QUESTION XIII. 381 out almighty grace. And upon this account that strong and settled inclination to sin, and aversion to God, which is in the will or affections, is represented in our own language, as well as in the eastern countries, by impotence or inability to forsake or subdue sin : As when adrunkard shall say, I hadsuch a strong desire to the liquor, that I could not but drink to excess, I could not withhold the cupfront my mouth.: Or when a murderer shall say, I hated my neighbour so much, that having a fair opportu- nity, I could not help killing him : Qrwhen we saying to a man of fury in his passion, you are so warm at present, that you cart- not see things t n a true. light, you cannot hearken to reason, you çannot judge aright, you are not capable of acting regularly. Aud that this is the manner of speaking in the eastern countries, is evident from the bible ; Gen. xxxvii. 4. Joseph's brethren ,.hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him : Yet you will grant all this is but moral impotence, that is, a very strong incli- nation to excess of drink, or murder, or passion, or a strong' aversion to the contrary virtues. Even in the things of common life the cannot sometimes signifies nothingbutthe will not ; Luke xi. 7. Troubleme not, my door is shut, my children are with me 'in bed, I cannot rise to give thee : that is, I will not. And with regard to faith, or believing in Christ, our Saviour explains his own language in this manner. In one place he saith, No man can come unto me except' my Father dram hies; John vi. 41: And in another place hecharges theJews it nth this as their fault Ye will not come unto me, that you may bare life ; John v. 40. So in the parable oneexcuse is ; Luke xiv. 20. I have married a wife, anti I cannot come. All these citations intend the same thing : Their cannot is their will not, that is, it is thestrength. of their aversion to Christ, which is a moral impotence ór inabi- lity to believe in him, and the fault lies in the will. St. Paul speaks to the same purpose ; Rom. viii: 7, S. where he shews, that it is the aversion or enmity of the carnal mind to God,' which'hinders it from obeying the law of God, and at last he says, it cannot Ge subject to it. ?'he carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the lawof God, neither, indeed can be: $o then they who are in theflesh cannot please God. The fault still lies in the will of sinful man ; and it is this makes it criminal, while it is naturally impossible to be avoided or overcome. And upon this account God is pleased to use moral means and motives, viz. promises, threatenings, commands, &c. toward all men, such as are suited to awaken their hearts, and excite and persuade their will to use all their natural abilities, to set their natural powers or faculties to work, to attend to, and learn, and practise faith and repentance ; and it is by these véry means God persuades his elect powerfully to repent and believe. But when persons will not hear, nor be influencedby these mo-
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=