S. Paule you were sealed with the holy spirite of promise whiche is the earnest of our inheritaunce So that we haue boldnesse and entrance with the confidence which is by faith on him Nolite itaque amittere confidentiam Cast not away therfore your confidence which hath a great recompence of rewarde This is the trust that we haue in him that if we aske any thing according to his will he heareth vs And if we know that he heare vs whatsoeuer we aske wee know we haue the petitions that we desire of him This is no diuels faith neuer a diuel in hel can do this Neither is this y faith of those wicked ones that are his meÌ„bers howsoeuer they vainly crake of that they haue not neyther is this the papists faith by the papists owne profession that he must stil waue in suspeÌ„ce haÌ„g in doubt but this is the faith of all those y shal receiue eternall lyfe These things sayth S. Iohn haue I written to you that beleue in the name of the sonne of God. Not that ye should hang in doubt but that ye should knowe howe that ye haue eternall life That yee haue it saith he not that ye may haue it may goe with it but ye haue it for saide he immediately before He that hathe the sonne hathe life and he that hathe not the sonne of God hath not life Sutche is the vertue of true belefe faith that he hath alredy life in true assurance bicause he hath him assuredly the whiche is truthe and life Well saithe the Papist for all this heauing and shouing yee shall not haue all youre will we haue yet then at the least one good qualitie vertue whiche shall saue vs and that is euen our faith if ye will admitte nomore But here the Papists begin to cauell and wraÌ„gle which is a signe they draw to the last cast For they know well inough where the scripture thus ascribeth iustifieng and saluation to faithe that it taketh not faith in that respect that it is any quality or habite in vs no not infused of God nor any vertue theologicall nor yet any action of the minde But only in respect of the relation that it hath to Iesus Christ to grace to the mercies to the promises and to the gift of God God is all in all the gift Christ is only my iustification but bicause the feete wherwith we com vnto it is faith We are brought in saith S. Paule Through faith into this grace wherin we stand Nam fide statis By faith we stand Per fidem ambulamus with the feet of faith we walke to the mounte of God Bycause the eye wherby I looke on Christe is faithe Abraham vidit diem meuÌ„ Abraham sawe my daye saith Christ with the eye of faith Bicause the hande wherby I receaue it is faithe Quotquot receperunt eum So many as receaued him euen those that beleeue in his name he gaue them power to be the sons of God by which hand God guided the Isralites Apprehendi manum eorum vt edueerem eos è terra Aegipti I tooke them by the hand to leade them out of the land of Aegipt And by which hand we take hold on heauen Apprehende vitam aeternam Take holde fast on eternall life with this hande of faith Bycause the hart wherin I kepe it is faith Corde creditur with the heart we beleue and he dwelleth in the harte by faithe Bycause all these things are ascribed to faith Therefore the scripture saith that faith doth iustisie vs when Christ dothe iustifie vs bicause by faith I receaue Christ which is my iustification This I do not by my works but by my faithe therefore I saye with S. Paule Faith iustifieth without workes that is faith only applyeth the mercies and merits of Iesus Christ freely offred vnto me without any preparation or merite at all of mine And thus dothe S. Paule plainly expound him selfe in the seconde chapter to the Ephesians Ye are saued by grace through faith and that not of your selues for it is the gifte of God it comme the not of works leste anye man shold boast him selfe For we are his workemanship created in Christ Iesus vnto good works which God hath ordayned that we shold walke in them Here is first set down the state of iustification how we be saued Works are excluded from thys matter yea our selues and all as any cause hereof The reason is alleaged least we shold boast our selues and so all the glory shoulde not redeâ—…nde to God Then do they deface Gods glory and beaste themselues that put works or any thing in them selues in the cause of iustification The only 〈◊〉 is here made grace and least we sholde thinke any part of this grace to be in vs that is debarred also and grace is pronounced to be the only gift of God. Then is the meane shewed wherby we receyue this iustification through faith saith he here again works are lefte clene out and only faith is mencioned And thus is our iustificatioÌ„ wrought which done then beginneth S. Paul to deale with good works and sheweth the ende and ordinance of them not to be our iustifying