A Grain of Mustard Seed, Conclusion 1
I. Conclusion.
A man that doth but beginne to be conuerted, is euen at that instant, the very child of God, though inwardly hee be more carnall then spirituall.
The Exposition.
IN a man there must be cō sidered three things, the substance of the body and soule, whereof man is saide to consist; the faculties placed in the soule and exercised in the body, as vnderstanding, will, affections: the integritie tegritie and puritie of the faculties, whereby they are cō formable to the will of God and beare his Image. And since the fall of Adam, man is not depriued of his substance or of the powers and faculties of his soule, but onelyonly of the third, which is the puritie, or integritie of nature. And therfore the conuersion of a sinner, whereof the conclusion speaketh, is not the change of the substance of man, or of the faculties of the soule: but a renewing and restoring of that puritie and holinesse which was lost by mans fall, with the abolishment of that natural corruption that is in all the powers of the soule. This is the worke of God, and of God alone, and that on this manner. First of all, when it pleaseth God to worke a change in any, he doth it not first in one part, then afterward in another, as hee that repaires a decaied house by peecemeale: but the worke, both for the beginning, continuance, and accomplishment, is in the whole man, and eueryevery part at once, specially in the minde, conscience, will, and affections: as on the cōtrary, when Adam lost the image of God, he lost it in eueryevery part. Secondly, the cōuersion of a sinner is not wrought all at one instant, but in continuance of time: & that by certaine measures and degrees. And a man is then in the first degree of his conuersion when the holy Ghost by the meanes of the word, inspires him with some spirituall motions, & begins to regenerate and renew the inward powers of his soule. And he may in this case very fitly be compared to the night in the first dawning of the day, in which though the darkenes remaine and be more in quā tity then the light, yet the sun hath alreadie cast some beames of light into the aire, whereupon we tearme it the breaking of the day. Now then, the very point which I teach, is that a man at this instant, and in this very state (God as yet hauing but laid certen beginnings of true cō uersion in his heart) is the very child of God, and that not only in the eternall purpose of God (as all the elect are) but indeed by actuall adoption: and this is plain by a manifest reason: There be foure speciall workes of grace in eueryevery child of God: his vnion with Christ, his adoption, iustification, and conuersion: & these foure are wrought al at one instant, so as for order of time, neither goes before nor after other: and yet in regard of order of nature, vnion with Christ, Iustification, and adoption, goe before the inward conuersion of a sinner, it beeing the fruit and effect of all. VponUpon this it followeth necessarily, that a sinner in the very first act of his conuersion, is iustified, adopted, and incorporated into the misticall bodie of Christ. In the Parable of the prodigall sonne, the father with ioy receiues his wicked child; but when? surely when he saw him comming a farre off, and when as yet he had made no confession or humiliation to his father, but onelyonly had conceiued with himselfe a purpose to returne and to say, Father I hauehave sinned against heauen and against thee, &c. And Paul saith of many of the Corinthians, that he could not speake vntounto them as spiritual men, but as carnall, euē babes in Christ, 1. Cor. 3. 1. When Dauid reprooued by Nathan did but begin to repent and to say, I hauehave sinned, presently Nathan the Prophet of the Lord said, The Lord hath taken away thy sin, Of this thing Dauid seemes to speake in the 32. Psal. v. 5. I said [that is, I purposed and thought with my selfe] I will confesse against my selfe mine vnrighteousnesse, and thou forgauest mine iniquities. VponUpon these words Augustine saith, Marke, he doth not confesse, but promiseth to confesse, & God forgiueth him. Againe, There be (saith he) three syllables, peccaui, I hauehave sinned: and from these three syllables the flame of a sacrifice did ascend into heauen before God. Chrysostome saith, Say thou hast sinned: and thou hast loosed thy sinne. And Ambrose saith: If he said, I will confesse, and obtained pardon before he confessed, how much more when he had confessed, saying, I know mine iniquitie, was his sinne pardoned▪ Gregorie on this Psal. saith, Marke how speedily pardon comes, and how great is the commendation of Gods merciemercy, in that pardon comes together with the desire of confession, and remission comes to the heart, before confession breake forth in speech.