434 / 504
C,XVI.
Feare
of
Hell
not the moll
Effettuall motive to Obedience.
378 been caft
out ofcovenant
from whence
though perhaps
Tome
few
have
been
recovered, yet for.the greateft
part
of
them,
have perifhed everlafiingly (as
is
the
ftate
in
reference
unto
many
m
everyGeneration,)only
fuch
may do
well
to
confider
what
a
fearefull
&
defperate
iffue,their
Apofiacy will
have,if
they
Mould
fo
fall, and what an eminent reward, with what Glory
is
.propofed
to
them
if
they
perfevere.
That
I fay
the
inftru
&ion
of
the
Saints,
in
this
Do-
&rine,
is
a fingular meanes
of
promoting their
Confolation and
efiablifhing
their
peace,
is
that
which (doubtleffe with undervaluing thoughts
of
all
with
whom he hath
to
do)
he
bath undertaken
to
prove.
I
doubt not
but that Mr
Goodwin
thought
fometimes
of
the good old Rule,
fomite
materiam
vefiria
qui
reribitis.equam viribus
&
verfate diu quid
ferre
recufent,quidveleant
hurnori.
Selfe- confidence
is
hereby fetled and
fixed
with
confederations: &
though
M.
G.
in
the
doleof
this
Sehion, tels us,
That
fundry
Godly
andferioufly
Religious
perlons,
when
they
heard
this
Doéfrine publilhed which
he
now
afferts,
with
their
avbole
hearts
bleffed
God
for
it: Yet
truly
I cannot
but
quefiion
whether,
yea
I
muff pofitively deny
that
ever any Saint
ofGod
received Confolation by
the
dottrine
of
the
Saints
Apofiacy,a
lye
exceedingly
unfuited
to the
produ
&ion
of
any
fuch effett, any
furtherthan
that
all
Errour whatfoever
is
apt
tei
defile
and cauterife the
Confcience, fo
deceiving it with
fenceleffeneffe
for
peace;
Perhaps fome
of
Mr
Goodwin's
hearers who either were
fo
ignorant,
or
fo
neg
ligent,as not
to
be
acquainted with thisDo&rine before,in the attempts made
for
that
the propagation
of
it, by the
latter
broode
of
Prelats and
Arminians
among
us,
upon
his
deliveryofit
with inticingwords
of
humanewifedome,
helped on
by the venerable
efteeme they
have
of
his
tranfcendent parts
and
abilityes
,
through the
cunning
ofSathan,
improving the
itching
after new
Do&rines, which
is
fallen
upon
the
minds
and
fpirits
ofrnany
profeffours
in
this age, have rejoyced
under the
fhadow
of
this
bramble,
fet
up
to
rule
in
their
Congregation
And
(according
as
is
the
confront
'manner
of
all,
in
our
dayes
that
are infnared
with any
errour
be it never
fo
pernitious)have blefled
God for
it,
profefling they never found
refs
nor
peace before; yet
I
no way
quefüon for
fuch
as
feare
the Lord,
and are yet bowed
downe under the
weight,
and carryed away with the ftrength
pfMr
Goodwin's
Rethoricke for
a feafon, will
quickly finde
a
fire
proceeding
out
of
that
newly
enthroned
Doarine,preying
Upon
and
confirming
all
their Joy,
Peace, and Confolation,
or
(which
I
rather hope)
a
fire
proceeding
out
oftheir
Faith,
(the
Faith once
delivered
to
the
Saints)
to
the
utter
confufion &
confumption
of
this
bramble
fcratching
errour
in the meanetime
if
the eminent appearance
of
many
thou-
fands
of
the
Saints
of
God,
in this
Nation (whereof
many are
fallen afleepe,
and
many continue
to
this
day)
teftifying
and bearing
witneffe
to
the
Joy
&Confolation they havefound,&
that
upon Spirituali dernonftrative grounds
in
being
cafe
into the
mould
of
the
Dottrine
of
the
Saints
Perfeverance for
many dayes, be
of
no weight with Mr
Goodwin,
I
know not
why
his tingle
Teftimony (which yet
as
to thematter
of
fa&
I
no
way
queflion)
concerning
fonie few
Perlons by
himfelfe
feduced, into
a
perfwafion
of their
Apòfiacy,
bleffïng
God
for
the
difcovery
made
to
them
(the
confiant
Pra&ife
of
all
per
-
lons in
their
firft
intanglement,
in
the
fouleft
and
groflefi
errours whatever)
Ihould
fway us
much
to
any good liking
of
it.
S.
3.
The
influence
of
the loo
&rine
of
the
Saints
Perfeverance, into their confo-
lation,
hath
been fufficientlyalready evinced, when we manifefied,
the
fup-
port
oftheir
Faith and Love,
the
conquefi
of
their
feare and troubles there-
by;
fo
that
I (hall
not need, farther to
infifi
thereon.
It
was in my
thoughts
indeed,
to
havehandled
the nature
of
Gofpell Confolation,
that
which
God
is
fo
abundantly willing
the heires
of
promifefbogld receive,
at
large,
both
as
to
the
nature