Chapter III (continued, part 3)
By your choosing Christ for your friend and portion, you will obtain these two infinite benefits.
1. Christ will give himself to you, with all those various excellencies that meet in him, to your full and everlasting enjoyment. He will ever after treat you as his dear friend; and you shall ere long be where he is, and shall behold his glory, and dwell with him, in most free and intimate communion and enjoyment.
When the saints get to heaven, they shall not merely see Christ, and have to do with him as subjects and servants with a glorious and gracious Lord and Sovereign, but Christ will entertain them as friends and brethren. This we may learn from the manner of Christ's conversing with his disciples here on earth: though he was their Sovereign Lord, and did not refuse, but required, their supreme respect and adoration, yet he did not treat them as earthly sovereigns are wont to do their subjects. He did not keep them at an aweful distance, but all along conversed with them with the most friendly familiarity, as a father amongst a company of children, yea, as with brethren. So he did with the twelve, and so he did with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. He told his disciples, that he did not call them servants, but friends, and we read of one of them that leaned on his bosom: and doubtless he will not treat his disciples with less freedom and endearment in heaven. He will not keep them at a greater distance for his being in a state of exaltation; but he will rather take them into a state of exaltation with him. This will be the improvement Christ will make of his own glory, to make his beloved friends partakers with him, to glorify them in his glory, as he says to his Father, John 17:22, 23. "And the glory which thou hast given me, have I given them, that they may be one, even as we are one I in them" etc. We are to consider, that though Christ is greatly exalted, yet
he is exalted, not as a private person for himself only, but as his people's head; he is exalted in their name, and upon their account, as the first fruits, and as representing the whole harvest. He is not exalted that he may be at a greater distance from them, but that they may be exalted with him. The exaltation and honor of the head is not to make a greater distance between the head and the members, but the members have the same relation and union with the head they had before, and are honored with the head; and instead of the distance being greater, the union shall be nearer and more perfect. When believers get to heaven, Christ will conform them to himself, as he is set down in his Father's throne, so they shall sit down with him on his throne, and shall in their measure be made like him.
When Christ was going to heaven, he comforted his disciples with the thought, that after a while, he would come again and take them to himself, that they might be with him. And we are not to suppose that when the disciples got to heaven, they found him keeping a greater distance than he used to do. No, doubtless, be embraced them as friends, and welcomed them to his and their Father's house, and to his and their glory. They who had been his friends in this world, who had been together with him here, and had together partaken of sorrows and troubles, are now welcomed by him to rest, and to partake of glory with him. He took them and led them into his chambers, and showed them all his glory; as he prayed, John 17:24. "Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given me, be with me, that they may behold the glory which thou hast given me." And he led them to his living fountains of waters, and made them partake of his delights, as he prays John 17:13. "That my joy may be fulfilled in themselves," and set them down with him at his table in his kingdom, and made them partake with him of
his dainties, according to his promise, Luke 22:30, and led them into his banqueting house, and made them to drink new wine with him in the kingdom of his heavenly Father, as he foretold them when he instituted the Lord's supper, Matt. 26:29.
Yea the saints' conversation with Christ in heaven shall not only be as intimate, and their access to him as free, as of the disciples on earth, but in many respects much more so; for in heaven, that vital union shall be perfect, which is exceeding imperfect here. While the saints are in this world, there are great remains of sin and darkness to separate or disunite them from Christ, which shall then all be removed. This is not a time for that full acquaintance, and those glorious manifestations of love, which Christ designs for his people hereafter; which seems to be signified by his speech to Mary Magdalene, when ready to embrace him, when she met him after his resurrection; John 20:17. "Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father."
When the saints shall see Christ's glory and exaltation in heaven, it will indeed possess their hearts with the greater admiration and adoring respect, but it will not awe them into any separation, but will serve only to heighten their surprise and joy, when they find Christ condescending to admit them to such intimate access, and so freely and fully communicating himself to them. So that if we choose Christ for our friend and portion, we shall hereafter be so received to him, that there shall be nothing to hinder the fullest enjoyment of him, to the satisfying the utmost cravings of our souls. We may take our full swing at gratifying our spiritual appetite after these holy pleasures. Christ will then say, as in Cant. 5:1. "Eat, O friends, drink, yea, drink abundantly O beloved." And this shall be our entertainment to
all eternity! There shall never be any end of this happiness, or any thing to interrupt our enjoyment of it, or in the least to molest us in it! 2. By your being united to Christ, you will have a more glorious union with and enjoyment of God the Father, than otherwise could be. For hereby the saints' relation to God becomes much nearer; they are the children of God in a higher manner than otherwise could be. For, being members of God's own Son, they are in a sort partakers of his relation to the Father: they are not only sons of God by regeneration, but by a kind of communion in the sonship of the eternal Son. This seems to be intended, Gal. 4:4-6. "God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that are under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." The church is the daughter of God not only as he hath begotten her by his word and Spirit but as she is the spouse of his eternal Son.
So we being members of the Son, are partakers in our measure of the Father's love to the Son, and complacence in him. John 17:23. "I in them, and thou in me, -- Thou hast loved them as thou hast loved me." And ver. 26. "That the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them." And chap. 16:27. "The Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God." So we shall, according to our capacities, be partakers of the Son's enjoyment of God, and have his joy fulfilled in ourselves, John 17:13. And by this means we shall come to an immensely higher, more intimate and full enjoyment of God, than otherwise could have been. For there is doubtless an infinite intimacy between the Father and the Son which is expressed by his being in the bosom of the Father. And
saints being in him, shall, in their measure and manner, partake with him in it, and of the blessedness of it.
And thus is the affair of our redemption ordered, that thereby we are brought to an immensely more exalted kind of union with God, and enjoyment of him, both the Father and the Son, than otherwise could have been. For Christ being united to the human nature, we have advantage for a more free and full enjoyment of him, than we could have had if he had remained only in the divine nature. So again, we being united to a divine person, as his members, can have a more intimate union and intercourse with God the Father, who is only in the divine nature, than otherwise could be. Christ, who is a divine person, by taking on him our nature, descends from the infinite distance and height above us, and is brought nigh to us; whereby we have advantage for the full enjoyment of him. And, on the other hand, we, by being in Christ a divine person, do as it were ascend up to God, through the infinite distance, and have hereby advantage for the full enjoyment of him also.
