The Doctrine of the Saints Perseverance, Chapter 14
CAP. XIV.
1 Mr. G's Third Argument proposed and considered. The Drama borrowed by M. G. to make good this Argument. 2. The frame of speech ascribed to God according to our Doctrine by the Remonstrants weighed and considered. 3. The dealing of God with Man, and the importance of his exhortations, according to the Doctrine of the Saints Perseverance manifested. 4. In what sence, and to what end Exhortations and Threatnings are made to Believers. 5. The fallacious Ground of this Argument of M. G. 6. M. G. Fourth Argument proposed to consideration, considered. Eternall Life, how, and in what sence a Reward of Perseverance. 7. The enforcement of the Major proposition considered. 8. The Proposition new moulded to make it of concernement to our Doctrine: and denied from the example of the obedience of Jesus Christ. 9. Efficacy of Grace not inconsistent with Reward. 10. The Argument enforced with a new consideration: that consideration examined, and removed. 11. Farther of the consistency of Effectuall Grace, and Gospell Exhortations.
A Third Argument is proposed Sect. 18. Cap. 13. in these words,§. 1. That Doctrine which representeth God as weake, Incongruous, and In coherent with himselfe, in his applications unto men, is not from God, and consequently that which contradicteth it, must needs be the truth: but the Doctrine of Perseverance opposed by us, putteth this great dishonour upon God, representeth him weake, Incongruous, &c. Ergo. For the proofe of the Minor Proposition, to make good the charge in it exhibited against the Doctrine of Perseverance, there is a Drammaticall scheme induced, to whose framing and Application M. Goodwin contributed no more but the paines of a Translator, taking it from the Anti-Synod: p. 276. 277. in these words. You that truly Believe in my Sonne, and have beene once made partakers of my Holy Spirit, and therefore are fully perswaded & assured from my will and command given unto you in that behalfe, yea according to the infallible word of Truth which you have from me, that you cannot possibly, no not by all the most horrid sinns and abominable practices, that you shall, or can commit fall away either totally or finally from your Faith; for in the midst of your foulest actions & courses there remaines a seed in you which is sufficient to make you true Believers, & to preserve you from falling away finally, that it is impossible you should dye in your sinnes; you that know & are assured, that I will by an irresistible hand worke Perseverance in you, & consequently that you are out of all danger of condemnation, and that Heaven and Salvation belong unto you, and are as good as yours already, so that nothing but giving of thankes appertaines to you which also you know that I will, do what you will in the meane time, necessitate you unto; you I say that are fully and throughly perswaded and possessed with the truth of all these things, I earnestly charge, admonish, exhort, and beseech, that yee take heed to your selves, that yee countinue in the Faith, that there be not at any time an evill heart of unbeliefe in any to depart from the Living God, that you fall not from your owne stedfastnesse, yea I declare and professe unto you that if you shall draw back, my soule shall have no pleasure in you, that if you shall deny me, I will deny you, that if you be againe overcome of the lusts of the world, and be intangled here with, that your latter end shall be worse than your beginning, that if you shall turne away, all your former Righteousnes shall not be remembred, but you shall dye in your sinnes, and suffer the veugeance of Eternall fire. On the other hand if you shall continue to the end, my Promise is, that you shall be Saved; therefore strive to enter in at the straite gate, quit your selves like men, labour for the meat that indureth unto Everlasting Life, and be not sloathfull, but followers of them, who through Faith and Patience inherit the Promises. He that shall duly weigh and consider, what a sencelesse and indeed ridiculous incongruity there is, between these Exhortations, Adjurations, Threatnings, and latter Promises, and those Declarations, Applications, and former Promises doubtlesse will confesse that either the one, or the other of them are not from God, or according to the mind of God.
