An humble inquiry into the rules of the Word of God, concerning the qualifications…

Now he who is wholly under the Power of a carnal Mind, which is not subject to the Law of God, nor indeed can be, cannot promise these Things without either great Deceit, or the most manifest and palpable Absurdity. Promising supposes the Person to be conscious to himself, or persuaded of himself, that he has such an Heart in him; for his Lips pretend to declare his Heart. The Nature of a Promise implies Intention or Design: And proper real Intention implies Will, Disposition and Compliance of Heart. But no natural Man is properly willing to do these Duties, nor does his Heart comply with them: and to make natural Men believe otherwise, tends greatly to their Hurt. A natural Man may be willing, from Self-love and from sinister Views, to use Means and take Pains that he may obtain a Willingness or Disposition to these Duties: but that is a very different Thing from actually being Willing, or truly having a Disposition to them. So he may promise, that he will, from some Considerations or other, take great Pains to obtain such a Heart: But if he does so, this is not the Promise of the Covenant of Grace. Men may make many religious ⟨p. 38⟩Promises to God, and many Promises some Way relating to the Covenant of Grace, that are not themselves the Promises of that Covenant; nor is there any Thing of the Nature of Covenanting in the Case, because although' they should actually fulfil their Promises, God is not obliged by Promise to them. If a natural Man Promises to do all that it is possible for a natural Man to do in Religion, and fulfils his Promises, God is not obliged, by any Covenant that he has entered into with Man, to perform any Thing at all for him, respecting his saving Benefits. And therefore he that promises these Things only, enters into no Covenant with God; because the very Notion of entering into Covenant with any Being, is entering into a mutual Agreement, doing or engaging that which, if done, the other Party becomes engaged on his Part. The New-Testament informs us but of one Covenant, God enters into with Mankind through Christ, and that is the Covenant of Grace; in which God obliges himself to nothing in us that is exclusive of unfeigned Faith, and the spiritual Duties that attend it:

Now he who is wholly under the Power of a carnal Mind, which is not subject to the Law of God, nor indeed can be, cannot promise these Things without either great Deceit, or the most manifest and palpable Absurdity. Promising supposes the Person to be conscious to himself, or perswaded of himself, that he has such an Heart in him; for his Lips pretend to declare his Heart. The Nature of a Promise implies Intention or Design: And proper real Intention implies Will, Disposition and Compliance of Heart. But no natural Man is properly willing to do these Duties, nor does his Heart comply with them: and to make natural Men believe otherwise, tends greatly to their Hurt. A natural Man may be willing, from Self-love and from sinister Views, to use Means and take Pains that he may obtain a Willingness or Disposition to these Duties: but that is a very different Thing from actually being Willing, or truly having a Disposition to them. So he may promise, that he will, from some Considerations or other, take great Pains to obtain such a Heart: But if he does so, this is not the Promise of the Covenant of Grace. Men may make many religious