Influences of the life of grace

1. As the Lord would have a falling law-Adam, to whom he denied influences, that nature might be nature; so he also would have a standing and never sinning-Adam, that ⟨p. 17⟩grace might appear to be grace. 2. Upon supposition that the second Adam is God man, it was impossible but the man Christ, in all his actions moral should want influences, or ever sin, or be left alone of the Father, but he must always do the thing that pleaseth the Father; nor is there any murmuring to be against the dispensation of deepest wisdom, why we have not at our pleasure influences of grace, that we should never sin, as the man Christ never sinned. 3. Say we could see no reason, the thing is notire; the Lord acts in the (first) elect Angels, that they never sin; he denied in the first fall influences to the reprobate Angels; and since the Lord hath condemned them, and tied them with chains of darkness, that their whole actions, except the acts of intellectual being and living, and the acts of knowing, believing, desiring, fearing, &c. in the substance of the act, should be only moral, and only sin in all the substantial circumstances,¹ John 8. 44. Satan was a man-slayer [Greek or Hebrew] and stood not in the truth, being created in the first truth, adhering to God, 1 John 3. 8. the Devil sinned from the beginning: hence he is called 1 Peter 5. [Greek or Hebrew] the contrary party in law; and [Greek or Hebrew] goes about like a roaring Lion, seeking whom he may drink over. So that though there be in men actions of the fancy, as to claw the head, rub the beard, actions of the vegetative life, to grow to age, to decline in old age; senescere, pubescere, adolescere, that are under no Law, and so no sins; yet all Satan's actions are moral, these excepted of which we spoke, and influences to moral actions, granted to reprobate men, as to gives alms, to go and hear the word, visit the sick, and imprisoned, are denied to Satan. Some men are also 2. Reprobate to good works, Tit. 1. 16. and cannot believe: and here is sovereignty that God works in some vessels of mercy to will and to do, not in others. 3. As touching the measure of grace, and the degrees of saving influences, the Lord walketh in a latitude of freedom, all men have not alike measure of saving grace and faith. 4. His freedom shines in the work of conversion: