promulgation of the Law I would ask him What the Law is which if it is nothing but the Rule of Righteousness how can any man be just where there is no Law But what man was there ever in the World but he carried about with him the Law of God if not written in Tables yet written on his heart and engraven on his conscience But the Decalogue was not yet engraven on Tables of Stone But what was contained in the Moral Decalogue which that holy man did not already comprehend within his own heart both of loving God and his Neighbour of not Murthering of not committing Adultery or honouring Parents c. 3. As touching the scope of this Epistle how greatly is campian mistaken For who is so void of sense that he doth not clearly perceive that the drift of the Apostle is not that which those Iesuits dream of to attribute our Salvation or Iustification to any Works either going before or following after Neither was this Office of an Ambassadour committed unto him that he might contend with the Iews about Ceremonies or with the Gentiles about Moral Duties but as Peter was entrusted with the Apostleship of the Circumcision so also the Preaching of the Gospel to the Uncircumcision was committed unto Paul not that he should Preach the Law but the Faith which before he opposed Not that he might declare the Righteousness of Works in which there is no Salvation but that God by him might reveal his Son amongst the Gentiles and might manifest unto the World that heavenly Trophy and glad Tydings of Peace and Victory obtained in Heaven by Christ and spread abroad far and wide through the Churches the boundless riches of Divine Grace which he had experienced in himself For he was called for this purpose to the Apostleship that the infinitely gracious Lord and Redeemer Christ Iesus might first exercise his Mercy towards him and afterwards by him declare his great Mercy towards Sinners not only by hisExample but also by his Ministry For thus he bears witness of himself that the Ministry of Reconciliation was committed to him for which he was appointed to be a Preacher and Apostle and Teacher of the Gentiles in Faith and Truth that he being an Ambassadour in Christ's stead might invite all men yea and beg of them that they would be reconciled unto God And this seems to be the principal scope that Paul aims at not only in the Epistle to the Romans but also in all his Doctrine to proclaim amongst the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ and that he might set before the view of all men what is the Communion of the Mystery that was hidden with God in former Ages c. But now in the Righteousness of Works no such Mystery lay hidden with God from former Ages Therefore it is false and abominable which Campian the Iesuit and such like Sophisters assert concerning the scope and sense of Paul's Epistle to the Romans For by the Law which Paul excludes from Iustification they understand that part thereof which comprehends Ceremonial and Iudicial Works wherein the Iews gloried or Works purely Moral performed before Faith on which the Gentiles relied Yea on the contrary when Paul removes the Law from Iustification he doth not only exclude it upon the account of Iewish Ceremonies or Moral Works performed before Faith but also upon the account of its weakness through the flesh both in Iews and Gentiles both in the regenerate and the unregenerate so that it cannot make sufficient satisfaction to the Iustice of God And Paul affirms That for this cause God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh What did God do but what flesh could not do For sin he condemned sin in the flesh In what flesh ours or his own Sons Who of all the Regenerate though endued with great habitual Faith and Grace hath so led his life walking not according to the flesh but according to the spirit but he always carries about with him flesh that is weak in many respects and vicious and subject to sin Concerning which every one may complain with the Apostle I know that in me that is in my flesh dwells no good thing And again I find a Law that when I would do good evil is present with me c. For what they speak of Works following Faith and Grace how little that helps their cause appears not more evident by any Argument than by the Lives of those that maintain this Controversie if they be strictly enquired into If that be true which Campian with his Iesuits pleads for That Righteousness is not obtained in men come to years but by Works that follow after Faith Let us behold then what excellent Works this Faith of the Mother Church of Rome brings forth seeing they so much glory in the Title of Catholick Faith and Preach so many things about Charity which is the fulfilling of the Law Let us look into the Life and Works of the Roman Popes Cardinals and Bishops and the whole Crew of the Monks and Iesuits Where can you find more of the flesh or less of true holiness than in those false-hearted and painted Hypocrites whose whole profession of Religion consists in Purple Gowns high topped Mitres Purple Caps Rings adorned with Iewels solemn Vows Ceremonies which in reality are rather Stage-playes than Exercises of Piety This appears to be too true by the unhappy Tumults raised in the World the Wars and Persecutions that are stirred up by none more than by those very men that call themselves Spiritual and Catholick whom it should become to be the chiefest encouragers of Concord and Messengers of Peace But having so much enlarged upon this sort of men with their Works and Merits let us return to the Examples of those of whom we spake before who were freely admitted unto Baptism and received into favour by Faith without any commendation of Merits at all yea without mention of any Works except such perhaps as were evil Amongst which number those Iews may be reckoned of whom three thousand at one time were Baptized by Peter Likewise also the Eunuch whom Faith only without Works made not only meet for Baptism but also an Heir of the Heavenly Kingdom And the Iaylor whom Paul Baptized Moreover Paul himself and all the Apostles and Publicans the family of Cornelius Zacehaeus Mary Magdalen and the Thief on the Cross If Faith without Works was sufficient to them for the Grace of Baptism why not also for the obtaining of Iustification and Life Eternal Vega and those of his Association answers after his usual manner that in all these Repentance was joyned with Faith and other things also belonging to good Manners and a godly Life But it easily appears how vain and insignificant this Answer of Vega is He says Repentance and other Vertues are joyned with Faith Which tho' I confess to be in some sense true in the lives and persons of
heads for joy of the approaching Redemption and yet dares Canisius command us to hang them down for fear of Iudgment Doth Paul promote the Saints unto so high a pitch of dignity that he places them on the Seat of Iudgment together with Christ. as his Assessours and Assistants And yet must Canisius thrust the godly down as low as the ungodly to render a strict account of all the transactions of their Lives The holy Spirit in the Souls of Believers with fervency breaths after Christ crying Come Lord Iesus come quickly Should Canisius then endeavour to quench those holy desires by unbelief and distrustful fears The Sacred Writings of the holy Apostles call the Spirit of the Saints a Spirit not of bondage to fear but a Spirit of Adoption whereby we cry Abba Father and yet hath Canisius the Iesuit the impudence to call back the Saints from a Spirit of Liberty to a slavish Spirit of Bondage Is this any society with Iesus Paul desires to be dissolved and to be with Christ. All Believers in Christ desire the same being afflicted in this Life For all that desire to live godly in Christ Iesus shall suffer Persecution in this present evil World The Souls of them that were slain under the Altar are greatly longing for the coming of this Iudgment But as for Canisius he would persuade us to be afraid of this day and not to wish for it and love it as the Apostle Paul teaches us Iohn in the Revelation bids us rejoyce because the Marriage of the Lamb is approaching but the Iesuit bids us mourn The Lamb's Wife cloaths her self in fine Linnen in token of her joy but Canisius would have her cloathed in Sackcloth Nevertheless I deny not the truth of that which he gathers out of Bernard Gregory and Augustin concerning the dreadful severity of this Iudgment than which I know that nothing can be more terrible to them that seek Salvation by the Righteousness of the Law without flying to Christ for refuge But on the other side we ought not to abate the comfort nor discourage the fiducial reliance of Believers in Christ who are planted in him by Faith Though they acknowledge their own imperfections yet they strive against them and endeavour daily according to their power to make some progress in Holiness And therefore as there is nothing in their good Works whereof they may boast So also there is nothing in their evil Works being now forgiven which they have cause to fear Let us now proceed to the other Arguments of the Adversaries Argument If there are no merits of Works then that saying is false Thou shalt render to every one according to his Works But the Consequent is false therefore also the Antecedent The Minor hath been answered already by making a distinction of persons For there being a twofold sort of men to wit Such as are in Christ and such as are out of Chrst there must be a different Iudgment made of the one and the other First Those that are in Christ being united unto him by Faith the Iudgment of God uses to begin with them in this Life As touching the Life to come the Lord hath made this Promise concerning every Believer He shall not come into Iudgment but hath passed from Death to Life Secondly Suppose we grant that the Elect of God shall be called to Iudgment the account that they shall then make will be very easie who have Christ for their Righteousness Whence it follows by necessary consequence that this Iudgment will be to them a Iudgment not of Condemnation but of Absolution Thirdly Sentences of the Law belong properly to them that are under the Law but as for such as are regenerate by Faith in Christ because they are not under the Law but under Grace the Law hath no dominion over them Fourthly Whereas it is said That every man shall receive according to his works those works are either good or evil If good they are good upon the account of Faith only for what is not of Faith is sin and so they are beyond all danger But if evil either they are forgiven or not forgiven If they are forgiven through Faith and Repentance they are not called to Iudgment If not forgiven it is because they want Faith and so they are the works of the Unregenerate Whence it follows that this Iudgment of Condemnation doth not at all belong to them that are regenerate by Faith but them that are unregenerate Another Objection That place in Mat. 22. concerning the wedding garment is objected The King entring into the Marriage Feast saw a man not having on the wedding garment c. I wonder what those Papists can find in this place of Scripture to cover the shame of their own nakedness when there is nothing that less advantages their cause or weakens it more The wedding garment say they signifies Charity from whence they form this Argument They that have on the wedding garment are admitted to the Marriage Feast Charity only is the wedding garment Therefore they that are adorned with Charity are admitted to the heavenly Marriage Feast An Explication of the Parable of the Wedding Garment THE Minor must be denied Though works of Charity are of no small advantage to adorn and beautifie faith in the exercise fo Civilty and Morality yet a Garment suitable to the Heavenly Marriage-feast cannot be made of such Cloth but of other Materials What that is whereof this Garment must be made Paul the Apostle teaches us Put on the Lord Iesus Christ. And again whosever of you are Baptized ye have put on Christ. Because we put not on him by Charity but by Faith only Therefore faith is the Garment made white with the Blood of the Lamb which Cloaths us for this Marriage-feast not Charity nor the filthy ragged apparel of our Works Which that it may appear the more evident let us diligently consider both the Parable and the signification thereof First He that compares our great happiness in Christ to a Marriage-feast How could he more significantly set forth that which is the most joyful of all things For what is more joyful or suitable to Mirth than a Marriage-feast Where all things resound with Ioy and Dancing where there is no sign of Sorrow where no Lamentation is heard no Tear is seen yea all Tears are wiped away from the Eyes Unhappy is he that partakes not of the great felicity and unspeakable Ioy of this blessed Marriage-feast He that unworthily dishonours it deserves to be abhorred and he that disgraces it with Sackcloth and Ashes or any other Garment and comes to it without the wedding-garment is not worthy to enjoy so great a blessedness Now consider besides the joyfulness of the time the greatness of the benefit both which are Infinite and Eternal For as there is no firmer nor nearer Bond amongst Men than that of Marriage So nothing is more Divine
this subject matter that you appear to be a Philosopher Platonick enough and no bad Ciceronian Orator but not a very Evangelical Divine I can assure you nor skilful enough to plead the cause of Christian Righteousness First As touching the Title of the Book concerning Righteousness I find nothing blame-worthy Though the frailty of our Nature might persuade you rather to discourse some thing to us of Mercy Yet seeing you chuse rather to discourse Philosophically of righteousness you are not therein unworthy of your own praise For being about to treat of righteousness you have undertaken a very honourable subject and I doubt too weighty for your Shoulders to bear and a work indeed very difficult and excellent For what is more excellent than righteousness in the whole nature of Divine and Humane things Which seeing it comprehends within its circumference all kinds of vertues the whole praise of Piety and not only the highest perfection of the Law but also the perfect Image of God indeed it may be found in Heaven but on Earth it cannot be found when you have said all you can Wherefore I am ready the more to wonder and consider with my self what secret design you had in your mind that you have composed Books so accurately exquisite concerning righteousness If it was that by the Trumpet of your commendation you might make it more acceptable to us you have therein lighted on a matter suitable to your wit and large enough for setting forth the riches of your Eloquence that I may confess the truth to you But I wonder for what purpose or end you did that will you say that men may the more evidently behold the beauty of righteousness and admire it the more But this hath been formerly attempted by Plato and many Academicks and Peripateticks and that with no bad success And who is so void of all natural sense but though he is not himself endued with the excellency of righteousness yet he apprehends in his mind the Divine brightness thereof and greatly admires it and wishes for it with all his heart If wishes in this case could do any good Inherent Righteousness unto that perfection which Osorius describes can no where be found in this Nature AND I could wish that the Integrity of Nature wherein we were of old Created had continued unto the compleat exactness of all righteousness But now in this ruinated and disabled nature why do you seek after that which we have lost rather bring forth something if you can whereby we may make up the loss What can it profit a man already dead to know the danger whereby he perished Verily there is more need of a medicine if you have any by which you may either comfort him being destroyed or restore him to the Life that was lost Yea this is the thing say you which I endeavour in these Books disputing of righteousness For righteousness as you say is the only remedy for restoring Life and regaining Health Yea this is the very thing Osorius that I chiefly find fault with in these Books not because you write of righteousness for I commend the argument in which you are exercised I commend also your praises of righteousness which are high and copious righteousness cannot be praised enough by any Man-But there is another thing for which all good Men should be angry with you What that is if you please I will tell you freely and openly for in these Books you represent unto us a spectacle not very much differing from that which Origenes relates of Celsus and Antipho who though they did write very contrary to truth yet they recommended those very Books that were against the Truth with the title of a true saying After which manner you do in a case not very unlike it whilest you write indeed concerning righteousness but at such a rate that nothing can be said more maliciously against true righteousness A twofold and different Account of Doctrine one of the Law and another of the Gospel FOR as there is a twofold manner of Covenant so also there is of righteousness