This was the design of Christ, that he, and his Father, and his people, might all be united in one. John 17:21 23. "That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee -- that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one; I in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one." Christ has brought it to pass, that those whom the Father has given him should be brought into the household of God, that he and his Father, and his people, should be as one society, one family; that the church should be as it were admitted into the society of the blessed Trinity.
Concerning Efficacious Grace
by Jonathan Edwards
§ 1. It is manifest that the Scripture supposes that if ever men are turned from sin, God must undertake it, and he must be the doer of it, that it is his doing that must determine the matter, and that all that others can do will avail nothing without his agency. This is manifest by such texts as these: Jer. 31:18-19, "Turn thou me, and I shall be turned; Thou art the Lord my God. Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh," etc. Lam. 5:21, "Turn thou us unto thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned." Psa. 80:3, "Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved." The same in Psa. 80:7, 19; Jer. 3:14.
§ 2. According to Dr. Whitby's notion of the assistance of the Spirit, the Spirit of God does nothing in the hearts or minds of men beyond the power of the devil, nothing but what the devil can do, and nothing showing any greater power in any respect than the devil shows and exercises in his temptations. For he supposes that all that the Spirit of God does, is to bring moral motives and inducements to mind, and set them before the understanding, etc. It is possible that God may infuse grace, in some instances, into the minds of such persons as are striving to obtain it in the other way, though they may not observe it, and may not know that it is not obtained by gradual acquisition. But if a man has indeed sought it only in that way, and with as much dependence on himself, and with as much neglect of God in his endeavors and prayers, as such a doctrine naturally leads
to, it is not very likely that he should obtain saving grace by the efficacious, mighty power of God. It is most likely that God should bestow this gift in a way of earnest attention to divine truth, and the use of the means of grace, with reflection on one's own sinfulness, and in a way of being more and more convinced of sinfulness, and total corruption and need of divine power to restore the heart, to infuse goodness, and of becoming more and more sensible of one's own impotence, and helplessness and inability to obtain goodness by his own strength. And if a man has obtained no other virtue than what seems to have been wholly in that gradual and insensible way that might be expected from use and custom, in the exercise of his own strength, he has reason to think, however bright his attainments may seem to be, that he has no saving virtue.
§ 3. Great part of the gospel is denied by those who deny pure efficacious grace. They deny that wherein actual salvation and the application of redemption mainly consists, and how unlikely are such to be successful in their endeavors after actual salvation!
Turnbull's explanation of Phil. 2:12, 13, "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his own good pleasure," is this (Christian Philosophy, p. 96, 97), "Give all diligence to work out your salvation, for it is God, the Creator of all things, who, by giving you, of his good pleasure, the power of willing and doing, with a sense of right and wrong, and reason to guide and direct you, has visibly made it your end so to do. Your frame shows that to prepare yourselves for great moral happiness, arising from a well cultivated and improved mind, suitably placed, is your end appointed to you by your Creator. Consider, therefore, that by neglecting this your duty, this your interest, you contemn and oppose the good will of God towards you, and his design in creating you."
§ 4. If we look through all the examples we have of conversion in Scripture, the conversion of the apostle Paul, and of the Corinthians ("Such were some of you, but ye are washed," etc.) and all others that the apostles write to, how far were they from this gradual way of conversion, by contracted habits, and by such culture as Turnbull speaks of! Turnbull, in his Christian Philosophy, p. 470, seems to think that the sudden conversions that were in the apostles' days, were instances of their miraculous power, as in these words, "They appealed to the works they wrought, to the samples they gave of their power to foretell future events; their power to cure instantaneously all diseases of the body; their power to cure, in the same extraordinary manner, all diseases of the mind, or to convert bad into good dispositions; their power to bestow gifts and blessings of all sorts, bodily and spiritual." See again to the like purpose, p. 472.
Now I would inquire whether those who thus had the diseases of their minds cured, and their bad converted into good dispositions, had any virtue, or whether those good dispositions of theirs were virtues or anything praiseworthy, and whether, when they were thus converted, they became good men and the heirs of salvation? As Turnbull himself allows, all that are not good men, were called the children of the devil in Scripture. And he asserts that nothing is virtue, but what is obtained by our own culture: that no habit is virtuous, but a contracted one, one that is owing to ourselves, our own diligence, etc. He also holds that none are good men but the virtuous; none others are the heirs of future happiness.
§ 5. What God wrought for the apostle Paul and other primitive Christians, was intended for a pattern to all future ages, for their instruction and excitement, Eph. 2:7; 1 Tim. 1:16. It is natural to expect that the first fruits of the church specially recorded in history, and in that book which is the steady rule of the church in all things
pertaining to salvation, should be a pattern to after-ages in those things, those privileges, which equally concern all. Or if it be said that as soon as men take up a strong resolution, they are accepted and looked upon by God as penitents and converts, it may be inquired, "Is there a good man without good habits, or principles of virtue and goodness in his heart?"
§ 6. Turnbull speaks of good men as born again, i.e. changed by culture: Christian Philosophy, p. 282. Is there a good man without such principles as love to God and men, or charity, humility, etc.? How comes that resolution to be so good, if no principle of virtue be exercised in it?
If it be said, Paul was a good man before he was converted, it may be answered that he did not believe in Christ, and therefore was in a state of condemnation. Besides, he speaks of himself as being then a wicked man.
§ 7. Concerning the supposition advanced by Bishop Butler, and by Turnbull in his Christian Philosophy, that all that God does, even miracles themselves, are wrought according to general laws, such as are called the laws of nature, though unknown to us. And the supposition of Turnbull, that all may be done by angels acting by general laws, I observe, that this seems to be unreasonable. If angels effect these works, acting only by general laws, then they must do them without any immediate, special interposition at all, even without the smallest intimation of the divine mind, what to do, or upon what occasion God would have anything to be done. And what will this doctrine bring inspiration to, which is one kind of miracle? According to this, all significations of the divine mind, even to the prophets and apostles, must be according to general laws, without any special interposition at all of the divine agency.