Ans. §. 2.The incongruity of this fiction, with the Doctrine it is framed against, is so easily manifested that it will not much concerne us, to consider the incongruity that the severall parts of it have one with an other. For
First the whole Foundation of this fanatick Fabrick, is ridiculous in it selfe, and ridiculously imposed on the Doctrine of Perseverance. For whereas it sayes not that all Saints have any comfortable Assurance of their Perseverance and so may by all Gospell wayes whatever, by Promises, and Threatnings, be stirred up to the use of those meanes whereby Perseverance is wrought, and Assurance obtain'd, so it saies that no one Saint in the world, ever had, can have, or was taught to expect his Perseverance or the least sence, or Assurance of it under such an uncouth supposition, as falling into & continuing in sins & Abominations; the Promises they have to assure thē of their inseparable abode with God to the end, are, that he will write his Law in their hearts, & put his Feare in their inward parts; that they shall never depart from him; and they shall be kept up thereto, by the use of meanes suitable as appointed of God for the attaining of the end proposed, being kept by the power of God, but throngh Faith unto Salvation. God doth not call (nor doth the Doct: of Perseverance of the Saints, or of the stability and Unchangeablenesse of his Promises in Christ to Believers assert it) any to Believe that they shall never fall away from him, what sinnes and Rebellions so ever they fall into, neither hath he promised any such things unto thē, but only that he will through his Grace preserve them in the use of meanes from such Rebellions, as are inconsistent with his Love and free acceptation through Christ according to the Tenor of the Covenant of Grace; so that instead of the first part of this fiction, whose inconsistency with the latter is after Argued, let this acording to the Analogy of our Doctrine be instituted.
You that truly Believe in my Sonne Jesus Christ,§: 3. and are made partakers of my Holy Spirit, who being heirs of the Promises, and so have a Right to that abundant Consolation, that Joy in believing, which I am willing all of you should receive; I know your Feares, doubts, perplexityes and Temptations, your failings, sinnes and back-slidings, and what sad thoughts on the account of the evill of your owne hearts and wayes you are exposed to, as that you shall never abide, nor be able to continue with me, and in my Love to the end: let the feeble knees be strengthned and the hands that hang downe be lifted up: behold I have ordained goodworkes for you to walke in, as the way wherein you are to walke for the attainement of the end of your Faith the Salvation of your soules; And to quicken you and stirre you up hereunto, I have provided and established Effectuall Ordinances, revealed in the Word of my Grace, whereunto you are to attend, and in the use of them according to my mind, to grow up into Holinesse, in all manner of holy conversation, Watching, Fighting, Resisting, Contending with, and against all the Spirituall Enemy's of your soules; And as for me, this is my Covenant with you, that my Spirit which gives Efficacy to all the meanes, Ordinances and Advantages of Gospell Obedience, which I have afforded unto you, by whom I will fulfill in you all the goodpleasure of my Goodnesse, and the worke of Faith with Power, so making you meet for the Inheritance of the Saints in Light, and Preserving you to my Heavenly Kingdome, shall never depart from you; so that you also having my Law written in your hearts, shall never utterly and wickedly depart from me; And for such sinnes and follies as you shall be overtaken withall, I will graciously heale your backslidings and receive you freely.
This is the Language of the Doctrine we maintaine, which is not (we full well know) obnoxious to any Exceptions or Consequences what ever, but such as bold and prejudiced men, for the countenance of their vaine conceits and opinions, will venture at any time to impose and fasten on the most pretious Truths of the Gospell; That God should say to Believers, as is imposed on him,, fall into what sinnes they will, or abominations they can, yet he will have them believe, that by an irresistible hand, he will necessitate them to Persevere; that is, in and under their Apostacy, (which is evidently implyed in their falling into sinnes and abominations in the manner insisted on) is a ridiculous fiction, to the imagination whereof the least colour is not supplied, by the Doctrine intended to be …raduced thereby.
Secondly,§. 4. for the ensuing Exhortations, Promises, and Threatnings, as farre as they are really Evangelicall, whose use and tendency is argued to be inconsistent with the Doctrine before proposed, I have formerly manifested. What is their proper use and efficacy in respect of Believers, and their consistency with the truth we maintaine, apprehended as it is indeed, and not visarded with ugly and dreadfull appearances, will I presume scarcely be called in question by any, who having received a Kingdome that cannot he shaken, doe know what it is to serve God acceptably with reverence and Godly feare; It is true, they are made unto, and have their use in reference unto them that Believe, and shall Persevere therein: but they are not given unto them, as men assured of their Perseverance; but as men called to the use of meanes for the establishing of their soules in the wayes of obedience; They are not in the method of the Gospell, irrationally happed on such intimations of unchangeable Love, or proposed under such wild Conditionalls, and Suppositions, as here by our Author; but annexed to the Appointment of those wayes of Grace and Peace, which God calls his Saints unto, being suited to worke upon the new nature wherewith they are indued, as spreading it selfe over all the facultyes of their Rationall Soules, wherein are Principles fit to be excited to Operation by Exhortations and Promises.
