made our selves unable so much as to think a good thought 2 Cor. 3.5 But our Adversaries have and doe further object That a regenerate man hath sufficientia principia rectae operationis sufficient causes and means of well doing as knowledge to understand what is good will to desire what is good and power to effect what is good his soul being enlightned sanctified and assisted by Gods Spirit therefore he may doe what is good and all what God commands I answer That we grant a regenerate man to be enabled to doe good but how farre enabled Surely not perfectly for our knowledge is but in part obscured with ignorance our will is distempered with many turbulent affections and our power hindred to doe many good things we would doe by many lustfull temptations And therefore these principia operationis being not perfecta principia our actions cannot be perfect which proceed from them Who can tell saith David how oft he offendeth Cleanse thou me from my secret sinnes You see Gods Saints have secret sinnes I may have many sinnes and fail in many things which no man knoweth of nor my self but only known to God I may sin and not know mine own sin yet God seeth the same We cannot judge mens hearts for we know not our own it is Gods preroagative to search and try the Reines Jer. 17.9.1 John 3.20 And it is our duty to pray with Nehemiah 13.12 Accept my obedience but pardon mine iniquity That chosen vessell was compelled to say this although he knew nothing by himself yet he knew that thereby he could not be justified And this I hope may suffice for the cleering the first Branch of the second Position That no man can perform such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same or by his obedience thereunto be justified before God And for further confirmation of the truth thereof I dare appeale to any mans conscience if he be not too arrogant how upon the confirmation of Gods strict Judgement and his own manifold infirmities he dares justifie himself in any one act against God And I doubt not but the proudest heart would soon tremble and the boldest face would blush and be ashamed and affraid to have his best works even his prayers scan'd according to the strictnesse of Gods Law or the rigor of Gods Justice And of the adversaries to this truth I require this one thing That they will either produce a man and prove it That hath ever performed in his own person such perfect obedience to the Law of God as not to offend against the same Or else let them acknowledge their error with shame and forbear opposing the truth and disturbing the peace of Gods Church Lest by persisting in their malicious wickednesse their sinne become unpardonable I shall pray for them as for my self that the Lord would be pleased to convince us of the errors of our waies humble us in the sense of our sinnes and be mercifull to our poor Souls Come we now to the second Branch of the second Position which hath in it these two parts to be considered First That no man can be justified by the works of the Law Secondly That we are only justified by the righteousnesse of Christ And first of the first In part I have cleered it before but for further confirmation The Apostle Paul reasons admirably and plainly in this point saying Rom. 15.6 If Salvation be of Grace it is no more of works for else were Grace no more Grace And if it be of works it is no more of Grace for else works were no more works But Salvation is of Grace for by Grace yee are saved through Faith and that not of your selves It is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast Eph. 2.8 And our Saviour tells us plainly that when we have done our best We are but unprofitable Servants Ergo Salvations is not of works Again Reason it self drawn from the Scriptures doth sufficiently prove that we cannot be justified by our works For if any works doe justifie us they must be done either before or after justification But First no works done before the Grace of justification can justifie us Because evill trees cannot bring forth good fruit and being not done of Faith they must needs be sinne for whatsoever is not done of Faith is sinne and without Faith it is impossible to please God Heb. 11.6 Whereupon Saint Paul saith That all men before they be ingrafted into Christ by Grace are the Servants of sinne farre from righteousnesse and bringing forth nothing but fruits deserving shame and death Rom. 6.20 Secondly Our works done after Grace Reason it self sheweth That they cannot be the cause of Grace for how can that which commeth after be any cause of that which goeth before The cause must precede the effect And so August tells us That good works doe not goe before him that is to be justified but doe follow him that is already justified And therefore as good fruits cannot be the cause of the goodnesse of the tree so good works cannot be the cause of justification And that place of the Apostle which I cited before Rom. 3.20 makes it cleer By the works of the Law no flesh shall be justified For first in the 9. ver he tells us That both Jews and Gentiles are under sinne because all are transgressors of the Law Therefore all the world must be guilty before God and can no wayes be justified by pretending innocency in keeping the Law Secondly He sheweth the Reason why no flesh can be justified by the Law because the Law convinceth us of sinne for by the Law commeth the knowledge of sinne But the Law convinceth them that are under Grace and which hath the greatest measure of Grace to be sinners Phil. 3.9 Therefore they that doe the works of the Law by the help of Grace cannot be justified by the Law because the Law sheweth them likewise to be sinners as well though not as great as they that endeavour to keep the Law without the help of Grace And therefore the Apostle concludeth That we are all justified by the righteousnesse of God without the Law as you may see in Rom. 3. from 2. ver therefore not by any righteousnesse of the Law done either by the help of Grace or without Grace For he that obeyeth the Law how ever he doth it with the help of Grace or his own strength yet he hath the same righteousnesse The righteousnesse of the Law because the different manner of obteining it altereth not the nature of the thing But the Apostle sheweth a great difference betwixt the righteousness of the Law and the righteousness of Faith For Moses describeth the righteousnesse which is of the Law That the man which doth these things however he doth them by his own strength or some other help if he doth them he shall live by them Rom. 10.5 But the righteousnesse of Faith speaketh on
