A23636:198
The principles of the Protestant religion maintained, and churches of New-England, in the profession…
The principles of the Protestant religion maintained, and churches of New-England, in the profession and exercise thereof defended against all the calumnies of one George Keith, a Quaker, in a book lately published at Pennsylvania, to undermine them both / by the ministers of the Gospel in Boston.The principles of the Protestant religion maintained, and churches of New-England, in the profession and exercise thereof defended against all the calumnies of one George Keith, a Quaker, in a book lately published at Pensilvania, to undermine them both / by the ministers of the Gospel in Boston.
printed by Richard Pierce, 1690
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Its worth the observing, that all those that stand for Justification by works, deny the Doctrine of Perseverance; and great reason might •e assigned for it. Wonder not then that we ⟨p. 110⟩have him chopping at this Pillar too; but this Doctrine is a Cordial of such worth, that we believe that none who have rereceived it in the promise, will readily part with it; let us then vindicate it from his false Comments.
Sect. 1. Real and true beginnings of faith and Sanctification (saith he) may be fallen from: What means he by this? There are some previous and preparatory common works that are wrought in men; such as Conviction of sin and misery by the law, and the terrors of the Lord that make men afraid, and may put a stop to their lewd courses, yea, and work a reformation in many things, and make a natural Conscience to act more strongly than before: if he means these, we deny not but they may be lost; but then we deny them to be the beginnings of true justifying or saving faith, called the Faith of God's elect, to distinguish it from other faith, and those which he instanceth in Heb. 6.4, 5, 6. belong to this head; they had through these arrived to a Temporary Faith, but not to that which is saying; and therefore the Apostle charitably exempts his Hebrews from any such danger; as having other things in them, vers. 9. His instance from Rom. 11. relates only to a visible Church state, which ⟨p. 111⟩all that stand in are not true Believers. That of the Angels fall, is impertinent, for they were under a Covenant of Works. Their Faith in the thorny and stony ground was but a temporary Faith, it had not a saving rooting, and for that Reason abode but a while. And we must distinguish between a false faith and one that is not saying: it is therefore blame-worthy for men to lose some things, the keeping whereof will not save them; such are all the moral principles which men have imbibed, such as the young man had,