iustification of a sinner before God For the cause of a cause is also the cause of the thing caused but foreseene faith is an impulsiue cause whereby God was mooued to choose some men to saluation as it is saide and therefore it is not onely an instrument to apprehend Christs righteousnesse but also a cause or meanes to mooue God to iustifie a sinner because iustification proceedes of Election which comes of foreseene faith now this is erroneous by the doctrine of all Churches vnlesse they be Popish Fifthly this doctrine takes it for graunted that all both young and olde euen Infants that die in their infancie haue knowledge of the Gospell because both faith and vnbeleefe in Christ presuppose knowledge of our saluation by him considering that neither ordinarily nor extraordinarily men beleeue or contemne the thing vnknowne But how false this is euen common experience doth shew Lastly this platforme quite ouerthrowes it selfe For whereas all men equally corrupt in Adam are effectually both redeemed and called the difference betweene man and man standes not in beleeuing or not beleeuing for all haue power to beleeue but in this properly that some are confirmed in faith some are not Now when all without exception are indued with grace sufficient to saluation I demaund why some men are confirmed in grace and others not confirmed as also of Angels some were confirmed and stand and some not confirmed fell No other reason can be rendered but the will of God And to this must all come striue as long as they will that of men beeing in one and the same estate some are saued some iustly forsaken because God would Againe as the foreseeing of â—aith doth presuppose Gods giuiâ—g of faith vnlesse men will say it is naturall so the foreseeing of faith in some men alone doth presuppose the giuing of faith to some men alone But why doth not God conferre the grace of constant faith to all no other reason can be rendered but because he will not Thus then those men whose faith was foreseene are saued not because their faith was foreseene but because God would The third fault is that they ascribe vnto God a conditionall Purpose or counsell whereby he decrees that all men shall be saued so be it they will beleeue For it is euery way as much against common sense as if it had bin saide that God decreed nothing at all concerning man A conditionall sentence determines nothing simply but conditionally and therefore vncertenly and when we speake of God to determine vncertenly is as much as if he had determined nothing at all specially when the thing determined is in the power of mans wil and in respect of God the decree may come to passe or not come to passe Men if they might alwaies haue their choise desire to determine of all their affaires simply without condition and when they doe otherwise it is either because they know not the euent of things or because things to be don are not in their power No reason therefore that we should burden God with that whereof we would disburden our selues Againe the maiestie of God is disgraced in this kind of decree God for his part would haue all men to be saued why then are they not men will not keepe the condition and beleeue This is flat to hang Gods will vpon mans will to make euery man an Emperour and God his vnderling and to change the order of nature by subordinating Gods will which is the first cause to the will of man which is the second cause whereas by the very law of nature the first cause should order and dispose the second cause But for the iustifying of a conditionall decree it is alleadged that there is no eternall and hidden decree of God beside the Gospel which is Gods predestination reuealed Ans. It is an vntruth There be two wills in God one whereby he determineth what he will doe vnto vs or in vs the other whereby he determineth what we shall doe to him Now Predestination is the first whereupon it is commonly defined to be the preparation of the blessing of God whereby they are deliuered which are deliuered and the Gospel is the second Againe Predestination determines who they are and how many which are to be saued and hereupon Christ saith I know whom I haue chosen but the Gospel rather determines what kind of ones and how they must be qualified which are to be saued Lastly Predestination is Gods decree it selfe and the Gospel is an outward meanes of the execution of it and therefore though the Gospel be propounded with a conditionâ— yet the decree of God it selfe may be simple and absolute The fourth defect is the opinion of Vniuersall sauing grace aâ—pertaining to all and euery man which may be fitly tearmed the Schoole of vniuersall Atheisme For it pulls downe the pale of the Church and laies it wast as euery common field it breeds a carelesnes in the vse of the means of grace the word and Sacraments when as men shall be perswaded that grace shal be offered to euery one effectually whether he be of the Church or not at one time or other wheresoeuer or howsoeuer he liue as in the like case if meÌ„ should be told that whether they liue in the market towne or no there shall be sufficient prouision brought them if they will but receiue it and accept of it who would then come to the market Vniuersall grace hath three parts Vniuersall Election vniuersall Redemption vniuersall Vocation Vniuersall Election of all and euery man is a witlesse conceit for if men vniuersally be appointed to grace without exception then there is no electing or choosing of some out of mankind to grace and if some alone be appointed to grace as it must needes be in election then is not grace vniuersall And it is flat against the word of God For Christ auoucheth plainely that fewer be chosen then called and as afterward we shall see all are not called And he further saith that all which are giuen vnto him shall be one with him and haue life euerlasting but all men shall not be one with him and haue life euerlasting and therefore all men are not giuen to Christ of the father that is ordained to saluation And the Scripture saith that all mens names are not written in the booke of life and that the kingdome of heauen was not prepared for all And whereas men build this their vniuersall election vpon the largenesse of the promise of the Gospel vpon the like ground they might as well make an vniuersall decree of Reprobation whereby God decrees all men to be damned indefinitely vpon this condition if they doe not beleeue Now if vniuersall Reprobation be absurd as it is indeede then vniuersall Election of all and euery man must take part therewith As for the vniuersall Redemption of all and euery man it is no better then a forgerie of mans braine There shall be many
And this I take to be the meaning of this text which speaketh not of iustification by faith but onely of the practice of common duties which faith putteth in execution by the helpe of loue III. Reason Faith is neuer alone therefore it doth not iustifie alone Ans. The reason is naught and they might as well dispute thus The eie is neuer alone from the head and therefore it seeth not alone which is absurd And though in regard of substance the eie be neuer alone yet in regard of seeing it is alone and so though faith subsist not without loue and hope and other graces of god yet in regard of the act of iustification it is alone without thē al. IV. Reason If faith alone doe iustifie then we are saued by faith alone but we are not saued by faith alone and therefore not iustified by faith alone Ans. The proposition is false for more things are requisite to the maine ende then to the subordinate meanes And the assumption is false for wee are saued by faith alone if we speake of faith as it is an instrument apprehending Christ for our saluation V. Reason We are saued by hope therefore not by faith alone Ans. Wee are saued by hope not because it is any cause of our saluation Pauls meaning is onely this that we haue not saluation as yet in possession but waite patiently for it in time to come to be possessed of vs expecting the time of our full deliuerance that is all that can iustly be gathered hence Nowe the doctrine which we teach on the contrarie is That a sinner is iustified before God by faith yea by faith alone The meaning is that nothing within man and nothing that man can do either by nature or by grace concurreth to the act of iustification before God as any cause thereof either efficient material formal or final but faith alone all other gifts graces as hope loue the feare of God are necessarie to saluation as signes thereof cōsequents of faith Nothing in mā cōcurs as any cause to this work but by faith alone And faith it selfe is no principall but onely an instrumentall cause whereby we receiue apprehend and apply Christ and his righteousnesse for our iustificatiō Reason I. Ioh. 3.14,15 As Moses lift vp the serpent in the wildernesse so must the sonne of man be lift vp that whosoeuer beleeueth in him shall not perish but haue euerlasting life In these words Christ makes a comparison on this maner when any one of the Israelites were stung to death by fierie serpents his cure was not by any phisicke surgerie but onely by the casting of his eies vp to the brasen serpent which Moses had erected by Gods commandement euen so in the cure of our soules when we are stung to death by sinne there is nothing required within vs for our recouery but onely that we cast vp and fixe the eye of our faith on Christ and his righteousnes Reason II. The exclusiue formes of speech vsed in scripture prooue thus much We are iustified freely not of the lawe not by the lawe without the lawe without workes not of workes not according to workes not of vs not by the workes of the lawe but by faith Gal. 2.16 All boasting excluded onely beleeue Luk. 8.50 These distinctions whereby workes and the lawe are excluded in the work◠of iustification doe include thus much that faith alone doth iustifie Reason III. Very reason may teach thus much for no gift in man is apt fit as a spirituall hand to receiue apply Christ and his righteousnes vnto a sinner but faith Indeede loue hope the feare of God and repentance haue their seuerall vses in men but none serue for this ende to apprehend Christ and his merits none of them all haue this receiuing propertie and therefore there is nothing in man that iustifieth as a cause but faith alone Reason IV. The iudgement of the auncient Church Ambr. on Rom. 4. They are blessed to whome without any labour or worke done iniquities are remitted and sinne couered no workes or repentance required of them but onely that they beleeue And cap. 3. Neither working any thing nor requiting the like are they iustified by faith alone through the gift of God And 1. Cor. 1. this is appointed of God that whosoeuer beleeueth in Christ shall be saued without any worke by faith alone freely receiuing remission of sinnes Augustine There is one propitiation for all sinnes to beleeue in Christ. Hesyc on Leuit. lib. 1. c. 2. Grace which is of mercy is apprehended by faith alone and not of workes Bernard Whosoeuer is pricked for his sinnes and thirsteth after righteousnes let him beleeue in thee who iustifieth the sinner and beeing iustified by Faith alone he shall haue peace with God Chrysost. on Gal. 3. They said he which resteth on faith alone◠is accursed but Paul sheweth that he is blessed which resteth on faith alone Basil. de Humil. Let man acknowledge himselfe to want true iustice and that he is iustified onely by faith in Christ. Origen on c. 3. Rom. Wee thinke that a man is iustified by faith without the workes of the lawe and he saith iustification by faith alone sufficeth so as a man onely beleeuing may be iustified And therefore it lieth vpon vs to search who was iustified by faith without works And for an exāple I thinke vpon the theife who beeing crucified with Christ cried vnto him Lord remember me when thou cōmest into thy kingdome and there is no other good worke of his mentioned in the Gospell but for this alone faith Iesus saith vnto him This night thou shalt be with me in paradise III. Difference The third difference about iustification is concerning this point namely how farreforth good workes are required thereto The doctrine of the Church of Rome is that there be two kinds of iustification the first and the second as I haue said The first is when one of an euill man is made a good man and in this workes are wholly excluded it beeing wholly of grace The second is when a man of a iust man is made more iust And this they will haue to proceede from workes of grace for say they as a man when he is once borne can by eating and drinking make himselfe a bigger man though he could not at the first make himselfe a man euen so a sinner hauing his first iustification may afterward by grace make himselfe more iust Therefore they hold these two things I. that good works are meritorious causes of the second iustification which they tearme Actual II. that good works are means to increase the first iustificatiō which they cal habitual Now let vs see how farforth we must ioyne with them in this point Our consent therefore stands in three conclusions I. That good workes done by them that are iustified doe please God and are approoued of him and therefore haue a reward II. Good workes are necessarie to saluation two
Gospell is vpon condition of mens faith and repentance and that men are deceiued touching their owne faith and repentance and therefore faile in applying the word vnto themselues Ans. Indeede this manner of applying is false in all hypocrites heretickes and vnrepentant persons for they applie vpon carnall presumption and not by faith Neuerthelesse it is true in all the Elect hauing the spirit of grace and praier for when God in the ministerie of the word beeing his owne ordinance saith Seeke ye my face the heart of Gods children truly answereth O Lord I wil seeke thy face Psal. 17.8 And when God shall say Thou art my people they shall say againe The Lord is my God Zach. 13.6 And it is a truth of God that he which beleeueth knoweth that he beleeueth and he that truly repenteth knoweth that be repeÌ„teth vnles it be in the beginning of our conuersion in the time of distresse and temptation Otherwise what thankfulnesse can there be for grace receiued Obiect II. It is no article of the Creede that a man must beleeue his owne saluation and therefore no man is bound thereto Ans. By this argument it apâ—â—â—res plainely that the very pillars of the Church of Rome doe not vnderstand the Creede for in that which is commonly called the Apostles Creede euery article implieth in it this particular faith And in the first article I beleeue in God are three things contained the first to beleeue that there is a God the second to beleeue the same God to be my God the third to put my confidence in him for my saluation and so much containe the other articles which are concerning God When Thomas said Ioh. 20.28 My God Christ answered Thou hast beleeued Thomas Where we see that to beleeue in God is to beleeue God to be our God And Psal. 78. 