Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	epistle_n	write_v	2,534	5	6.0376	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10578	A necessary instruction of christian faith and hope for Christians to holde fast, and to be bolde vp on the promise of God, & not to doubt of their saluation in Christ. Translated out of D. Vrbanus Regius, into English and newly recognized by Iohn F.; Instruccyon of christen fayth	Rhegius, Urbanus, 1489-1541.; Foxe, John, 1516-1587.	1579 (1579)	STC 20848; ESTC S106076	25,574	62

death be neuer so horrible yet ●●e must still sticke to the promise of God surely must trust and doubt nothing that our sinnes be forguiē vs for Christes sake according to the promise of God withoute any dese●uings of ours and that God is our father and we shall hue with him for euer and euer The works and passion of Christ which be of great and infinite and omnipotent power oughte more to stirre vs vppe to trust well on God that hee will bee euer more to vs a merciful Lord then our sins ought to fray vs For the grace of God in Christ is much stronger more able to deliuer and helpe then our sinnes bee to condemne vs And this grace of GOD dooth not hang of our workes for than it shoulde be vncertaine but it standeth firme by grace and by fayth in Christe with out any regard or respect of our working And this is done by the singular pro●idence of the great fatherly loue of God towarde vs because our iustification should stande firme and certaine by faith so that no man nede doubt of the fauor and mercye of God towarde him If this grace and promise stand in y hand of God then is it sure so that wee cannot doubt of the remissiō of our sins But if ●hey should stand in our own hand and sho●ld hang of our selues then wee should a●wayes be vncertain because we were ne●er able to descrue sufficiently being not sifficient of strength to fulfil the law But after that we return● repose our selues in Christ alone and in the promise of God through Christ then be we safe and sure ynough because God hath so promised of his voluntary grace frely and hath founded his promise vppon the fayth in Christ to the intent it shal stand firme and certaine And therfore I sayd and say agai●e the kingdome of Christe to be a kingdome of securitie and peace as the Prophets doe desc●ybe it In thys kingdome we haue peace and most sure succour so that there is nowe neither sinne death nor hel can feare vs So doth Es●ias also call Christ the prince of peace whose princedome is large and great and whose peace shall neuer haue ende In Ieremy also God doth promise vnto Israell that is vnto all beleeuers in Christ a springing bud of iustice a king which shall rule wisely and shall execute indgement and iustice in earth and vnder whom Israell shall dwell boldly with confidence these things be in the spirituall kingdome of Christ in which there is true and spiritual securitie where as euery christian mans hart hath pea●e with god through faith in Christ in the which kingdome neither sin can damneos neither death can kil vs nor hel can swalow vs for god is with vs and feedeth vs and defēdeth vs as his sheepe Therefore who shall stande against vs And Esai When the holy ghost saith he shal be powred from aboue that was when Christe began his kingdome then the worke and fruite of iustice shall bee peace the keeping of Iustice shall be silence security for euer euer And the people of god shall dwell in com●ines of peace in houses of trust All these things do nothing els but signifie y Christes people in his kingdōe shall be all good quiet at rest and merry which shall haue a quiet a glad con●cience being euermore sure certain that God is fauourable vnto them for Christ which doth deliuer vs from all euills without any doubt I besech you what can our aduersaries bring against this or how can they maintain their errors in the face of the world Here I haue proued taught out of the foundatiō of the word of God y no faithfull beleuer in Christe can or oughte to doubt of the fauour of God of remissiō of his sins that his consciēce may thorowly be certified y god is fauorable vnto him which will pardon all his fautes for Christes sake in whom we beleeue which will iustifie vs and giue vs euerlasting life without any doubt Here our aduersaries can haue nothing to lay against this doctrine or to subuert this foūdation but one refuge they haue that when wee bring scriptures agaynst them what say they the Lutherians bryng Scriptures for them but they muste expounde Scriptures as our fathers dyd I aunswere againe We doe not denye so to doc for we may doe it well ynough And I may saye with Saint Cirillus