This shows that he and his London brethren were not Hardshell or Hyper Calvinistic in their thinking. I agree totally with Knollys.
Said Knollys:
Observations
I believe this. Our Hardshell brothers do not. Who then is "primitive" or "original" old Baptists?
"Did Knollys espouse this hyper-Calvinist tenet? Along with the hyper-Calvinists Knollys believed that the gospel should be preached to all. But contrary to this first hyper-Calvinist tenet he believed the gospel should be offered to all. When preaching on Colossians 3:11 that "Christ is all, and in all", he says, "Let me tell you God offers you Christ upon Gospel-terms,...God doth offer Christ to lost sinners without respect to price or person. He invites them, that have no money, to come, and buy Wine, and milk (that is to say, Christ) without price." (pg. 141-142)
"And, again, when preaching on Luke 19:10 where Jesus said, "For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which is lost," Knollys proclaims, "The Lord having propounded or offered Jesus Christ to lost sinners, outwardly and in generall by the word, and inwardly and perticular to this or that lost sinner by the Spirit, accompanying that word of the Gospel with divine light and power to the heart of the sinner, doth enable the poore soul so to assent unto what is propounded." In 1688 commenting on Revelation 22:17 where "The Spirit and bride say, Come", Knollys writes, "The Church of God, and the holy Spirit of God, and all converted persons, do invite all sorts of sinners, especially, thirsty sinners, without exception against any Persons, that are willing, and without any price, to take Christ freely." Notice that Knollys says that the church of God is to invite not only thirsty sinners but "all sorts of sinners." Gill had said that the offer of Isaiah 55:1 was only to thirsty sinners. In the Parable of the Kingdom he writes, "These that sell this Mystical and Spiritual Oyle are Christ and His Ministers, and Servants....Ordinarily and commonly Christ authorizes and commands his faithful Servants (the Ministers of the Gospel) whom he appoints, commissions and sends to offer this spiritual Oyle to sale, and to sell it unto whomsoever will buy it." And again in the same treatise he calls sinners "to open the door of your hearts to Christ." (pgs. 143-145)
"At the end of the first part of his treatise, The World that now is, he calls unbelievers to believe and repent, exhorting them "to come to Christ because there is salvation in no other." In the second part of the same treatise he closes with another exhortation to "profane sinners" calling them to get into a state of salvation before Christ comes from heaven to judge the quick and the dead, and before they die. He goes on to counsel them to consider: that they are dead in trespasses and sins and are without Christ; that they are in need of Jesus Christ; and that God offers Christ to poor, lost, miserable sinners upon gospel-terms of free grace (everyone who is willing may come to Christ and have Christ freely). He then exhorts them to suffer Jesus to come into their hearts by his Spirit and Word, and open their hearts to Christ when he knocks at the door of their souls and let him come in (if the sinner be willing to open the door of his heart, Christ will come in by his Holy Spirit). It is evident that from the beginning of his Baptist ministry to the end, Knollys believed the gospel should be offered to all, and that the minister should offer the gospel to all. Knollys' extant writings make it quite clear that he had a passionate concern for lost sinners and that he called them to seek Christ, repent, come to him upon "Gospel-terms", and to attend the "means" of salvation in order that they might be converted. Knollys did not hold this first important hyper-Calvinist tenet." (145-148)
Said Knollys:
"Seeing then that the Ending Time of this evil world will be so perillous, and a Day of so great Tribulation, I do intreat both unconverted Sinners, and sanctified Believers, to suffer a word of Exhortation. I do therefore exhort unconverted Sinners, upon whom the End of this WORLD is coming by Death, or Dissolution, That you would come to Christ, Believe in Jesus Christ, and Repent of your sins." (pg. 99-100)
"First, I exhort you to come to Christ; for there is not salvation in any other, Acts 4.12. If you will not come to Christ whilst you live, you will certainly go to Hell when you dye, Psal. 9.17." (pg. 100)
"Some poor sinner haply will say, Alas! I am a vile sinful sinner; I am unworthy, may I presume to come unto Christ? Yes, Jesus Christ who came into the world to save the chiefest of sinners, doth invite all, that will, to come unto him, Isa. 55.1, 2, 3. & Rev. 22. v. 17. But if I do come unto Christ, will he not refuse me, and reject me, and cast me off? No! Joh. 6.37. Him that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out. Some poor lost sinner may haply say, Indeed I see a great need of Christ to justifie me, and to sanctifie me, and to save me; but I know not how to come to Christ; I cannot come to Christ; what shall I do? I answer, It is true, no man can come to Christ, except the Father draw him, John 6.44. but God the Father doth draw sinners unto Christ with his Cords of Love, Jer. 31.3. Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting Love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee. Though thou canst not come to Christ, yet know, that the Lord Jesus Christ can, and will come to thee, and teach thee to go to him, as he did Ephraim, Hos. 11.3, 4. The danger is not in thy own Inability, that thou canst not come to Christ, accept of Christ, and take Christ upon Gospel-terms of Free Grace: but thy souls danger lyeth in thy own unwillingness, Thou wilt not come to Christ; this Jesus Christ complained of, John 5.40. But ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. Ah! woe's me, saith the poor lost sinner; If I were so deeply humbled for my sins; if I had a soft, broken, penitent heart; if I could get victory over my corruptions, then I should be willing to come to Christ for pardon, and for salvation; but these things hinder me, and discourageth me from coming to Christ; I am ashamed to come; I am afraid to come; I confess I am unwilling to come; yet know, God and Christ is willing that thou shouldest come, Mat. 11.28. And ere long, the Day of God's Power will come upon thee; and then thou wilt be willing, Psal. 110.3. Thy People shall be willing in the Day of thy Power." (100-102)
