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54 Christ’s Invitation To His Spouse
“Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon; look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, and the mountains of the leopards.”—Song Of Solomon 4:8 It is not my design to give a minute statement of the meaning of this portion of the Word of God, but only to drop a few hints that may be useful to some of God's dear tried family, if the Good Spirit of life and grace is pleased to make them so. If by Lebanon we understand the pleasures of the world, so odoriferous to the fleshly mind; and if by Amana, Shenir, and Hermon, the lions' dens, and mountains of leopards, we understand the horrible haunts…
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55 The Lord’s People Hidden
A Sermon Preached By William Gadsby At Bedworth, On Wednesday Evening, Aug. 24th, 1842. The copy of the preceding sermon was sent to Mr. Gadsby by the friend who took it down in shorthand. Mr. G., however, said it was not worth publishing, as he remembered how confused he was while preaching, in addition to great affliction of body. It is now, however, sent forth, and we trust will be made useful.—”G.S.,” 1844. “Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.”—Isaiah 26:20 I am about to read a portion of God's Word, which I thought I could find very easily. Indeed, I thought it was…
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Absolute Predestination
Observations on the Divine Attributes, Necessary to be Premised, in Order to Our Better Understanding the Doctrine of Predestination. Although the great and ever-blessed God is a being absolutely simple and infinitely remote from all shadow of composition, He is, nevertheless, in condescension to our weak and contracted faculties, represented in Scripture as possessed of divers Properties, or Attributes, which, though seemingly different from His Essence, are in reality essential to Him, and constitutive of His very Nature. Of these attributes, those on which we shall now particularly descant (as being more immediately concerned in the ensuing subject) are the following ones: I., His eternal wisdom and foreknowledge; II., The absolute freedom and liberty of His will; III., The perpetuity and unchangeableness both of Himself…
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Chapter 1: Wisdom and Foreknowledge
The Divine Wisdom and Foreknowledge of God. I.—With respect to the Divine Wisdom and Foreknowledge, I shall lay down the following positions:— Position 1.—God is, and always was so perfectly wise, that nothing ever did, or does, or can elude His knowledge. He knew, from all eternity, not only what He Himself intended to do, but also what He would incline and permit others to do. "Known unto God are all His works from eternity " (Acts 15:18). Position 2.—Consequently, God knows nothing now, nor will know anything hereafter, which He did not know and foresee from everlasting, His foreknowledge being co-eternal with Himself, and extending to everything that is or shall be done (Heb. 4:13). All things, which comprises past, present and future, are…
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Chapter 2: The Will of God, Part 1
II. The Will of God, with regard to which we assert as follows: Position 1.—The Deity is possessed not only of infinite knowledge, but likewise of absolute liberty of will, so that whatever He does, or permits to be done, He does and permits freely and of His own good pleasure. Consequently, it is His free pleasure to permit sin, since, without His permission, neither men nor devils can do anything. Now, to permit is, at least, the same as not to hinder, though it be in our power to hinder if we please, and this permission, or non-hinderance, is certainly an act of the Divine will. Hence Augustine[1] says, ''Those things which, seemingly, thwart the Divine will are, nevertheless, agreeable to it, for, if…
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Chapter 3: The Will of God, Part 2
Position 5.— God's hidden will is peremptory and absolute, and therefore cannot be hindered from taking effect. God's will is nothing else than God Himself willing, consequently it is omnipotent and unfrustrable. Hence we find it termed by Augustine and the schoolmen, voluntas omnipotentissima, because whatever God wills cannot fail of being effected. This made Augustine say,[1] "Evil men do many things contrary to God's revealed will, but so great is His wisdom, and so inviolable His truth, that He directs all things into those channels which He foreknew." And again,[2] "No free will of the creature can resist the will of God, for man cannot so will or nill as to obstruct the Divine determination or overcome the Divine power." Once more,[3] "It cannot…
