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Title:  Christ dying and drawing sinners to himself, or, A survey of our Saviour in his soule-suffering, his lovelynesse in his death, and the efficacie thereof in which some cases of soule-trouble in weeke beleevers ... are opened ... delivered in sermons on the Evangel according to S. John Chap. XII, vers. 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 ... / by Samuel Rutherford.
Author: Rutherford, Samuel, 1600?-1661.
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1 Tim. 1.13. , but I obtained mercy; or, I was all be-mercied, filled with mercy.A confluence of mercy in conversion. As Ezek. 16. Thy time was a time of loves. As a constellation is not one sin∣gle starre, but many; so the converted soule observeth a con∣fluence, a bundle, an army of free loves, all in one cluster, meet∣ing and growing upon one stalk: As to be borne where the voyce of the Turtle is heard in the land, its free love; to heare such a Sermon, free love; that the man spake such an excellent word, free love; that I was not sleeping when it was spoken, free love; that the Holy Ghost drove that word into the soule, as a nayle fastened by the Master of the assembly, it was free mercy: so that there's a meeting of shining favours of God, in obtaining mercy; and this would be observed.Asser. 2. There be two ordinary wayes of God, in drawing sinners: one Morall, by words; another Physicall and reall,Two wayes of drawing sin∣ners; Morall, and Physicall. by strong hand. Which may be cleared thus: Fancie, led with some gilding of apparent or seeming good, as hope of food, doth allure and draw the bird to the grin; and sometime pleasure, as a glasse, and the singing of the Fowler: So is fish drawne to nibble at the angle and lines cast out, hoping to get food. Now this is like Morall drawing in men; and all this is but objective, working on the fancy. But when the foot and wing of the bird is entangled with the net, and the fish hath swallowed down the bait, and an instrument of death under it, now the Fowler draw∣eth the bird, and the Fisher the fish, a farre other way, even by reall violence. The Physician makes the sick child thirsty, then allures him to drink physick, under the notion of drink to quench his thirst: this is morall drawing of the child by wiles. But when the child hath drunk, the drink works not by wiles, or morally, but naturally, without freedome, and whether the child will or no, it purgeth head and stomack.That there is a Morall working by the word, in the drawing of sinners to Christ, though most evident, yet must be proved against Antinomians and Enthusiasts, who Rise, eign, &c. er. 9. pag. 2. write, That the whole letter of the Scripture holds forth a covenant of works. And, Er. 39. pag. 8,The due search and knowledge of the holy Scripture, is not a safe and sure way of searching and finding Christ. And, Er. 40. pag. 8.There is a testimony of the Spirit, and voyce unto the soule, meerly immediate, without any respect unto, or concurrence with 0