Influences of the life of grace

Ans. ¹The Lord in creating Adam must necessarily have a two-fold Consideration. One 1. of a Creator. 2. Another of a Law-giver. In the first the Lord creates Being; but in the latter he is such a special Creator, to wit, a ⟨p. 139⟩Law-giving Creator, who, while he creates Being, does concreate these noble Principles, and write and by nature engrave the Law of the Image of God, the natural knowledge of God, his holiness, justice, mercy, &c. and of right and wrong, and a natural holiness and innate conformity of the heart to the eternal Law of God in mans soul. A Painter draws the portrait of a living beautiful heroic King, according to the living man; the Painter both gives being to the painted image, and such a being, according to the law and art of painting; he follows exactly and accurately his copy and living sampler, and so gives a law to his own acts of painting. And therefore God, in one and the same act, both creates man, and gives him a being, even holiness, his image, and holy being; and in creating of man, gives, and concreates, and engraves the image of GOD, sound knowledge, right inclinations; and while the Lord creates, he gives and engraves a Law; and while he gives and engraves a Law, he creates man. And therefore it follows not that the covenant of works does not presuppose the image of God in man; and it does not follow but the very act of God in stamping and engraving his image in Adam, is also a giving of him a Law. Yea, God in creating any creature of nothing, does also concreate, as a sort of Law-giver, such a natural Law. Every creature, Sun, Moon, Heaven, Earth, Sea, Man, Angel, ought to be subject as a creature to God Creator in being and operation. Here is both the act of a Creator, and also the act of a Law-giver.

Ans. ¹The Lord in creating Adam must necessarily have a two-fold Consideration. One 1. of a Creator. 2. Another of a Law-giver. In the first the Lord creates Being; but in the latter he is such a special Creator, to wit, a ⟨p. 139⟩Law-giving Creator, who, while he creates Being, does concreate these noble Principles, and write and by nature ingrave the Law of the Image of God, the natural knowledge of God, his holinesse, justice, mercie, &c. and of right and wrong, and a natural holinesse and innate conformitie of the heart to the eternal Law of God in mans soul. A Painter drawes the portraict of a living beautiful heroick King, according to the living man; the Painter both gives being to the painted image, and such a being, according to the law and art of painting; he followes exactly and accurately his copie and living samplar, and so gives a law to his own acts of painting. And therefore God, in one and the same act, both creates man, and gives him a being, even holinesse, his image, and holy being; and in creating of man, gives, and concreates, and ingraves the image of GOD, sound knowledge, right inclinations; and while the Lord creates, he gives and ingraves a Law; and while he gives and ingraves a Law, he creates man. And therefore it follows not that the covenant of works does not presuppose the image of God in man; and it does not follow but the very act of God in stamping and ingraving his image in Adam, is also a giving of him a Law. Yea, God in creating any creature of nothing, does also concreate, as a sort of Law-giver, such a natural Law. Every creature, Sun, Moon, Heaven, Earth, Sea, Man, Angel, ought to be subject as a creature to God Creator in being and operation. Here is both the act of a Creator, and also the act of a Law-giver.