22. to beleeue in God and to put trust in him are all one They beleeued not in God and trusted not in his helpe And the articles concerning Remission of sinnes and Life euerlasting do include and we in them acknowledge our speciall faith concerning our owne saluation For to beleeue this or that is to beleeue there is such a thing and that the same thing belongs to me as when Dauid said I should haue fainted except I had beleeued to see the goodnesse of the Lord in the land of the liuing Psal. 27.13 It is answered that in those articles wee onely professe our selues to beleeue remission of sinnes and life euerlasting to be vouchsafed to the people Church of God Ans. This indeede is the exposition of many but it standes not with common reason For if that bee all the faith that is there confessed the deuill hath as good a faith as we He knoweth and beleeueth that there is a God that this God imparteth remission of sinnes and life euerlasting to his church And to the end that wee beeing Gods children may in faith goe beyond all the deuills in hell we must further beleeue that remission of sinnes and life euerlasting belongs vnto vs and vnlesse we doe particularly apply the said articles vnto our selues we shall little or nothing differ from the deuill in making confession of faith Obiect III. We are taught to pray for the pardon of our sinnes day by day Matth. 6.12 and all this were needlesse if we could bee assured of pardon in this life Answ. The fourth petition must be vnderstood not so much of our olde debts or sinnes as of our present and newe sinnes for as we goe on from daie to daie so we adde sinne to sinne and for the pardon of them must wee humble our selues and pray I answer againe that wee pray for the pardon of our sinnes not because we haue no assurance thereof but because our assurance is weake and small wee growe on from grace to grace in Christ as children doe to mans estate by little and little The heart of euery beleeuer is like a vessell with a narrow necke which beeing cast into the sea is not filled at the first but by reason of the straight passage receiueth water drop by drop God giueth vnto vs in Christ euen a sea of mercie but the same on our parts is apprehended and receiued onely by little and litte as faith groweth from age to age and this is the cause why men hauing assurance pray for more Our reasons to the contrarie Reason I. The first reason may be taken from the nature of faith on this manner True faith is both an vnfallible assurance and a particular assurance of the remission of sinnes and of life euerlasting And therefore by this faith a man may be certenly and particularly assured of the remission of sinnes and life euerlasting That this reason may bee of sorce two things must be prooued first that true faith is a certaine assurance of Gods mercie to that partie in whome it is Secondly that faith is a particular assurance thereof For the first that faith is a certaine assurance Christ saith to Peter Mat. 14.31 O thou of litle faith wherefore didst thou doubt Where he maketh an opposition betweene faith and doubting whereby giuing vs directly to vnderstand that to be certen and to giue assurance is of the nature of faith Rom. 4.20.22 Paul saith of Abraham that he did not doubt of the promise of God through vnbeleefe but vvas strengthened in faith and gaue glory to God being fully assured that he which had promised was able to doe it where I obserue first that doubting is made a fruit of vnbeleefe and therefore vnfallible certentie and assurance being contrarie to doubting must needes proceede from true faith considering that coÌ„trarie effects come of contrarie causes and contrarie causes produce contrary effects SecoÌ„dly I note that the strength of Abrahams faith did stand in fulnes of assurance for the text saith he was strengthened in the faith being fully assured and againe Heb. 11.1 true sauing faith is said to be the ground and subsistance of things hoped for the euidence or demonstration of things that are not seene but faith can be no ground or euidence of things vnlesse it bee for nature certenty it selfe and thus the first point is manifest The second that sauing faith is a particular assurance is prooued by this that the propertie of faith is to apprehend and apply the promise and the thing promised Christ with his benefits Ioh. 1.12 As many saieth S. Iohn as receiued him to them hee gaue power to be the sonnes of god namely to them that beleeue in his name In these words to beleeue in Christ and to receiue Christ are put for one and the same thing Nowe to receiue Christ is to apprehend and apply him with all his benefits vnto our selues as he is offered in the promises of the gospell For in the sixt chapter following first of all he sets forth himselfe not onely as a Redeemer generally but also as the bread of life and the water of life secondly he sets
Father is well pleased and for whose sake alone he is well pleased with vs. IV. Obiect Sundrie persons in Scripture are commended for perfectionâ— as Noe and Abraham Zacharie and Elizabeth and Christ biddeth vs all bee perfect and where there is any perfection of workes there also workes may iustifie Ans. There be two kinds of perfection perfection in parts and perfection in degrees Perfection in part is when being regenerate and hauing the seedes of all necessarie vertues wee indeauour accordingly to obey God not in some few but in all and euery part of the law as Iosias turned vnto God according to all the law of Moses Perfection in degrees is when a man keepeth euery commandement of God and that according to the rigour thereof in the very highest degree Nowe then whereas we are commanded to be perfected and haue examples of the same perfection in scripture both commandements and examples must be vnderstood of perfection in parts and not of perfection in degrees which caÌ„â—ot be attained vnto in this life though we for our parts must daily striue to come as neere vnto it as possibly we can V. Obiect 2. Cor. 4. 17. Our momentany afflictions worke vnto vs a greater measâ—re of glorie nowe if afflictions worke our saluation then workes also doe the same Ans. Afflictions worke saluation not as causes procuring it but as means directing vs thereto And thus alwaies must we esteeme of works in the matter of our saluation as of a certen way or a marke therein directing vs to glorie not causing and procuring it as Bernard saith they are via Regni non causa regnandi The waie to the kingdome not the cause of raigning there VI. Obiect We are iustified by the same thing whereby we are iudged but we are iudged by our good works therfore iustified also Ans. The proposition is false for iudgement is an act of God declaring a man to bee iust that is alreadie iust and iustification is another distinct act of God whereby he maketh him to be iust that is by nature vniust And therefore in equitie the last iudgement is to proceede by workes because they are the fittest meanes to make triall of euery mans cause and serue fitly to declare whome God hath iustified in this life VII Obiect Wicked men are condemned for euill workes and therefore righteous men are iustified by good workes Ans. The reason holdeth not for there is great difference betweene euill and good workes An euill worke is perfectly euill and so deserueth damnation but there is no good worke of any man that is perfectly good and therefore cannot iustifie VIII Obiect To beleeue in Christ is a worke and by it we are iustified if one worke doe iustifie why may we not be iustified by all the workes of the law Ans. Faith must be considered two waies first as a worke qualitie or vertue secondly as an Instrument or an hand reaching out it selfe to receiue Christs merit And we are iustified by faith not as it is a work vertue or qualitie but as it is an instrument to receiue and apply that thing whereby we are iustified And therefore it is a figuratiue speech to say We are iustified by faith Faith considered by it selfe maketh no man righteous neither doth the actioÌ„ of faith which is to apprehend iustifie but the obiect of faith which is Christs obedience apprehended These are the principall reasons commonly vsed which as we see are of no moment To conclude therefore we holde that workes concurre to iustification and that we are iustified thereby as by signes and effects not as causes for both the beginning middle and accomplishment of our iustification is onely in Christ and hereupon Iohn saith If any man beeing already iustified sinne we haue an aduocate with the father Iesus Christ and he is the propitiation for our sinnes And to make our good workes meanes or causes of our iustification is to make euery man a Sauiour to himselfe The V. point Of merits By merit we vnderstand any thing or any work whereby Gods fauour life euerlasting is procured and that for the dignitie and excellencie of the worke or thing done or a good worke done binding him that receiueth it to repay the like Our Consent Touching merits we consent in two conclusions with them The first coÌ„clusion that merits are so farre forth necessarie that without them there can be no saluation The second that Christ our Mediatour and Redeemer is the roote and fountaine of all merit The dissent or difference The popish Church placeth merits within man making two sorts thereof the merit of the person and the merit of the worke The merit of the person is a dignitie in the person whereby it is worthie of life euerlasting And this as they say is to be found in Infants dying after baptisme who though they want good workes yet are they not void of this kind of merit for which they â—eceiue the kingdome of heauen The merit of the worke is a dignitie or excellencie in the worke whereby it is made fitte and inabled to deserue life euerlasting for the doer And works as they teach are meritorious two waies first by couenant because God hath made a promise of reward vnto them secondly by their own dignitie for Christ hath merited that our works might merit And this is the substance of their doctrine From it we dissent in these points I. We renounce all personall merits that is all merits within the person of any meere man II. And we renounce all merit of workes that is all merit of any worke done by any meere man whatsoeuer And the true merit whereby we looke to attaine the fauour of God and life euerlasting is to bee found in the person of Christ alone who is the storehouse of all our merits whose prerogatiue it is to be the person alone in whome God is well pleased Gods fauour is of infinit dignitie and no creature is able to doe a worke that may counteruaile the fauour of God saue Christ alone who by reason of the dignitie of his person beeing not a meere man but God-man or Man-god hee can doe such workes as are of endles dignitie euery way answerable to the fauour of God and therefore sufficient to merit the same for vs. And though a merit or meritorious work agree only to the person of Christ yet is it made ours by imputation For as his righteousnes is made ours so are his merits depending thereon but his righteousnes is made ours by imputation as I haue shewed Hence ariseth another point namely that as Christs righteousnes is made ours really by imputation to make vs righteous so wee by the merit of his righteousnesse imputed to vs doe merit and deserue life euerlasting And this is our doctrine In a word the Papist maintaineth the merits of his owne workes but we renouuce them all and rest only on the merit of Christ. And that our doctrine is trueth and theirs
holy spirit who bringeth it forth onely in such as he dwells in c. Then these holy desires and praiers beeing the motions of the holy Ghost in vs are testimonies of our faith although they seeme to vs small and weake As the woman that feeleth the mooning of a childe in her body though very weak assureth her selfe that shee hath conceiued and that shee goeth with a liue childe so if we haue these motions these holy affections and desires before mentioned let vs not doubt but that we haue the holy Ghost who is the author of them dwelling in vs and consequently that we haue also faith Againe he saith If thou hast begun to hate and flee sinne if thou feelest that thou art displeased at thine infirmities corruptions if hauing offended God thou feelest a griefe and a sorrow for it if thou desire to abstaine if thou thou auoidest the occasions if thou trauailest to doe thy endeauour if thou praiest to God to giue thee grace all these holy affections proceeding from none other then from the spirit of God ought to be so many pledges and testimonies that hee is in thee Master Knokes saith Albeit your paines sometimes bee so horrible that you finde no release nor comfort neither in spirit nor bodie yet if thy heart can onely sob vnto God despaire not you shall obtaine your hearts desire And destitute you are not of faith for at such time as the flesh naturall reason the lawe of God the present torment the deuill at one doe crie God is angrie and therefore there is neither helpe nor remedie to be hoped for at his handes at such time I say to sob vnto God is the demonstration of the secret seede of God which is hidde in Gods elect children and that onely sob is vnto God a more acceptable sacrifice then without this crosse to giue our bodies to be burnt euen for the truthes sake More testimonies might be alleadged but these shall suâ—fice Against this point of doctrine it may bee alleadged that if desire to beleeue in our weakenesse bee faith indeede then some are iustified and may be saued wanting a liuely apprehension and full perswasion of Gods mercie in Christ. Answere Iustifying faith in regard of his nature is alwaies one and the same and the essentiall propertie thereof is to apprehend Christ with his benefits and to assure the very conscience thereof And therefore without some apprehension and assuranee there can be no iustification or saluation in them that for age are able to beleeue Yet there be certaine degrees and measures of true faith There is a strong faith which causeth a full apprehension and perswasion of Gods mercy in Christ. This measure of faith the Lord vouchsafed Abraham Dauid Paul the Prophets and Apostles and Martyrs of God It were a blessed thing if all beleeuers might attaine to this height of liuely faith to say with Paul I am perswaded that neither life nor death nor any thing else shall be able to separate vs from the loue of God in Christ but all cannot therefore there is another degree of faith lower then the former and yet true faith called a little or weake faith and it also hath a power to apprehend and apply the promise of saluation but as yet by reason of weakenesse it is infolded as it were and wrapt vp in the heart as the leafe and blossome in the budde For such persons as haue this weake faith can say indeede that they beleeue their sinnes to bee pardonable and that they desire to haue them pardoned but as yet they cannot say that they are without all doubt pardoned And yet the mercie of God is not wanting vnto themâ—â—or in that they doe and can desire and indeauour to apprehend they doe indeede apprehend God accepting the desire to doe the thing for the thing done This which I say will the better appeare if the groundes thereof bee considered Faith doeth not iustifie in respect of it selfe because it is an action or vertue or because it is strong liuely and perfect but in respect of the obiect thereof namely Christ crucified whome faith apprehendeth as hee is set forth vnto vs in the word and sacraments It is Christ that is the author matter of our iustice and it is he that applieth the same vnto vs as for faith in vs it is but an instrument to apprehend and receiue that which Christ for his part offereth and giueth Therefore if faith erre not in his proper obiect but followe the promise of God though it doe weakly apprehend or at the least cause a man onely to endeauour and desire to apprehend it is true faith and iustifieth Though our apprehension be necessarie yet our saluation standes rather in this that God apprehendes vs for his owne then that we apprehend him Phil. 3.12 Out of this conclusion springes another not to bee omitted that God accepts the indeauour of the whole man to obey for perfect obedience it selfe THat is if men indeauour to please God in all things God will not iudge their doings by the rigour of the lawe but will accept their little and weake indeauour to doe that which they can doe by his grace as if they had perfectly fulfilled the lawe But here remember I put this caueat that this indeauour must be in and by the whole man the very minde conscience wil affections doing that which they can in their kinds and thus this indeauour which is a fruite of the spirit shall be distinguished from ciuill righteousnes which may bee in heathen men The trueth of this conclusion appeares by that which the Prophet Malachi saith that God will spare them that feare him as a father spares his childe who accepts the thing done as well done if the child shewe his good will to please his father and to doe what he can IV. Conclusion To see and feele in our selues the want of any grace and to be grieued therefore is the grace it selfe The Exposition VNderstand this conclusion as the former namely that griefe of heart for the want of any grace necessarie to saluation is as much with God as the grace it selfe When being in distresse wee cannot pray as we ought God accepts the very groanes sobbes and sighes of the perplexed heart as the praier it selfe Rom. 8. 26. When we are grieued because we cannot bee grieued for our sinnes it is a degree and measure of godly sorrowe before God Augustine saith well Sometimes our praier is luke-warme or rather colde and almost no praier nay sometime it is altogither no praier at all and yet we cannot with griefe perceiue this in our selues for if we can but grieue because we cannot pray we nowe pray indeede Hierome saith Then we are iust when wee acknowledge our selues to be sinners Againe this is the true wisdome of man to knowe himselfe to be imperfect And that I may so speake the perfection of all iust men in the flesh is imperfect
