Wesley Corpus

And the children of God may continually observe how his love leads them on from faith to faith; with what tenderness He watches over their souls; with what care He brings them back if they go astray, and then upholds their going in his path, that their footsteps may not slide. They cannot but observe how unwilling He is to let them go from serving him; and how, notwithstanding the stubbornness of their wills, and the wildness of their passions, he goes on in his work, conquering and to conquer, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet. 3. The farther this work is carried on in their hearts, the more earnestly do they cry out, “Not unto us, O Lord, but unto thy name give the praise, for thy mercy and for thy truth’s sake !” the more deeply are they convinced that “by grace we are saved; not of works, lest any man should boast;” that we are not pardoned and accepted with God for the sake of anything we have done, but wholly and solely for the sake of Christ, of what he hath done and suffered for us; the more assuredly likewise do they know, that the condition of this acceptance is faith alone; before which gift of God no good work can be done, none which hath not in it the nature of sin. 4. How easily then may a believer infer, from what he hath experienced in his own soul, that the true grace of God always works irresistibly in every believer! that God will finish wher ever he has begun this work, so that it is impossible for any believer to fall from grace and, lastly, that the reason why God gives this to some only and not to others, is, because, of his own will, without any previous regard either to their faith or works, he hath absolutely, unconditionally, predestinated them to life, before the foundation of the world ! 5.