Christians was in part owing to their own act in obeying the truth through the assistance of the Spirit. The same co-operation of man and of the Spirit of God is acknowledged by St. Paul, when he tells the Romans, "if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live (r)." And, speaking of himself, he says, "whereunto I labour also, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily (y);" the mighty working therefore of the Spirit did not supersede St. Paul's own " labour," his own striving," in conjunction with, and in conformity to, that mighty working. The same Apostle prays for "the communion of the Holy Ghost (2);" and both the Greek and English words imply the most intimate co-operation, and signify that the graces and virtues, on which salvation depends, are the joint or common operation of the supernatural power of the Holy Ghost, and of the natural power of man; that the Holy Ghost acts with men, in such manner that their separate or respective parts cannot be perceived or distinguished. And is not this similar to what took place in our Blessed Saviour himself? he was God and man in one Christ-He was perfect God and perfect man. Though "in him dwelt (x) Rom. c. 8. v. 13. (y) Col. c. I. v. 29. (z) 2 Cor. c. 13. v. 14. all "he all the fulness of the Godhead (a);" yet, was in all things made like unto his brethren (b);" and "was in all points tempted like as we are (c)." We Christians are imperfect men, improved and assisted by that portion of divine grace, which it pleases God to bestow upon us. To Christ, God gave not the Spirit by measure (d);" "he divideth it to every man severally as he will (e)." The thoughts, words, and actions of Christ, proceeded from the union of his divine and human natures; and the graces and virtues of Christians, proceed from the joint and common operation of the natural power of man with the supernatural power of the Holy Ghost, for "of his fulness have all we received (f)." Though Christ consisted both of a divine and of a human nature, we find him in Scripture frequently called God without any reference to his human nature, and frequently man without any reference to his divine nature. In like manner, as the good works of men are the joint effect of divine and human agency, we sometimes find them in Scripture ascribed to God alone without any reference to man, and sometimes to man alone without any reference to God. The texts which separately assert or imply the Godhead (a) Col. c. 2. v. 9. (b) Heb. c. 2. v. 17. head and manhood of Christ, become perfectly consistent with each other, by considering that Christ was both God and man; and a similar principle, namely, that the grace of God co-operates with the Free-will of men, can alone reconcile the numerous texts, both preceptive and declaratory, which relate to human conduct, and which separately assert the divine and human agency. "The concurrence of God and man, says Archbishop Bramhall, in producing the act of our believing or conversion to God, is so evident in Holy Scripture, that it is vanity and lost labour to oppose it. If God did not concur, the Scripture would not say, It is God that worketh in us, both the will and the deed. If man did not concur, the Scripture would not say, Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. If our repentance were God's work alone, God would not say to man, Turn ye unto me with all your heart: And if repentance were man's work alone, we had no need to pray, Turn us, O Lord, and we shall be turned. We are commanded to repent and to believe: In vain are commandments given to them, who cannot at all concur to the acting of that which is commanded. Faith and repentance are proposed unto us, as conditions to obtain blessedness and avoid destruction. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth, and believe with with thy heart, thou shalt be saved. And, Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. To propose impossible conditions, which they, to whom they are proposed, have no power either to accept or refuse, is a mere mockery. Our unbelief and impenitence is imputed to us as our own fault, Because of unbelief thou wert broken off; and, After thy hardness and impenitent heart, thou treasurest up unto thyself wrath. Their unbelief and impenitence were not their own faults, if they neither had power to concur with the grace of God to the production of faith and repentance; nor yet to refuse the grace of God. The Holy Scripture doth teach us, that God doth help us in doing works of piety; The Lord is my helper, and, The Spirit helpeth our infirmities. If we did not co-operate at all, God could not be said to help us. There is, therefore, there must be, cooperation. Neither doth this concurrence or cooperation of man, at all, entrench upon the power or honour of God, because this very liberty to co-operate is his gift, and this manner of acting his own institution. These words, Behold, I stand at the door, and knock, are not understood only of the minister's outward knocking at the door of the ear with persuasive words, but much more of God Almighty's knocking at the door of the heart, by his preventing grace. To what end doth he knock to have it opened, if he him self self had shut it by an irresistible decree? God first knocks at the door of our hearts by his preventing grace, without which we have no desire to open unto Christ. And then he helps us by his adjuvant or assistant grace, that we may be able to open. Yet the very name of God's adjuvant, or assistant, or helping grace, doth admonish us, that there is something for us to do on our parts; that is, to open, to consent, to concur. Why should our co-operation seem so strange, which the Apostle doth assert so positively? We are labourers together with God. And, I laboured more abundantly than they all; yet not I (that is, not I alone) but the grace of God which was with me (g).” The exclusive consideration of particular texts of Scripture, without, adverting to others which take a different view of the subject, coupled with the baneful principle of believing no doctrine which is incomprehensible (h), seems to have been the source of most of the errors which have prevailed in the Christian world. Thus, a person, in reading the New Testament, finds many passages (g) P. 800. (h) What Augustine says of Eunomius's disbelief of the divinity of Christ, is very generally true of other heretics and their opinions, qui cum non potuisset intelligere, nec credere voluisset, Unigenitum Dei verbum, per quod ficta sunt omnia, Filium esse Dei natura, hoc est, de substantia Patris genitum.-V. 8. p. 993. |