of blood but Christ as he is God cannot die For no passion can befall the Godhead Therefore it was needefull that he should become man that in mans nature he might die and fully satisfie Gods iustice for mans offence Lastly he that must make reconciliation betweene God and man must be such an one as may make request or speake both to God and man For a Mediatour is as it were a middle person making intercession betweene two other persons the one offended the other offending Therefore it is necessarie that Christ should not onely be God to speake vnto the father for vs and to present our prayers vnto him but also man that God might speake to vs and we to God by Christ. For howsoeuer before the fall man could speak to God euen face to face yet since the fall such feare possesseth mans corrupt nature that he cannot abide the presence of God but flyeth from it Nowe whereas I say that it was necessarie that the sonne of God for the causes before alleadged must become man the necessitie must be vnderstood in respect of Gods will and not in respect of his absolute power For if it had so pleased God he was able to haue laid downe an other kind of way of mans redemption then by the incarnation of the sonne of God and he appointed no other way because he would not Thus much of the Incarnation in generall Nowe followe the duties which arise of it And first we are taught hereby to come to Christ by faith and with all our hearts to cleaue vnto him Great is the deadnesse and sluggishnesse of mans nature for skarse one of a thousand care for him or seeke vnto him for righteousnesse and life euerlasting But wee shoulde excite our selues euery way to drawe neare to him as much as possibly we may for when he was incarnate he came neere vnto vs by taking our nature vpon him that wee againe whatsoeuer we are might come neere vnto him by taking vnto vs his diuine nature Againe when Christ was incarnate he was made bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh and therefore proportionally wee must labour to become bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh which we shall bee when we are mystically vnited vnto him by faith and borne anewe by his spirit Moreouer Christ by his incarnation came downe from heauen to vs that we being partakers of his grace might ascend vp to heauen by him And thus we see how the meditation of Christs incarnation should be a spurre to prick vs forward still more and more to come to Christ. Secondly Christs incarnation must be a patterne vnto vs of a most wonderfull and straunge humilitie For as Paul saith Being in the forme of God and thinking it no robberie to bee equall with God made himselfe of no reputation and tooke on him forme of a seruant and humbled himselfe and became obedient to death euen to the death of the crosse Yea so farre forth he abased himselfe that as Dauid saith he was a worme and no man And this teacheth vs to lay aside al selfe-loue and pride of heart and to practise the duties of humility as the Apostle exhorts the Philippians in the same place and that shall we doe when we beginne to cast off that high opinion which euery man by nature conceiueth of himselfe and become vile and base in our owne eies Secure drowsie protestants thinke themselues blessed and say in their hearts as the Angel of the Church of Laodicea said I am rich increased with goods and haue need of nothing whereas indeed they are most miserable and wretched and poore and naked and blind And the same fond opinion possesseth the mindes of our ignorant people who chant it in the very same tune saying that God loues them and that they loue God with al their hearts and their neighbours as themselues that they haue perfect faith in Christ and euer had not once so much as doubting of their saluation that all is well with them and that they are past all danger whatsoeuer in the matter of their saluation and therefore neede not take so much care for it Thus yee may see howe men are commonly carried away with vaine and fond conceits of their owne excellencie And truely so long as this ouerweening of our owne righteousnesse raignes in our hearts let preachers speake and say what they will we can neuer become followers of Christ in the practise of humilitie Some will say peraduenture that they neuer had any such opinion of their owne righteousnes but I answere againe that there was neuer yet any man descending of Adam saue Christ but he had this proud phantasie ruling and raigning in him till such time as God gaue grace to chaÌ„ge alter his heart this inward pride the lesse we discern it the more it is and the more we discerne it the lesse it is Therefore though as yet thou see it not in thy selfe yet labour both to see it to feele it to striue against it casting down thy selfe for thy own miserie after Christs own example who being God abased himselfe to the condition of a miserable man For thou shalt neuer be filled with the good things of god till thou be emptied of selfe-loue and selfe-liking For this cause let vs purge and emptie our selues of all conceit of our own righteousnes that god may fil our hearts with his grace Furthermore the incarnation of Christ is the ground and foundation of all our comfort as the names of Christ seruing to expresse the same doe testifie Iâ—akob in his last Testament saith that the scepter shall not depart from Iudah in Shilo that is the Messias come Nowe the name Shilo signifieth the tunicle or skinne that lappeth the infant in the mothers wombe called by the Phisitians the secundine and by a kind of figure it is put for the Sonne of God in the wombe of the virgine made man And Iob to comfort himselfe in his affliction saith I knowe that my redeemer liueth Nowe the word which he vseth to signifie his redeemer by is verie emphaticall for it signifieth a kinsman neere allied vnto him of his owne flesh that will restore him to life And the Lord by the prophet Esay calleth Christ Immanuel that is God with vs which name importeth very much namely that whereas by nature we haue lost our fellowshippe with God because our sinnes are a wall of partition seuering vs from him yet neuerthelesse the fame is restored to all that beleeue by the Mediatour Christ Iesus because his diuine nature is coupled to mans nature and so the word is made flesh And this strait coniunction of two natures into one person ioynes God to men and men to God yea by Christ we are brought to God and haue free accesse vnto him and againe in him we apprehend God and are made one with him And further whereas Christ beside
humiliation and then into glorie so it is with his members first they must be abased in this life and secondly exalted in the world to come He that will raigne with Christ and be exalted must first suffer with him and be humbled he that will weare the crowne of glorie must weare first a crowne of thornes they that will haue all teares wiped from their eyes must here first in this life shedde them And the children of God before they can sing the song of Moses and of the seruants of God and of the lambe must first swimme through the sea of burning glasse whereby it is signified that those which after this life would sing songs of praises to Christ must in this life be cast into a sea of miserie And if this be true then we may heare learne that it is a wretched case for a man in this life to haue perpetuall ease rest and quietnes both in bodie soule goods good name for we see by Christs example that through aduersitie we must come to happines and if a man would haue rest and peace in the life to come then in this life he must looke for trouble persecution and sorrow Indeede in the iudgement of the world they are blessed that alwaies liue at rest but before God they are most miserable and as oxen which are made fatte in the best pasture readie for the slaughterhouse euery day Secondly here is an excellent consolation for those which professe the Gospel of Christ in the time of trouble and persecution they must reioyce because the state of humiliation in this life is a signe that they are in the plaine and right way to saluation and glorie A man is to take his iourney into a farre countrey and inquiring for the way it is told him that there are many plaine waies but the straight and right way is by woods and hills and mountaines and great daungers now when he is trauailing and comes into those places he gathereth certenly that he is in the right way so the childe of God that is going to the kingdome of heauen though there be many waies to walke in yet he knowes that there is but one right way which is very straight and narrowe full of trouble sorrowe and persecution full of all manner of crosses and afflictions and when in this life he is persecuted and afflicted for good causes whether in bodie or in minde if he be content to beare his crosse it argueth plainely that he is in the right way vnto saluation for through many afflictions we must enter into the kingdome of heauen The humiliation of Christ is first of all set downe in the Creede generally and secondly by his parts or degrees Generally in these words Suffered vnder Pontius Pilate Where we must consider two things the Passion it selfe and vnder whome it was For the first that we may the better conceiue the passion in his owne nature seuen speciall points must be opened I. The cause efficient The principall cause of the passion as it is the price of our redemption was the decree and prouidence of God as Peter saith expressely that Christ was deliuered by the determinate counsell and foreknowledge of God The impulsiue cause that mooued God to worke our saluation by this meanes was nothing in man for al mankinde was shut vp vnder vnbeleefe and therefore vnable to procure the least fauour at Gods hand but the will and good pleasure of God within himselfe The instruments which the Lord vsed in this busines were the wicked Iewes and Gentiles and the deuill himselfe by whome he brought to passe the most admirable worke of redemption euen then when they according to their kind did nothing els but practise wickednes and malice against Christ. II. The matter of the passion is the whole malediction or curse of the Law containing in it all manner of aduersities and miseries both of bodie and minde All which may be reduced to three heads the temptations of Christ his ignominies and slaunders his manifolde sorrowes and griefes especially those which stand in the apprehension of the vnsupportable wrath of God III. The forme of the passion is that excellent and meritorious satisfaction which in suffering Christ made vnto his father for mans sinne We doe not rightly consider of the passion if we conceiue 〈◊〉 to be a bare and naked suffering of punishment but withall we must conceiue it as a propitiation or a meanes satisfactorie to Gods iustice The passion considered as a passion ministers no comfort but all our ioy and reioycing stands in this that by faith we apprehend it as it is a satisfaction or a meanes of reconciliation for our offences In this very point standes the dignitie of the passion whereby it differs from all other sufferings of men whatsoeuer Therefore most damnable and wicked is the opinion of the papists who besides the alone passion of Christ maintaine workes of satisfaction partly of their owne and partly of the Saints departed which they adde to the passion as an appendance thereof IV. The ende of the passion is that God might bring to passe a worke in which he might more fully manifest his iustice and mercie then he did in the creation and that is the reconciliation betweene God and man And here remember with the passion to ioyne the actiue obedience of Christ in fulfilling the law for Christ in suffering obeyed and in obeying suffered And they must be ioyntly conceiued together for this cause In reconciliation with God two things are required the remoouing of sinne in regard of the guilt of the fault and the punishment and the conferring or giuing of righteousnes Nowe the passion of Christ considered apart from his legall obedience only takes away the guilt and punishment frees man from death and makes him of a sinner to be no sinner and that he may be fully reconciled to God and accepted as righteous to life euerlasting the legall obedience of Christ must also be imputed And therfore in the Scriptures where all our redemption is ascribed to the death and passion of Christ this very obedience which standes in the perfect loue of God and man must be included and not excluded V. The time of the passion was from the very birth of Christ to his resurrection yet so as the beginnings onely of his sufferings were in the course of his life and the accomplishment thereof to the very full vpon the crosse VI. The person that suffered was the sonne of God himselfe concerning whome in this case two questions must be resolued The first how can it stand with Gods iustice◠to lay punishment vpon the most righteous man that euer was and that for grieuous sinners considering that tyrants themselues will not doe so Ans. In the passion Christ must not be considered as a priuate person for then it could not stand with equitie that hee should be plagued and punished for our offences but as one