So that briefly in statu confectionis Adamus acceperit posse si vellet he received a power to be if he would sed non habuit velle quod posset but he had not power given him to will that he might be Which first power having willingly cast away man now can challenge no more but what God will give for God owes no Creature any thing If he gives it is of his free grace if he withholds he doth no man wrong In the second state in man fallen born of corrupt parents and yet not regenerate Although man hath lost that first grace of liberty to be if he will yet the will doth work freely but it is carried to evil only and can doe nothing else but sinne And the reason is because the privation of the knowledge of God in the understanding ensued on the fall together with the want of inclination in the heart and will to obedience Instead where of blindnesse and aversenesse from God succeeded the which man cannot shake off unlesse he be regenerate Briefly it is the fitnesse and pronenesse in man after his fall being unregenerate to chuse only evill Of this blindnesse and corruption of mans nature after the fall it is said All the thoughts of man are evill c. Gen. 6.5 and can the Ethiopian change his skin Jer. 13.23 And a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit Mat. 7.28 and dead in sinnet by nature the sonnes of wrath Ephes 2.1.3 and we are not able of our selves to think any thing as of our selves 2 Cor. 3.5 With these testimonies concurreth every mans experience and the weary conscience which proclaimeth that we have no liberty or pronenesse of will to doe that which is good but too great freedome and readinesse to practise evil unlesse we be regenerate as it is said Jer. 31.18 Convert thou me and I shall be converted c. Wherefore there is no love of God in us by nature and therefore we have by nature no readinesse to obey God From whence it comes to passe that the enmity between God and man is not in God but in man who will not now rank himself in the roome of a subject and yield to the Lord the place of a Commander There is only now this question between God and man Whose will should be done The Lord craves that man should subject his will to Gods will But man aspires to make his own will the rule of his actions and in this miserable state lives every man not renewed by grace he sets up within himself a will contrary to Gods most holy will And this is the fruit of Adams apostasy for in his Creation he had a perfect conformity to the law or will of God and had power to yield exact obedience to the same But now onely a readinesse to doe evill But no power of it selfe to doe good Thirdly in the third state Take a man as he is renewed we deny against all our adversaries that our will is a co-worker with grace by the force of nature But we say it worketh by grace with grace We deny that grace doth enable the will of it self to doe good works if it please But we say that grace worketh in the will to please and to doe such offices as God requires at our hands God doth not hang his work upon the suspended If of our will but he worketh in us to will and causeth us to doe the things that he commandeth to doe as in Ezekiel 36.27 I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my Statutes and ye shall keep my judgments and doe them We will indeed saith Augustine but God worketh in us to will we work but God worketh in us to work we walk but God worketh in us to walk we keep his commandements but God worketh in us to keep them according to that in the Philippians 2.13 It is God that worketh in you both to will and to doe of his good pleasure So that in this estate the cause for which the will beginneth to work well is this Because by the singular grace or benefit of the holy Spirit mans nature is renewed by the word of God there is kindled in the mind a new light and knowledge of God in the heart new affections in the will new inclinations agreeing with the law of God And the will effectually moved to doe according to these inclinations and so it recovereth both that power of willing that which God approveth and the use of that power and beginneth to be conformed and agreeable to God and to obey him Deut. 30.6 The Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart and the heart of thy seed c. and Ezekiel 36.26 a new heart will I give you c. and 16. Actâ— 14. The Lord opened the heart of Lydia and 1 Cor. 3.7 Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty And yet notwithstanding we must know first in this life the renewing of our nature is not perfect neither as concerning out knowledge of God neither as concerning our inclination to obey God And therefore in the best of men while they live here doe remaine sinnes both originall and others And Secondly that the regenerate be not alwayes ruled by the holy Spirit but are sometimes forsaken of God God withdrawing himself for a season either to try them that is to make their weaknesse without God known to themselves as in Peter or to chastise or humble them but yet are recalled to Repentance that they perish not Of the first the Aposte testifieth Rom. 7.18 I know that in me that is my flesh dwelleth no good thing for to will is present with me but I find no means so performe that which is good And in Marke 9.24 Lord I believe help my unbeliefe Of the second it is said Take not thy holy spirit from me and Esay 63.17 It is said O Lord why hast thou made us to erre from thy wayes and hardened our heart from thy feare Return for thy servants sake the Tribes of thine inheritance and in the 1 Kings 8.57 The Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers let him not leave us or forsake us And therefore the regenerate in this life doth alwayes goe either forward or backward neither continueth in the same state Here then are deduced these two conclusions First as man corrupted before he be regenerate cannot begin new obedience pleasing and acceptable to GOD so he that is regenerate in this life although he begin to obey God that is hath some inclination and purpose to obey according to all his commandements and that unfeigned though yet weak and strugling with evill inclinations affections and desires and therefore there shine in his life and manners a desire of piety towards God and his neighbour yet he cannot yeild whole and perfect obedience to God because neither his knowledge nor love to God is so great and sincere as the law of God requireth And therefore it
