Owen - Houston-Packer Collection BT768 .O9 1654

Mr G's la{} Argument propofed. C. XYI. c:navoidably to aft Righteoufly, it will take away all rewardableneffe from their 3$7 aEfings; And the Reafön is,becaufefùch a necef?itatingof them,mahes them meer- ly paffrve they having not any internal/principle of their ovine to contraElfuch a necejfity ;which Difcourfe is purfued with manyother words to the famepur. pofe; And aDifcourfe it is Firlf, Exceedingly Irrelative to the bufinefhe inhand; there is not any thing nowunder confideration, that fhould minitfer occafionat all, toconfider the manner ofour yeilding Obedience, and theway ofGods Grace, in the bring- ing forth the fruits thereof, butonly of the confiffency thatis betweenAd-. monitions for the uuing ofthe meaner, when 'tis fuppofed impoffible that the end prevented by them fhould evercome to paffe, which may, or may not be fo, whatever be the manner andway of our yeelding Obedience upon the ex- ertionofthe Efficacy ofthe GraceofGod ; Diverfion is one of Mr Goodwin: ordinarywayes of warding thofeblowes,which he isnot able to beare. Secondly fa/fe, charging a crime on the Do&rine which he doth oppofe whereof it is not guilty; Neither it nor they that maintaine it, affirming that there is a rteceffttationupon thewills of men by the Grace ofGod, fuch ane- ceffitation as fhould in the leaft prejudice their freedome , or catife them toelicitetheir á&s as principlesNatural/ and neceffary;A11 the necefhty afcri- bed by them to the efficacyofthe operation ofthe Grace of God, refpe&s only the event; They fay 'tis necehary that the good be done, which God workes in us by hisGrace,when he workes it in us; but for the manner of its doing, they fay, tiswrought fuitably to the frate and Conditionofthe Inter- nail principle whence tis toproceed, and doth fo, andofthe Agents whereby tis wrought, which are free; Neither do they fay that good is not wrought by any Nativeand inward Principle that is in men, unleffe theywill allow no principle to beNative but what is in them by nature; And then indeed they fay, that though Naturallyand Phyfically there is, yet tblorally and spiritually there is not in them any Native principle to that which is Spiritually good; feeing, in that fence no good thingdwells in men. But ifit may fuffice toevince that they worke from a Native inward principle, that their wills 'which are their Natural/ facultyes, quickned, improved and heightned, by inward, in- dwellinghabitsof Grace,properly theirs when beftowed on them, are the principlesofall their a&ings,then they allert them to worke no leffe from a native internal! principle than Chriffhim felfedid; So that notwithflanding this diverlion given in to fupply the Abfenceofan Anfwer, the infianceas to that alone, wherein the parallel! was intended, hands unmoved, and Mr Goodwin's whole charge offolly and inconfìhency on the proceeding of the Holy Ghoft falls tothe ground,which is the iffueofhis eight Argument in this cafe; Hislaft follows. The laff Argument whichhe propofeth Se&;çt. andends his Chapter with- 4.23. all, is faint, and as the droppings after a fhowre,will ealily be blown over, he thus propofeth it. That Doblrine which Naturally, and direffly tendeth to beget and fomentjea- loufyer, and evil/furmifes between brethren in Chriff, orfuch as ought cordially to Love,lieverence andHonour one another is not confederatewith the Gofpell,nor fromGod,and confequently, that which contraditlethit mull needsbe a truth: The common Doflrine ofungneflionable and unconditionedPerfeverance, is aDoflrine of this tendency, apt to beget and fomentjealouf es , fufpicionsand evilsfurmifes betweenbrethren,or fuch as ought to Love andRefpetl one the other as brethren in Chri `l: Ergo. Anf. Not . to take noticeofany thing by the by, whichfundry Exprefíions and one inference at the leaff,in this Argument do readily adminifter occafion D d d . 2 . unto.

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