Thirdly,§. 5. all that is indeed Argumentative in this Discourse is built on this Foundation; that a Spirituall Assurance of attaining the end by the use of meanes, is discouraging and disswasive to the use of those meanes; A Proposition so uncouth in it selfe, so contradictory to the experience of all the Saints of God, so derogatory to the Glory and Honour of Jesus Christ himselfe, (who in all his Obedience had doubtles an Assurance of the end of it all) as any thing that can well fall into the imaginations of the Hearts of men; Might not the Devill have thus replyed upon our Saviour, when he tempted him to turne Stones into Bread, & cast himselfe from a pinacle of the Temple, & received Answer that man lives not by Bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God but alas! thou Jesus the Sonne of the Living God, that art perswaded thou art so, and that God will preserve thee, whether thou usest any meanes or no, that thou shalt never be starved for want of Bread, nor hurt thy selfe by any fall, whatever thou clost, the Angells having charge that no evill shall come nigh thee, nor thy foot be hurt against a stone, thou maist now cast thy selfe headlong from the Temple, to manifest thy Assurance of the Love and Faithfullnesse of God with his Promises to thee; If our Saviour thought it sufficient to stop the mouth of the Devill, to manifest from Scripture, that notwithstanding the Assurance from God that any one hath of the end, yet he is to use the meanes tending thereunto, (a neglect whereof is a sinfull tempting of God;) we shall not need to goe farther for an Answer to the same kind of Objections in the mouth of any Adversary whatever.
His 19th Section containeth his fourth Argument,§. 6. in these words;
If there be no possibility of the Saints falling away finally, then is their Persevering uncapable of reward from God. But their finall Perseverance is not uncapable of reward from God; Ergo, The minor Proposition I presume containes nothing but what is the sence of those who deny the conclusion: or how ever it containes nothing but what is the expresse sence of the Lord Christ, where he saith, that he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved; Therefore I suppose we shall bee excused from farther proofe of this, without any prejudice to the cause in hand.
Ans. I grant, Eternall Life may be called the Reward of Perseverance in the sence that the Scripture useth that word, applyed to the matter in hand; It is afterward neither procured by (properly and Morally as the deserving cause) nor proportioned unto the obedience of them by whom it is attained; a Reward it is, that withall, is the free gift of God, and an Inheritance purchased by Jesus Christ; a Reward of Bounty and not of Iustice, in respect of them upon whom it is bestowed, but only of faithfulnesse in reference to the promise of it. A Reward, by being a gratious incouragement, as the end of our obedience, not as the procurement or desert of it; so we grant it a Reward of Perseverance, though those words of our Saviour, he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved, expressed a consequence of things only, and not a connexion of causality of the one upon the other: of the foundation of this discourse concerning a possibility of declining, immediate consideration shall be had. He proceeds then.
The consequence of the Major Proposition,§. 7. stands firme upon this foundation; No act of the Creature whereunto it is necessitated, or which it cannot possibly decline, or but doe, is by any Law of God, or rule of Iustice rewardable; therefore if the Saints be necessitated by God to Persevere finally, so that he leaves unto them no possibility of declining finally, their finall Perseverance is not according to any Law of God, or man, nor indeed to any principles of Reason or Equity, capable of reward; no whit more than actions meerely naturall are: Nay of the two, there seems be more reason why acts meerely naturall (as for example, Eating, Drinking, Breathing, Sleeping,) should be rewarded, in as much as these flow in a way of necessity, yet from an inward principle and connaturall to the Agent, than such actions whereunto the agent is constrain'd, necessitated, & determined, by a principle of power from without, and which is not intrinsecall to it.
And this is the strength of the Argument which will quickly appeare to be very weakenesse. For
First the efficacy of these Expressions (whereunto it is necessitated, and from which they cannot possibly decline) as to their influence into this Argument, ariseth clearely from their Ambiguity; we deny any to be necessitated to Persevere, or that our Doctrine affirmes any such thing taking that expression to hold out a power upon their wills, in their operations, inconsistent with the utmost liberty whereof in Spirituall things having received a Spirituall principle) men are capable; They are not so necessitated to Persevere as that all the Acts of their Obedience, whereby they do Persevere should not be free, but necessary, indeed they are not at all, nor in any sence necessitated to persevere: There is no Necessity attends their Perseverance, but only in respect of the event, with reference to the Vnchangeable purpose and infallible Promise of God; the like may be said of that other expression (possibility of declining,) God leaves in them a possibility of declining, as to their way and manner of walking with him, though he leaves not to them a possibility of declining or falling totally from him, as to the issue and event of the whole matter, which doth not in the least necessitate them to, or in any of their operations.