or our meriting but only to walke in them And sheweth withal what good works are sutche as God hath ordained in Iesus Christ and not our own traditions And so in short and most pithy words knitteth vp all this controuersie Now if the Papist require to be further satisfied where S. Paule hath sayd we are saued by grace how it is wrought by grace least he sholde mistake grace for the good gifts that God hath geuen vs thinking by them for to be saued S. Paule with the lyke pithe and breuitie in the fourthe of the Romains declareth all the circumstance to him how it is wrought To him that worketh not saith he but beleueth in him that iustifieth the vngodly his faith is accounetd for rightousnesse euen as dauid declareth the blessednesse of the man vnto whom God imputeth righteousnesse with out works saying blessed are those whose iniquities are forgeuen and whose sinns are couered blessed is the man to whom the lorde imputeth not sinne The partie iustifieng is God the partie iustified is the vngodly man the vngodly manne hath no godly woorkes how then shall hee be iustified God offereth his promyse of iustification in Christe his sonne the vngodly man and destitute of all godly works beleueth Gods promise streight is thys man accepted before God for righteouse Why he hathe no righteousnesse in hym What though he is accepted for righteous He is altogether vngodly What of that All hys vngodlynesse is cleane couered neyther shall any poynt thereof be layde to his charge euen as though he had none at al And this is blessednesse and grace that that goodnesse he hath not is imputed to him euen as though hee had it And that wickednesse that hee hath â–ª is not
churche of Christe so often called the spouse the wyfe the welbeloued of Christ but bicause the Lorde of his only loue mercie chose her Wherefore was Dauid chosen king from following the sheepe but bicause hee was a man SecuÌ„dum cor meum eueÌ„ after the hart of God that is to say whom God delighted in and loued Wherfore was Salomon chosen to sitte in the seate of Dauid before all his brethren but bicause Dominus dilexit cum The Lord loued him Wherfore did Christ choose the twelue Disciples before all other in the worlde Non vos me eligistis sed ego elegi vos You chose not me but I chose you But bicause sayth he as my father loued me so haue I loued you Wherefore leaned Iohn on the breast of Iesu and durst aske him more boldly than the other Disciples but bicause he was the disciple Quem diligebat Dominus whom the Lorde loued Wherefore are we chosen to be the people of God in the Iewes place But euen bycause God hath sayd Vocabo non plebem meam plebem meam non dilectam dilectam non misericordiam consecutam misericordiam coÌ„secutam I will call them my people whiche were not my people and her beloued whiche was not beloued and her to haue obteined mercy which had not obteyned mercy Wherfore now that we are chosen of God are we afflicted Quos diligit Dominus castigat The Lorde correcteth whome he loueth Wherfore can no affliction ouercome vs make vs fall from God as doo the reprobate the chaffe and seede in the stonie grounde but the Electe are purifyed in tribulation as golde in the forneys In his omnibus superamus per eum qui dilexit nos In all these thyngs wee ouercome through hym that loued vs Wherfore haue we in those afflictions sutche a confident truste in God that they shall not hurte vs Quia charitas Dei diffusa est in cordibus nostris per Spiritum Sanctum qui datus est nobis Bycause the loue of GOD is shead abroade in our hartes by the Holy Ghost whyche is gyuen vnto vs Then the fountayne and onely cause of all the grace and fauour that wee receyue of God is the loue of god Propter multam suam dilectionem qua dilexit nos Euen for the greate loue that hee loued vs withall And therefore Christe whyche is the well beloued sonne of God Hic est filius meus dilectus in quo mihi complacui Thys is my well beloued sonne in whom I am wel pleased and in whom wee are made also the beeloued sonnes of God and who hath so loued vs that hee gaue his lyfe for vs than the whiche no man can haue a greater loue hee hath fully declared in the very fyrste woordes of thys Sentence the very fyrst and principall cause of the Worldes saluation saying Sic DEVS dilexit So God loued the worlde there is no cause hereof in manne but onely and all in god I doo not thys for youre sakes O Israell sayeth the Lorde God but for myne owne names sake You shall remember your owne wycked wayes and youre deedes that were not good and shall iudge your selues worthy to haue bene destroyed for your iniquities and for your abhominations Bee it knowne vnto you that I doo not thys for youre sakes sayeth the Lorde God. And as God dothe thys mercyfully vnto his