall never doe it sufficiently For no heart can conceive nor tongue sufficiently utter the loathsomenesse of this vice For covetousnesse is the foulest fiend and blackest Divell of all the rest It is even great Beelzebub himselfe Therefore I shall never be able fully to describe it unto you but I will doe what I can to sttip and whip it stark naked And howsoever the men of this earth and blind worldlings take it to bee most sweet beautifull and amiable and therefore doe embrace it entertaine it and welcome it as though there were some happinesse in it yet I hope when I have shewed them the face thereof in a glasse even the true glasse of Gods Word they will be noe more in such love but quite oâ—t of conceit with it I will therefore hold out this glasse unto them St. Paul to Timothy brandeth this stâ—ne in the forehead and boareth it in the eares that all men may know it and avoyd it 1 Tâ—â— â— 1â— when he saith Covetousnesse is the root of all evill Our Lord Iesus also giveth us a watch-word to take heed of it saying Take heed and beware of covetousnesse 〈◊〉 12.15 As if hee should say Touth it not come not neare it it is the very breath of the Divell it is present death and the very ratsâ—bane of the soule The Apostle layeth out the great danger of this sinne and doth exceedingly grinde the face of it â—â—il 5 19. when he saith That the end of all such as mind earthly things is damnation Let all carnall worldlings and muckish minded men lay this to heart and consider well of it lest they say one day Had I wist Phil. Good Sir lay open unto us the true nature of covetousnesse and what it is that wee may more perfectly discerne it Theol. Covetousnesse is an immoderate desire of having Phil. I hope you do not think frugality thriftinesse and good husbandry to be covetousnesse Theol. Nothing lesse For they be things commanded being done in the feare of God and with a good conscience Phil. Doe you not thinke it lawfull also for men to doe their worldly businesse and to use faithfullnesse and diligence in their callings that they may pâ—ovide for themselves and their families Theol. Yes no doubt And the rather if they doe these things with calling upon God for a blessing upon the workes of their hands and use preyer and thanksgiving before and after their labour taking heed all the day long of the common corruptions of the world as swearing cursing lying dissembling deceiving greedy getting c. Phil. Wherein I pray you doth covetousnesse especially consist Theol. In the greedy desire of the mind For we may lawfully doe the workes of our calling and play the good husbands and good huswives but wee must take heed that distrustfullnesse and inward greedinesse of the world doe not catch our hearts For then wee are set on fire and utterly undone Phil. Sith covetousnesse is especially of the heart how may we know certainly when the heart is infected Theol. There be four speciall signes of the hearts infection Phil. Which be they Theol. The first is an eager and sharp set desire of getting Therefore the holy Ghost saith Pâ—oâ— â—8 Hee that hasteth to be rich shall not be unpunished Pâ—o. 20.2 And againe An heritage is hastily gotten at the beginning but the end thereof shall not be blessed Deâ—â—stâ—â—nes in Olinth 2. The heathen man also saith No man can be both justly and hastily rich The second is a pinching and niggardly keeping of our owne that is when men being able to give will hardly part with any thing though it be to never so holy and good use And when at last with much adoe for shame they give something it cometh heavily from them God wot and scantly The third is the neglect of holy duties that is when mens mindes are so taken up with the love of earthly things that they begin to slack and cool in matters of Gods worship The fourth and last is a trusting in riches and staying upon them as though our lives were maintained by them or did consist only in them which thing our Lord Iesus flatly denyeth saying Though a man have abundance Luk. 12.15 yet his life consisteth not in the things that
hope for as of that which wee have but wee are sure of that which wee have which is the 〈◊〉 of grace therefore wee are sure 〈◊〉 wee looke for which is the crowne of glory Many other places of the holy Scriptures might be alledged to this purpose but I suppose these may suffice Phil. As you have shewed this by the Scriptures so also shew it more planly by evident reason out of the same Theol. How can a man in truth call God his Father when hee saith Our Father which art in heaven and yet doubt whether hee is his Father or no For if GOD indeed be our Father and we his children how can we perish how can we be damned Will a Father condemne his owne children shall the children of GOD be condemned No no Rom. 8.1 There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus Againe Rom. 8.33 â—4 Who can lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect it is God that justifieth who can condemne It is therefore most certaine and sure that all such as doe in truth call God their Father and have God for their Father shall be saved Againe how can a man say in truth and feeling that he beleeves the forgivenesse of sinnes and yet doubt whether he