proposed in the Scriptures The one consists in precepts and works under the weight whereof we all of necessity fall down to destruction The other is that of the Gospel which is safe-guarded not by works not by observance of the Law not by any peformance of duties on our side but by the sure and only Faith of Christ the Son of God Verily whosoever rejecting the righteousness of Christ whereof I speak leads us aside unto any other manner of righteousness I say that he pleads not for righteousness but against it and doth not undertake the defence of the Law of God but is a professed Enemy of the Grace of Christ and his Cross and therefore doth not open but wholly shuts up all passages to true Salvation and all Gates and Doors of Divine Grace For I beseech you if we are willing to confess the truth with the Sacred Scripture what is it else in which all the fountains and causes of our destruction are contained unto which as the principal head and spring we may attribute all our calamity but this very manner of righteousness placed in God and his Law by whose infinite immensity not only our faults but also all the Poizes of our righteousness are weighed down to the destruction of damnation If there is nothing but the righteousness of Works that may help our too scanty and short Obedience But perhaps these things that have been said hitherto are enough concerning the Title of the Book By which your prudence may lead you easily to suppose what should be judged of the rest of the Work In which when I contemplate the external form and countenance of the Workmanship verily I see that it is not without beauty nor unworthy to be looked upon when I number the Books themselves I take notice they are both many and large enough When I look on the Words and Pages I see whole Rivers and Sands that cannot be numbred but when I turn to the things themselves when I consider the Reasons and force of Arguments when I compare the Words and Sayings of the Scriptures at a strange rate quoted with the true sense of Scriptures not rightly understood by you and also when I take notice of the end and scope of the whole disputation I am not willing at present to discover to you what I find here lest in what I say I should seem to exceed the bounds of that modesty which here I profess But yet that I may say something for the sake of Truth to which I am more obliged because of necessity something must be said I will speak but in a few words If any other Man had Published these Books concerning Righteousness amongst the common People except your self I should say to him openly and to his face that no Man could ever have brought in a greater plague into the Doctrine
of the general Salvation of Christians nor a filthier blot upon Religion nor have done a greater injury to St. Paul the Scriptures and the Prophets than is manifest in these Books But in writing these things to you I restrain my self for your sake lest I pass the bounds of modesty which I have set to my self What then should the cause of Truth therefore be deserted You your self do not require that of me as I suppose Wherefore that I may as much as I can observe that which is my duty in both respects I have laid hold on this way of prosecuting this design which you see and which necessity hath laid upon me whereby I might both less offend you and likewise perhaps more benefit the cause I have undertaken to defend Therefore seeing I judged it necessary to oppose your attempts in this matter so I thought it most convenient not that I should in this Book answer to all the small scraps of Reasons in the order that you observe which indeed is none at all in a tumultuary confusion in those Ten Books but that I may by choice touch upon and confute the chief of them How easie it is to err in the Doctrine of Iustification SEeing these things and others like unto them contain the principal Heads of all Christian Doctrine therefore Divines should take a special care lest they err in these which care unless they take there will follow a most grievous ruin and perturbation of all things the foundations being as it were put out of their places And yet I know not how it comes to pass that error is no where more easily committed than in these Points Neither is it so strange for so it comes to pass that this animal nature we call Human Reason when consulted with about the things of God is most blind and sees nothing unless it be Illuminated with the better Light of Divine Knowledge shining in upon it For the right understanding of Divine things comes by the Spirit of God and not by Human Capacity and though the Law and the things of the Law were in some sense born with us and cleave unto our Nature Yet the Mysteries of the Doctrine of the Gospel are not apprehended so easily because the Nature of both is very different Moreover you may see many who following the guidance of Nature and her precepts more than is meet do teach and dispute of things belonging to the Gospel just as if a Philosopher should discourse of the Principles of Nature or a Moralist of the perfection of Vertues in which they place their chiefest good or as if a Pharisee sitting in the Chair of Moses should dispute about the Righteousness of the Law But there will be another occasion of treating of these things if opportunity be granted In the mean while that I may speak ingenuously of thee O Osorius with how much the greater natural parts God in his bounty hath adorned thee and heaped upon thee it is the more grievous to me that thou art violently drawn aside with others into that blindness of error That though you teach us many things in your reasoning about Righteousness yet you scarcely teach any thing that makes much to the purpose and nothing at all that is profitable for Salvation but rather on the contrary that which is very hurtful For I beseech you What assurance can there be of Salvation if you shut out Mercy and send us to our own Righteousness as the only way which conveys us to Heaven for all your Doctrine of Divinity looks that way To wit when discoursing of the hope of remedy you affirm there is no other way but that only of becoming like unto God and being united unto him and that this is the only way of a Blessed Life which consists wholly in Righteousness which whoso do observe those you affirm do abound with Divine Riches and Eternal Glory As if there were no hope remaining for him that turns a little aside from these footsteps Than which what could be said or invented more repugnant to the Gospel yea also elsewhere repeating again the same thing tho' in different Words How should a Man be saved say you Is there any other paved way to Salvation but what is contained in the Law of God None at all c. And again in another Book as in all your Books reasoning about the Works of the Law you assert that Righteousness is purchased by these that Men go up to Heaven by these as by steps that eternal rewards are appointed for these and you plead that this is the only way we have to Heaven which is paved with renowned Works c. Moreover you proclaim yet with more open Mouth Wherefore say you it must be attested with greater freedom of Speech that the ascent into Heaven is given to the Merits of the greatest Vertues and that the Mansions of the Everlasting Kingdom are given justly and deservedly to Holy and Chast Men c. It would take up a long time and be much more troublesome to rake together out of every one of your Books every one of those wonderful sayings which are more than Paradoxes whereby you plead that all the safeguard of our Salvation should be placed in nothing else but in the observance and care of Righteousness which if you could as well perform in effect and reality as you set them forth in Words magnificently I should esteem that none were more happy none more worthy of Heaven than you But now let us suppose that which I see you would so fain have granted that Heaven is only due to perfect Men no other ways but upon the account of Righteousness and that there is no other way of coming to those blessed mansions but that which is trodden by the most pure footsteps of good men and settled in the perfect integrity of Works Now we are not against the deserved praises of righteousness neither do we with-hold from it its rewards Be it so indeed But where shall we find this Righteousness Dic quibus in terris erit mihi magnus Apollo Tell me in what Country and I shall esteem you to be a great Oracle This man of righteous life dwells who will so direct the course of his Life according to this Idea of Vertue proposed by you that he fails no where who Roots out all manner of wickedness who refrains himself from railing with his Tongue Suppresses the Haughtiness Insolency and madness of an Ambitious Spirit and the rashness of a Headstrong Mind who Crucifies the Flesh with its Lusts who suppressing ungodly lustings by frequent meditation upon Death brings himself over from all Impurity and Impiety to the resemblance of Christ who separating his mind from the Contagion of the Body applies it wholly to the Imitation of Christ who resembles the humility and meekness of Christ his bounty and benevolence and his excellent Holiness in all respects and also cuts off all
empty On the contrary the Publican who emptied himself and took care to bring an empty vessel received the more plentiful grace By these things I suppose it is sufficiently evident what this Righteousness is and of what sort which makes us righteous before God whether it is Christs or ours If it is Christs it is not ours How then of works of our righteousness If it is ours it is not Christs how is a man of wicked made righteous If of wicked he is made righteous that I may speak in the words of Augustine what are the works of wicked men Let the wicked man now boast of his works I give to the Poor I take nothing away from any man c. then thou art in this thy boast wicked and thy works are none These things said he therefore it is a false Opinion which men plead for to wit that a man cannot be called righteous by an external righteousness Neither is it less Ass-like which those Balqamites do bray who say that it is the same thing for a man to be thus Righteous as if a man should say an Ass with the form of an Ass is a Mon for by Faith we are called faithful and by righteousness weare called righteous c. Be it so indeed that no Man should rightly be called righteous but upon the account of Righteousness what then seeing Christ is our righteousness is there not sufficient cause upon that account why we should be called righteous should any man require a better righteousness than that which is Christs And what form of expressing though external can hinder but that the righteousness which is peculiar to Christ may also be called ours and may be common both to him and us especially seeing he is wholly ours with his merits vertues benefits and all his goods which qualities though they are not properly in our selves yet being received from him they pass likewise into our possession As the Bodies of the Stars and Planets though dark of themselves yet they shine and are made bright not with their own but anothers light to wit being inlightned with the light of the Sun just so it comes to pass to us that we are made Righteous Kings Priests Sons and Heirs of God not by any property of our nature or condition of works but because the Son and Heir himself is said to be made Sin and a Curse for us not for any sin inherent in him but imputed to him Argument But here again and again those impure Sophisters object that this was never heard from Aristotle and that it is not agreeable to reason that he should be called learned that hath no learning or righteous that is not endued with righteousness And perhaps that may seem true in moral vertue Now seeing there is a twofold righteousness as I have said one which they call Ethick another which is Theological that consists in manners this in faith we must judge far otherwise of this than of that For the righteousness of which Aristotle treats as it is a moral vertue distinguished from prudence courage and temperance thus it is referred to the habits of the mind and internal qualities according to which men are denominated of what sort they are by Philosophers And though we confess this to be true in some respect it doth not at all hurt our cause nor discourage our enterprize in clearing this point For all this Controversie undertaken by us drives at this that we should search for a righteousness which is no moral humane vertue but which is a Spiritual Grace and gift of God which is not ours but which is proper to Christ whence he only is called holy and just and we are called justified in him not upon the account of works but faith which God imputes for righteousness unto them that believe in his name And hence it is rightly called the righteousness of faith and therefore faith it self is righteousness whereby we are accounted righteous before God being endued not with that external righteousness about which those men Philosophize but being beautified and adorned with a peculiar and most internal righteousness which being so who sees not that it is false and sophistical which those men take out of Aristotle that we are justified by works or should upon no account be called just why so because no man can be called just but upon the account of the righteousness which every man possesses for his own in himself For thus do those sharp-witted Men argue who cannot endure the free justification of Faith To whom that I may make answer let us hear this first from them Whether faith whereby we believe in Christ seems to them a vertue or not If they judge so I ask whether it is a moral vertue or a theological And then whether it is internal and inherent being inwardly placed or whether it should be called external If faith is an internal thing and the same is our righteousness in the fight of God Why then should not this seem an allowable form of arguing against the Iesuites who deny that we are otherwise justified than by internal and inherent righteousness Argument Ma. Our Faith is Righteousness before God Mi. Our Faith is an internal and inherent vertue Concl. Therefore we are made righteous before God by an internal and inherent vertue But here again the Adversaries object that they do not at all deny but that Faith is an internal vertue in us which nevertheless makes us faithful but makes us not just Why so because we are said to be faithful from faith but we are said to be righteous only from righteousness O sweet and understanding men as if those who are faithful in Christ Iesus were not also just before our God or as if these things should only be looked upon in their names and needed not to be considered rather in their causes and effects And what will they then say to these words of Paul being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Iesus Christ What if the cause being granted the effect also must necessarily be granted and faith is a justifying cause as the Apostle witnesseth how can it be that those who receive the name of faithful from faith should not also upon the same account receive the cause of righteousnes whence they are not only called righteous but made so also in reality And these things we have said by the by against the objections of the Iesuits who seeing they so strictly examine the Divine Theorems of our Religion according to the Logical forms of arguing it is reasonable that we also should keep them entangled and expedite our selves out of their nets as much as may be Here therefore seeing they require of us Arguments conformed unto the modes of Aristotle let them so receive them Argument Ma. Men from Righteousness are rightly and formally called Righteous Mi. The Faith of Christ is Righteousness imputed to us by God
