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

Thirdly, The flesh within us doth keep off grace from its perfect work, by depressing it and weighing it down; that when grace would lift up the soul to heaven, that is like a millstone about our neck, and pulleth us back again, it is lime to the birds wings, it is the string to her feet: This made Paul cry out of it as a weight lying upon him, Rom. 7. O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death? yea Heb. 12. 1. it is called a weight; now as that must needs be an impediment to any who run in a race, no less burdensome is original sin to a godly man in his way to heaven.

Thirdly, The flesh within us doth keep off grace from its perfect work, by depressing it and weighing it down; that when grace would lift up the soul to heaven, that is like a milstone about our neck, and pulleth us back again, it is lime to the birds wings, it is the string to her feet: This made Paul cry out of it as a weight lying upon him, Rom. 7. O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death? yea Heb. 12. 1. it is called a weight; now as that must needs be an impediment to any who run in a race, no less burdensome is original sinne to a godly man in his way to heaven.

Fourthly, It hinders the perfection of grace, cooling and remitting the fervour and zeal thereof; and herein chiefly the mischievous effect of original sin is discovered, it maketh the soul halt in his progress, it allayeth the heat of grace, it is like smoke to put out the fire. The adversaries to this Truth say, it is not intelligible how the Spirit can make us will one thing, and the flesh another, seeing a man hath but one will, and he cannot veil & nolle, will and nill at the same time about the same object; But they may know that by such expressions are chiefly meant, That the heart of a man through this flesh within him, is very faint and remiss in all its actions about that which is good; when he doth will it, it's so inefficaciously, so sluggishly, so imperfectly, that it may be called a nilling as well as a willing; and this is the sad issue of original sin, it maketh us go halting to the grave, it abateth that activity and zeal of spirit, which ought to be in holy things.