shall be saved For if he be fully perswaded that his sinnes be forgiven what letteth why he should not be saved Moreover as certainly as we know we are called justified and sanctified so certainly we know we shall be glorified But we know the one certainly and therefore the other Asun I will never beleeve that any man can certainly know in this world whether hee shall be saved or damned but all men must hope well and be of a good beliefe Theol. Nay we must goe further then hope-well We may not venture our salvation upon uncertaine hopes As if a man should hope it would be a faire day to morrow but hee cannot certainly tell No no wee must in this case being of such infinite importance as it is grow to some certainty and full resolution Wee see worldly men will be loth to hold their lands and leases uncertainely having nothing to shew for them They will not stand to the curtesie of their land-lords nor rest upon their good wils They will not stay upon uncertaine hopes No they are wiser then so For the children of this world are wiser in their generation then the children of light Luke 16. They will be sure to have something to shew They will have it under seale They will not slay upon the words and promises of the most honest men and best land-lords They cannot be quiet till they have it in white and black with sound counsell upon their Title and every way made as sure unto them as any Law of the land can make it Are then the children of this world so wise in these inferiour things and shall not wee be as wise in matters of ten thousand times more importance Are they so wise for earth and shall not wee be as wise for heaven Are they so wise for their bodies and shall not wee be as wise for our soules Shall we hold the state of our immortall inheritance by hope-well and have no writings or evidences no seale no witnesses nor any thing to shew for it Alas this is a weake Tenure a broken Title a simple hold indeed Asun Yet for all that a man cannot be certaine Theol. Yes Saint John telleth us we may be certaine For hee saith Hereby we know we dwell in him 1 Joh. 4.13 and he in us because he hath given us of his Spirit He saith not we hope but we know certainly For he that hath the Spirit of God knoweth certainly he hath it and he that hath faith knoweth that he hath faith and he that shall be saved knoweth he shall be saved For God doth not worke so darkly in mens hearts by his Spirit but that they may easily know whether it be of him or no if they would make a due tryall Againe the same Apostle saith 1 Joh. 5. â—6 He that beleeveth in the Son of God hath the witnesse in himselfe That is he hath certaine testimonies in his owne conscience that he shall be saved For we must fetch the warrant of our salvation from within our selves even from the worke of GOD within us For looke how much a man feeleth in himselfe the increase of knowledge obedience and godlinesse so much the more sure he is that he shall be saved A mans owne conscience is of great force this way and will not lye or deceive For so saith the wise man Pro. 27.19 As water sheweth face to face so doth the heart man unto man That is the mind and conscience of every man telleth him justly though not perfectly what he is For the conscience will not lye but accuse or excuse a man being in stead of a thousand witnesses 1 Cor 2.11 The Apostle saith No man knowes the things of man but the spirit of man that is in him And againe the Scripture saith Pro. 2â— 29 Mans soule is as it were the candle of the Lord whereby he searcheth all the bowels of the belly So then it is a cleere case that a man must have recourse to the worke of Gods grace within him even in his owne soule and thereby he shall be certainly resolved one way or other For even as Rebecca knew certainly by the striving and stirring of the twins in her wombe that she was conceived and quick of childe so Gods children know certainly by the motions and stirring of the holy Ghost within them that they have conceived Christ and shall undoubtedly be saved Phil. I pray you let us come to the ground-worke of this certainty of salvation and speak somewhat of that Theol. The ground-worke of our salvation is laid in Gods eternall election and in respect thereof it standeth fast and unmoveable as it is written 2 Tim. 2.16 1 Thes 5.24 The foundation of God standeth fast And againe Hee is faithfull that hath promised 2 Tim. 2.13 Though wee cannot beleeve yet hee abides faithfull So then as we know it certainly in our selves by the consequence of election so it standeth most firme in respect of God and his eternall and immutable decree And a thousand infirmities nay all the sinnes of the world nor all the Divels in hell cannot overthrow Gods election For our Lord Iesus saith John 6.34 All that the Father hath given mee shall come unto mee And againe John 6.39 This is the Fathers will that hath sent mee that of all which hee hath given me I should lose nothing but should raise it up againe at the last day And in another place our Saviour Christ saith John 10.17 My sheep heare my voice and I know them and they follow mee and I give unto them eternall life and they shall never perish neither shall any plucke them out of my hand