§ 8. Acts 12:23. God was so angry with Herod for not giving him the glory of his eloquence, that the angel of the Lord smote him immediately, and he died a miserable death: he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost. But if it be very sinful for a man to take to himself the glory of such a qualification as eloquence, how much more a man's taking to himself the glory of divine grace, God's own image, and that which is infinitely God's most excellent, precious, and glorious gift, and man's highest honor, excellency, and happiness, whereby he is partaker of the divine nature and becomes a God-like creature? If God was so jealous for the glory of so small a gift, how much more for so high an endowment, this being that alone, of all other things, by which man becomes like God? If man takes the glory of it to himself, he thereby will be in the greatest danger of taking the glory to himself that is due to God, and of setting up himself as standing in competition with God, as vying with the Most High, and making himself a god and not a man. If not giving God the glory of that which is least honorable, provokes God's jealousy, much more must not giving God the glory of that which is infinitely the most honorable. It is allowed, the apostle insists upon it, that the primitive Christians should be sensible that the glory of their gifts belonged to God, and that they made not themselves to differ. But how small a matter is this, if they make themselves to differ in that, which the apostle says is so much more excellent than all gifts!
§ 9. How much more careful has God shown himself, that men should not be proud of their virtue, than of any other gift! See Deu. 9:4; Luke 18:9, and innumerable other places. And the apostle plainly teaches us to ascribe to God the glory, not only of our redemption, but of our wisdom, righteousness, and sanctification; and that no flesh should glory in themselves in these things, 1 Cor. 1:29-31. Again, the apostle plainly directs that all that glory in their
virtue should glory in the Lord, 2 Cor. 10:17. It is glorying in virtue and virtuous deeds he is there speaking of, and it is plain that the apostle uses the expression of glorying in the Lord, in such a sense, as to imply ascribing the glory of our virtue to God.
§ 10. The doctrine of men's being the determining causes of their own virtue, teaches them not to do so much as even the proud Pharisee did, who thanked God for making him to differ from other men in virtue, Luke 18.
See Gen. 41:15-16; Job 11:12; Dan. 2:25, etc.; 2 Cor. 3:5-6; 2 Cor. 4:7; 2 Cor. 10:17.
Pro. 20:12, "The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the Lord hath made, even both of them;" compared with many parallel places that speak about God's giving eyes to see, and ears to hear, and hearts to understand, etc.
§ 11. The Arminian doctrine, and the doctrine of our new philosophers, concerning habits of virtue being only by custom, discipline, and gradual culture, joined with the other doctrine, that the obtaining of these habits in those that have time for it, is in every man's power, according to their doctrine of the freedom of will, tends exceedingly to cherish presumption in sinners, while in health and vigor, and tends to their utter despair, in sensible approaches of death by sickness or old age. § 12. Observe that the question with some is whether the Spirit of God does anything at all in these days, since the Scriptures have been completed. With those that allow that he does anything, the question cannot be whether his influence be immediate. For if he does anything at all, his influence must be immediate. Nor can the question be whether his influence with regard to what he intends to do, be efficacious. The questions relating to efficacious grace, controverted between us and the
Arminians, are two: First. Whether the grace of God, in giving us saving virtue, be determining and decisive. Second. Whether saving virtue be decisively given by a supernatural and sovereign operation of the Spirit of God; or whether it be only by such a divine influence or assistance, as is imparted in the course of common providence, either according to established laws of nature, or established laws of God's universal providence towards mankind; i.e. either, (1.) Assistance which is given in all natural actions, wherein men do merely exercise and improve the principles of nature and laws of nature, and come to such attainments as are connected with such exercises by the mere laws of nature. For there is an assistance in all such natural actions, because it is by a divine influence that the laws of nature are upheld, and a constant occurrence of divine power is necessary in order to our living, moving, or having a being. This we may call a natural assistance. Or (2.) That assistance, which though it be something besides the upholding of the laws of nature (which take place in all affairs of life), is yet, by a divine, universal constitution in this particular affair of religion, so connected with those voluntary exercises which result from this mere natural assistance, that by this constitution it indiscriminately extends to all mankind, and is certainly connected with such exercises and improvements, as those just mentioned, by a certain, established, known rule, as much as any of the laws of nature. This kind of assistance, though many Arminians call it a supernatural assistance, differs little or nothing from that natural assistance that is established by a law of nature. The law so established is only a particular law of nature, as some of the laws of nature are more general, others more particular. But this establishment, which they suppose to be by divine promise, differs nothing at all from many other particular laws of nature, except only in this circumstance, of the established constitutions being revealed in the Word of God, while others are left to be discovered only by experience. The Calvinists suppose otherwise. They suppose that
divine influence and operation, by which saving virtue is obtained, is entirely from, and above common assistance, or that which is given in a course of ordinary providence, according to universally established laws of nature. They suppose a principle of saving virtue is immediately imparted and implanted by that operation, which is sovereign and efficacious in this respect, that its effect proceeds not from any established laws of nature. I mention this as an entirely different question from the other, viz. Whether the grace of God, by which we obtain saving virtue, is determining or decisive. For that it may be, if it be given wholly in a course of nature, or by such an operation as is limited and regulated perfectly according to established, invariable laws. For none will dispute that many things are brought to pass by God in this manner, that are decisively ordered by him, and are brought to pass by his determining providence.
The controversy, as it relates to efficacious grace, in this sense, includes in it these four questions. 1. Whether saving virtue differs from common virtue, or such virtue as those have that are not in a state of salvation, in nature and kind, or only in degree and circumstances?
2. Whether a holy disposition of heart, as an internal governing principle of life and practice, be immediately implanted or infused in the soul, or only be contracted by repeated acts, and obtained by human culture and improvement?
3. Whether conversion, or the change of a person from being a vicious or wicked man, to a truly virtuous character, be instantaneous or gradual?
4. Whether the divine assistance or influence, by which men may obtain true and saving virtue, be sovereign and arbitrary, or whether
God, in giving this assistance and its effects, limits himself to certain exact and stated rules, revealed in his Word and established by his promises? § 13. Eph. 1:19-20, "What is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward, according to the working of his mighty power," or the effectual working, as the word signifies — These words, according to the effectual working of his power, we shall find applied to conversion, to growth in grace, and to raising us up at last. You have them applied to conversion, Eph. 3:7, "Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God, given to me, by the effectual working of his power." So likewise to grow in grace, Eph. 4:16, "The whole body increaseth with the increase of God, by the effectual working in the measure of every part." — And to the resurrection to glory at the last day, Phil. 3:21, "He will change our vile bodies, according to the effectual working of his might power, whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself."
