The real Christian, or, A treatise of effectual calling wherein the work of God…

And Durandus makes that his fourth Argument to prove they are not really distinct, because then Deus posset causare veil in voluntate absque hoc quod cognescere praecederet ⟨p. 36⟩in intellectu; quod est impossibile, quia tune possemus amare incognita. That the will must not only be moved, but renewed, Ezek. 36.26. Who is there that ever felt his stony heart, will not assent unto it? And if that were the meaning of the first Opinion, as if the Spirit did only illuminate the understanding, and then the will did follow, without any other work of the Spirit upon the will, then I should refuse that Opinion as erroneous; ¹but those Divines do not mean so. The will, saith Alvarez (and it is honestly said by a Papist) by our fall is more wounded and corrupted then the understanding. Grace existing in the understanding (but what he means by Grace there you may observe) is extrinsical to the will, ²and therefore doth not give to the will a sufficient principle to perform works of holiness. This doth prove the necessity of the wills renovation, which is easily assented to. Grace in one faculty doth not give power to another faculty (corrupted as the will is more then the understanding) to work, saith he. But therefore, I say, the Spirit is ever present with the will, to renew that, when it doth so savingly enlighten the understanding, at the same time; though I think it no error to say in order of nature, the work upon the understanding precedeth, which agreeth with a reasonable Creature.

And Durandus makes that his fourth Argument to prove they are not really distinct, because then Deus posset causare velle in voluntate absque hoc quod cognescere praecederet ⟨p. 36⟩in intellectu; quod est impossibile, quia tune possemus amare incognita. That the will must not only be moved, but renewed, Ezek. 36.26. Who is there that ever felt his stony heart, will not assent unto it? And if that were the meaning of the first Opinion, as if the Spirit did only illuminate the understanding, and then the will did follow, without any other work of the Spirit upon the will, then I should refuse that Opinion as erroneous;