merits of Works or before Works the same Paul will teach you As soon as you are Baptized saith he you have put on Christ. To which also Chrysostom subscribing saith as soon as a Man Belives he is presently also Iustified Which if it be true then it is false which you assert For you affirm that the obtaining of Salvation consists wholly in this that we should transform our selves entirely into the similitude of Christ. And again youn say there is no other way of Salvation established for us but that which is contained in the Law of God And the same you affirmed elsewhere having openly asserted That ascent into Heaven is given to the merits of the greatest Vertues and that the Mansions of the Eternal Kingdom are given justly and deservedly to Holy and Pure Men. For so Say you it comes to pass that the Immortal Kingdom is due by the best right to Iust Men not only as a recompence and remard but also as a Lawful Inheritance being founded upon the Wisdom and Bounty of the Father All which things as being represented gloriously by you seem at a distance to have some shew of Truth if they be referred to that Platonick Righteousness of yours or to the state of our First Innocency But now in this wounded and destroyed Nature they have no place at all but that they may wholly prelude from us all passages into the Eternal Mansions of the Kingdom I know indeed that the Everlasting reward of Righteousness is due by best right to Pure and Holy Men as you say and those that observe the Law unblameably But I know likewise that the Eternal Punishments of Hell are due to those that do not perform the Royal Law according to the Scriptures What would you do in this case good Friend What good can your Platonick Philosophy do here I am not Ignorant what the Lord said to the Rich Pharisee If you will enter into Life keep the commands That indeed is true Do you then perform what he was commanded to do Sell all that you have and give to the Poor and follow Christ Naked But if you do it not what else can you look for but to perish together with him But now the goodness of God hath found out another way to consult our Infirmity who hath not only put upon us the beauty of Righteousness but whole Christ so that you may not only being Naked follow Christ but that whole Christ may live in your self and Cloath you and also may make you a Son of God by Faith What then may some Man say is not the Holy Spirit given to them that trust in Christ to Illuminate their minds with new light to renew their Hearts to enrich them plentifully with the Riches Gifts and Endowments of good Works and to adorn them exceedingly with all kind of Vertues What do these good Works nothing with God which are performed by the influence of the most Holy Spirit Do they contribute nothing towards Righteousness have they no use nor place upon the account of reward For this seems to be the Foundation of all your arguing Where you write these words If we believe the promises of God we presently obtain the help of God that we may very easily do all things that are commanded us and so may be saved And presently after the Interposition of a few words You say Faith causes us to have the Law of God Written in our mind and so to make an everlasting Covenant of Salvation with the Lord. Therefore when we have the Law of God put into the most inward parts of our mind it comes to pass that Lust being subdued Evil concupisence extinguished the pravity of a stubborn mind taken away the mind becomes on a sudden a Temple of the Holy Ghost and is stirred up with all its might to the study of the Law of God And that I may express it in one word such a Man contains the Magnificence and Glory of Divine Righteousness comprehended in his mind And a little after you say Therefore it is of Faith Saith Paul that according to Grace the promise may be firm What manner of promise is that That they who come to the Lord with the Faith of Christ may both be freed from their Wickedness and delivered from the Curse whereunto they were lyable and may have the Law of God Written in their Hearts and have the very Divinity of the Holy Spirit comprehended in their mind and not defile their Life with any wicked deed But may govern it by the Law of God or as it is in Ezekiel They may walk in the commands of God and perform Holy and excellent works and also that they may be Righteous For hereunto all the promises of God are referred c. Answer What do I hear Are then all the promises of God referred to this That there is no hope of Righteousness no way of Salvation no reconciliation for us nor remission of Sins unless the Law be kept And where then is that peace with God which the Apostle Preaches Being justified by Faith we have peace with God through our Lord Iesus Christ Where is that access to the Throne with boldness Where is the hope of Glory Happiness the Blessing the Inheritance of Eternal Life according to promise if these good things come no otherways as you suppose but by a Covenant of Life which no spot of Sin defiles What hath your profession of God received this Gospel from the teachings of the Apostles or from the opinion of Plato It is therefore of Faith Saith Paul that the promise may be firm according to Grace But what way is it firm if it is of Works upon any account Or how is it of Faith if you confine all the Promises of God to the Law of Righteousness which may confirm the minds of all men with a sure hope of Righteousness as you say Or what will that assurance of Righteousness be if you with the Tridentine and Iesuitical Iebusites detaining us in a doubtful wavering of hope take aways all encouragement of good hope Concerning the Promises of God what to whom and how God hath promised BUT now because here there is a convenientoccasion of speaking concerning the Promises of God it remains that we should hear from you who treat of these things so sharply what that is which God hath promised to whom he hath promised how and for what cause he doth it Now there are both many and great Gifts of God and Ornaments partly bestowed upon us and partly promised through the singular bounty of his Grace yea seeing there is nothing in this Workmanship of Nature nor in the meanest things but what we ought to acknowledge to be his free Gift if we would be thankful And also amongst all these things which being so many and so great he hath conferted upon us with so liberal a hand I esteem that nothing is more glorious nor more admirable
his Mouth Wherefore that I may bespeak you with Hierom and in the same words Hierom if you would have this common to you with Christ that you can be without fin what do you leave him that is peculiar to him But if not what remains then but that those high Mountains of righteousness with which you are so puffed up should not only fall but also vanish into smoke You proceed yet seeking as it were a knot in a rush which yet is broke through with no difficult wedge You ask to what purpose the Law was prescribed by God with 〈◊〉 great so care or for what end did he require the Law should always remain in the minds of them whom be instructed in the Law if none of those things which be established by Law was to be in the Power of Men What then say you did God make a jest of the Law did he mock Mankind commanding them to do those things which they could by no means perform and then concluding the matter with a merry Sarcasm you cry O what a jesting God if to mock Mankind he hath bestowed so much pains in preserving and instructing that Generation which you say is just as if a Man should bid one that is a Cripple run a Race or one that is blind view things exactly that are done afar off All which things are comprehended in the sum of this Argument Argument Ma. That is in vain commanded which cannot be performed Mi. God commands nothing in vain Conclu Therefore the Precepts of God are not impossible Ma. A just and prudent Lawgiver never prescribes those Laws which exceed the strength and nature of the Subjects Mi. God is the most Iust and most Wise Lawgiver of all Concl. Therefore the things which are prescribed in the Law of God are not above the strength and nature of the Creature Answer To the major I Answer two ways First That it holds indeed in these Laws which are given only for this end that they may be exactly fulfilled by the Subjects that Salvation might be obtained by the same act of Obedience But now though God willed this very much that his Laws should be performed most exactly by all yet besides this end there are other both many and weighty causes why the Law which is a rule of perfect Righteousness though it could not be kept by us in respect of perfect Obedience yet it was necessary that it should be promulagated either that there might be a publick Testimony of the Iudgment and Anger of God against Sin or that we our selves might be brought more easily to the knowledge of our Sins and Frailty Concerning which Paul said when the Law came Sin revived Or that taking notice of the frailty of corrupted and ruinated Nature being more strongly driven by this necessity we might be pressed forward as by the Ferula of a Pedagogue to Christ who is the end of the Law as also the Law is called a Pedagogue to Christ Or that we may be taught as it were by this same Pedagogy whither we must go That if we cannot attain unto a full obedience of the Law yet we may profit in the Inchoation of obedience as much as we can Wherefore seeing there are so many and so great causes of making a Law it appears evident enough from hence that there is no cause why the Law should seem to be imposed upon us by God in vain And yet it doth not therefore follow because the Law of God after the fall is impossible to Human Nature as to the compleat obedience thereof that therefore it is unprofirable seeing the same hath advantages so remarkable Therefore the major of the Argument implies a fallacy Which by the Logicians is called Arguing form that which is not a cause as if it were a cause But let us proceed to the other reasons in your arguments which are not reasons but deceits and fallacies For so you argue against Luther whom you bring forth most unjustly as a certain most bitter Adversary of Eternal Righteousness What is more contrary to Iustice and Equity say you than that one should be punished upon that account because he hath not performed those things which he could by no means so much as begin I hear you and what follows You proceed also to represent the matter as it were before the Eyes of a Man by the framing of a similitude as if some Haughty and Ill-natured Lord going from home should command one of his Servants who is so tyed up in bonds that he cannot move out of the place where be is to provide him a Dinner to dress his Meat curiously to clean the House to cover the Table and to spread the Hangings I say he that would seriously require such things of a Man tyed up Who is there but would judge him to be mad and out of his wits Then if the same Lord afterwards returning should whip and torture the same Servant who could by no means free himself from the bonds because he had not performed his command should we suppose that Man who is so cruel to his Servant to be a Man or rather a cruel Beast hid under the shape of a Man c You have Pious Reader an Example of very Tragical Cruelty Now receive the Catastrophe of the Tragedy What And shall there be any Man so Wicked that he dare so Impudently impute so great Furiousness and such a kind of Abominable Wickedness than which none seems more outragious to that most High most Excellent and most Wise Lord Creatour and Governour of all things No body for ought that I know good Friend If your self knows any I pray you point at him with your Finger to us Though I am not Ignorane what Men you aim at here But passing by Names let us search the force of your Argument and answer to each of its parts being digested in order Answer Ma. It is contrary to Iustice that any man should suffer punishment for those things which he could by no means perform Mi. God doth all things with perfect Righteousness and Equity Conel Therefore God exacts not punishment for those things which cannot be performed A Fallacy of the Accident is committed For this want of strength and impotency should have a just excuse if Nature had been properly and simply so created But when this weakness was not at first created with Nature it self but crept in some other way against Nature by Sin we must therefore see not only what this corrupted Nature now can do or cannot do but also what it ought simply to do Therefore I answer to the Major and freely own that punishment is not unjustly inflicted for those things which there is no cause but they might have been observed either in regard of the Law-giver himself or in the nature of the things themselves but only by reason of the impotency of the Subjects themselves an impotency contracted through
their own default as if a Prince send forth an Ambassador any whither very sound and whole to whom afterwards he had commanded some things which he could easily have performed unless he had made himself Cripple lame thro' his own default Now if in performing the Commands the Ambassador wants ability is there cause why this impotency should be imputed to the Prince and not rather to the Ambassador who deprived himself of his own soundness And that is it which Augustine signifies lib. de Iustic perfect Yea therefore saith he it is man's fault because it came to pass by the will of Man only that he is come to that necessity which the will of Man only cannot shake off Therefore that representation which is brought in by you of a Servant in Bonds is nothing to the purpose unless you likewise prove this that this impediment was cast upon him not thro' any fault or cause in himself which seeing it cannot be denied by you what cruelty should there be reckoned to be in it if a Lord require just punishment to be inflicted on a Servant that is corrupt and flagitious Yea behold rather singular Clemency in the Lord who is so far from inflicting upon the Servant the punishment which he deserved that he receives him into favour without any merit yea moreover exposes his dearly beloved Son to undergo punishment for the Servant Go now Osorius and when you have sufficiently considered with your self about this matter then tell who those are that are enraged with so great fury that so impudently cast such a filthy blot of Injustice and Cruelty upon Eternal Goodness What if you judge so of Luther and Calvin of whom you speak so bitterly what other thing do they but proclaim according to the Gospel the free pardoning grace of God to all that by Faith embrace Christ who was slain for us They are so far from being guilty of this Calumny which you most unjustly cast upon them that you can no where find any who with greater earnestness do declare the infinite Riches of Divine Grace to Mortal Men. How Christ takes away Sins With an Answer to the Objections of Osorius BUT this goodly Antagonist rushes upon us again with another caption which at the first sight may somewhat puzzle the mind of the Reader For he asks of those that deny Sin to be utterly extirpated by the Grace of Christ in this Life Whether they distrust his Power or his Clemency For if Christ doth not abolish all Sins in them whom he receives into favour that comes to pass either because he cannot or because he will not If you say he cannot you take away his Power If you plead that he is not willing you rob him not only of the praise of his Clemency but also of his Faithfulness Therefore whatsoever way you defend your Opinion you trample upon the Son of God and cast great reproach upon him Well said most excellent Man And now by what confirmation do you prove this For seeing his Infinite Power cannot be hindered by any difficulties from performing suddenly the things which he willeth And seeing his Love is so great that of old he bath engaged his Faithfulness that through Christ he would abolish Sins and would deliver Mankind from all wickedness what boldness then is this of most impure men who deny that Sin is utterly destroyed in those whom he hath joyned to himself with a holy Love and assert that Sin is not wholly cut off nor plucked up by the roots that all the remainders thereof are not extirpated These things said he Argument Ma. Nature can shut out all Sin being helped by the Grace of God Mi. The Grace of God helps those who are born again in Christ. Concl. Therefore all necessity of sinning is excluded in those that are born again If you understand it of the perfect help of of Grace which is hindered by no difficulties but that the infirmity of Nature may be taken away so the Major is true but the Minor false For though I confess that the Riches of Divine Grace are infinite and that the Gifts are excellent which God bestows upon his own yet this grace of God doth not so perfect any man in this Life but that oft in small things we offend all and pray daily that our debts may be forgiven us Yea what is all the discourse of the Saints to God but a continual praying and deprecating as Hierom witnesses whereby it extorts the Clemency of the Creatour that we who cannot be saved by our own strength may be saved by his Mercy Concerning which there is also heard a Mystical Song of the Psalm For this saith he shall every Saint pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found Whence Hierom infers not without reason If he is a Saint saith he how doth he pray for the pardon of sin If he hath iniquity upon what account is he called holy to wit after that manner whereby it is elsewhere said A just man falleth seven times a day and riseth up again And again A just man is an accuser of himself in the beginning of his speech c. Therefore the Grace of God helps our infirmities that they may be diminished But we deny that he so helps them that they are wholly taken away It helps indeed infirmities as hath been said but yet it leaves us infirm that it may always help us No man is ignorant how great power of Christ appeared in the holy Apostles which yet did not fully compleat their strength but it was rather perfected by their infirmity We know saith he in part and we prophesie in part But when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away We now see darkly through a Glass but then face to face Now I know in part but then I shall know as I am known Therefore that I may answer in a word If you suppose there is that help of Divine Grace which makes Obedience in this Life to be wholly unblameable and perfect Augustine will presently deny that Who discoursing of the first Precept of Righteousness whereby we are commanded to love God with all our heart and our Neighbour as our selves We shall fulfil that saith he in that Life where we shall see face to face and presently And therefore that man hath profited much in this Life in that Righteousness which is to be perfected who by profiting knows how far he is from the perfection of Righteousness Moreover that which is argued from the power of Divine Grace is not sufficient to exclude the necessity of sin They say indeed that by the perfect Grace of God it is possible that a man may not sin at all in this life Be it so Yet all things are not made which can be made by the singular power of God So by the power of God helping us we could flie yet
