A treatise of original sin ... proving that it is

1. To teach us holy things: We are blind and unbelieving, not knowing spiritual objects, till Gods Spirit doth teach us; But this is not all, suppose we be taught and instructed, is all done then? Do we need the Spirit of God no more? Yea. Therefore

2. The Spirit of God putteth it self forth in a further work, which is to bring the things thus taught to our remembrance. As then the mind in respect of understanding and knowing cannot do any thing about what is spiritual without the Spirit of God, so neither can the mind about remembering: Certainly if the memory of it self could do these things, the Spirit of God would be in vain: If the Moon and Stars could give so much light as to make a day, the Sun would be in vain: Hence the children of God do evidently find and feel the work of Gods Spirit upon their memories, as well as their understandings, for in their temptations, how ready to be overwhelmed? how ready to be swallowed up with such thoughts? and then the Spirit of God doth seasonably re-mind the soul of such Promises, of such comfortable Arguments; So also upon the temptation to any sin, the Spirit of God doth interpose and prevent it by making them to remember such a threatening, such a place of Scripture, and this stoppeth them from the evil they were ready to do, for they are the Disciples themselves, though sanctified and made so eminent to whom this Spirit of remembrancing is promised as useful and necessary; If then the Spirits presence and assistance be thus necessary even to a regenerate mans memory, this argueth the natural defilement and impotency of it to any good thing, for where nature is able, there the Spirit of God is not necessarily required.

2. The Spirit of God putteth it self forth in a further work, which is to bring the things thus taught to our remembrance. As then the mind in respect of understanding and knowing cannot do any thing about what is spiritual without the Spirit of God, so neither can the mind about remembring: Certainly if the memory of it self could do these things, the Spirit of God would be in vain: If the Moon and Starres could give so much light as to make a day, the Sun would be in vain: Hence the children of God do evidently find and feel the work of Gods Spirit upon their memories, as well as their understandings, for in their temptations, how ready to be overwhelmed? how ready to be swallowed up with such thoughts? and then the Spirit of God doth seasonably re-mind the soul of such Promises, of such comfortable Arguments; So also upon the temptation to any sinne, the Spirit of God doth interpose and prevent it by making them to remember such a threatning, such a place of Scripture, and this stoppeth them from the evil they were ready to do, for they are the Disciples themselves, though sanctified and made so eminent to whom this Spirit of remembrancing is promised as usefull and necessary; If then the Spirits presence and assistance be thus necessary even to a regenerate mans memory, this argueth the natural defilement and impotency of it to any good thing, for where nature is able, there the Spirit of God is not necessarily required.