which they doe moderate punishments The arguments of the Stoickes haue a fayre shewe but they are grounded on a false foundation agaynst which let those reasons be set which I haue rehearsed 12 So speake ye and so doe as they that shall be iudged by the lavve of libertie 13 For there shal be condemnation mercilesse to him that shevveth not mercie and mercie reioyceth against iudgement He bringeth in a generall exhortation to liue godly and holily by an argument taken of the sentence of the last iudgement which is recited Matth. 25. For when as the Apostle sayth as they that shall bee iudged by the lavve of libertie he hath relation to the sentence of the Lorde who when he iudgeth the worlde shall saye vnto them on his right hand Come ye blessed of my father take the inheritance of the kingdome prepared for you from the foundations of the worlde For I was an hungred and ye gaue me meate c. Contrariwise he shall say to them on the left hande Depart from me ye cursed into euerlasting fire I was an hungred and ye gaue me no meate c. To this pertayneth that saying Iohn 5. The houre shall come in the which all that are in the graues shal heare his voice and they shall come forth that haue done good vnto the resurrection of life but they that haue done euell vnto the resurrection of condemnation And 2. Cor. 5. We must all appeare before the iudgement seate of Christ that euery man may receiue the things which are done in his bodie according to that he hath done whether it be good or euill That these sayings and such like are to be vnderstand of the qualitie of thē that shal be saued not of the causes of saluation the whole consent of y e scripture yea the precious bloud of Christ doth shew as shortly after I will more distinctly declare But why doth he call it y e law of libertie That by that name he may shew y t the fruites of libertie are by good right required of christians For as he which doth commit sinne is the seruant of sinne so he which is deliuered by Christ will be no more bonde but free therefore will not take vpon him the yoke of bondage He sheweth a cause or reason when he sayth for there shall be condemnation mercilesse to him that shevveth not mercie but he that sheweth mercie is so farre of from being condemned y t he shal reioyce against cōdemnation triumphing ouer death sin and the deuill These things doe teach how necessary continuall repentance and a perpetuall studie of godlynesse and righteousnesse is among Christians least by their owne fault they lose the free benefit of saluation But bicause the aduersaries of free saluation doe abuse this place and such like and make the causes of saluation of the tokens and qualities of them which shall be saued I will briefly gather an aunswere whereby the godly reader may haue wherewith he maye be able throughly and truly to answere to this false cauill Seing therefore that the Scripture doth expressely say that the Lord shall giue to euery man according to his deedes Or as Paule speaketh to the Corinthians according to that euery man hath done whether it be good or euill First of all this is to be helde that this generall sentence which is the very voyce of God himselfe ought to be applied vnto two sortes of men according to the proportion of fayth that is to the wicked according to the lawe to the godly according to the Gospell after this maner when the Lord giueth vnto the wicked according to their dedes without all doubt he giueth vnto them hel and condemnation For those are the merits of the dedes of vngodlines But cōcerning y e godly or regenerate there are mo things to be considered For first it is euident out of the infallible worde of God that eternall life is not the wages of seruantes but the inheritance of children and the free gift of God Rom. 4.5.6.8 Iohn 1.3.5 Secondly the proportion betwene the heauēly father and an earthly father is to be considered for as an earthly father doth giue vnto his childrē according to their deedes that is inheritance to them that are obedient and disheriteth them that are disobedient so God the father promiseth inheritance to his children but those which of children are made obstinate and enemies he suffreth not to enioy the inheritance But nowe it is manifest that the childrē of an earthly father are neither children nor heires through desert of their works After the same sort the children of God are neyther made children nor heires bicause of their works but through the grace of adoption which is receyued by fayth alone notwithstanding eyther of them doth giue vnto his children according to their dedes But y t this may yet be more plainly vnderstand how God shall giue to euery mā according to his dedes foure circūstances are to be weighed of vs the first wherof is that the rigour of the law is takē away from y e godly according to y e saying Galat. 