like inconvenience would follow upon Praescientia Dei falli non potest Gods preference which none denyes and his prescience may aswell hence be denyed as his praedefinitions Seeing Gods prescience is as infallible as his Decree is immutable And thus much for the first Consideration SECT 8. 2. We may secondly consider The second consideration making good the former that in Gods new Covenant of Grace the Condition required of us is also part of Gods Covenant and promise made unto us So that this is one maine difference betweene the Law strictly taken according to the Condition of workes and the Gospell preached both before after the death of Christ that the Law promiseth Life and requires perfect obedience but neither promises nor gives power to performe what it requires It leaves a man wholy to himselfe The conditions required of us are also part of Gods Covenant and promise made unto us DiffereÌ„ce betweene the Lavv and the Gospell Heb. 7 19 and 8 6 RoÌ„ 8 2 3 and to his owne power But the Gospell and new Covenant promiseth the same life upon new and other Conditions no lesse I take hard in themselves and impossible to us to performe aright by our own strength then the other and that is upon condition of Faith Repentance Holinesse and Perseverance in them all Yet so as that it both promiseth and gives power to keepe and performe the Conditions this latter depending on Gods Election in which regard it is said that the Law made nothing perfect but the bringing in of a better hope did and Christ is a Mediatour of a better Covenant which is established on better promises And why better But because what the Law could not doe in that it was weake through the Flesh is done by the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus whom God sent c. The first Covenant is said to be faulty yet not in it selfe for saith the Scripture the Lord finding fault with them not with it barely saith the dayes come when I will make a new Covenan with the House of Israel Judah not according to the Covenant which J made with their Heb. 8.7 8 9 10 11 c. Fathers because they continued not in my Covenant so there is the fault of it I regarded 1. To perfect finish or performe a good worke throughly so as to answer our desire and purpose 1 To perfect it or to persevere in a good worke to the end is not from us but from God For it is God who having begun a good workâ— in you saith Paul to the Philippians will performe it untill the day of Jesus Christ. Phil 1 6 So Paul concerning himselfe to will is present with mee but how to performe that which is good that is how fully to finish it J sinde not Rom 7 8 Yea men cannot finish their owne evill worke alwayes according to their intent how much lesse good workes as Josephs Brethren they thought evill agaìnst him but God ment it unto good Gen. 50 20. and so over-reached them so that they came short of their purpose So Paul going towards ' Damascus with a purpose to fetch thence and bring bound to Jerusalem the Disciples of Christ Acts 9. 〈◊〉 2. Yet was taken short in the way fell down and in stead of finishing his owne wicked intent he is turned to the obedience of Christ not to doe or finish his owne will Act. 9 26 but Christs saying Lord what wilt thou have me to doe 2. Wee cannot so much as doe that which is good without Christ yea unlesse we be ingrafted into him 2 To doe it as the branch can not beare the Fruit of it selfe except it abide in the vine no more can yee except yee abide in mee Iohn 15 4 5. For without mee or severed from mee ye can doe nothing The way of man is not in himselfe it is not in man that walketh to direct his steppes Iere. 10.23 A mans heart may devise his way Jer. 10 2â— Pro. 16 〈◊〉 but the Lord directeth his steppes We may know as in my Text what to doe but we as of our selves are not able to doe according to our knowledge Therefore prayeth David saying not onely Psal 11â— 33 34 35 Teach me the way of thy Statutes and give mee understanding but make me to goe in the path of thy Commandements For wee are of our selves not onely blind but lame and God must teach us not onely to know but to doe Therefore saith David againe Psal 143 10. Teach mee to doe thy will Wee have that in us which till it be removed hinders us from doing that which otherwise wee should doe For the Flesh lusteth against the Spirit Gat. 5.17 Ro 7 19. So that saith Paul ye can not doe the things that ye would So he himselfe found it The good that J would saith her I dâ—e not Isa 26 12 If therefore ought to be done that is good It is God that worketh as formerly is said all our workes for us in us 3. To begin a good worke 3 To begin it Phil. 1 6. is not from us though wee purpose it but from the Lord It is he that beginneth a good work in us 4. To speake what wee have thought on and prepared 4 To speake good is also from the Lord and not from us For so wise Salomon concerning them both The preparation of the heart in man and the answer of the Tongue Prâ— 16 1 is from the Lord And who what minister especially finds it not tâ—us 5. As wee cannot doe 5 To will â—t or speake and utter so can wee not so much as will any thing truely and spiritually good as not our owne Conversion or Salvation For it is God saith Paul to the Philippians which worketh in you both to will and to doe Phil. 2 13 But of this more largely anonâ— 6. How should man will that which is good 6 To coÌ„ceive it as of himselfe when he cannot so much as understand or perceive it For so we are taught The naturall man rèceiveth not the thing of the Spirit of God for they are foolish â—es unto him neither can he know them Rom. 8 7 because they are spiritually discerned Yea the carnall minde is enmity against God 7. Lastly 7 To think it 2 Cor. 3 5. 1 Cor. 3 19 20. Psal 94. Nay he cannot thinke any thing that is good So Paul We are not sufficient of our selves to thinke any thing as of ourselves but our sufficiency is from God Yea man 's best thoughts are vaine the wisdome of the World is foolishnes with God And the Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise that they are vaine All these put together what is it that man is able as of himselfe to doe without Gods speciall and effectuall grace especially in the matter of Conversion Repentance Faith c. SECT 17.
