A53688:1392
The Doctrine of the Saints' Perseverance
The doctrine of the saints perseverance, explained and confirmed, or, The certain permanency of their 1. acceptation with God & 2. sanctification from God manifested & proved from the 1. eternal principles 2. effectual causes 3. external means thereof ... vindicated in a full answer to the discourse of Mr. John Goodwin against it, in his book entitled Redemption redeemed : with some digressions concerning 1. the immediate effects of the death of Christ ... : with a discourse touching the epistles of Ignatius, the Episcopacy in them asserted, and some animadversions on Dr. H.H. his dissertations on that subject / by John Owen ...The doctrine of the saints perseverance, explained and confirmed, or, The certain permanency of their 1. acceptation with God & 2. sanctification from God manifested & proved from the 1. eternal principles 2. effectuall causes 3. externall meanes thereof ... vindicated in a full answer to the discourse of Mr. John Goodwin against it, in his book entituled Redemption redeemed : with some degressions concerning 1. the immediate effects of the death of Christ ... : with a discourse touching the epistles of Ignatius, the Episcopacy in them asserted, and some animadversions on Dr. H.H. his dissertations on that subject / by John Owen ...
London: printed by Leon. Lichfield, 1654
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.
And Lastly, 'tis every whit as evident, that such Promises whereby God should assure the Saints, that they shall not Apostatize, but Persevere, are apt and proper to render them uncapable of all fear of Eternal Death, and consequently are apparently obstructive of, and destructive unto the native tendency of the said Threatenings towards, and about the Perseverance of the Saints; these Threatenings can do nothing, contribute nothing towards the Perseverance of the Saints, but by the mediation of the Fear of evil in them, upon their nonpersevering; therefore whatsoever hardens them against this fear, or renders them uncapable of it, supersedes all the virtue and vigour which are to be found in these Threatenings, for or towards the effecting of their Perseverance.
And Lastly, 'tis every whit as evident, that such Promises whereby God should assure the Saints, that they shall not Apostatize, but Persevere, are apt and proper to render them uncapable of all feare of Eternall Death, and consequently are apperently obstructive of, and destructive unto the native tendency of the said Threatnings towards, and about the Perseverance of the Saints; these Threatnings can doe nothing, contribute nothing towards the Perseverance of the Saints, but by the mediation of the Feare of evill in them, upon their nonpersevering; therefore whatsoever hardens them against this feare, or renders them uncapeable of it, supersedes all the virtue and vigour which are to be found in these Threatnings, for or towards the effecting of their Perseverance.
Ans. 1First, be it granted that one end of God in his threatenings, is to prevent Apostasy in the Sts, by stirring them up to take careful heed to the ways and means whereby they may persevere, and that they no otherwise work or cause Perseverance, but as they so stir up and provoke men to the things wherein they are to abide; But this is not their only end. They are also discoveries to all the world of the severity of God against sin, and that it is his Judgement, that they who commit it are worthy of death.