"the work of faith with power." Nor will they feel difpofed, or fee the occafion they have, to "give unto "God the glory, which is indeed due unto his name," in their falvation. Accordingly, the depravity, blindness and deadness of mankind, in things of a fpiritual nature, and their utter inability to comply with the gofpel, as well as to obtain falvation by the deeds of the law, are much inculcated and infifted on, in the facred fcriptures. BUT then, there is a difficulty, in the minds of many, how to reconcile this total helplefnefs of finners, with the fincerity of the gofpel offers, or with the juftice of men's being condemned and punished, for their impenitence and unbelief. And indeed, it does feem as if men could not be to blame, for not doing impoffibilities: Nor fhould we in other cafes, think there was much kindness or fincerity, in offering a favour on conditions that were known to be impracticable. THERE is fearce any one, I believe, that has ever tho't much about religion, but what has, at one time or other, felt himself pinched with this difficulty. And it is won't to have a moft pernicious influence upon the minds of finners in general; but more especially, when they come to be under awakenings, and begin to enquire, what they fhall do to be faved." According to what they hear in fermons, yea,and according to what they read in their bibles, they are greatly at a loss to fee, how the ways of the Lord can be equal. "The carnal mind," they are told," is not fubject to the law of God, ne*ther indeed can be.' And that, "they that are in the fleth cannot pleafe God." They are therefore under a neceffity of finning, yea, of doing nothing elfe but fin. And yet, st every tranfgreffion and difobedience," is to receive a moft dreadful" recompence of reward," the wrath of God being revealed from heaven, against all ungodlinefs and unrighteoufnefs of men." And no relief, no deliverence from wrath, is to be hoped for through the gospel, but upon impoffible conditions: Such conditions conditions as no natural man, no one who is dead in trefpaffes and fins, ever did, ever will, or can comply with. And yet a non-compliance with thefe conditions, expofes to an amazingly aggravated, additional condem nation; infomuch that it will be more tolerable for So dom and Gomorrah, in the day of judgment, than for thofe who enjoy the light of the gofpel, and do not emf brace the falvation it offers. ત BUT how these things are confiftent with reafon; how they can ever be reconciled with the goodness, or the juf tice of God, they are greatly at a lofs. Such a view of the matter, seems to them to make the Most High indeed, what the flothful fervant said, a hard master, " reaping "where he has not fown, and gathering where he has not trewed." Or, like the cruel Egyptian tafkmafters, requiring the full tale of brick, without allowing the neceffary ftraw; requiring that of his creatures which he knows exceeds their utmoft ftrength, and then they are beaten; yea, must be punished with everlafting destruction, for not doing, what they would do with all their hearts, but it is no more in their power, than it is to make a world; Now, until this difficulty can be fairly got over in people's minds, it feems impoffible they fhould, in their confciences, juftify God, or condemn themfelves as he condemns them. Or that they should understand, either the juftice of the divine law, or the grace of the golpel. It is therefore certainly highly neceffary, that what the fcripture fays upon this fubject, fhould be fet, in a confiftent light, fo as to commend itself to every man's confcience, in the fight of God. THERE are feveral ways, in which this has been attempted. Some account for God's fufpending our falvation upon impoffible conditions, and condemning men for not doing what it is not in their power to do, by obferving, that we loft our power by the fall. Our present weakness and blindness, was brought upon us as a righ teous teous punishment, for the difcbedience of Adam; and God, they fay, has not loft his right to command, because man, by his own folly and fin, has loft his ability to o bey. That is, we ought, it is our prefent real duty to exert, not only all the ftrength we actually have, but all we fhould have had, had it not been for the original apoftacy. BUT to this it will be objected, that we never reafon and judge in fuch a manner, in any other cafe. We do not think those who have loft their eyes, are ftill to blame for not feeing; or those who have loft their reason, for not understanding; or that it is the duty of thofe to labour with their hands, who have no hands to labour with. Not, though we fuppofe they were deprived of those faculties, in a righteous manner, for their fins. Or, suppose a fervant, by his own folly and bad conduct, has brought a fit of fickness upon himself; do we think it reasonable for his mafter, ftill to require him to go out into the field every day, and do as much work as if he was well? And is the fervant to blame, in not