a little and a little slacker, till ere long he falls again into the sin from which he was clean escaped. As soon as you perceive he is entangled again and overcome, you apply the scriptures relating to that state. You conjure him not to harden his heart any more, lest his last state be worse than the first. "How can that be ?" says he, "once in grace, always in grace; and I am sure I was in grace once. You shall never tear away my shield." So he sins on, and sleeps on, till he awakes in hell!

LXXXVIII. The observing these melancholy examples day by day, this dreadful havoc which the Devil makes of souls, especially of those who had begun to run well, by means of this antiscriptural doctrine, constrains me to oppose it from the same principle, whereon I labour to save souls from destruction. Nor is it sufficient to ask, Are there not also many who wrest the opposite doctrine to their own destruction? If there are, that is nothing to the point in question; for that is not the case here. Here is no wresting at all the doctrine of absolute predestination naturally leads to the chambers of death.

You say,

Let an instance in each kind be proposed, and the difference is so broad, he that runneth may read it. I say, "Christ died for all. He tasted death for every man, and he willeth all men to be saved." "O," says a hearer, "then I can be saved when I will; so I may safely sin a little longer." No, this is no consequence from what I said the words are wrested to infer what does not follow. : "Christ died only for the elect: and all these must and shall be saved." "O," says a hearer, "then, if I am one of the elect, I must and shall be saved; therefore I may safely sin a little longer; for my salvation cannot fail." Now this is a fair consequence from what you said; the words are not wrested at all. No more is inferred than what plainly and undeniably follows from the premises, And the very same observation may be made on every article of that doctrine. Every branch of it, as well as this, (however the wisdom of God may sometimes draw good out of it,) has a natural, genuine tendency, without any wresting, either to prevent or obstruct holi

ness.

LXXXIX. Brethren, would ye lie for the cause of God? I am persuaded ye would not. Think then that as ye are, so am I: 1 speak the truth, before God, my Judge not of those who were trained up therein, but of those who were lately brought over to your opinion. Many of these have I known, but I have not known one in ten of all that number, in whom it did not speedily work some of the above-named effects, according to the state of soul they were then in. And one only have I known among them all, after the closest and most impartial observation, who did not evidently show, within one year, that his heart was changed, not for the better, but for the worse.

XC. I know indeed ye cannot easily believe this. But whether ye believe it or not, you believe, as well as I, that without holiness no man shall see the Lord. May we not then, at least, join in this;

in declaring the nature of inward holiness, and testifying to all the necessity of it? May we not all thus far join, in tearing away the broken reeds whereon so many rest, without either inward or outward holiness, and which they idly trust will supply its place? As far as is possible, let us join in destroying the works of the Devil, and in setting up the kingdom of God upon earth, in promoting righteousness, peace, and joy, in the Holy Ghost.

Of whatever opinion or denomination we are, we must serve either God or the Devil. If we serve God our agreement is far greater than our difference. Therefore, as far as may be, setting aside the difference, let us unite in destroying the works of the Devil, in bringing all we can from the power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son. And let us assist each other to value more and more the glorious grace whereby we stand, and daily to grow in that grace, and in the knowledge of our LORD JESUS CHRIST.

THE

SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE

CONCERNING

PREDESTINATION, ELECTION,

AND

REPROBATION.

"Therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, especially of them that believe."1 Tim iv. 10.

1. THE Scripture saith, "God hath chosen us in Christ, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy, and without blame before him in love." (Eph. i. 4.) And St. Peter calls the saints, "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience." (1 Pet. i. 2.) And St. Paul saith unto them, "God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth; whereunto he hath called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Thess. ii. 13, 14.)

2. From all these places of Scripture, it is plain that God hath chosen some to life and glory, before or from the foundation of the

world. And the wisdom of all Christians is, to labour that their judgments may be informed herein, according to the Scripture. And to that end let us consider the manner of God's speaking to the sons of men.

3. God saith to Abraham, "As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before him whom he believed, even God who quickeneth the dead, and calleth things that are not as though they were." (Rom. iv. 17.) Observe, God speaks then, at that present time, to Abraham, saying, “I have made thee a father of many nations," notwithstanding Abraham was not at that time the father of one child, but Ishmael. How then must we understand, "I have made thee a father of many nations ?"

4. The Apostle tells us plainly, it was so, "Before God, who calleth things that are not, as though they were." And so he called Abraham, "The father of many nations," though he was not as yet the father even of Isaac, "in whom his seed was to be called."

5. God useth the same manner of speaking, when he calleth Christ, "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world," (Rev. xiii. 8;) although indeed he was not slain for several thousands of years after. Here therefore we may easily understand what he speaketh of "electing us from the foundation of the world."

6. God calleth Abraham "a father of many nations," though not so at that time. He calleth Christ "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world," though not slain till he was a man in the flesh. Even so he calleth men "elected from the foundation of the world," though not elected till they were men in the flesh. Yet it is all so before God, who knoweth all things from eternity, and " calleth things that are not, as though they were."

