Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…

Lib. I am sorry to see how you abuse poor souls, and build them not on Christ, but on themselves! What a deal have you said to this man of Doing and of Working, and how little of Believing? You have set him on tasks of Duty, and he thinketh now to Do this and Live, and to be saved in his own doings; his repenting, his praying, his keeping the Lords day; &c. while the poor man knoweth not Jesus Christ, and submitteth not to the Righteousness of God. You will needs be a Teacher of the Law, and bring back poor souls to bondage, that Christ may profit them nothing; but trusting to their own works and righteousness for life, they may fall from grace, and be found in their nakedness and sin.

P. Sir, these General exclamations do but tell us, that there is something that you differ from us in, but tell us not what. If you are a lover of truth, and will speak to edification, tell us distinctly what are the points of our doctrine which you dislike: and let us debate them one by one.

Lib. Among many others the chief are these, I. That you must not have men come to Christ till they are prepared. II. That you set men on Repenting, and Doing, and Working for salvation, and so teach them to trust in a Righteousness of their own; and do not tell them that All Christs Righteousness is ours being imputed to us, and that Believing is our Conversion, to which you are to call men: If they Believe, they have a perfect Righteousness in Christ. III. That you overthrow the Gospel, in making it a Law. IV. And you make the new Covenant to be made with us, when Christ is the only party in Covenant with God. V. And you make the new Covenant to have Conditions, and so to be the same with the old. VI. You make Justifying faith to be a believing in Christ as a Teacher and Lawgiver, that you may lead in works: and not a mere Believing in him for Righteousness. VII. You make Faith to justify as a condition of our performance, and not merely an Instrument of our Justification, or apprehending Christ. VIII. You make faith in it self to be imputed to us for Righteousness, and not Christ only the object of faith. IX. That God is made Mutable by you, and forgiveth and justifieth them when they believe, whom he did not justify from eternity. X. That a justified man must be afraid lest his sin should unjustifie him again. XI. You make men think that they are able to believe of themselves. XII. You call men to Duties, and to Mortification, before they believe and are regenerate. XIII. Instead of the Witness of the Spirit, you comfort men by the Evidence of their own holiness and righteousness. These with abundance more, are the errors, by which you corrupt and deceive poor souls.