had purposed in himselfe whereby he makes a distinction betweene the creature and the Creatour Men when they purpose the doing of any thing borrowe reasons of their purposes and wills out of themselues from the thinges to be done because mans bare will is no sufficient cause to vvarrant the doing of this or that in this or that manner vnlesse there be iust reason But Gods will is a simple and absolute rule of righteousnesse and a thing is good so farre forth as Gods wills it Therefore there is no cause why he should goe forth of himselfe for externall inducements and reasons of his eternall counsell his very will in himselfe is a sufficient reason of all his purposes and decrees And hereupon Paul saith that Gods purpose was in himselfe to shew that there is no dependance of his will vpon the creature and that in ordering and disposing of his decrees hee had no reference or respectiue consideration of the qualities and workes of men Thirdly by this doctrine there is fastned vpon God want of wisedome who is wisedome it selfe and that is very absurd A simple man that hath in him but a sparke of the wisedome of God first of all intendes with himselfe the ende and euent of the busines to be done and then afterward the meanes whereby the ende is accomplished but in this platforme God is brought in in the first place to foresee and consider with himselfe the meanes which tende to the ende namely the faith and vnbeliefe of men and then afterwarde to determine with himselfe what shall be the ende and finall condition of euery man either in life or death as if a man should purpose with himselfe to builde an house without any consideration of the ende why and afterwarde conceiue with himselfe the particular vses to which hee will applie it Fourthly hence it followeth that faith shall not onely be an instrument but also an efficient cause in the acte of iustification of a sinner before God For the cause of a cause is also the cause of the thing caused but foreseene faith is an impulsiue cause whereby God was mooued to choose some men to saluation as it is said and therefore it is not onely an instrument to apprehende Christs righteousnes but also a cause or meanes to mooue God to iustifie a sinner because iustification proceedes of Election which comes of foreseene faith which is erronious by the doctrine of all Churches vnlesse they be Popish Fifthly this doctrine takes it for graunted that all both young and old euen infants that die in there infancie haue knowledge of the Gospell because both faith and vnbeliefe in Christ presuppose knowledge of our saluation by him considering that neither ordinarily nor extraordinarily men beleeue or contemne the thing vnknowne But howe false this is euen common experience doth shewe Lastly this platforme quite ouerthrowes it selfe For whereas all men equally corrupt in Adam are effectually both redeemed and called the difference betweene man and man stands not in beleeuing or not beleeuing for all beleeue but in this properly that some are confirmed in faith some are not Now when all without exception are indewed with grace sufficient saluation I demaund why some men are confirmed in grace and others not confirmed as also of Angels some were confirmed and stande and some not confirmed fell No other reason can be rendered but the will of God And to this must all come striue as long as they will that of men beeing in one and the same estate some are saued some iustly forsaken because God would Againe as the foreseeing of faith doth presuppose Gods giuing of faith vnlesse men will say it is naturall so the foreseeing of faith in some men alone doth presuppose the giuing of faith to some men alone But why doth not God conferre the grace of constant faith to all because he will not so then those men whose faith was foreseene are saued not because their faith was foreseene but because God would The third faulte is that they ascribe vnto God a conditionall Purpose or counsell whereby hee decrees that all men shall be saued so be it they will beleeue For it is euery way as much against common sense as if it had beene said that God decreed nothing at all concerning man A conditionall sentence determines nothing simply but conditionally and therefore vncertenly and when we speake of God to determine vncertenly is as much as if he had determined nothing at all specially when the thing determined is in the power of mans will and in respect of God the decree may come to passe or not come to passe Men if they might alwaies haue their choise desire to determine of all their affaires simplie without cōdition and when they doe otherwise it is either because they knowe not the euent of things or because things to be done are not in their power No reason therefore that we should burden God with that whereof we would disburden our selues Againe the Maiestie of God is disgraced in this kind of decree God for his part would haue all men to be saued why then are they not men will not keepe the condition and beleeue This is flat to hang Gods will vpon mans will to make euery man an Emperour and God his vnderling and to chaunge the order of nature by subordinating Gods will which is the first cause to the will of man which is the second cause whereas by the very lawe of nature the first cause should order and dispose the second cause But for the iustifying of a conditionall decree it is alleadged that there is no eternall and hidden decree of God beside the Gospell which is Gods predestination reuealed Answ. It is an vntruth There be two wills in God one whereby hee determineth what he will doe vnto vs or in vs the other whereby he determineth what we shall doe to him Now Predestination is the first wherupon it is commonly defined to be the preparation of the blessings of God whereby they are deliuered which are deliuered and the Gospell is the second Againe Predestination determines who they are and how many which are to be saued and hereupon Christ saith I know whome J haue chosen but the Gospell rather determines what kinde of ones and how they must be qualified which are to be saued Lastly Predestination in Gods decree it selfe and the Gospell is an outward meanes of the exequution of it and therefore though the Gospell be propounded with a condition yet the decree of God it selfe may be simple and absolute The fourth defect is the opinion of Vniuersall sauing grace appertaining to all and euery man which may be fitly tearmed the Schole of vniuersal Atheisme For it pulls downe the pale of the Church and laies it wast as euery common fielde it breedes a carelessenes in the vse of the meanes of grace the word sacraments when as men shall be perswaded that grace shall be offered to
