Sect. 3. G. K. knowing that there were some Scriptures that did so fully assert the Perseverance of God's People, that he could with no face deny the truth in them, begins, in this Paragraph, to concede, yet so as not to favour our principle at all, who say, that Its the privilege of every true Believer to persevere. He therefore makes it a particular state of Holiness which only some of these arrive unto; and then they commit no gross sins, but only Peccadillo's (and thus, with the Papists he introduceth the distinction of mortal and venial sins, which hath been sufficiently confuted by ours; who have made it evident that all sins are mortal by the law, Ezek. 18.4. That all sin, excepting that against the Holy Ghost, is venial by the Gospel, ⟨p. 116⟩Mat. 12.31.) but when he comes to describe who these are that are thus indulged, he woefully prevaricates. In p. 46. he tells us they are, 1. such as are born of the free woman, and not of the bond woman; Well, this is not a peculiar privilege of some, but is common to all Believers, even the Galatians, who were so weak and foolish, Cap. 4. ult. 2. They are throughly renewed. If by being throughly renewed, he means so sanctified as to have no dregs of sin remaining; then there are no such; for he grants of these he speaks of, that they do commit little faults, & that must be because there is something of the old man in them. If by throughly, he means in all the parts, then it belongs to every Believer, 2. Cor. 5.17. 3. They are such as are born of God: and that belongs to Faith where ever it is, Gal. 3.36, Joh. 1.12. When he saith that, those who commit any gross sins, as Fornication, Murder. Adultery &c. never arrived to to the pure state of sonship, he doth, 1. Mistake the notion of the difference between servants and sons; true believers are both, sons by Adoption, servants by being devoted to the Obedience of the Gospel. How often doth Paul call himself the servant of Jesus Christ? and so does James, Cap. 1.1. & Peter, 2. Ep. 1.1. & Jude, vers. 1. Its true, Paul distinguisheth ⟨p. 117⟩between the outward servile Condition of Believers under the Old Testament Dispensation, and the more free and son-like Condition of them under the New Testament, Gal. 4. begin. but he assures us that they were children, tho' but in their Nonage. 2. Contradict the Scripture;
Sect. 3. G. K. knowing that there were some Scriptures that did so fully assert the Perseverance of God's People, that he could with no face deny the truth in them, begins, in this Paragraph, to concede, yet so as not to favour our principle at all, who say, that Its the priviledge of every true Beleever to persevere. He therefore makes it a particular state of Holiness which only some of these arrive unto; and then they commit no gross sins, but only Peccadillo's (and thus, with the Papists he introduceth the distinction of mortal and venial sins, which hath been sufficiently confuted by ours; who have made it evident that all sins are mortal by the law, Ezek. 18.4. That all sin, excepting that against the Holy Ghost, is venial by the Gospel, ⟨p. 116⟩Mat. 12.31.) but when he comes to describe who these are that are thus indulged, he wofully prevaricates. In p. 46. he tells us they are, 1. such as are born of the free woman, and not of the bond woman; Well, this is not a peculiar priviledge of some, but is common to all Believers, even the Galatians, who were so weak and foolish, Cap. 4. ult. 2. They are throughly renewed. If by being throughly renewed, he meanes so sanctified as to have no dreggs of sin remaining; then there are no such; for he grants of these he speaks of, that they do commit little faults, & that must be because there is something of the old man in them. If by throughly, he meanes in all the parts, then it belongs to every Beleever, 2. Cor. 5.17. 3. They are such as are born of God: and that belongs to Faith where ever it is, Gal. 3.36, Joh. 1.12. When he saith that, those who commit any gross sins, as Fornication, Murder. Adultery &c. never arrived to to the pure state of sonship, he doth, 1. Mistake the notion of the difference between servants and sons; true beleevers are both, sons by Adoption, servants by being devoted to the Obedience of the Gospel. How often doth Paul call himself the servant of Jesus Christ? and so does James, Cap. 1.1. & Peter, 2. Ep. 1.1. & Jude, vers. 1. Its true, Paul distinguisheth ⟨p. 117⟩between the outward servile Condition of Beleevers under the Old Testament Dispensation, and the more free and son-like Condition of them under the New Testament,