3. Christ hath redemed vs from the curse of the lawe The seconde is that the person nowe beleeuing doth by fayth please God and is heire of eternall life Iohn 1. The thirde that God doth not onely require obedience of the person that beleeueth but also doth promise him a rewarde and that not of debt for the worthinesse of the worke but of grace for his fatherly promise sake The fourth that workes so done by fayth are testimonies of fayth as proper effectes are most certaine tokens of their cause And therefore it is sayde that God shall giue vnto euery man according to his dedes both because dedes are the true tokens of the feare of God of fayth and also that the whole creature maye beare witnesse of the iustice of God in iudging This answere is taken from the conferring of the Scripture which we must of necessitie surely hold lest that with the Papistes we attribute saluation to the merits of works or with the Antinomians and Libertines we lay aside all care and studye to do well This solution is made manifest by an euident example Mat. 18. where y e Lord saith that y e kingdome of heauen is likened vnto a certayne king that is that there is the same reason of the spiritual state of the Church which is betweene an earthly king and his seruants in the affaires of this present life For euen as the king his seruant owing him ten thousand talents yet when he fell downe and besought him he forgaue him the whole dette freely and of his mere liberalitie so God the father doth freely forgiue them all debtes that is sinnes which flie vnto him for succour with trust and confidence in Christ Hereof it is manifest that remission of sinnes is free But euen as the king called agayne vnto punishment that seruant being vnthankefull
vvorkes and through the vvorks vvas the fayth made perfect 23 And the Scripture vvas fulfilled vvhich sayth Abraham beleeued God and it vvas imputed vnto him for righteousnes and he vvas called the frend of God 24 Ye see then hovv that of vvorkes a man is iustified and not of faith onely The summe of this reason is this Such as the fayth of Abraham was ought also the fayth of other beleeuers to be For he is therefore called the father of the beleeuers bicause that they that beleeue ought to imitate and follow his fayth but the faith of Abraham had workes ioyned with it which is thereby proued bicause he did so much esteeme obedience toward God that he would rather kill his onely sonne then not obey God Therfore the fayth of other also ought to haue workes ioyned with it which if it haue not it is worthely to be accounted vaine and dead This is the summe of the argument Now let vs wey the wordes of the Apostle which are wrested of the Schoolemen against free iustification First the word iustified is to be discussed which is as much as if he had sayd was declared to be iust or was knowen to be iustified and that this is so I proue by three necessarie arguments The first is taken of the scope and end of this present disputatiō For Iames hath not purposed a disputation of the causes of iustification but onely doth shew by what effects iustification may be gathered and as it were set before the eyes of men Seing therefore it is an exceeding great errour of effects to make causes in respect of the same thing they are by no meanes to be borne which forgetting the scope ende of the disputation proposition that is to be proued presume very high go about to disproue the doctrine of Paul concerning free iustification when as the purpose of Paul was far otherwise thā of Iames. For Paul seketh the cause of iustification Iames the effects of the same Paul descendeth frō y e causes to y e effects Iames contrariwise ascendeth frō the effects to y e causes Paul seketh how we are iustified Iames how we are declared to be iustified Paule excludeth works as causes of iustification Iames includeth the same as the effectes of iustification Seing there is so great difference betwene the purpose of Paule and Iames who seeth not the vanitie of the Scholemen which say that the Apostles are contrary the one to the other The seconde necessarie argument is taken of the order of the causes and the effects Genes 15. Abraham is pronounced to be iustified Abraham beleeued the Lord and he counted that to him for righteousnesse But this came to passe thirtie yeares at the least before he receyued a commaundement concerning the offering of his sonne Isaac Genes 22. Howe therefore can it be that he shoulde be sayde to be iustified by that worke which he did the thirtie yere after y t he was by the voyce of God said to be iustified It is necessarie