7. By all which it is clear, that as Christ was called "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world," and yet not slain till several thousands of years after; so also men are called "Elect from the foundation of the world," and yet are not elected perhaps till several thousands of years after, till the day of their conversion to God.

8. And indeed this is plain without going farther, from those very words of St. Peter, "Elect according to the fore-knowledge of God, through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience." For, If the Elect are chosen through the sanctification of the Spirit, then they were not chosen before they were sanctified by the Spirit. But they were not sanctified by the Spirit, before they had a being. It is plain then, either were they chosen from the foundation of the world. But "God calleth things that are not, as though they were." 9. This is also plain from those words of St. Paul, "God hath from the beginning chosen you unto salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth." Now,

If the saints are chosen to salvation, through believing of the truth, and were called to believe that truth by hearing of the gospel, then they were not chosen before they believed the truth, and before they heard the gospel, whereby they were called to believe. But they were chosen through belief of the truth, and called to VOL. 9.-N n

believe it by the gospel. Therefore they were not chosen before they believed: much less before they had a being, any more than Christ was slain before he had a being. So plain it is, that they were not elected, till they believed; although "God calleth things that are not, as though they were."

10. Again, how plain is it, where St. Paul saith, that they whom "God did predestinate, according to the counsel of his own will, to be to the praise of his glory," were such as did "first trust in Christ?" (Eph. i. 11, 12.) And in the very next verse, he saith, that they trusted in Christ after they heard the word of truth," (not before.) But they did not hear the word before they were born. Therefore, it is plain, the act of election is "in time," though known of God before; who, according to his knowledge, often speaketh of the things "which are not, as though they were." And thus is the great stumbling-block about Election taken away, that men may "make their calling and election sure."

11. The Scripture tells us as plainly what predestination is: It is, God's fore-appointing obedient believers to salvation, not without,.but "according to his fore-knowledge" of all their works, "from the foundation of the world." And so likewise he predestinates or foreappoints all disobedient unbelievers to damnation," not without, but "according to his fore-knowledge" of all their works, "from the foundation of the world."

12. We may consider this a little farther. "God, from the foundation of the world, foreknew all men's believing or not believing. And according to this his fore-knowledge, he chose or elected all obelient believers, as such, to salvation, and refused or reprobated all disobedient unbelievers, as such, to damnation. Thus the Scriptures teach us to consider Election and Reprobation "according to the fore-knowledge of God from the foundation of the world."

13. But here some may object, that I hold our faith and obedience to be the cause of God's electing us to glory.

I answer, I do hold, that faith in Christ producing obedience to him is a cause without which God electeth none to glory; for we never read of God's electing to glory, any who lived and died a disobedient unbeliever. But I do not hold, that it is the cause for which he elects any: the contrary of this is easily shown, thus:

Suppose my obedience is a cause of my election to salvation, what is the cause of my obedience? Ans. My love to Christ.

But what is the cause of my love to Christ? Ans. My faith in Christ.

But what is the cause of my faith in Christ? Ans. The preaching of the gospel of Christ.

But what is the cause of the preaching the gospel to us? Ans. Christ's dying for us.

But what is the cause of Christ's dying for us? Ans. God's great love of pity wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins.

14. Thus all men may see, that I do not hold, God chose any man to life and salvation, for any good which he had done, or for any

which was in him, before he put it there. And this I shall now show more at large from the oracles of God.

1. God's great love of pity wherewith he loved the sons of men, even while they were dead in trespasses and sins, was the cause of his sending his Son to die for them; as appears from the following scriptures: God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, to the end that all who believe in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John iii. 16.) For "when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." (Rom. v. 6, &c.) And, God commendeth his love to us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.'

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2. Christ's dying for our sins is the cause of the gospel's being preached to us, as appears from these scriptures, "Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations.' (Matt. xxviii. 18.) Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.' (Mark xvi. 15.)

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3. The gospel's being preached to sinners is the cause of their believing, as appears from those scriptures, "How shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Rom. x. 15, &c.)

4. Men's believing is the cause of their justification, as appears from these scriptures, "By him all that believe are justified from all things." (Acts xiii. 39.) He is the justifier of all that believe in Jesus. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith, without the deeds of the law." (Rom. iii. 26, &c.) "Abraham believed God, and it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus from the dead; who was delivered for our offences, and rose again for our justification." (Rom. iv. 3. 23, &c.)

5. Our knowing ourselves justified by faith, is the cause of our love to Christ, as appears from these scriptures; "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1 John iv. 10.) We love him, because he first loved us." (1 John iv. 19.)

6. Our love to Christ is the cause of our obeying him, as appears from those scriptures, "If ye love me, keep my commandments. He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me." (John xiv. 15. 21, &c.) And, "If any man love me, he will keep my words. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments." (1 John v. 3.)

7. Our obeying Christ is the cause of his giving us eternal life, as appears from those scriptures, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." (Matt. vii. 21.) "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."