is true in euerie member of the Church is also true in the whole but euery member of the militant Church is subiect to errour both in doctrine and manners because men in this life are but in parte enlightened and sanctified and therefore still remaine subiect to blindnesse of mind and ignorance and to the rebellion of their willes and affections whereby it comes to passe that they may easily faile either in iudgement or in practise Againe that which may befall one or two particular Churches may likewise befall all the particular Churches vpon earth all beeing in one and the same condition but this may befall one or two particular Churches to faile either in doctrine or manners The Church of Ephesus failed in leauing her first loue whereupon Christ threatneth to remooue from her the candlesticke And the Church of Galatia was remooued to an other Gospell from him that had called them in the grace of Christ now why may not the same things befall twentie yea an hundred Churches which befell these twaine Lastly experience sheweth this to be true in that generall councels haue erred The counceâ—l of Nicene beeing to reforme sundrie behauiours among the Bishops Eldeâ—s would with common coÌ„sent haue forbidden mariage unto them thinking it profitable to be so unlesse Paphnutius had better informed them out of the scriptures In the third councell at Carthage certaine bookes Apocrypha as the booke of Syrach Toby and the Macchabees are numbred in the Canon and yet were excluded by the councell of Laodicea And the saying of a divine is receiued that former councells are to be reformed and amended by the latter But Papistes maintaining that the Church can not erre alleadge the promise of Christ How be it when he is come which is the spirite of trueth hee vvill leade you into all truth Ansvver The promise is directed to the Apostles who with their Apostolicall authoririe had this priuiledge graunted them that in the teaching and penning of the Gospell they could not erre and therefore in the councell at Ierusalem they conclude thus It seemes good vnto vs and to the holy Ghost And if the promise be further extended to all the Church it must be understoode with a limitation that God will giue his spirit unto the members thereof to lead them into all truth so farre forth as shall be needfull for their saluation The second question is wherein standes the dignitie excellencie of the Church Ansvvere It standes in subiection and obedience vnto the will word of his spouse and heade Christ Iesus And hence it followeth that the Church is not to chalenge unto her selfe authority ouer the scriptures but onely a ministerie or ministeriall service whereby shee is appointed of God to preserue and keepe to publish preach them and to giue testimony of them And for this cause it is called the pillar and ground of trueth The Church of Rome not content with this saieth further that the authoritie of the Church in respect of us is aboue the authoritie of the scripture because say they we can not know scripture to be scripture but by the testimonie of the Church But indeed they speake an untruth For the testimony of men that are subiect to errour can not be greater and of more force with us then the testimonie of God who cannot erre Againe the Church hath her beginning from the worde for there can not be a Church without faith and there is no faith without the word and there is no word out of the Scriptures and therefore the Church in respect of vs depends on the Scripture and not the Scripture on the Church And as the lawier which hath no further power but to expound the law is vnder the law so the Church which hath authoritie onely to publish and expound the Scriptures can not authorize them vnto vs but must submit her selfe vnto them And whereas it is alleadged that faith comes by hearing and this hearing is in respect of the voice of the Church and that therefore faith comes by the voice of the Church the answeare is that the place must be vnderstood not of that generall faith whereby we are resolued that Scripture is Scripture but of iustifying faith whereby we attaine vnto saluation And faith comes by hearing the voice of the Church not as it is the churches voice but as it is a ministery or means to publish the word of God which is both the cause obiect of our beleeuing Now on the contrarie we must hold that as the carpenter knowes his rule to be straight not by any other rule applied vnto it but by it selfe for casting his eye vpon it he presently discernes whether it be straight or no so we know and are resolued that Scripture is Scripture euen by the Scripture it selfe though the Church say nothing so be it we haue the spirit of discerning when we read heare and consider of the Scripture And yet the testimonie of the Church is not to be despised for though it breed not a perswasion in vs of the certentie of the Scripture yet is it a very good inducement thereto The militant Church hath many parts For as the Ocean sea which is but one is deuided into parts according to the regions and countries against which it lieth as into the English Spanish Italian sea c. so the Church dispersed ouer the face of the whole earth is deuided into other particular Churches according as the countries are seuerall in which it is seated as into the Church of England and Ireland the Church of Fraunce the Church of Germanie c. Againe particular Churches are in a twofold estate sometime they lie hid in persecution wanting the publicke preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments sometimes again they are visible carrying before the eyes of the world an open profession of the name of Christ as the moone is sometime eclipsed sometime shineth in the full In the first estate was the Church of Israel in the daies of Eliah when he wished to die because the people had forsaken the couenant of the Lord brokeÌ„ down his altars slaine his Prophets with the sword and he was left alone and they sought to take away his life also Behold a lamentable estate when so worthie a Prophet could not finde an other beside himselfe that feared God yet marke what the Lord saith vnto him I haue left seuen thousand in Israel euen all the knees that haue not bowed vnto Baal and euery mouth that hath not kissed him Againe it is said that Israel had bin a long season without the true God without priest to teach and without the lawe Neither must this trouble any that God should so farre forth forsake his Church for when ordinarie meanes of saluation faile he then gathereth his Elect by extraordinarie meanes as when the children of Israel wandered in the wildernesse wanting both circumcision and