And that the power of God in conversion, or in giving faith and the spiritual blessings that attend it, is here meant, may be argued from the apostle's change of phrase, that whereas in the foregoing verse, he spoke of the riches of the glory of Christ's inheritance in the saints, he does not go on to say, "and what is the exceeding greatness of his power towards them," (i.e. the saints), which surely would have been most natural, if he still had respect only to the power of God in bestowing the inheritance of future glory. But, instead of that, we see he changes the phrase, "and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe;" plainly intimating some kind of change of the subject, or a respect to the subject of salvation with regard to something diverse. Whereas before he spoke of saints in their future state only, now he speaks of something that the saints, we that dwell in this world that believe, are the subjects of. And as the apostle includes himself, so it is the more likely he should have the mighty power of God in conversion in his thought: his conversion
having been so visible and remarkable an instance of God's marvelous power. Again, the apostle, in praying that they "knowing the exceeding greatness of God's power," etc. prays for such a knowledge and conviction of the power of God to bring them to life and glory, which was a most special remedy against such doubts as the church in the then present state was most exposed to, viz. that their being preserved to glory and salvation through all their trials, persecutions, and the great opposition that was made by the enemies of Christ and their souls. Therefore, after mentioning the glory of their inheritance, he, for their comfort and establishment, mentions the power of God to bring them to the possession of this inheritance, as the apostle Peter does, 1 Pet. 1:4-5, "To an inheritance incorruptible — who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." He speaks to their hearts, for here was their difficulty and temptation to doubting. But if the keeping them in faith showed such great power, much more did the first bringing them from heathenism and the power of sin, darkness, and spiritual death and ruin, into a state of faith and salvation quickening them when dead in trespasses and sins: as it is a greater instance of divine power to raise the dead, than to maintain life that is exposed to danger, and it is a greater work to reconcile us being enemies, than to keep us friends being reconciled. It was natural for the apostle to put them in mind of the power of God manifested in their conversion as he would strengthen their faith in his power to raise them at the last day, and glorify them to eternity. Dr. Goodwin says, he finds most of the Greek fathers ran this way in interpreting the place. He mentions Theophylact and Chrysostom, and cites these words of Chrysostom: "The apostle's scope is to demonstrate by what already was manifested in them, viz. The power of God in working faith, and to raise up their hearts to believe what was not manifested, viz. the raising of them from death to life. It being (saith he) a far more wonderful work to persuade a soul to believe in Christ, than to raise up a dead man, a far more
admirable work of the two." Besides, what the apostle says in the continuation of his discourse, explains his meaning, and puts the matter of his intending to include the power of God manifested in their conversion, out of all doubt, as in the very next sentence, "and you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;" and every word that follows to the end of the second chapter, confirms the same thing. I shall mention a few of them: Eph 2:2, "Wherein in time past ye walked — according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh effectually in the children of disobedience." This shows the exceeding greatness of power in their being delivered from such a state, wherein they were held by the great power of so strong an enemy. Eph 2:5-6, "Even when we were dead in sin, hath quickened us together in Christ, and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus." These things tend to show how the power of God in their conversion, and the happy, honorable, and glorious change of their state by it, was according to the power that wrought in Christ when he was quickened, raised up, and made to sit in heavenly places, as Eph. 1:19-21. Now to back this with a parallel place, as here in this place the apostle speaks of the greatness of God's power in working faith, and parallels it with the power that raised up Christ from the dead, so we find he says the very same thing in Col. 2:12-13, "Ye are buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." In that text in Ephesians the apostle speaks of faith, "the power that works in us that believe." So in this text in Colossians, "ye are risen with him, through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." Again, secondly, in Ephesians, together with what there follows in chap. 2, he compares believing to a rising from the dead. So here in Colossians, "ye are risen with him through faith." Thirdly, as in Ephesians the apostle speaks of the work of God in giving faith, as parallel with his work in raising
Christ, so he does here in Colossians, "Ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." Fourthly, as we in Ephesians are said to believe, according to the efficacious working of God, the word ενεργειας is also used here in Colossians. It is called faith of the operation, or effectual working of God. And as there God is said to be the author, the same that raised up Christ, and to work faith in them, so here it is the faith of the operation of God who raised Christ from the dead, so that, every way, one place is parallel with the other. Some pretend that in that expression, through the faith of the operation of God, there is no respect to God's operation as the efficient cause of faith, but only to the operation of God that raised Christ as the object of faith, which believes that power and operation as it was manifested in raising Christ, and which is believed to be sufficient to raise us up also. But that the apostle means the operation of God in giving faith, appears by Col. 2:11, which introduces these words, where the apostle says, "In whom ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ." The phrase, made without hands, in Scripture, always denote God's immediate power, above the course of nature, and above second causes. Thus, when he speaks of heaven, 2 Cor. 5:1, he calls it "a house not made with hands," and in Heb. 9:11, the human nature of Christ, which was framed by so wonderful and supernatural a power of the Holy Ghost, is said to be a "tabernacle made without hands."