we must see how they are done away He does them away in this Life he will also do them 〈◊〉 in the Life to come but not after one and the same manner For Iniquity is taken away and Sin receives an end as is evident by the Prophecy of Daniel But if you ask how in this Flesh Augustin will answer you None saith he takes away Sin but Christ who is the Lamb of God that takes away the Sins of the World And he takes them away both by removing the Sins that were done and by helping that they may not be done and by bringing to the Future Life where they cannot be done at all Therefore in this Life there is only a race to Righteousness and in the other Life will be the prize This then is our Righteousness now whereby we run Hungering and Thirsting to the perfection and fulness of that Righteousness wherewith we shall afterward be satisfied in the other Life Hence the Apostle saith Not that I have already attained or am already perfect Brethren I do not think that I have apprehended but one thing I do forgetting the things that are behind and being stretched forth to those things that are before I press forward to the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Iesus c. Therefore according to Augustin here is the Race here is the Progress there will be the Perfection Here as running in a Race we proceed from Vertue to Vertue There we are perfected Now we have only the Seeds of Vertues begun then in that fulness of Charity when that shall be perfected in us which now is imperfect that precept shall be fulfilled Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Heart and with all thy Soul For whilest there is yet any Carnal concupiscence which may be restrained by continency God is not in all respects loved with all the Soul for the Flesh doth not Lust without the Soul though the Flesh is said to Lust because the Soul Lusteth Carnally c. Therefore as long as the Saints are burthened with this Flesh which they cannot shake off verily Sin dwelling in the Flesh cannot be absent Objection But how say you is Sin taken out of the World If the Corruption of Sin yet does reign in the Saints Answer I will tell you briefly to wit after the very same manner that the death of Christ hath driven 〈◊〉 from our necks and yet we dye The same comes to pass in the destroying of sin that being freed from Sin by Christ yet we are not without sin for these two things come always together being tied to one another by a very near connexion That where sin is there by necessary consequence death follows wherefore if the flesh is yet held in bonds by the cruelty of death by the same reason it is proved that the relicks of sin remain also in the flesh But now where is then that righteousness which Christ hath purchased for us Would you know O Osorius where our life is there is also our righteousness Not in this flesh which we put off but in that body which we shall in due time put on uncorrupted For such are all the benefits of Christ purchased for us that the promise of them being shewed afar off as of old the Holy Land to the Hebrews it is apprehended by Faith and the Spirit in this life but the full possession belongs only peculiarly and in the whole to the other life Christ begins his Benefits in this Life and perfects them in the Life to come Now these great Benefits of the Son of God consist chiefly in this that sin being totally abolished death being destroyed he restores us being plucked out of the Kingdom of the Devil unto the possession of eternal Life in which God communicates himself wholly to us and is wholly all in all And this most glorious work of his most full of the highest dignity he begins in this miserable life and will compleat it in the other life when that shall come to pass which is written Death is swallowed up in Victory O Death where is thy Victory O Death where is thy Sting Howbeit these things are not said upon this account as if there were nothing in the interim or but little in this life which the help of the grace of Christ does for us As of old the help of the Eternal God was never wanting to the Israelites in the waste Widerness whom he was to bring into the habitations of promise so verily neither are Christs benefits towards us little and the riches of his bounty are not small which the present Grace of Christ pours daily upon us with a full hand when in this sinful Nature he often helps our infirmities forgives our sins instructs us with his word refreshes us with hope supports us by Faith feeds and strengthens us by the Sacraments and refreshes us by his own Spirit adorns us with his gifts renews our hearts and stirs them up to spiritual motions of better life and obedience restrains vitious affections by whose guidance there increase in us the beginnings of eternal life the knowledge of God invocation fear faith true repentance a new law and the image of him who Created us c. And seeing Christ works these things in us with continual care daily more and more promoting and bringing unto maturity that which he hath begun in us there is therefore no cause why the Graces of Christ here should seem needless to any Man But these beginnings of Divine Grace must be distinguished from that perfect and compleat renovation of Nature which shall be seen in the glorified after this life For though it should not be doubted but great advantages are communicated to Believers by the Divine help of the Holy Spirit both to shun those things that are grievously offensive and also to exercise the Offices of Piety of which Paul Rom. 8. They who are led saith he by the Spirit of God are the Sons of God Yet there is not given to the regenerate in this life a compleat conformity to the Law of God but it is reserved for the other life for the life of the Saints in this World should not be called a life of the flesh but of Faith rather not a life of perfect but of begun love and mortification as being not so much discerned in justice as in justification not in perfect holiness but in sanctification not in perfect purity but in purification not in perfection but in going forward But this good Friend ours thinks this should by no means be suffered Who so fights against us as if all the Nature of Salvation consisted not in Iustification the name whereof he doth not account worthy of any mention but in Iustice it self not in the growth but in the perfection of Vertues And as if it were not allowable otherways to aspire to those just rewards of Felicity but
Therefore seeing God is altogether so just in his own Nature that he cannot but hate Sin and on the contrary Man is so wholly drowned in sin that in every good work according to the Opinion of Luther the Saints themselves also do sin in this so great dissimilitude of things that are opposite to one another how can it be that Infinite Holiness can be joyned by any Communion with Man if he is such a one as Luther describes him For so Osorius from things well said by Luther but badly understood by him and worse wrested for the occasion of cavilling doth very ill argue not because it is true but because it seems so to him But let us first oppose the frivolous Objection and then let us take Luther's part as well as we can against the cruel Incursions of his Adversaries And first indeed it cannot be denied that Iustice and Sin are repugnant to one another by the most contrary opposition Likewise we must confess that it is no less true that all impurity of sin is hateful and abominable to God For the Anger of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who ditain the Truth in unrighteousness as the Apostle speaks very evidently Which being so what remains then but that the Life of the Godly should either be free of all sin in this World as Osorius contends or if that cannot be as Luther affirms all must be liable to the Wrath of God I answer with the Apostle Paul That indeed would follow unless there comes a Mediatour who may interpose himself against the Anger of God in the sinners behalf who may satisfie for sin who may obtain pardon who may mollifie the rigour of Iustice yea who may transpose all the Iudgment given against the guilty upon himself and that now he himself may be Iudge of the Cause who is the forgiver of the Crime For so we hear in the Gospel My Father judgeth no man but hath given all Iudgment to the Son And again All things are delivered unto me by Father All which benefits seeing we receive from Christ the most bountiful Mediatour in such plenty as exceeds all belief there is no cause O Osorius why in such great abundance of grace you should press us with such strict weights of Iustice as if we were now under the Law and not under Grace But how much more agreeable would it be both to your Duty and Salvation that you should by a submission common to you and us give place to the Grace of God and acknowledge the benefits of the Mediatour and apply your self with all gratitude of mind to his everlasting praises that are worthy to be celebrated through all Generations Therefore that we may expedite a matter not very difficult in a few words Whereas you say sin is hateful to God nothing is more true But it is one thing to speak of sin and another thing to speak of Man that is a sinner he indeed hates sin and the Physician also hates the disease but yet not so that he should destroy the diseased person but that he should heal him Concerning which thing if you do not trust me hear Augustin he is not a God that condemns some sins and justifies and praises other sins He praises none but hates all as a Physician hates the disease and by curing endeavours to drive away the disease So God by his Grace procures that sin is consumed in us But how is it consumed It is diminished in the life of them that are going on to Perfection it shall be consumed in the life of the perfect c. The Assertion of Luther against Osorius concerning the Sins of the Saints is defended I Come now to Luther whom you reproach after such an unworthy manner and with such shameful slanders yea and lyes so tragically Why so to wit because he durst accuse the Saints themselves of sin which seems to you so execrable a wickedness as if no greater reproach could be cast not only on holy men themselves but also on the Author and Prince of all Holiness You may upon the same account cast reproaches in like manner upon Hierom Augustin and Bernard and other most approved Writers of the Primitive Times Whom you must either by necessary consequence absolve with Luther or not condemn Luther without them Seeing there is none of all these that thought this Title of Honour should be attributed to any man but Christ only that he should be wholly without all stain of sin No but Luther say you pleads that all mortal men though confirmed in Faith are yet in a state of sinning and that sin is lively also in the Saints even so long as they live by Faith and also he profeses that the same do sin in every good work And what hath any man said or done so rightly but it may be depraved by relating it wrong especially when calummy makes the Interpretation That which Luther asserts concerning the sins of the Saints if the words be suitably weighed with the state of the Question there is no offence in it As if it be asked whether the works of the Regenerate should be called good in this Life or sins Luther denies not that the pious deeds of the Regenerate are good but affirms this very thing That they are good in the sight of God and pleasing to him which comes not to pass upon the account of the work it self but upon the account of Faith and a Mediatour for whose sake the pious endeavours of his own are pleasing to God and their begun obedience though it is otherways of its own nature imperfect Therefore this is not the Controversie whether the Regenerate by the help of the Grace of God can do any thing in this Life piously and commendably Neither is this the Controversie whether the absolute Grace of God in the Regenerate is able to perform this that their work should be free of all sin But whether the Grace of God in this flesh furnishes any of the Regenerate with so great a power of perfecting Righteousnns that any work of his is so compleat and perfect if it be examined according to the Rule of the Divine Law that it needs no Pardon nor Mediatour But if it needs Mercy then it is necessarily joyned with pollution and sin so that now the Praise belongs to the Mediatour and not to Man to Imputation not to Action to Grace not to Merit to Faith not to Works that God accepts of the Works of the Regenerate and most holy men Neither is the rectitude of our good things any thing else but the forgiveness of God and the remission of his just severity Whence the Apostle rightly concludes that those who are of the Works of the Law not speaking of evil works but the most perfect Works are under the Curse and upon this account it is true which Luther says that a righteous man sins in every
which every man must endeavour according to his power to attain by industry and diligent labours and the merits of the greatest Vertues And when the former Pelagians affirmed that we could do that by the strength of Nature there were not wanting others at the same time who valiantly opposing the help of the Grace of God to Free-will successfully rejected and exploded this wicked Opinion by the Scriptures After this came another kind of Divines who having followed Augustine disputed thus against the Pelagians that we cannot so much as will good by Free-will without Grace or merit Eternal Life by any means without Grace And that is true indeed But that those same men joyning Grace again deny not that we can merit Life by Works and that ex condigno according to their worth I do not see what difference is between these and the Pelagians in that except that in the manner of working they somewhat differ for those work without grace these no otherways but by grace but both do equally err from the scope of true Iustification For as untrue as that is that it is in our power to perform any thing aright without the Grace of God It is again as false that this grace of working was not given by God for any other purpose but to produce meritorious works whereby we may be justified Though I deny not that by any means that the Divine grace of the Spirit is both fruitful and abounding with the greatest Vertues which can never be idle but it doth not therefore follow by sufficient strength of Reason that the reward of Eternal Salvation is due to the merits of these Vertues as the generality of Sophisters chatter with a great noise in Schools For thus Thomas the Prince of this Faction and the others that are partakers of his Discipline discourse of grace and in their Summularies do define this grace as if it were nothing else but a certain habitual infusion of the heavenly gift in the essence of the Soul because as they suppose it is a principle of meritorious works for so Thomas defines it And Guillermus not much differing from him calls this grace a form freely given to us by God without merits which makes him that hath it acceptable and makes his work good and meritorious Of these then is a vulgar definition made up and it thus defines grace unto us that it is a gift of good will freely given making its possessor acceptable and rendring his work good And Albert shews the manner how it makes a man good in as much as by infused Vertues as he says it perfects the will of man for act c. By these things I suppose it appears evident enough what Opinion hitherto hath been usual amongst those men in the Popish School In which neither their Divines themselves are well enough agreed with one another for some place this habitual gift of influencing grace in the essence of the Soul subjectively that I may speak in their own Dialect amongst whom is Thomas and Bonaventure Others chose rather to refer it not to the essence but the powers of the Soul as its proper subject of whom is Scotus and the Allies of that Order Again There are those who think grace is nothing else but a Vertue which is the thing that Osorius strongly defends in his Books But Thomas confutes this Heresie with much greater strength and bears it down with suitable Reasons But the summ of all their summs drives at this that Faith only may be excluded from Iustification and that they may not acknowledge any other Iustification but what consists in exercising of Works Neither do they think this grace to be given to us upon any other account but for this end to fulfil as they say the Commands of God according to the due manner without which the fulfilling of