420 / 504
C. XV.
i
lohn
;. 9,
Opened and
infifted
on.
364
Nowthis
place
is,the
t
iohn 3.9.
Whotfoever is borne
of
God,
cloth
not
commit
finne,
for
his
feed
remaineth
in him, and
he
cannot
finne
becauf
è
he is borne
of
57°
God. A
place
of
Scripture,
that
alway
bath
amazed
the adversaries
of
the
Do-
&rine, which
hitherto through the
Grace
of
God, we
have afferted
5
being
in
its
felfe, fully
fufficient
to
captivate every understanding, unto
the
obedience
of
its
Truth, that
is
not
refolved
to
cleave
to
a
contrary Conclufon, let
what
.4
Demonstration foever
lye againft
it.
In
the
defence
of
the
Do&rine under
conuderation,
fhould
we
ufe Expreflìons
of
the
fame importance , with thefe
here
ufed by
the Apoftle,as
we fhould
abundantly
fatisfye
our
felves,
that
we
had delivered our
mindes and
fence,
to
the
understanding
of
any indifferent
Per1)n,
with whom we might have
to
doe,
fo
we
should
by
no
meanes, avoid
all
thofe imputations
offolly
and
errour
,
that
our
Do&rine fuffereth under,
from
the
men
that
have entertained
an
enmity
againft
it
, as
it
is
held
forth
in
equivalent
expressions
by
us.
The
Authority
of
the
Holy Ghoft, háth
gai-
ned thus much upon our Adverfaries,
that
when he afferteth
in expresíe;
and
expref
ve
termes,
the
very thing,
or
things
that
in us are called,
folly,
that
e-.
vafionsthould
be
ftudied, and
pains
taken
to
rack
his
words,
to
a fence which
they
will
not
beare,
rather than
plainly
to
deny
his
Authority.
But
let the
words,with the fcope & tendency be confìdered.(i.
)The
fcope
&'intendment
of
the
Apoftle in
the
place
is
to
give
a
difcriminating character
of
the Children
ofGod,and the
Children
oftheDivell> thus
be fully expreffeth
himfelfe
unto
us
v,to.
In
this
(faith
he)
the Children ofGod are manifefled,
and
the Children
ofthe
Dived,
rohofoever
doth not righteoufnefe isnot
of
God,
neither
he
that
lo-
veth
not
his
Brother.
And withall
to
preffe
on an Exhortation againft finne,
whereunto heufeth
the
Argument
that lieth
in
the
following
wordsif
any
one.
fin
that
thinketh
himfelfe
to
be
borne
ofGod,he
deceiveth
himfelfe,v.7. Little chil-
dren
let
vo
man deceiveyou;
he
that
cloth
righteoufneffe
,
is
righteous
even as
he
is
righteous,
He
that
committeth
finne
is
of
the Divell
:.
But
how proveth he
this?
In thefe words,
Whofoever
is
borne
o
fGod
fanneth not,dothnot,cannotfinne.
Such
is
the
Genius
and
Nature
of
the Children
of
God,
of
them
that
are
borne
of
him,
that
they doe
not, they
cannot
finne. You
are perfwaded
that
you are
fo
-borne
of
God
,
therefore
you muff preffe
after
fuch a
frame,
fuch
an ingenie
and difpofition,
fuch a
principle,
as
that
thereby
you
cannot finne:
it
muff
inanifeft its felfe
to be
in
you,
ifyou be the
Children
of
God.
4.58
Now
whereas it
is
offered
by M.
Goodwin
Cap.
to.
Se&:
27 pag. 194. That
the context,
orfcope
of
the
whole place,
doth not
invite
filch
anEx
ofttion as
is
fually
infified
on,
becaufe
(faith
he)
the
intent and
drift
of
the
Apofile
front
werfe
3.
even
to
the
end
of
the Chapter
(as
he
that
cloth
but
mine
the context overmay
reade)
is not to
fbew or argue,
Whether thefonnes
of
God, may
pof
bly
in
time
fö
degenerate,
as
to
livefinnefully,
and
dye
impenitently, but
to evince
this, that
thefe
who
claime
the
great
honour
?
priviledge
of
being the Children
of
God,cantiot
ffify
or
make good
this
claime
neither
unto
others nor
unto themfelves
:
but
by
an
Holy
and
Chris`lian
Life
and
eonverfation,
now
it
is
one
thing
to
argue,
and
prove,
who
are the
Bonner
of
God
at
prefent; another,
whether they
who
are
finch
at
prefent
muff
o
fnece
ty
alwaies
fo continue. The
former
is the
Apofiles
theame
in
the
Con-
text,the
latter
he
is
wholly
filent
of.
I fay,
it
is
evident
that
the
fcopo
of
the
place,
is
to
evince,
that
in
the Chil-
dren
of
God, thofe
that
are
borne
of
him,
there
is fuch a
Principle, Genius, a
new nature,
as
that
upon
the
account thereof, they
cannot
finne, and
there-
fore
that
thofe who have not
fisch
principles
in
them, what
ever
their preten-
ces
be, are not indeed
borne
of
God
5
and
in
this
he manifefteth,
that
thofe
who are indeed
borne
of
God, cannot
poffibly fo degenerate
,
as
to
fall
into
total!