" willing " and " operating," which this man so determined to be our own, as if thej^ were in no wise assisted by the help of divine grace.
CHAP. 7 [vi.] — PELAGIUS POSITS GOD'S AID ONLY FOR OUR " CAPACITY."
Let not Pelagius, however, in this way deceive incautious and simple persons, or even himself; for after saying, " Man is therefore to be praised for his willing and doing a good work," he added, as if by way of correcting himself, these 2 Phil. ii. 12.
3 Phil. ii. 13.
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words: " Or rather, this praise belongs to man and to God.'' It was not, however, that he wished to be understood as showing any defer- ence to the sound doctrine, that it is " God which worketh in us both to will and to do," that he thus expressed himself; but it is clear enough, on his own showing, why he added the latter clause, for he immediately subjoins: •' Who has bestowed on him the ' capacity ' for this very will and work." From his preced- ing words it is manifest that he places this capacity in our nature. Lest he should seem, however, to have said nothing about grace, he added these words: " And who evermore, by the help of His grace, assists this very capacity," — " this very capacity" observe; not " very win,'" or " very action; " for if he had said so much as this, he would clearly not be at vari- ance with the teaching of the apostle. But there are his words: " this very capacity; " meaning that very one of the three faculties which he had placed in our nature. This God " evermore assists by the help of His grace." The result, indeed, is, that " the praise does not belong to man and to God," because man so wills that yet God also inspires his vohtion with the ardour of love, or that man so works that God nevertheless also co-operates with him, — and without His help, what is man? But he has associated God in this praise in this wise, that were it not for the nature which God gave us in our creation wherewith we might be able to exercise volition and action, we should neither will nor act.
CHAP. 8. — GRACE, ACCORDING TO THE PELAGIANS, CONSISTS IN THE INTERNAL AND MANIFOLD IL- LUMINATION OF THE MIND.
As to this natural capacity which, he allows, is assisted by the grace of God, it is by no means clear from the passage either what grace he means, or to what extent he supposes our nature to be assisted by it. But, as is the case in other passages in which he expresses himself with more clearness and decision, we may here also perceive that no other grace is intended by him as helping natural capacity than the law and the teaching, [vii.] For in one passage he says: " We are supposed by very ignorant per- sons to do wrong in this matter to divine grace, because we say that it by no means perfects sanctity in us without our will, — as if God could have imposed any command on His grace, with- out also supplying the help of His grace to those on whom he imposed His commands, so that men might more easily accomplish through grace what they are required to do by their free will." Then, as if he meant to explain what grace he meant, he immediately went on to add these words: " And this grace we for our part do not.
as you suppose, allow to consist merely in the law, but also in the help of God." Now who can help wishing that he would show us what grace it is that he would have us understand? Indeed, we have the strongest reason for desir- ing him to tell us what he means by saying that he does not allow grace merely to consist in the law. Whilst, however, we are in the suspense of our expectation, observe, I pray you, what he has further to tell us: " God helps us," says he, " by His teaching and revelation, whilst He opens the eyes of our heart; whilst He points out to us the future, that we may not be ab- sorbed in the present; whilst He discovers to us the snares of the devil; whilst He enlightens us with the manifold and ineffable gift of heav- enly grace." He then concludes his statement with a kind of absolution: " Does the man," he asks, " who says all this appear to you to be a denier of grace? Does he not acknowledge both man's freewill and God's grace?" But, after all, he has not got beyond his commenda- tion of the law and of teaching; assiduously in- culcating this as the grace that helps us, and so following up the idea with which he had started, when he said, " We, however, allow it to consist in the help of God." God's help, indeed, he supposed must be recommended to us by mani- fold lures; by setting forth teaching and revela- tion, the opening of the eyes of the heart, the demonstration of the future, the discovery of the devil's wiles, and the illumination of our minds by the varied and indescribable gift of heavenly grace, — all this, of course, with a view to our learning the commandments and promises of God. And what else is this than placing God's grace in " the law and the teaching "?
