The anatomy of Arminianisme: or The opening of the controuersies lately handled in the Low-Countryes, concerning the doctrine of prouidence, of predestination, of the death of Christ, of nature and grace. By Peter Moulin, pastor of the church at Paris. Carefully translated out of the originall Latine copy

CHAP. XXXVIII

The opinion of the Arminians concerning vniuersall grace, which is also called sufficient grace.

I. IN that Series, and ranke of the foure decrees, in which the Arminians doe comprehend their whole do∣ctrine of Predestination, the third decree was this, whereby they say, that God decreed to administer and supply the meanes necessary to faith and repentance, sufficiently on all and seuerall men. Arnoldus will haue these meanes to be effectually administred to all, because by efficacy hee vnderstandeth aptitude and fitnesse to effect and worke.

II. Not that these Sectaries will haue the meanes to faith and saluation to be equally administred to all: For they will haue them to be supplied to some more sparingly, to some more liberally, yet to all, in that measure that may suffice to beleeue, if they will, and by which all men are disposed to viuification, so that it is not hindred by God, but that all men may haue faith, and by beleeuing be saued.

III. And they thinke that God doth irresistably giue to all men the * 1.1 power of beleeuing: But not the act of beleeuing it selfe, whereunto although God doth giue sufficient grace to all men, yet they will haue it to be in the power of free-will to vse this grace, or not to vse it, to beleeue or not to beleeue: For God doth not * 1.2 supply these sufficient meanes by a precise intention of sauing any particular person;

but he doth minister to all and particular men, those means which suffice to shew that God doth seriously, & from his heart desire the saluatiō of al men, & that it is not hindred by him, but that all men shold be saued.

IV. They say moreouer, that there are some men to whom this sufficient grace is administred more sparingly, to whom, notwithstanding, God is prepared to giue more meanes, if they will vse those well which they haue; according to that speech, To him that hath it shall be giuen. These are the words of Ar∣minius against Perkins, Page 259. & 260. The Gentiles while they were made destitute of the knowledge of God, yet God hath not left them without a testimony, but euen at that time, he made knowne to them some truth concerning his power and goodnesse, he also preserued the law engra∣uen in their mindes, which good things if they had rightly vsed, at least from their conscience, hee would haue giuen them greater grace, according to that saying: to him that hath shall be giuen. Neither doe they doubt, to say that the Gentiles, destitute of the knowledge of the Gospell, may as well come to those good things which are of∣fered in the Gospell, as those to whom the Gospell is preached. Heare the words of Arnoldus, Pa. 105.106. which when I read I trembled at: Although (saith he) many nations are destitute of the ordinary preaching of the Gospell, yet they are not precisely excluded from the grace of the Gospell, but alwaies the good things which are offered in the Gospell doe remaine equally propounded to them as to the rest, who doe enioy the priuiledge of the preaching of it, so that they performe the conditions of the couenant. Oh * 1.3 the faith of God and men! Hath Satan so much liberty, that in this light of the Gospell he should stirre

vp men, who should openly teach and write, and that vnder a pretence of piety, that an entrance into heauen doth lie open, and that saluation is propoun∣ded as well to heathens and infidels, to whom not so much as the name of Christ is knowne, as to those to whom Christ is preached? But of these things hereafter. But by the way it is to be obserued, how this man doth confute those things which himselfe hath laid downe, and by the adding of an absurd, and impossible clause, doth destroy those things which he had builded vp: For he saith that saluation, is no lesse propounded to heathen men, then to Christians, so that they fulfill the conditions of the Couenant: These conditi∣ons are, Faith, and Repentance; but how should he be∣leeue in Christ, who is ignorant of Christ? how should he repent to whom God hath not giuen the spirit of regeneration? Thus is the Reader openly deluded.