Secondly,§. 8. the proposition must be cast into an other mould, before it will be of any determinate signification in opposition to the Doct: it opposeth, & tuned to an other mood before it will give a certaine sound to any battell against it; & this is, that no Act of the Creature that is wrought in order to the obtaining of any end promised to be certainely attained thereby, is rewardable of God; (though for Perseverance it is not any act of the Creature, but only a modus of its Obedience) and thus it lookes towards the concernement of this Doctrine; yet before this proposition passe, to omit sundry other things that would gladly rise to the destruction of it, I desire one query may be assailed concerning the Obedience of Jesus Christ, Whether it were not necessary that the end of his Obedience should follow? and Whether it were not impossible he should decline from his Obedience? And if it were, whether it were impossible that God should give a Reward thereunto?
But thirdly,§. 9. the intendment of this Proposition, as farre as it concernes us, (and that indeed is with a respect to our Doctrine of the Efficacy of Grace, and not this of Perseverance) is this, That which is wrought in us, by the Effectuall Grace of God is not capable of Reward from God; A Proposition which though capable of some plea and colour, taking Reward in a pure Legall sence; supposing the Persons seeking after it, to do it by a service, and dutyes proportioned unto it, yet is so openly and directly contradictory to the tenour & designe of God in the Covenant of Grace by Jesus Christ, with the whole dispensation of the Spirit given to abide with Believers, for all the ends and purposes as to their Obedience, as I shall content my selfe to deny it expecting M. Goodwin's proofes of it; When rivers runne backward, heavy things ascend &c.
Fourthly, for the flourish added to these Assertions, by comparing the acts of the Saints Obedience upon a supposition of the Grace of God working them in them, with their Naturall actions of eating, drinking, sleeping as to their tendency to exalt the Glory of God in rewarding, it proceedes either from grosse ignorance of the Doctrine opposed, or willfull prevaricating from that Light of it which he hath who ever taught that God's operations in and towards Believers, as to their Perseverance in Faith and Obedience did consist in an outward constraint of an unwilling principle. God gives a principle of Obedience to them, he writes and implants his Law in their hearts, and moves them effectually to act suitably to that inward principle they have so received; which though Spirituall & Supernaturall in respect of its rise & manner of bestowing, yet is connaturall to thē in respect of its being a Principle of Operation; we are not then in the least beholding to our Author for his following concession; That as a Prince may give great things to them that eat and drinke and breath, but not as rewards, so God may give Eternall Life to them that are so necessitated by him to Persevere, though not as a reward; For although we will not contend with God about Eternall Life; that he give it us under the notion of a Reward, and desire to be much affected with the Consideration of it, as a free guift of Grace, an eminent purchase of the Bloud of God, and looke upon it meerely as a Reward of bounty, so called as being the end whereunto our Obedience is suited and the rest of our Labours, yet we say, in an Evangelicall sence and acceptation, it is properly so proposed to that Obedience and Perseverance therein, which is wrought in us by the efficacy of the Grace of God, as it lyes in a tendency unto that end, which to be attained by those meanes, he hath infallibly determined.
He proceeds therefore to inforce his Argument with a new Consideration.§. 10.
If we speake of Rewards Promised in order to the mooving or inclining of the wills of men towards such or such actions and wayes, of which kind also the Rewards mentioned in the Scriptures, as yet remaining to be conferred by God upon men, are, the case is yet more cleare, viz. That they are appropriate unto such actions aud wayes, unto the Election and choice whereof men are not necessitated in one kinde or other; especially …ot by any Physicall or forreigne power; For to what purpose should a Reward be Promised unto me, to Perswade or make me willing to ingage in such or such a course, or to performe such & such a service in case I be nessitated to the same ingagement or performance otherwayes? Or what place is there left for a Morall inducement, where a Physicall necessity hath done the execution… or if the Morall inducement hath done the execution, & sufficiently raised & ingaged the will to the action, with what congruity of Reason, yea or common sence, can a Physicall necessity be superinduced.