CHAP. 9 [VIII.] — THE LAW ONE THING, GRACE ANOTHER. THE UTILITY OF THE LAW.
Hence, then, it is clear that he acknowledges that grace whereby God points out and reveals to us what we are bound to do; but not that whereby He endows and assists us to act, since the knowledge of the law, unless it be accom- panied by the assistance of grace, rather avails for producing the transgression of the com- mandment. " Where there is no law," says the aposde, " there is no transgression; " ' and again: " I had not known lust except the law had said. Thou shalt not covet." ^ Therefore so far are the law and grace from being the same thing, that the law is not only unprofitable, but it is absolutely prejudicial, unless grace assists it; and the utility of the law may be shown by this, tliat it obliges all whom it proves guilty of trans- gression to betake themselves to grace for deliv- erance and help to overcome their evil lusts.
I Rom. iv. 15.
2 Rom. vii. 7.
Chap, i i.]
ON THE GRACE OF CHRIST.
221 For it rather commands tlian assists; it dis- covers disease, but does not heal it; nay, the malady that is not healed Is rather aggravated by it, so that the cure of grace is more earnestly and anxiously sought for, inasmuch as " The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." ' " For if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law."- To 'what extent, however, the law gives assistance, the apostle informs us when he says immediately afterwards: " The Scrip- ture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." ^ Wherefore, says the apostle, " the law was our schoolmaster in Christ Jesus." •♦ Now this very thing is serviceable to proud men, to be more firmly and manifestly " concluded under sin," so that none may pre- sumptuously endeavour to accomplish their justi- fication by means of free will as if by their own resources; but rather " that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Because by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets." 5 How then manifested without the law, if witnessed by the law? For this very reason the plirase is not, " manifested without the law," but " the righteousness with- out the law," because it is " the righteousness of God; " that is, the righteousness which we have not from the law, but from God, — not the righteousness, indeed, which by reason of His commanding it, causes us fear through our knowledge of it; but rather the righteousness which by reason of His bestowing it, is held fast and maintained by us through our loving it, — " so that he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord." ^ CHAP. lO [iX.] — WHAT PURPOSE THE LAW SUBSERVES.
What object, then, can this man gain by accounting the law and the teaching to be the grace whereby we are helped to work righteous- ness? For, in order that it may help much, it must help us to feel our need of grace. No man, indeed, is able to fulfil the law through the law. " Love is the fulfilling of the law." ^ And the love of God is not shed abroad in our hearts by the law, but by the Holy Ghost, which is given unto us.^ Grace, therefore, is pointed at by the law, in order that the law may be fulfilled by grace. Now what does it avail for Pelagius, that he declares the self-same thing under differ- ' 2 Cor. iii. 6. * Gal. iii. 24. ' Rom. xiii. lo.
2 Gal. iii. 21.
5 Rom. iii. 19—21.
* Rom. V. 5.
ent phrases, that he may not be understood to place in law antl teaching that grace which, as he avers, assists the "capacity" of our nature? So far, indeed, as I can conjecture, the reason why he fears being so understood is, because he con- demned all those who maintain that God's grace and help are not given for a man's single actions, but exist rather in his freedom, or in tlie law and teaching. And yet he supposes that he escapes detection by the shifts he so constantly emj^loys for disguising what he means by his formula of " law and teaching " under so many various phrases.
CHAP. 1 1 [x.] — pelagius' defixttion of how GOD HELPS US: " HE PROMISES US FUTURE GLORY."
