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Read Ebook: The works of the Rev. John Wesley Vol. 06 (of 32) by Wesley John
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An Extract from Mr. LAW's Later Works.
An extract from Mr. LAW's Serious Answer to Dr. ?Trapp's four sermons, on the sin, folly, and danger of being Righteous overmuch.
Some animadversions upon Dr. ?Trapp's late reply.
? "Trap's" replaced with "Trapp's"
A short but sufficient confutation of Bishop Warburton's projected defence of Christianity, in his divine legation of Moses in a letter to the Right Reverend the Lord Bishop of London.
An Extract from Mr. LAW's SERIOUS CALL TO A HOLY LIFE.
Do but fully assent to this truth, and then you will cheerfully approve of every thing that God has already approved for you.
When you are satisfied that God does not only do that which is wise, and good, but which is the effect of infinite wisdom, and love in the care of you; it will be as necessary to be pleased with every thing which God chuses for you, as to wish your own happiness.
A good man is to believe all this, with the same fullness of assent, as he believes that God is in every place, tho' he neither sees, nor can comprehend the manner of his presence.
It sounds indeed much better to murmur at the course of the world, than to murmur at providence; to complain of the seasons and weather, than to complain of God; but if these have no other cause but God, it is a poor excuse to say, that you are only angry at the things, but not at the cause and director of them.
For if he cannot thank and praise God as well in calamities and sufferings, as in prosperity and happiness, he is as far from the piety of a Christian, as he that only loves them that love him, is from the charity of a Christian. For to thank God only for such things as you like, is no more a proper act of piety, than to believe only what you see, is an act of faith.
Had you it in your power to get that which you think it so grievous to want, it might perhaps be that very thing which would expose you to eternal damnation.
? "adtageous" replaced with "advantageous"
Nothing hurts us, nothing destroys us, but the ill use of that liberty with which God has entrusted us.
This will fully appear to any one that considers by what rules we are to judge of the excellency of any knowledge, or the shamefulness of any ignorance.
And if any number of heavenly spirits were to leave their habitations in the light of God, and be for awhile united to human bodies, they would certainly tend towards God in all their actions, and be as heavenly as they could, in a state of flesh and blood.
Now he that lives thus, lives in the spirit of devotion.
And what can shew such great parts, and so fine an understanding, as to live in this temper?
For humility contends with greater enemies, is more constantly engaged, more violently assaulted, suffers more, and requires greater courage to support itself, than any instances of worldly bravery.
An extract from the Rev. Mr. LAW's LATER WORKS.
His chief principles may be reduced to these following propositions.
? Page 60.
This is the state of the controversy. As to the railing accusations, which this author pours out, at all adventures, upon the clergy, I shall wholly pass them over; my intention being only to appeal to the reason of the reader, and to add nothing to it, but the safe, unerring light of divine revelation.
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It is granted, that there is a fitness and unfitness of actions founded in the nature of things, and resulting from the relations that persons and things bear to one another. It is also granted, that the reasonableness of most of the duties of children to their parents, of parents to their children, and of men to men, is very apparent, from the relations they bear to one another; and that several of the duties which we owe to God, plainly appear to us, as soon as we acknowledge the relation that is between God and us.
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Now if this writer is capable of taking such an argument as this to be demonstrative, it is no wonder that all his principles of religion are founded upon demonstration.
But this is a question that God alone can resolve.
And as reason in a state of innocence and perfection, could not have any pretence to appoint the manner of divine worship, so when the state of innocence was changed for that of sin, it became more difficult for bare reason to know what kind of worship could be acceptable to God from sinners.
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? word omitted in text "of"
But this writer does not only thus bring God into this state of law and obligation with us, but makes farther advances in the same kind of errors.
? Page 24.
For to say, that the faculties of a dependent and independent being, may be of the same kind, is as flat a contradiction, as to say, the same kind of thing may be dependent, and independent.
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This may help us to an easy solution of the unreasonable questions, which this writer puts in this manner.
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And again "How is it consistent with the notion of God's being universally benevolent, not to have revealed it to all his children, when all had equal need of it? Was it not as easy for him to have communicated it to all nations, as to any one nation or person? Or in all languages, as in one?"?
? Page 196.
Now all this is fully answered, by our author's own great and fundamental principle.
? Page 28.
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But it is here objected, "If God by reason of his own perfections must be thus mysterious and incomprehensible, both in the matter and manner of divine revelation; how can we know what revelations we are to receive as divine? How can we be blamed for rejecting this, or receiving that, if we cannot comprehend the reasons on which every revelation is founded, both as to its matter and manner?"
? Page 66.
Thus says he, "Natural religion takes in all those duties which flow from the reason and the nature of things."? That is, natural religion takes in all those things that bare human reason can discover from the nature of things. This is granted; but what follows? Why, says he, "Consequently, was there an instituted religion which differs from that of nature, its precepts must be arbitrary, as not founded on the nature and reason of things, but depending on mere will and pleasure, otherwise it would be the same with natural religion."?
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