A53688:1409
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.
His fourth Assertion which he pursues at large, or rather with many words, is, That these Threatenings have no tendency to the good of Believers, but only by begetting in them a fear of Hell and Destruction; which that they ought to do is strongly proved from Luke 12. 4, 5. Where we are bid to fear him who can cast both body and soul into Hell-fire; Now though the Logic of this Argument doth scarce appear to me, or the strength of the inference from the text, there being a great difference between fearing him who can cast both body and soul into Hell-fire, and fearing of Hell-fire; between fearing God for his Severity and Power, in Opposition to the weakness and limitedness of Persecutors, (even whilst we fear not their fears, but sanctify the Lord of hosts in our hearts, making him our dread and our fear) and such a fear of punishment as is inconsistent with the Promises of God that we shall be preserved in Obedience, & so be free from it; Yet I shall consider the following Discourse that is built thereon. Supposing all that Mr Goodwin observes from this Text, and that the reason of the fear here enjoined, is taken from the power of God to cast into Hell, yet the whole of the Argument thence amounts but thus far, because such who are threatened to be persecuted by men who can only kill their bodies, ought rather to fear God who can extend his power of punishing to the destruction of body and soul: of those that offend him, therefore there is such a fear ingenerated in the Saints by the Threatenings of the Word as is inconsistent with the truth of Gods steadfastness in his Covenant with them, to keep them up to Obedience unto the end.
His fourth Assertion which he pursues at large, or rather with many words, is, That these Threatnings have no tendency to the good of Believers, but only by begetting in them a feare of Hell and Destruction; which that they ought to do is strongly proved from Luke 12. 4, 5. Where we are bidde to feare him who can cast both body and soule into Hell-fire; Now though the Logicke of this Argument doth scarce appeare to me, or the strength of the inference from the text, there being a great difference between fearing him who can cast both body and soule into Hell-fire, and fearing of Hell-fire; between fearing God for his Severity and Power, in Opposition to the weakenesse and limitednesse of Persecutors, (even whilst we feare not their feares, but sanctify the Lord of hosts in our hearts, making him our dread and our feare) and such a feare of punishment as is inconsistent with the Promises of God that we shall be preserved in Obedience, & so be free from it; Yet I shall consider the following Discourse that is built thereon. Supposing all that Mr Goodwin observes from this Text, and that the reason of the feare here injoyned, is taken from the power of God to cast into Hell, yet the whole of the Argument thence amounts but thus farre, because such who are threatned to be persecuted by men who can only kill their bodyes, ought rather to feare God who can extend his power of punishing to the destruction of body and soule: of those that offend him, therefore there is such a feare ingenerated in the Saints by the Threatnings of the Word as is inconsistent with the truth of Gods stedfastnesse in his Covenant with them, to keepe them up to Obedience unto the end.