Mary Magdalenes Tears Wiped Off, Objection 7
OBJECTION VII.
But I ſtill fear the Iſſue of all my Travails; not thinking any thing too Dear to be bought, or too Heavy to be borne, ſo I might be aſſured to finiſh my Courſe with joy: I am told by my Saviour himſelf, that many ſhall ſeek to enter in at the ſtraight gate, and ſhall not be able to enter. If my former Sins be not pardoned, all I do will be to no purpoſe; the not accepting of my Perſon will render all the good I do contemptible, and puniſhable by God, as being ſo many guilded Sins, as ſuch moral Works are wont to be called.
SOLUTION.
12. IF nothing but your Pardon in your hand will ſatisfie you, and ſhake off the Scruples and Perplexities of your mind; you muſt know that this Pardon and Juſtification of ours, is rather under Promiſe now, and by Title of Law, then Actually pas'd upon our Souls in this Life: yet are not we the leſs ſecure of it, for the Word of God is unchangeable; but no man hath reaſon to expect, with Ʋnconditionate and Abſolute Aſſurance, what muſt depend upon our own Co-operation with the Grace of God. And though God hath aſſured us, that He will not forſake us, till we forſake Him, no nor preſently then neither; yet what aſſurance we ſhall have of our own endeavours, muſt be ſought for in the promiſes of God made & perform'd to his gracious Servants, and alſo in our own free Wills, and the preſeverance of them in Grace dayly and minutely begged of Him in Prayer.Luke 19.26. 1 Cor. 15. ult. 2 Pet. 2.9. Phil. 1.6. God firſt gives us grace to ask, then commands us to ask, then helps our Infirmities in asking, and promiſes he will give if we ask as he hath bid us; if then our wants be not ſupplyed, where will the fault lye but in our ſelves? Grace is cheaply enough obtained, if it may be had for the asking, and increas'd for the uſing.
But being you ſpeak of Gods not accepting your Perſon, as if that had ſo neceſſary and immediate an influence upon all your practice, that not only nothing were accepted without it, but every thing for it and from it; we will a little conſider that expreſsion, as it is uſed in Scripture, with reflection upon the erroneous doctrine wherein you ſeem to me to be (I believe unwittingly) involved.
To accept any ones perſon hath in Scripture a two-fold ſenſe: ſometimes it is taken in a good ſenſe, but not often, ſo in 1 Sam. 25.35. where David being interceeded with by the eloquence, wiſedom, and preſence of Abigail, changeth his determination of deſtroying her Husband Nabal and his Family, and this is there called an accepting of her Perſon. In a bad ſenſe it is more uſually found, ſo God forbids the Miniſters of Juſtice to accept Mens Perſons: Lev. 16.15. and in this ſenſe it is, that God will not accept the Perſons of Men, 2 Sam. 14.14. Mat. 22.16. Gal. 2.6. yea in this ſenſe the Perſon of God Himſelf may be, but muſt not be accepted, as in Job. 13.7, 8. Will ye ſpeak wickedly for God, and talk deceitfully for him? will ye accept His perſon? wherein Job admoniſheth his Friends that they ſhould not argue for God (with opinion thereby to vindicate his Juſtice) from falſe Allegations of Jobs Hypocriſy. So do thoſe men, who equivocate, or lye, ſteal, rob, commit Sacriledge and murder for Gods glory, &c. accept the perſon of God.
When therefore the Phraſe of [accepting of mens perſons] is uſed in a good ſenſe, it ſignifies thus much, that the perſon of ſuch a man in conjunction with his good qualifications, or deſerts, is accepted & rewarded: but when it ſignifies to a bad ſenſe, then it imports thus much; that ſuch a Man is accepted, favour'd, or rewarded, without any intuition of his Qualifications be they good or evil; this is Partiality and Injuſtice, and we may not uſe it even for God himſelf.
Now by your Objection, I conceive, you believe that he is an Accepter of Perſons in this laſt ſenſe, viz. an abſolute Elector, who out of the maſs of Mankind corrupted, did by vertue of his Soveraign power, and Omnipotent will, irreſpectively chooſe ſome few mens Perſons, and reprobate Myriades of others, without any previſional regard to their Works, expreſly contrary to that of Saint Paul, Gal. 2.6. where the Apoſtle ſayes, that God reſpects no Mans perſon, (the Gentiles being as eligible in Gods eye, as the lineal ſeed of Abraham, of which the Jews could not eaſily be perſwaded;) neither Iames nor Peter who ſeemed to be Pillars, being preferred and reſpected before Saint Paul, (a late abortive Convert,) by Him who ſeeth not as Man ſeeth. And therefore if God hath not elected ſome, and reprobated others, without previſion and Intuition of their Qualifications; as foreſeeing what good, or what bad, or what nouſe men would make of Grace given, and conſequently, thereby aſſure or diveſt themſelves of the Advantages and Priviledges of Gods common Love to Mankinde; your fear of not being accepted, becauſe God hath from all Eternity ſome Quarrel or No Love to your Perſon, is not only frivolous, but dangerous, and in it ſelf deſtructive of all your Labours and Endeavours for eternal Life; keeping them under the diſmal, and falſe Apprehenſion of Tyranny in the Divine Majeſty, which the Heathens themſelves rejected, under the Notion of Superſtition.
To be ſhort, I ſhall only confront the Anſwer of God to Cain, Gen. 4.7. (whom I believe the Aſſertors of that Doctrine have ever held to be a Reprobate) againſt the ſtrongeſt Argument that may be uſed for inducing and confirming the belief of this proſopoleptical way of electing and reprobating men, without any intuition of their good or evil deeds: [If thou do well, ſhall thou not be accepted?] from whence are inferred theſe two things; Firſt, that Cain himſelf might have offered an acceptable Sacrifice to God as well as Abel; and Secondly, if he had done ſo, he had been accepted by God, as well as was his brother. So that it was not any Quarrel and Hatred that God had to the Perſon of Cain irreſpectively conſidered; but either to the evil that he had formerly done (for we cannot preſume Cain to have lived without ſin, till the time of the offering that Sacrifice, nor doth the Text aſſert, that to be the firſt Sacrifice, that either he, or Abel offered) or that which he had now committed in offering a Sacrifice not worthy Gods acceptance at his hands.
What reaſon therefore you ſhould have to fear the ſucceſs of your Labours in the Lord, upon Miſpriſion of Perſonal Acceptance with God, you ſee by what hath been ſaid; as alſo of your groundleſs fears of not being able to enter in at the ſtraight Gate; our Saviour having (if you mark it) threatned, not them who ſtrive (becauſe he hath commanded that active, induſtrious way of attempting) but them who only ſeek, Luk. 13.24. foreign.(a way of getting Heaven very different from the former) importing very little more (though no more to the purpoſe) than Balaams Wiſh, that he might dye the death of the righteous. Numb. 23.10.