A29368:466
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference…
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridge ...The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridg ...
London: printed for Nath. Crouch, 1671
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.
First, For opening of it, you must not think, as I said before, that God is at any time unresolved in himself, or that he knows not what to do, No, For known to God are all his works from the beginning of the world, unto the end says the Apostle. Acts 15.18. There is nothing future, or to come, to God; God is not measured, neither doth he measure by time; There is nothing before, nor after with God in Eternity; All is present, and altogether before him at once, and therefore I say God is not at any time unresolved in himself, what he shall do with this or that people. Now further, God is said to will a thing in a twofold respect, either in regard Of his Decree, or Of his Dispensations.
First, For opening of it, you must not think, as I said before, that God is at any time unresolved in himself, or that he knows not what to do, No, For known to God are all his works from the beginning of the world, unto the end saies the Apostle. Acts 15.18. There is nothing future, or to come, to God; God is not measured, neither doth he measure by time; There is nothing before, nor after with God in Eternity; All is present, and altogether before him at once, and therefore I say God is not at any time unresolved in himself, what he shall do with this or that people. Now further, God is said to will a thing in a twofold respect, either in regard Of his Decree, or Of his Dispensations.
In regard of his decree, his love is ⟨p. 163⟩from Eternity, and yet the same man may seem to be a child of wrath in regard of the dispensation: every Elect person is a child of God from Eternity in regard of Gods decree, and yet he is a child of wrath until he be converted in regard of Gods dispensations. So when I say, that God seems to be at a stand, and unresolved, and that if men do not come unto him he will then go forth against them: This is not to be understood in regard of his decree, but in regard of his dispensations. But