marke that both the thieues in euery respect were equal both wicked and leud liuers and for their notorious faults both attached condemned executed both on the crosse at the same time with Christ yet for all this the one repenting was saued the other was not And in their two exāples we see the state of the whol world wherof one part is chosen to life eternall and thereupon attaines to faith and repentance in this life the rest are reiected in the eternall counsell of God for iust causes knowne to himselfe and such being left to thēselues neuer repent at all Secondly we are taught hereby that the whole worke of our conuersion and saluation must be ascribed wholly to the meere mercie of God of these two thieues the one was as deepely plunged in wickednes as the other and yet the one is saued the other condemned The like was in Iacob and Esau both borne at one time and of the same parents neither of them had done good nor euill when they were borne yet one was then loued the other was hated yea if we regard outward prerogatiues Esau was the first borne and yet was refused Furthermore the thiefe on the crosse declareth his conversion by manifest signes and fruites of repentance as appeares by the words which he spake to his fellowe Fearest not thou God seeing thou art in the same condemnation Though hands and feete were fast nailed to the crosse yet heart and tongue is at libertie to giue some tokens of his true repentance The people of this our land heare the word but for the most part are without either profit in knowledge or amendment of life yet for all this they perswade themselues that they haue good hearts good meanings though they cannot beare it a way and vtter it so wel as others But alas poore soules they are deluded by satan for a man that is conuerted can not but expresse his conuersion and bring foorth the fruits thereof And therefore our Sauiour Christ saith If a man beleeue in me out of his bellie shal flow riuers of water of life The grace as Elihu saith of God is like newe wine in a vessell which must haue a vent and therefore he that sheweth no tokens of Gods grace in this life is not as yet conuerted let him thinke say of himselfe what he will Can a man haue life and neuer mooue nor take breath and can he that bringeth forth no fruit of his conuersion liue vnto God Well let vs nowe see what were the fruites of the thiefes repentance They may be reduced to foure heads First he rebukes his fellow for mocking Christ indeauouring thereby to bring him to the same condition with himselfe if it were possible whereby he discouers vnto vs the propertie of a true repentant sinner which is to labour and striue so much as in him lieth to bring all men to the same state that he is in Thus Dauid hauing tried the great loue and fauour of God toward himselfe breaketh foorth and saith Come children hearken vnto me and I will teach you the feare of the Lorde shewing his desire that the same benefits which it pleased God to bestow on him might also in like manner be conveighed to others Therefore it is a great shame to see men professing religion carried away with euery companie and with the vanities and fashions of the world whereas they should rather draw euen the worst men that be to the fellowship of those graces of God which they haue receiued That which the Lord spake to the Prophet Ieremie must be applied to all men Let them returne vnto thee but returne not thou vnto them In instruments of musicke the string out of tune must be set vp to the rest that be in tune and not the rest to it Againe in that he checkes his fellowe it shewes that those which be touched for their owne sinnes are also grieued when they see other men sinne and offende God But to goe further in this point let vs diligently and carefully marke the manner of his reproofe Fearest thou not God seeing thou art in the same condemnation In which words he rippes vp his lewdnesse euen to the quicke and giues him a worthie item telling him that the cause of all their former wickednesse had beene the want of the feare of God And this point must euery one of vs marke with great diligence For if we enter into our hearts and make a thorough search wee shall finde that this is the roote and fountaine of all our offences We miserable men for the most part haue not grace to consider that we are alwaies before God and to quake and tremble at the consideration of his presence and this makes vs so often to offend God in our liues as we doe Abraham comming before Abimelech shifting for himselfe said that Sara was his sister and beeing demaunded why he did so answeared because he thought the feare of God was not in that place insinuating that he which wants the feare of God will not make conscience of any sinne whatsoeuer VVould wee then euen from the bottome of our hearts turne to God and become newe creatures then let vs learne to feare God vvhich is nothing else but this vvhen a man is persvvaded in his ovvne heart and conscience that wheresoeuer he be he is in the presence and sight of God and by reason thereof is afraide to sinne This wee must haue fully settled in our hearts if wee desire to learne but the first lesson of true wisedome But what reason vseth the thiefe to drawe his fellowe to the feare of God Thou art saith he in the same condemnation that is by thy sinnes and manifolde transgressions thou hast deserued death and it is nowe most iustly inflicted vpon thee wilt thou not yet feare God Where we are taught that temporall punishments and crosses ought to be meanes to worke in vs the feare of God for that is one ende why they are sent of God It is good for me saith Dauid that I haue beene chastised that I may learne thy statutes And Paul saith when we are chastised we are nurtured of the Lord. And the Iewes are taught by the Prophet Micah to say I will beare the wrath of the Lord because I haue sinned against him The second fruit of his conuersion is that he condemneth himselfe and his fellow for their sinnes saying Indeede we are righteously here for we receiue things worthie for that we haue done that is we haue wonderfully sinned against Gods maiestie and against our brethren and therefore this grieuous punishment which we beare is most iust and due vnto vs. This fruit of repentance springs and growes very thinne among vs for fewe there be which doe seriously condemne themselues for their owne sinnes the manner of men is to condemne others and to cry out that the world was neuer so badde but bring them home to