V. Nay what shall wee say to this, that they doe not onely affirme, that God doth giue sufficient grace and power of beleeuing to all men, but that also they contend, that God is bound and tied to giue this grace, and they make lawes to God himselfe. That there is danger lest an action of iniustice should be en∣tred against God, or that he had no reason of his iu∣stice, vnlesse some one of the Arminian sect, had hel∣ped him with profitable counsell. Arnoldus, page 262. hath these words: God when hee doth propound the new couenant of grace, and doth promise remission of the fault committed, vnder the condition of new obedience, hee is most of all bound to giue power, whereby man may ful∣fill that condition: For otherwise it cannot be iudged that God doth seriously offer this grace. Boldly, and

imperiously spoken. * 1.4 The cause of this assertion hee doth render, page 443. God (saith he) doth shew that he will not be loaden with this vniust suspition, that hee should require any thing from vs, to the performing where∣of hee will not giue vs sufficient power. And this hee saith is shewed by God, when hee teacheth that hee doth not gather where hee hath not scat∣tered.

VI. Nor is the audacity of Verstius lesse, Collat. cum piscat. Sect. 8. God (saith he) by the law of his na∣ture, that is, of his naturall iustice, goodnesse, and proui∣dence, is alwaies bound, at the least to will those good things to men, without which they cannot eyther be men, or simply attaine to that end which is propounded to them by God. Behold men that are ready to giue sentence vpon God himself, if he shall do any thing that is not equall, or is against that rule of iustice laid downe by them. It cannot be said how much these things doe differ from Christian modesty: Surely if those things were true which they affirme, it were the part of pious and pru∣dent men to keepe in these things, lest they should seeme to goe about, eyther to prescribe something to God in the worke of saluation, or to put God in mind of his dutie.

VII. This doctrine doth rest on two false prin∣ciples. First; that God doth require nothing of man, which cannot be performed by man. Secondly; that the condition of the new couenant, that is, Faith, is not commanded by the law, nor is a naturall debt, and that the power of beleeuing is not lost by the fall of Adam: The former of which principles is drawne out of the dregges of Pelagianisme, and is refuted by

vs, in the 44. and 35. Chapter: The latter we haue o∣uerthrowne in the whole eleauenth Chapter. The law is the naturall debt of man: This law comman∣ding that God be loued and worshipped, doth com∣mand also that hee be beleeued, speaking and promi∣sing: Therefore when man by the sinne of Adam, lost the power of obeying God, and of louing him, he lost also the powers of beleeuing his promises. When God doth require this faith of man, hee doth require no∣thing but what man doth owe, and hee is not bound to restore to man those powers of be••eeuing, which he lost: Neither can he be accused of iniustice, if hee doe not restore them; nor in this thing is he subiect to the lawes of the Arminians, or doth feare their aduerse and contrary iudgements.

VIII. But when they come to explaine the na∣ture of this vniuersall grace, they doe very little differ from the Pelagians: For Pelagius, lest he should seeme to be an enemy to grace, doth ascribe to it euery good worke that is done by man: But by grace hee did vnderstand nature it selfe, because it had beene made and created by God: But according to Arminius, nature is one thing, vniuersall Grace is another: Ne∣uerthelesse he will haue sufficient grace to be giuen to all & particular men, and that nature is in no man to whom God doth not giue sufficient grace to ob∣taine faith, and by faith saluation; whence it com∣meth to passe, that according to Arminius, sufficient grace doth extend it selfe as farre as nature. Pelagius doth confound nature with grace; but Arminius doth ioyne nature and grace together, so that nature is in none, to whom grace is not giuen; which grace

how little it doth differ from nature, doth hence ap∣peare, in that the Arminians will haue the right vse of this grace to be nothing else then the right vse of that naturall light and knowledge which is engrafted in euery one, by the contemplation of the creatures, and by the law of nature; so that the vse and office of grace and nature is altogether the same; when rather the Scripture teacheth that the right vse of grace, con∣sisteth in the change of nature. If these things are true, all the arguments both of vs and of the auncients doe fall to the ground, by which they doe proue that the grace of God is a thing diuerse from nature, and that because nature is giuen to all, and the grace of God is the priuiledge but of some: For Arminius will haue sufficient grace to faith, and by faith to saluati∣on, to be common to all men.