obeying fuch commands? Does he daily commit new fin, in not working, when perhaps he now withes with all his heart he was able to do it; but has not ftrength enough to go a step, or bear his weight? Ir muft, I think, be granted, we do generally suppose, a man's prefent duty cannot exceed his prefent ftrength, even let his strength have been impared by what means it will. We never hear even a good man, pretend to repent or blame himself, that he has not feen the light of the fun all day, and refolve not to be guilty of the fame fin to-morrow, when he has been ftone blind for twenty years. I fhall not therefore, undertake the defence of this, as any folution of the difficulty, to the apprehenfion of reafon and common fenfe. Nor can I think that any one was ever inwardly convinced of the fin of unbelief in this way. However well meant it might probably be, by the first inventers of it, it seems rather calculated to ease cafe the confciencies of men, by cafting all real blame, Back upon the first fin only. OTHERS, (and those who would not be thought, and are not fufpected, to leanin any measure towards arminianism) have fuppofed it neceffary to foften matters a little, as to the fovereignty of grace, and the helplefnefs of finners, if we would avoid the above inconfiftency, or reflection upon the divine justice. They would have it maintained, indeed, that finners are unable to do much, if any thing towards their felvation, merely of themselves. Nor do they fuppofe that any one is ever brought to true repentance and faith in Chrift, without the fpecial grace of God. But then they apprehend, it may, and must be admitted, that finners are able, by the help of common grace, to do those things which are connected with, and may be confidered as a fort of preliminary conditions of falvation: conditions upon which regeneration, & an ability to come up to the actual terms of the gofpel, is promised, or however, will undoubtedly be bestowed. That is, they fuppofe, if finners will feek and pray, ufe the means of grace, and do the best that perfons under their circumftances, and having fuch hearts as they have, may do ; God will not be wanting on his part, or leave them to perish. That if they exert all the ftrength, and make a good improvement of all the affiftance they have, they fhall have more, and more given them; till in the end they are enabled to obtain mercy, and to lay hold on eternal life. That if there are no abfolute promises, to fush earnest and fincere, though feeble, efforts of the unregenerate, yet certainly there are many very precious encouragements; which may indeed, fecurely enough be relied on. So that, on the whloe, no finner is under any real impoffibility of obtaining falvation. For every one, let his impotence be as great as it will, can certainly do what he can. And if upon his doing this, God will not fail to help him, as to what he cannot do ; then every one may be faved, any weakness or depravity he labours under, notwithftanfting. Nor do they they fee how we can vindicate the divine juftice, or fairly caft the blame of the finners perdition on himself, without fuppofing fuch a univerfal fufficiency of grace, as this. Now if this can be made out to be really the cafe, that all are actually and in every view, enabled to do those things which are connected with eternal life; there will be no difficulty, I apprehend, with any one, to fee that the ways of the Lord are equal, For according to this, there feems to be no refpect of perfons with God, even in the diftribution of his freeft favours, any more than in his judicial proceedings. The difference between. him that is faved, and him that perifheth, not originating from any in equality in the beftowment of divine grace but folely from the better improvement one finner makes of the fame grace, than another does. Here then the way is clear on the fide of natural notions, reafon, and common fenfe. BUT, I am afraid, it will be as hard to reconcile this way of folving matters, with the fcriptures, and with the truth of fact, as it is, the former one, with reason. Certainly, the fcriptures feem to fpeak a language quite different from this. In them we are taught, "That it is "God that maketh one man to difter from an other, for "the better, and not he himself. That it is not of him "that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God "that thewith mercy." and " that he hath mercy, on whom he will bave mercy; and whom he will he hardeneth." And in our text, our Saviour accounts for the murmuring and oppofition, of the unbeleiving jews, by making this obfervation to his difciples upon it; " no man can come to me, except the father which hath sent me draw him." By which he evidently ment to intimate, that the conduct of his oppofers, confidering what human nature was, was not to be wondered at. That they acted. no otherways than all other men would; if left to themfelves as they were. That those who now followed and obeyed him, would never have come to him or become his |