Note — The foregoing remarks, concerning the texts in Eph. 1:19-20, and in Col. 2:11-13; are taken chiefly from Dr. Goodwin's Works, vol. 1, p. 298, etc. § 14. It is a doctrine mightily in vogue, that God has promised his saving grace to men's sincere endeavors in praying for it and using proper means to obtain it, so that it is not God's mere will that determines the matter, whether we shall have saving grace
or not, but that the matter is left with us to be determined by the sincerity of our endeavors. But there is vast confusion in all talk of this kind, for want of its being well-explained what is meant by sincerity of endeavor, and through men's deceiving themselves by using words without a meaning. I think the Scripture knows of but one sort of sincerity in religion, and that is a truly pious or holy sincerity. The Bible suggest no notion of any other sort of sincere obedience, or any other sincerity of endeavors, or any doings whatsoever in religion, than doing from love to God and true love to our duty. As to those that endeavor and take pains (let them do ever so much), that yet do nothing freely, or from any true love to or delight in God, or free inclination to virtue, but wholly for by-ends, and from sinister and mercenary views, as being driven and forced against their inclination, or induced by regard to things foreign: — I say, respecting such as these, I find nothing in Scripture that should lead us to call them honest and sincere in their endeavors. I doubt not but that the Scripture promises supernatural, truly divine, and saving blessings, to such a sincerity of endeavor as arises from true love to our duty. But then, as I apprehend, this is only to promise more saving grace to him that seeks it in the exercise of saving grace, agreeably to that repeated saying of our Savior, "to him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abundance." Persons, in seeking grace with this sincerity, ask in faith. They seek these blessings in the exercise of a saving faith, the great condition of the covenant of grace. And I suppose, promises are made to no sincerity, but what implies this. And whoever supposes that divine promises are made to any other sincerity than this, I imagine he never will be able to make out his scheme, and that for two reasons:
I. On such a supposition, the promises must be supposed to be to an undetermined condition. And, II. Even on the supposition that the promises are made to some other sincerity than a truly pious
sincerity, the sovereign grace and will of God must determine the existence of the condition of the promises, and so the whole must still depend on God's determining grace. I. On the supposition that the promises of saving grace are made to some other sincerity of endeavor than that which implies true and saving piety of heart, they must be made to an undetermined condition, and so be in effect no promises at all. If there be anything else worthy to be called sincerity in endeavors after holiness, but a free, pious inclination, or true regard or love to holiness, nothing better can be mentioned than this, viz. endeavors after holiness, from a real willingness of heart to put forth those endeavors for the agent's own sake, yet for such ends as prudence and self-love would propose: such as his own eternal interest, salvation from everlasting misery, etc. So that by sincerity here, is not meant any holy freedom or virtuous disposition or desire, but it signifies no more than reality of disposition and will to endeavor for some end, only provided the end be subservient to selfpreservation. But the thing that truly in this case denominates the endeavor sincere, is the reality of the will or disposition of heart to endeavor, and not the goodness of the will or disposition. Now if this be the sincerity of endeavor which is meant, when men talk of its being the condition of peremptory and decisive promises of saving grace, then it never has (as I know of) yet been told, and I suppose never will or can be told, what the condition of the promise is. The thing that needs to be determined, in order to know this condition, is how great a degree of this sort of sincerity, or real willingness of heart to endeavor that a man must have to be entitled to the promise. For there can be no question but that multitudes that live in gross wickedness, and are men of a very debauched, flagitious behavior, have some degree of it, and there are none, even of those that are the most strict and painful in their endeavor, but have it in a very imperfect degree, and, in many things, fail of this sincerity of endeavor. For it must be kept in mind that the sincerity of heart we
are speaking of, attending religious duties, is only a reality of willingness to use endeavors. And every man whatsoever, that uses any endeavor at all for his salvation, or ever performs any religious duty, to the end that he may go to heaven and not to hell, has this sincerity. For whatever men do voluntarily for this end, they do from a real willingness and disposition of heart to do it. For if they were not willing to do it, they would not do it. There surely are no voluntary actions performed without men's being willing to perform them. And is there any man that will assert that God has absolutely or peremptorily promised his saving grace to any man that ever stirs hand or foot, or thinks one thought in order to his salvation? And on the other hand, as to those that go farthest in their endeavors, still they fail, in numberless instances, of exercising this kind of sincerity, consisting in reality of will. For such are guilty of innumerable sins, and every man that commits sin, by so doing, instead of being sincerely willing to do his duty, sincerely wills the contrary. For so far as any actions of his are his sin, so far his will is in what he does. No action is imputed to us any further than it is voluntary, and involves the real disposition of the heart. The man, in this painful endeavor, fails continually of his duty, or (which is the same thing) of perfect obedience. And so far as he does so, he fails of sincerity of endeavor. No man is any further defective in his obedience, than as he is defective in sincerity, for there the defect lies, viz. in his will, and the disposition of his heart. If men were perfect in these, that would be the same thing as to be perfect in obedience, or complete in holiness. Nothing ever of omission or commission is sin, any farther than it includes the real disposition and will, and therefore, no men are any farther sinful, than as they are sincere in sinning, and so far as they are sincere in sinning, so far they are deficient of sincerely endeavoring their duty. Now, therefore, where are the bounds to which men must come in order to be entitled to the promise? Some have a faint sincerity of endeavor, who none do suppose are entitled
to the promise. And those that have most sincerity of endeavor, do greatly fail of that degree of sincerity that they ought to have, or fall short of that which God requires. And there are infinite degrees between these two classes. And if every degree of strength of endeavor is not sufficient, and yet some certain degree of it, greatly short of that which God requires, is sufficient, then let it be determined what that degree is.
Some have determined thus, that if men sincerely endeavor to do what they can, God has promised to help them to do more, etc. But this question remains to be resolved, whether the condition of the promise be, that he shall sincerely endeavor to do what he can, constantly, or only sometimes. For there is no man that sincerely endeavors to do his duty to the utmost constantly, with this sort of sincerity consisting in reality of will so to do. If he did, he would perfectly do his duty at all times. For, as was observed before, nothing else is required but the will, and men never fail of their duty or commit sin, but when their real will is to sin.
But if the condition of the promise be sincerely doing what they can sometimes, then it should be declared how often or how great a part of the time of man's life, he must exercise this sincerity. It is manifest that men fail of their duty every day, yea continually, and therefore, that there is a continual defect of sincerity of endeavor in the practice of duty. If it should be said that the condition of the promise of saving grace is that, take one time with another and one duty with another, the sincerity of their will should be chiefly in favor of their duty, or, in other words, that they should be sincere in endeavors to do more than half their duty, though they sincerely neglect the rest. I would inquire where they find such promises as these in the Bible? Besides, I think it can be demonstrated that there is not a man on earth that ever comes up half way to what the law of God requires of
him, and consequently, that there is in all more want of sincerity, than any actual possession of it. But whether it be so or no, how does it appear that if men are sincere in endeavors with respect to more than half their duty, God has promised them saving mercy and grace, though through a defect of their sincerity, the rest be neglected?