for our saluation He is like the Physitian who goes on to launch the wound and heares not the patient though he crie neuer so till the cure be ended Now followeth the second thing to be considered in Christs apprehension namely the dealing of the Iewes wherein we must consider foure things I. how they consult togither concerning Christs apprehension II. how they came to the place and mette him III. how they laid hands on him IIII. how they bound him and tooke him away For the first before they enterprised this matter they did wisely and warily lay their heads togither to consult of the time and place and also of the manner of apprehending him So Saint Matthew saith There assembled together the chiefe Priests and the Scribes and the Elâ—ers of the people into the hall of the chiefe Priest called Caiphas and consulted how they might take Iesus by subtiltie Whence we learne two good instructions first the Iewes hauing a quarrell against Christ could neuer be at â—est till they had his blood and therefore they consult how they might take him but God did so order the matter and disâ—â—ose of their purposes and consultations that euen thereby he did confound them and their whole nation â—or by reason of this hainous sinne against Christ came the iust wrath of God vpon them and so remaineth vnto this day Whereby we see that the Lord will ouerthrow such in their owne wisdome that will be wise without the direction of Gods word and against Christ. And thus it was with Achiâ—ophel who for wisdome was as the oracle of God yet because he rebelled against the Lords annointed God confounded him in his owne wisdome For when his counsell which he gaue against Dauid was not followed he thought himsâ—â—â—e despised as the text saith and sadled his asse and arose and went home into his 〈◊〉 and put his houshold in order and hanged himselfe in this action he shewed himselfe more senslesse then a bruit beast And in our daies the Leaguers that haue bound themselues by othe to roote out the Church of God by his most wonderfull prouidence turne their swords against themselues and destroy each other Therefore if we would be wise we must learne to be wise in Christ for els our counsell will be our owne confusion Secondly hence we learne that if any shall liue in stubbernnesse and rebellion against Christ tâ—â— Lord will so carrie and order those men or that people that in the 〈…〉 shall be the very causes of their owne perdition This we see most pâ—â—â—nâ—â—y in the example of these Iewes for they euermore enuyed Châ—â—st and now they goe on to take counsell against him but God so disposed thereof that euen by this meanes they brought destruction vpon themselues and their countrey This must teach thee to take heed how thou liuest in thy sinnes for if thou doe so the Lord hath many waies to worke thy confusion as thy conscience to condemne thee thy friends to forsake thee the deuill his angels to torment molest thee and his creatures to annoy thee Yea the Lord can leaue all these and mâ—ke thine owne selfe to be the direct meanes of working thine own confusion both in bodie and soule eternally that euen then whâ— thou art most warie and wise in thine owne behalfe and this is the reward of all those that walke on in their euill waies without any true conuersion Hauing consulted in the next place they come to the garden where Christ was to be apprehended And here we are to consider who they were that 〈◊〉 â—â—mely the Scribes and Pharises the high priests and their seruants a â—â—nd of sâ—â—ldiers the seruants of Pontius Pilate the Elders of the Iewes aâ—â—â—hich came with one coÌ„sent to the place where Christ was that they might 〈◊〉 him Where we learne a good lesson that all sorts of wicked men disagreeing among themselues can agree against Christ. The Scribes and Phariseâ—â—ere two contrarie sects and at discord one with another in matters of reâ—â—gioâ—â— and Iudas was one of Christs disciples the Elders differed from theÌ„ all 〈◊〉 souldiours were Gentiles all these were at variance among themselues and could not one brooke another So also we read that Herod and Pontius Pilate were not friends but at the same time when Christ was apprehended Pilate sent him to Herod and they were made friends Now as these wicked men did all conspire against Christ so doe the wicked ones of this world in all countries and kingdomes band themselues against the Church of Christ at this day And howsoeuer such be at discord among themselues yet they doe all ioyne hand in hand to persecute Christ in his members And the reason is plaine because Christ and his religion is as flatte opposite to the corrupt disposition of all men as light is to darknes Againe whereas we see so many sorts of men so amiably consenting to take Christ we may note how all men naturally doe hate and abhorre him and his religion And looke as then it was with Christ so hath it bin with all his members and will be to the ende of the world They are accounted as the offscouring of the world men not worthie to liue on the face of the earth as Christ told his Disciples saying Ye shall be hated of all nations for my names sake Let vs also marke how all these came furnished to apprehend Christ the text saith they came with clubs and staues as vnto a theefe All the whole nation of the Iewes knew right well that Christ was no man of violence but meeke and lowly and yet they came armed to apprehend him as though he had beene some mightie potentate that would not haue beene apprehended but haue resisted them Where we see the propertie of an euill conscience which is to feare where there is no cause at all This causeth some to be afraid of their own shadowes and if they see but a worme peepe out of the ground they are at their wits ende and as Salomon saith The wicked flee when none pursueth them After that they are now come to Christ we are to consider two things in their meeting I. Christs communication with them II. The treason of Iudas Concerning their conference it is said Iesus knowing all things that should come vnto him went forth and said vnto them Whome seeke ye they answered him Iesus of Nazareth Iesus answered I am he Now so soone as he had said I am he the stoutest of them fell to the ground as beeing astonished at the maiestie of his word Where note that the word of God is a word of power The same power was in his word when he raised vp Lazarus for when he had lien in the graue and had entred into some degrees of corruption he did no more but saide Lazarus come forth and he that was dead came forth And hence we may also marke what a wonderfull
might and power is in the word preached for it is the very word of Christ and therefore beeing preached by his ministers lawfully called by him thereunto hath the same power force in it which Christ himselfe shewed when he spake on earth It is the sauour of life vnto life to saue those that heare it or the sauour of death vnto death It is like to a vapour or perfume in the aire which in some mens nostrills is sauorie and pleasant and doth reuiue them and others againe it striketh dead And therefore euery one that either now or heretofore hath heard this word preached shall finde it to be vnto them either a word of power to saue their soules or through their corruption the ministerie of death and condemnation Againe if a word spoken by Christ beeing in a base or low estate be able to ouerthrow his enemies then at the last day when he shall come in his glory and power and maiestie to iudge both the quicke and the dead what power shall his words haue Goe you cursed of my father into euerlasting fire which was prepared for the deuill and his angels The consideration of this that the word of Christ shall euen be as powerfull at that day must be a motiue to euery one of vs to cause vs to come vnto him and while we haue time in these daies of grace and mercy to seeke to be reconciled vnto him for al our sinnes least at the last day we heare that dreadful voice of Christ sounding against vs Goe ye cursed into euerlasting fire c. And thus much for the communication Nowe followeth Iudas his treason wherein we are to obserue these things I. the qualities and conditions of the man that did the treason He was by calling a disciple chosen to be an Apostle which is the chiefest in Ecclesiall callings and among the disciples hee was in some account because he was as it were a steward in Christs familie and bare the bagge but yet he was a traitour and did more against Christ then all the Iewes did For he brought them to the place where they might apprehend him and when they were come did point him out vnto them and deliuered him into their handes nay he gaue them a signe and token saying Whome I kisse he it is take him and lead him away warily Here wee see the cause why Christ called Iudas a Deuil for he said Haue I not chosen you twelue and one of you is a deuill Hee became to be a deuil and a traitour by nourishing a wicked and a couetous heart And heare we are taught that the ministers of the word if they make no conscience of sinne by the iust iudgement of God doe prooue deuils incarnate this example of Iudas doth manifest the same and the reason is plaine for the more knowledge a man hath the more wicked he is if he want grace They are like in this case vnto a man that hath meat and drink enough but no stomacke to digest meate whereby the more he eateth the more it turneth to his hurt This I speake not to deface the callings of ministers but that those which preach Gods worde should not doe it with impenitent hearts liuing in their owne sinnes For it is a fearefull thing for a man to speake vnto the people of the pardon of their sinne and yet himselfe not to apprehend the same by faith A lump of waxe if you keepe it from heate or from the fire it keepes his own forme still but if it be held to the fire it melts and runnes abroad so ministers who by reason of their callings come neere God if they be lumpes of iniquitie and liue in their sinnes they shall finde that the corruptions of their hearts will melt abroad as waxe at the fire And therfore euery one that is designed to this calling must first purge himselfe of his owne sinnes or els Gods iudgements shal fal vpon him as they did on Iudas that betraied Christ. Secondly let vs consider what mooued Iudas to betray his master namely the desire of wealth and gaine and this couetousnes which is an insatiable desire of money is the roote of all sinne not that all sinnes came of it but because where it is there all other sinnes are preserued do get strength The desire of thirtie peeces of siluer caused Iudas to make an agreement with the Iewes to betray his master Some man will happely say that this practise of Iudas was very straunge and that no man now liuing would doe the like for any money Ans. Iudas is dead indeede but his practise is yet aliue for in the high and waightie calling of the ministerie he that hath charge of soules and either can not teach and feede his flocke or else will not though he betray not Christ in his own person yet he betraies the members of Christ vnto the deuil If a nourâ—e should take a mans childe to bring vp and yet seldome or neuer giue it milke in so much that the childe pineth away for very hunger is not shee the verie cause of the death of it yes verely And so it is with him that taketh vpon him the charge of Gods people and neuer feedes them with the milk of gods word or else so seldom that their soules do famish he is the murtherer of them and hath betraied them into the hands of their enemie and shall be condemned for them as a traitour vnto God vnlesse he repent Besides those that liue by traffique in buying and selling make gaine by lying swearing and breaking the Lords Sabboth they are also very Iudasses for they choppe away their soules with the deuill for a little gaine And more lamentable is their case because it is hard to finde one of an hundred in the world that makes conscience of a lie or of any badde dealing if any gaine at all may come thereby Men vse to crie out on Iudas for betraying Christ and they doe well yet they themselues for a little worldly pelfe betray their owne soules If such would not be counted Iudasses they must leaue off to sin keep a good conscience in gods worship the works of their callings Thirdly let vs consider what course Iudas tooke in betraying Christ hee was very submisse saying Haile Master and kissed him Why did he so Herein he played the most palpable hypocrite for hauing gotten a peece of money he thought that neither Christ nor any of his fellowe disciples should haue knowne of it though Christ knewe it well enough and therefore hee comes in this maner to him thinking that Christ would haue conueyed himselfe from amongst them all at the verie pinch as he had done sometimes before And this practise also of Iudas is common in the world Iudas an enemie vnto Christs speakes him faire and salutes him and so doe most of our secure and drowsie protestantes in England they salute Christ both by hearing
a thing is done God not regarding it we bring in an idol of our owne braines and stablish the idle-god of the Epicures But it is obiected to the contrarie that if God any way decreed and willed the fall of Adam then he was the author of sinne which once to say is blasphemie Ans. The argument followes not There be three actions in the will of God one whereby he doth absolutely will any thing and delight in it and of all such things God himselfe is the author The second is wholly or absolutely to Nill a thing and all things thus nilled can not possibly come to passe or haue the least beeing in nature There is also a third action which comes as a meane betweene the two former which is remissely or in part both to nill and will a thing wherby though God approoue not euill as it is euill and therefore doth it not yet he willeth the permitting of it to be done by others or the being of it because in respect of God that decreeth the permitting of euill it is good that there should be euill And on this manner and no otherwise God willed the fall of Adam and therefore in the reason of any indifferent man though he decreed the fall yet shall he be free from the blame thereof which lies wholly vpon the doer these two caueats alwaies remembred first that God by his will did not constraine or force the will of Adam to sinne or infuse into it any corruption and that therefore he sinned willingly and freely onely by the necessitie of immutabilitie and not by the necessitie of coaction secondly that God willed the fall for a most worthie ende which was to lay downe a way tending to the manifestation both of iustice and mercie Againe it is alleadged that if God willed Adams fall then his will is flat contrarie to it selfe because he wills that which he had by expresse commandement forbidden Answ. Indeede if God should both will and forbid one and the same thing in one and the same respect there should be a contradiction in Gods will but that God doth not He forbad Adams fall as it was sinne for so in euery commandement sinne as it is sinne is condemned and punished and yet because it was in a new respect a meanes of manifesting his glorie who is able to bring light out of darknesse therefore he willingly decreed the permission of it Incest as it is sinne it is condemned in the seuenth commandement and punished with death yet as incest was a punishment of Dauids adulterie God is said to take his wiues and to giue them to his sonne Absolom Some againe as it appeares by their writings feare to ascribe vnto God so much as a permission of Adams fall but no doubt they are deceiued For if these rules be true that God is omnipotent that he works all things that are by the counsell of his will and gouernes them that he hath care and regard ouer man that nothing is hid from him that he is vnchangeable there must needes be permission of euill If the deuill could not enter so much as into an heard of swine without Christs permission shall we thinke that he could compasse the fall and ouerthrow of man without a permission Indeede to permit is not to hinder euill when one may and with men it is a fault but not with God because he is not