Total! &finalldefeítion of Sts inwhat fence imporlible.. "C. X11.4:li. are alloftheir perfe&ions of Faith, and of theSaints in believing: which 26 without doubt, they are inall that they -areto Believe, toprefle after: fo that all this is no more, but that this Do&rine requireth men to believe what it affirmeth God to havepromifed. It requireth men to mixe the Promifesof God with Faiths) Crimen in aìiditum. But though the manner of Believing which it requireth, be not blameable, yet the thing which it propofeth to be believed is falle What is that ? That there is an Ab_Plate or utter im- poffibility eitherofa totall orfnall defection oftheFaithof trueBelievers. Its re= qurring this to beBelieved is the bottonte, &allo "corner fgone, ofMr Goodwin's infuing Argument: if it doth not do this, he hath nothing in this place to fay to it Let him then produce anyone that ever wrote in the defenceofit, that bath in Termes, or by jutt confequence, :delivered. any fuch thing, and on Herbam; thereIhall be an endof thisdifpute; I prefutne Mr Goodwin know- eth what is meant by an abfoluteand utter. impofsibility. AnabfoluteRepug' nancyunto being,in the nature of the things themfelves concerning which anyAffirmation is, andnot anyexternals or forraigneconlderation doth en- title any thing to anabfolute es,. utter Impofsibility; did everany oneaffirme, that in the nature of the thing it felfe,thedele&ionof the Sts is abfolutely im- pofJible ? Is it not by them that believe the Perfeverance of the Sts conftantly affirmed that in themfelves they are apt, yeaprone to fall away, and their Faith to decay and dye, which in it felfe poffibly may be done, though Mr Góodw: cannot tolerably thew how.The wholeeerraintyoftheir continuance in, andof the prefervationoftheir Faith, depends meerely on fuppofition of foniething that is extrinfecall in refpeçt of them, and oftheir flat; which as to their Condition might, or might not he. Farther, the Perfeverance of the Saints, is by thefame perlons, conflantly affirmed tobe carryedón, & to beperfe&ed in, andby the ufeofineanes. It is their,keeping,by the power of God through FaithuntoSalvation; And can then an abfolute impofsibility of theirdefe&ion.be aiferted; or only that which is fo uponfuppofition viz: of the Purpofe ofGod&c. There was no Abfolute Impofsibility that the bones of Chr%iifhould not be broken, they being in themfelves as lyable tobe broken as his flefh to bepierced; yet in refpe& ofthe event, it was impoffible they Ihould befo. I cannotwell imagine that Mr Grodwin.is not fully perfwaded with thegreatefl and ',soft indubit able certainty that a . Perfwafron in thingsof thiskind, will admit, that theCommon Dollrine o fPere"erance, cloth not re- quireSaints to believe, that there is an abfolute impoffìbility oftheir defe- &ion, but only that God hath promifed to Preferve them from that, which in themfelves and in refpe& of any thing in them, theyare obnoxious unto; in, andby theufe ofineanes, fuited and appointed by him,to thecarrying on ofthat worke, andcompaffing ofthe end propofed, But yet it pleafeth bins here to make thewofacontraryApprehenfion, and to thew his confidence therein, heaggravates it, with this annexed fuppofition and cafe: It doth ro, (faithhe) though theyfhould fall into ró000 enormous and molt abominable f nnes,and lye wallowing in them like Swine in the mire;yetthat they f all remain all the while in an a(lateofGrace. Anf. Truly this is fuch an enormous and abominable Calumny, that I is.tt. cannot butadmirehow any lober and Rationall man, durst venture upon the Owningofit;Thequeflion now is,what Faith the Doltrine infifted on in- generates in particular perfons,that fhould enervate and make void the Ex= hortations &c. ofthe Mini'try ? Now though theDodrineMould teach this Indefinitely, thatthoughmen did finne fo, andfo, as ishere expreft,yet they shouldbe kept in a hateofGrace, as is mentioned, (which yetis towdly and palpably falle, as bath been declared) yet that it.doth require particularmen M in 2 to
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