An expository comment, doctrinal, controversial, and practical upon the whole first chapter to the…An expository comment, doctrinal, controversal, and practical upon the whole first chapter to the…

2. This trusting by original sin is horribly corrupted and perverted as well as the other actings and powers of the soul, for it is wholly perverted ¹in respect of the object. We trust in that, we ought not to do, setting a Creature in the room of God, and thereby become guilty of secret, but horrible idolatry, and that which is the true and adequate object of our trusting, that we neglect. Insomuch that there is no man living till regenerated, that doth put his trust in God, but trusteth in man, in the second causes, in his own self. Thus like a Worm he is always crawling upon the ground, and therefore if the Creatures and humane helps are removed from him he looketh upon himself as undone, he hath no more hope abiding in him. This argueth the Creature, not God, is the object of our trusting; whereas there ought to be the same object of faith, and trust (I speak as these are divine acts, not of humane faith and hope) and therefore as we may not believe in any but God; so neither trust in any. Every thing that is divine and supernatural, must be terminated upon God himself. Therefore we say that the Church of Rome by her principles can teach no higher a faith then what is mere humane, because the ultimate motive, in which they resolve their belief, is the Authority of the Church, which though they would make a divine motive, yet cannot by any more then humane. This it is in Practicals as well as Doctrinals. A man carried by no higher principle then nature, can never trust in any thing but a Creature. There is required as much supernatural and divine influence to trust in God, as to the exercise of any other grace; yea in some respects more. But man being so enslaved to lust, and to a concupiscentiall love of the Creature some way or other: Hence it is that a great part of his sinfulness against God is in perverse and corrupted trusting, which is a sin that doth not make such a terrible guilt and noise in the Conscience of a man; but it is that which is almost the life and vigour of every sin. All sin is therefore committed because a man doth trust in some Creature or other, and that admirable choice way of Evangelical Righteousness of Gospel justification, yea and the whole treasury of riches of grace in Christ, is opposed by no sin, so much as a self righteousness; as we see in Paul before his conversion:

2. This trusting by originall sinne is horribly corrupted and perverted as well as the other actings and powers of the soul, for it is wholely perverted