them cannot otherways be meritorious The Errour of the Tridentines in defining Grace is examined I Have explained the sayings of some Divines which differ several ways from one another yet they are all wonderfully agreed in this one thing as it were by a common Conspiracy that they may take away from sinners that saving Grace which only justifies us Let us joyn also unto these if you please the Sophisters of later times and especially the Nobles of Trent and the Hereticks of that Council whose Writings Opinions and Decrees when they are read what do they declare I will say in a word and truly nothing that is sound nothing that is not full of Errour nothing that does not disagree with the genuine verity of the Word But what that Errour is lest we should seem to accuse them without cause let us explain in a few words but true to wit seeing there is a twofold Testimony of the Grace of the Father towards us in the Scriptures the one whereby in a free gift he bestowed his Son upon us 〈◊〉 the other whereby he bestowed his Spirit The Son to die for us the Spirit to 〈◊〉 our Life there is not any man but should confess that they are both great gifts He gave his Son than whom nothing was dearer to him he bestows his Spirit than which nothing is higher in Heaven But for what purpose doth he bestow both how does he give them for our advantage for what end with what fruit what did he design in so doing by what Reason was he persuaded by what necessity by what mercy was the most gracious Father and maker of the World moved I would very willingly ask this first either of Thomas Aquinas or rather of those Tridentine fellow-Priests for if Free-will being helped by the grace of the Sprit of God as they say could do so much by meriting through the infused Vertues even as much as was sufficient for obtaining Salvation what cause then was there why all this charge should be put upon Christ the Son of God What need was there of his blood Why did not the most gracious Father spare his Life But if so be that all other helps of grace could afford no help to expedite the business of our Redemption Then it remains to be asked of those men what they affirm of Christ whether they acknowledge him the only Saviour or not And indeed I know that they will not deny that Christ is the only Saviour But in the mean while it remains that they should answer me this after what manner this only Saviour saves his own whether only by his Innocency and Death or by adding other helps besides Now if they judge that other securities are necessarily required it must be known what sort of Securities these are Aquinas with his Associates answers that those are gifts procured by the Holy Spirit and habitual Infusions of Charity and the like faculties of exercising Righteousness which helps unless they are added the Death of Christ according to his Opinion is not of such efficacy that it should be able
which deserve no grace at all For who hath thanked a Servant as the Gospel Witnesses for the Service which he owed to his Master after he did his Commands And would not rather have punished him if he had not done them But if he find any praise or reward beyond his Merit he hath cause to give thanks to his Master but not to boast of his own Merits Therefore Augustin admonishes rightly and understandingly If you would be a stranger to grace saith he boast of your Merit And verily Bernard was not wholy without sight though he saw not all things when he said it was sufficient for Merit to know that Merits are not sufficient Briefly that we may express the thing in a word whatsoever it is which is called a reward in Mystical writings is nothing else but Grace proposed in the place and name of reward What if this present Life which we enjoy in the Flesh if the conveniency of Life and other Ornaments though transitory and temporary are very rightly accounted not to be our Merits but the Gifts of God how much more rightly shall that Heavenly and everlasting reward of Life wherewith the most gracious Father crowns us seem to proceed not from the dignity of our Works but from his singular Mercy and Grace Which though sometimes it takes the name of reward yet if we rightly consider the matter we shall find nothing in all this whole Fabrick of our Redemption but the only and singular Grace of God First because he endued thee with Faith and the knowledge of his Son And because afterwards he washes thee in the saving laver of Faith and because having washed thee he calls thee forth to be a partaker of the Inheritance of the Saints translating thee into the Kingdom of his Son whom he freely gives unto thee and Adopts thee for his Son together with him and appoints thee for his Heir Promises the Heredetary Kingdom and adorns changes refreshes and comforts thee with his Spirit beautifies thee with Vertues justifies thee by Faith overlooks very many of thy Sins esteems thy good deeds which are very small as if they were the greatest and rewards them as if they were eminent He brings thee forth to the Combat looks upon thee Fighting adds Strength to thee guards thee with Patience restores thee when fallen gives thee a way of escape in Temptations and raises the up when thou art Dead and exalts thee to the Mansions of never perishing Glory What do you contemplate I beseech you in these but the boundless and altogether Infinite greatness of Grace And to 〈◊〉 all that hath been said of it whatsoever it is that we are or shall be that we 〈◊〉 that we live and are to live What is 〈◊〉 but the grace of God that shews Mercy Not of Man that willeth or runneth Examine and search your self and all things that are yours First consider your Vocation who calls thee to this Grace it regards those only whom Divine Grace sets apart for it self not those that are puffed up with Human Learning not those that are of the noblest extraction and dignified with the high Titles of their Ancestors but God hath chiefly chosen the base and unpolished things of this World which seemed contemptible and of small value according to the vulgar opinion And that I may express it in a word those things that were nothing he exalts unto the highest Sublimity Why so But that he may have all the glory to his own free Grace and no place for glorying left for Human endeavours and merits Of which thing if any Man require more sure examples let him call to mind the calling of Peter with the rest of the Fishermen that were his sellow Apostles and chiefly let him admire the stupendous History of Paul's Conversion In whom if we look at his very Original as Augustin speaks and seek for his Merits we shall find that they belonged to Damnation not to Salvation The calling of God and his Grace are Free and Gratuitous beyond all Merits of our Works LET Us come down nearer to our seves and now take Example from thy self Christian Brother whosoever thou art consider with your self both what you now are and what formerly you have been You stand in Faith Who gave it you You continue in the Faith Who upholds you You are assaulted by Temptations but do not succumb Who helps you You are perpetually in danger amongst so great a Multitude that perish Who supports you You Sin daily Who forgives you Dangers Terrours Miseries weariness besiege you on every side Who gives you help Moreover whithersoever you turn your self what do you see else but all Arguments of Favour and Grace which take away from Men all confidence in Works and glorying in Merits And where then is that thrice accursed curse of the Tridentines whereby all and every one are devoted to the dreadful destruction of Damnation who setting aside the helps the Coadjutor-ship of Merits asserts that the Grace of God whereby we are justified consists only in the favour of God And whoever dare say that a Man is justified by the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness only or by the remission of Sins only whilest Charity doth not together with it communicate its influence in the Hearts of the Godly and that the grace of working well is not joined thereunto c. Which if it be true what should be judged of the Prophets what should be judged of Christ himself who are of a contrary judgment We must either acknowledge that those were destitute of the Spirit of God or else that those Tridentine Sanctions are contrary to Divine Grace The Prophet cries with a loud Voice the Apostle also cries that it is not of him that runneth or willeth but of God that sheweth mercy And will the Tridentine Councellours remonstrate against this that Man's Salvation consists only in the Favour of God Wherein then Running say they must be added and the choice of Free-will must be added thereto Who denies it We run all of us each one for his own Portion being placed in our Stage by God For the Christian Life is a race not a play an exercise not a vacuity from business a warfare not slothfulness Be it so indeed yet in this same race how unhappily do we oftiems run How often do we stumble How many ways do we fall how blind and traversed a way do we often go And so sometimes we run head long either wandering every one his own way as the Prophet speaks or with the Sheep of the Gospel wander sometimes out of the Folds But we return presently say you into the Way well But who I beseech you calls you back Your own will or the grace of him that hath mercy I see that you return and I praise it but to whom is this praise due To the strength of your will or to free mercy And now I would have you teach me what this running of
we have hitherto discoursed of grace and its gifts I think there is a sufficient defence made against the assaults of Sophisters for the guarding of this principle which assigns all the power of justifying to Faith only through the free mercy of God But because I see it is not clear enough amongst Divines what that Faith is whereof we speak I thought it requisite to speak something of it in this place To wit that having surveyed the Opinions of others and rightly explained those things which seem to need distinction about the manifold homonymy of this Word we may at length be led as it were by the footstepsof the word of God to that true Faith which truly and simply justifies us But because the word Faith is used in various Senses and there are many things that are believed by us for whatsoever things we find to be true and sure we presently give credit to them but yet any sort of perswasion setled in the mind though it be true or any sort of truth about things conceived doth not therefore upon that account justifie before God Therefore in this so great diversity of things to be believed we must see what that Faith is whereof all our Salvation and Righteousness before God consists and what is the proper and simple definition thereof whence it receives its power to justifie to whom it belongs and in what Notions it differs from that Faith which our Adversaries hold Which state of Faith if it had been rightly and definitively seen into by our Divines I am either deceived or else those boasting admirers of Works would wholly change that Opinion or at least moderate themselves more in this matter of disputation But now I know not how it comes to pass that whereas no kind of Doctrine either more admirable for dignity or more excellent for use or more happy for the Salvation of Men hath shined forth or that moreover appears more perspicuously to the Eyes of all Men by manifest Testimonies of Evangelical Scripture yet there is no opinion that hath more numerous or more bitter Adversaries Which whence it comes to pass I can not be satisfied in wondering unless that whereof I spake be the cause thereof because they seem not to have discerned aright by the Gospel what that Faith is to which free Iustification is proposed Which may appear evidently by many Arguments and such as are not at all obscure unto him that reads their Writings Collections Articles Councils and Disputes And in this very Rank Osorius comes first and next Hosius one of his nearest Allies who opposing the Faith of Luther doth not so much consute that as betray his own ignorance For what ignorance is this What kind of intemperance that drawing your pen against your Adversary whom you cannot run down by true Reasons you carp at things not understood and you wound the Innocent with false Accusations where I beseech you did Luther either Teach or Dream of this Faith which you feign he holds To wit that every one obtains Righteousness or is justified upon that account only because he determines himself acceptable to God for these are your words and not yours only For Hosius also harps no less upon the same string together with you and the whole hundreds of almost all the Divines of that Class I know that Luther hath discoursed many things gravely and excellently of Faith and freely saving Righteousness of Faith But he understands this Faith which justifies us much otherways than your accusation pretends Who was ever so mad as that he judged Faith to be confined within these limits and that it is no other thing but that every Man should have a very good opinion of his own Salvation and should be strongly persuaded thereof in his own mind Though in the mean while I deny not that there is always joined with Faith a confidence of good hope yet if we will rightly examin the proper Natures and Causes of things we will find that there is no small difference between Hope and Faith For every Man doth not obtain Righteousness upon the account that he is very couragious in hoping well For otherways what Turk or Iew is there who doth not in his own mind catch at a goodly persuasion about his own Salvation and the gracious favour of God We may also add unto these the Pope of Rome who by a certain Magnifical but most vain hope flattering himself doubts not of his being the only Successour of Peter So also the Papists doubt not but as soon as they have whispered their Sins into the Ears of a Priest by a silent Confession that immediately they go away Pardoned after the performance of this Work and when they put the Innocent Servants of Christ to Death or the Faith they do not at all distrust that they do God Service whereas the matter is far otherways Therefore it is requisite to see not what every Man hopes but how rightly he hopes nor how great his hope is but how true The same also must be done in Faith But that it may appear true it should not be measured by Human Opinion but according to the right Rule of Scripture Neither is it only requisite to look what any one promiseth but to whom and for what it is promised There are wonderful and infinite things which the bounty of God promises in the way of free gift For Salvation and Life Eternal is promised Yet these good things are not therefore promised because they are hoped by us but we therefore hope because they are promised So then Hope doth not go before the promise as a cause and make it but follows it as an effect and it depends upon the promise and not the promise upon it By which you see that it is not Hope no not when it is most right that justifies us and renders us capable of the promise of God But some other thing What is that I beseech you but Faith to which properly the promise is made For the Covenant of Eternal Life is made properly with us believing and not only hoping that is not for the sake of that which is hoped but for the sake of that on which Faith relies Not every Faith Iustifies BUT What I just now said of Hope the same also again must be said of Faith that it must be true and right and not only that it must be great For every Faith doth not avail for Iustification because there are many and divers kinds of believing First there is a Faith whereby we both know that God is and fear him and the Devils themselves are not without this Faith There is another Faith whereby we believe God and give certain credit to his promises The Schoolmen add unto these a third kind of believing whereby we are said to believe in God And this Faith they divide variously into a formed and formless Faith into an habitual and actual faith There is
