Lastly, The will is endued with an inclination, bent, and propensity to good In its depraved state, it lay quite another way; being prone and bent to evil only: but now, by a pull of the omnipotent, all-conquering arm, it is drawn from evil to good, and gets another set. And as the former set was natural; so this is natural too, in respect of the new nature given in regeneration which has its own holy lustings, as well as the corrupt old nature hath its sinful lustings, Gal. v. 17. The will, as renewed, inclines and points towards God and godliness. When God made man, his will, in respect of its intention, was directed towards God, as his chief end; in respect of its choice, it pointed towards that which God willed. When man unmade himself, his will was framed into the very reverse hereof: he made himself his chief end, and his own will his law. But when man ⟨p. 138⟩is new made, in regeneration, grace rectifies this disorder in some measure, tho' not perfectly indeed; because we are but renewed in part, while in this world. It brings back the sinner, out of himself, to God as his chief end, truly, tho' not perfectly, Psal. lxxiii. 25. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. Philip. i. 21. For to me to live is Christ. It makes him to deny himself, and whatever way he turns, to point habitually towards God; who is the centre of the gracious soul, its home, its dwelling-place in all generations, Psal. xc. 1. By regenerating grace, the will is framed into a conformity to the will of God. It is conformed to his preceptive will, being endued with holy inclinations, agreeable to every one of his commands. The whole law is impressed on the gracious soul: every part of it is written over on the renewed heart. And although' remaining corruption makes such blots in the writing, that oft-times the man himself cannot read it: yet he that wrote it can read it at all times; it is never quite blotted out, nor can be. What he has written, he has written, it shall stand: For this is the covenant, — I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, Heb. viii. 10. And it is a covenant of salt, a perpetual covenant. It is also conformed to his providential will; so that the man will no more be master of his own process; nor carve out his lot for himself.
Lastly, The will is endued with an inclination, bent, and propensity to good In its depraved state, it lay quite another way; being prone and bent to evil only: but now, by a pull of the omnipotent, all-conquering arm, it is drawn from evil to good, and gets another set. And as the former set was natural; so this is natural too, in respect of the new nature given in regeneration which has its own holy lustings, as well as the corrupt old nature hath its sinful lustings, Gal. v. 17. The will, as renewed, inclines and points towards God and godliness. When God made man, his will, in respect of its intention, was directed towards God, as his chief end; in respect of its choice, it pointed towards that which God willed. When man unmade himself, his will was framed into the very reverse hereof: he made himself his chief end, and his own will his law. But when man ⟨p. 138⟩is new made, in regeneration, grace rectifies this disorder in some measure, tho' not perfectly indeed; because we are but renewed in part, while in this world. It brings back the sinner, out of himself, to God as his chief end, truly, tho' not perfectly, Psal. lxxiii. 25. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. Philip. i. 21. For to me to live is Christ. It makes him to deny himself, and whatever way he turns, to point habitually towards God; who is the center of the gracious soul, its home, its dwelling-place in all generations, Psal. xc. 1. By regenerating grace, the will is framed into a conformity to the will of God. It is conformed to his preceptive will, being endued with holy inclinations, agreeable to every one of his commands. The whole law is impressed on the gracious soul: every part of it is written over on the renewed heart. And altho' remaining corruption makes such blots in the writing, that oft-times the man himself cannot read it: yet he that wrote it can read it at all times; it is never quite blotted out, nor can be. What he has written, he has written, it shall stand: For this is the covenant, — I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, Heb. viii. 10. And it is a covenant of salt, a perpetual covenant. It is also conformed to his providential will; so that the man will no more be master of his own process; nor carve out his lot for himself.