therfore that to be iustified in Iames doe signifie to be declared iustified The thirde necessarie argument is taken of the wordes of the Angell Genes 22. After that Abraham had purposed to kil his sonne at the commaundement of God was called back from his purpose by the voice of the Angel he heareth of the Angell Now I know that thou fearest God seing for my sake thou hast not spared thine only son What other thing I pray you do these words meane than that y e voluntarie obedience of Abraham was a testimonie of the feare of God a certaine declaration of the iustification of Abraham And thus briefly it is declared what the word of iustification doth signifie in this disputation of Iames. Afterwarde when he sayth that the fayth vvrought vvith his vvorkes he expresseth the nature of a liuely fayth to wit that it is effectuall and full of good workes Seing that the fayth of hypocrites hath not this nature it is in no case to be iudged a true and liuely fayth This saying therefore of Iames doth teach nothing else but that good workes doe proceede of fayth That which Iames addeth through the vvorkes the fayth vvas made perfect is nothing els than y t the fayth of Abraham was declared by his workes not to haue bene counterfait or hypocriticall but true and sincere For if thou doest cal that perfect here which is in it degrees absolute no mortall man liuing at any time hath had a perfect fayth Moreouer when he sayth that the scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham beleeued God and it vvas imputed vnto him for righteousnesse that is not to be referred vnto the cause but vnto the effect For by that deede Abraham declared that he was in very deede iustified before by fayth This fulfilling therefore ought to be referred to the experience of men and not to the iudgement of God 25 Likevvise also vvas not Rahab the harlot iustified through vvorks vvhen she had receyued the messengers and sent them out another vvay He proueth by another example y t a true a liuely faith is not without works Rahab by her dede or works declared hir selfe to be iustified by fayth when with the perill of her life she sent away y e messengers of the people of God least they shoulde come into the hands of them that sought them 26 For as the bodie vvithout the spirit is dead euen so the fayth vvithout vvorkes is deade By a most apt similitude propounded he proueth that the fayth of hypocrites is vayne in as much as it is like a deade bodie or carkas wherein is no liuely spirite and therefore no mouing or sense of a liuing creature is founde in it And thus Iames by sixe firme reasons hath proued that a true fayth is frutefull in good workes and that the fayth of hypocrites which is voyd of workes is a vayne boasting rather than fayth A declaration of the doctrine of repentance WHen as Christ doth define the Gospel to be preaching of repentance and forgiuenesse of sinnes in his name he setteth forth two things vnto bs whereof one is the benefite which the Gospell offereth the other the meanes by which the benefite is applyed vnto men The benefite which is offered is forgiuenesse of sinnes The meanes is repentance For they onely which repent are made partakers of the forgiuenesse of sinnes wherewith is ioyned iustification saluation and eternall lyfe Hereof it easily appeareth that nothing is more necessarye for a man in this life than to vnderstande wherein true repentance consisteth without the which forgiuenesse of sinnes commeth vnto no man Of this wholsome and true repentance I will speake and will so declare the matter by the worde of God and manifest examples that euerye man may acknowledge the truth and playnnes thereof The foundation therfore of the preaching of repentance without all doubt is the mercie and grace of
the righteousnes of God For Christ is the ende of the lawe for righteousnes vnto euerye one that beleeueth Here Paule maketh this to be the cause of the casting of of the Iewes for that they woulde ioyne their owne righteousnesse with the righteousnesse of God which is by fayth and of both ioyned togither make one forme of righteousnesse Also Rom. 11. he reasoneth thus If it be of grace it is no more of workes or else were grace no more grace but if it be of works it is no more grace or else were worke no more worke Paule here first setteth downe two contrarie propositions without any meane betwene them If election and saluation be of workes it is not of grace If it be of grace it is not of workes bicause that debt and gift are so contrarie that neither of them may rightly be sayde one of the other or both of them of any thirde Eyther therefore we are iustified and saued by fayth alone or by workes but the testimonies before alledged