believed in Christ therefore she loved much Now if that be called the formal cause by Philosophers which furnishes matter with Life and Soul and if Divines account this the life whereby we live to God what then will they say to the Prophetical Scripture whereby the Iust is said to live not by Charity but by faith What also will they answer to the Words of Christ in which he teaches that life Eternal consists in this that we should know the Father the true God and Iesus Christ whom he hath sent And again where in very evident Speech he Attributes life to faith only and not to Charity He that believeth in the Son faith he hath Eternal Life Concerning the Meritorious cause of Iustification BUT in the mean while because these things have been already largely discoursed of there follows after this that which is next in this Series of causes that we should now examine with the like briefness the Meritorious cause of Iustification which those Men by the Authority of Trent comprehend only and wholly in Christ. And now what then will those Scribes and Disputers of this World answer here What do the Works of the Iust Merit nothing in the sight of God Do they help nothing towards the obtaining of Righteousness And where then is that Merit de Gongruo and condigno Where are the Works of Supererogation that are above due Where is that grace which the Sacraments confer upon us ex opere oper ato By what Argument now will Andrew Vega defend this Axiom of his Faith says he and other good Works whereby we are disposed unto grace that makes us acceptable and whereby we are formally justified and made acceptable to God are Meritorious by the way of agreeableness of such grace and of our Iustification c. Whence it is evident that either Christ is not the only Meritorious cause of such grace or that all the other helps of Merits are of no value Though in the mean while I do not deny that the death of Christ is truly Meritorious but let the adversaries consider diligently what it hath merited That the spiritual help say they of Divine Grace and Charity to perform the Law might be diffused into us What then Dyed Christ for no other cause but that he might obtain the gift of Charity for Mortal Men to perform the Law Did he not rather dye upon this account that he might blot out the Hand writing which was against us in the Law having nailed it to his 〈◊〉 that he might take away the Enmity and might destroy Death for ever might dispossess the Devil of his Kingdom that there might be food and sustenance for our hunger that he might make Principalities and Powers subject to his Triumpham Dominion that he might take possession of all Power in Heaven and in Earth What if the power of Charity to perform the Law is so great as they preach could not this Charity otherways get entrance unless the Son of God dyed Yea were not the Patriarchs Prophets and many others of the Saints adorned with the same supernatural gifts Moreover since the Death of Christ is there so great an influence of Grace present with any man that he is able to fulfil all Righteousness Because the Merit of Christ is perfect it is necessary that those things also should be perfect which he hath merited for us by his most perfect price But on the contrary my Opinion is that I think Christ to be indeed the meritorious cause of our Iustification and that he is not so much the meritorious as the efficient cause of our Renovation seeing it is he that baptizes with the Holy Spirit and with Fire Suppose we grant that this Charity flows in upon us by the Merit of Christ yet I do not therefore call this same infusion of Grace a cause of meriting Iustification nor any part of a cause thereof but it seems rather fit to be reckoned amongst the effects and fruits of Iustification which follow from thence neither doth it follow because the works of Grace and Charity come to us by the Merit of Christ that therefore the same do merit Iustification before God for it relies upon no condition of works at all but only the promise and that a free one also and so free that it implies no condition except one only And because in this place we enquire what is that only and peculiar condition the Doctrine of the Gospel will easily teach us if so be we are more willing to hearken to the Gospel than to the Opinions of Trent On what condition properly doth the Promise of Iustification rely BUT the condition whereby we are properly justified is this That we should believe in Christ and adhere to him by a constant confession In which Faith in the mean while a diligent Caution should be observed that this Faith should be directed unto a proper and legitimate Object which I wonder that it hath not yet been taken notice of by those School Doctors hitherto Of whom some place the Object of Faith in the first Truth Others take for its Object all things that are written in the holy Scriptures Others do esteem for the Object of Faith all things that are laid before us to be believed by the Authority of the Catholick Church And they say not amiss for I deny not that all these things are both truly and necessarily to be believed by every man For he that believes the whole Architecture of this World was framed by the handy-work of God in the space of six days he is indeed led by a right Faith as all Truths are to be believed with a most sure Faith whatsoever are mentioned in the Books of the Scripture which Faith of every particular Truth as I suppose doth not therefore justifie a man For the sense of our question is not what is truly believed by us but what Faith that is which justifies the wicked before God from his sins and that we should search by the Gospel what is the proper Object of this Faith In the mean while that is a very ridiculous thing and too barbarous that the Pope in his Decretals reduces the Object of Faith to the Keys and Succession of the Roman Chair and that as necessary to Salvation but away with this Deceiver and his Cheats Concerning Faith and Assurance and what is the proper Object of Faith NOW let us discourse of others who reasoning with more sound Iudgment about Faith do not fetch the proper and genuine Object of Faith whereby we are justified so far off from the very first Truth as Thomas nor reduce it to every particular Truth of Scripture as the Colonienses nor define it by the Decrees of the Church as the Duacene Doctor and Iesuits of that Place and Order nor place it in the Infallible Authority of the Roman Chair as Boniface but coming much nearer to Evangelical Truth do
perfect to day whilest he always endeavours after better things the morrow he finds it imperfect These things said Hierom. Therefore if Paul being in perpetual motion could find no ftate of Righteousness in which he could rest It follows by consequence from hence that either there is no Iustification of a Christian in this Life or that surely it is not defined by its right terms by Thomas or the Thomists whence a just connexion is framed on this manner Argument Ma. Where there is a perpetual Race there is no station nor term of motion Mi. There is a perpetual Race in this Life towards obtaining Life Con. Therefore there is no station of attaining to Righteousness in this Life and end of notion which Thomas sets down By these things I think it is sufficiently evidenced what is the Iustification of a Wicked Man in the Scriptures and in what thing it chiefly consists not in a transmutation of inherent qualities by a voluntary receiving of Grace as they of Trent would have it but in the judiciary absolution of the Iudge whereby he that is guilty is sent away free and indemnity is given to him Whence Iustification seems to be defined not amiss by some That it is an action of God whereby he absolves the condemned Sinner from the Law in his free mercy for the sake of Christ justifies him from his Sins and glorifies him being justified Though in the mean while it is not denied that it is a matter of great concernment how every Man leads his Life and amends it But yet it is one thing to speak of Righteousness and another thing to speak of Iustification And again it is one thing to be exercised in the common use of Life and another thing to be exercised in judicatories There the amendment of Life hath praise but in judicatories no regard uses to be of what you are to do but of what you have done not what new qualities better Grace hath brought but by what remedy former Sins may be done away And now I pray you what then must be said and looked for in that most strict Iudgment of the most high God where the scene and sink of the wholeLife comes to be brought forth from its lurking places to the light where impurity of Life Deceits Injuries Filthiness of Lusts the Defilement of Conscience and Concupiscence the Wickedness of Words Works Counsels and Thoughts the Ambition of a pust up Mind the stubborness of Hatred Love Envy and the other Affections Rebelling against Reason the Love of the World Earthly Desires the Contempt and Ignorance of God The neglect of Duty Moreover the whole sink of things formerly done will be all at once laid open What will the miserable Sinner say here What will he bring To what will he fly Will he fly to his secret Confessions and Expiatory Penances and Satisfactions that will not be sufficient These things may declare thee to be a Sinner and a Penitent but not at all Righteous What then you will say hath not God promised to the Penitent the pardon of their Sins Be it so but where then is the Tridentine Iustification which is denied to consist of Remission only whereas you bring nothing into Iudgement but Confessions Penances and Deprecatory Tears For what need is there of any Satisfaction or Repentance when you have committed no Sin But if otherways Where then is your Righteousness whereof you boast To wit say you Remission of Sins being once received by Repentance together with Remission it self flows in Sanctification and the Renovation of the inner Man and the other gifts of Grace by the Holy Spirit whence Man of Unjust becomes Iust and of an Enemy a Friend c. What and dare you trusting in this Righteousness of yours enter the lists with the Majesty of so great a Iudgment And think you that your Vertues are such that they will overcome at this Iudgment Seat when they are Iudged Not by the Righteousness say you of my Vertues but by those works which the efficacious Grace of God works in me Which Righteousness is not mine but God's Not of my own Free will but of Grace acting in me Now then wherein will this Righteousness of yours differ from that Pharisee in the Parable of the Gospel Whose Life if you look into you see it is honest enough and unblamable if you look upon Grace he seems no less to acknowledge it and to attribute all his Vertues to it Otherways why did he with so much reverence and so carefully give thanks to God that he was not like other Men unless he had thought that whatsoever good Works he had were received of his gift and bounty For his Prayer doth sufficiently declare that wherein he seems not so much to Glory in his own good deeds as in the grace of God which he had received to which he ascribes all these things which he had done Therefore if it be true that these Roman Catholicks define That true Iustification consists in no other thing but in Works of Righteousness done by the grace of God what then doth hinder but this Catholick Pharisee according to their Catholick Opinion should be sent away to his House justified Which not being so it remains therefore that another manner of Iustification should be sought for by us than in VVorks of Righteousness which inheres and is planted in us by the grace of God But here the Roman Legions fight with all vehemency for their Catholick Righteousness as for their Camp First by Natural Reason that it is contrary to Nature for any Man to receive the Name or Essence of Righteousness from the Righteousness of another Moreover that it is much less reasonable for God who is the highest perfection of Righteousness and the Eternal Verity to will or be able to pronounce Men Iust that are impure and defiled with wickedness and Evil deeds and who are not truly righteous That I may answer these men two things offer themselves to be considered one which belongs to the cause of Iustification and another which belongs to the explication of the word In both of which the Adversaries are greatly mistaken First in this that treating of the cause of Iustification they seem to place it in no other thing next and immediately but in every man 's own Righteousness not which is imputed being received from another but which every one hath within himself trusting to this foundation That because every thing receives its name and essence only from the form that is inherent hence they gather that none should be accounted just but those only whom their own life and not another's makes righteous If they understand it of Formal Righteousness only and not Iudicial it hath no absurdity and may without any inconvenience be granted to them But what then what is this so much to the purpose for this is not the matter of debate what we are or are not formally in our selves
there was little Faith in him I know not in whom it is great Except in those successors of Peter and the Fathers of Trent Paul himself though he was taken up into the third Heaven yet writing to the Philippians openly professes that he had not yet attained unto that which he sought for but having forgot those things that were behind he pressed forward with all his might towards those things that were before And does any in this life hope to attain unto that which Paul with all his endeavours was not able to attain unto But why should I prosecute this matter any further The Moon shall be confounded said the Prophet and the Sun ashamed when the Lord of Hosts shall reign before his Ancients gloriously and in another place the Heavens are not clean in his sight and he charged his Augels with folly The Moon is ashamed and the Sun consounded and the Heaven is covered with Sack-cloth Wherefore then are not the Tridentines affraid to appear in the presence of so great a Iudge as if they were free from all guilt whilst they have nothing to trust to but their own Inherent Righteousness The frivolus Objection of the Adversaries is more largely exa mined and confuted BUT what shall be said to those unruly Persons and Deceivers who though they have undertaken a cause that they cannot defend being convinced by so many Testimonies of Scripture and Examples Yet such is their obstinacy they do not submit to the Truth when they are overcome by its Evidence What then have they to say for themselves By one you may understand what they all are 〈◊〉 Tiletanus a Commentator upon the Council of Trent arguing against Chemnitius thinks his cause is well enough defended by this curiously contrived Sophistry Whereas the Holy Scriptures reser all the concernments of Man's Iustification to the Grace of Remission only he interprets it thus by the Authority of the Council To wit he acknowledges it to be true in the first Iustification or in respect of the beginning of Iustification For they say when a wicked Man is first Iustified by Faith no Works or Merits of Works go before but by the free grace of God for Faith and the Merit of the Son of God the Mediatour he is received into favour obtains a Pardon and is made an Heir Well said But what then Sirs do ye think that this is not sufficient to Establish a Man in everlasting Felicity No indeed if your Opinion be true unless there be added hereunto in the lives of those that are come to years a perfect Obedience to the Law of Righteousness which they affirm to be easie and possible to every Man And because Human frailty can by no means attain unto this Therefore there is need of the assisting grace of God which being altogether infused at once as Alphonsus affirms doth so renew a Man in the Spirit of his Mind and endues him with so great Charity that there is nothing so hard in the Law of Commandments but he can perform it with ready Obedience Whence it comes to pass that he is called Righteous not only by Name and by Imputation But is in very deed and as they speak really Righteous and Merits Eternal Life Ye have here briefly set before you a Summary of Catholick Divinity concerning the perfection of Righteousness which though there is no Man but sees how absurd and unreasonable it is yet that it may appear the more evidently it will not be a miss to reduce all the debates of the Adversaries into a short form of argument The Tridentine Argument Ma. Whosoever perform all the Commands of God they are truly Righteous not by Imputation but by true Vertue and Merit Eternal Life Mi. The Regenerate by renewing grace obtained through Faith and the Merits of Christ perform all the Commands of God Conolu Therefore the Regenerate 〈◊〉 not only accounted but also are really madeRighteous by grace and Merit Eternal Life In this one Syllogism if it be attentively considered as in a little Map all the Polution and Deceit of the Popish Doctrine is comprehended and it is no hard thing to answer it And first I would not unwillingly grant them that which they assume in the Major for the Laws appointed by God comprehending all Righteousness within the limits of their Circumference if there were any Man whose life was exactly squared according to the strict Determinations of this Law and defective in no Circumstance I should esteem him to be worthy not only of the Title of Righteousness but also of the Rewards that are due to a Righteous Man Let us proceed to the other parts of the Argument The Minor follows next But the Regenerate in Christ whom Faith hath once justified having just now received Divine grace they attain unto such a degree of Charity that they are wanting in nothing that is requisite to the most perfect Obedience of the Law But I would fain know where those Regenerate Men are and who they are for it is abundantly evident that they who are the maintainers of this Doctrine are no such Men themselves Their lives are so well known that there is no need of other Arguments to prove it They brag of so many and great things 〈◊〉 Righteousness Grace and Charity whose Vertues whereof they so much boast and manner of life if they be compared with their profession what is more disagreeing What more differing from Righteousness Whereby hath Peace and Grace less flourished and Iniquity more abounded in manners In what times hath the love if not of all at least of most Men waxed so cold It is needless here to complain of the vulgar This complaint chiefly concerns those that sit in the Chair of Hierarchy and are employed in Ecclesiastical Functions and I wish there were 〈◊〉 as just cause thereof as we see in most of 〈◊〉 But perhaps they will defend themselves 〈◊〉 the example of the Pharisees Of whom 〈◊〉 is said that they sat in the Chair of Moses 〈◊〉 taught that which was true though they 〈◊〉 not act according to what they taught And indeed the Example whereunto they compare themselves would please me well 〈◊〉 unless I judged them to be worse then 〈◊〉 Pharisees of those days For though the lives of those Men are Condemned yet their manner of Doctrine was not so contrary to Divine Institutions but the case is otherways with them For not only their lives are far from that Righteousness which they teach but their Doctrine also concerning this Righteousness and many other things is without any Foundation from Scripture But you may say what then Doth Christ the Bride-groom forsake his Bride Or is his grace lessened that he is unwilling or unable to help his Servants What think you of Charity Which being the fulfilling of the Law according to the Testimony of the Apostle will it do nothing in the Hearts of those in whom it is shed abroad towards the fulfilling of
