and Free-will. .I 19 C. "But there is a further diference yet. For they fay, That mans "Will hath power to refill the GraceofGod, and fruftrateit, which elfe "would be effe&ual, if man did not overcome it. B. You have brought the Controverfie now to a ftrange kind of power, andfurther confirm me that this empty [ c AN] is the fum" of the Controverfie, which is nothing but a found. This which you call power is nothing but natural poweras morally corrupt and impotent. If it be non-agendo, that you mean they can refift, asby not-believing, not loving God, &c. What power is neceffary to it ? Is it an a&of power, not to love God ? Next fay, that a deadmanhath powernot to live, and a dumb man hath power to be filent 5 and a blindman is able not to fee. If it be agendo that youmean that they refit, the a& as an a& ingenere is an a& of that natural power which God himfelf giveth , upholdeth, and by univerfal concurfe að: and fo far it is no refiftance. But as thata& hath theprohibited obje6t, rather thananother, fo it is f n : And your meaning is that they fay, Man can fin. And indeed is this the Controverfie ? Have you been blaming the Arminian, advancing mans natural Power and Will, and now do youbecome the advancersof it ? Who advancethor praifeth man more? He that faith, Ho can fin? Or he that faith, He cannot fn ? Even now you pleaded, that men cannot believe, and will you now plead, that they cannot choofe but believe? Is it apower tofn, that you accule them for afferting C. " They cannot believewithoùtfpecial Grace : But they cannot choofi " but believe if they haveit. B. It's true : Becaufe it is not that whichwe call fpecial Grace, if it caule themnot to believe : And fo it were a contradi&ion to fay, That they have Faith, and they have not Faith. But this [cannot choofe, is not an impotency [ for to believe is ana&ofpower]: But it is meerly the name of a logical impoffibilitythat thefe two fhould confìft, [ He believeth and he believeth not. ] He that by Grace believeth, hath that natural power which ofit felf is able not to believe (if you will call it ability) : But it is power determined to believe ; and foFaith is become neceffàry, when a man bath it neceffitate exifienthe. But the affectingpower to fin, and to be an Vnbeliever, I will never charge on the Arminian, when I wouldblamethem for advancing man. C. "But it is a power to overcomeGods Grace, which they art. B. Read but Dr. Twi(fe his judgment of Refinance, andyou will call it no more an overcoming; any otherwife than a weight overcometh my ftrength, which I can lift up, and will not. But I tell you, I will not be cheated with ambiguous words. 1. Either youmean an arrive or paffive overcoming. 2. And either you mean an overcoming of Godsutmoft exerted Power by agreater Power; or you mean an over- coming of Gods Will, and hisPower exerted with an abfoluteWill of efficiency ; or youmean the non-efficiency or non-prevalency of fuch an A&of God, as cometh withoutany Decreeor abfolute Will ofpre- vailing, but with a Will of leaving thefuccefs to mans freeWill : (as in Adam's cafe. ) 1. Speaking improperly, youmay fay that all men thatarenot foften- ed, convinced, converted by the means which God thereto appointeth, . overcome God, in thatthey overcome the means. 2. Thus in not-repenting, not-believing, not -loving, &c. the left power anyman hath, the more hepaffively overcometh (as a hard ftone overcometh the Hammer that breaketh it not. ) g. No
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