Baxter - Houston-Packer Collection BT70 .B397 1675

anden/lora l Works. confequence in a fyllogifm from the premifes, and thenecefrityof an lea as from its neceflitating caufe. God cancarafe without neceílitating the fecond caufe ; much more decreeandfore-know. 275. He that bath Paving Grace in the leafs degree, cannot lofe that degree, without lofing all thefpecies, or all PavingGrace. But it's other- wife with him that bath a higher degree. 276. There have many of our acquaintance gonefo far in a lifeof mortification, and diligence of fuffering likeChriftiansof the higheft rank, who yet have fallen (to the death ) to the denial of the very elfentials of the ChriffianFaith, that from the very DOQrine of certain perfeverance bath become a caufe of doubting and trouble to fome: who have Paid, [ if a man could fall away from trueGrace, I fhould not doubt but fuch and filch a man did fo, and I fhould hope thatyet my heart mayat the prefent be fncere : But feeing no man ever had true Grace who apoflatiz.eth, theft men had nine, who in all proboble judgment of reafon, were once far better than I now am : And I can never be fore that I have true Grace, till I go further than ever they did, which I almofl difpair of ever doing, having intimately known them to be no diffeniblers. ] Thus both ways of this controverted Doarine have their troubling difficul- ties. 277. If none cenfured the deniersof certaintyherein, but only thofe who themfelves ever attain to a certainty oftheir (incerity, perfeverance and falvation, they would not be enough to make any great divifion or breach about it. And could we but be impartial, and bear with the diffent of Brethren herein, as well as we do of the ancient Dorfors and churches, our peace and concord would be lets difturbed by this Con- troverfie than it is. I have elk-where cited fome; 7ertullian is too harfh in conceding a mutability in God, Contr. Marc. li. 2. cap. 23, 24. [ Si vero etiam circa perfonas levemvoltis intelligi quum reprobat aliquando probatos, aut ineprovidum quail: probat quandoq; reprobandos, quaf<judicia flu: ant damnet praterita,aut ignoretfutura : Atqui nihil tam bono &judici convenit,quam proprefentibas meritis 2i' rejicere & adlegere,&c.] Yetthis may have a good interpretation. Eufebias Pr cparat. Evangel. li. 6. pag. 289, 290. [Tea thefe would fight (or be a contradi&ión) that thefame man fhould both become honefi (or good) and certainlyfore-know that hefhall be honeft. ] But I am not of his. mind. But among thofe before Aquiline, fuch paffages arenot fo frrange as there are in hirnfelf. De corrept. & Grat. cap. 13. pag. 539. [ Auk enira ex multitudine fdeliumquamdiu in hacmortalitate vivitur, innumero pradellinatorum fe effe preefumat ? Quia id occultari eposeli in hoc loco : ubi fie cavenda e elatio , ut edam per Satan; Angeluni -ne extolleretur tantas colophizaaretur Apoflolas---Nam proper hujar utilitatem fecreti; ne forte quis extollatur, fed omnes edam qui bene currant timeant dam occul- tum eft qui perveniant. Propter hojasergo utilitatem fecreti credendum e(i quofdam de pisperditionis, non accepto donoperfet eranti-a uA infineen, in fide quaper dileítionem operator incipere vivere, ac aliquandiu fideliter ac ju3ie vivere, &polices cadere, neq; de hac vitapriufquam hoc his contingat auferri. Luarum fi nemini contigiffet, tamdiu haberentomnes iflum fain- bern osuno timorem, quo vitiumelationis opprimitur donee addory grati- am, quapiè vivitur, pervenirent; deinceps jan: fecrre nunquamfe ab ella effe ca/uros. `lug prafumpteo to ifio tentationum loco non expedit, ubi tantaeft infirmitar, utfuperbiam poffitgenerare fecuritas. O Et 9.7

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