bound to hinder the euill which he permits The second fault is that they make the Prescience of mans faith and vnbeleefe to be the impulsiue cause of Gods decree For they say that God eternally decrees to saue or refuse men because he did foresee that they would beleeue or not beleeue But indeede it is a manifest vntruth Among the causes of all things that are there is an order set downe by God himselfe in which order some causes are highest some lowest some in the midst Now the highest cause of all is that which ouerrules all and is ouerruled of none and that is Gods will beyond which there can be no higher cause for God is placed aboue all and subiect to none And this very will of his is the cause of all things that haue beeing for we must not imagine that a thing first of all existeth and then afterward is willed of God but first of all God wills a thing and then afterward it comes to haue a beeing Now to say that foreseene faith or vnbeleefe are the moouing causes whereby God was induced to ordaine men either to saluation or to iust damnation is to vndoe this diuine order of causes and to displace the linkes in that Gods will is made a secondarie or middle cause subordinate to other causes placed aboue it yea this is to make the will of God to depend vpon the qualitie and condition of the creature whereas contrariwise all things depend vpon Gods will Againe Paul saith that God hath opened the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure which he had purposed to himselfe whereby he makes a distinction betweene the creature and the Creatour Men when they purpose the doing of any thing borrow reasons of their purposes and wills out of themselues from thâ— things to be done because mans bare will is no sufficient cause to warrant the doing of this or that in this or that manner vnlesse there be iust reason But Gods will is a simple and absolute rule of righteousnesse and a thing is good so farre forth as God wills it Therefore there is no cause why he should goe forth of himselfe for externall inducements and reasons of his eternall counsell his very will in himselfe is a sufficient reason of all his purposes and decrees And hereupon Paul saith that Gods purpose was in himselfe to shew that there is no dependance of his will vpon the creature and that in ordering and disposing of his decrees he had no reference or respectiue consideration of the qualities and workes of men Thirdly by this doctrine there is fastened vpon God want of wisdome who is wisdome it selfe and that is very absurd A simple man that hath in him but a sparke of the wisdome of God first of all intends with himselfe the ende and euent of the businesse to be done and then afterward the means whereby the ende is accomplished but in this platforme God is brought in in the first place to foresee and consider with himselfe the meanes which tende to the ende namely faith and vnbeleefe of men and then afterward to determine with himselfe what shall be the ende and finall condition of euery man either in life or death as if a man should purpose with himselfe to build an house without any consideration of the ende why and afterward conceiue with himselfe the particular vses to which he will applie it Fourthly hence it followeth that faith shall not onely be an instrument but also an efficient cause in the acte of
into one whole Mystical bodie Now that we may the better cōceiue the nature of it sundrie questions are to be mooued The first what kinde of coniunction this is Ans. In the scripture we meete with three kinde of coniunctions The first is coniunction in nature when sundrie things are coupled by one and the same nature As the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost being three distinct subsistances are all one and therefore ioyned in one godhead or diuine nature Nowe Christ and the beleeuer are not ioyned in nature for thē they twaine should haue one bodie and soule The second coniunction is in person when things in nature different so concurre togither that they make but one person as the bodie and soule make one man and the godhead of the sonne with his manhood make but one Christ in whome there is an vnion of distinct natures with vnity of person Nowe Christ and a Christian are not ioyned in person for Christ is one person Peter a second and Paul a third distinct from thē both so many men as there bee so many seuerall persons The third coniunction is in spirit and this is the coniunction meant in this place whereby Christ and his Church are ioyned togither for the verie same spirit of God that dwelleth in the manhood of Christ and filleth it with all graces aboue measure is deriued thence and dwelleth in all the true members of the Church and filleth them with the like graces in measure and therefore S. Iohn saith Hereby wee knowe that we dwell in him and he in vs because he hath giuen vs of his spirit Hence it followes that the bond of this coniunction is one and the same spirit descending from Christ the head to all his members creating also in them the instrument of faith whereby they apprehend Christ and make him their owne The second is what are the things vnited Ans. Not the bodie of the beleeuer to the bodie of Christ or the soule to his soule but the whole person of the man to the whole person of Christ yet in this order we are first of al immediately ioyned to the manhood of Christ by the manhood to the godhead The third question is what is the manner of this coniunction Answ. Wee must not thinke that Christ and his Church are ioyned by imagination as the minde of man and the thing whereof he thinkes or by consent of heart as one friende is ioyned with another and as the Iewes conuerted were all of one heart and soule or by any abode in one place or by touching as sea and lande are both ioyned togither and make one globe or by any composition or cōmixtion of substances as when many ingredients are put togither to make one medicine But this coniunction is altogither spirituall as the former Giuing was and incomprehensible to mans reason and therefore wee must rather labour to feele it by experience in the heart then to conceiue it in the braine Yet neuerthelesse it shall not be amisse to consider a resemblance of it in this comparison Suppose a man hauing the parts of his bodie disioyned farre asunder his head lying in Italy one arme in Germanie the other in Spaine and his leggs with vs in England suppose further all these parts or quarters haue all one soule extending it selfe vnto them all and quickening each of them seuerally as though they were neerely ioyned togither and though the parts be seuered many hundred miles asunder yet the distance of place doth not hinder the coniunction considering one and the same soule doth inlarge it selfe and giue life vnto them all In the same manner the head of the Mysticall bodie Christ our Sauiour is nowe in heauen and some of his members in heauen with him and some in earth and of these some in England some in Germanie some in Italy some in Spaine distant many thousand miles asunder and the spirit of God is as it were the soule of this bodie which giueth spirituall life to all the members distance of place doth not hinder this coniunction because the holy Ghost which linketh all the partes togither is infinite The benefits which we receiue by this Mysticall vnion are manifold For it is the ground of the conueiance of all grace The first is that by means hereof euery Christian as he is a Christian or a man regenerate hath his beginning and being in Christ howesoeuer as he is a man hee hath his beeing and subsisting in himselfe as Paul saith Ye are of God in Christ. And We are members of his bodie of his flesh and of his bones Howe will some say can this be After this manner The comparison is taken from our first parents Eue was made of a rib taken out of Adams side he beeing cast into a slumber this beeing done Adam awaked and said This nowe is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh Christ was nailed on the crosse and his most pretious blood was shed and out of it arise and spring all true Christians that is out of the merit of Christs death passion whereby they become newe creatures Secondly euery one that beleeueth in Christ by reason of this vnion hath an vnspeakable prerogatiue for hereby he is first vnited to Christ and by reason thereof is also ioyned to the whole trinitie the father the sonne and the holy Ghost and shall haue eternall fellowship with them Thirdly sundrie men specially Papists deride the doctrine of iustification by imputed righteousnes thinking it as absurde that a man should be iust by that righteousnesse which is inherent in the person of Christ as if we should say that one man may liue by the soule of another or be learned by the learning of another But here we may see that it hath sufficient foundation For there is a most neere and strait vnion betweene Christ and all that beleeue in him and in this vnion Christ with all his benefits according to the tenour of the couenant of grace is made ours really therfore we may stande iust before God by his righteousnesse it beeing indeede his because it is in him as in a subiect yet so as it is also ours because it is giuen vnto vs of God Nowe there is no such vnion betweene man and man and for that cause one man can not liue by the soule of another or be learned by the learning of another Fourthly frō this fountaine springes our sanctificatiō wherby we die to sin and are renued in righteousnes and holines Wormes flies that haue lien dead al winter if they be laid in the sunne in the spring time begin to reuiue by vertue thereof euen so whē we are vnited to Christ are as it were laid in the beames of this blessed sonne of righteousnes vertue is deriued thence which warmeth our benummed hearts dead in sinne and reuiueth vs to newnes of life whereby we begin to affect and like good things and put in practise all
as it were swallowed vp with a sea of his loue and wholly rauished therewith for which cause as farre as creatures can they shall loue him againe Againe the loue of a thing is according to the knowledge thereof but in this life God is knowne of man onely in part and therefore is loued onely but in part but after this life when the Elect shall knowe God fully they shall loue him without measure in this respect loue hath a prerogatiue aboue faith or hope howesoeuer in some respects againe they goe beyond loue The fourth prerogatiue is that the Saints of God keepe a perpetuall Sabbath in heauen In this life it is kept but euery seuenth daie and when it is best of all sanctified it is done but in part but in heauen euery day is a Sabbath as the Lord saith by the Prophet Esay From moneth to moneth and from Sabbath to Sabbath all flesh shall come and worship before me therefore the life to come shall be spent in the perpetuall seruice of God Fifthly the bodies of the elect after this life in the kingdome of heauen shal be like the glorious bodie of Christ so Paul saith Christ Iesus our Lord shall chaÌ„ge our vile bodies that they may be like his glorious bodie Now the resemblaÌ„ce betweene Christs bodie and ours standeth in these things as Christs bodie is incorruptible so shall our bodies be void of all corruption as Christs bodie is immortal so ours in the kingdom of heauen shal neuer die as Christs bodie is spirituall so shall ours be made spirituall as the Apostle saith It is sowen a naturall bodie it is raised a spirituall bodie not because the bodie shall be changed into a spirit for it shall remaine the same in substance and that for euer but because it shall be preserued by a spirituall and diuine manner For in this life it is preserued by meate drinke cloathing sleepe physicke rest and diet but afterwarde without all these meanes the life of the bodie shall be continued and bodie and soule keepe togither by the immediate power of Gods spirit for euer and euer Thus the bodie of Christ is nowe preserued in heauen and so shall the bodies of all the elect be after the day of iudgement Furthermore as Christs bodie is nowe a shining bodie as doth appeare by his transfiguration in the mount so in all likelihood after the resurrection the bodies of the elect shall be shining and bright alwaies remaining the same for substance Lastly as Christs bodie after it rose againe from the graue had this propertie of agilitie beside swiftnes to passe from the earth to the third heauen beeing in distance many thousand miles froÌ„ vs and that without violence so shall the bodies of the Saints For beeing glorified they shall be able as well to ascend vpwarde as to goe downewarde and to mooue without violence and that very swiftly The sixth and last prerogatiue is an vnspeakable and eternall ioy â—â— Dauid saith In thy presence is fulnesse of ioy at thy right hand there are pâ—â—â—ares for euermore It is said that when Salomon was crowned king the people reioiced exceedingly If there were such great ioy at his coronation whiâ—h was but an earthly prince what ioy then shall there be when the Elect shall see the true Salomon crowned with glorie in the kingdome of heauen It is said that the wise men which came from the East to worship Christ when they sawe the starre standing ouer the place where the babe was were exceedingly glad howe much more shall the elect reioice when they shall see Christ not lying in a manger but crowned with immortall glorie in the kingdome of heauen Wherefore this ioy of the elect after this life is most wonderfull and cannot be vttered The propertie of life eternall is to be an inheritance which God bestoweth on them which are made his sonnes in Christ who is the only begotten sonne of the father Hence it followes necessarily that in the Scriptures it is called a reward not because it is deserued by our workes as the Church of Rome erroniously teacheth but for two other causes First because life eternall is due to all that beleeue by vertue of Christs merit For his righteousnesse is made ours by imputation so conâ—equently the merit thereof is also ours and by it all personall merits in our selues vtterly excluded we deserue or merit eternall happines as a reward which neuerthelesse in respect of our selues is the free and meere gift of God The second is because there is a resemblance betweene eternall life and a reward For as a reward is giuen to a workeman after his worke is done so euerlasting life is giuen vnto men after the trauailes and miseries of this life are ended The degrees of life are three The first is in this life when men beeing iustified and sanctified haue peace with God Many imagine that there is no eternall life till after death but they are deceiued for it beginnes in this world as our Sauiour Christ testifieth saying Verily verily I say vnto you he that heareth my wordes and beleeueth him that sent me hath euerlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but hath passed from death to life This being so we are hence to learne a good lesson Considering we looke for life euerlasting after this life we must not deceiue our selues lingring and deferring the time till the last gaspe but we must lay the foundation of life eternall in our selues in this world and haue the earnest thereof laide vp in our hearts against the day of death But how is that done we must repent vs heartily of all our sinnes and seeke to be assured in conscience that God the father of Christ is our father God the sonne our redeemer and God the holy Ghost our comforter For as Christ saith this is life eternall to know thee the onely God and whome thou hast sent Iesus Christ. And we must goe further yet endeauouring to say with Paul that we liue not but that Christ liueth in vs which when we can say we haue in vs the very seede of eternall life The second degree is in the ende of this life when the bodie freed from all diseases paines and miseries is laid to rest in the earth and the soule is receiued into heauen The third is after the day of iudgement when bodie and soule reunited shall both be aduanced to eternall glorie Againe in this third degree of life there be in all likelihood sundrie degrees of glory Daniel speaking of the estate of the elect after this life saith They that be wise shall shine as the brightnesse of the firmament and they that turne many to righteousnes shall shine as the starres for euermore Now we know there is difference betweene the brightnesse of the firmament and the brightnesse of the starres Againe there be degrees of torments in hell as appeares by the saying
