Owen - Houston-Packer Collection BT768 .O9 1654

C AP.I I I,ß:; s, TheEffeâuall CallofBelievers,how Irrefißíble. 72 Elually, and not Effea:sally; A fuppofall hereof, is the ftrengthofthat Confide- ration,which yeilded Mr Goodwin this Demonftration. His eminent way of Arguing here in, will alfo be farther manifeft, ifyou fhall confider that the very thing,which he pretends to proove,is that which he here ufeth for the medium toproove it,not varied in the leaft. Si Pergama dextra &c. But Mr Goodwin fore-faw, (as it was eafyfor him to doe) what would be excepted to this laft Argument, to wit, that the Calling here mentioned effeaually removesthofe barrs ofWickedneffe and vnbeliefe, a fuppofall whereofis all the ftrengthand vigour it hath: And in that fuppofall there is a plaine affir- mingof the thing in Queftion , and a bare contradiétion to that,wbich from the place we proove, and confirme. Wherefore he anfwereth fundry things. I. Firft that Judas, Demaa,Simon Magus, wereall called,andyet layd bars of Wickedneffe andtinbeliefe,whereby their Juffiftcation was obffrnEfed; and to the reply, that they were not fo Called, as thofe mentioned in the Text, not Called according toGodr Purpofe, with that Calling which Howes from their Predeflination to be conformed untoChrift, with that Callingwhich is held out as an effeauall meaneto accomplifh the EndofGod, in canting all things toworks togetherfor their good: and therefore that the ftrength of this An, Ewer lyes in the interpofitionofhis owne Hypothefis once more,& his renew- ed requefts for a grant of the thing in queftton, he proceeds to take away this Exception by fundrycroffe Aflertions, and Interrogations. Sat. 45. I. It bath not been prooved(faith he) byany man, nor I believe never will be (Sr we live not by your Faith, ) that the Calling here fpoken of imports any filch AEIor Worke ofGod, whereby the called are irreffiibly neceffitated favingly to believe. Ifit import no- filch thing as this, what hindersbut that the perfone mentioned, might' have been Called by that very kindofCalling herefoken o f ? Anf It isknown what Mr Goodwinayms at in that Exprefon [irefr.{tibly necef fitatedfavingly to believe]we will not contend about words:neitherofthetwo firft.termes mentioned,are either willingly ufedofus,orcanbe properly ufed by any, in reference to the worke ofConverGon or Calling.What we own in them, relates as to the firft terme (irrefiftibly) to the GraceofGodCalling, or Converting: and in the latter (necefíitatingly) to the Event oftheCall it felfe. If by irreuiftibly, you intend themanner ofoperationofthat effe&uall GraceofGod, (not which conquers in a real ion,which properly may be ter- med fo:but) whichreally, and therfore certainely (for unumquodq; , quod off, dam eff,neceffáribeft) produces its effe&,not by forcing the Wiil,but (being as intimate to it as it felfe) making it willing &c. we owne it. And ifby ne- ceJtating they underhandonly the event ofthings,that is,it is of neceffity,as to to the Event that they (hall favingly Believe; who areEffe&ually Called without the leaft ftraitning, or neceffitating their Wills in their Converlion, (whichare Rill aaed futably to their native Liberty) we dole with that termealto, and affirme that the Calling here mentioned imports fuck an Aft ofGodsGrace, aswhereby they who are Galled,are effeaually and infallibly brought favingly to believe, and fo confequentially, that- the perfonswhole Wickedneffe and Unbeliefeabides upon them , were never Called with this Calling here contended about; Theywho are not Predehinated a-parteantè, nor Glorifiedapart p'ofl, arenot Partakersof this Calling. I muff adde, that (as yet)I havenot met with any proofeofMr Goodwin'slnterpretation,nor a- ny Exceptionagain( ours, that is not refolved into the fame principle of Craving the thingin queftion, producing the 'thing to beprooved, as its owneDemonhrátion. And afferting the things prooved again( him, not to be

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