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1. OF THE POWER OF MAN TO DO THE WILL OF GOD.

THAT the facred writers confider all mankind as naturally poffeffed of fufficient power to do what God requires of them, is evident from their earneft remonftrances and expoftulations with perfons of all ranks and conditions, and their severe cenfure of them when they refufe to comply with their exhortations. Nor was this the cafe with the jews and chriftians only, who were favoured with divine revelation. The apostle Paul evidently confiders the gentiles alfo in the fame light; though, much not being given to them, much was not required of them.

In the first chapter of the epiftle to the Romans this apostle reprefents the gentile world, in general, as having grofsly corrupted themselves; yet, in that very representation, he not only fays, ver. 18, 19, that they had fubjected themselves to the wrath of God, revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; because that which may be known of God is manifeft, for God hath fhewed it unto them; but alfo ver. 32. that knowing the judgment of God (that they who commit fuch things are worthy of death) they not only do the fame, but have pleasure in them that do them. So that the degeneracy and depravity into which they were funk were owing, not to want of ability, but to wilfulness, and a determined oppofition

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oppofition to the powers of confcience with which their Maker had endowed them, and which continued unceasing remonftrances within them. Reafoning with the jews, in the 2d chapter, he gives the following representation of fome of the gentiles, ver. 14, 15. For when the gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law to themselves. Which fhew the work of the law written in their hearts, their confcience also bearing witness, and their reasonings between themselves, accufing or else defending: and he adds, in the 26 and 27 verfes. Theres fore, if the uncircumcifion, i. e. the uncircumcifed gentile, keep the righteousness of the law, fhall not his uncircumcifion be counted for circumcifion? i. e. fhall he not be equally accepted by God as a righteous jew? and shall not uncircumcifion, which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcifion, doft tranfgrefs the law? I presume no one will think fo meanly of St. Paul's reasoning as to fuppofe, that he here puts a cafe which either never was true in fact, or poffible in nature; but if this cafe either ever was true in fact, or poffible, those uncircumcised gentiles, who fhould answer his defcription, must certainly have received from their Maker capacities and powers to do the will of God acceptably. And if others did not act in like manner, it was not owing to their

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not having received like natural powers, but to their not making a like improvement of them.

But let us attend to fome paffages which have been produced in proof that man is not, by nature, able to do the will of God, or that his maker has not given him capacity, and ability to know and do his will acceptably, without the fuperadded operations of special grace to remedy his natural inability.

I Cor. ii. 14. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the fpirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are Spiritually discèrned.

Upon this text I would obferve first, that the word, which is here tranflated natural, properly fignifies animal, or fenfual. Thus 1 Cor. xv. 44, 46, the apoftle ufes the fame word three times for that body which dies, and is buried, to distinguish it from that fpiritual body which shall rise again; where the word animal much better expreffes the apoftle's meaning than natural. Again James ufes it, ch. iii. 15. where our tranflators have rendered it fenfual. This wisdom defcendeth not from above, but is earthly, fenfual, devilish. It is also used ver. 19. of Jude's epiftle, and rendered fenfual. These are they who feparate themselves, fenfual, having not the fpirit. Thefe are all the paffages of the New Teftament where I find this word used. And it appears, that where it denotes the character of perfons,

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or the moral quality of things, our tranflators have rendered it fenfual. Confequently, in confiftency with themselves, they should have rendered the text under confideration, But the fenfual man (who has no higher aims than the gratification of his animal fenses) receiveth not the things of the spirit of God, &c. This would have been readily understood and acknowledged by all, and is perfectly confonant to what he fays to the Romans, viii. 7, The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not fubject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

Secondly; in this chapter the apostle affures the Corinthians, that the doctrine which he had preached to them did not take its rife from worldly wisdom, or philofophy, but was that only which had been revealed to the apoftles by the fpirit of God, v. 10. That he had preached this doctrine in those terms only which the same spirit dictated, comparing the feveral particulars of it one with another, and with those things which the fame spirit had revealed to the patriarchs and prophets of old: That none of the wife or powerful men of this world had, or could poffibly have discovered these counfels of Ged revealed by the fpirit of God in the gofpel, which fpirit the apoftles have received, that they might know, and inftruct others in the things that are freely given us of God. But the fenfual_man receiveth not the things of the fpirit of God, revealed by it to the apostles, and preached by them to the world,

world, for they are foolishness to him, contradicting all his former fentiments and principles, to which he ftill adheres; neither can he know them, because they are fpiritually difcerned, i. e. by the fole inftructions of the fpirit, to which he neither attends nor submits. But the fpiritual man difcerneth or judgeth all things, i. e. all the forementioned things of God revealed by his fpirit; all gospel-truths; but he himself is difcerned or judged of no man, i. e. he is not fubjected in these refpects to the judicature of the powers of this world, to the principles of human fcience, or the rules of human oratory.

Hence I would observe first, that the deep things of God, or the things of the fpirit of God, which the apostle speaks of in this chapter, are the doctrines of the gospel-revelation. Now it is readily allowed, that as men were not endowed with any natural powers whereby they could difcover thefe, they could not know them before they were revealed. But then, they were not under obligation to know or comply with them, 'till they were revealed. Secondly, that they who did not receive and comply with them, when revealed, are not represented as incapable through want of natural abilities and powers, but only as difqualified, or under a moral impotence, through fenfual difpofitions which they indulged, and habits which they had contracted.

By the Spiritual man seems to be primarily meant here, the apostles, to whom the spirit of God revealed

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