other whereas God conceiues all things at once with one acte of vnderstanding and all things both past and to come are present with him and therefore in his eternall counsell he decrees not one thing after an other but all things at once Neuerthelesse for our vnderstandings sake we may distinguish the counsell of God concerning man into two acts or degrees the first is the purpose of God in him selfe in which he determines what he will doe and the end of all his doings and that is to create all things specially man for his owne glorie partly by shewing on some men his mercie and vpon others his iustice The second is an other purpose whereby he decrees the exequution of the former and laies downe meanes of accomplishing the ende thereof These two acts of the counsell of God are not to be seuered in any wise nor confounded but distinctly considered with some difference For in the first God decrees some men to honour and some to dishonour and this man more then that vpon his will and pleasure and there is no other cause hereof knowne to vs. In the second knowne and manifest causes are set downe of the exequution of the former decree For no man is actually condemned but for their sinnes and no man is actually saued but for the merit of Christ. Furthermore this latter acte of the counsell of God must be conceiued of vs in the second place and not in the first For euermore the first thing to be intended is the ende it selfe and then afterward the subordinate meanes and causes whereby the end is accomplished Againe the second acte of Gods counsell containes two other one which sets downe the preparation of the means whereby Gods Predestination begins to come in exequution and they are two the creation of man righteous after the image of God the voluntarie fall of Adam and withall the shutting vp of all men vnder damnation the other appoints the applying of the seuerall meanes to the persons of men that Gods decree which was set downe before all times may in time be fully accomplished as shall afterward in particular appeare Predestination hath two parts the Decree of Election the Decree of Reprobation or No-election This diuision is plaine by that which hath bene said out of the 9. cap. to the Rom. and it may be further confirmed by other testimonies Of some it is said that the Lord knowes who are his and of some others Christ shall say in the day of iudgement J neuer knew you In the Acts it is said that as many of the Gentiles as were ordâ—ined to life euerlasting beleeued And Iude saith of false prophets that they were ordained to condemnation In handling the decree of Election I will consider three things I. what Election is II. the exequution thereof III. the knowledge of particular Election For the first Gods Election is a decree in which according to the good pleasure of his will he hath certenly chosen some meÌ„ to life eternal in Christ for the praise of the glorie of his grace This is the same which Paul saith to the Ephesians God hath chosen vs in Christ before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in loue who hath predestinate vs to be adopted through Jesus Christ vnto himselfe according to the good pleasure of his will Nowe that we may the better conceiue this doctrine let vs come to a consideration of the seuerall points thereof First of all I say Election is Gods decree For there is nothing in the world that comes to pasâ—e either vniuersally or particularly without the eternall vnchangeable decree of God And therefore whereas men are actually chosen brought to life euerlasting it is because God did purpose with himselfe and decree the same before all worlds Now touching the decree it selfe sixe things are to be obserued The first what was the motiue or impulsiue cause that mooued God to decree the saluation of any maÌ„ Answer The good pleasure of God For Paul saith he will haue mercie on whome he will haue mercie and he hath predestinate vs according to the good pleasure of God As for the opinion of them that say that foreseene faith and good workes are the cause that mooued God to choose men to saluatioÌ„ it is friuolous For faith and good works are the fruits and effects of Gods election Paul saith he hath chosen vs not because he did foresee that we would become holy but that we might be holy And he hath predestinate vs to adoption Which is all one as if he had said he hath predestinate vs to beleeue because adoption comes by beleeuing Now if men are elected that they might beleeue then are they not elected because they would beleeue For it can not be that one thing should be both the cause the effect of another The second point is that Gods ElectioÌ„ is vnchangeable so as they which are indeed chosen to saluation can not perish but shall without faile attaine to life euerlasting Paul takes it for a conclusion that the purpose of God according to Election must remaine firme and sure and againe that the gifts and calling of God are without repentance And Samuel saith The strength of Israel will not lie or repent For he is not a man that he should repent Such as Gods nature is such is his will and counsell but his nature is vnchangeable I am Iehovah saith he and I chaunge not therefore his will likewise and his counsells be vnchangeable And therefore whensoeuer the spirit of God shall testifie vnto our spirits that we are iustified in Christ and chosen to saluation it must be a meanes to comfort vs and to stablish our hearts in the loue of God As for the opinion of them that say the Elect may fall from grace and be damned it is full of hellish discomfort and no doubt from the deuill And the reasons commonly alleadged for this purpose are of no moment as may appeare by the skanning of them First they obiect that the Churches of the Ephesians Thessalonians and the dispersed Iewes are all called Elect by the Apostles themselues yet sundrie of them afterward fell away Answ. I. There are two kinds of iudgemeÌ„t to be giuen of men the iudgement of certentie the iudgement of charitie By the first indeed is giuen an infallible determination of any mans Election but it belongs vnto God principally properly to men but in part namely so farforth as God shal reueale the estate of one man vnto an other Now the iudgement of charitie belongs vnto all men by it leauing all secret iudgemeÌ„ts vnto God we are charitably to think that al those that liue in the Church of God professing themselues to be members of Christ are indeede elect to saluation till God make manifest otherwise And on this manner not otherwise do the Apostles cal whole
execration Mara-natha that is pronounced accursed to euerlasting destruction Whence it appeares that the Church hath power to pronounce men reiected to euerlasting damnation upon some special occasions though I dare not say ordinarily and usually The primitiue Church with one consent praied against Iulian the Apostata the praiers made were not in vaine as appeared by his fearefull end As for priuate and ordinary men for the tempering and rectifying of their iudgements in this case they must follow two rules The one is that euerie member of the Church is bound to beleeue his owne election It is the commandement of God binding the very conscience that we should beleeue in Christ Now to beleeue in Christ is not onely to put our affiance in him and to be resolued that we are iustified and sanctified and shalbe glorified by him but also that we were elect to saluatioa in him before the beginning of the world which is the foundation of the rest Againe if of things that haue necessarie dependance one upon another we are to beleeue the one then we are to beleeue the other Now electiō adoptiō are things conioyned the one necessarily dependes upon the other For all the elect as Paul saith are predestinate to adoption wee are to beleeue our owne adoption therefore also our election The second rule is that concerning the persons of those that be of the Church wee must put in practise the