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Show Vponwh4t S'· We fay this th* •bidiwgftflt is found:ed upon AA lmm11t>bft rv ord I T)1is is · <l~ C9 YfJl§~J W>i!n us, :his w.ord j)~lj;>~omlre ;. God h~ t l1 laid he ~iH not f~,ffer t,hem tg be temf>trd above r-hat tb,y arc able, They lb~ll -bt like !>fo.unt 8ioJ1 which !hall neve-r be removed, Pjalwr 1~ 5, Jhry jh{J.U hliJt/'t thmtgh the ~r.r •{God by f airb Hltto {Qivalion~ 1 J'eq S:· lNp!fr JhpP p111c/t,_them •ut of hiD h~n~, Jul)n IO. 2 8, T,hat he ·will 1t,.eepthrm 'ftnd e(tablijh them, -, Thef: 3·3· Eutllhallforbear: W<hav~many, verymany greataod precious Promifes (to tbispurpofe,) t;iven us in holy Writ : and heave/1 and earth fhallpaji away,bt{ore Olfe title of nobat God hath [aid {hall pajuway. . 6. Sixthly, We fay, this their abiding £late is founded upon an irrevocable Calling, Rom 1.1. 29, The gifts and calling of God are r¥'11h•ut rep.mtance. Rom. 8. 8. Whom hJJ.caDetb, thofo be j~tjlijjeth, and whom he ;urtifieth, tho{the wiUglorifte. We know there i• a m.inille•ial C•Uing; of which Chrill fpeaketh,faying, Many arc Nlled, but fiwu~e .cbo{en: But we lpeak of rhat_ Calling which is powe-rful, and ,to which ob'edience is yielded; which is the effdlual workjng nf hi< divine Power, The Apollle callcth it, 1 ThejJ. 2. '3, The Words effeliH•l workiug in them that.Pelnm. The lndweling of the Spirit followeth this: 'md tbe holy 'Spirit never more leaveth the Soul in which it once dwelleth. 7• Seventhly, '(his abiding.ftau of the Spgufe is fouuded upon a pount Interceffion. There is nothing befides tin which can [eparate between the Soul and God : Now. fait.h theApollle, 1 Job. 2. 1. If: we [m, IJlt h.a.ve aH Advocate lj>ith ,thc-Father, even 7ef~~r Chrijt therigbttOUJ. we,know ~hat hi: is in Heaven, .that he ever liveth t• malt,_e interceffwn for us, ·and tb~t him the Father hearetb 11lway1 : I have prayrdJ'or tht.f, [aith ·Chrill,that thy faith may'"' fail, Luke 22. 32. What Chri(l did for Peter on earth, he doth for all his Saints now in heaven; he is i:ontinually•maklnlllnter.cetlion for us: he began his , lnter~tlion upon the Earth, JohJI 17. u. Holy[ather,ktep thofe wh•m-thou h;# giwn me~ v: 15. J pray th•t tho• fhould{t kt•P them from evil. ··1 , • · s: [;allly, (for I will name qo,more,) lt is founded upon the immortal fled that abideth iu ~h~m, 1 1ohJt 3 ·9• .Wbo{oever.i< boru ofGoddotb nut,csmmit fin, fo~};il,flfti. ref!laiH~th ;, him; and he c•ll- 1101 [lll hecau{t be i4.b,rtl'•f Qpt/. ifbey ·a~e born again (faith the Apo. lile, 1 Pet. I.H.) mHfcotruptib/efeed,hut<>f im;orruptible, by the JFord of God,whicb liveth aHJlllbitlith.for ewr : illld this Word of .. . . · · · Goi Believers may k_now they foalt p~rflvm. God d wc~let-h in them: y~a1 and fo do rhofe fparks of rile Spirit, !hole h~~tts of Grace, whrch are wrought in their hearts by the holy Sptnr, and by the fame holy Spirit c~ntinu ally breathing up-on them prefcrved and kept alive, and rccoverd from the a!hes of corruption which fornetimes leemeth to cover them. Thus I have given yo_u an account of t ~ e ~h ief g rounds of the abiding llate. of the Samts, and the contmu•ng Union which is betwixt Cfm£1 and their Souls. I might hove in titled nn many more as the Fathers donation of them to Ch:i £1 ; the foa ling of the spirit, the atfurar. ce they J1ave of the hea n og of their prayers (a piece of which is always their holdiHt, on ta tiH end )' and m'any others ordinarily ufed by Divioes in this caf~. But ~y defign was not to fpeak all which might have be~ n laid in [o large a Sub jed only to hint fame of the chief. ' I had thought to have enlarged a little further in anfwering fame of the Objedions which thole othcrwife-minded bring: But if yon keep in mind thole four things by which I opened the · the Q:!eflion it is needlefs : for their Objediuns are uft10lly .eitlller hom luch Texts, or Examples as manifeflly fpeak of hypocritu, who never had any fcch real Union or fuch Texts as mention the fallinglofGods people, hut thole ~either total nor final: or elle they run upon th.ofe vain fuppofiiions, That we hold that ~hrillians may fiand in their own llrength, or need not ufe any Jull endeavours, but may live as they !ill : none of which things we own, as you have heard. J will oot therefore engage here in fo tedious a work, which is alfo done to my hands by fo many exce~ lenr perfons: but !hall pafs to the lecond part of the Propofiuon. · That a child of God ""9' /{.now tb•t the union betwixt him and Memb Chri/1 jhaU abide for ever: until tb, day brea/t,_. and the jhadaw1 flee 3' • .rway, as this Te_xt phraleth ir •. Let me open it in a fe1v Conc!u-fions, then I !hall confirm it to you. r. Tba:<f!.h we (ay Believers may "-.no,.,, and may be [lire of it : yet We do not foy e11ery true Believ<r doth k,now it, and i4 affimd of ir: ':"e are not always in an afrual potfdfion of what truly is our rtght. 'Fhe knowledg of this, as. to o'ur particular and being able to fay fo, depends upon the clearnefs of 0ur minds, able to difce_ rn our own ads: yea, and upon our prefenr £late too. David mtght have known that he lhould have been King over lfrael and T t t Jud•h, |