the Conversion of the Elect should be meerely contingent but when God worketh the will we cannot but will It is not left to us to resist For God especially in the worke of our Conversion workes so powerfully as that our naturall resistability yea and that actuall resistance which we make doth not prevaile neither doth alwayes actually resist but at that time the will yeelds its consent So that when we will actually that which is good supposing that God doth give us an ability to will yet that willing is not from our selves Posse velle It is true we suppose in our Conversion doe freely assent and will and yeeld to the motions of Gods grace Though vve vvill freely yet povver act are from him See Doct Ward grat discriminaÌ„t pag. 23. Worketh Certitudine causalitatis certum est non velle cum volumus Sed ille facit ut vellimus bonum certumest nos facere cum facimus Sed ille facit ut faciamus praebendo vires efficacissimas voluntati Aug de gratia lib arbit cap. 16. But the cheife question is not whether the will doe freely yeeld and give assent to the first motion and attraction of grace but whence is that free assent not whether we will freely but whence it is that we will freely whether from our owne will or from Gods effectuall grace It is man that formally willeth in every good worke yea and this his will it is which doth bring and draw out the formall act of willing but it is God that so effectually and powerfully moveth the will that when he Worketh then the will most certainly is wrought and brought into act So saith S. Augustine It is certaine that wee our selves doe will when we will but yet God maketh us wil that which is good And it is certaine that it is wee our selves which doe any good when we doe it but it is he that maketh us doe it Non ergo volumus sed Deus in nobis operatur velle Non ergo operamur sed Deus in nobis operatur operari Aug. de bono perseverantiae c. 13. by giving us most effectuall abilite to our will and it is wee that will but God worketh in us to will therefore wee worke but it is God that worketh in us to worke or the very act of working Wee must not thinke with some that God gives onely a generall and common grace and by it gives to us posse si velimus power to worke if we will though in some sense this may bee true seeing there is a certaine power which the will where it is rules and which it commands God denyes not the facultie of willing to the wickedest which makes their condemnation the more just For if they had not such a power so farre they could not have sinne so that there is no man but may be good or hath a power to be good if he could will to be good But to thinke wee can will of our selves what is good is erronious so especially to will as also not to will or to will and by willing to resist de facto and indeed Gods grace SECT 18. Gods grace then is more then a gentle perswasion Gods grace is more theÌ„ a gentle perswasioÌ„ or commoÌ„ influence and common influence giving us a povver vvhich vve may use or not use at our pleasure So that we may if we will be redeemed Beleeve Repent Persevere No God gives also the will it selfe and his grace at also his intention to save and redeeme depends not upon condition neither is suspended upon the contingent act of mans Faith and Will Grace hath its first act in the will itselfe Haec gratia a nullo duro corde respuitur ideo quippe erâ—oâ—tur ut cordis duritia primitus auferetur Aug. de praedestih Santor cap. 8. which therefore can not be resisted because it first works in it the will not to resist And surely that can resist no more from which is taken away the will to resist thus to will is an effect of Grace and not Grace an effect of the will not resisting And thus God of unwilling makes us willing Man doth not first will and then God make him to will for so we might runne back in infinitum Infinitly To will then is a worke of Gods speciall and effectuall Grace and power unto which his workes of Grace are ascribed Eph. 3 20 2 Thes 1 11. The power of grace in giving Faith vvorking ConversioÌ„ shewed out of scripture Quoad specificationem noÌ„ quoad exercituÌ„ actus He beeing able to doe exceeding abundantly above all that we aske or thinke according to the power that worketh in us unto which power or effectuall grace not onely Faith it selfe and Conversion but the fulfilling of it also is ascribed For it is God that fulfille all the good pleasure of his goodnesse and the worke of Faith with power Now the power of Grace appeares in giving the act of faith and the giving of the act of Faith especially if with all we consider the manner of giving it and of Conversion by which all resistance is subdued proves the power of Grace seeing the act is not presently given when tò passe or the power to beleeve if wee will is given yea thou we should grant that the inward and outward perswasion fit object may carry a man to that which is good and from that which is evill to approve and preferre the one before the other yet they carry him not to the acting of that which is good or to the exercise of the act God exerciseth his omnipotency in giving the act of Faith and Conversion Therefore the Apostle tells us of the exceeding greatnes of his power to us-ward who beleeve according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead Eph. 1 19 20. Here we heare of a power of the greatnesse of his power of the exceeding greatnesse of his power yea of the might of his power Whereof such as beleeve have an experimentall feeling and knowledge it being no other power which raiseth up the Soule by a spirituall resurrection from the death of sinne by Faith then that which raised our blessed Saviour in his body out of the grave For the Apostle speakes there of a present effect and not onely of Gâ—ds power in raising the dead This is that divine power which gives unto us all things that pertaine to life and godlinesse 2 Pet. 13 Luke 11 21 22. 