to desire good things and eschew hurtfull things is not sinne because it is a thing made of God but such is Concupiscence Sol. To the Major the Appetites and motion of nature are good in themselves as they are meerly motions not as they are inordinate motions and are carryed to such objects as God hath forbidden as all motions and appetites of corrupt nature are Because either they affect not such objects as they ought or affect them not in such sort and to that end which they ought And therefore are all vicious and very sinnes Mat. 7.18 An evill tree cannot bring forth good fruit To desire the fruit of a tree was naturall but to desire it contrary to Gods expresse commandement as it was desired of Eve was a motion in its own kinde and nature corrupt and very sinne Ob. 2 That which is not in our power to cause either to be in us or not to be in us is no sinne Concupiscence is so in us that it is not in our power to shake and put off therefore it is no sinne Sol. The Major is false for sinne is not to be esteemed by the liberty or necessity and bondage of our nature But by the Will and Law of God whatsoever disagreeth here with is no sinne whether men have power to avoyd it or no. And God requiring of us impossible things doth not injure us because he commanded them when they were possible Though we have now lost our ability of performing yet God hath not lost his right of requiring that of us which he left with us Ob. 3 Sinne maketh men obnoxious to the wrath of God but Concupiscence doth not make the regenerate obnoxious to the wrath of God for there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus therefore Concupiscence at least in the regenerate is no sinne Sol. There is a fallacy of Accident in the Minor for it is but by Accident that Concupiscence doth not make the regenerate obnoxious to Gods wrath that is by reason of the Grace of God not imputing it to the faithfull But this commeth not thereof as if Concupiscence were not sinne For neither doe other sinnes condemn the regenerate not because they are no sinnes but because they are remitted by Christ Ob. 4 In Baptism originall sinne is taken away therefore Concupiscence is not sinne in those that are baptized Sol. To the Antecedent originall sinne is taken away in Baptism not simply but as touching the guilt of it But corruption and inclination to sinne remaineth in them that are baptized And this is it that the Schoolmen say the formall of sinne is taken away and the materiall remaineth Rep But they say where the formall is taken away there also the thing it self is taken away because the form of every thing is the cause of the being of it But in Baptism the formall of origall sinne is taken away therefore originall sinne in it self is taken away in Baptism Sol. Here is a fallacy taking that to be generally meant of the whole which is spoken but in part The formall of sinne is taken away not simply but as touching the guilt of it For there is double formall of sinne First a repugnancy with the Law and an inclination to sinne Secondly the guilt which is the ordaining of it to punishment the guilt is taken away but the inclination abideth Rom. 7.23 I see another Law in my members rebelling against the Law of my minde c. And this you see that although originall Concupiscence is not a free and voluntary transgression of Gods Law and so not sinne as actuall sinnes be but an inbred perversity of nature that opposeth the Law of God and makes us apt to transgresse the same it being like a fiery furnace so hot though it yeeld no flames yet it is ever ready to burn every combustible substance that lights upon it Yet it is most apparent that it is a sinne and that prohibited in the tenth Commandement This I hope may suffice in answer to these objections which have been so fully confuted in former ages that were not these men past all shame they would never goe about to revive such Heresies that we had hoped had long since been buried amongst us But so long as there is a Devill in Hell and a Pope at Rome we must never expect to be free from such disturbers of our peace Come we now to the Scriptures which they alledge and wrest to maintain their errors and against the truth of our position that sinne will have a being in the best of men so long as their Souls have a being in these houses of clay The first Scripture that we may take notice that they cite may be that in the Rom. 6.6 we that are baptized into Christ are baptized into his death That the whole body of sinne might be destroyed From whence they conclude That the corruption of old Adam is quite abolished and that they are perfectly quitted from sinne and perfectly renewed by Grace Unto this I answer as in part before that the guilt of sin which the Schools term the form of sin this is taken away in baptisme Secondly the corruption of sin which they call the matter of sin and this is likewise to be considered two wayes First in respect of the dominion of sin and thus the matter of sin is taken away from the elect because sin in them is not like a Prince that ruleth over them but like a Slave that rebelleth against them Secondly in respect of the being of sinne and thus the matter of sinne is not taken away from Gods Saints because St. Paul saith The flesh lusteth against the spirit Gal. 5.17 and as he saith of himself Rom. 7.23 And therefore seeing the Apostle saith not let not sin be in your mortal bodies but let not sinne reign If no sin did remain there were no danger of reigning And as Aug. hath well observed it is apparent that sinne and concupiscence is taken away in Baptisme Non ut non sit sed ut ne obsit not as touching the being of it that we should be without sin but as touching the rule of sin that it should not hurt us nor hinder us to attain unto everlasting happinesse And so Anselme saith in Rom. 6.6 That the body of sinne is destroyed Not that our inbred corruption should on the sudden be consumed in our flesh that liveth but that it may not be imputed to him that is dead though it was in him while he lived Because sin is destroyed not from having a being in us while we are alive but that we should not be compelled to serve it in our life and that it should not deprive us of eternall life Script 2 Rom. Rom. 6.2 cap. 7.4 1 John 3. 6.2 We are dead to sinne dead to the Law free from sinne And they that are born of God that is regenerated and sanctified doe not sin And that our old man that is all the corruption