whole Wherefore there can be no surer demonstration that Faith only justifies than is held forth in these very words of the Sacrament whereby the flesh and blood of Christ is represented in that holy Banquet under the similitude of Bread and Wine Another Argument Unless your Righteousness exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees ye cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Therefore not Faith only but also Works of Righteousness exalt us to the Kingdom of Heaven I answer By these words the Lord gives us serious Instruction what manner of lives they ought to live that are justified But he doth not thereby signifie what is the proper cause of Iustification one Iudgment should be made of the causes of things and another of their effects If you enquire for the cause of Iustification the Lord hath resolved that doubt Thy Faith hath saved thee This is Life eternal that they should know thee the only true God and Iesus Christ whom thou hast sent In like manner Paul expressed himself If thou confess the Lord Iesus with thy mouth and believe with thy heart that God raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved But if you enquire what manner of lives they ought to live that make sincere profession of the Faith of Christ we are taught in this place and many other sayings of Scripture that they ought to differ much from the lives of the Scribes and Pharisees to wit that they who are created in Christ Iesus should behave themselves without a Pharisaical Vizard of external Holiness or a proud conceitedness of their own Righteousness but that they should be adorned and beautified with sincerity and uprightness of mind and persevere in the practice of good Works which God hath prepared that we should walk in them he said not that we should be justified by them but that being justified by his Grace we should walk in them bringing forth fruits worthy of our Vocation Another Argument Every Tree that bears not good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire Luke 3. Therefore Faith only is not sufficient to Salvation without Repentance I acknowledge the Divine Authority of that Prophecy which is true as it is generally known to all that have heard of the Gospel For who would endure an Unfruitful Tree that cumbers the ground and beares either no Fruit at all or such as is hurtful to the Husbandman But suppose it brings forth good Fruit and beautiful to look upon I would ask them whether the abundance of Fruit be the cause or whether it is not rather the demonstration of the Tree's Fruitfulness and whether the Fruits do not rather receive their growth from the Root whence they come Therefore if Repentance is reckoned amongst Fruits it doth not make the Man in whom it receives its first beginning perfect and good but only evidences what manner of Man he is now and hath formerly been For unless a wicked Life had gone before no Repentance had followed after Moreover Repentance could do no good unless Faith be joyned therewith by which a broken hearted Sinner may get access to the Throne of Grace But you may say Are not grief and remorse for Evil deeds and resolutions to the contrary things very acceptable to God and are not only conducible to the amendment of former miscarriages but also a great cause of future Reformation I Answer The sorrow of an afflicted Conscience which we call Repentance is a lovely effect but it proceeds from an Evil cause yet I deny not that it is a very excellent thing and never too late but always acceptable to God if so be it is accompanied with Faith in Christ. Neither do I deny that by means thereof Men are deterred from their customary Evil courses and stirred up to the exercise of Vertue Which though we grant to be true what doth all this avail towards the justifying of a sinner from those Sins that he hath formerly committed If a Man hath transgressed the Laws of the Commonwealth and being arraigned before a Iudge is forced to give account of all the actions of his Life will it be enough for him to say I was in an errour or I repent of my fault Will fear of judgment or shame set a Man free from the condemnation due to sin unless the Righteousness of a bleeding Saviour apprehended by faith do interpose and ward off the stroke of Divine vengeance from the guilty Sinner Without shedding of Blood saith the Apostle there is no remission Now then if neither Holiness of Life nor Prayers nor Tears nor the Blood of all the Saints can avail any thing towards the mitigation of the bitterness of this Iudgment and the only remedy be the death of the only begotten Son of God what will your Repentance do in this case Indeed I acknowledge that the Scripture attributes much to Repentance and there are glorious promises annexed thereunto but two things must be considered here First Of how large an extent the Promises are and next to whom they do belong for there are some rewards given in this Life and others that are reserved for Life Eternal Verily Eternal Life which is the benefit of Redemption as it could not be purchased by any works of ours so likewise it is not promised as the reward of Repentance or if in any Scripture it seems to be so promised it is not simply upon the account of Repentance but for another cause To wit the faith of the worker and not the work it self Therefore these things should be put each of them in their own places and comprehended within their own bounds That it may be understood aright what Faith does and what Repentance and what efficacy is in both and how they are distinguished from one another and also how they being joyned together do contribute mutual assistance to one another in the Iustification of the Ungodly For though we deny not that both are very pleasing to God yet the one is acceptable to him one way and the other another way For faith is acceptable through Christ but Repentance only upon the account of Faith And it is also a certain truth that though by faith only as the procuring cause we obtain Iustification in the sight of God Yet this very faith doth not put forth its power of Iustifying upon any but penitent and broken-hearted Sinners and therefore in the Gospel we are so often invited to Repentance Not that it is not true faith only which justifies without Repentance but because faith if it be true justifies no others but them that have turned from their Sins in sincerity and are converted unto God by Repentance For such as have no trouble of Conscience nor sorrow for Sin but run on obstinately against their Conscience and continue in their Evil courses it is a vain thing for them to hope for Iustification by Faith whereof they falsely boast for all such stout-hearted Sinners
Works which ye intrude from having a share with Faith in justifying a Sinner what hurt is it to sound Doctrine if the Word only is not expressed when you read such Scriptures as these being justified freely by his Grace Rom. 3. By the Works of the Law no Flesh shall be justified The Righteousness of God is manifested without the Law Rom. 3. a Man is not justified by the Works of the Law but by the Faith of Christ Gal. 3. Not of Works Rom. 11. Without Works Rom. 4. Not of Works Tit. 3. Not of Works Eph. 2. Not according to Works 2 Tim. 1. Without Works Rom. 9. What is the Signification of such Expressions but that all Works being excluded it should be understood that Faith only is the procuring cause of Iustification for what else is Faith without Works and without the Law but Faith only Therefore by the necessary Law of Consequence we may argue thus we are justified by Faith and are not justified by any other thing inherent in us according to the Scriptures Therefore we are justified by Faith only Or we may Confute the Adversaries with this Argument Argument That from which all other things are excluded must of necessity remain alone The Scripture excludes all other things in Man from Faith Therefore of Necessity it is Faith only that justifies But whereas they deny that this exclusive Word is found in the Scripture let them read Mark 5. and Luke 8. where the Lord says Only believe and thou shalt be saved I come now to the Greek and Latin Doctors of the Primitive Church Basilins Nazianzen Hilarius Ambrose Augustin Hierom Chrysostom Theophylact Oecumenius Photius Bernard to whom if you please you may add Thomas Aquin. who all Commenting on the same Words of Christ and Paul do not only agree with us in the same Opinion but also in the same exclusive Word as hath been evidently proved in our former Answer to Osorius Thought it be manifest that we assert nothing here which the Orthodox Divines of the Primitive Church have not confirmed unanimously and in the same Words yet nevertheless these things so evident in themselves do not satisfie those perverse Sophisters who when they cannot deny the very Words of learned Men yet they take occasion to contend with us about the Sense of the Words in which they pretend that we do greatly err for they have found out a curiously contrived Distinction Saying That by Faith only is understood the first Iustification but not the second Thus these cunning Artificers of Words have turned one Iustification into two one that is obtained by the first Grace as they call it before all Works as in Infants when they are Beptized And another which is in Persons come to Years by the practice of good Works That I may Answer this frivolous Distinction First I object this saying of Augustin good Works that follow him that is justified do not go before him that is to be justified which if it be true what remains but that they should either Confess that there is no such thing as this second Iustification which they have devised or else that good Works go before him that is to be justified contrary to the Doctrine of Augustin Moreover if they think there is sufficient cause why Faith only should not be admitted because it is not expresly mentioned in the Holy Scriptures why should not also this Distinction of theirs about a second Iustification by the practice of good Works be rejected upon the same account which is no where expressed in the sacred Oracles But by a manifest Contradiction is opposice to Heavenly Truth It is an Ancient and Famous Rule of Lawyers That there is no occasion of distinguishing where the Law makes no Distinction In what place of Scripture can those Sophisters find this Distinction between a first and second Iustification whereby Infants Baptized are otherways justified than they that are come to years for both were alike dead in their Sins and they are both alike regenerated and live by Faith in Christ the Son of God That we may briefly Consute this Sophistry whereas neither the Holy Scriptures nor the Godly Doctors of the Primitive Church ackonwledge any manner of justifying but one only How comes it to pass that those men have devised a twofold Iustification making two of that which is but one So that the first Iustification consists of Faith only and the second is made up of Works But it is easie to withstand this absurd device by the Authority of sufficient witnesses amongst whom Ambrose comes first into Mind who hath expressed himself thus Because there is one God of all he hath justified all after the same manner and what that manner is he shews in these Words He justifies them no otherways but as they are Believers And presently after he excludes all Merit of Works For nothing saith he is the cause of Dignity and Merit but Faith only And again Seeing that a Man is not justified before God but by Faith only c. Therefore let us inferr from these Words of Ambrose if there is one manner of justifying as there is one God Then no Distinction can make two Iustifications of that which is one only As no Distinction can make the one only God that justifies to be two Again if Believers are no otherways justified before God but by Faith according to the Testimony of Ambrose and there is no other Dignity nor Merit that God regards but only Faith what place is there for a second Iustification made up of the Merits of Works Hereunto let us add the Testimony of Gregory which is very seasonable to confute the Forgery of those vain Sophisters concerning their second Iustification These are the Author's Words Grace begot me being naked in the first Faith and the same Grace will save me being naked at my Reception Thus Gregory spake of Nakedness And what Nakedness is that but the want of Vertue and good Works as he himself Interprets which is the Condition of every gracious Soul not only of Men come to Years but also of Infants when they are Baptized in their first Regeneration If we are found Naked in our Reception into Glory where then is that second Iustification made up of good Works but if it is not so where is that Nakedness whereof Gregory speaks How can these things so much disagreeing consist together that we should both be Naked and void of good Works and also cloathed with good Works and thereby Merit a second Iustification In the mean while this should not be omitted which the same Gregory mentions of Grace which he divides not into a first and second as the Papists do now adays but he shews that it is one and the same Grace which both first regenerates us and also afterwards receives us into the Kingdom of Glory By which it is evident that there is but one manner of justifying which