Electe not for any cause in them but for his owne names sake The cause is altogether in him not in vs so the cause that moued hym is his mere goodnesse his infinite mercye his owne good wyll and his very loue vnto vs. What shal we say then to those false prophets that haue so sotted vs in our owne loue that they haue made vs beleue the cause to be in vs of oure saluation our pure naturall qualities our preparatiue workes oure free will oure good deedes and satisfactions to bee the cause why wee escape perdition our merits and our righteousnesse to be the cause why wee receyue eternall lyfe Our election to be the cause of Gods election our loue of God to be the cause of Gods loue to vs Nay soft sayth the Papist ye tell oure tale amisse we say not that these be the only causes neither grauÌ„t we that the loue of God is the only cause but ther are causes in both these parties God and the worlde which causes both ioyntly coÌ„curring together we are therby saued from perdition receiue eternal life We here what they say but what sayeth S. Paul These two saith he caÌ„ not in this matter be compartners Reliquiae secundum electionem gratia Dei saluae factae sunt si autem gratia iam non ex operibus alioquin gratia noÌ„ est gratia The remnaunt shall bee saued accordyng to the Election of the grace of GOD but yf it bee by grace then is it not by woorkes For otherwise grace were not grace And so on the contrary parte if it be of works then is it not of grace for otherwyse workes were not works And the reason is bicause of the opposition betwene grace and workes that the one hath to the other in the cause of Iustification for although in those that be alredy iustified workes are not seuered from grace nor grace from workes but rather al their workes be graces and gifts of God as S. Hierome sayeth Deus in nobis operatur opera â—…am omnia opera nostra operatus es domine ait propheta de eius dono c. God worketh all our workes in vs of his gyft for as the Prophet sayth Thou Lorde haste wrought all our workes Yet in this poynt of the causes of our saluation whether they be altogether of God or altogether of maÌ„ or ioyntly of God and man together that is to saye of Gods grace and mans works concurrent in this poynt grace and workes do so disagree and are become Membra diuidentia haue such a contrary aspect the one to the other that they can not here be ioyned without confounding them yea the one taketh awaye the nature of the other For first grace which signifieth free fauor and gift as S. Augustin saith Gratis datur propter ê“ gratia nominatur It is giuen freely or gratefully whervppon it hathe his name Grace But admitte there can be founde any cause in the partie to whoÌ„ it is giuen that by any meanâ—…s did deserue to haue it giuen him then is it not a mere free gift proceding only of gracious fauour and so is it not grace Likewise on the contrary part for works To him that worketh reward sayth saint Paule is not giuen according to grace or fauour but according to duetie Hee that hathe wrought for any thing be it little or much that he hath wrought so litle so much it debarreth from the nature of grace It is not of mere and free fauour that he hath any
my bodye and refresh my spirites then the rest of my body and the refreshing of my spirits is a greater matter than is my lying downe to sleepe I buylde an house what moueth me to doo suche cost to shelter and shrowde me from wynde and weather from heat and colde from danger and enimie and to defend and keepe me and myne then this my defence is a greater cause than my house buylding is And eueÌ„ so God loueth a man why loueth he him bicause he is a good man then the goodnesse of the man is a greater cause than the loue of god And thus in conclusion not onely the greater cause of mans saluation is in man and the lesser cause in God but also that little cause in God is referred to mannes goodnesse also And so the cause in God is cleane swalowed vp lyke a drop in the sea â–ª a beane in a Monks hoode a mouse in a cheese nay rather a ciphre in Algorisme the loue of God in the cause of mans saluation And yet for fashions sake the name of Gods loue of Gods grace of Gods mercie of Christs merits must be pretended but when all is done the woorke of man is the efficient is the formall is the finall and principall cause of mans saluation As Bonauenture sayeth that although the death and resurrection of Christe take away our sinnes and iustifie vs attamen neutri attribui potest propriè causalitas iustificationis habet tamen aliquam causae proprietatem scilicet per modum meriti interuenieÌ„tis ê“ reducitur ad causam materialeÌ„ formalis enim est gratia hoc est charitas c. Neuerthelesse the causing cause of Iustification can not proprely be attributed