The Practice of Repentance, Chapter 25
CAP. 25. Obiections against repentance from a mans election.
2. BVt why should I thus abridge my selfe with needlesse sorrow, and to very little purpose? For, if I look to God, I am either elected or not: If I be, I shall bee saued without all this ado: If I be not, all the Repentance in the world wil not auayle.
Againe, looke to men: they be either such as repent not, but enioy the world, and their pleasures, and their sins too; and yet these liue and dye honestly and peaceably, and as well as any other.
Or they be such as do repent, and betake themselues to this strickt course: and these many of them in their liues are as deceitfull, vniust, couetous, proud, hypocriticall, as any men in the world: and many of them in their death as vnquiet, vncomfortable, & vnhappy, as those that neuer vndertooke such businesse.
Ans. To meet this dangerous subtiltie. 1. To those that conceiue Repentance a vaine thing, because of the certainty of Gods decree concerning their saluation or damnation.
1. The wise God in all his decrees, to his maine ends, hath also decreed the meanes, seruing and leading to those ends.
The ends of his election are either next, which is the glorification of the elect, or the remote and highest, his owne glory in the Saints.
The meanes decreed to these ends, are Christ; Regeneration by the spirit, required in all that must be saued, euen the smallest infant; and in men of yeares, Knowledge of the Word, Faith, Repentance, Obedience. And as those ends are stedfastly and vnchangeably; so are the meanes as certainely decreed as those ends. And vntounto these the elect are as certainly predestinated, as to the ends themselues. Ephes. 1 4 Hee hath chosen vsus in him, that we should be holy, and without blame before him in louelove.
2. Gods wisedome teacheth eueryevery Christian to imitate God, in tying his meanes and ends together: because as they cannot attaine those ends without the meanes; so they cannot digresse from the meanes, but misse of their ends. Gods decree stablisheth the meanes, not remoue them. God had giuen Paul the life of all in the ship, Acts 27.31 but when the shipmen would hauehave forsaken the ship, Paul saith, Except these men abide in the ship, ye cannot be saued: because God will saue them by meanes.
3. See the fallacie of this generall delusion, à bene coniunctis, ad male diuisa. And indeed Sathan wofully ouerreacheth vsus, who in outward things would hauehave men wholly to distrust God, and relye wholly on the meanes: but in these spirituall things maketh vsus lay all on Gods purpose and decree, and vtterly despise the meanes. What a false conclusion is it, If I be elected, doe what I will, I shall bee saued? For, as it is impossible that the elect should not be saued; so impossible is it, he should doe what hee list; and as impossible to bee saued without Repentance.
And though it bee true, that Election and Saluation bee coupled together inseparably: yet the meanes run between them; and Gods order as stable as his decree. So as hee that is chosen to saluation, is chosen to faith, holinesse, louelove, perseuerance, that by these steps he may walke in the way of saluation. Quae Deus coniunxit, nemo separet.
4. Obserue the absurditie of this allegation against Repentance; and in all temporall things wee can scorne the conclusion. If God hauehave appointed thee to saluation, why commest thou to Church? what needest thou heare? what neede of the Sacraments? why prayest thou? all this cannot alter his decree; why turnest not thou then Atheist? See here the battry of all godlinesse, pietie, and all worship. So in temporall things, why dost thou not refuse meate in thy health, and medicine in thy sicknesse? and say, If GOD hauehave decreed my life, I shal liue, and neuer eate nor vse meanes.
So, cast off thy calling and trade, and say, If God hauehave appointed me to be rich I shall bee rich though I do nothing: and if not, all my trading will not auaile me.
5. Another delusion hideth it selfe in this allegation, wherby the deceitful heart would lay the cause of his impenitencie vponupon Gods decree, whereas thy impenitencie is not an effect of Gods decree, but a consequent. The cause being in thy selfe, a darknesse and wilfull blindnesse in thy minde, an obstinate contumacie of thine owne will, resisting grace offred; yea, a depraued delight and desire in thy affection, who willingly deliuerest thy selfe to bee bound in the chaines of vnrighteousnesse: So as thy destruction is of thy self; and no sinner is condemned, till himselfe hauehave worthily deserued it.
6. The guilefull heart willingly deceiueth it selfe with Ifs, and Ands; If I be elected, and if I be reiected: & that in things secret which belong to God, letting passe things that are reuealed: where as eueryevery Christian ought to know himself elected, and to beleeue it Gods order reuealed to bring vsus to glory.
Christ would hauehave vsus reioyce that our names are written in the Booke of life. And this is not by any extraordinary ladder to climbe to heauen, but by an ordinary way here in earth. For if we can finde sound faith or holinesse in our selues or others, we may conclude certainly, our owne or others election.
How did the Apostle know, and pronounce the Thessalonians to bee the elect of God, 1. Thes. 1.4. but by their holines, faith, louelove, and patient hope? verse. 3. whence he concludeth their election. So may we know our selues, and ought to know our selues elected, by being called out of the world. If my father hauehave giuen me an estate, and assurance in Land or Goods, now I know it was his purpose within himselfe before to giuegive it me. If I see a manchilde borne, I now know that a manchilde was conceiued in the wombe the number of moneths before. If by faith and holinesse I can discerne my selfe or others, born into the Church of God, I am now as sure that this party was before all worlds conceaued in the wombe of GODS eternall election. So as, cleane contrary to this obiection, nothing can more vrge, and fasten the practice of Repentance on the soule, than the consideration of the decree of Gods election. Thus I hauehave insisted longer on this Obiection▪ because of the generalitie of it, and the subtiltie couched in it: and I finde it no where so throughly sifted.