doe proue that no man is iustified by workes Agayne if christian righteousnesse did consist of fayth and works togither the reasoning of Paule were fonde and vayne Rom. 4. To him that worketh the wages is not counted by fauour but by debt but to him that worketh not but beleueth in him that iustifieth the vngodly his fayth is counted for righteousnesse Here Paule maketh two sortes of righteousnesse which differ the one from the other For they haue contrarie causes For the righteousnesse of fayth by which he that beleeueth is iustified is imputed and giuen freely but the righteousnesse of works is not free Furthermore if one part is to be attributed to fayth the other part to workes in the iustification of man two absurdities should followe thereof one that the promise shoulde be made vncertaine which ought to be certaine Another that the satisfaction of Christ coulde not suffice except it were stablished by our workes Wherefore we embrace the saying of Augustine which sayth It is grace in no poynt except it be free in all poyntes But the occasion of the errour of the Papistes was a Philosophicall imagination which knoweth no righteousnesse except it be a certayne qualitie in vs. For it vnderstandeth not that a man may be iustified by the imputation of the righteousnesse of another Nowe let vs come to essentiall righteousnesse concerning which first it is to be vnderstand y t we are in no wise righteous before God by y e essential righteousnes of God but in respect of the principall efficient cause For the formall righteousnesse by which we are righteous before God is no other than the obedience of Christ as Paule plainly teacheth Rom. 5. By the obedience of one many shall be made righteous But the obedience of Christ is of two sortes of the crosse and of the lawe By the obedience of the crosse whereby he humbled himselfe and became obedient vnto the death euen the death of the crosse Philip. 3. the Lorde doth make a full satisfaction for our sinne The obedience of the lawe he imputeth vnto vs that beleeue that by it we maye appeare righteous in the sight of God Paule sayth that this righteousnesse or obedience of Christ is imputed to them that beleeue therfore it is neyther substance nor qualitie abyding in them whereby a man is made righteous formally Wherefore this affirmance is surely to be helde that christian righteousnes is the obedience of the sonne of God imputed to him that beleeueth But in the meane season we must also vnderstande this that the Scripture maketh mention of three kindes of righteousnesse of man whereof one is of fayth by which we stande before God and this is perfect as the obedience of Christ is perfect neyther is it diminished or increased by the diminishing or increasing of fayth For the Publicane had this full and perfect as well as Peter although the fayth of Peter was much more manifest and knowne Another is the beginning of obedience which is also called the righteousnesse of a good conscience This is not set agaynst the wrath of God bicause it is not perfect obedience of the lawe yet it is necessary in as much as it is the proper fruite of fayth An other there is which is as yet looked for whereof Paule speaketh Galat. 5. For we through the spirite wayte for the hope of righteousnesse through fayth And 1. Iohn 3. Dearly beloued nowe are we the sonnes of God but yet it doth not appeare what we shall be and we knowe that when we shall appeare we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is and euery man that hath this hope in him purgeth himselfe euen as he is pure This righteousnesse therefore is a making of vs lyke vnto God a dwelling of God in vs a full fruition of God an absolute and perfect loue And although we must confesse that the heartes of them that beleeue are the temples of the holy ghost and Christ sayth Iohn 14. If any man loue me he will keepe my worde and my father will loue him and we will come vnto him and wil dwell with him yet it doth not followe that this dwelling of God in vs is the righteousnesse whereby we stande before God but it is a diuine presence in vs by which we are renued doe feele comfort and begyn to approch to eternall life Furthermore if men were iustified here by essentiall righteousnesse there shoulde be no difference betweene the righteousnesse by which we are righteous in this lyfe and that by which we shall be like vnto God in all eternitie But Paule putteth a manifest difference betweene these two For he sayth that we haue the righteousnesse of fayth nowe here in this lyfe but that we doe looke for another righteousnesse which Iohn defineth to be a framing or fashioning whereby we shall be fashioned lyke vnto God which fashioning shall proceede from