The Reviler Rebuked, Treatise · Part 1 · Head 9
(9. Head of Contradiction to Scripture.) Concerning Chriſtian Warfare.
Section 35.
HAving noted their denial of Saints to be always in the Warfare, R. F. *page 18.returns me his juſtification of this Doctrine; If they do, they deny not the Scripture, but agree with it. How makes he it out? Why, Such as have overcome are more then conquerors.
Rep. This is a truth in ſome ſenſe, but proves not thatSaints in this life not out of their warfare. Saints are paſt the warfare. Every Chriſtian is an overcomer as well as a warrior; but how? when, and in what meaſure?
1. In Chriſt his Head and Captain he hath overcome, 1 Cor. 15. 57.
2. When ſhall he have a perfect conqueſt over inherent corruption? when the warfare is at an end; when is that? when his wayfare is at an end, not before.
3. In what meaſure is it wrought here? In ſome more, in ſome leſs (as to the conqueſt of Sanctification, of which is the Queſtion) in none abſolutely and totally. A victory the Saint may have to day, in ſome particular combate, a foil to morrow. Shameful foils ſome of theſe men have had, who have thought themſelves at an end of their warfare, if half that which is reported be true. That of Atkinſon at Norwich, was true enough, one who cryed up Perfection as loud as his fellows, but became as unſtable as water, and was eaſily captivated to the act of Fornication. I liſt not to rake in ſuch kennels, but I abhor boaſting before the final victory. That practice which violateth the ſeventh Commandment, is as far from perfection, as that Doctrine which contradicteth the ſeventh Chapter to the Rom. 23.
R. F. tells me, Thou brings that of Paul in the warfare; but thou brings not his after experience, where he ſays, The law of the ſpirit of life in Chriſt, hath made me free, Rom. 8.
Rep. I flatly deny that Pauls experience, Rom. 8. 2. wasRom. 8. 2. vindicated. an after-experience, to what he ſpeaks of himſelf, and regenerate perſons, Chap. 7. 14. to the end, as his, and their preſent ſtate; which was no other then what he was in, Chap. 8. and ſo to the end of the Epiſtle. For Chap. 8. and ver. 2. is brought in as a conſolation under the combate. The words are theſe to the full; For the Law of the Spirit of life in Chriſt Jeſus, hath made me free from the Law of ſin and death. What is that Law of the Spirit of life in Chriſt Jeſus? but the power and authority of ſpiritual endleſs life in him; and particularly, that habitual frame of holineſs in Chriſts humane nature, which from birth and conception he had; and which (being made meritorious by his Divine perſon, in which the humanity ſubſiſteth) is imputed to Paul, and every true Believer; by reaſon of which imputation, he is made free from the law of ſin and death. What is that Law of ſin? The condemning power of ſin (yet inherent and permanent:) As if Paul ſhould have ſaid, If ſin that wars and fights in me, hath no power to condemn me, then there is no condemnation to me; (the ſentence, that is cut off, and where no ſentence paſſeth, there is no execution according to Law.) But ſin hath no Law, no power to condemn me; for the Law of grace and holineſs in Chriſts own fleſh, condemned ſin there, kept off filth from him, and condemned all my guilt charged upon him; ſo as ſin is put out of office, and cannot ſo much as ſerve a Writ of condemnation upon me: nor can ſin have a commanding power over me (while it dwelleth in me) ſeeing the Spirit which dwelleth in Chriſt, brings life and power from him, to quicken holineſs and kill ſin in me; and that grace which reigneth in Chriſt, reigneth in me, while ſin is rebelling. And concerning the Law of death, the ſting of death, which is ſin, being taken away by removal of guilt, bodily death can do me no hurt; ſin may kill and pull down this earthly tabernacle, it ſhall never ſlay my ſoul; I am already free from the ſentence of the ſecond death, it ſhall never have power over me, though my preſent, as by-paſt ſin deſerves it, yet Chriſt hath freed me from it. Thus Paul ſpeaks his own and the Saints victories with their combates, at one and the ſame time; while they are warring, they areRom. 8. 37. cleared. conquering, and have more then earthly conquerors ever attained to. How is that? for R. F. cannot conceive there can be any warfare continued, where there is more then a conqueſt already gotten. To clear this, let us take all the Apoſtles words before us, ver. 37. in all theſe things we are more then conquerors through him that loved us. He doth not ſay, after all theſe things, but in them, during the warfare, we have the better by many degrees; or as the * wordforeign ſignifieth, we have an overplus of conqueſt. It is enough for men after worldly encounters, to go out conquerors at the end of their Battels; but as we conquer while we fight, ſo we are ſure of the victory (i. e. have ſure grounds of expecting the laſt victory) when we ſtrike the firſt ſtroke; which conquerors of the world are not aſſured of. To ſenſe we may ſeem to be overcome, between times, but to faith the victory is ſure on our ſide. This is a Paradox to R. F. but let him know, we are not beaten out of the field (by all his and other oppoſitions) but keep our ground, what's that? Gods love to us in Chriſt, which is the cauſe of the beginning and end of the conqueſt. It is that, and not inherent grace, or our love to Chriſt, onelyonly, or chiefly, which ſtrengthneth us to combate and conquer alſo: Our grace is weak, and gives back many times, but Chriſt our Captain never ſtarteth, and the love of God to us abideth, and union with him who giveth the victory holdeth R. F. had beſt keep to that, leſt his inherent perfection fail him altogether. It is granted by R. F. according to 1 John 4. 4. That greater 1 John 4. 4. vind…cated.is he that is in the Saints, then he that is in the world; which is brought in by the Apoſtle as another ground of their preſent victory over the ſeducing antichriſtian part of the world the ſtrength is not ours, but the Lords, whereby we go on conquering, and to conquer; and are enabled to keep up our warfare, and aſſured we ſhall have the day, of whole troops of perfect and imperfect Quakers, becauſe as the word of God abideth in them that have overcome (in the Apoſtles ſenſe, 1 John at 14.) ſo it doth not abide in them, who ſay they have no ſin abiding in them, and will not be known to abide in the warfare: ſuch were either never in it, or are run from their colors. Let R. F. *Page 18.prate or print what he will; [carnally minded, as thou art] and ſpeaking of his conqueſts, [which thou art ignorant of and knoweſt not that plead for ſin, and ſo for the devil, therefore his ſervant thou art, expect his reward for doing his work] none of theſe fiery darts ſhall be able to ſeparate me from the love of God which is in Chriſt Jeſus, nor from the ſervice of my generation in this or any other way which the Lord calls me unto.