iudgement of charitie that is to esteeme of them as of the elect of God till God make manifest otherwise By vertue of this rule the ministers of Gods word are to publish and preach the Gospell to all without exceptiō It is true indeed there is both wheat darnell in Gods field chaffe corne in Gods barne fish drosse in Gods net sheep goates in Christs fold but secret iudgements belong unto God and the rule of loue which is to thinke and wish the best of others is to be followed of us that professe faith working by loue It may be demanded what we are to iudge of them that as yet are enemies of Christ. Ans. Our duty is to suspēd our iudgements concerning their finall estate for we know not whether God will call them or no and therefore we must rather pray for their conversion then for their confusion Againe it may be demanded what is to be thought of all our ancetours forefathers that liued died in the times whē Popery took place Ans. We may well hope the best thinke that they were saued for though the Papacie be not the Church of God and though the doctrine of popery race the foundation yet neuerthelesse in the very midst of the Romane papacie God hath alwaies had a remnant which haue in some measure truly serued him In the olde Testament when open idolatrie took place in all Israel God saith to Eliah I have reserved 7. thousand to my self that never bowed knee to Baal the like is hath bin in the generall apostasie under Antichrist S. Iohn saith that when the woman fled into the vvildernes for a time euen then there was a remnant of her seed which kept the cōmandements of God have testimony of Iesus Christ. And againe when ordinary meanes of saluation faile then God can doth make a supply by means extraordinary therfore there is no cause why we should say that they were condemned Thirdly it may be demāded whether the cōmō iudgemēt giuen of F. Spira that hee is a reprobate be good or no Ans. we may with better warrāt say no then any mā say yea For what gifts of discerning had they which came to visit him in his extremitie what reasons induced them to giue this peremptorie iudgement He said himselfe that he was a reprobate that is nothing a sick mans iudgement of himselfe is not to be regarded Yea but he despaired a senslesse reasō for so doth many a man yeere by yeere that very often as deeply as euer Spira did yet by the good help of the ministery of the worde both are may be recouered And they which wil auouch Spira to be a reprobate must go further prooue 2. things that he despaired both wholly and finally which if they can not proue we for our parts must suspende our iudgementes and they were much to blame that first published the booke Lastly it may be demādend what is to be thought of thē that make very fearful ends in rauing blaspheming Ans. Such strāge behauiours are oftētimes the fruites of violent diseases which torment the body bereaue the minde of sense reason therfore if the persons liued wel we must thinke the best for we are not by outward things to iudge of the estate of any man Salomon saith that all things come alike to all the same condition to the iust to the wicked Thus much of the parts of predestination Now followes the use thereof it concernes partly our iudgemēts partly our affectiōs partly our liues The uses which concerne iudgement are 3. And first by the doctrine of predestinatiō we learne that there cā not be any iustification of a sinner before God by his workes For Gods election is the cause of iustification because whome God electeth to saluation after this life them he electeth to be iustified in this life Now election it selfe is of grace and of grace alone as Paul saieth Election is by grace and if it be of grace it is no more of workes or else were grace no grace therefore iustification is of grace and of grace alone And I reason thus The cause of a cause is the cause of all things caused but grace alone is the cause of predestination which is the cause of our vocation iustification sanctification c. Grace therefore is also the alone cause of all these Therefore the scriptures ascribe not onely the beginning but also the continuāce accomplishment of all our happinesse to grace For first as election so vocation is of grace Paul saieth God hath called vs not according to our vvorkes but according to his purpose and grace Againe faith in Christ is of grace So it is saide To you it is given to beleeve in Christ. Also the iustification of a sinner is of grace So Paul saieth plainely to the Romanes you are iustified freely by his grace Againe sanctification and the doing of good workes is of grace So it is saide Wee are his vvorkemanshippe created in Christ Iesus vnto good vvorkes vvhich God hath ordained that vvee shoulde vvalke in them Also perseverance in good workes and godlinesse is of grace So the Lorde saieth I vvill make an everlasting covenant vvith them that I will neuer turne avvay from them to doe them good but I will put my feare in their heartes that they shall not depart from mee Lastly life euerlasting is of grace So Paul saieth Life everlasting
to eternall saluation and againe foreseeing who would not beleeue but contemne grace offered did thereupon also decree to reiect them to eternall damnation This platforme howsoeuer it may seeme plausible to reason yet indeed it is nothing els but a Deuise of mans braine as will appeare by sundrie defects and errours that be in it For first whereas it is auouched that Adams fall came by the bare presciēce of God without any decree or will of his it is a flat vntruth The putting of Christ to death was as great a sinne as the fall of Adam nay in some respects greater Now that came to passe not onely by the foreknowledge of God but also by his determinate counsell And therefore as the Church of Ierusalem saith Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel gathered themselues togither to doe whatsoeuer thine hand and thy counsell had determined before to be done so may we say that Adam in his fall did nothing but that which the hand of God and his counsell had determined before to be done And considering the will of God extends it selfe to the least things that are euen to sparrows whereof none doe light vpon the ground without our heauenly father how can a man in reason imagine that the fall of one of the most principall creatures that are shall fall out altogether without the will and decree of God And there can be nothing more absurd then to seuer the foreknowledge of God from his counsell or decree For by this meanes things shall come to passe God nilling or not knowing or not regarding them Now if any thing come to passe God nilling it then that is done which God would not haue done and to say so is to bereaue him of his omnipotencie And if we shall say that things fall out God not knowing of them we make him to be imprudent and denie his omniscience lastly if we shall say that a thing is done God not regarding it we bring in an idole of our