set vp his Sacrament as a signe vpon a high hill whence it may be seene on euery side farre and neere to call againe them that be runne away And with this Sacrament he as it were clocketh to them as a hen doth for her chickens to gather them vnder the wings of his mercy and hath commaunded his Sacrament to be had iâ—â— continuall vse to put vs in minde of his continuall mercie laid vp for vs in Christ blood and to witneâ—â—e and teâ—tifie it vnto them and to be the seale thereof For the Sacrament doth much more liuely print the faith and make it sinke downe into the heart then doe bare wordes onely Now when the words of the testament and promises are spoken ouer the bread this my bodie that was broken for you this is my bloode that was shed for you they confirme the faith but much more when the Saâ—rament is seene with the eies and the bread broken the wine powred out looked on yet more when I taste it smell it As you see when a man maketh a promise vnto another with light words betweene themselues and so they departed he to whome the promise is made beginneth to doubt whether the other spake earnestly or mocked and doubteth whether he will remmber his promise to abide by it or no. But when any man speaketh with aduisemeÌ„t the words are more credible if he sweare it confirmeth the thing more and yet the more if he strike hands if he giue earnest if hee call record if he giue hand writing seale it so is he the more and more beleeued for the heart gathereth lo he spake with aduisement deliberation and good sadnesse he clapped hands called record and put to his hand and seale the man cannot be so faint without the feare of God as to denie all this shame shall make him abide his promise though hee were such a man as I could not compell him if hee would denie it And thus we dispute god sent his sonne in our nature made him feele our infirmities and named his name Iesus that is a Sauiour because he should saue his people from their sinnes and after his death he sent his Apostles to preach these glad tydings to thrust them in at the eares of vs set vp a Sacrament of them to testifie them and to seale them and to thrust them in not at the eares onely by rehearsing the promises of the testament ouer its neither at our eies only in beholding it but beat them in through our feeling tasting and smelling also and to be repeated daiely and to be ministred to vs. He would not thinke we make halfe so much a do with vs if he loued vs not and would not haue his Sacrament to be a witnesse and testimonie betweene him and vs to confirme the faith of his promises that wee should not doubt in them when we looke on the seales of his obligations wherewith he hath bouÌ„d himselfe and this to keepe the promises and couenants better in mind and to make them the more deepely to sinke into our hearts and bee more earnestly regarded Timoth. Considering that this which you say is too plaine great shame it is that there is such neglect of the Sacrament as there is and that it is so seldome vsed but surely want of faith and the securitie which ouerspreadeth this our countrie is the cause of it the Lord if it be his will remooue the same Now let me heare a little how you lead your life and haue your conuersation among men Euseb. I haue my conuersation among men as sincere as I can in righteousnes and holines which is after Gods commandements our Sauiour saith Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good workes and glorifie your father which is in heauen Timoth. It is but a dim light which we can carrie before men and small are our good workes and to be esteemed of no value if wee were preachers or rich men or noble men then we might saue soules giue good counsell helpe many by your almes but you and I are poore men of base birth and of lowe degree how can we then doe any good workes Euseb. As touching good workes by that measure of knowledge that god hath giuen me I thinke that all workes are good which are done according to the obedience of Gods law in faith and with thanksgiuing to God and with a minde desirous of his glorie alone and I thinke that I or any man els in doing them please God whatsoeuer I doe within the lawe of God as when I make water And trust me if either wind or water were stopped I should feele what a pretious thing it were to doe either of both and what thankes ought to bee giuen God therefore Moreouer I put no difference betweene workes but whatsoeuer commeth into my hands that I doe as time place and occasion giueth and according to my degree For as touching to please God there is no worke better then other God looketh not first on my workes as the worlde doth or as though he had neede of them but God looketh first on my heart what faith I haue to his word how I beleeue him trust him and howe I loue him for his mercie that he hath shewed to me hee looketh with what heart I worke and not what I worke how I accept the degree he hath put me in not of what degree I am Let vs take example You are a minister and preach the word I am a kitchin boy and wash my masters dishes Of the Ministery harke what the Apostle saith If I preach I haue naught to reioice in for necessity is put vpon me If I preach not the gospel as who should say God hath made me so woe is to me if I preach not If I do it willingly saith he then I haue my reward that is then I am sure that Gods spirit is in me and that I am elect to eternall life If I doe it against my will the office is committed to me that is I doe it not of loue to God but to get a liuing thereby and for a worldly purpose and had rather otherwise liue then doe I that office which God hath put vpon me but doe not please God So then if you preached not or in preaching had not your heart aright you minisâ—er the office and they that haue the spirit of God heare his word yea though it were spoken by an Asse and the woe belongeth to you but and if you preach willingly with a true heart and conscience to God then you shall feele the earnest of eternal life and the working of the spirit of God in you and your preaching is a good worke in you Now I that minister in the kitchin and am but a kitchin boy receiue all things at the hand of God know that God hath put me in such an office submit my selfe to his wil and serue my master not as a
redemption you must waite for it till after this life you would bee kissed with the kisses of Christs mouth but here in this worlde you must bee content if you may with Marie Magdelen kisse his feete For the perfection of a Christian mans life standes in the feeling and confession of his imperfections And as Ambrose saith obedience due to God standes more in the affection then in the worke Christian. But why will God haue those whome hee hath sanctified labour still vnder their infirmities Minister The causes are diuers First hereby he teacheth his seruants to see in what great neede they stand of the righteousnes of Christ that they may more carefully seeke after it Secondly he subdueth the pride of mens heartes and humbleth them by counteruailing the graces which they haue receiued with the like measure of infirmities Thirdly by this meanes the godly are exercised in a continuall fight against sinne and are daily occupied in purifying themselues Christian. But to goe on forward in this matter there is another cause that makes me feare least I haue no true repentance Minister What is that Christian. I oftentimes find my selfe like a very timberlog voide of all grace and goodnes froward and rebellious to any good worke so that Iâ— feare least Christ haue quite forsaken me Minist As it is in the strait seas the water ebs and flowes so is it in the godly in them as long as they liue in this worlde according to their owne feeling there is an accesse recesse of the spirit Otherwhiles they be troubled with deadnes and dulnes of heart as Dauid was who praied to the Lord to quickeâ— him according to his louing kindnes that he may keepe the testimonies of his mouth And in another place he saith that Gods promises quickened him Which could not be vnles he had beene troubled with great dulnes of heart Againe sometimes the spirit of God quite withdraweth is selfe to their feeling as it was in Dauid In the day of my trouble saith he I sought the Lord and my soule refused comfort I did think vpon god and was troubled I praied and my spirit was ful of anguish Againe Will the Lord absent himselfe for euer and will he shewe no more fauour hath God forgotten to be mercifull c. The Church in the Canticles complaineth of this In my bed I sought him by night whome my soule loued I sought him but I found him not And againe My wellbeloued put in his hand by the hole of the doore and my heart was affectioned towards him I rose vp to open to my welbeloued and my hands did drop down mirrhe my fingers pure mirrhe vpon the handles of the barre I opened to my welbeloued but my welbeloued was gone and past mine heart was gone when he did speake I â—ought him but I could not finde him I called but he answered me not Contrariwise God at some other times sheds abroad his loue most aboundantly in the hearts of the faithfull and Christ lieth betweene the breasts of his Church as a posie of myrrhe giuing a strong smell Christian. But how can he bee a Christian that feeles no grace nor goodnes in himselfe Minister The child which as yet can vse no reason is for all that a reasonable creature and the man in a swowne feeles no power of life and yet hee is not dead The Christian man hath many quames come ouer his heart and he fals into many a swown that none almost would looke for any more of the life of Christ in him yet for all that he may bee a true Christian. This was the state of Peter when he denied our Sauiour Christ with cursing and banning his faith onely fainted for a time it failed not Christian. I haue now opened vnto you the chiefe things that troubled me and your comfortable answers haue much refreshed my troubled minde The God of all mercie and consolation requite you accordingly Minister I haue spoken that which God out of his holy word hath opened vnto me if you find any helpe thereby giue God the praise therfore carrie this with you for euer that by many afflictions both in the bodie and the minde you must enter into the kingdome of heauen Raw flesh is noysome to the stomack is no good nourishment before it be â—odden and vnmortified men and womeÌ„ be no creatures fit for God and therefore they are to be soaked and boyled in afflictions that the fulsomnes and rankenes of their corruption may be delayed and that they may haue in them some relish acceptable vnto God And to conclude for the auoiding of all these temptations vse this sweete praier following which that godly Saint Master Bradford made Oh Lord God and deere father what shall I say that feele all things to bee in manner with me as in the wicked Blind is my minde crooked is my will peruerse concupisceÌ„ce is in me as a spring of stinking puddle O how faint is faith in me how little is my loue to thee or thy people how great is my selfe loue how hard is my heart by reason whereof I am mooued to doubt of thy goodnesse towards me whether thou art my mercifull father and whether I be thy child or no indeed worthily might I doubt if that the hauing of these were the cause not the fruit rather of thy children The cause why thou art my father is thy merciful goodnesâ— grace trueth in Christ Iesus which cannot but remaine for euer In respect whereof thou hast borne me this good wil to bring me into thy Church by baptisme and to accept me into the number of thy children that I might be holy faithfull obedient and innocent and to call me diuers times by the ministerie of thy word into thy kingdome besides the innumerable other benefits alwaies hitherto powred vpon me All which thou hast done of this thy good will which thou of thine owne mercie barest to me in Christ before the world was made The which thing as thou requirest straightly that I should beleeue without doubting so wouldest thou that I in all my needs should come vnto thee as to a father make my mone without mistrust of beeing heard in thy good time as most shall make to my comfort Loe therefore to thee deare father I come through thy sonne our Lord our Mediatour and Aduocate Iesus Christ who sitteth on thy right hand making intercession for me I pray thee of thy great goodnes and mercie in Christ to be mercifull to me a sinner that I may indeed feele thy sweet mercie as thy child the time oh deare father I appoint not but I pray thee that I may with hope still expect and looke for thy helpe I hope that as for a little while thou hast left me so thou wilt come and visit me and that in thy great mercie whereof I haue great neede by reason of my great miserie Thou