hence in that we shall see him as he is Newe obedience is necessarily ioyned with fayth For regeneration which cannot be absent from a iustifying fayth doth necessarily bring forth it fruites which are seene in newe obedience For after that a man through the grace of regeneration is made a newe tree he ought to bring forth newe that is good fruites which Paule in his Epistle to the Philip. calleth the frutes of y e righteousnes of fayth Iames pronounceth in his own peculiar and proper phrase that men are iustified by the same that is acknowledged and declared iust This newe obedience is sometime called sanctification which consisteth of the mortifying of the fleshe and of the quickening of the spirit For Paule sayth thus Christ is made vnto vs wisedome and righteousnesse and sanctification and redemption He is made our wisedome in the preaching of the Gospell He is made our righteousnesse by the attonement for sinne and imputation of righteousnesse He is made our
mercifull and to shew mercy and compassion He is mercifull inasmuch as he is in deede moued with our miseries and doth as it were suffer with vs. He sheweth mercy and compassion because he reacheth his hand to vs being in miserie and deliuereth vs out of miserie I will briefly reherse what thinges ought to come into our mind as often as mention is made of the mercy of God toward vs. First y e obiect of mercy is to be thought vpon which is y e miserie of mākind wherby y e whole race of mankind is in it selfe most miserably lost subiect to the tyrāny of y e deuil in danger of al calamities spirituall corporall Secondly the cause of this miserie is to be considered which is sin the most horrible and most filthie thing of all things y e most iust punishment whereof is euerlasting torment of soules bodies Thirdly the infinite loue of God toward mākind is to be reuolued in the minde that God hath not vtterly cast away mankind for so great filthines and vncleannes Fourthly let the sacrifice of the sonne of God be thought vpon whereby he helpeth our miserie and maketh a full satisfaction for sinne By thinking vpon this sacrifice the holy fathers haue comforted themselues in their sacrifices To this sacrifice Dauid hath regard as often as in the Psalmes he earnestly desireth the mercye of God which psalme 51. doth sufficiently shew where he maketh his prayer in these wordes Haue mercy on me O Lorde according to thy louing kindenes according vnto the multitude of thy mercies wipe away my wickednes Whē he saith wipe away he hath respect vnto the bloud of the mediatour as he doth more plainly shewe in the seuenth verse where he maketh mention of the satisfaction for sinne for so he saith Purge thou me with hysop and I shall be cleane Fiftly repentance or conuersiion is here required without which we are not made partakers of this vnspeakable price of the sacrifiee of the sonne of God Hereunto pertayne many sayinges of the Prophets 2. Paral. 30. The Lord your God is gratious and mercifull and will not turne away his face from you if ye conuert vnto him Iere. 3. Turne againe ye children and so shall I heare your backturninges Againe chap. 18. Let euery man turne from his euil way and take vpon him the thing that is good and right and your iniquitie shal not turne to your destruction To this conuersion the Gospell calleth vs Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand And Christ him selfe saith I cam no to call the iust but sinners to repentance Sixtly a continuall thankfulnes in our whole life with extolling and setting forth the glorie of God is required and a certayne holy carefullnes is to be had in gouerning our maners that we may seeme in heart mouth tongue and in our whole conuersation to extoll the mercy of God Seuenthly because our weakenes is great which is increased by thinking sometime vpon our particularitie sometime vpon our vnworthines we must thinke that the mercy of God is not contayned within narrow bounds neither that the greatnes of our sinnes doe exceede it but that it is extended to all the endes of the world and doth by infinite meanes abound aboue sinne The blessed Virgin sayth The mercy of God is from generation to generation on them that feare him And Peter sayth The Lord is patient towarde vs and would haue no man to perish but would all men to come to repentance Of this most rich mercy of God S. Cyrill writeth in this maner The mount of Oliues doth signifie the heigth and aboundance of the diuine mercy plentifully shewed vnto vs by the comming of the sonne of God in the fleshe The mercy of God is often times in the Scriptures expressed by the name of oyle because the nature of oyle doth agree with the maner and condition thereof For oyle is caried aboue