owne braines and stablish the idle-god of the Epicures But it is obiected to the contrarie that if God any way decreed and willed the fall of Adam then he was the author of sinne which once to say is blasphemie Answear The argument followes not There be three actions in the will of God one whereby he doth absolutely will any thing and delight in it and of all such things God himselfe is the author The second is wholly or absolutely to Nill a thing and all thinges thus nilled can not possibly come to passe or haue the least beeing in nature There is also a third action which comes as a meane betweene the two former which is remissely or in part both to nill and will a thing whereby though God approoue not euill as it is euill and therfore doth it not yet he willeth the permitting of it to be done by others or the beeing of it because in respect of God that decreeth the permitting of euill it is good that there should be euill And on this maner and no otherwise God willed the fall of Adam and therefore in the reason of any indifferent man though he decreed the fall yet shall he be free from the blame thereof which lies wholly vpon the doer these two caueats alwaies remembred first that God by his will did not constraine or force the will of Adam to sinne or infuse into it any corruption and that therefore he sinned willingly and freely only by the necessitie of immutabilitie not by the necessitie of coaction secondly that God willed the fall for a most worthie end which was to lay downe a way tending to the manifestation both of his iustice and mercie Againe it is alleadged that if God willed Adams fall then his will is flat contrarie to it selfe because he wills that which he had by expresse commaundement forbidden Answer In deede if God should both wil and forbid one and the same thing in one and the same respect there should be a contradiction in Gods will but that God doth not He forbad Adams fall as it was a sinne for so in euery commaundement sinne as it is sinne is condemned and punished and yet because it was in a new respect a meanes of manifesting his glorie who is able to bring light out of darknes therefore he willingly decreed the permission of it Incest as it is a sinne it is condemned in the seuenth commandement and punished with death yet as incest was a punishment of Dauids adulterie God is said to take his wiues and to giue them to his sonne Absolom Some againe as it appeares by their writings feare to ascribe vnto God so much as a permission of Adams fall but no doubt they are deceiued For if these rules be true that God is omnipotent that he works all things that are by the counsell of his will and gouernes them that he hath care and regard ouer man that nothing is hid from him that he is vnchangeable there must needs be permission of will If the deuill could not enter so much as into an heard of swine without Christs permission shall we thinke that he could compasse the fall and ouerthrow of man without a permission Indeed to permit is not to hinder euill when one may and with men this is a fault but not with God because he is not bound to hinder the euill which he permits The second fault is that they make the Prescience of mans faith vnbeliefe to be the impulsiue causes of Gods decree For they say that God eternally decrees to saue or refuse men because he did foresee that they would beleeue or not beleeue But indeed it is a manifest vntruth Among the causes of al things that are there is an order set down by God himselfe in which order some causes are highest some lowest some in the middest Now the highest cause of all is that which ouerrules all and is ouerruled of none and that is Gods will beyond which there can be no higher cause for God is placed aboue all and subiect to none And this very will of his is the cause of all things that haue beeing for we must not imagine that a thing first of all existeth and then afterward is willed of God but first of all God wills a thing and then afterward it comes to haue beeing Nowe to say that foreseene faith or vnbeliefe are the moouing causes whereby God was induced to ordaine men either to saluation or to iust damnation is to vndoe this diuine order of causes and to displace the linkes in that Gods will is made a secondarie or middle cause subordinate to others causes placed aboue it and this is to make the will of God to depend vpon the qualitie and condition of the creature whereas all things depend vpon it Againe Paul saith that God hath opened the mysterie of his will according to his good pleasure which he
stands in two things the first is to gouerne the Church by such power and authoritie whereby he can and doth prescribe lawes properly binding the consciences of all his members the second is by grace to quicken and put spirituall life into them so as they shall be able to say that they liue not but Christ in them As for the Supremacie of the sea of Rome whereby the Pope will needs stand ministeriall heade to the Catholike Church is a satanicall forgerie For the headshippe as I may tearme it of Christ is of that nature or qualitie that it can admitte no deputie whether wee respect the commaunding or the quickening power of Christ before namâ—d Nay Christ needes no vicar or deputie for hee is all-sufficient in him selfe and alwaies present with his Church as hee him selfe testifieth saying Where tvvo or three are gathered togither in my name there am I in the middest among them And whereas all commissions cease in the presence of him that giues the commission it is as much pride and arrogancie for the Pope to take unto himselfe the title of the heade and universall Bishoppe of the Church as it is for a subiect to keepe him selfe in commission in the presence of his King The seconde rule is that there is no saluation out of the Church and that therefore euerie one which is to be saued must become a member a citizen of the Catholike and Apostolike Church such as remaine for euer out of the same perish eternally Therefore S. Iohn saieth They went out of us they were not of us for if they had beene of vs they woulde have remained with vs but this commeth to passe that it might appeare that they are not all of vs. And againe that such as be holy are in the citie of God but without that is forth of the Church are dogges inchaunters whoremongers adulterers c. And the Arke out of which all perished figured the Church out of which all are condemned And for this cause Saint Luke saieth that the Lorde added to the Church from day to day such as shoulde be saved And the reason hereof is plaine for without Christ there is no saluation but out of the militant Church there is no Christ nor faith in Christ and therefore no saluation Againe foorth of the militant Church there are no meanes of saluation no preaching of the worde no invocation of Gods name no sacraments and therefore no saluation For this cause euery man must be admonished euermore to ioyne himselfe to some