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CHURCH OF ENGLAND.

yet afterwards he saith, Turn thou me, and I shall be turned, for thou art the Lord

my God. And therefore, And therefore, that ancient writer and holy father, Ambrose, doth plainly affirm, that the turning of the heart unto God, is of God; as the Lord himself doth testify by his prophet, saying, And I will give thee an heart to know me, that I am the Lord and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.-1 Hom. on repentance, p. 330, 331.

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dom of God, for which before it had not the smallest taste. Wherefore, Christ's two disciples* receive no be. nefit from his excellent discourse to them on the myste ries of his kingdom, till he opens their understanding that they may understand the scriptures. Thus, though the apostles were taught by his divine mouth, yet "the spirit of truth" must be sent to them to instil into their minds the doctrine which they had heard with their ears. The word of God is like the sun, shining on all to whom it is preached, but without any benefit to the blind. But in this respect we are all blind by nature; therefore it cannot penetrate into our mind unless the internal teacher, the spirit, makes way for it by his illu mination.-Institut.l.3.c.2.

s. 34.

His lordship pronounces, that "the impression which the truths of the Gospel make upon the minds of men depends upon the manner in which they attend to them, that is, upon the exercise of their own reason and free will." p. 14, 15. How different the language of the Church!

* Luke xxiv. 25-31.

† John xvi. 13.

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CHURCH OF ENGLAND.

And this infection of nature doth remain, yea, in them that are regenerated; whereby the lust of the flesh, called in Greek Φρόνημα σαρxos, which some do expound the wisdom, some sensuality, some the affection, some the desire of the flesh, is not subject to the law of God. And although there is no condemnation for them that believe and are baptized; yet the apostle doth confess, that concupiscence and lust hath of itself the nature of sin.—

Art. 9.

O Lord, raise up (we pray thee) thy power, and come among us, and with great might succour us; that whereas through our sins. and wickedness we are sore let and hindered in running the race that is set before us; thy bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us. Col. 4 Sund. Advent.

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Thus therefore the children of God are liberated by regeneration from the servi tude of sin; not that they have already obtained the full possession of liberty, and experience no more trouble from the flesh; but there remains in them a perpetual cause of contention to exercise them; and not only to exercise them, but also to make them better acquainted with their own infirmity. And on this subject all sound writers are agreed, that there still remains in a regenerate man a fountain of evil, whence continually arise irregular desires which allure and stimulate him to the commission of sin. They acknowledge also, that saints are still so afflicted with the disease of concupiscence, that they cannot prevent be ing frequently stimulated and incited either to lust, or to avarice, or to ambition, or to other vices.-Institut.l.3. c. 3. s. 10.

But we esteem this to be

sin, that man feels any evil desires contrary to the divine law; and we also assert the depravity itself to be sin, which

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produces these desires in our minds. We maintain, therefore, that sin always exists in the saints, till they be di. vested of the mortal body; because their flesh is the residence of that depravity of concupiscence which is repugnant to rectitude.-Institut. l. 3. c. 10. s. 10.

But when God is said "to cleanse his church *" from all sin, to promise the grace of deliverance in baptism, and to fulfil it in his elect; we refer these phrases rather to the guilt of sin than to the existence of sin. In the regeneration of his children, God does indeed destroy the kingdom of sin in them, (for the spirit supplies them with strength which renders them victorious in the conflict,) but it only ceases to reign, it continues to dwell in them. Wherefore we say, that "the old man is crucified t," that. the law of sin is abolished in the children of God, yet so that some relics remain; not to predominate over them, but to humble them with a consciousness of their infirmity. -Institut. l. 3. c. 3. s. 11.

Dr. Tomline represents "sinless obedience and unspotted purity in the elect" as a "Calvinistic notion." p. 51. But till his lordship shall produce authority sufficient to justify this insinuation, he must not be surprised if those whom it so grossly misrepresents should "not hesitate to pronounce" it, as he has done their system, "FALSE AND GROUNDLESS." p. 260.

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The scripture plan, of which we are now treating, consists chiefly in these two things. The first, that a love of righteousness, to which we have otherwise no natural propensity, be instilled and introduced into our hearts: the † Rom, vi. 6.

* Eph. v. 26, 27.

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second, that a rule be prescribed to us to prevent our taking any devious steps in the race of righteousness. Now in the recommendation of righteousness, it uses a great number of very excellent arguments, many of which we have before noticed on different occasions, and some we shall briefly touch on in this place. With what better foundation can it begin, than when it admonishes us that we ought to be holy, becasue our God is holy*? For when we were dispersed like scattered sheep, and lost in the labyrinth of the world, he gathered us together again that he might associate us to himselft. When we hear any mention of our union with God, we should remember that holiness must be the bond of it not that we attain communion with him by the merit of holiness (since it is rather necessary for us in the first place to adhere to him, in order that being endued with his holiness we may follow whither he calls) but because it is a peculiar property of his glory not to have any intercourse with iniquity and uncleanness. Wherefore,

also, it teaches that this is the end of our vocation, which it is requisite for us always to keep in view if we desire to obey the divine call. For to what purpose was it that we were delivered from the iniquity and pollution of the world in which we had been immerged, if we permit ourselves to wallow in them as long as we live? Besides, it also admonishes us, that to be numbered among the people of God, we must inhabit the holy city Jerusalem ; which, he having consecrated it to himself, cannot without impiety be profaned by impure inhabitants; whence these expressions, . " he shall abide in the tabernacle of the Lord, that walketh uprightly and worketh righteousness, &c. §" because it is very unbecoming the sanctuary which he inhabits to be rendered as filthy as a stable.

* Lev. xix. 2.

† 1 Pet. i. 16.

Is. xxxv. 10.

§ Ps. av. 1, 2. xxiv. 3, 4.

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And as a further incitement to us, it shows that as God the Father hath reconciled us to himself in Christ, so he hath impressed in him an image to which it is his will that we should be conformed. Now, let those who are of opinion that the philosophers have the only just and orderly systems of moral philosophy, show me in any of their works a more excellent economy than that which I have stated. When they intend to exhort us to the sublimest virtue, they advance no argument but that we ought to live agreeably to nature; but the Scripture deduces its exhortation from the true source, when it not only enjoins us to refer our life to God, the author of it, to whom it belongs; but, after having taught us that we are degenerated from the original state in which we were created, adds, that Christ, by whom we have been reconciled to God, is proposed to us as an example, whose character we should exhibit in our lives. What can be required more efficacious than this one consideration? indeed what can be required besides? For if the Lord has adopted us as his sons on this condi tion, that we exhibit in our life an imitation of Christ the bond of our adoption; unless we addict and devote ourselves to righteousness, we not only most perfidiously revolt from our Creator, but also abjure him as our Saviour. The Scripture derives matter of exhortation from all the blessings of God which it celebrates to us, and from all the parts of our salvation. It argues, that since God hath discovered himself as a Father to us, we must be convicted of the basest ingratitude, unless we on our part manifest ourselves to be his children; that since Christ hath purified us in the laver of his blood, and hath communicated this purification by baptism,, it does not become us to be defiled with fresh pollution; that since he hath united us to his body, we should, as his members, solicitously beware, lest we defile ourselves with any blemish or disgrace; that

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