other licours and swimmeth aboue them so the mercy of God is aboue all his workes and doth more appeare vnto men then the rest For mercy exceedeth iudgement and his mercy is ouer all his workes Moreouer oyle doth mitigate the griefes of woundes and doth heale swellings and sores but the mercy of God doth heale the sores of our soules and driueth away all faintnes of sinne as the Prophet sayth Who forgiueth all thy wickednes and healeth all thine infirmities who satisfieth thy mouth with good things and crowneth thee with mercy and louing kindnes Finally they that should come into the place of wrastling or striuing did come forth into the middest being annoynted with oyle whereby their bodyes might be more pliable and fitte for that kinde of exercise so the Lord sheweth vnto them his mercy which are about to striue against the ayrie powers with it he preuenteth vs and giueth vs strength whereby we being fortified in so harde a fight with his helpe maye at the last goe awaye conquerers In thee saith the Prophet I shall be deliuered from tentation and with the helpe of my God I shall leape ouer the wall And agayne God is my light and saluation whom then shall I feare God is the strength of my life of whom then shall I be afrayde Though an hoste of men were layde in campe agaynst me yet shall not myne heart be afrayde and though there rose vp warre agaynst me yet I will put my trust in him Lastly in another place My strength will I ascribe vnto thee for thou art the God of my refuge My mercifull God will preuent me Augustine in a certayne sermon sayth His mercye is most abundant and his beneuolence large which hath redeemed vs with the bloud of his sonne when because of our sinnes we were nothing For he did some great thing when he created man to his owne image and similitude But because we woulde be made nothing by sinning and tooke the issue of mortalitie of our parents were made a masse of sinne a masse of wrath neuertheles it pleased him by his mercie to redeeme vs with so great a price he gaue for vs the bloude of his only sonne innocently borne innocently liuing innocently dying who hath redemed vs with so great a price He wil not haue them perish whō he hath bought he hath not bought them whō he wil destroy but he hath bought thē whō he will quicken make aliue 12 But before al things my brethrē svveare not neyther by heauen nor by earth nor by any other oth but let you yea be yea and your nay nay least ye fall into condemnation As he condemneth a rashe custome of swearing setting down the punishment therof so he prescribeth a maner of affirming and denying when he sayth Let your yea be yea and your nay nay that is that which is to be affirmed simply and without an oth affirme and that which is simply to be denied denie Of an Othe BIcause
grace that had fallen after they knew the truth Wherefore this testimonie of Iames is especially to be marked For he sayth playnely If they haue committed sinnes that is if they haue committed any thing agaynst their conscience they shalbe forgiuen them 16 Acknovvledge your faults one to an other An other briefe admonition concerning pardoning one an others faults that hapned among them For it cannot otherwise be but that in this weakenes of nature and in this most corrupt and as it were doting olde age of the worlde many offences be incident which the Apostle will that we both acknowledge also pardoÌ„ one an other The Papists interpret this place of the confession and rehearsall of our sinnes which is made to the Priest which fayned deuise of theirs is not only contrary to the custome of the Church in the Apostles time for such kind of confession was vnknowne to Iames and the other Apostles but also it is playnly confuted by the words of Iames who sayth Acknovvledge your faults one to an other For if the interpretation of the Papists were good then not onely the lay man shoulde confes his sinnes to the priest but also the priest should confes his sinnes to the lay man which their priestly dignitie can in no case away with And pray one for another that ye may be healed Another briefe admonition concerning mutuall prayers For he biddeth vs pray one for another that we maye be healed that is that there maye be as fewe offences amongst vs as may be For I referre this to the health of the mindes and affections which being sicke many times offences doe as it were certaine little sores burst forth For the prayer of a righteous man auayleth much if it be feruent A reason of that which went before taken of the effect of godly prayer And note that as he requireth one thing in him that prayeth so he requireth an other in the prayer it selfe In him that prayeth he requireth righteousnes wherefore Paule also