That touching1 His kingdom, being risen, ascended, entered into glory, set at the right hand of God, all power in heaven and earth given unto Him; which power He2 now exercises over all angels and men, good and bad, to the preservation and salvation of the elect, to the overruling and destruction of the reprobate;3 communicating and applying the benefits, virtue and fruits of His prophecy and priesthood unto His elect, namely to the remission, subduing, and taking away of their sins, to their justification, adoption-of-sons, regeneration, sanctification, preservation and strengthening in all their spiritual conflicts against Satan, the world and the flesh etc. continually dwelling in, governing and keeping their hearts in His true faith and fear by His Holy Spirit, which having4 once given it, He never takes away from them, but by it still begets and nourishes in them repentance, faith, love, obedience, comfort, peace, joy, hope, and all Christian virtues, unto immortality, notwithstanding that it be sometimes through sin and temptation, interrupted, smothered, and as it were overwhelmed for the time. Again on the contrary5 ruling in the world over His enemies, Satan, and all the vessels of wrath; limiting, using, restraining them by His mighty power, as seems good in divine wisdom and justice, to the execution of His determinate counsel, to wit to their seduction, hardening and condemnation, delivering them up to a reprobate mind, to be kept in darkness, sin and sensuality unto judgment.
- Matthew 28:18, 20; 1 Corinthians 15:4ff.; 1 Peter 3:21–22 ↩︎
- Joshua 5:14; Zechariah 1:8ff.; Mark 1:27; Hebrews 1:14 ↩︎
- Romans 5–8; 14:17; Ephesians 5:26–27; Galatians 5:22–23; 1 John 4:13ff. ↩︎
- Job 33:29–30; Psalms 51:10–12; 89:30–34; Isaiah 54:8–10; Luke 22:31–32, 40; John 13:1; 16:31–32; Romans 11:29; 2 Corinthians 12:7–9; Galatians 5:17, 22–23; Ephesians 6:10–11ff. ↩︎
- 1 Kings 22:19; Job 1:6; 2; Isaiah 10:5, 15; 57:20–21; Romans 1:21; 2:4–6; 9:17–18; Ephesians 4:17–19; 1 Thessalonians 5:3, 7; 2 Peter 2; 3:3 ↩︎
