Wesley Corpus

Thus he calls Abraham the “father of many nations,” before even Isaac was born. And thus Christ is called “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world;” though he was not slain, in fact, till some thousand years after. In like manner, God calleth true believers, “elect from the foundation of the world;” although they were not actually elect, or believers, till many ages after, in their several generations. Then only it was that they were actually elected, when they were made the “sons of God by faith.” Then were they, in fact, “chosen and taken out of the world; elect,” saith St. Paul, “through belief of the truth;” or, as St. Peter expresses it, “elect according to the foreknowledge of God, through sanctification of the Spirit.” 19. This election I as firmly believe, as I believe the Scrip ture to be of God. But unconditional election I cannot believe; not only because I cannot find it in Scripture, but also (to wave all other considerations) because it necessarily implies unconditional reprobation. Find out any election which does not imply reprobation, and I will gladly agree to it. But reprobation I can never agree to while I believe the Scripture to be of God; as being utterly irreconcilable to the whole scope and tenor both of the Old and New Testament. O that God would give me the desire of my heart | that he would grant the thing which I long for ! even that your mind might now be free and calm, and open to the light of his Spirit ! that you would impartially consider how it is possible to reconcile reprobation with the following Scriptures: “Because thou hast eaten of the tree of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread.” (Gen. iii. 17.) The curse shall come on thee and thine offspring, not because of any absolute decree of mine, but because of thy sin. “If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.” (Gen. iv. 7.) Sin only, not the decree of reprobation, hinders thy being accepted.