IX. Arnoldus, pag. 418. doth call that sufficient grace which is giuen to all men supernaturall grace, lest hee should seeme to confound it with nature; but a little after he addeth; It is demanded, whether that grace be not present to all men, by which they may right∣ly vse that light of nature, not yet restored to the integrity thereof, as reliques and remainds of that light, that is, may worship God according to the measure of those remainds. Doe you heare that all men haue that grace whereby they may rightly vse nature, and worship God; and that that grace is present with all men, and therefore also to Infidels, and to the vnregenerate, and to them that know not Christ: and that the power of that grace which is common to all men, is placed in the right vse of nature? The same man, pag. 405 doth say, It is the property of generall grace, that men should be able

rightly to vse those gifts: And hee speaketh of the gifts of nature.

X. The same man, pag. 112. speaking of vniuersall grace, doth say, that there is a certaine calling which is common, and that there are common documents & instructions of nature, by which God doth call all men whatsoeuer, to some measure of the knowledge of himselfe, and doth leaue them gifts according to the measure of the calling.

XI. Yet he denieth, that of this common grace, which is giuen to all, by which all men may rightly vse the gifts of nature, that it will follow he reof, that grace and nature are of an equall extent: For (saith he) although it be in the power of generall grace, that all men may rightly vse those gifts, yet it is from speciall grace that they may rightly vse them in act: For that power is not brought into act, but by the helpe of another subsequent and following grace, which is speciall, because it doth not happen to all. This learned man, surely hath assigned and set downe, a fo••nd and vnsit cause why this com∣mon and sufficient grace is not equally extended as farre as nature, to wit, because this common grace hath neede of the helpe of speciall grace. Which is as much as if I should say, that the seeing faculty in man doth not extend as farre as mans nature, because it hath neede of the light of the sunne, that it may see in act, as if that which doth want the helpe of some thing, may not extend it selfe as farre as nature: There is scarce any naturall faculty, which can worke without the helpe of some other faculty, or of some inward or outward aide; and so there will be nothing at all na∣turall in man. I omit that Arnoldus doth strike him∣selfe

with his owne sting; for while he saith, that suffi∣cient grace doth not worke without the helpe of some other speciall grace, he doth plainely deny it to be suf∣ficient.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Arnold page 407.
• * 1.2

  Arnold page 336. Di••at Ar∣minius gratiam quia facultas credindi datur quam plurimis, dicat omnibu•• commun••m esse, an proinde nega•• gratiam esse? Arminius in Perkins. p. 256. 257. Quanti refutatio tu••? Quid enim si quis dicat omnes in vniuersum ho∣min••s habere po¦tentie•• credendt & salu••m con∣sequ••ndi s•• ve∣lint? Et hanc ipsam potentiam esse naturaeh mi∣num dium ••as collatam, quo tuo argumento con∣futabis illum.
• * 1.3

  Arnold. page 360. Deus in∣discriminati•••• statuit media ad finem admini∣strare. Et page 372. Etiam Ethnicis ante ad∣nentum Christi media ad fidem in Christum suffi∣cienter & effica∣citer administra∣ta. Et page 443. Deus nihil a no∣bis exigit ad qued vires suffi∣cientes non det. Ibid Si peteres ab homine ali∣quid nec daret ad obliquendum colligeret vbi non sparsit.
• * 1.4

  His affinia ha∣bet Vorstius, Collat cū Piscat. Sect. 19. Vuel∣feri verba hac sunt, lib de offi∣ci•• hominis Chri∣stiani. F. 3. Causa huius erroris est quod creditum fuit nullum salu∣tarem & iustifi∣cantem fidem vnquam suisse nisi fidem in Christum. Vide Bertium. Dis∣cept. Epist. 73. & 67.