we keepe the faith of our fathers and of the church so farre as we ought and vse their interpretations so much as they require But the chiefest of the auncient fathers of the church do agre in the same matter no otherwise then we expound it therefore why doe these holye workers bring for them the church S. Augustine one of the moste catholike godlye doctor of thē al in his boke which hee writeth of Predestination in the xi chapter saith in thys wise Truely wher as the apostle in his epistle to the Ro. writeth these words Therfor is our inhetaunce giuen vs by fayth through grace because the promise mighte stande firme and stedfast I maruel saith he that mē had rather looke on their o●ne infirm●●y then vnto the firmity and stedfastnesse of Gods promise But here thou wilt saye I can not tell nor doe not knowe the will of God of me Well then dost thou knowe thine owne will of thy selfe if thou doest beware for he y thinketh he standeth let him take hede y he fal not Therfore in so much as thou knowest nether his wil nor thine owne wil then why should not a mā rather put his trust and hope in y which is more certaine than in that which is lesse certaine But say they againe where it is spoken if thou beleeuest thou shalt be saued there one of these is required of vs the other is offered and that which is required of vs is in our owne power the other in god And why I pray you is not both in Gods power both that which is required and that which is offered for do not we as well desire God to forgiue vs that which he requireth as wel as that he offereth doe not the beleeuers also desire him to encrease their fayth Do they not desire also for the vnbeleuers that they may haue faith so that God onely muste be the beginner and increaser of faith In like manner is thys to be taken If thou beleue●st thou shalt be saued And this if you mortifie y works of the fleshe by the spirit ye shall liue for in like case here one is required the other is offered If thou mortifie sayth he y works of fleshe by the spirit ye shal liue Then to mortifie the works of the flesh by spirit that is required the other is offered vs that wee should liue What then therfore shall we not say that this is the gift of god to mortifye the

workes of the fiesh because it is required of vs to be done God forbid y any pertaining to the grace of god shold so thynke Thys is a damnable errour of the Pelagians whom as the Apostle in his wordes following doothe confute saying Who soeuer be led with the spirit of God they be the childrē of god Lesse we shoulde thinke this mortefiing of the flesh came by our spirite but by the spirit of God of the which spirite of God the same Apostle speaketh more ouer All these things sayth he worketh one alonly spirite destributing to euerye man hys gyftes so as it pleaseth hym amongste the whyche gyftes also hee rekeneth faythe So then lyke as thys mortifieng of the fleshe notwithstanding it be required of vs is the gyfte of God euen so is fayth also the very gyft of God though neuer thelesse it be required of vs if wee will bee saued to beleeue for these thinges both bee commaunded vs of god and also be the giftes of god To the entent we shoulde vnderstand that both we doe them and yet it is the gyfte of God that we doe them so as the Scripture sheweth by Ezechiell the Prophet And I sayth almighty God shal make you that you shall doe them What can be more playne Marke well this place of scripture gentyll brethren and yee shall see that God promiseth hee will make them to doe suche thinges which he will haue done And ther in the same place hee bringeth forth no merites of theirs but much wickednes shewing declaring thereby y hee giueth good for euil in y he maketh thē bring forth afterward good workes causing them to doe his commandements Also in the lxxxviii psalme hee saythe in lyke manner Lyfte vp your heartes for he which promised will performe so as he hath performed manye things alredy for the trust that we haue in him we haue it not in our merits but only of his mercy No man can be strong in this life but onely in the hope of Gods promise For as concerning our owne merites we be marueilous weake but as concerning the promise of God we bee strong And in the lxxxxviii psalme hee saythe where is security and peace hee answereth againe truely none in this lyfe but onely in the hope of the promise of God. S. Ambrose in the firste booke de vocat genti c. writeth if no man saith he wil breake or dispise a mans will or testamente as sayth the Apostle nor alter it Then howe can it bee that Gods will testament should be broken in any thing It tarieth alwayes and euery day is fulfilled