kept vncerten till the time to come are thrust into the text by head shoulders and Hierome hath them not Secondly I answere that the holy Ghost doth not deny simplie the knowledge of gods loue or hatred as though there could be no certaine assurance of it in this life If wee vnderstand the wordes thus then the argument of the holy Ghost must be framed on this manner If loue or hatred were to bee knowne then it must be knowne by the outward blessings of God but it cannot be knowne by the outward blessings of God for all things come alike to all therefore loue and hatred cannot be known The proposition is false For loue may bee knowne other waies then by outward benefits and therefore the reason is not meete to be ascribed to the spirit of trueth Wherefore the true and proper sense of the wordes is that loue or hatred can not be iudged or discerned by outward blessings of God Saint Bernard speakes of this text on this manner that no man knowes loue or hatred namely by him yet that God giues most certaine testimonies thereof to men vpon earth And serm 5. de Dediâ— his words are these Who knowes if he be worthie loue or hatred who knowes the mind of the Lord Here both faith and truth must needes helpe vs that that which is hidden in the heart of the father may be reuealed vnto vs by the spirit and his spirit giuing testimony perswades our spirit that we are the sonnes of God and this perswasion is caused by his calling and iustifying vs freely by faith And S. Hierome though commonly abused to the contrarie saith no more but that men cannot knowe loue or hatred by the present afflictions which they suffer because they know not whether they suffer them for triall or punishment Obiect 3.1 Cor. 4. I iudge not my selfe I know nothing by my selfe Here Paul as not being priuie to his owne estate reâ—useth to giue any iudgement of his righteousnes Ans. It is manifest by the wordes of this epistle that certaine in Corinth boldly more then wisely censured the Apostles ministerie and withall disgraced it in respect of the ministerie of other teachers Therefore Paul in this chapter goes about to make an Apologie for himselfe speaking nothing of his owne person and the estate thereof before God but onely of his ministerie and the excellency thereof And this is the iudgement of Theodoret Aquinas Lira vpon this text And when he saith I iudge not my selfe his meaning is I take not vpon me to iudge of what value and price my ministerie is before God in respect of the ministerie of this or that man but I leaue al to God Here then Paul refuseth onely to giue iudgement of the excellencie of his owne ministerie and in other causes he refuseth not to iudge himselfe as when he said I haue fought a good fight I haue kept the saith hence sorth is laid vp for me the crowne of righteousnesse which the Lord the righteous iudge shal giue me 2. Tim. 4.8 And Chrysostome on this place saith that Paul refused to iudge himselfe not simply but onely for this ende that he might restraine others and teach them modestie And where Paul saith I knowe nothing by my selfe the speech is not generall but must bee vnderstood of the negligences and offences in the compasse of his ministerie For hee was priuie to himselfe that in simplicitie and godly purenes hee had his conuersation in the worlde 2. Cor. 1.12 and he knew this by himselfe that nothing should seuer him froÌ„ the loue of God in Christ. Rom. 8.38 Obiect 4. That we may be iustified there is somewhat required in vs namely faith and repentnnce and where these are wanting a man cannot be iustified Now no man can be certen by the certaintie of faith that he repents of his sinnes with all his heart and that he hath such a faith as God requires at our hands considering there is no testimonie in the word of our faith and repentance in particular Therefore no man can be certaine by certaintie of faith that his sinnes are pardoned Ans. It is not necessarie that any man should bee certaine by faith of his faith repentance because faith is only of such things as are present whereas faith and repentance are truely preâ—ent in all that truely beleeue and repent it shall be sufficient if a man may any way be vnfallibly certaine that he hath them And though some men falsly perswade themselues that they beleeue yet he that hath true faith indeede knowes that he hath true faith euen as certainly as he that vnderstands that hee vnderstands Paul saith to the Corinthians Prooue your selues whether yee bee in the faith or no 2.13.5 hereby giuing them to vnderstand that all which beleeue haue the spirit of discerning to know certainely that they doe beleeue Againe he saith of himselfe 2. Tim. 1.12 I knowe whome I haue beleeued And S. Iohn saith 1. epist. 3. 24. By this we knowe that he dwels in vs by the spirit which he hath giuen vs making no question of it but that he which hath the spirit knowes that hee hath the same And testimonies of men are not wanting in this case August Euery one seeth faith to be in his owne heart if hee beleeue if not he seeth it to be wanting Againe A beleeuer seeth his owne faith by which hee answereth that hee beleeueth without doubt and Hee which loueth his brother more knoweth the loue whereby he loueth then his brother whome hee loueth Againe whereas it is said that hauing faith yet we know not whether it be sufficient or no I answer that faith beeing without hypocrisie is sufficient to saluation though it be vnperfect God more respects the trueth of our faith then the perfection thereof And as the hand of the child or of the palsie man though it be feeble is able to reach out it selfe and receiue an almes of a Prince so the faith that is but weake is able to apprehend and receiue Christ with all his benefits Obiect 5. Prov. 28. Blessed is the man that feareth alwaies Phil. 2. Worke your saluation with feare and trembling Ans. There is threefold feare one of nature the second of grace the third of distrust Feare of nature is that wherby the nature of man is troubled with any thing that is hurtfull vnto it and therefore auoideth it Feare of grace is that excellent gift which is called the beginning of wisdome and it is a certaine awe or reuerence vnto God in whose presence we doe whatsoeuer wee doe Feare of distrust is when men tremble at the iudgements of God for their sinnes because they haue no hope of mercie Of these three the first was good by creation therefore it was in our Sauiour Christ but since the fall it is defectiue The third is a vice called slauish feare And the second is that which is commanded in these and
and alteration For he which hath a good coÌ„science hath also care to keepe good conscience in all things V. Presumption is peremptorie without doubting whereas the testimonie of conscience is mingled with manifold doubtings Mark 9.24 Luk. 17. 5. yea otherwhiles ouercharged with them Psal. 77.7,8 VI. Presumption will giue a man the slip in the time of sickenes and in the houre of death and the testimonie of good conscience stickes by him to the ende and euen makes him say Lord remember nowe â—owe I haue walked before thee in trueth and haue done that which is acceptable in thy sight Isa. 38.2 The duties of conscience regenerate are two in speciall manner to giue testimonie and to excuse The speciall thing of which conscience giues testimonie is that we are the children of God predestinate to life euerlasting And that appeares by these reasons I. Rom. 8.16 The spirit of God witnesseth togither with our spirit that we are the sonnes of God Now the spirit of man here mentioned is the minde or conscience renewed and sanctified To this purpose saith Iohn He that beleeueth hath a witnesse in himselfe 1. Ioh. 5.10 II. That which Gods spirit doth testifie to the conscience the conscience can againe testifie to vs but Gods spirit doth testifie to the conscience of a man regenerate that he is the childe of God 1. Cor. 2.12 Therefore the conscience also doeth the same III. He that is iustified hath peace of conscience Rom. 5.1 Nowe there can bee no peace in conscience till conscience tel the man which is iustified that he is indeed iustified IV. That which the conscience may know certenly it may testifie but conscience may know certenly without reuelation the mans election and adoption as I haue before prooued therefore it is able to giue testimonie of these Againe the regenerate conscience giueth testimonie of a certaine kinde of righteousnesse beeing an vnseparable companion thereof and for this cause it is called of some the righteousnesse of a good conscience Now this righteousnes is nothing els but an vnfained earnest and constant purpose with endeauour answerable thereto not to sinne in any thing but in all things whatsoeuer to please God and doe his will Hebr. 13.18 Pray for vs for wee are assured that we haue good conscience in all things desiring to liue honestly 2. Cor. 1.12 Our reioycing is this the testimonie of our conscience that in simplicitie and godly purenesse and not in fleshly wisdome wee haue had our conuersation in the worlde 1. Cor. 4.4 I knowe nothing by my selfe Esa. 38.2 Lord remember now howe I haue walked before thee with an vpright heart and haue done that which is acceptable in thy sight I adde this clause in all things because that obedience which is the signe or fruit of good conscience of which also it giues testimonie is generall shewing it selfe in all and euery commandement of God Philosophers haue said that Iustice is vniuersall because he which hath it hath all vertues But it is more truely said of this Christian righteousnes or new obedience that it is vniuersall and that he which can performe true obedience in one commandement can doe the same in all Act. 23.1 Men and brethren I haue in all good conscience serued God till this day Psal. 119.6 Then shall I not bee confounded when I shall haue respect to all thy commandements Act. 24.16 In the meane season I endeaâ—our my selfe or take paines to haue a conscience without offence towards God and towards men This shewes that there is a great number of men professing the Gospell that want good conscience For though they shew themselues very forward and willing to obey God in many things yet in some one thing or other they vse to follow the swinge of their owne wills Many are diligent to frequent the place of Gods worship to heare the word preached with liking to receiue the Sacraments at times appointed and to approoue of any good thing all this is very commendable yet these men often when they depart home from the congregation say in effect on this manner Religion stay thou here at the Church doore till the next Sabbath For if we looke into their priuate conuersations the gouernment of their families or their dealings in their particular callings we shall with griefe see much disorder and little conscience It is a common practise with sicke men when they make their wills on their death beds in the very first place to commend their bodies to the graue and their soules to God that gaue them in hope of a better resurrection and all this is well done but afterward they bequeath their goods gotten by fraud oppression and forged cauillation to their owne friends and children without making any recompence or satisfaction But alas this should not be so for obedience that goes with good conscience must be performed to all Gods commandements without exception and if it be done but to some alone it is but counterfait obedience and he that is guiltie in one is guiltie in all As regenerate conscience giues testimonie of our new obedience so it doth also by certaine sweete motions stirre men forward to performe the same Psal. 16.7 My reynes that is the minde and conscience inlightened by the spirit of God teach me in the night season Esai 30.22 And thine eares shall heare a word behind thee saying This is the way walke ye in it when thou turnest to the right hand and when thou turnest to the left Now this word is not onely the voice of Pastours and teachers in the open ministerie but also the voice of renewed conscience inwardly by many secret cogitations snibbing them that are about to sinne A Christian man is not onely a priest and a prophet but also a spirituall king euen in this life and the Lord in mercie hath vouchsafed him this honour that his conscience renewed within him shall be his solliciter to put him in minde of all his affaires and duties which he is to performe to God yea it is the controller to see all things kept in order in the heart which is the temple and habitation of the holy Ghost The second office of conscience regenerate is to excuse that is to cleare and defend a man euen before God against all his enemies both bodily ghostly Psal. 7.8 Iudge thou me O Lord according to my righteousnes and according to mine innocencie in me Againe 26.1,2 Iudge me O Lord for I haue walked in mine innocencie c. Prooue me O Lord and trie me examine my reynes and my heart That the conscience can doe this it specially appeares in the conflict and combat made by it against the deuill on this manner The deuill beginnes and disputes thus Thou O wretched man art a most grieuous sinner therefore thou art but a damned wretch The conscience answereth and saith I know that Christ hath made a satisfaction for my sinnes and freed me from daÌ„nation The deuill replieth againe
waies first not as causes thereof either conuersant adiuvant or procreant but onely as consequents of faith in that they are inseparable companions and fruits of that faith which is indeede necessarie to saluation Secondly they are as necessarie as markes in a way and as the way it selfe directing vs vnto eternall life III. We hold and beleeue that the righteous man is in some sort iustified by works for so the holy Ghost speaketh plainely and truly Iam. 2.21 That Abraham was iustified by workes Thus farre we ioyne with them and the very difference is this They say we are iustified by workes as by causes thereof we say that we are iustified by workes as by signes and fruits of our iustification before God and no otherwise and in this sense must the place of S. Iames be vnderstood that Abraham was iustified that is declared and made manifest to be iust indeed by his obedience and that euen before God Now that our doctrine is the truth it will appeare by reasons on both parts Our reasons I. Rom. 3.28 We conclude that a man is iustified by faith without the workes of the law Some answer that ceremoniall workes be excluded here some that morall works some works going before faith But let them deuise what they can for themselues the truth is that Paul excludeth all works whatsoeuer as by the very text will appeare For v. 24. he saith We are iustified freely by his grace that is by the meere gift of God giuing vs to vnderstand that a sinner in his iustification is meerely passiue that is doing nothing on his part whereby God should accept him to life euerlasting And v. 27. he saith iustification by faith excludeth all boasting and therefore all kind of works are thereby excluded and specially such as are most of all the matter of boasting that is good workes For if a sinner after that he is iustified by the merit of Christ were iustified more by his owne workes then might he haue some matter of boasting in himselfe And that we may not doubt of Pauls meaning consider and read Eph. 2.8,9 By grace saith he you are saued tâ—rough faith and that not of your selues it is the gift of God not of workes least any man should boast himselfe Here Paul excludes all and euery worke and directly workes of grace themselues as appeares by the reason following For we are his workemanshippe created in Christ Iesus vnto good workes which God hath ordained that weâ— should walke in them Nowe let the Papists tell me what bee the workes which God hath prepared for men to walke in and to which they are regenerate vnlesse they bee the most excellent workes of grace and let them marke howe Paul excludes them wholly from the worke of iustification and saluation II. Gal. 5.3 If ye be circumcised ye are bound to the whole lawe and ye are abolished from Christ. Here Paul disputeth against such men as would bee saued partly by Christ and partly by the workes of the lawe hence I reason thus If a man will be iustified by workes he is bound to fulfill the whole lawe according to the rigour thereof that is Pauls ground I nowe assume no man can fullfill the lawe according to the rigour thereof for the liues and workes of most righteous men are imperfect and stained with sinne and therefore they are taught euery day to say on this manner forgiue vs our debts Againe our knowledge is imperfect and therefore our faith repentance and sanctifiâ—atioÌ„ is answerable And lastly the regenerate man is partly flesh and partly spirit and therefore his best workes are partly from the flesh and in part onely spirituall Thus then for any man to bee bound to the rigour of the whole lawe is as much as if he were bound to his owne damnation III. Election to saluation is of grace without workes therefore the iustification of a sinner is of grace alone without workes For it is a certen rule that the cause of a cause is the cause of a thing caused Now grace without workes is the cause of election which election is the cause of our iustification therfore grace without workes is the cause of our iustification IV. A man must first be fully iustified before he can doe a good worke for the person must first please God before his works can please him But the person of a sinner cannot please God till he be perfectly iustified and therefore till hee be iustified he cannot doe so much as one good worke And thus good workes cannot be any meritorious causes of iustification after which they are both for time and order of nature In a word whereas they make two distinct iustifications we acknowledge that there be degrees of sanctification yet so as iustification is onely one standing in remission of sinnes and Gods acceptation of vs to life euerlasting by Christ and this iustification hath no degrees but is perfect at the very first Obiections of Papists Psal. 7.8 Iudge me according to my righteousnesse Hence they reason thus if Dauid be iudged according to his righteousnes then may he be iustified therby but Dauid desires to be iudged according to his righteousnes and therefore he was iustified thereby Ans. There be two kindes of righteousnesse one of the person the other of the cause or action The righteousnes of a mans person is whereby it is accepted into the fauour of God into life eternall The â—ighteousnes of the action or cause is when the action or cause is iudged of God to be good and iust Nowe Dauid in this psalme speaketh onely of the righteousnesse of the action or innocency of his cause in that he was falsely charged to haue sought the kingdome In like manner it is said of Phineas Psal. 166.31 that his fact in killing Zimri and Cosbie was imputed to him for righteousnes not because it was a satisfaction to the lawe the rigour whereof could not be fulfilled in that one worke but because God accepted of it as a iust worke and as a token of his righteousnes and zeale for Gods glorie II. Obiect The Scripture saith in sundrie places that men are blessed which doe good workes Psal. 119.1 Blessed is the man that is vpright in heart walketh in the lawe of the Lord. Ans. The man is blessed that indeauoureth to keep Gods commandements Yet is he not blessed simply because hee doth so but because he is in Christ by whome he doeth so and his obedience to the lawe of God is a signe thereof III. Obiect When man confesseth his sinnes and humbleth himselfe by praier and fasting Gods wrath is pacified and staied therefore praier and fasting are causes of iustification before God Answ. Indeede men that truely humble themselues by praier and fasting doe appease the wrath of God yet not properly by these actions but by their faith expressed and testified in theÌ„ whereby they apprehend that which appeaseth Gods wrath euen the merits of Christ in whome the
