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A00796 A treatise of faith wherin is briefely, and planly [sic] shewed, a direct way, by which every man may resolue, and settle his minde, in all doubtes, questions, or controuersies, concerning matters of faith. Fisher, John, 1569-1641. 1605 (1605) STC 10915.5; ESTC S2122 65,176 166

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burthen light The which moueth a man to conceiue great hope of eschewing euill and liuing wel which hope consequently hart to do well a man cannot haue who perswadeth himself that Gods commandements be vnpossible to be obserued as I shewed before Againe it teacheth that as a man may by grace auoid sinne and easily keepe Gods commandements by doing good workes liue well so this good life is pleasing acceptable vnto God and these good workes as proceeding from grace and receiuing vertue frō the merits of Christ of which this grace doth depend are meritorious and such for reward whereof God will giue to them that perseuerantly do them euerlasting blisse in the kingdome of heauen The which doctrine will doubtlesse if it be duely considered breed in a mans mind great loue and delight to doe well as the contrary must needs breed at least a coldnes in deuotion if not a contempt loathing of good deeds and specially of those good deeds which haue any difficulty annexed to them It teacheth also that for sinners are prepared exceeding great punishments in the next life and that though there be meanes in the Church to get remission of sin pardon of the paine yet it teacheth that a man cānot ordinarily be absolutely certaine that hee hath so vsed those meanes as that hee hath thereby gotten that remissiō or pardon which is a great motiue to make men wary not to fall into sinne and to moue them Cum metu tremore operari salutem with feare and trembling to worke their saluation whereas Protestants vpon supposed certainety of saluation cast away this holesome feare and so may easily become carelesse of auoiding any sinne Furthermore it prescribeth holesome lawes and customes of fasting and prayer and of other exercises of vertue piety wherby the flesh may be subiect to the spirit and the spirit to God It maintaineth also secret confession of sinnes to a Priest as being a thing necessary and commanded by our Sauiour himselfe the which both is a great bridle to hold men backe from sinne as experience teacheth and is a speciall meanes whereby the Pastours of the Church knowing the inward cōscience of their flocke may better apply fitte remedies to their spirituall diseases prescribe to euery one fit exercises for their practise and progresse in vertue Finally the profession of this Church is such that euen simple Protestants when they see any Catholique do a thing amisse will ordinarily say You should not thus or a man of your profession should doe otherwise So that those which be sinful in the Roman Church cannot in any sort ascribe their sinnes to any defect or peruersity of the doctrine of the Church but must needes acknowledge thē to proceed frō their own frailty or malice cōtrary to the teaching of the Church sometimes euē cōtrary to their owne conscience actuall knowledge Wherefore I may conclude that although there be some sinfull men in the Romane Church yet it may well be called Holy because the doctrine which it beleeueth and professeth of it owne nature enclineth and directeth a man to the true holines and consequently is of it selfe holy and also because there be many holy persons in it some of which are certainely knowne in particuler to be such by proofe of miracle others are onely knowne by this probable reason to wit that they hold the same faith which was holden by those who haue bin certainely knowen holy men and houlding the same faith which must needs be the true faith sith none are truly holy or can possibly please God without the right faith which is but one they haue in them a root out of which true holines is apte to spring and therefore when wee see no apparant euill fruite whereby wee may discouer some euill roote but only good which is apt to spring of this good root and especially when we see the fruite of their good workes to be conformable like to the workes of those which are knowne Saints wee haue great cause to iudge that they also are iust men and in some sorte holy if not perfectly Saintes Sith therfore many men which haue bin and are members of the Romane Church haue beene and are knowne either by absolute proofe of miracle or at least in this other manner to be holy Of these as of the better more worthy and principall part the whole may be as I said before tearmed holy as a tree that hauing a roote apte to giue life to the braunches some of which being deade others haue life is absolutely said to be aliue which if wee should see to haue a corrupted roote and could not perceiue it to haue any liuing braunches wee should haue cause to affirme absolutely that it were dead and not aliue §. III. That the Romane Church onelie is Catholique THIRDLY I finde that the Protestants company is not Catholique that is to say vniuersall neither in time nor in place for it came vp of late and is but in few places of Christendome neither in points of doctrine for their doctrine consisteth chiefely of negatiues that is to say in denying diuers pointes which haue beene generally held in former ages as appeareth by the Chronicles of the Magd●burgenses their owne doctors who confesse that the ancient Fathers held this and that which they now deny And there is no learned Protestant vnles he be too too impudent but he will confesse that there cannot bee assigned a visible company of men professing the same faith which they doe euer since Christ his time continuing without interruption till now And therefore will he nill he he must confesse that the Protestants Church is not vniuersall and therefore not Catholique as out of Scripture I shewed Christs true Church must be But the Romaine Church is Catholique For first it hath bene continually without ceasing since Christ and his Apostles time stil visibly though sometimes in persecution professing the same faith which is receiued from the Apostles without change til● this day It is therefore Catholique or vniuersall in time It hath also had and hath at this day some in euery countrey where there are any Christians which is almost if not absolutely euery where that communicateth and agreeth with it in profession of faith Therefore it is also Catholique or vniuersall in place It teacheth also an vniuersall and most ample vniforme doctrine of God of angels of all other creatures specially of man of mans first framing of his finall end of things pertaining to his nature of his fall by sinne of his reparation by grace of lawes prescribed vnto him of vertues which hee ought to embrace of vices which hee ought to eschew of Christ our Redeemer his Incarnation life death resurrection ascension and comming again to Iudgemēt of Sacraments and all other things that any way pertaine to Christian religion Neither doth it at this day denie any one point of doctrine of faith which in former times