But if we suppose the sincerity to which divine promises are made, implies a true freedom of the heart in religious endeavors and performances, consisting in love to God and holiness, inclining our hearts to our duty for its own sake, here is something determinate and precise, as a title to the benefit promised does not depend on any particular degree of sincerity to be found out by difficult and unsearchable rules of mathematical calculation, but on the nature of it: — This sincerity being a thing of an entirely distinct nature and kind from anything that is to be found in those men who have no interest in the promises. If men know they have this sincerity, they may know the promises are theirs, though they may be sensible they have very much of a contrary principle in their hearts, the operations of which are as real as of this. This is the only sincerity in religion that the Scripture makes any account of. According to the Word of God, then and then only, is there a sincere universal obedience, when persons love all God's commands, and love all those things wherein holiness consists, and endeavor after obedience to every divine precept, from love and of free choice. Otherwise, in scripture account, there is nothing but sincere disobedience and rebellion, without any sincerity of the contrary. For their disobedience is of free choice, from sincere love to sin, and delight in wickedness. But their refraining from some sins, and performing some external duties, is without the least degree of free choice or sincere love. If here it should be said that men who have no piety of heart in a saving degree, yet may have some degree of love to virtue, and it should be insisted that mankind are born with a moral sense, which implies a
natural approbation of and love to virtue. And therefore, men that have not the principle of love to God and virtue established to that degree as to be truly pious men, and entitled to heaven, yet may have such degrees of them as to engage them, with a degree of ingenuous sincerity and free inclination, to seek after farther degrees of virtue, and so with a sincerity above that which has been mentioned, viz. a real willingness to use endeavors from fear and self-interest. — It may be replied that if this be allowed, it will not at all help the matter. For still the same question returns, viz. what degree of this sincerity is it that constitutes the precise condition of the promise? It is supposed that all mankind have this moral sense, but yet it is not supposed that all mankind are entitled to the promises of saving mercy. Therefore the promises depend, as above noticed, on the degree of sincerity, under the same difficulties, and with the same intricacies, and all the forementioned unfixedness and uncertainty. And other things concerning this sincerity, besides the degree of it, are undetermined, viz. how constant this degree of sincerity of endeavor must be; how long it must be continued; and how early it must be begun. Thus, it appears that on the supposition of God's having made any promises of saving grace to the sincere endeavors of ungodly men, it will follow that such promises are made to an undetermined condition. But a supposed promise to an undetermined condition, is truly no promise at all. It is absurd to talk of positive determinate promises made to something not determined, or to a condition that is not fixed in the promise. If the condition be not decided, there is nothing decisive in the affair. If the master of a family should give forth such a pretended promise as this to his servants. "I promise that if any of you will do something, though I tell you not what, that I will surely give him an inheritance among my children:" would this be truly any promise at all? I proceed now to observe, II. On the supposition that the promises of saving grace are made to some other sincerity of endeavor, than that which implies
truly pious sincerity, the sovereign grace and will of God must determine the existence of the condition of the promises. And so the whole must still depend on God's determining grace, and that, of whatever kind this sincerity (short of truly pious and saving sincerity), is supposed to be: whether it consists only in a reality of will, arising from foreign motives for a certain degree of endeavors or use of means, or whether it be a certain sincerity or reality of willingness to use endeavors, arising from a natural love of virtue. For all suppose the sincerity, to which the promises are made, to be that in which some are distinguished from others: none supposing that all mankind, without exception, have this sincerity which is the condition of the promises. Therefore, this sincerity must be a distinguishing attainment. And how is it that some attain to it, and not others? It must be in one of these two ways: either by the sovereign gift of God's will, or by their endeavors. To say the former, is to give up the point, and to own that the sovereign grace and will of God determines the existence of the condition of the promises. But if it be said that this distinguishing sincerity of endeavor is obtained by men's own endeavor, then I ask, what sort of endeavor is it attained by? Sincere endeavor or insincere? None will be so absurd, as to say, that this great condition of saving promises is attained to by insincere endeavors. For what tendency, either natural or moral, can the exercise of insincerity have, to produce or attain to sincerity? But if it be said that distinguishing sincerity of endeavor is attained to by distinguishing sincere endeavor, this is to run round in a ridiculous circle, and still the difficulty remains and the question returns: how the distinguishing sincerity that first of all took place in the affair came to have existence, otherwise than by the determining grace of God? And if it be said that there is no need of supposing any such thing as any previous, habitual sincerity, or any such sincerity going before, as shall be an established principle, but that it is sufficient that the free will does sincerely determine itself to endeavor after
holiness: — I answer, whether we suppose the sincerity that first entitles to the promises, to be a settled habit or established principle, or not, it does not in the least remove the difficulty, as long as it is something, in which some men are distinguished from others, that precedes the distinguishing endeavor which entitles to the promises, and is the source and spring of those endeavors. This first distinguishing sincerity, which is the spring of the whole affair, must have existence by some means or other. And it must proceed either from some previous sincere endeavor of the man's own, which is a contradiction, or from God, which is the point required, or it must be the effect of chance, in other words, of nothing. If we suppose that distinguishing sincerity of endeavor by which some men are interested in the promises of saving grace, and not others, to be some certain degree of love to virtue, or anything else in the disposition or exercise of the heart, yet it must be owned that all men either are alike by nature, as to love to virtue, or they are not. If they are not, but some have naturally a greater love to virtue than others, and this determines some, rather than others, to the requisite sincerity of endeavor after saving grace, then God determines the affair by his sovereign will. For he, and not men themselves, determines all distinguishing qualifications or advantages that men are born with. Of if there be no difference naturally, but one man is born with the same love to virtue as another, then how do some men first attain to more of this love to virtue than others, and so possess that distinguishing sincerity of endeavor which consists in it? To say it arises from a previous, distinguishing sincerity of endeavor, attempt, desire, or will, is a contradiction. Therefore, it must proceed from the determining grace of God; which being allowed, the great point in dispute is allowed. § 15. Eph. 2:8, "By grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God." Mr. Beach observes, "this text does not mean that their faith is so God's gift, as not to be of themselves, as is most evident to any who reads the
