Survey of the Spiritual Antichrist, Part 2 · Chapter 67
CHAP. LXVII. Of Legall and Evangelicall conversion.
WEe deny not, but there is a Legall conversion, and Gospel terrours, and Gospel-hell fire, and condemnation, and the worme that never dyes, and that nature may propose ends to it selfe, in turning to God outwardly; and that as incident to Antinomians, as to any generation of people. For it is knowne that many Antinomians are deluded, not converted by a worke of the Law, storming and quelling the conscience, with the smoake and fire-slaughts of everlasting burning, especially where the conscience neighbours wich a Melancholike complexion, and when the party comes to such a Physitian as M. Saltmarsh, though there be no inward change in the heart, no evidences either to him, or the deluded soule of a new and inward worke, but the party still in the gall of bitternesse, no sense of sinne, but a dumbe beastly feeling of the flashes of hell fire, a Pharaoh-like disposition, the counterfeit white Angel saith to the perplexed soule, Beleeve everlasting love, and read Pharaoh, and Simon Magus, The Antinomians Conversion.and your own names in the Lambes Booke of life, beleeve and apply immediately, without care, conscience, or sense of sinne, or humiliation, (all these are reprobate money to buy grace, away with them) to come to the bloud of attonement; come, though yee be neither wearie nor laden, nor pricked in heart with sinne; and be yee assuredly perswaded, that that bloud was shed for you, that yee are as cleane from sin 160. agoe, as Christ himselfe. Honey combe, cap. 3. pag. 25. Mourne no more, be not humbled, doe nothing at all, but rest upon what Christ hath done for you, rejoyce evermore; sorrowing for sinne is Legall unbeliefe, severe and strict conversation, and a care by doing, to please God, any personall walking with God, is but a legall bargaining with God, to out-buy Christ, and evacuate free grace, and a mixing of Law and Gospel, and confounding of the two Covenants, and of heaven and hell: and presently upon this, the party is as free of doubting till his dying day, as if he were in heaven, still in a merry pinne, as if he were above the starres, before the throne, under no Law, above all duties; reades, heares, prayes none, but when some immediate rapts of a living active God comes on him a dead passive block in Christ, the Scripture, either Law or Gospel is but a dead Letter, hee is neither tyed nor awed with Law or Gospel, Precept or Command, nor preaching, nor seales, but is acted by a free Spirit, an immediate light and speech of a Spirit above, and beyond all outward word, or Letter of old or new Testament; except when the Spirit shall speake or apply them to the heart, and then these Commandements tye the outer man, and the flesh, and then they bind not for any authority of the Lawgiver, but for the onelyonly Gospel love of Christ, as if Christ had put his Father out of office, whereas Gospel-love commands obedience upon, and for, both the authority of the Lawgiver, and the love of Christ; and when this convert falleth in Adultery, murther, swearing, lying, robbing. 1. It is not he, but the flesh, and sense, and the outward man that doth these. 2. They were remitted and made no sinnes, and hee as cleane as Christ from them, before they bee committed. 3. The Law hath no more to doe with him, then the persuer (saith Saltmarsh) hath to doe with the murtherer, who hath fled to the citie of refuge.
But Saltmarsh Free grace. pag. 177.178.Saltmarsh's Legall convert (he meaneth all, not converted the Antinomian way) is not our convert as he dreameth. 1. Because we look not at conversion meerly as a change in affection and conversation, without Christ, Faith, and saving grace. 2. Antinomians make all the change in conversion, to be meerely imputative, to beleeve that Christ was converted, and repents for us, bSaltmarsh How meer commands from the Word, cannot worke a cha…ge.and to regard no inward change, 3. It is false, that Saltmarsh saith, That pressing of meere commands, from the word, may worke a Legall change of affection and conversation. For if by meere commands from the Word, he meane, 1. commands without the Spirit, that is, such as are written and preached Gospel, or Law, that of themselves want all grace and joyning of the Spirit. Then sure, Cicero and Seneca, their meere words without God, cannot change a Zeno, a Xenephon, from debauched slagitious men, into white cive…l Moralists, without some Spirit, if he meane that the Gospel-letter, as a Letter, can doe more then the Law-letter without the Spirit, he is much deceived: for words, as words, whether of Law or Gospel, without God, can work no change. But Saltmarsh (if I mistake not) hath a third meaning, that meere commands from the authority of God, the Law-giver, can worke but a Legall and counterfeit conversion; this is most false. We have a grave controversie with Papists, touching the formall object of Divine Faith. Whether it bee the testimony of the Church, as Papists say, or the authority of God speaking in his Word, as we teach. Now we hold that the testimony of the Church, is but the testimony of men, and can produce but an humane faith, not a Divine; but the testimonie of God himselfe, speaking in the Scriptures, can onelyonly beget a supernaturall and divine faith, when the Holy Ghost followeth the Word, and rendereth it lively. If then we beleeve divine truths, and Scripturall commands▪ because so saith the Lord, in his Word, either Law or Gospel, this is a divine and supernaturall faith; so to beleeve upon Gods meere commands, as Law-giver, not because naturall reason so dictateth, nor because the Church, or man so saith, nor because the times favour the Gospel, (as the seed is received with a sort of beliefe, that falleth on stony ground) is divine Faith, and is not contrary, but sweetly complyeth with faith grounded upon the love of Christ, and wrought by the grace of God in the Gospel; Antinomians dreame that these two are contrary, when they are not so.
4. Its most false, that the Law is in the heart before hand, How the Law is in the heart by nature.by nature, so as wee beleeve it naturally for the authority of the Law-giver; for so naturall faith of the Law, should fight with naturall unbeliefe, and deepe security, to laugh and sleepe sound under the curse of God. Wee naturally know much of the Law, but we have not a Legall faith, to beleeve, because so saith the Law-giver, by nature.
5. Its false also, that Nature can propound to it selfe life eternall, as cSaltmarsh Free grace, 178.its end, as Saltmarsh saith. Balaam could not desire it, farre lesse intend it, hee onelyonly wished the end of the just. 2. The end must bee the last end subordinate to Gods glory. Antinomians are Pelagians, and poore friends to free grace, as I noted before: for when salvation is the end, all meanes are gone about, when the end is intended that may conduce to that end, all meanes that may crosse the obtaining thereof,Naturall men cannot propose a supernatuend to themselves. eschewed. Now naturall Legall converts, cannot goe about all for salvation, and in reference to it, its cleare, when gold is a mans end, as in the covetous; pleasure the end in the voluptuous, honour the end in the ambitious; if all acts about the meanes, or that may thwart the attaining of the end, bow not to this end; its not so in Legall converts. 3. When the end is attained but in hope and assurance, the minde is satisfied and quieted, Legall converts are not so satisfied. 4. Legall converts order salvation to and for themselves, and the happinesse of it, not the holinesse, to please themselves, not to honour God, because heaven is a Honey-combe, that very Nature beleeving an eternity, desires to sucke. 5. Severe and strict walking, in our sense, is walking in all duties, by the light and conduct of saving grace, and the faith of the elect of God, which wee contend for against most Antinomians, who are but loose livers, and cannot fall on a Legall convert.