Influences of the Life of Grace, Part 1 · Chapter 5
CHAP. V.
Whether or not the Lord's withdrawing of his influences and impreſſions of grace doth acquit and free us of guiltineſs? objections removed.
WE are not a little ſlandered by Jeſuits and Arminians, as ſuch who by the device of forbowing and predeterminating influences of grace, do deſtroy the nature of Free-will and voluntary obedience to God in this Argument.
He who withdraws ſuch an influence and impreſſion of grace, without which the act of obedience is phyſically impoſſible, he is the cauſe of diſobedience, and he renders the nonobeyer guiltleſs and excuſable.
But God according to the way of Calvin and his, withdraws ſuch an influence and impreſſion of grace, becauſe without his impreſſion of grace, its impoſſible phyſically that the Will can be bowed to obey, it being eſſentially requiſite in the act of obedience. Therefore God muſt be the cauſe of diſobedience by this, and render the non-obeyer guiltleſs and excuſable.
Anſ. The Lord's withdrawing makes not the holy one the author of ſin nor deſtroys liberty.Though my dimneſs could not loſe this Argument, the validity and power of the grace of God, ſhould be no leſs, and the guiltineſs of man as much as it is.
But 1. He who withdraws ſuch an influence and impreſſion of grace, from the reaſonable creature, conſtrained, compelled, and unwilling to want ſuch an influence; he is the cauſe of the diſobedience, and rendreth the non-obeyer guiltleſs and excuſable. The Propoſition in that ſenſe is true; But now the aſſumption is moſt falſe; For if the man ſhould ſeek and deſire the influence of God in that very act, and the Lord deny it and withdraw it violently from the Will, as if the Child a drowning ſhould cry to the Father being obliged to help, that he would reach help, and the Father ſhall refuſe, then is the Father the cauſe of the Child's drowning; and ſo ſhould the holy Lord be the cauſe of our diſobedience, and render us guiltleſs and excuſable if he were obliged not to withdraw.
But he who withdraws his influence from the creature, who in the ſame act of wanting, is moſt willing to want it, and gives in the ſame act of diſobedience, his virtual conſent to the ſame withdrawing, he is the cauſe of the diſobedience of the act, and renders the non-obeyer guiltleſs and excuſable. The Propoſition in this ſenſe is falſe; and the Aſſumption true. God ſo withdraws his influence that in the ſame act, the man is unexcuſably willing to want it. He is deſervedly cold, who joyfully and willingly yields to the pulling away of his coat; Here that is true, an injury is not done to a man who receives it as a favour: Volenti non fit injuria; as is clear in the Lord's active hardning of Pharaoh's heart, Exod. 7. 3. and Pharaoh's hardning of his own heart, Exod. 8. 15. both in a material act.
2. He who withdraws his influence, in the ſame moment of time (though firſt by order of nature) from the creature, who (2.)The cauſe why God is not chargeable with the act of diſobedience, and man is chargeable. is willing to want that influence; and (3.) is a withdrawer of his influence by no obligation at all to give it; he is the cauſe of diſobedience. The Propoſition ſo taken, is falſe; Only it follows, that the withdrawing of the influence is the phyſical cauſe of non-obedience, not the moral cauſe of diſobedience.
For 1. The withdrawer of the influence is under no obligation by any binding law to beſtow it.
2. The man that wants the influence is willing to want it.
3. The man is obliged, who ſo wants the influence by an expreſly binding law of God to perform the act commanded, and to abſtain from the contrary act forbidden; and theſe three are the grounds why the Lord is not chargeable with the act of diſobedience; and man is guilty and chargeable therewith. Hence man is the culpable cauſe of diſobedience; and he never wants the influence of God, but his own ſin interpretatively is the cauſe. The withdrawing of Dew and Rain is the cauſe of barrenneſſe or non-fertility; the Lord's withdrawing is the phyſical cauſe of non-obedience; but the will of man is the only formal, vital, ſubjective, moral, and (as it were) the material cauſe of ſin; yea the only formal and efficient cauſe of ſin.
Obj. He that caſts away his coat, is deſervedly cold; for he doth it againſt deliberate reaſon,How we interpretatively yield to the want of influences of grace and ſin formally in the ſame act. except he be mad, or in an extreme diſtemper of body; But no man refuſeth divine influences with deliberate reaſon and the law of nature. 2. The law of nature lays bands upon men not to caſt away their cloaths; but to have, or to want the influences of God, falleth under no command of God laid upon man. 3. No man, by your way, hath the influences of grace in his own power to receive or reject them, as he that caſteth away his garments in a cold day, hath undeniably ſuch a power.
Anſ. Every compariſon in ſome thing halteth; he who caſts away his coat, is deſervedly cold, true, and with deliberate reaſon and fooliſhly ſo doth; and that is falſe, that no man with deliberate reaſon refuſeth divine influences; For willing or deliberate yielding to the ſin, either of omiſſion, or of commiſſion, which is conjoyned with the Lord's withdrawing of his influences, is both our formal ſinning againſt the obligation of a command, and a yielding virtual (which is enough to make up guiltineſs) to the want of divine influences.