original." This is certainly a great mistake. What I suppose he means is that the relative that, being of the neuter gender, and the word πιϚις of the feminine, they do not agree together. But if he would translate the Greek relative that thing, viz. the thing last spoken of, all the difficulty vanishes. Vid. Beza in Loc. Such Scriptures as these, 1 Cor. 15:10, "Not I, but the grace of God that was with me;" Gal. 2:20, "Not I, but Christ liveth in me;" prove efficacious grace. The virtuous actions of men that are rewardable, are not left to men's indifference, without divine ordering and efficacy, so as to be possible to fail. They are often in the Scripture the matter of God's promises. How often does God promise reformations! How often does God promise that great revival of religion in the latter days! Dr. Whitby seems to deny any physical influence at all of the Spirit of God, on the will; and allows an influence by moral suasion and moral causes only, p. 344. This is to deny that the Spirit of God does anything at all, except inspiring the prophets, and giving the means of grace, with God's ordination of this in his providence. If God do anything physically, what he does must be efficacious and irresistible. Such an assistance Dr. Whitby maintains, and, concerning it, says the following things — p. 221, 222. "First. Then I say it must be granted that in raising an idea in my brain by the Holy Spirit, and the impression made upon it there, the action is truly physical. Second. That in those actions I am wholly passive: that is, I myself do nothing formally to produce those ideas, but the good Spirit, without my operation, does produce them in me. Third. That these operations must be irresistible in their production, because they are immediately produced in us without our knowledge of them, and without our will, and so without those faculties by which we are enabled to act." Though it should be allowed that God assists man with a physical assistance, and yet an obliged and promised assistance only, then God does not do, or effect, or give the thing assisted to, any more than if he operated and assisted men only
according to the established laws of nature, and men may as properly be said to do it of themselves and of their own power. The doing of the thing, is in the same manner in their power. The assistance by which God assists a drunkard that goes to the tavern, and there drinks excessively, or by which he assists an adulterer or pirate in their actions, is that he upholds the laws of nature; the laws of the nature of the human soul, whereby it is able to perform such and such acts in such order and dependence; the laws of the union of soul and body, and moves the body in such a stated manner in consequence of such acts of the soul; and upholds the laws of motion and causes that there shall be such and such effects in corporeal things, and also of men's minds in consequence of such motions. All the difference is that the assistance which he grants in the duties of religion, is according to a newer establishment than the other, according to a method established a little later, and also that the method of assistance, in the one case, is written and revealed by way of promise or covenant, and not in the other. But if it be said that though God has promised assistance, yet he has not promised the exact degree, as, notwithstanding his promise, he has left himself at liberty to assist some, much more than others, in consequence of the very same endeavor. — I answer, that this will prove a giving up of their whole scheme, and will infallibly bring in the Calvinistical notion of sovereign and arbitrary grace: whereby some, with the very same sincerity of endeavor, with the same degree of endeavor, and the same use of means, nay, although all things are exactly equal in both cases, both as to their persons and behavior, yet one has that success by sovereign grace and God's arbitrary pleasure, that is denied another. If God has left himself no liberty of sovereign grace in giving success to man's endeavors, but his consequent assistance be always tied to such endeavors precisely, then man's success is just as much in his own power, and is in the same way the fruit of his own doings, as the effect and fulfillment of his endeavors to commit
adultery or murder, and indeed much more. For his success in those endeavors is not tied to such endeavors, but may be providentially disappointed. Although particular motions follow such and such acts of will, in such a state of body, exactly according to certain laws of nature, yet a man's success in such wickedness is not at all tied to his endeavors by any divine establishment, as the Arminians suppose success is to man's endeavors after conversion. For the Spirit of God, by assisting in the alleged manner, becomes not the efficient cause of those things, as the Scriptures do certainly represent him. If God be not the proper bestower, author, and efficient cause of virtue, then the greatest benefits flow not from him, are not owing to his goodness, nor have we him to thank for them. "Christ upbraids the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, that they were worse than Sodom, etc. and the Jews of that generation, that they were worse than the men of Ninevah; and the Pharisees, that the publicans and harlots went into the kingdom of God before them. But why did he do this, if the only reason was that the one was brought to repent by effectual grace, and the other not?" (See Whitby, p. 169, 170, 171.) I answer, the unbelief and impenitence of those cities, of that generation, and of those Pharisees, when, on the contrary, the publicans and Nineveh repented, and the men of Sodom would have repented, was an argument that they were worse, more perverse, and hard-hearted than they. Because, though repentance is owing to special, efficacious assistance, yet in his ordinary methods of proceeding with men, God is wont much more rarely to bestow it on those that are more perverse, hard-hearted, and rooted in evil, than others. So much the more as their hearts are hardened, so much the less likely are they to be brought to repentance. And though there be oftentimes exceptions of particular persons, yet it still holds good as a general rule, and especially with regard to societies, nations, cities, and ranks of men: so that Christ might well, from the fact that he mentions, draw an argument of the
greater perverseness and stubbornness of those societies and ranks of men that he spoke of. § 16. A command and a manifestation of will are not the same thing. A command does not always imply a true desire that the thing commanded should be done. So much at least is manifest by the instance of Abraham commanded to offer up Isaac. That command was not such an effect of the divine will, as the commands to believe and repent, etc. § 17. Either the stronger the habitual inclination to good is, the more virtuous, and the stronger the disposition to evil, the more vicious. Or if it be otherwise, then indifference or want of inclination is essential to both virtue and vice. § 18. Dr. Whitby's inconsistency appears in that one while, when he is disputing against the decree of election, he maintains that the epistles, where the apostle speaks to the elects, are not written to the converted only, because then it suits his turn that the persons addressed should not be converted. But afterwards, when disputing against efficacious grace, he maintains that where the apostle says, "God worketh in you both to will and to do," etc. Phil. 2:13, he speaks only to them that are converted, p. 228. Again, when it suits the Doctor's turn, when writing about perseverance, then all whom the apostles write to are true saints. As particularly those the apostle Peter writes to, that had precious faith, p. 399. And the Galatians addressed in Paul's epistle, p. 401, 402. § 19. When the psalmist prays, "Make me to go in the way of thy statutes;" is it indeed meaning that God would give him the general grace which he gives to all, and which is sufficient for all if they will but improve it? And is this all? § 20. Arminians argue that God has obliged himself to bestow a holy and saving disposition, on certain conditions, and that what is given in regeneration, is given either for natural men's asking, or for the diligent improvement of common grace because otherwise, it would not be our fault that we are without it, nor our virtue that we have it. But if this reasoning is just, the holy qualities obtained by the regenerate, are only the fruits of virtue, not virtues
themselves. All the virtue likes in asking, and in the diligent improvement of common grace.