that the Lorde promised to Abraham without any condition gaue with out any lawe By this saying of Ambrose it may wel appeare that the promise of the newe testament which is that God wil be mercifull vnto vs wil forgiue vs our sinnes wil giue vs the holy ghost and wil make vs safe that this promise I say doth not depend of any condition of the law For freely it commeth onely of grace because we should neuer doubte of his grace and fauour toward vs And what other thing meaneth S. Ambrose where hee sayth so ofte y wee be saued before God by fayth only and a lonely Looke vpon his comentaries of the Romains looke also in the Corin. and Gal. Theophilactus also writeth in like sort In so much saith he as it is euident that the lawe bringeth nothing but anger therefore had Abraham his iustice and inheritance giuen him because that all should goe by grace Wherefore then seing that all thinges nowe doe stande in the grace and in the mercy of God so that he is bounde nowe not to worke after his iustice then what should let vs to thinke but that all thinges bee certaine and stable what soeuer he doth giueth or promiseth Nowe if blind hipocrisie here obiecte again that Paule in this place speketh onely of Abraham and therefore y thing concerneth none els but him but wee muste seeke our health and iustification otherwise I answere again Not so For therefore Paule calleth Abraham there the father of all the beleuers and in him propoundeth to vs al y true meanes how al men both before the cōming of Christ and after the comming of Christ must be iustified And therefore this text of Paule doth as well pertaine to vs all for it is writen and set forth vnto all vs Euen as S. Paule in the very same chap. writeth This is not written for him onely sayth he that it was imputed to him for iustice but for vs all to whom it shall be imputed for iustice beleeuing on him who raysed vp from death our Lord Iesus Christ w̄ was giuen for our sins and raised vp again for our iustificatiō Amen Difference between the Papist and the Protestant How feare confidēce stand togeather in a true christian Three causes of saluatiō declared Assurance of our saluation hovv it resteth Hovve faith bringeth in hope The difference betwene faith and hope discussed The obiecte of faith and of hope considered The operation of faith and hope Faith saueth hope comforteth The cause of our saluation euer to faith onely and not to hope Faith to iustification may be somtimes where hop fainteth but hope to comfort can neuer be without faith Eccl. 9 The Hebrue text meaneth āother thing and is wrong trāslated A true christian man doubteth not of Gods fauour Faith. Incredulity Math. 19. The doctrine of the priests clergye VVhat hope is by the sophisters Grace and deseruing are tvvo cōtrary things to be seperated The lavve Rom. 7. Gala. 5. 1. Iohn 1 Eph. 64. Luke 17. good works hovv they are necessarye Gala. 2. Math. 5. Phil. 2. 2. Pet. 1 Iohn 1 Gala. 3. Euil vvorks The foundation of our faith Rom. 5. VVhat true faith is Acts. 15. Iohn 15. Iohn 13. Luke 19. No good faith no good vvorks True faith true vvorks Ephe. 4. Rom. 8. Our iustification only belongeth to Iesus Christ. Appeale frō the lavve to Christ. VVhat the promise of God is Hie. 31. Heb. 3. Heb. 9. 2. Cor. 1 Psalme 89. VVeakenes in Christes kingdome born vvithal Truth Grace Esa. 55. Iere 31. Nota. Heb. 8. 10. Gala. 3. VVe oughte not to dout Bond testament promise mercy oth Gods promise is a gi●t VVhat vvas the cause vvhy Moses vvas preached and not Christ. The vse of the lawe VVhy the lavv vvas giuen Rom. 6 Gala. 3. Marke this vvell Gala. 2. Rom. 8. Gala. 3 The ende of the lavve Rom. 10. Iere. 11. Good men doe sinne Rom. 4. Gal. 3. Not● Iacob 2 Gala. 2. Roma 4. Rom. 4. The promise vvas made before the law cāe Nota. The promise came vvithout any cōdition Condition excluded The foundation of our hope Grace free vvithout condition Rom. 8. Marke and learne Tit. 3. Gal. 3. Ephe. 1. The holy spirite is our pledge Rom. 4. Experience Remedy in tentation Rom. 5. Christs kingdome is a kingdom of secu●●e Esa. 32. Esa. 9. Christ the prince of peace Icre 23. Esa. 42. The conclusion Obiection of the papistes An answere Cirillus Ancient doctors against the new Roman Papistes Augustine de predest 11. Ezechiell Augustine vpon the psal 88. VVe be weak in our selues in Gods promise strong Ambrose De vocat genti lib. 1. Cap. 3. Ambrose vp on Paule to the Rom. 3. 4. 9. 10. 1. Cor. 1. Gal. 1. 3. 5. Theophilact in Rom. 4 Rom. 4. ¶ Imprinted at Londō by Hugh Singleton dvvelling in Crede Lane at the signe of the gylden Tunn neere vnto Ludgate and are there to be sold. Cum priuilegio Anno. 1579.