For in another passage, after asserting at length that it is not by the help of God, but out of our own selves, that a good will is formed within us, he confronted himself with a question out of the apostle's epistle; and he asked this question: " How will this stand consistently with the apostle's words,^ * It is God that worketh in you both to will and to perfect '? " Then, in order to obviate this opposing authority, which he plainly saw to be most thoroughly contrasted with his own dogma, he went on at once to add: " He works in us to will what is good, to will what is holy, when He rouses us from our devo- tion to earthly desires, and from our love of the present only, after the manner of brute animals, by the magnitude of the future glory and the promise of its rewards; when by revealing wisdom to us He stirs up our sluggish will to a longing after God; when (what you are not afraid to deny in another passage) he persuades us to everything which is good." Now what can be plainer, than that by the grace whereby God works within us to will what is good, he means nothing else than the law and the teaching? For in the law and the teaching of the holy Scriptures are promised future glory and its great rewards. To the teaching also appertains the revelation of wisdom, whilst it is its further func- tion to direct our thoughts to everything that is good. And if between teaching and persuading (or rather exhorting) there seems to be a differ- ence, yet even this is provided for in the gen- eral term " teaching," which is contained in the several discourses or letters; for the holy Scrip- tures both teach and exhort, and in the processes of teaching and exhorting there is room likewise for man's operation. We, however, on our side would fain have him sometime confess that grace, by which not only future glory in all its magni- tude is promised, but also is believed in and hoped for; by which wisdom is not only re- 9 Phil. ii. 13.
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vealed, but also loved; by which everything that is good is not only recommended, but pressed upon us until we accept it. For all men do not possess faith,' who hear the Lord in the Scrip- tures promising the kingdom of heaven; nor are all men persuaded, who are counselled to come to Him, who says, " Come unto me, all ye that labour." ^ They, however, who have faith are the same who are also persuaded to come to Him. This He Himself set forth most plainly, when He said, " No man can come to me, except the Father, which hath sent me, draw him." ^ And some verses afterwards, when speak- ing of such as believe not. He says, " Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me except it were given unto him of my Father." ■* This is the grace which Pelagius ought to acknowledge, if he wishes not only to be called a Christian, but to be one.
CH.\P. 12 [XI.] THE SAME CONTINUED: "HE REVEALS WISDOM."
But what shall I say about the revelation of wisdom? For there is no man who can in the present life very well hope to attain to the great re\-elations which were given to the Apostle Paul; and of course it is impossible to suppose that anything was accustomed in these revelations to be made known to him but what appertained to wisdom. Yet for all this he says: " Lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that He would take it away from me. And He said unto me. My grace is suffi- cient for thee; for my strength is made perfect in weakness." 5 Now, undoubtedly, if there were already in the apostle that perfection of love which admitted of no further addition, and which could be puffed up no more, there could have been no further need of the messenger of Satan to buffet him, and thereby to repress the exces- sive elation which might arise from abundance of revelations. What means this elation, how- ever, but a being puffed up? And of love it has been indeed most truly said, " Love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up." ^ This love, therefore, was still in process of constant increase in the great apostle, day by day, as long as his " inward man was renewed day by day," ^ and would then be perfected, no doubt, when he was | got beyond the reach of all further vaunting and elation. But at that time his mind was still in a condition to be inflated by an abundance of revelations before it was perfected in the solid edifice of love; for he had not arrived at the 3 John vi. 44. ^ I Cor. xiii..
goal and apprehended the prize, to which he was reaching forward in his course.
CHAP. 13 [xii.] — GR.'VCE CAUSES US TO DO.
To him, therefore, who is reluctant to endure the troublesome process, whereby this vaunting disposition is restrained, before he attains to the ultimate and highest perfection of charity, it is most properly said, " My grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength is made perfect in weak- ness,"*^— in weakness, that is, not of the flesh only, as this man supposes, but both of the flesh and of the mind; because the mind, too, was, in comparison of that last stage of complete per- fection, weak, and to it also was assigned, in order to check its elation, that messenger of Satan, the thorn in the flesh; although it was very strong, in contrast with the carnal or animal faculties, which as yet understand not the things of the Spirit of God.^ Inasmuch, then, as strength is made perfect in weakness, whoever does not own himself to be weak, is not in the way to be perfected. This grace, however, by which strength is perfected in weakness, conducts all who are predestinated and called according to the divme purpose '° to the state of the highest perfection and glory. By such grace it is effected, not only that we discover what ought to be done, but also that we do what we have discovered, — not only that we believe what ought to be loved, but also that we love what we have believed.
