Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…

II. His saying that now there is no sufficient grace, is before disproved, and by him not proved. That it is the same with that of the state of Innocency, ⟨p. 99⟩is vainly said: It is the same in general, as man is the same; and Intellect and will the same: But to be able to live without sin, and to be able to forbear one sin or to hear a Sermon, or do one commanded act, are not the same. And to hold none but this with Pelagius, is not all one as to hold this with a more special grace.

And that it is pernicious to the lapsed is rashly said: For in the reprobate it doth them no harm but good; and in the elect it tendeth to higher grace. And he mistaketh in saying that it supposeth nature sound: For if it were proved that nature without grace hath no good inclination, yet why may not unsound nature, receive grace ad posse? Is not that grace some cure of its unsoundness? and tends to more?

III. But as to his saying that the more men have of it the more miserable they are, and the more damnable, and that no man ever used sufficient grace or will do, I answer, 1. The good man it seemeth forgot that all the same may be said as truly of his special Grace, both in them that come short of faith and Justification, and them that apostatize from it (as he holdeth many do.) 2. But it is not true, that having it maketh them damnable any more than having life, health and riches; but it's the abusing it. 3. That never any used sufficient grace, by his leave and the School-mens, is unproved: viz. that no man since the fall ever did any good, or forbore any evil, obediently, by such grace as left him able to have done otherwise in the instant before the act, or as inferred not his volition as necessary exviillius causae. 4. And that all that which cometh short of the effect, is none of the Grace of Christ is unproved, unless he mean only the adequate immediate effect. The Law doth make Duty, and so hath its effect; And Gods motions make their various Impressions on the soul, and so have their effect: But whether a Godly mans will could not by that same motion have produced a better effect in his will than was produced by it, he must better prove.