Vindiciae legis, or, A vindication of the moral law and the covenants, from the…Vindiciae legis, or, A vindication of the morall law and the covenants, from the…

1. It overthroweth the nature of grace. And this holdeth against ¹the works of the Gospel, as well as those of the Law. Take notice of this, that justification by works doth not only exclude the works of the Law, but all works of the Gospel, yea, and the works of grace also. Hence you see, the opposition is of works, and of grace. Here the Apostle makes an immediate opposition, whereas the Papist would say, Paul hath a non sequitur; for, datur tertium, works of and by grace. But works do therefore oppose grace, because the frequent acception of it in the Scripture is for the favour of God without us, not any thing in us. I will not deny but that the word [grace] is used for the effects of it, inherent holiness wrought in us, as in that place, Grow in grace and knowledge; but yet commonly grace is used for the favour of God. And the ignorance of the use of the word in Scripture, makes them so extol inherent holiness, as if that were the grace which should save us. As (saith the Papist) a bird cannot fly without wings, the fish swim without scales, the Sculler without his oar cannot get to the haven: so, without this grace, we cannot fly into heaven, and that as the meritorious cause. But this is ignorance of the word [grace] and so the troubles and unbelief of the godly heart, because it is not so holy as it would be, cometh from the mistake of the word [grace.] I shall anticipate my self in another subject, if I should tell you how comprehensive this word is, implying no merit or causality on our part for acceptance, but the clean contrary; and therefore, ⟨p. 22⟩for God to deal with us in grace, is more then in love: for Adam, if he had continued righteous, he had been partaker of life; this had been the gift of God, but not by the grace of God, as it is strictly taken; for Adam was not in a contrary condition to life. I will not trouble you with Pareus his apprehension, that thinketh Adams righteousness could not be called grace, therefore reproveth Bellarmine for his title, De gratia primi hominis: neither will he acknowledge those habits of holiness in Christ to be called grace, because there was not a contrary disposition in his nature to it, as it is in ours. And this also Cameron presseth, that, besides the indebitum which grace implieth in every subject, there is also a demeritum of the contrary.

1. It overthroweth the nature of grace. And this holdeth against