report and relation of the miracles done in the land of Egypt whereby she was mooued to ioyne hir selfe vnto the people of God and to beleeue as they did By these examples then it is manifest that in the very seruants of God there is and may be for a time an implicite faith For the better vnderstanding of this point it is to be considered that faith may be infolded two waies fiâ—st in respect of knowledge of things to be beleeued secondly in respect of the apprehension of the obiect of faith namely Christ and his benefits Now faith is infolded in respect of knowledge when as sundrie things that are necessarie to saluation are not as yet distinctly knowne Though Christ commended the faith of his disciples for such a faith against which the gates of hell should not preuaile yet was it vnexpressed or wrapped vp in regard of sundrie points of religion for first of all Peter that made confession of Christ in the name of the rest was at that time ignorant of the particular meanes whereby his redemption should be wrought For after this he went about to disswade his master from the suffering of death at Ierusalem whereupon Christ sharply rebuked him saying Come behinde me Sathan thou art an offence vnto me Againe they were all ignorant of Christs resurrection till certaine women who first saw him after he was risen againe had told them and they by experience in the person of Christ had learned the truth Thirdly they were ignorant of the ascension for they dreamed of an earthly kingdome at the very time wheÌ„ he was about to ascend saying Wilt thou at this time restore the kingdome to Israelâ— Act. 1.6 And after Christs ascension Peter knew nothing of the breaking downe of the partition wall betweene the Iewes and Gentiles till God had better schooled him in a vision Act. 10.14 And no doubt we haue ordinarie examples of this Implicit faith in sundrie persons among vs. For some there be which are dull and hard both for vnderstanding and memorie and thereupon make no such proceedings in knowledge as many others doe and yet for good affection and conscience in their doings so farre as they know they come not short of any hauing withall a continuall care to increase in knowledge and to walke in obedience according to that which they know And such persons though they be ignorant in many things yet haue they a meaning of true faith and that which is wanting in knowledge is supplied in affection and in some respects they are to be preferred before many that haue the glibbe tongue and the braine swimming with knowledge To this purpose Melancthon said well We must acknowledge the great mercie of God who puts a difference betweene sinnes of ignorance and such as are done wittingly and forgiues manifold ignorances to them that know but the foundation and be teachable as may be seene by the Apostles in whome there was much want of vnderstanding before the resurrection of Christ. But as hath bin saide he requires that we be teachable and he will not haue vs to be hardned in our sluggishnesse and dulnesse As it is saide psal 1. he meditateth in his law day and night The second kind of implicite faith is in regard of Apprehension when as a man can not say distinctly and certenly I beleeue the pardon of my sinnes but I doe vnfainedly desire to beleeue the pardon of them all and I desire to repent This case befalls many of Gods children when they are touched in conscience for their sinnes But where men are displeased with themselues for their offences and doe withall constantly from the heart desire to beleeue and to be reconciled to God there is faith and many other graces of God infolded as in the little and tender budde is infolded the leafe the blossome and the fâ—uit For though a desire to repent and to beleeue be not faith and repentance in nature yet in Gods acceptation it is God accepting the will for the deede Isa. 42.3 Christ will not quench the smoking flaxe which as yet by reason of weakenesse giues neither light nor heate Christ saith Math. 6. 6. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousnes for they shall be satisfied where by persons hungring and thirsting are meant all such as feele with griefe their owne want of righteousnesse and withall desire to be iustified and sanctified Rom. 8.26 God heares regards the very grones and sighes of his seruants yea though they be vnspeakable by reason they are oftentimes little weake and confused yet God hath respect vnto them because they are the worke of his owne spirit Thus when we see that in a touched heart desiring to beleeue there is an infolded faith And this is the faith which many of the true seruants of God haue and our saluation stands not so much in our apprehending of Christ as in Christs comprehending of vs and therefore Paul saith Phil. 3. 12. he followeth namely after perfection if that he might comprehend that for whose sake he is comprehended of Christ. Now if any shall say that without a liuely faith in Christ none can be saued I answer that God accepts the desire to beleeue for liuely faith in the time of temptation and in the time of our first conuersion as I haue saide Put case a man that neuer yet repented falls into some grieuous sicknes and then beginnes to be touched in conscience for his sinnes and to be truly humbled hereupon he is exhorted to beleeue his owne reconciliation with God in Christ and the pardon of his owne sinnes And as he is exhorted so he endeauoureth according to the measure of grace receiued to beleeue yet after much striuing he can not resolue himselfe that he doth distinctly and certenly beleeue the pardon of his owne sinnes onely this he can say that he doth heartely desire to beleeue this he wisheth aboue all things in the world and he esteemes all things as dung for Christ and thus he dies I demaund now what shall we say of him surely we may say nothing but that he died the child of God and is vndoubtedly saued For howsoeuer it were an happie thing if men could come to that fulnesse of faith which was in Abraham and many seruants of God yet certen it is that God in sundrie cases accepts of this desire to beleeue for true faith indeede And looke as it is in nature so is it in grace in nature some die when they are children some in olde age and some in full strength and yet all die men so againe some die babes in Christ some of more perfect faith and yet the weakest hauing the seedes of grace is the child of God and faith in his infancie is faith All this while it must be remembred I say not there is a true faith without all apprehension but without a Distinct apprehension for some space of time for this very desire by faith to apprehend Christ and
his merits is a kind of apprehension And thus we see the kinds of implicite or infolded faith This doctrine is to be learned for two causes first of all it serues to rectifie the consciences of weake ones that they be not deceiued touching their estate For if we thinke that no faith can saue but a full perswaâ—ion such as the faith of Abraham was many truly bearing the name of Christ must be put out of the role of the children of God We are therefore to know that there is a growth in grace as in nature and there be differences and degrees of true faith and the least of them all is this Infolded faith This in effect is the doctrine of M. Caluin that when we begin by faith to know somewhat haue a desire to learne more this may be tearmed an vnexpressed faith Secondly this point of doctrine serues to rectifie and in part to expound sundrie Catechismes in that they seeme to propound faith vnto men at so high a reach as few can attaine vnto it defining it to be a certen and full perswasion of Gods loue and fauour in Christ whereas though euery faith be for his nature a certen perswasion yet onely the strong faith is the full perswasion Therefore faith is not onely in generall tearmes to be defined but also the degrees and measures thereof are to be expounded that weake ones to their comfort may be truly informed of their estate And though we teach there is a kinde of implicite faith which is the beginning of true and liuely faith yet none must hereupon take an occasion to content themselues therewith but labour to increase and goe on from faith to faith and so indeede will euery one doe that hath any beginnings of true faith be they neuer so little And he which thinks he hath a desire to beleeue and contents himselfe therewith hath indeede no true desire to beleeue The difference The pillars of the Romish Church laies downe this ground that faith in his owne nature is not a knowledge of things to be beleeued but a reuerent assent vnto them whether they be knowne or vnknowne Hereupon they build that if a man know some necessarie points of religion as the doctrine of the Godhead of the Trinitie of Christs incarnation and of our redemption c. it is needelesse to know the rest by a particular or distinct knowledge and it sufficeth to giue his consent to the Church and to beleeue as the pastours beleeue Behold a ruinous building vpon a rotten foundation for faith containes a knowledge of things to be beleeued and knowledge is of the nature of faith nothing is beleeued that is not knowne Isai 53.11 The knowledge of my righteous seruant shall iustifie many and Ioh. 17.2 This is eternall life to know the eternall God and whome thou hast sent Iesus Christ. In these places by knowledge is meant faith grounded vpon knowledge whereby we know and are assured that Christ and his benefits belong vnto vs. Secondly this kind of assent is the mother of ignorance For when men shall be taught that for sundrie points of religion they may beleeue as the Church beleeues that the studie of the Scriptures is not to be required of them yea that to their good they may be barred the reading of them so be it they know some principall things contained in the articles of faith that common beleeuers are not bound expressely to beleeue all the articles of the Apostles Creede that it sufficeth them to beleeue the articles by an implicite faith by beleeuing as the Church beleeueth fewe or none will haue care to profit in knowledge And yet Gods commaundement is that we should grow in knowledge and that his word should dwell plenteously in vs Col. 3.16 Againe the Papists say that the deuotion of the ignorant is often seruice better accepted then that which is done vpoÌ„ knowledge Such say they as pray in latin pray with as great consolation of spirit with as little tediousnes with as great deuotion and affection and oftentimes more then the other and alwaies more then any scismaticke or hereticke in his owne language To conclude they teach that some articles of faith are beleeued generally of the whole Church onely by a simple or implicite faith which afterward by the Authoritie of a generall Counsell are propounded to be beleeued of the Church by expresse faith Roffensis against Luther giues an example of this when he confesseth that Purgatorie was litle known at the first but was made knowne partly by Scripture and partly by reuelation in processe of time This implicite faith touching articles of religion we reiect holding that all things concerning faith and manners necessarie to saluation are plainely expressed in Scripture and accordingly to be beleeued The 17. point Of Purgatorie Our consent We hold a Christian Purgatorie according as the word of God hath set downe the same vnto vs. And first of all by this Purgatorie we vnderstand the afflictions of Gods children here on earth Ier. 3. The people afflicted say thou hast sent a fire into our bones Psal. 65.12 We haue gone through water and fire Malach. 3.3 The children of Levi must be purified in a purging fire of affliction 1. Pet. 1.7 Afflictions are called the fiâ—rie triall whereby men are clensed from their corruptions as golde from the drosse by the fire Secondly the blood of Christ is a purgatorie of our sinnes 1. Ioh. 1.7 Christs blood purgeth vs from all our sinnes Heb. 9.14 It purgeth our consciences from dead workes And Christ baptizeth with the holy Ghost and with fire because our inward washing is by the blood of Christ and the holy Ghost is as fire to consume and abolish the inward corruption of nature To this effect saith Origen Without doubt we shall feele the vnquenchable fire vnles we shall now intreat the Lord to send downe from heauen a purgatorie fire vnto vs whereby worldly desires may he vtterly consumed in our mindes August Suppose the mercie of God is thy purgatorie The difference or dissent We differ from the Papists touching purgatorie in two things And first of all for the place They hold it to be a part of hell into which an entrance is made onely after this life we for our parts denie it as hauing no waraant in the word of God which mentioneth onely two places for men after this life heauen and hell with the two-fold condition thereof ioy and torment Luk. 16.25 26. Ioh. 3.36 Apoc. 22.14 15. and 21.7,8 Matth. 8.11 Nay we finde the contrarie Reu. 14.13 they that die in the Lord are saide to rest from their lâ—bours which can not be true if any of them goe to purgatorie And to cut off all cauills it is further said their workes that is the reward of their workes follow them euen at the heeles as an Acoluth or seruant doth his master Augustine saith well After this life there remaines no