Wesley Corpus

‘All life is a desire’ (Spirit of Love, Part II. p. 198). ‘Every desire as such is and must be made up of contrariety. God's bringing a sensible creature into existence is the bringing the power of desire into a creaturely state.’ (Ibid.) Does not all this require a little more proof, and not a little illustration ‘Hard and soft, thick and thin, could have no existence till nature lost its first purity. And this is the one true origin of all the materiality of this world. Else nothing thick or hard could ever have been.’ (Part I. p. 21.) Does not this call for much proof since most people believe God created matter, merely because so it seemed good in His sight. But you add a kind of proof. ‘How comes a flint to be so hard and dark It is because the meekness and fluidity of the light, air, and water are not in it.’ (Ibid.) The meekness of light and air and water! What is that Is air or water capable of virtue ‘The first property of nature is a constraining, attracting, and coagulating power’ (page 24). I wait the proof of this. ‘God brought gross matter out of the sinful properties of nature, that thereby the fallen angels might lose all their power over them’ (page 27). And have they lost all power over them Is Satan no longer prince of the power of the air ‘As all matter is owing to the first property of nature, which is an astringing, compressing desire’ (page 28). Stop here, sir. I totally deny that any unintelligent being is capable of any desire at all. And yet this gross, capital mistake runs through your whole theory. ‘The fourth property is fire’ (page 49). Where is the proof ‘Which changes the properties of nature into an heavenly state’ (page 48). Proof again ‘The conjunction of God and nature brings forth fire.’ This needs the most proof of all. ‘Every right-kindled fire must give forth light.’ Why ‘Because the eternal fire is the effect of supernatural light.’ Nay, then light should rather give forth fire. ‘The fire of the soul and that of the body has but one nature’ (page 52). Can either Behmen or Spinosa prove this 3. Of Adam in paradise.