CHAP. 14 [xiii.] — THE RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH IS OF GOD, AND THE RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH IS OF THE L.4W.
If this grace is to be called " teaching," let it^ at any rate be so called in such wise that God may be believed to infuse it, along with an inef- fable sweetness, more deeply and more internally, not only by if/iar agency who plant and water from without, but likewise by His own too who ministers in secret His own increase, — in such a way, that He not only exhibits truth, but like- wise imparts love. For it is thus that God teaches those who have been called according to His purpose, giving them simultaneously both to know what they ought to do, and to do what they know. Accordingly, the apostle thus speaks to the Thessalonians: " As touching love of the brethren, ye need not that I write unto you; for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one an- other." " And then, by way of proving that they had been taught of God, he subjoined: " And indeed ye do it towards all the brethren which are in all Macedonia." '^ As if the surest sign that you have been taught of God, is that you put into practice what you have been taught. Of that character are all who are called accord- Chap. i6.]
GN THE GRACE OF GHRIST.
001 -- J ing to God's purpose, as it is written in the prophets: "They shall be all tauglit of God." ' The man, however, who has learned what ought to be done, l)ut does it not, has not as yet been " taught of God " according to grace, but only according to the law, — not according to the spirit, but only according to the letter. Although there are many who appear to do what the law commands, through fear of punishment, not through love of righteousness; and such right- eousness as this the apostle calls " his own which is after the law," — a thing as it were com- manded, not given. When, indeed, it has been given, it is not called our own righteousness, but God's; because it becomes our own only so that we have it from God. These are the apostle's words: " That I may be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." ^ So great, then, is the difference between the law and grace, that although the law is undoubtedly of God, yet the righteousness which is "of the law" is not "of God," but the righteousness which is consummated by grace is " of God." The one is designated "the righteousness of the law," because it is done through fear of the curse of the law; while the other is called " the righteousness of God," because it is bestowed through the beneficence of His grace, so that it is not a terrible but a pleasant commandment, according to the prayer in the psalm: " Good art Thou, O Lord, therefore in Thy goodness teach me Thy righteousness; " ^ that is, that I may not be compelled like a slave to live under the law with fear of punishment; but rather in the freedom of love may be delighted to live with law as my companion. When the freeman keeps a com- mandment, he does it readily. And whosoever learns his duty in this spirit, does everything that he has learned ought to be done.
CHAP. 15 [XIV.J — HE WHO HAS BEEN TAUGHT BY GRACE ACTUALLY COMES TO CHRIST.
Now as touching this kind of teaching, the Lord also says: " Every man that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me." ■♦ Of the man, therefore, who has not come, it cannot be correctly said: " He has heard and has learned that it is his duty to come to Him, but he is not willing to do what he has learned." It is indeed absolutely improper to apply such a statement to that method of teaching, whereby God teaches by grace. For if, as the Truth says, " Every man that hath learned cometh," it follows, of course, that whoever does not come has not learned. But who can fail to see that a man's coming or not coming is by the determi- ' Isa. Iiv. t3 Jer. xxxi. 34; John vi. 45. 3 Ps cxix. 68.
