Scudder:

1) 4. Be persuaded of God’s love to you in these good things, which he gives to you: First, He loves you as his creature, and if only in that respect he doth preserve you, and do you good, you are bound to thank him. Secondly, You know not but God may love you with a special love to salvation; God’s revealed will profess as much, for you must not meddle with that which is secret. I am sure he gives all-sufficient proof of his love, making offers of it to you, and which you are daily receiving the tokens of, both in the means of this life, and that which is to come. Did not he love you, when, out of his free and everlasting goodwill towards you, he gave his Son to die for you, that you, believing in him, should not die, but have everlasting life? What though you are yet in your sins, doth he not command you to return to him? and hath he not said, he will love you freely? What though you cannot turn to him, nor love him as you would, yet apply by humble faith to the Lord Jesus Christ, as your only savior and great physician, and endeavor, in the use of all good means, to be, and do, as God will have you; then doubt not but that God doth love you; and patiently wait, till you see it in the performance of all his gracious promises unto you. Henry Scudder, The Christian’s Daily Walk in Holy Security and Peace reprint. (Glasgow: William Collins, 1826), 182. [Some spelling modernized and underlining mine.]

2)
Presumption
from universal
Redemption
Removed

8. Some others go farther: they acknowledge that God’s justice must be satisfied, and they think it is satisfied for them, dreaming of universal redemption, by Christ, who indeed is said to die to “take away the sins of the world,” [John 1. 29.]. This causes their conscience to be quiet, notwithstanding that they live in sin.

Answer. It must be granted, that Christ gave himself a ransom for all [1 Tim. 2. 6.]. This ransom may be called general, and for all, in some sense: but how? namely, in respect of the common nature of man, which he took, and of the common cause of mankind, which he undertook; and in itself it was of sufficient price to redeem all men; and because applicable to all, without exception, by the preaching and ministry of the gospel. And it was so intended by Christ, that the plaster should be as large as the sore, and that there should be no defect in the remedy, that is, in the price, or sacrifice of himself offered upon the cross, by which man should be saved, but that all men, and each particular man, might in that respect become salvable in Christ.

Yet doth not the salvation of all men necessarily follow hereupon; nor must any part of the price which Christ paid, be held to be superfluous, though many be not saved by it.  For of being infinite value (because he was the eternal Son of God that suffered; and so it was to be, because he was to feel the wrath of an infinite God) receives not the consideration of more or less. And the whole price and merit of Christ are not to be applied by parts, but the whole merit is to be applied to each particular man that shall be saved.

But know, that the application of the remedy, and the actual fruit of this all-sufficient ransom, redounds to those who are saved only by that way and means which God was pleased to appoint, which, (for men of years) is faith [John 3: 16, John 3: 12.], by which Christ is actually applied. Which condition, many (to whom the gospel does come), make impossible to themselves, through a willful refusal of the gospel, and salvation itself by Christ, upon those terms which God doth offer it.

Upon this sufficiency of Christ’s ransom, and intention of God and Christ, that it should be sufficient to save all, is founded that general offer of Christ to all and to each particular person [Mat. 28: 19, Mar. 16: 15.], to whom the Lord shall be pleased to reveal the gospel: likewise that universal precept of the gospel, commanding every man to repent, and believe in Christ Jesus [Mat. 3: 2,7, and 8, Mat. 1: 15, Acts 17: 30.], as also the universal promise of salvation, made to every one that shall believe in Christ Jesus [John 3:16.].

Although, in an orthodox sense rightly understood , Christ may be said to have died for all, yet let no one think, nor anyone present presume he shall be saved. For God did intend this all-sufficient price for all, otherwise to his elect in Christ, then to those whom he passed by and not elected; for he intended this not only out of a general and common love to his elect. He gave not Christ equally and alike to save all, and Christ did not so lay down his life for the reprobate as for the elect. Christ died for all, that his death might be applicable to all.  He so died for the elect, that his death might be actually applied unto them. He so died for all, that they might have an object of faith, and that if they should believe in Christ, might be saved. Hence it is that Christ’s death becomes effectual to them, and not to the other, though sufficient for all. Nay that many believe not, they have the means of faith, the fault is in themselves [Matt. 13:14, 15, Acts 28:26,27, Isa. 6:9.], through their willfulness or negligence; but that any believe to salvation, it is of God’s grace [Matt. 13:11.], attending his election, and Christ dying [Acts 13:48.] out of his special love for them; and not of the power of man’s free will, God sending his Gospel, and giving the grace of faith and new obedience to those whom of his free grace he has ordained to eternal life [John 3:8.], both where he pleases and when he pleases.

Furthermore, it must be considered that notwithstanding the all-sufficiency of Christ’s death, whereby the new covenant of grace is ratified and confirmed, the covenant is not absolute, but conditional. Now what God proposes conditionally, no man must take absolutely. For God hath not said that all men without exception shall be saved by Christ’s death: but salvation promised to all, only under the condition of repenting and believing in Christ that died; I call them conditions not for which God ordained men to life [Acts 13:4.]; but conditions to which they were ordained, by which as by the fittest way (man being a reasonable and voluntary agent) God might glorify himself in bringing them to eternal life.

Wherefore, notwithstanding Christ’s infinite merit, whereby he satisfied for mankind; and notwithstanding the universality of the offer of salvation to all to whom the gospel is preached; both scripture and experience show, that not all, nor yet the most, shall be saved, and that because the number of them who repent, and unfeignedly believe, whereby they make particular and actual application of Christ and his merits to themselves, are fewest. For of those many that are called, few are chosen [Mat. 20:16.]. Wherefore let none ignorantly dream of an absolute, universal redemption, as many simple people do. Nor yet let any think that because of the large extent of Christ’s redemption, they may be saved when they will. For though Christ be said to suffer to take away the sins of the whole world [John 1:29, 1 John 2:2.], yet the scripture saith, that the whole world of unbelievers and of ungodly men shall perish eternally [2 Pet. 2:5, Jude 14, 36.].

Henry Scudder, The Christian’s Daily Walk (London: Printed for Lodowik Lloyd, at the Green Dragon in Pauls Churchyard, 1674), 331-336. Another edited edition is:  Henry Scudder, The Christian’s Daily Walk in Security and Peace reprint. (Glasgow: William Collins, 1826), 279-282. [Some spelling modernized, marginal headers and footnotes cited inline; one Scripture citation corrected; as much possible, original citation form retained, though standardized; original italics from the 1674 edition removed; and underlining mine.]

Credit to Tony.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 10:59 pm and is filed under For Whom did Christ Die?. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Comments are closed at this time.