Ver. jo. Fifth Chap. ad Ep. to the C O R I N T H. 8 7 hand in forming the Child then the Parents, ftill they ad as guided by God, and as in- fluenced by his providence, for they cannot tell whether the Child will be Male or Fe- male, beautiful or deformed,t{tey know not the number and pofture of the Bones,Nerves, Veins, Sinews ; But God orders all thefe things by Isis own Wifdom, and wonderfully frames us in the fecret parts of the Belly ; therefore the Soveraignty certainly belongs to God, for it is he that forms the Spirit of man within him, Zech. is,. s. The Soul 'it is of Gods immediate formation, and all the care and providence of our Parents, comes to nothing, unlefs God dire& it, and fecund it with his bleffing : God is the Judge of all Creatures, vifible and invifible, and from his Empire and Jurrfdi&ion, they neither can nor ought to exempt themfelves. So that to be God and Judge oldie World is one and the fame thing, only expreft by divers terms. To gather up this argument; This is a certain Rule, the owner of any thing'is necefla- rily a Governour to it, if it be governable, if it be a Creature ; that is,`capable ofGovern- ment, and path an aptitude to be governed, for certainly, an abfolute Propriety in a Governable Creature givesa plenary Title : Now God made us out of nothing, and he made us capable of Government, being rational and free agents, and therefore he mull needs be our Lord and Governour. All Souls are mine, faith he, Eeek, 'J S 4. And it is devolved upon Chrift our Redeemer by a new right, forhe dyed, rote again; and revived, to this end ; He hath purchafed this authority, to be Lord of quick and dead; And it is as certain a Rule, that our Governour mull be our Yúdge, for Government tonfifts of three parts ; Legillation, ,Judgment and Execution ; Giving Laws, and Judging, and executing.God doth all thefe things by an Authoritative Conflitution,he makes Laws for man to oblige him to obedience. And in Gods Laws there's a Precept and a Sanliion ( that is ) there are rewards and penalties ; the Precept Thews what we mutt do, the San&ion thews what God will do; the Precept thews what is due from the Creature, the San &ion fhews what is due to theCreature( that is ) if he break this Law, he (hall be punifhed, if he keep this Law he (hall be rewarded. Thus you fee, God being our Govern - our, may make Laws for man that is capable of Laws; now this San &ion would be but a fhadow and vain fcare -crow, if there were no Judgment, for would God fay; do,and thou fhalt live, believe and thou !halt be faved, and never look after this'whether we do or believe? Therefore as there is Legiflation, fo there mull be Judging. But then this Judgment mull neceflarily infer a 1d thing, that is, the Executi- on, otherwife Judgment would be but a folemn Pageantry. But why is Chrift Judge of the World rather then the Father, and Spirit, who allo made us, and gave a-Law to us, and invefted it withfuch aSanlion, who are offended and grieved with our fins ? I Anfwer, a. Conlder,we have gone a great ftep to prove,that it is the peculiar right of God,com- mon tothe Three Perfons,Father,Son,and Holy Ghoft,and this in effe& proves that Chrift may execute it, for they are one, John r. S. a. They have one Common Nature, and as to the Operations that are without, the Divine Effence is common to them all ; So that as the Creation of all things is equally attributed to all, fo alto this a& of Judging the World. So that it belongs to all, for they are all equal in Being, Tower, and Glory. But as yet the thing is not explained enough, unlefs we grant it (hall be exercifed by all, or elfe prove out of Scripture that one perfon is ordained by mutual confent, cltofen out by the reftto exercife it for himfelf, and for the tidier. But this I have prov'd already, God is the Judge. And at firft when the Do&rine of the Trinity was but fparingly revealed to the Church,and notopenly,it was not neeedfulto enquire more nicelyafter it,but this general truth was fuf &cient. And Enoch wherrhe prophefyed doth not tell us of Chrift the Judge, but tells us, Jude v. t4. Behold the Lord cometh with Ten Thoufands of his Saints to executC Judgment upon all, Fsc. And David fpeaksto God, Pfad. 94 z. Lift up thy ¡elf Thou Judge of the. Earth, and Pfalm. so. 6. God is Judge himfelf. It was enough to underftand it fo without any diftindion of the Perlons. But when once this myftery was molt certainly manifefted by God manifeflin our flefh, now we muft Enquire a little further. a. I Anfwer, there is an Order in the Perlons of the Blefì"ed Trinity; as in the manner of fubffting, fo alto there's a certain Order and Oeconomy according to which all their operations are produced and brought forth to the Creature, according to whichOrder, the power of Judging doth belong partly to the Father, and partly to the Son. a. In the bufinefs of Redemption, there the ad of judging was exercifed upon our furety, he was fubftituted into our room, ant place, and offered himfelf not only for our good, but in our room, and Read, to bear our punifhment,andto Procure the favour ofGed to
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=