thereof is not placed in the works of men but it depends upon the free favour of God and the like we may say of Iustification for those whom he justifies he justifies in Christ but if you ask why doth he justifie in Christ the cause appears evident which cannot be found in our VVorks but before all VVorks in the favour of God only But you may say Those things are not well compared with one another which disagree in Nature for Election and Vocation and Glorification are such things as being once determined of God cannot be disannulled But the Case is otherways in Iustification which may sometimes be lost and sometimes retained according as it is hindered or not hindered by the Grace of God For thus spake Vega and Scotus and others That I may Answer such Men I confess indeed if the manner of our Iustification were such as those Men feign to wit if its chief reliance were upon Works and the increase of Vertues it would be true which they assert concerning the uncertainty of losing or keeping Iustification But seeing all the stability of our Iustification depends not at all upon our Works but upon the Merits of Christ by Faith and the Remission of Sins by his Righteousness therefore it is that as there is one Election and Vocation and that sure and firm so also Iustification is not twofold but one and the same and such an one as endures for ever I call it one because there remains always one and the same cause and manner of Iustifying which relies not on the Merits of Works but consists of Faith and the Remission of Sins And though the Sins from which we are justified are not all of the same kind but are distinguished by times and variety of Actions yet nevertheless Iustification that is the Remission of Sins in respect of the form and manner is not divers but one Not twofold but simple as Faith also which is the procuring cause of Iustification is not which though it is daily increased yet it remains always one and the same Moreover as this Iustification which increases together with Faith is only one so also the same being firm and stable no less than the Promise of God on which it relies undergoes no change but continues firm and constant and the cause thereof is because it relies not on Works but Faith only whence the Apostle said It is therefore by Faith that according to Grace the Promise may be sure to all the Seed On the contrary they who make a twofold Iustification and assign divers causes of both of which the one confists of Faith only without Works going before which they call the first and the other which they call the second is increased by Works of Grace as they speak I see not what they can find in the Scriptures for the defence of their Opinion for Paul writing to so many Churches acknowledges no cause of Iustification but one which he professes to be Faith in Christ and that without Works What need is there of better evidence Can you not be perswaded to believe the Truth which hath been so often and so perspicuously demonstrated by so great a Master as Paul But to what purpose hath Christ appointed him to be a Teacher to us Gentiles if we despise his Instructions and chuse to our selves other Masters that teach another Gospel And what else do those Men who reject the Apostle's Doctrine and hearken to such as teach contrary thereunto Paul says Without Works Man is justified Will you then dare to plead for Iustification by Works in Opposition to the Apostle Dare you deny what he affirms But you say I detract nothing from Works in opposition unto Paul but I add Grace from whence they receive the power of Meriting and Iustifying Then according to your Opinion Works being assisted by Grace do justifie but without Grace they avail nothing But what will you answer to St. Paul who without making any Distinction of Works says not of such or such Works only but indefinitely and in the general of all Works It is of Faith and not of Works lest any should boast And again to the Romans If by Grace then it is not of Works and elsewhere To him that worketh not c. And how often doth he in all his Epistles Attribute all Power of Iustifying to Faith shutting out not only such or such Works but all Works of what kind soever concerning which Paul speaking indefinitely and absolutely utterly excludes them from any concernment in Iustification Which would be false if any Works whether performed by Grace and in Faith or without Grace were conducible to Iustification And hence this Argument arises An Argument against inherent Righteousness We are justified without Works by Faith as Paul testifies VVorks of Charity infused by Grace are VVorks Therefore without these Works also that consist of Grace we are justified The Adversaries Answer to the Major Paul asserts that we are justified without Works but with this Exception unless they be planted in us by Faith and the influence of Grace for the Apostle excludes not such kind of Works because they please God and procure Iustification Contrarily those VVorks only are excluded that are of the Law or of Nature without which we are said to be justified But this Answer doth not satisfie the VVords of Paul who without making any such Exception or Distinction of VVorks teaches simply and indefinitely that we are justified without Works By what Logick then have these Sophisters learned to make a definite and particular Proposition of that which is Indefinite and Universal Or what Reason have they to confine that unto a particular Case which Paul speaks of Works in the general Let us consider the Words of the Apostle Who if he had believed that Works of Charity infused procure Iustification in the sight of God it cannot be doubted but he would have expresly said so much Now he says expresly without any Exception By Works shall no Flesh be justified Whence we may form this Argument If Works performed by Grace and in Faith were meritorious of Iustification then some flesh would be justified by Works seeing there are many Believers that Work by Grace But no flesh at all shall be justified by Works as Paul bears witness Therefore it is false that good Works performed by Grace have any Power of justifying Let us confirm the saying of Paul by Scriptural Examples That which Paul here preaches of free Salvation without Works the same Isaiah foretells will come to pass though in other Words yet to the same purpose under the Symbols of Wine and Milk All ye that thirst saith he come without Money and without Price and buy Wine and Milk What is signified here by Wine and Milk but the glorious Mystery of our Iustification and what is the signification of these Words wherein we are commanded to eat without Money and without Price but that
in so many dangers and compassed about with so many troubles and snares yet it continues firm notwithstanding all this opposition in spite of the very Gates of Hell Wherefore is it thus Is it for its own merits or should we account the Grace and Power of Christ to be the only procuring cause thereof and no strength nor merit of ours Now it is evident to every reasonable man that the same thing which is the cause of Preservation is also the cause of Salvation to the Church which consists not in our Works but only in the Faith of Christ and his free Bounty An Argument out of St. Iames. Not the hearers of the Law but the doers shall be justified Not the hearer of the Law but the doer shall be blessed Iames 1. Mat. He that heareth my words and doth them c. Therefore not Faith only but Deeds do justifie I answer The Argument may be granted if the Minor be rightly added with the Inference which we shall set down here that the Argument may appear in its perfect form He is righteous that by deeds fulfils the Law No man by deeds fulfils the Law in this life Therefore no man is justified by deeds in this life The Minor is evident by the Authority of the same Apostle Iames Whosoever shall keep the whole Law and offend in one thing is guilty of all There is none in the Land of the Living but fails in some thing Iames 2. Yea there is no man that offends not in many things Therefore no man in this life fulfils the Law of God no not Iames himself Let us now consider the words of Christ that are cited out of the Gospel He that heareth my words and doeth them c. Who doth not clearly apprehend the mind of Christ in these words for it is manifest that his design was to rebuke the counterfeit pretences of Hypocrites and thereby to stir up the minds of his own Disciples to the power of Godliness and sincerity in their profession which he doth in more than one place and not without weighty reasons For as nothing is more detestable so nothing is more usual than for false Hypocrites to be covered with a Vizard of Holiness who having no experimental knowledge of the things which they profess nor drawn unto God by Effectual Calling nor taught by his Spirit being ignorant of God and strangers to the practice of Holiness do make a great shew amongst all men outwardly pretending to that which they are not indeed but would seem to be who take little or no care at all to be any way instrumental for the Glory of God But their chief endeavours are to encrease their gain and satisfie their ambitious desires that they may be great in this World and get applause and renown amongst men Such a frame of spirit is in most Hypocrites But the great searcher of hearts who looks into every dark corner of the Soul and discerns all the most hidden imaginations is not unacquainted with their Hypocrisie and there is nothing more abominable unto him Therefore our Lord in giving Instructions of Piety to his Disciples strictly commands that such as take upon them the profession of Faith in his Name should not only make shew of it in words or account it enough to encline their Ears to his Doctrine but also practise it in their Lives and endeavour as much as in them lies to walk suitable to their profession By what I have said it may evidently appear that these words do not express the way how we are justified but they only declare what manner of men they ought to be who are Iustified and have obtained a right to the Heavenly Inheritance by Faith and free Grace Another Argument The Foolish Virgins were shut out of Heaven not because they wanted Faith but because they neglected taking Oyl in their Vessels Mat. 25. The same appears in the slothful Servant Therefore The Kingdom of Heaven is due to good Works and not to Faith Answer The Consequence must be denied For this is the true consequence thereof Therefore Men are justly shut out of Heaven for Evil deeds and Impiety For though a slothful and lazy Servant ought to be shut out of the House yet it doth not therefore follow that the Inheritance must needs be due to him that faithfully and diligently performs his duty The Kingdom of Heaven is given to faith not to duties by way of gift not by way of bargain not for merits but freely And though faith in the mean while is not idle but diligently exercises it self in the ways of Holiness yet the possession of this great benefit should not therefore be attributed unto Works suppose an adopted Son in managing well his Father's Goods shews himself a faithful Steward in his Father's House is not his Father's Inheritance bestowed upon him of free gift notwithstanding all this care and industry Moreover that is not true which is denied in the Antecedent that the foolish Virgins were not shut out for want of Faith For had they had true Faith they would not have wanted provision of Oyl For Faith that is lively cannot be slothful Therefore in Scripture these Epithets are given to Faith 1. That it is true and not feigned 2. It is sure and not wavering 3. One and not diverse 4. Lively and not dead 5. Great 6. Fervent and not luke warm 7. Laborious and not Idle 8. Strong 9. Couragious and not fearful 10. Stable and not unconstant Another Objection taken out of Iohn 5. They that have done good shall come forth unto the Resurrection of Life and they that have done evil unto the Resurrection of Damnation and again Rom. 2. Every Man shall be rewarded according to his Works The Argument of the Adversaries taken out of Ioh. 5. Rom. 2. Therefore the Salvation or Destruction of Men depend on their Works and not Faith only If any Man desires to see this Argument in a Syllogistical term he may take it thus There is no Iustification without Works where there is a reward given according to Works The Iudgment of God rewards according to VVorks Therefore there is no Iustification in the Iudgment of God without VVorks Answer As there is nothing more sure than the Words of Peter in which he affirms that Christ is appointed Iudge of the Living and the Dead so also that is a truth which is asserted by Paul That we must all appear before his Iudgment Seat who will render to every Man according to that which he hath done whether Good or Evil. Therefore you say Not Faith but Works do justifie which are the procuring cause either of Salvation or Destruction But this is not the consequence of the Words of the Apostle nor the sense of that Scripture But if we Reason according to the mind of the Holy Ghost in these places of Scripture we must rather draw
these consequences from them Seeing such a Iudgment is approaching as will bring every one to render an account of their Lives therefore no Man should flatter himself with hopes that any of his offences either in words or deeds will go unpunished but every Man should so frame his Life that Faith and Holiness may be jointly united together and not separated from one another And this is a truth which many now a days have need to be admonished of not only Papists but also Protestants who make profession of the Name and Faith of Christ but yet notwithstanding they so behave themselves as if they thought an-outside shew of Religion were sufficient and as if they did not look for Iudgment to come they are so void of care to walk worthy of that Holy profession giving themselves up against their Conscience to all uncleaness with greediness whereby they both greatly provoke the wrath of God and put themselves in dreadful danger of the loss of Eternal Salvation Against such Men as run on into open wickedness without measure or remorse we may by better consequence draw this inference We must appear all of us before the Iudgment seat of God where account will be taken of all the Actions and Practice of our Lives Therefore let every one that hath regard to his own Salvation endeavour according to his power to lead a Life suitable to his Profession and without Hypocrisie to join a good Conscience with a good Faith For the word of Truth hath told us They that have done Evil shall come forth unto the Resurrection of Damnation But are such Scriptures contrary to Iustification by Faith in such as together with the profession of faith in Christ joyn the fruits of Obedience which though it is not perfect upon all accounts yet it is yielded in sincerity and uprightness of Heart according to their weak power and capacity Which though it comes far short of the compleat perfection of the Law yet nevertheless our Iustification is full and perfect in the sight of God For what is defective in our Works he supplies by his own imputation thro' faith in his Son which Faith is imputed to us for Righteousness not for our working but for our believing for though the abominable rebellion of wicked Men who walk not after the Spirit but after the flesh brings upon them the Iudgment of Condemnation yet this continues to be a truth The Iust shall live by Faith And he that believeth in me shall never perish But you may say The Sentence of the Iudge remains evident and uncontroulable which promises the Resurrection of Life to them that lead a Godly Life I answer It is very true which the Lord says but the conclusion drawn from hence is very false For in these Words Christ joyning the Fruit and the Tree Persons and things together gives the comfortable hope of Eternal Life unto his own Servants who according to their power labour diligently in the Gospel Not thereby determining what their Works deserve but shewing with how many and great rewards he will crown their labours who have suffered any thing for his Name But those Men contrariways arguing from the concrete to the abstract and dividing things from persons conclude amiss by this Enthymema They that are believers in Christ exercising themselves diligently in all Holiness shall be received into Eternal Life Therefore Good Works are the cause of Eternal Life To this I may make a brief and easie Answer Answer I deny the consequence for it is a Fallacy a non causa pro causa for in the antecedent the works of the godly are brought in as effects but in the conclusion as a cause whence there is no sound conclusion from the concrete to the abstract For it is no rational arguing because believers living Holily receive the gift of Eternal Life therefore their deeds merit Eternal Life Iust as if a Man should reason on this manner a Wife being Obedient to her Husband is admitted to be a partaker of all his Goods Therefore her Obedience is worthy of a share in all his Possessions A Son being Obedient to his Father is received for his Heir therefore his Obedience deserves the Inheritance VVorks are evidences of faith in Christ but not the cause of Salvation Iust as a Tree that brings forth Fruit if it hath any goodness in it receives it not from the Fruit but the Fruit hath all its goodness from the Tree In like manner the works of the Godly have nothing that they can claim a right unto in Iudgment If they find any favour or reward that is not due to them but partly to Mercy and partly to Imputation for the sake of the Mediatour to Mercy which pardons Evil deeds to Imputation which puts a great value upon good VVorks though of very little worth in themselves and crowns them with rewards So that all the praise belong not to Men but to God Not to Righteousness but Grace not to Works but Faith not to Iudgment but Mercy But you will say Shall we not all come to Iudgment Must we not all appear before the Tribunal of God It is true we shall all come But Augustin tells us of a twofold Iudgment one of condemnation and another of discretion whereby the Goats shall be separated from the Lambs and not Lambs condemned with the Goats It is an Article of my faith that we shall all of us come to Iudgment but I do hope the Elect of God will not come into the Iudgment of Condemnation And here we must carefully distinguish between the Lambs and the Goats between those that are united to Christ by Faith and the damned crew of Unbelievers For though in this just Iudgment of God every one shall give account to God of all their Works And there is no doubt but a reward will be given suitable to every man's Works but in a far different manner to the one and the other For they who seek for Salvation not by Faith nor the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness only but by the Works of the Law they shall receive a reward according to the desert of their deeds upon this condition that they shall live by the Sentence of the Law if they fulfil the Law as they ought but if not what else must they expect but that according to the just Decree of the Law no violation thereof should be found so small as not to make the sinner liable to Condemnation and justly so For he that hath no power in himself to obtain Righteousness and is not willing to receive it when it is offered by another if he suffer the punishment due to his sins let him not accuse the Law of unjustice but himself of unbelief On the contrary they that by sincere Faith are converted unto Christ if they have committed any evil thing for who among the holiest that is can run through his Race without a fall Their sins