biddeth vs lift vp pure hands This righteousnes coÌ„sisteth in two things to wit that he which is about to praye doth fully perswade himselfe that his sin is forgiuen him and that he cast of all purpose of sinning For he that doth not this doth lose his labour In the prayer he requireth efficacie that is a singular feruentnesse which proceedeth from fayth whereby a man determineth that he is heard through the merit and intercession of the Lorde his mediatour 17 Helias vvas a man vnderinfirmities euen as vve are and he prayed earnestlye that it might not rayne and it rayned not on the earth by the space of three yeares and sixe moneths 18 And he prayed agayne and the heauen gaue raine and the earth brought forth her fruite A confirmation of the last reason by an example Helias prayed effectually Helias vvas righteous Therefore the prayer of the righteous is effectuall In steade of the Maior or first proposition of this argument the confirmation thereof is set downe whereof reade 17. Chap. lib. 3 of Kings But least any man except and say that that was done because of the singular holynes and merits of the man he preuenteth them and sayth that he was subiect to like passions as we are inasmuch as he was subiect to the same affections and infirmities of the corrupt nature that we are 19 Brethren if any of you hath erred from the truth and some man hath conuerted him 20 Let him knovv that he vvhich hath conuerted the sinner from going astray out of his vvay shall saue a soule from death and shall hyde a multitude of sinnes Diligence in furthering the saluation of their brethren is commended to the godlye that one call another from the errour of his way that is of doctrine and of life Which he that doth first saueth the soule of him that did erre secondly hideth a multitude of sinnes in as much as a sinner being conuerted by his admonition is reconciled to God and his sins are couered with God and are throughly forgotten But howe can a man saue the soule of a man from death And how shall he hide a multitude of sinnes By the ministerie and not by his owne proper power So Paule sayth that he did beget the Galathians and writing vnto Timothe he sayth In doing this thou shalt both saue thy selfe and them that heare thee Although it belongeth to God only to saue yet he adioyneth vs vnto him as it were associates and ascribeth vnto vs for the ministeries sake that which in very dede belongeth only vnto himselfe This ought to make y e dignity of y e ministerie of the word more commendable vnto vs when we heare that we in procuring the saluation of men are workers togither with God to whom he doth impart also diuine honour after a sorte Howe a man doth hide a multitude of sinnes I haue nowe declared he doth it not by power but by doctrine and pardon By doctrine he causeth the sinner to turne himselfe vnto God who onely clenseth sin by pardon while he hideth the faults of his brother Herevnto pertayneth that saying Loue couereth the multitude of sinnes The Papistes which of this saying doe gather that man by his loue doth merite remission of sinnes are deceyued as the setting of one contrarie agaynst the other 〈…〉 for there hatred 〈…〉 agaynst another as contrarie causes 〈…〉 Hatred sayth he stirreth vp strifes 〈…〉 â—ereth the multitude of sinnes For as haâ— is the cause of contentions among men so loue couereth faultes eyther by reforming them or by winking at them FINIS The author of this Epistle vvho vvhat he vvas Of vvhat authoritie this Epistle is and from vvhence the same authoritie is taken The occasion vvhich moued Iames to vvrite this Epistle is of tvvo sortes The end and purpose of the Apostle The maner and order The profite vse of this Epistle The author of this Epistle is a glasse of godlinesse why VVhy this Epistle certaine other in the newe Testament are called Generall The partes of this chapter are six which are here in order rehearsed To vvhom the Apostle vvriteth this Epistle The kingdom of Christ and the kingdomes of the vvorlde doe greatly differ The ends of the tentation of the godlye and of the vngodly are diuers The effectes of the tentation of the godly We must continue constant vnto the ende Matth. 10.22 The finall effect of the crosse of the godly Two kinds of perfection mentioned in the scripture Gen. 17.1 Matth. 5.48 Philip. 3.12.13.14.15 Definitions of christian perfection taken out of the wordes of Paule VVho may be sayd to be perfect according to the vse of the Scriptures A liuely example of christian perfection Gen. 22.2.3.4.6.9 The commandement of God to Abraham The obedience of Abraham tovvarde God VVhat vve must doe if vve vvill be counted perfect in this life Another example vvhere by perfection and the partes thereof