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nexion, and preservation of both soul and body s we are also dependent on him for all the materials of our knowledge: He is continually making impressions on our minds, to enable us to will, and to do; yet He does not produce our volitions; for the mind is free in willing. To say Omnipotence could not make such agents would be limiting his power: I believe He has so made us, and we are accountable to him for our actions.

The doctrine, that God produces sinful volitions in his creatures, furnishes them with the plea, that by divine power, they are compelled to do their wickedness; that they should not do it, if God did not produce their sinful volitions; that when God acts upon their minds to produce these, they can not help willing; for there is no resisting the Almighty; and that as God is just, he will not punish them for what they cannot help. But, to such a plea it may be said; lying words that cannot profit.

der and commit adultery, and

"Behold ye trust in

Will ye steal, murswear falsely, and

burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other Gods, whom ye know not; and come and stand before me in this house, which is

say, We are delivered to tions."

called by my name, and do all these abomina

(Jer. vii. 8, 9, 10) The wicked Jews supposed they were delivered to do all these things; but the prophet said, it was trusting in lying words': I

do not see how it could be, if God, himself delivered them. But I believe the Most High tempts no man to sin, and he produces none of our sinful volitions. I will here place before the reader, in opposition to what Dr. Emmons has said, the observations of the late learned President Dwight— He, treating of the introduction of sin, and remarking upon the doctrine of those, who hold that God creates our sinful volitions, says;

1st. "That it is wholly without proof.

“But a doctrine of this magnitude, ought not to be admitted without the most ample evidence.” 2. "It is unnecessary."

"All the satisfaction, which this subject admits, is capable of being derived as completely from attributing this event (original sin) to the agency of creatures as to the agency of God. At the same time it is as easy to conceive, and to admit that man is an agent, as that God is an agent. No difficulty attends the former case, which does not in an equal degree attend the latter. If man is an agent; then there is no neccessity of tracing his actions beyond himself. We find no necessity, when we think of God as an agent, of tracing his actions beyond himself. There is no more necessity of tracing human actions beyond man; nor is there, so far as I can perceive, any additional light thrown on the subject of human agency, by refer

ring our actions to God.

That God creates us;

that he can, and does influence our actions in various ways, as he pleases; and that even we can in various ways influence the actions of each other, must be admitted on all hands. But I see no proof, that God is the Author, or agent of human actions; nor the least difficulty in believing that he has made us capable of being agents, and au thors of them, ourselves."

3d. "It increases the difficulty, which it professes to remove."

"It is at least as difficult to conceive how God can be the author of actions existing in the human mind, as how that mind can be the author of them. Here, therefore, no advantage is gained. On the other hand difficulties are multiplied without end. No conception is more perplexing, or distressing than this; that God creates our sin by an act of Omnipotence, and then punishes it.

4thly. "The Scriptures no where assert this doc trine."

"The passages commonly alledged in support of this doctrine appear, to me at least, to be forced from their natural, obvious interpretation, for this purpose. Nor ought it to be admitted, that a doctrine of this importance would be taught in ambiguous and obscure passages only. A strong sup、 port of this opinion is found in the copiousness, variety, and explicitness of the passages, in which

the Scriptures teach us the agency of God in our sanctification. This important distinction between the two cases ought to have its full weight with our minds; and should, I think be considered as deci sive. Should it be here objected, that the scheme which I am contending for is opposed to the doctrine of God's agency in our sanctification, I deny the objection to be true. The Scripture doctrine of sanctification does not, I apprehend, teach us, that he is the author or creator even of our holy volitions. On the contrary, scripture regeneration is the creation, not of our volitions, but of such a state, temper or disposition, that the mind itself produces other volitions, than those which it would have produced in its former state. After regeneration God affects the mind in sanctifying it, in the manner commonly denoted by the word influence; and not by a work of creation constantly carried on in the mind. Hence God is said to sanctify his children by his word, as well as by his spirit.But it is impossible that his word should any way be concerned with the creation of new volitions.” (1 Vol. Theology, 458, to 460.)

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I do not object to this reasoning; for it fully agrees with that liberty or freedom of mind for which I contend. But the expression, "that the mind itself produces other volitions" may lead us to inquire in what way President Dwight supposed the mind produced them.

CHAPTER XII.

[REMARKS UPON PRESIDENT DWIGHT'S USE OF THE WORDS, CHOICE, VOLITION, RELISH, INABILITY, AND THE CAUSE OF VOLITION,

THE sense in which Dr. Dwight used the words, choice and volition, may be learnt, in his sermon on the Decrees of God, in the first volume of his Theology, beginning at page 223. In this sermon he has laid down a number of positions, which he attempts to illustrate, and from which he would draw the inference, that God decrees all things. He says,

"1. That all things, both beings and events, were eternally and perfectly known to God." This must be admitted.

"2. In the nature and operations of things there is, inherent, a foundation for preference or choice.” He adds, "By this I intend, that some of the ngs, which were thus known by the Divine Mind, e better, or upon the whole more desirable; and

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