particular Church being a sounde member of the Catholike Church The thirde rule is that the Church which here wee beleeue is onely one As Christ himselfe speaketh My dove is alone and my vndefiled is the onely daughter of her mother And as there is onely one God and one Redeemer one faith one baptisme and one way of saluation by Christ onely so there is but one Church alone The Catholicke Church hath two partes the Church Triumphant in heauen and the Church Militant on earth The Triumphant Church may thus be described It is a companie of the spirites of iust men triumphing over the flesh the devill and the vvorlde praising God First I say it is a companie of the spirites of men as the Holy Ghost expressely tearmeth it because the soules onely of the godly departed as of Abraham Isaac Iacob Dauid c. are as yet ascended into heauen and not their bodies Furthermore the properties of this companie are two The first is to make triumph ouer their spirituall enemies the flesh the deuill the worlde for the righteous man so long as he liues in this world is in continuall combâ—te without truce with all these enemies of his saluation and by constant faith obtaining victory in the ende of his life hee is translated in glorious and triumphant manner into the kingdome of glorie This was signified to Iohn in a vision in which hee saw an innumerable company of all sorts of nations kinreds people and tongues stande before the lambe clothed in long vvhite robes with palmes in their handes in token that they haue beene warriours but now by Christ haue gotten the victorie and are made conquerours Their second propertie is to praise and magnifie the name of god as it followeth in the former place saying Amen praise and glorie and vvisedome and thankes honour povver and might be vnto our God for evermore Hence it may be demanded whether Angels be of this triumphant Church or no Ansvvere The blessed Angels be in heauen in the presence of God the father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost but they are not of the mysticall bodie of Christ because they are not under him as he is their Redeemer considering they can not be redeemed which neuer fell and it can not be prooued that they now stande by the vertue of Christs redemption but they are under him as hee is their Lord and King and by the power of Christ as hee is God and their God are they confirmed And therefore as I take it wee can not say that angels are members of the mysticall body of Christ or of the triumphant Church The Church Militant may be thus described It is the company of the elect or faithfull living under the crosse desiring to be remooved and to be with Christ. I say not that the Militant Church is the whole bodie of the elect but only that part thereof which liueth upon earth and the infallible marke thereof is that faith in Christ which is taught and deliuered in the writings of the Prophets and Apostles and this faith againe may be discerned by two markes The first is that the members of this companie liue vnder the crosse and profite by it in all spirituall grace And therefore it is saide that we must through many afflictions enter into the kingdome of heaven And our Sauiour Christ saieth If any man will come after me let him deny himselfe and take vp his crosse every day and follow me The second marke is a desire to depart hence and to be with Christ as Paul saith Wee love rather to be removed out of this body and to be with Christ. And againe I desire to be loosed and to be with Christ which is best of all Where yet we must remember that the members of Christ doe not desire death simply and absolutely but in two respectes I. that they might leaue off to sinne and by sinning leaue to displease God II. That they might come to enioy happinesse in heauen and to be with Christ. Touching the generall estate of the Militant Church two questions are to be considered The first how farre forth God is present with it assisting it by his grace Answere God giues his spirit unto it in such a measure that although the gates of hell cannot preuaile against it yet neuerthelesse it remaines still subiect to errour both in doctrine and manners For that which
the Gospell besides they giue an assent to it to be true and they do more yet in that they tremble and feare And many a man hath not so much For amongst vs there is many a one which hath no knowledge of God at all more then he hath learned by the common talke of the world as namely that there is a God and that he is mercifull c. and yet this man will say that he beleeueth with all his heart but without knowledge it can not be that any should truly beleeue therfore he deceiveth himselfe Quest. But whence haue the devils historicall faith were they illuminated by the light of the spirit Answ. No but when the Gospell was preached they did acknowledge it and beleeued it to be true that by vertue of the reliques of Gods image which remained in them since their fall And therefore this their faith doeth not arise from any speciall illumination by his spirit but they attaine to it by the light of nature which was left in them from the beginning The second kind of faith is Temporary faith so called because it lasteth but for a time and season and commonly not to the end of a mans life This kind of faith is noted unto us in the parable of the seede that fell in the stony ground And there be two differences or kinds of this faith The first kinde of temporary faith hath in it three degrees The first is to know the word of God and particularly the Gospell The second to giue an assent unto it The third to professe it but to goe no further and all this may be done without any loue to the word This faith hath one degree more then historicall faith Examples of it we haue in Simon Magus Acts. 8.13 who is said to beleeue because he held the doctrine of the Apostle to be true and withall he professed it and in the devils also who in some sort professed that Christ was the sonne of the most highest yet looked for no saluation by him Mark 5.7 Act. 19.14 And this is the common faith that abounds in this land Men say they beleeue as the prince beleeueth and if religion chāge they will change For by reason of the authoritie of princes lawes they are made to learne some litle knowledge of the word they beleeue it to be good they professe it thus for the space of thirtie or fourtie yeres they will heare the word preached and receiue the sacraments and yet be as void of grace as euer they were at the first day the reason is because men doe barely professe it without either liking or loue of the same The second kinde of temporarie faith hath in it fiue degrees For by it first a man knows the word Secondly he assenteth unto it III. he professeth it IIII. he reioyceth inwardly in it V. he bringeth forth some kind of fruit and yet for all this hath no more in him but a faith that will faile in the end because he wanteth the effectuall applicatiō of the