OF A TREATISE, Entitled THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST WORTHY OF ALL ACCEPTATION; CONTAINING A REPLY TO MR. BUTTON's REMARKS, AND THE OBSERVATIONS OF PHILANTHROPOS. BY ANDREW FULLER. TO WHICH IS ADDED, AN ADDRESS TO [Selected from Smith's Lectures on the Nature and End of the Sacred Office.] Jesus Christ. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. Paul. PHILADELPHIA: PRINTED FOR, AND PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM W. WOODWARD Corner of Second and Chesnut Streets. ................................. 1810. Dickinson, Printer. PREFACE, Sec. I. Introduction. General remarks II. On the nature and defination of faith III. Reply to Mr. B.'s V. and VI. letters, on faith being commanded of God IV. Reply to VII. letter, on the obligations of men to embrace whatever God reveals-his charge of illibe- Page V 51 cence X. Reply to XII. letter, on divine decrees, the use of means, particular redemption, &c. XI. Reply to XIII. letter, on the tendency of these prin- ciples to establish the doctrines of human depravity, divine grace, the work of the Spirit, &c. 97 The whole reduced to four questions, and discussed in Sec. 1. Whether regeneration is prior to our coming to II. Whether moral inability is or is not excusable On our moral inability being insuperable On grace being provided to deliver men from it III. Whether faith is required by the moral law IV. Whether an obligation upon all those to whom the gospel is preached to believe in Christ, and the en- This sub-divided into four lesser sections. § 1. Our Lord Jesus Christ had an absolute determina- tion in his death to save some of the human race 193 § 2. The arguments of P. considered § 3. The consistency of the limited extent of Christ's PREFACE. THE prevalence of truth and righteousness is doubtless an object of great importance; nor is the former any less necessary to the latter, than both are to the welfare of mankind. If controversy is of any use, it is because it tends to bring truth to light. It too often unhappily falls out, however, that the parties themselves are not the first who are convinced by each others reasonings; but on the contrary, are as far, and perhaps farther asunder, when they leave off, than when they began: this is not very difficult to be accounted for, though it is much to be lamented. Perhaps there are very few controversies wherein there is not room for mutual concessions. The backwardness so generally discovered to this by writers, and the determination that too commonly appears on both sides to maintain at all events their own principles, have given much disgust to many readers, and made them almost ready to despair of edification by reading controversy. But though it must be granted that such conduct affords a just ground of disgust towards a writer, yet there is not the same reason for being digusted with controversial writing. Whatever be the prejudices of the parties, and their rigid adherence to their own opinions; if a controversy is carried on with any good |