"O ye unconverted Professors! Consider, I beseech you, there is a world to come, and Christ will come, and then every one shall give account of himself to God, Rom. 14.10, 11. What account will you give to God for your formality, lukewarmness, hypocrisie, and unprofitableness under the Means of Grace, you sinful Professors, that have refused the offer of Christ, and despised the goodness of God, which should lead you to Repentance; you that have sinned against Gospel-light, and knowledge, quenched the Spirit, resisted the Spirit, and grieved the holy Spirit, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Zidon, than for you in the Day of Judgment, except you repent, and believe in Christ. And you unconverted ungodly wicked sinners, what account will you give to Christ in the World to come, for all your unrighteousness, and all the wickedness that you have done, and still do in this World. Read Jude verse 15. It will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah, in the Day of Judgment, than for you, Jude verse 7." (Pg. 32)
"O ye unconverted Sinners, both Professors and Prophane! will you now accept of, and receive a word in season of spiritual Counsel? then I will instruct you how you that are miserable may become happy; and you that are in a damnable state, may get into the state of salvation, before Christ come from Heaven to judge the quick and the dead, and before you dye: That you may obtain eternal Life, and Glory; my counsel to you is, as followeth.
1. Consider, you are dead in sins and trespasses, and you are without Christ, Ephes. 2.1.5, 12. you have no saving sanctifying Grace; you are not holy; and if you dye in this your sinful state and condition, you will be damned to eternity, Psal. 9.17. The wicked shall be turned into Hell.
2. Consider your need of Jesus Christ: There is not salvation in any other, Act. 4.12. no Christ, no Salvation: He is that One thing necessary; without him you can do nothing, Joh. 15.5. to please God, or to glorifie God, Heb. 11.6. Without Faith in Christ, it is impossible to please God: Without being and abiding in Christ, you cannot bring forth fruit, nor do any thing, whereby God is glorified, Joh. 15.5-8. You stand in need of Christ to justifie you, to sanctifie you, and to save you from Sin, and from Hell." (pg. 33-34)
3. Consider, God offers Jesus Christ to poor, lost, miserable sinners, Rev. 3.17, 18. yea to the chief of sinners, 1 Tim. 1.12-15. upon Gospel-terms of Free Grace, Isa. 55.1-7. without exception of person, and without respect of price, Revel. 22.17. The Spirit and the Bride saith come, and let him that heareth say come, and let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely; that is to say, Any one, every one that is willing may come to Christ, and receive Christ, and have Christ freely; for HE is the free Gift of God to Sinners, who are without Christ in the World, Joh. 3.16. Be but willing to take Christ, and the work is done. Christ complained of them that would not come to him, that they might have life, Joh. 5.39, 40." (34)
"When you have seriously considered those three particulars, then I counsel you poor, lost, perishing Sinners, first, suffer the LORD Jesus Christ to come by his Spirit and Word into your hearts, and set up the Kingdom of his Grace in your souls; that where Sin hath abounded, Grace may much more abound; and where Sin hath Reigned unto Death, there Grace might Reign through Righteousness unto eternal Life by Jesus Christ our LORD, Rom. 5.20, 21. Do not resist the Holy Spirit, as they did, Zech. 7.7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13. and their Children after them, Act. 7.51."
"Secondly, Open your hearts to Christ, when he knocks at the Door of your Souls, and calls you to come to him, to receive him, and let him come into your hearts, and dwell in your hearts by his holy Spirit, and sanctifying Grace, Rev. 3.20. Behold I stand at the Door and knock, if any man hear my voice, and will open the Door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. If the Sinner be willing to open the door of his heart, Christ will come in by his holy Spirit, and HE will communicate of his Grace to his Soul." (35-36)
"Not that you can do those things of your selves; I have told you, without Christ you can do nothing, Joh. 15.5. But it is your duty to do them, and it is the Free Grace of God, to work in you to will and to do, according to his good pleasure, Phil. 2.12, 13. that he so working in you, you may work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." (36)
"Prepare yourselves for that time of Tribulation, which shall come before Christ come, Matth. 24.21, 29, 30. It's call'd an hour of Temptation, which shall come upon all the World to try them that dwell upon the Earth, Rev. 3. It will come upon the Jews, Dan. 12.1, 2, 3. and upon the Gentiles, Rev. 11.7. but more especially upon the Inhabiters of the Earth, Rev. 8.13. & 12.12. & Rev. 19.19, 20. viz. upon the Beast, and the false Prophet, and upon the Kings of the Earth, and their Armies. Prepare for that midnight Dispensation of Darkness, Distress and Temptation, which is coming upon Nations, Cities and Churches to try them." (pg. 45)
This latter citation I include here although it does not deal with the subject of this posting. I post it to show that he believed that the great tribulation will occur before the second coming (as I also do)
For more Online Books by Hanserd Knollys see (here)
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