eyther to Christes death or to his resurrection although it hath some propretie of a cause that is to wit by the meanes of merite commyng betwene which is reduced to the materiall cause for the formall cause is grace that is to say charitie Heere is a name of grace but when the name is expounded it falleth out he ment not the loue and free fauour of God but charitie that is mans loue the very contrary in this poynt vnto grace and free fauour of god And so mans loue is the formall cause of mannes saluation but it muste bee called forsoothe the grace of God. Heere is agayne the Passion and Resurrection of Iesus Christe sayde to take away synnes and to Iustifie vs What can be a godlyer saying and truer than this Who could find fault with this Who woulde require more yf they meane as they say Why haue thei then another meaning What is that Forsoth the death and Resurrection doth it but not proprely as any cause therof Lo here is the cause cleane takeÌ„ away nay not so but it is not a cause properly how is it theÌ„ it hath yet some propertie of a cause This is a contrarie tale to it selfe at lest it hath som propertie of contrarietie But what kynd of propertie of a cause hath the deth and resurrection of Christ to take away sinnes and to iustifie man Forsoothe in this consideration by the meanes of mans desert and good works coÌ„ming betwene and being a stickler in the matter But how commeth it betwene as a small cause Nay as the material cause also of his saluation And so maÌ„s charity is the formal cause mans merits are the material cause Grace is named The deathe and resurrection of Christe is named but it is no cause properlie and if it haue anye propretie of a cause it is onely by reason of mannes merites goyng betweene Is not thys a proper doctrine Whether will not this doctrine presume to goe Why maye not the Papist say as well that manne is the cause of God as to say that mannes merites are the cause of Gods loue Is not the loue of God euen GOD hymselfe Quicquid dicitur de Deo Deus est The Wisdome of God is God the power of God is God and the loue of God is god And so Sainâ—…t Iohn dothe saye Deus est charitas qui maner in charitate in deo mâ—…net deus in eo God is loue and he that dwelleth in loue dwelleth in God and God in him Nowe if mannes goodnesse bee the cause of Gods loue is it not then the cause of God also What is prâ—…de if this bee not pride Where is Adam and Eue that woulde become like Gods if they be not here Where is that proude kyng of Babylon that sayde with Lucifer I wyll aâ—…cende aboue the cloudes I wil be like the most high but in this doctrine Where is that man of sinâ—…e that would exalt himself aboue all that is called God if not in this blasphemous presumption of the Papists Qui quaerentes suaÌ„ iustitiaÌ„ stabilire c. That seking to set vp their owne righteousnesse are not subiect to the righteousnesse of god But let this diuelishe doctrine goe wyth the diuell downe the lane from whence it came and let vs humbly receyue the doctrine of Iesus Christe that the cause whiche moued God to saue the worlde was onely in him selfe for his owne sake for his owne goodnesse and most merciful fauour for his tender loue that of his owne accorde good nature be vouchsafed to beare the worlde and not for any cause of goodnesse in the worlde were it neuer so little a cause For how little so euer thou ascribest to thy selfe thou takest from God thou robbest God of his glory and of his glorie God is a iealous god neyther will he part stakes with any other for any part or parcell therof Oh sayth the Papist it is a very little thing a small modicum that wee require and modicum non nocet a litle hurteth nothing an inche breakes no square That is not true modicum nocet modicum A little hurteth a litle yea and that a great deale in this case wherin on the one part God is all in all will haue all the glorie of it as right requireth if he haue not al he wil haue none There is no halting betwene God and Baal no agreement betwene God and the diuell no felowshippe wyth light and darkenesse And what is manne else but darkenesse â–ª but mancipium Sathanae the boÌ„dsclaue of Sathan before God lighten and deliuer him On the other part the diuel will not bee contente with a little grauÌ„t him neuer so litle in the beginning as good giue him all for in the ende he will striue to haue all giue him an inche hee will take an elle giue him but his little toe he will thrust his foote his leg his body after and seuen diuels more for company and the ende of that man shal be worse than the beginning Obsta principijs serò medicina paratur Stoppe therfore the beginnings otherwise it will be too late to seeke for healpe Take away the cause else the effect wil neuer be taken away Man will euer