2 Pet. 5 9 Eph. 6 16 By this power of Christs grace the strong man armed is overcome and disarâ—â—ed yea cast out And so Peter would have us resist Satan stroâ—g and stâ—â—fast in the Faith this is that shield wherewith we â—â—albe able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked and the Gospell in the power of it that is the preaching of the Word together with the Sword of the
our refractory Adversaries And doe accordingly thence conclude against universall grace and redomption Collat. Hagiens pag. 409. which extend not themselves beyond the Decree and are no more Conditionall then the Decree it selfe which Gods Word makes absolute and independant So against the Apostasie of the Saints and uncertainty of Salvation c. But yet it is as true that there is that necessary Argument amongst all these points of Controversie that holding any of these latter points as wee according to Scripture doe hold and maintaine them Praedestination as those other points also must be maintained just in that manner and no otherwise then wee hold and teach it which yet is according to the Scriptures Ibid. Though the RemonstraÌ„ts make free will their Helena and accordingly frame other points which the same our Adversaries cannot wholy deny Though to speake as the thing is the Remonstrants pretending to make the Doctrine of praedestination the sole and onely controversiâ— and acccordingly to reduce and frame all other controverted points thereunto hoping for great advantage thereby and presuming to make their Doctrine especially concerning reprobation passe for current amongst the vulgar or most because of the plausiblenesse thereof and because every common understanding cannot cleare it so easily of the odious though most unjust imputations laid upon it as that it makes God the author of mans sinne unjust cruell and tyrannicall c. Yet I say in very deed the onely Helena which they as their Freinds the Papists doe so earnestly strive and contend for is the power of nature and liberty indifferencie and freedome of mans will and naturall power in workes and actions supernaturall This they doe will and must maintaine and accordingly they frame their praedestination and all their other Teneâ—s opposing mainely the Doctrine so clearely laid downe in the Scripture and now taught though by mee but weakly in this present Treatise Against this especially they bend all their forces though in vaine as knowing that if this free powerfull and determining grace of God in mans conversion especially bee granted and suffred to stand then of necessitie the whole Fabrick of their praedestination and other Tenets must all of them fall before it as Dagon before the Arke of God SECT 35. Seeing then that as our Courches Doctrine is the Church may not so expound one place of the Scripture Artic. 20. From the Doctrine taught of Gods free and effectual grace wee may inferre 1. That this Election is not Conditionall or of all but aâ—solute and indepandant that it be repugnant to another And that the places brought for proofe of this one point are so pregnant wee are therefore to conclude also 1. That Gods eternall decree of Election is as absolute as are his promises for effecting in us what hee requireth of us on which indeed the promisâ—s depend and that his Election is not of all with Condition of their wâ—â—kes as the Papists would have it of Faith as the Armintans would have it or of humility and meeknes as our new refiners frame it but of those few onely to whom he hath absolutely in his new Covenant promised and in whom hee effectually in time worketh all these both Faith Humility and other Graces 2. 2 That grace and Redemption are not universall That Gods effectuall Grace and the Redemption wrought by Christ is not in the Aâ—minian sence universall and common eqâ—ally â—ntended for all and that Christ by his death hath not obtained Reconciliation and remission of sinne for all and each So that if any place of Scripture to us seeme to import otherwise it must be expounded as indeed the hardest places of all may agreeable to sucâ— most evident Texts as whereon the foregoing dâ—scourse is built and must admitt of such an exposition as is agreeable to the Analogie of Faith and not repugnant thereunto 3. That as Gods promises of grace are most free 3 That the Salvation finall perseverance of the Saints is certaine and absolute and doe infallibly and necessâ—rily take place So also not onely the Election but Salvation and so the finall perseverance in grace of Gods Children is most certaine and infallible as not depending on man himselfe but on Gods purpose promise and power 4. That consequently the Elect after Conversion 4 That the faithfull may be assured of their Salvation may bee assured and ascertained by their Faith in these absolute promises to their unspeakable comfort of their Election and Salvation and not onely of their present estate and being in grace πὰντοτε δοξα θεῶ. FINIS