2. His impotency and self inability to keep off himself from 1such sins: Beloved, it is true, that grace is a sweet and enabling quality; he who receives grace, doth with it receive a measure of strength proportioned to the degree of grace received, and no man is so vain to conceive that a person receiving grace, can do no more against sin, then he who Note. was never armed with such heavenly power: But then Divines have well distinguished, that as there must be a first grace (which they call gratia operans) to change the nature within, so there must be a second grace which they call gratia co-operans, to assist the soul and the first grace, against the insolency of corruption, and of actual temptations; grace can do much, but (of it self) not always enough to keep off a sin: it is true that the distance of the soul and sin depends Note. on grace, but that the soul keeps a distance from such a sin, (i.) that such a sin doth not engage and lay flat the soul, this doth not owe it self to the mere and natural strength of the the first created grace, but to that grace, as assisted and supported by an higher hand from heaven: so far as I yet conjecture that principally effectual strength of created grace is more in its dependence, then in its self. As an arm is strong, and able to do much service, and to put off several assaults, but principally by reason of its communion with the head, from which if it were separated, it can do nothing ⟨p. 72⟩but fall down: o• as the beam of light from the Sun, moves, irradiates, pierceth, and perhaps heats and melts, none of which could it do, if there were an eclipse, an intercision, a cutting of it off from its dependence on the Sun; so grace doth most and more, as it is most and more assisted from above, from its head which is Christ, and from God who is the father of lights. Suppose grace left entirely and solely to it self, a person would be exposed to many and foul miscarriages: though the water be well heated, yet remove the fire, and the natural cold will return and prevail over that accidental heat: The natural habits of sin would easily have the better of the extrinsical habits of grace, were not these held up, and backed by an higher arm, then that of it self, or then that in corruption working against it; you know that all Adams strength was not Canon proof against Satan's temptations;
2. His impotency and self inability to keep off himself from 1such sinnes: Beloved, it is true, that grace is a sweet and enabling quality; he who receives grace, doth with it receive a measure of strength proportioned to the degree of grace received, and no man is so vaine to conceive that a person receiving grace, can do no more against sin, then he who Note. was never armed with such heavenly power: But then Divines have well distinguished, that as there must be a first grace (which they call gratia operans) to change the nature within, so there must be a second grace which they call gratia co-operans, to assist the soul and the first grace, against the insolency of corruption, and of actual temptations; grace can do much, but (of it self) not alwayes enough to keep off a sin: it is true that the distance of the soul and sin depends Note. on grace, but that the soul keeps a distance from such a sin, (i.) that such a sin doth not engage and lay flat the soul, this doth not owe it self to the meer and natural strength of the the first created grace, but to that grace, as assisted and supported by an higher hand from heaven: so far as I yet conjecture that principally effectual strength of created grace is more in its dependance, then in its self. As an arme is strong, and able to do much service, and to put off several assaults, but principally by reason of its communion with the head, from which if it were separated, it can do nothing ⟨p. 72⟩but fall down: o• as the beame of light from the Sunne, moves, irradiates, pierceth, and perhaps heates and melts, none of which could it do, if there were an eclipse, an intercision, a cutting of it off from its dependance on the Sunne; so grace doth most and more, as it is most and more assisted from above, from its head which is Christ, and from God who is the father of lights. Suppose grace left intirely and solely to it self, a person would be exposed to many and foul miscarriages: though the water be well heated, yet remove the fire, and the natural cold will return and prevaile over that accidental heat: The natural habits of sin would easily have the better of the extrinsecal habits of grace, were not these held up, and backed by an higher arme, then that of it self, or then that in corruption working against it; you know that all Adams strength was not Canon proof against Satans temptations;
- 1His impotency to keep himself from such sins.
