A92140:199
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgic Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawless liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgick Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawlesse liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.
London: printed by R.I. for Andrew Crook, 1649
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 it shall be a work of difficulty to prove that to be circumcised was necessary to salvation, and these that so taught Act. 115. and Gal. chap. 5. did teach an error of it self fundamental and that subverted the faith: who ever then would be circumcised fell from Christ Gal. 5. as Paul saith, but that was by consequence, sure it was not an error, in terminis fundamental, as this, Christ is not the Saviour of mankind, only it was an error that by consequence subverted the foundation, and was a falling from Christ by consequence, and a coming again under the debt of the whole law, and of salvation by the law, which was ever impossible, and to say it was necessary to salvation, necessitate medij, so as all the Galatians who received Christ and the Gospel and would have plucked out their eyes for Paul, who died ignorant of ⟨p. 63⟩this point (who ever will now be circumcised is fallen from Christ) were eternally damned, and dyed out of Christ is a groundless saying: there was a glorious Church in Galatia before Paul wrote that epistle to them, for he wrote it upon occasion of their being seduced, who were made believe the necessity of circumcision, and it is clear Paul would not have written that of circumcision, if that error had not been sown among them by false teachers, if therefore such as were made believe that had not been bewitched to believe the necessity of Ceremonies for justification, they being in Christ, should have been saved by faith, though this controversy in terminis had never come to their ears: whither are believers justified by faith only, or must they also be circumcised and keep the Law? that they may be justified and saved. And sure many are now in our days (which is more) glorified, who never knew, but only virtually, and implicitly, that to be circumcised, or to keep Jewish days is not necessary to justified persons, yea sure many in Britain are saved who never knew this fundamental truth. 2. Act. 15. it is clear that some taught the brethren, except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved: the contrary truth is no express fundamental truth, because a fundamental truth expressly necessary is so necessary (necessitate medij) as without the knowledge thereof we cannot be saved.