Ans. What there is more in this than what went before, unlesse Sophystry and Falsity, I see not. For first, though I conceive that Eternall Life is proposed in the Scripture as our Reward rather upon the account of supporting & chearing our Spirits in the deficiency's, Temptations, and intanglements attending our Obedience, than directly to ingage into Obedience (though consequently it doth that also) whereunto we have so many other unconquerable ingagements and inducements yet the consideration there of in that sence also, as it moves the wills of men to Actions suitable to the attainement of it, is very well consistent with the Doctrine in hand; That old Calumny an hundred times repeated and insisted on in this contest, of our wills being necessitated and deprived of their choise and Election, unlesse it could be tolerably made good, will be of no use to M. Goodwin as to his present purpose. The whole strength of this Argumentation, is built on this supposall. That the effectuall Grace of God in its working the will & deed in Believers, or the Spirits doing of it by Grace, with Gods fore determination of events, doth take away the Liberty of the will inducing into it a necessary manner of Operation, determining it to one, antecedently in order of time to its own determination of it selfe, which is false & nowise inferred frō the Doctrine under Consideration. Yea as Gods Providentiall concurrence with men and determination of their wills, to all their Actions as Actions is the Principle of all their naturall Liberty so his Gracious Concurrence with thē, or operations in thē as unto Spirituall Effects, working in thē to will, is the Principle of all their true Spirituall Liberty: when the Son makes us free then are we free indeed; the Reward then is proposed to an understanding enlightned, a will quickned & made free by grace, to stirre thē up to actions suitable to them who are in expectation of so bountifull a close of their Obedience: (which actions are yet wrought in them by the Spirit of God, whose fruits they are) and this to very good purpose, in the hearts of all that know what it is to walke with God and to serve him in the midst of Temptations unlesse they are under the power of some such particular errour, as turnes away their eyes from believing the Truth.
Secondly,§. 11. The opposition here pretended between a Physicall necessitating, and a Morall inducement, for the producing of the same effect, is in plain tearms intended between the Efficacy of Gods internall grace, and the use of Externall exhortations and motives; If God give an Internall Principle, or Spirituall Habit, fitting for, inclining to spirituall actions and duties, if he followes the work so begunne in us, (who yet of our selves can doe nothing, nor are sufficient to think a good thought) with continuall supplies of his Spirit and Grace, working daily in us according to the exceeding greatnesse of his power, the things that are well pleasing in his sight, then, though he worke upon us, as Creatures endued with Reason, Understandings, Wills, and Affections, receiving glory from us according to the Nature he hath endued us withall, all Exhortations and Incouragements to Obedience required at our hands, are vaine and foolish; Now because we think this to be the very Wisdome of God, and the opposition made unto it, to be a meere invention of Satan, to magnify corrupted nature, and decry all the Efficacy of the Grace of the new Covenant, we must have something besides, and beyond the naked Assertion of our Author, to cause us once to believe it.
Thirdly, The great Execution that is made by Morall inducements solely, without any internally efficacious grace, in the way of Gospell Obedience is often supposed, but not once attempted to be put upon the proofe or Demonstration; It shall then suffice to deny that any perswasions, outward motives or inducements whatever, are able of themselves to raise, ingage, and carry out the will unto Action, so that any good spirituall Action should be brought forth on that account, without the effectuall influence, and Physicall operation of internall grace; And M. Goodwin is left to prove it, together with such other Assertions derogatory to the free Grace of God, Dogmatically imposed upon his Reader in this Chapter, whereof some have been already remarked, and others may in due time. The residue of this Section (the 13th) spent to prove that Eternall Life is given as a Reward to Perseverance, having already manifested the full consistency of the Proposition, in a Gospell acceptation of the word Reward, with whatever we teach of the Perseverance of the Saints, I suppose my selfe inconcerned in: And therefore passing by the triumphant conclusion of this Argument asserting an Absolute power in men to exhibite or decline from Obedience, I shall goe on to that, which in my apprehension, is of more importance, and will give occasion to a Disconrse, I hope, not unusefull or unprofitable to the Reader; I shall therefore assigne it a peculiar place and Chapter to it selfe.