10. Four rules concerning the freedom of the Spirit

Four rules concerning the freedom of the Spirit

First, Where the will chooseth and makes choice, and inclines to a thing with the advisement of reason. Alway that must be, or else it is not a human action. Now when the Spirit of God sets the will at liberty, a man doth that he doth with full advisement of reason; for though God work upon the will, it is with enlightening of the understanding at the same time; and all grace in the will comes through the understanding, as all heat upon inferior things it comes with light. So that though heat cherish the earth, it comes with light. So all the work upon the soul is by the heat of the Spirit. But it comes from the light of the understanding. So the freedom of the soul is preserved, because it is with light.

Second; Again, where freedom is, there is a power to apprehend other things, as well as that it doth; to reason on both sides, I may do this or that. For that power to reason on both sides is proper to the soul alway. Now grace takes not away that power to reason on both sides; for when a man is set at liberty from the base slavery of ill to do good, he can reason with himself, I might have done this and that if I would be damned. So that the judgment is not bound to one thing only, but the judgment tells him he might have done otherwise if he would; but he sees he must do this if he will not be damned.

Third; Again, where there is liberty and freedom, there is an enlargement to understand more things than one, or else there were no freedom; and though the soul be determined to choose one thing, and not many, yet of itself it hath power to choose many things. To make this clear a little: some creatures are confined to one thing, out of the narrowness of the parts they have; some are confined to one thing, out of the largeness of parts. These seem contrary, but thus I will give this instance to make it clear. The creature that is unreasonable* is alway confined to one manner of working, because they want understanding to work in a diverse manner. Birds make their nests and bees make their hives always after one manner, because of their narrowness, that they have not choice.

Now when the Spirit sets a man at liberty to holy things, he is confined to good; especiall[y] this is in heaven. This is out of largeness of understanding, apprehending many goods and many ills; and that good that he conceives to be the best good, out of a large understanding he is determined to that one. So that, though the Spirit of God take away as it were that present liberty that a man cannot do ill,—it will not suffer him to be so bad as he was,—yet it leaves him in a state of good, to do a multitude of good things. And then, though it confine him to a state of happiness, that he cannot will the contrary, yet here is no liberty taken away, because it is done out of strength of knowledge, not out of narrowness; because there is no more things for him to judge, but out of largeness, telling him this is the best of all, and carries all the soul after it. The glory of heaven robs not a man of his power.

What is the reason they are determined eternally to that that is good? Is it for want of understanding that the angels choose not ill? No! They know what ill is by speculation, but there is a strength of understanding to know that that is good; and the understanding, where it hath full light, it carries the will to choose. Therefore ’where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.’ Notwithstanding all objections to the contrary, the Spirit takes not away, nay, it strengtheneth, the liberty of the soul. It is an idle objection and a great stay of many that are willing to be deceived, Oh if grace confine a man, determine him, as the word is, sway him one way perpetually, that he holds on to the end, and leaves him not at liberty to his will, this confining and swaying one way it is an abridging him of his liberty, &c. No. For it comes not from weakness of understanding, but from strength of understanding; and it is perfect liberty to do well. Therefore, on the contrary, it is so far from abridging the liberty of the soul that it cannot do ill, or that it cannot but persevere to do good, that it is the strength of liberty. For I would know whether the first Adam’s liberty were greater, or the liberty in heaven, the second Adam’s liberty? Our liberty in grace or that in glory? The liberty of the first man was, that he might not sin if he would; the liberty of Christ was, that he could not sin at all. Which think you was the chief? He that could not, or he that might not sin if he would? Was there not a more gracious and blessed liberty in Christ than in Adam, when he might not sin if he would? Is this a worse liberty then when a man cannot sin? So when the Spirit of God bears that sway over the soul, and takes away that potentiality and possibility to sin, that a man cannot sin, because he will not, his will is so carried by the strength of judgment, this is the greatest good. I will not move out of this circle. If I go out of this I shall be unhappy. And this is the greatest liberty of all.

What do we pray in the Lord’s prayer but for this liberty? ’Thy will be done,’ Matthew 6:10. That is, take me out of my own will more and more; conform my will to thine in all things. The more I do so, the more liberty I have. The strength of that petition is, that we may have perfect liberty in serving God. The greatest and sweetest liberty is, when we have no liberty to sin at all; when we cannot sin. It is greater chastity not to have power to resist, to be impregnable in continence and sobriety. When there is such a measure of these graces as they are not to be overcome, it is greater strength than when they may be prevailed over. So men mistake to think this the greatest liberty to have power to good or evil. That is the imperfection of the creature. Man was at the first created free to either good or evil of himself, that he might fall of himself. This was not strength, but a thing that followed the creature that came out of nothing, and that was subject to fall to his own principles again. But to have the soul stablished that it shall not have freedom to ill, it is so stablished in good. It hath the understanding so enlightened, and the will so confirmed and strengthened, that it is without danger of temptation. That is properly glorious liberty, and that is the better endowment of both, so that we see it clearly that grace takes not away liberty, but establisheth it.

Now besides this inward spiritual liberty that we have by the Spirit, there is an outward preserving liberty that must be a little touched, and that is twofold.