§ 21. Pro. 21:1, "The heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water; he turneth it whithersoever he will." This shows that the Arminian notion of liberty of will, is inconsistent with the Scripture notion of God's providence and government of the world. See also Jer. 31:18, "Turn me, and I shall be turned." Mat. 7:18, "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit; neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit." Let us understand this how we will, it destroys the Arminian notion of liberty, and virtue, and vice. For if it means only a great difficulty, then so much the less liberty, and therefore so much the less virtue or vice. And the preceding verse would be false, which says, "every tree bringeth forth good fruit," etc. Rom. 8:6-9, "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace: because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But we are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now, if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." The design of the apostle in this place overthrows Arminian notions of liberty, virtue, and vice. It appears from Scripture that God gives such assistance to virtue and virtuous acts, as to be properly a determining assistance, so as to determine the effect, which is inconsistent with Arminian notions of liberty. The Scripture shows that God's influence in the case is such, that he is the cause of the effect. He causes it to be: which shows that his influence determines the matter, whether it shall be or not. Otherwise innumerable expressions of Scripture are exceedingly improper, and altogether without a meaning.
§ 22. Dr. Whitby's notion of the assistance of the Spirit is of the same sort with inspiration. Whereas that which I suppose is the true notion, is entirely different. Consequently their notion is much more enthusiastical, does much better agree with, and much more expose to pernicious enthusiasm, than ours. Hence we find that the grossest enthusiasts, such as Quakers and others, are generally Arminians in the doctrines of free will, etc.
§ 23. Scripture expressions are everywhere contrary to the Arminian scheme, according to all use of language of the world in these days. But then they have their refuge here. They say, the ancient figures of speech are exceedingly diverse from ours, and that we in this distant age cannot judge at all of the true sense of expression used so long ago, but by having a skill in antiquity (being versed in ancient history and critically skilled in the ancient languages), not considering that the Scriptures were written for us in these ages on whom the ends of the world are come. Yea, they were designed chiefly for the latter age of the world, in which they shall have their chief, and comparatively almost all their effect. They were written for God's people in those ages, of whom at least ninety-nine in a hundred must be supposed incapable of such knowledge, by their circumstances and education, and nine hundred and ninety-nine in a thousand of God's people that hitherto have been saved by the Scriptures. It is easy, by certain methods of interpretation, to refine and criticize any book to a sense most foreign to the mind of the author.
§ 24. If God be truly unwilling that there should be any moral evil in the world, why does not he cause less moral evil to exist than really does? If it be answered, as is usual to such kind of objections, that though God is unwilling there should be moral evil, yet he will not infringe on man's liberty, or destroy his moral agency to prevent it: — Then I ask that if this be all, why does God cause so much less to
exist at some certain times; on the contrary, causes virtue gloriously to prevail? Other times are spoken of and promised, wherein it shall prevail yet vastly more. And this is spoken of as of God's effecting, and is abundantly so spoken of and promised, as what God would do, and none should hinder, etc.
The Arminian principles, denying the efficacious, determining grace of God, as the cause of men's virtue and piety, are wholly inconsistent with the promises and prophecies of the future flourishing of religion and virtue in the world, and never can be made consistent therewith. This flourishing of religion is spoken of as what God will effect, and is made the matter of his abundant promise. It is spoken of as his glorious work and the work of his almighty power, and as what he will effect and none shall hinder and what he will effect against all opposition, removing and overcoming the wickedness of men, etc.
§ 25. Dr. Stebbing says, p. 104, "So much grace as is necessary to lead us to that obedience which is indispensably required in order to salvation, God will give to every one, who humbly and devoutly prays to him for it; for this is the condition, and the only condition prescribed by our Savior, Luke 11:9-13, 'And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. If then ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?' — where the promise of the Spirit is made." Here humility and devotion are mentioned as the condition of that obedience which is indispensably required in order to salvation. By that obedience which is required in order to salvation must be meant, either: 1. That sort of virtue and obedience that is requisite,
or, 2. Perseverance in it. If he means that sort of virtue which is requisite in order to salvation, then I would ask what sort of humility and devotion is that, to which God has promised the grace which is necessary to their obtaining that virtue which is the condition of salvation? Must it not be real, sincere humility and devotion? Surely if God has promised so great a gift to any humility and devotion, it must be to that which is sincere and upright. Because that which is not sincere is nothing. It is hypocritical: a mere show of that which is really wanting. And it would be very unreasonable to suppose that God promises such infinite rewards to hypocrisy, which he has often declared to be abominable to him, and which only provokes him the more. But if it be true, sincere, upright humility and devotion, it is unreasonable to suppose that God makes this the condition of that grace which is necessary to his obtaining that kind of virtue which is requisite to salvation. Because he, who has this humility and devotion, has that kind of virtue already. The Scripture everywhere speaks of uprightness and sincerity of heart, as that virtue that is saving. He that sincerely asks for grace to obey, has that sincerity and uprightness of heart that is exercised in sincere obedience. For he that sincerely asks this, is sincerely willing to obey, or sincerely desirous of obeying. Or, 2. If the Doctor, by that obedience that is indispensably required in order to salvation, means perseverance in sincere virtue, and this be promised to devoutly and sincerely asking it, then hereby must be meant, either devoutly and sincerely asking it once, or final perseverance in this sincere asking, or a certain limited continuance in that asking. If a final perseverance in asking be the condition of grace to lead us to persevere, saving virtue is, as said before, the condition of itself. For persevering sincerity is the condition of obtaining persevering sincerity. If it be only once asking, or asked a limited number of times, or a limited continuance in asking, this is contrary to the Arminian doctrine about perseverance. For it supposes a person in this life, on a past condition, to be