Wesley Corpus

4. Can it be denied that something of this is found in every man born into the world And does it not appear as soon as the understanding opens, as soon as reason begins to dawn Does not every one then begin to know that there is a difference between good and evil; how imperfect soever the various circumstances of this sense of good and evil my be Does not every man, for instance, know, unless blinded by the prejudices of education, (like the inhabitants of the Cape of Good Hope,) that it is good to honour his parents Do not all men, however uneducated or barbarous, allow, it is right to do to others as we would have them do to us And are not all who know this condemned in their own mind when they do anything contrary thereto as, on the other hand, when they act suitable thereto, they have the approbation of their own conscience 5. This faculty seems to be what is usually meant by those who speak of natural conscience; an expression frequently found is some of our best authors, but yet not strictly just. For though in one sense it may be termed natural, because it is found in all men; yet, properly speaking, it is not natural, but a supernatural gift of God, above all his natural endowments No; it is not nature, but the Son of God, that is "the true light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world." So that we may say to every human creature, "He," not nature, "hath showed thee, O man, what is good." And it is his Spirit who giveth thee an inward check, who causeth thee to feel uneasy, when thou walkest in any instance contrary to the light which he hath given thee.