without exception or respect of persons he beareth to al mākind hath ordained some marks or notes by which all sortes and consequently euen simple men may sufficiētly discerne which company among many which challenge to themselues the title of the true Church is indeede the true Church For sith hee would haue euery one to heare and learne thinges necessary to saluation only of the true Church we must needes thinke his wisedome and goodnes to haue marked this his Church with such manifest signes properties that all men may easily know it and discerne it from others whome he knew would take vpō them though falsly the title and profession of the true Church This seemeth to haue beene expressely foretold by the Prophete Isaias when he saieth Scietur in gentibus semen eorum germen eorum in medio populorum Omnes qui viderint ●os cognoscent illos quia isti sunt semen cui benedixit Dominus Their seed shall be knowen in the nations their ofspring in the middest of people all that shall see them shall know them because these are that seed which our Lord hath blessed Which is as much as if he should say that the Church shall haue such manifest markes that it shal be easy for euery one to know them to be the true Church Some of these markes are set downe by S. Austen who calleth them bandes or chaines which doe hold a faithfull man in the Catholique Church although for the slownes of his wit or for some other cause he doth not euidently see the truth of the doctrine in it selfe Of these markes diuers authours haue written at large I for breuitie sake haue chosen out onely these foure Vna Sancta Catholica Apostolica One Holy Catholique Apostolique because I hope these will be sufficient and because I finde these e●pecially set forth in Scriptures commē●ed by Councels and generally admit●ed of all sortes both Catholiques and Protestantes as now I am to declare First for the generall admittance of these properties of the true Church I need no other proofe but that both Catholiques and Protestantes allow of the Nicene Constantinopolitane Creed where●n we profes to beleeue the true Church ●he which Church is there described with these onely foure properties which before I named as though by those onely euery man might sufficiently know that Church which in euery pointe they are bound to beleeue Now if besides this proofe out of the generally receiued Councels some precise man would haue ●eproue these properties to agree to the true Church out of the Scripture it selfe this also I may easily doe The true Church is signified to be One by those wordes of the Canticle Vna est 〈◊〉 mea if we will beleeue the exposition of S. Cyprian and S. Austen Also we may gather the same out of those wordes of our Sauiour in which he calleth his Church vnum ouile one sheepfold Also by those places of S. Paul where he tearmeth the Church vnum corpus one body Moreouer Christ our Sauiour praying for his Church did specially intreate without doubt obtained vt omnes vnum sint that all the membres therof should be one thing to wit that at the least they should al professe one and the same faith all partake of one and the same baptisme and other Sacramentes all liue vnder one and the same Lord in due subordination subiection to that vniforme and orderly gouernement of lawfull pastours ordained appointed in the Church by him The true Church of Christ therefore is one Contrary the conuenticles of Heretiques are destitute of this marke of vnitie according as Tertullian affirmeth saying Denique penitus inspectae Haereses omnes in multis deprehenduntur cum auctoribus suis dissentientes Finally all Heresies if they be well looked into are found to differ in many thinges from their first founders And the reason of this disagreemēt amōg Heretiques the same Tertullian assigneth very well in the same place saying Variant inter se Haeretici dum vnusquisque pro su● arbitrio modulatur quod accepit quemadmodum 〈◊〉 pro arbitrio composuit ille qui tradidit Heretiques do differ in pointes of doctrine ●mong themselues while as euery one ta●eth vpon him to fashion the faith which he receiued according to his owne liking 〈◊〉 fancie like as he that first deliuered it ●nto them did inuent it according to his owne will and pleasure The true Church is also proued to bee ●●ly by that of S. Paule Templum Dei sanctum est quod estis vos The temple of God is holy which temple you are By which place notwithstanding S. Paule did not ●eane to signifie that euery one of this companie was holy For a litle after in the same Epistle hee saith to the same cōpanie Omnino auditur inter vos fornicatio ●●lis fornicatio qualis nec inter gentes There is plainely heard fornication among you and such fornication as the like is not among the heathen He doth not therfore I say meane that euery one of the Church is holy but that the whole company is to be tearmed holy because the profession thereof doth of it selfe wholy tend to holines the doctrine being such as withdraweth from all vice and instructeth and moueth men to vertue the Sacraments also do not only signifie but in the vertue which they haue from Christ his Passion they also worke in vs as instrumentall causes true inward sanctitie Wherfore although euery one that is in the Church be not holy yet no doubt alwaies some are the which their holines it pleaseth almighty God to testifie and make knowne sometime by miracle and ordinarily he vseth to make it apparant enough by the light of their vertuous actions which at all times in many members of the true Church doe so shine before men that by it men are moued to glorify God and sometimes to imitate in their owne life that which in others they admire And whatsoeuer member of the Church faileth from this holines of life it is euident that the faulte is only in himselfe who liueth not according to the prescript of his profession nor vseth in due sort those meanes which it hath of the holy Sacraments which as I said before are effectual instruments of sanctification Contrariwise no sect of Heretiques is truely holy neither was there euer any person that did inuent or obstinately adhere vnto any sect of heresie which ●ad in him true sāctity And no merueile Because the very profession and doctrine it selfe of euery heresie is opposite to the very rootes of true sanctity the which rootes be true Christian faith and humilitie For how can he be truely holy and iust who being possessed with the spirit of heresy must needs be depriued of true faith without which the iust man cannot liue according to that saying of S. Paule Iustus ex fide viuit Or how can he be holy that doth