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Conhfency

of

Prom: ofPerf. &Exhortations

to

the

ufe

ofmeanes.

C.X11.

neceftitating them thereunto

;

and

fo

comports

with

thofe Arguments.

orExhor-

277

tations in their

manner

of

efficiency

by

which

he preffeth

or moveth them

tofuch

things;

Ey

the way,to

prevent

Humbling

and

quarrelling,

it

no way

followes

from

the

Premifes,

that

aMinifler

in

hispreaching

or

perfwading

unto

duty'sfbould

doe

as

touch as God

himfelfe

cloth

in

or towards

the perfwading

of

men hereunto,

it

only

follower

that

the

Minifier

doth

cooperate

with

God, which the

Apoftle

him

-

felfe

a

f

firmes in

order

to

one

&

the

fame

eff

ell,(i.e. )thathe

operateth

in one&

the

fame kind

of

efficiency

with

God,

Morally or perfwadingly, notsreceffrtating,

for

where

one

neceffitates,

&

another

only

perfwades they

cannot

be

faid

to

cooperate,

or worke the

one

with

the other,no

more

than

two,when the

one

mines

&

the

other

walkes a

fo

ft

pace

,

can

befaid

to

goe

or

walke

together.

Eut

when two

perfwade

in

one

and the

fame

ablion,

one may

perfwade

more

eff

eelualty

by

many

degrees

than the other,

may

have

a

peculiar Ate, or method

of

perfwading

above

the

other.

That

which

is

now undertaken

to

be

proved

is,

That

Goddoth

not

make

4.

ufe

of

Exhortations,

as

meanes

for the

eftablifhing

of

the

Saints in

believing,

and

confirming

their

Perfeverance.

This

is

that

which by us

is

affigned

unto

them,

and this

all

that the Nature

of them doth require,

that

they fhould

be

ufed

unto: the

certainty

ofthe

event whereunto

they are applied depending

not

on

their Nature,

as

fuch meane

s,

but

on the purpofe

of

God, to

ufe

them

for that

end

which

he

hath

defigned ,

and

promifed

to

bring

about and

ac-

compli(h.

Before

he ventures on any oppofition

to

the intendment

of

this

Affertion,

he

phrafeth it

fo, as

either

to renderit

unintelligible

to

himfelfe

and others,

or

(if

any

thing

be

fignified

by the

expreffìons

he

ufeth) to divert

it wholly from

the mind

of

them, and their

fence,

with whom he hath

to

doe.

Who

ever faid

that

God

by

Exhortations,doth

influence

the

Wills

of

men upon

fuch

termes,

as

to

make

them

Infruflrably, and

neceJtatingly

willing

to

Perfevere?

Or,

can

he

tell

us

what's

the

meaning

of

thofe

termes,

[7n

fruflrably, Neceffitatingly

willing

to

Perfevere;]

Though

tis eafy

to

gueffe

at what he here intends

,

yet

tis farre

above my (hallow capacity,

to

reach

the

fence

of

there expreffions.

How

any

of

thefe termes, relating

to

the event and

iffue

of

things,

and in

what

fence

they

may be ufed,

I

have often

(hewed;

As

relating either

to

the

manner

of

Gods

operation

in, and upon

the Will , or the

Wills elicitation

of

its

own

a&,

(any

farther then by relation

to

that

Axiome,

Vnunaquodq;

quad

eft;dum

eft,

neceffe

eft)

they

expreffe

neither our fence,nor

any bodies

elfe

that

I know.

That

which I (hall

make bold to

take up

for

M. Goodwin:

intend-

ment

is;

That

God

doth

not by Exhortations

effe&ually caufe

the

Saints

to

Perfevere;

To

be

willing

to

Perfevere,

is

to

Perfevere

:

to be

Nece

ftatingly

willing,

is,

I know not

what;

Now

if

fuch an

efficacy

be afcribed

to Exhorta-

tions,

as reaches

the certainty

of

the

effe&,

fo

that the certainty

of

the

effe&,

as

to the

event, fhouldbe afferted

to

depend on them

as

fuch

meaner

,

this

is

nothing

to

us;

we

afcribe an

efficacy

to them

in

propriogenere,

but the

certain -

ty.ofthat

event

to

whofe

proddlion

they

concurre,

we

affirme,

as

bath

been

abundantly declared; tó depend

on

other

caufes.

But

the proofe

of

what

is

here Afferted,outrunnes for uncouth ftrangeneffe,

25.

the

Affertion

it

felfe,

quid' albis, as

they fay:

For,

faith

he,if

this

be

/o

(that

is,

as

you have

heard

above,

how, neither he

nor

wee

know)

then the

fame

Act

of

the Willfhould

be

both

Phyficall

and

Morall; And

FrÍ'r, Why

fo?

Becaufe

Phyficall

& Moral/ meanes are ufed for

the pro-

ducing

of it;

as

though fundry

caufes

of

feverall

kinds, might not concurre

to

produce one uniforme

effe&,

farre enough from

a neceffity

of

receiving

fo

much

as a

Denomination from

each

of

them;

In

the

concurrence

of

feverall

N

n

3

>

caufes