2. True it is, to have or to want the influence of God, falleth under no command of God laid upon man, as a man is by the law of nature forbidden to caſt away his coat in a cold ſeaſon; but in virtual yielding to have influences of God, conjoyned with doing evil, and in virtual yielding to want influences conjoyned with other ſins of omiſſion or commiſſion, we ſin, and ſo are under a command; as he who refuſeth a Staff, or a ſtronger man to lean upon in going thorow a water, is guilty of drowning himſelf.
3. Thus far we are deliberately to deſire influences that we are to pray for them; Draw me, Cant. 1. 4. Lord teach me, Pſal. 119. 33. Open mine eyes, that I may behold the wonders of thy Law, ver. 18. Incline mine heart to thy teſtimonies, and not to covetouſneſs, v. 36. As we are obliged to have a new heart, and to have the image of God, which we willingly loſt in Adam, and to be renewed in the ſpirit of our mind, and to make to our ſelves a new heart, and are commanded ſo to doe, Ezech. 18: 31. Epheſ. 4. 23. and yet the Lord's omnipotent creating of a new heart in us cannot fall under a Commandement formally obliging us to create in our ſelves a new heart, and ſo are we cammanded conſequently to have the breathings and influences of grace. 1. In the ſame act in the which we are commanded to obey. 2. In that we are to pray for, and to deſire the breathings of God. 3. In that there is a promiſe, to him that hath it ſhall be given, Matth. 25. 29. Matth. 13. 12. but how far the promiſe extends is after to be diſcuſſed. (3.) As touching influences natural, they ſeem to be common to free and voluntary Agents, and alſo to natural cauſes; ſo the Lord commandeth the Sun to riſe, and it riſeth, Pſal. 104. 19. and he commandeth the Sun, and it riſeth not, Job 9. 7. it rains, becauſe the Lord lifteth up his voice unto the clouds, Our interpretative wanting of influences and our formal ſinning in the ſame act, further clear'd.that abundance of rain may come; he ſendeth out lightnings, Jerem. 14. 22. Pſal. 107. 33, 34. God hunteth the prey for the Lyon, and gives food to the Raven. Job 38. 35. 36. v. 41. In all theſe the natural cauſe acts, and yet hath not in its power the influences of God; and when God withdraws his influences ſo as natural cauſes act not, they find no poſitive violence offered to reſtrain them, or by-way of any poſitive impediment to hinder them, only there is a negative withdrawing of influences upon the Lord's part which they want with a ſort of natural yielding to the want thereof; and yet they have and keep ſtill their natural power to act, actu primo, as the firſt cauſe ſhall ſet them on work: And the very like may be ſaid of moral Agents; God withdraws his influence, they ſin, but find no poſitive violence comming from the Lord's withdrawing, to reſtrain them or impoſe upon them, and they connaturally and with a virtual willingneſs yield to ſuch withdrawings, and keep an inferiour dominion over their own actings.
Hence 1. Moral Agents are to ſet to work to doe duties, & not to wait upon God's acts of influences; but they are to act, as if the influences of God were in their power; for the influence from Heaven to the duty belongs to God, (he does not lay formal commands upon us to have, or to want his influences) and the duty is ours; but we love more to look to God, and judge anxiouſly his providence of withdrawing of influences, then upon our own duty. Its ſtrange: I judge his holy withdrawings, and not my own ſinful omiſſions.
2. No man is to complain of the Lord's withdrawing of influences; You are joyful and well content to want them. Men put out their own eyes and yet complain God hath made them blind: Of this, more hereafter.
But this Argument may be retorted,The ſoveraignty of God is deſtroy'd by Pelagians to the end they may exa't mans Free-will. and unpoſſible it is to defend the Dominion and Soveraignty of God by theſe Principles; ſo if it be not in the dominion and ſoveraignty of God to procure or hinder the acts of final obedience or diſobedience, he cannot be Maſter of ſalvation, and of the certain number of the ſaved; but the free-will of man muſt be abſolute ever here, and the ſalvation of any muſt be phyſically impoſſible to the ſoveraign Lord.
But by the Adverſaries way; its not in the dominion and ſoveraignty of God to procure, or to hinder the acts of final obedience or diſobedience of any; but it muſt be abſolutely in the power of created free-will, all things needful to be done, both upon the part of the Lord's Decree, and of the Lord's Influences, being done, to nill or will, obey or diſobey. And 2. its in the power of created free-will to doe, or obey, and to refuſe, or diſobey. And 3. to have the ſtrongeſt influences of God in its dominion and created power, or to want them. 4. Created freewill firſt ſtirs and concurs, by order of nature, before the ſoveraign Lord joyn his influence; all theſe be the Principles of Pelagians, Jeſuits, Arminians; ſo ſhall created free-will have the dominion above and before the ſoveraign Lord of all the acts of obedience, of all the choſen of God, as to their number, who ſhall be ſaved, who not, how many, how few.