The Lightless Star, Chapter 9
CHAP. IX.
THis leades us to an after state of Pelagianisme The Massilian state of Pelagianisme.in the hands of the Massilians, which was much one and the same with that in the hands of these Pelagian Bishops.
Of them, and their tenets, we have in Prospers Epistle to Austin about the Reliques of the Pelagian Heresie, as likewise in the Epistle of Hilary of Arles. That opinion of theirs, which we shall here take notice of, as falling in with this lost state of Pelagianisme, and pertinent to our present businesse, we shall lay downe in Prospers words; (if I be not deceived they speake Mr. Goodwin) Thus he relates. Some of these doe so farre not decline from the Pelagian pathes, that when they are constrained to confesse that Grace of Christ which prevents all humane merits, le…t if it be rendred to Merits, in vaine should it be called Grace, this Grace they will have to belong to the condition of every man, wherein the Grace of the Creator doth so order him, who before deserved nothing, as not existing of a free and rationall will, that by the discerning of good and evill, he may direct his will both to the knowledge of God, and to the obedience of his Commandements, and come to this Grace, whereby in Christ we are borne again, to wit, by the power of Nature, by asking, seeking, knocking, that therfore may he receive, therfore may he find, therfore may he enter in, because he used the good of Nature wel; so that he deserved to come to this saving Grace, by the help of initial grace? Let Mr. Goodwins doctrine be considered, where he denyes the word Supernaturall as formerly, and his conclusions, upon which we are all this while, together, with his explication of the Parable of the Talents, and see wherein he differs from these here described.
Hilary relates it thus, They agree that all men perished in Adam, neither can any man thence be freeed by his owne free will; But this they affirme to be agreeable to truth, and meet to be preached, that when the occasion or opportunity of obtaining salvation, is declared to them that are utterly downe, and never able by their owne strength to rise, that by that merit, whereby they may will, and beleeve, they may be healed of their disease, and may obtain the increase of faith, and the effect of their thorow holinesse: But to begin any work, much lesse to finish it, they grant that no man is sufficient to himself. Then he addes to this purpose, That to beleeve, and will their owne healing by Christ, to seeke to the Phisitian for cure. These things they number not amongst workes, but these they will have to prevent the healing grace of Christ.
Upon the relation made in these two Epistles, Austin wrote his booke, De praedestinatione sanctorum, & de bono perseveranti…, where he with great strength and clearnesse refutes these opinions, proving at large, what Prosper briefly hints in his Epistle, that in those reliques of the Pelagian pravity, is nourished a strein of no mean virulency, if the beginning of salvation shall be evilly placed in man; If the will of man shal wickedly be preferred before the wil of God; If therefore any man shall be aided, because he would, and not therefore he would, because he was aided; If he that is originally evill, shall evilly be beleeved to begin the receiving of good, not from the highest good, but from himselfe, If God be pleased from some other thing then what he hath given.
We have therefore thus shewed the severall states of the Pelagian Heresie, that our new Pelagians, the Arminians might be unmasked.
And because the Doctrine of Grace is so excellently cleared by Austin, and some other Fathers against these sacrilegious Tenets, I shal yet bring some things more out of their rich treasures. Austin therefore, lib. de praedestinatione sanctorum, c. 2 thus states the Question, That according to his adversaries, faith is not given of God to us, but it is encreased by God in us, by that merit wherby it begun of us. Against this he argues.
1 Here they depart not from that Doctrine which Pelagius himselfe was forced to condemne, in a Court of Bishops in Palestine, to wit, That the Grace of God is given according to our merits; As though it belonged not to the Grace of God, that we have begun to beleeve, but rather belonged to his Grace, which for our beginning is added to us, that wee should beleeve more fully and perfectly; and hence we in the first place give the beginning of faith to God, that the fulfillings of it may be recompensed to us, as likewise whatsoever else we faithfully aske. But against this, why doe we not rather heare, Who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompenced againe unto him? for of him, and through him, and to him, are all things, Rom. 11. The beginning it selfe of our faith then, of whom is it but of him? for it is not, this excepted, of him, are all the rest, but of him, and through him, and to him, are all things.
2 Truly was it said of the Apostle, To you it is given not onelyonly to beleeve, but to suffer for Christ; he sheweth both to be the gifts of God, because he saith both are given; neither doth he say, that yee might more fully and perfectly beleeve in him, but that yee might beleeve in him.
3 Neither did he say that himselfe had obtained mercy, that he might be more faithfull, but that he might be faithfull, for he knew, that he did not first give the beginning of his faith to God, and had the increase thereof recompenced to him, but by him was he made a beleever, by whom he was made an Apostle: For being averse from the faith, which he wasted; & most vehemently adverse thereunto, he is of a suddaine converted unto it, by a more powerfull grace: Nor only made of unwilling, willing to beleeve; but of a persecutor, a sufferer, in the defence of that faith, which he did persecute, For unto him it was given of Christ, not only to beleeve on him, but likewise to suffer for him: And therefore commending that grace, which is not given according to any merit, but makes all good merits (we saw formerly in how large a sence the Fathers understand this word Merit) he saith.
4 Not that wee are sufficient of our selves to thinke any thing, as of our selves, but our sufficiency is of God. Let them attend here, and weigh these words well, who think the beginning of faith is from our selves, the accomplishment from God. For who doth not see, that thinking is before beleeving? for no man beleeves any thing, unlesse he have first thoughts that it is to be beleeved; For although certaine thoughts doe most hastily, most swiftly flye before the will of beleeving, and it presently so followes, that it doth even most closely, as it were, accompany them, yet must it needs be, that whatsoever is beleeved, is by a preventing thought beleeved, although to beleeve is nothing else but to thinke with assent; for not every one that thinkes, beleeves: when many therefore think, that they may not beleeve; but whosoever beleeves, thinks; and by beleeving thinks, and by thinking beleeves. Wherefore as to things that belong to religion and godlines, of which the Apostle spake, if we be not sufficient to think any thing, as of our selves, but our sufficiency is of God, certainly we are not sufficient to beleeve any thing, as of our selves, which without thinking we cannot, but our sufficiency, whereby we begin to beleeve, is of God.