Nor will this Christian man suffer these carnal ones to delude themselves with a change of te•ms; for the Devil who is the great manager of carnal ⟨p. 89⟩men in things that concern their Souls, and in the plea that they make for themselves, will help them to tricks and shifts to evade the power of the word of God. Teaching them to call the beauties of Nature, Grace: and the acts of natural Powers, the exercise of the graces of the spirit. He will embolden them also to call mans righteousness, the righteousness of Christ, and that by which a sinner may be justified in the sight of God, from the Law. These tricks the Christian sees, and being faithful to Gods truth, and desiring the Salvation of his neighbour, he laboureth to discover the fallacy of, and to propound better terms for this poor creature to embrace, and venture his Soul upon: (which terms are warranted by the new Testament, a stranger to which the natural man is.) But I say, the things which the Christian presseth, being so foreign to nature, and lying so cross to mans best things, are presently judged by the natural man, to be fables, or foolishness. (1 Cor. 2.14.) Wherefore here again, he takes another occasion to maintain his strife, ⟨p. 90⟩and contention against the righteous man; Raising of slanders upon him, and laying things to his charge that he understandeth not: charging also his Doctrine with many grievous things. Namely, that he holdeth that man was made to be damned, that mans righteousness is no better than sin, that a man had as good do ill, as well. That we may believe, and do what we list: that holiness pleaseth not God, and that sinning is the way to cause grace to abound. Besides, say they, he condemneth good motions, and all good beginnings of heart to God ward. He casteth away that good we have, and would have us to depend upon a justice to save us by, that we can by no means approve of.
Nor will this Christian man suffer these carnal ones to delude themselves with a change of te•ms; for the Devil who is the great manager of carnal ⟨p. 89⟩men in things that concern their Souls, and in the plea that they make for themselves, will help them to tricks and shifts to evade the power of the word of God. Teaching them to call the beauties of Nature, Grace: and the acts of natural Powers, the exercise of the graces of the spirit. He will imbolden them also to call mans righteousness, the righteousness of Christ, and that by which a sinner may be justified in the sight of God, from the Law. These tricks the Christian sees, and being faithful to Gods truth, and desiring the Salvation of his neighbour, he laboureth to discover the fallacy of, and to propound better terms for this poor creature to imbrace, and venture his Soul upon: (which terms are warranted by the new Testament, a stranger to which the natural man is.) But I say, the things which the Christian presseth, being so foreign to nature, and lying so cross to mans best things, are presently judged by the natural man, to be fables, or foolishness. (1 Cor. 2.14.) Wherefore here again, he takes another occasion to maintain his strife, ⟨p. 90⟩and contention against the righteous man; Raising of slanders upon him, and laying things to his charge that he understandeth not: charging also his Doctrine with many grievous things. Namely, that he holdeth that man was made to be damn'd, that mans righteousness is no better than sin, that a man had as good do ill, as well. That we may believe, and do what we list: that holiness pleaseth not God, and that sinning is the way to cause grace to abound. Besides, say they, he condemneth good motions, and all good beginnings of heart to God ward. He casteth away that good we have, and would have us to depend upon a justice to save us by, that we can by no means approve of.
