to ib11 E P H E S I A N S. All thofe of the Remot~j/rants do acknowledge tha,t God cloth infallibly in- ~ liahten the mind of a man to fee Spmtual tlungs;. that hkewtfe he cloth work upSermo11. 0~ the; affections :i man, and w0rks good mottons there; but fay they, the XXIII. w 11 thqugh thus befer both by the Underllandtng and Nfecttons, mull llill be ~ fre~ ~nd God mull according to the Law and Courte of thtngs fa work upon i~ as to-leave i~ to irs l1berry; therefore that may refufe for all tlu~,and the orlly way of wor·king upon it is but k>y moral perfwauons. On the orhcr fide, allthe ."fefmts almoll, they aknowledge an efficacy and in– fallibility in Converfion m thofe that.are elected, predcfimated; but they afcnbe it all unto a congruity; that is, thot God cloth take a man at an advantage, fpt– eth out a time wherein a man bemg under fuch and fuch c~rcumfiances and conli– deraLions;he may certainly convert hun.Now fay they, Mter morat perf<iJa)io1JS, , 1 rer argtmmJts wotttd rwt 6e t110t!f,h, tbougb they were 11ever fo abmzdmzt. On the other f1de, if God fi10uld put tonh a power to turn the Wtll, that were too much; That woutd jpoit the liberty of zr, fay they : therefore he fpteth, fay they, an opport~nity, takes a man at fuch a t1me as he hath a good dtfpolinon, and putteth him mto fuch c.rcumflances as he fhall be converted. My Brethren, that which dalheth both thefe, is this; the efficacy of working upon a mans heart, is afcribed to the might of his pow er ; fo the Text faith; .Acco,rdingtotheefficacyof thrmzghtof !Jts power. Itdoth dafh fir(\ the work– ing by mdral perfwaftons only, for that is but a Metaphorical working; fo far as the objects propoundeth, worketh; the Wtll bewg fer free_by a power of grace: But fuch a kind of workmg cloth no way reqture an exceedwg greatnefs of pow– er : If there were no otl1er worl;ing upon a mans heart when he is turned, where lhould this exceeding greatnefs of power, P mzt fpeaks of here, be fpent ? Not in affifling and accompanying moral perfwalions or Oratory atguments: The Apofile you fee •ttributeth itto the might of his power, an efficacious pow• er. therein lierb the efficacy of hts grace. On the other lide, take the congrui– ty ~f the 1efitits, they fay that when God cloth mean infallibly to convert a man, he cloth take him at fuch an advantage when he is fo difpofed, and every way fo circumfianriated that it !hall work Saith the Apofile, it is accordi1tg to th~ power of his mzght; therein lieth the efficacy of it too: He dalheth that likewife;– for do but confider a little,. to put the efficacy of the workingpf grace upon fuch circumfiances as a man is call into at fuch a time and not at another, is to cafl: the work upon meer accidents that will fall out; whereas here it is afcribed to the mzghtof Ius power, not to his poweronly, And it may be a man isinfucha d1!politioo but once in his lite time; fuppofe he be then converted, and he be out of that difpofition the next day , how lhall his heart be carried on to perfevere in grace 'I Therefore certainly the efficacy of working grace and carrying it on, lieth not in congruity, it were ill for us if it did ; but it lieth in the power of bis Might; According (faith he) to the r.!ficaciotls worki~tg of the power of hi.r mzght; fo faith the Text. My Brethren,to end this,you fi1all find that the Scripture !\ill attributeth it-to the power ofGod. WhatfaiththeApoflle, 2 TheJ(. r.ti. Th<ti)'Oilrfaitb (faith he ) may be perfeffev:l wzth power; tf perfected Wtth power, then certainly be· g_un with power.TI!e thing I quote, it for is this? he afcribeth it to power, Now 11 a man carry a thmgby power, you know It ts beyond the force of arguments; we ufe to fay, he earned It by force, by llrength; I will not fay by violence, for God works fweetly, and accordmg to the nature of the Will· but he foith he carried it with power; Faith it is perfected with power, and i;is begun \l'id; power; yet God doth cloath his power with .arguments and pcrfwafions. You fhall find ltl<cwtf<; lil Scrtpture, that the keeptng of a man fo as T emptations do not o~erc~me h1m, ts not attnbuted to moral perfwalions, to the Liberty of the wtll bewg affified and firengthned; but the vi~ory that cafleth it, whereb,· we overcome the \Vorld, the Devil and all; it is attributed to the llrength of God that is in us: 1 .1oh. + :4· He that is bom of' God ovn·cometh I he World, becrw{egreater t.r hetbrit u tllyott; thmt he that u i11 the Wo.-ld.!t is~ victory, my 'Brethren, (that whtch cafieth the act lltll) .for that ISproperly v1ctory to give a man power to overcome, but rl1e victory it felf is not attributted to the liberty of a man's Will put into fu ch a condition that he may turn or over'i:ome,
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