2 Phil. lii. 9. 4 John vi. 45.
nation of his will? This determination, however, may stand alone, if tiie man does not come; but if he does come, it cannot be without assistance; and such assistance, that he not only knows what it is he ought to do, but also actually does what he thus knows. And thus, when God teaches, it is not by the letter of the law, but by the grace of the Spirit. Moreover, He so teaches, that whatever a man learns, he not only sees with his perception, but also desires with his choice, and accomplishes in action. 15y this mode, therefore, of divine instruction, volition itself, and performance itself, are assisted, and not merely the natural " capacity" of willing and performing. For if nothing but this "capacity" of ours were assisted by this grace, the Lord would rather have said, " Every man that hath heard and hath learned of the Father ftiay possi- />/}' come unto me." This, however, is not what He said; but His words are these: " Every man that hath heard and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me." Now the possibility of coining Pelagius places in nature, or even — as we found him attempting to say some time ago 5 — in grace (whatever that may mean according to him), — when he says, "whereby this ver)' capacity is assisted; " whereas the actual coming lies in the will and act. It does not, however, follow that he who may come actually comes, unless he has also willed and acted for the coming. But every one who has learned of the Father not only has the possibiHty of coming, but comes; and in this result are already included the motion of the capacity, the affection of the will, and the effect of the action.^ CHAP. 1 6 [XV.] WE NEED DIVINE AID IN THE USE OF OUR POWERS. ILLUSTRATION FROM SIGHT.
Now what is the use of his examples, if they do not really accomplish his own promise of making his meaning clearer to us; ^ not, indeed, that we are bound to admit their sense, but that we may discover more plainly and openly what is his drift and purpose in using them? " That we are able," says he, " to see with our eyes is not of us; but it is of us that we make a good or a bad use of our sight." Well, there is an answer for him in the psalm, in which the psalm- ist says to God, " Turn Thou away mine eyes, that they behold not iniquity." ** Now although this was said of the eyes of the mind, it still follows from it, that in respect of our bodily eyes there is either a good use or a bad use that may be made of them: not in the literal sense merely of a good sight when the eyes are sound, and a bad sight when they are bleared, but in the 5 See above, ch. 7 [vi.]
* The technical gradation is here neatly expressed by profectus, affectus, and t'/fcctiis.
' See above, ch. 5 [iv.]. * Ps. cxix. 37.
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moral sense of a right sight when it is directed towards succouring the lielpless, or a bad sight when its object is the indulgence of lust. For although both the pauper who is succoured, and the woman who is lusted after, are seen by these external eyes; it is after all from the inner eyes that either compassion in the one case or lust in the other proceeds. How then is it that the prayer is offered to God, " Turn Thou away mine eyes, that they behold not iniquity "? Or why is that asked for which lies within our own power, if It be true that God does not assist the will?
CHAP. 1 7 [XVI. j — DOES PELAGIUS DESIGNEDLY REFRAIN FROM OPENLY SAYING TH.\T ALL GOOD ACTION IS FROM GOD?
" That we are able to speak," says he, " is of God; but that we make a good or a bad use of speech is of ourselves." He, however, who has made the most excellent use of speech does not teach us so. " For," says He, " it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father that speaketh in you." ' " So, again," adds Pelagius, " that I may, by applying a general case in illus- tration, embrace all, — that we are able to do, say, think any good thing, comes from Him who has endowed us with this ability, and who also assists it." Observe how even here he repeats his former meaning — that of these three, capacity, volition, action, it is only the capacity which receives help. Then, by way of completely stating what he in- tends to say, he adds: " But that we really do a good thing, or speak a good word, or think a good thought, proceeds from our own selves." He forgot what he had before ^ said by way of correcting, as it were, his own words; for after saying, " Man is to be praised therefore for his willing and doing a good work," he at once goes on to modify his statement thus: " Or rather, this praise belongs both to man, and to God who has given him the capacity of this very will and work," Now what is the reason why he did not remember this admission when giving his examples, so as to say this much at least after quoting them: " That we are able to do, say, think any good thing, comes from Him who has given us this ability, and who also assists it. That, however, we really do a good thing, or speak a good word, or think a good thought, proceeds both from ourselves and from Him! " i'his, however, he has not said. But, if I am not mistaken, I think I see why he was afraid to do so.