promise of the gospel is without all maner of sound conversiō This faith is like corne in the house top which groweth for a while but when heate of sommer cōmeth it withereth And this is also set forth vnto vs in the parable of the seede which fell in a stony ground which is hastie in springing up but because of the stones which will not suffer it to take deepe roote it withereth And this is a very common faith in the Church of God by which many reioyce in the preaching of the worde and for a time bring forth some fruits accordingly with shewe of great forwardnesse yet afterward shake of religion and all But some will say howe can this be a temporary faith seeing it hath such fruits Answ. Such a kind of faith is temporary because it is grounded on temporarie causes vvhich are three I. A desire to get knovvledge of some straunge pointes of religion For many a man doth labour for the fiue former degrees of temporarie faith onely because he desires to get more knovvledge in scripture then other men haue The second cause is a desire of praise among men which is of that force that it will make a man put on a shevve of all the graces vvhich God bestoweth on all his children though otherwise he want them and to go very farre in religion vvhich appeareth thus Some can very bitterly weepe for the sinnes of other men and yet haue neither sorrowe nor griefe for their owne and the cause hereof is nothing else but pride For he that sheddes teares for another mans sinnes should much more vveepe for his owne if he had grace Yet thus are many men disposed euen of pride and nothing else Againe a man for his owne sinnes vvill pray very slackly and dully when he prayeth priuately and yet when he is in the company of others will pray very fervently and earnestly From vvhence is this difference surely often it springeth from the pride of heart and from a desire of praise among men The third cause of temporarie faith is profit commodity the getting of wealth and riches These make man to receive religion and if other religion come they vvill receiue it asvvell as this But such studies not the gospell because it is the gospell but because it brings wealth peace and riches with it And these are the three causes of temporarie faith The third kind of faith is the faith of Miracles vvhen a man grounding himselfe on some speciall promise or revelation from God doeth beleeve that some straunge extraordinarie thing vvhich he hath desired or foretold shall come to passe by the vvork of God This must be distinguished from historicall temporarie faith For Simon Magus had both these kindes of faith but yet wanted this faith of miracles therfore would haue bought the same of the Apostles for mony Yet this faith of miracles may be in hypocrites as it vvas in Iudas at the last iudgement it shall be found to haue bin in the wicked reprobate which shal say to Christ Lorde in thy name we haue prophesied and cast out deuils and done many great miracles And thus much for the three sorts of common faith Now we must come to the true faith which is the faith of the elect It is thus defined Faith is a supernaturall gift of God in the mind apprehending the sauing promise with al the promises that depend on it First I say it is a gift of God Phil. 1.29 to confute the blind opiniō of our people that think that the faith wherby they are to be saued is bred borne with thē I adde that it is a gift supernaturall not onely because it is aboue that corrupt nature in which we are borne but also because it is aboue that pure nature in which our first parents were created For in the state of innocencie they wanted this faith neither
commended for a beleeuer and in the like case the Samaritanes And thus much of weake faith which must be vnderstood to be in a man not all the daies of his life but while he is a yong babe in Christ. For as it is in the state of the body first we are babes grow to greater strength as we growe in yeres so it is with a Christian man First he is a babe in Christ hauing weake faith but after growes from grace to grace till he come to haue a strong faith example whereof we haue in Abraham who was strong and perfect both in knowledge and apprehension This strong faith is when a man is endued with the knowledge of the Gospel grace to apprehend and applie the righteousnes of Christ vnto himselfe for the remission of his own sinnes so as he can say distinctly of himselfe and truly that he is fully resolued in his own conscience that he is recōciled vnto God in Christ for all his sinnes accepted in him to life euerlasting This degree of faith is proper to him that begins to be a tall man and of ripe yeares in Christ. And it commeth not at the first calling of a man vnto grace And if any shall thinke that he can haue it at the first he deceiueth him selfe For as it is no nature first wee are babes and then as we encrease in yeares so wee growe in strength so it is in the life of a Christian first ordinarily hee hath a weake faith and after growes from grace to grace till he come to stronger faith and at the last he be able to say he is fully assured in his heart conscience of the pardon of his sinnes of reconciliation to God in Christ. And this assurance ariseth from many experiences of Gods fauour and loue in his life and preseruation which brings a man to this that he is fully perswaded that God is his God and God the father his father and Iesus Christ his redeemer and the holy Ghost his sanctifier Now howsoeuer this faith be strong yet is it alwaies imperfect as also our knowledge is and shall so long as we liue in this world be mingled with contrarie vnbeliefe and sundrie doubtings more or lesse A great part of men amōgst vs blinded with grosse ignorance say they haue faith yet indeed haue not For aske them what faith they haue they will answer they beleeue that God is their father the Son their redeemer c. aske them how long they haue had this faith they will answer euer since they could remember aske them whether they euer doubt of Gods fauour they will say they would not once doubt for all the worlde But the case of these men is to be pitied for howsoeuer they may perswade themselues yet true it is that they haue no sound faith at all for euen strong faith is assaulted with temptations and doubtings and God will not haue men perfect in this life that they may alwaies goe out of themselues and depend wholly on the merit of Christ. And thus much of these two degrees of faith Nowe in whom so euer it is whether it be a weake faith or a strōg it bringeth forth some fruit as a tree doth in the time of sommer And a speciall fruit of faith is this confession of faith I beleeue in God c. so Paul saith With the heart a man may beleeue vnto righteousnes and with the mouth man confesseth to saluation Confession of faith is when a man in speach and outwarde profession doth make manifest his faith for these two causes I. That with his mouth outwardly he may glorifie God both in bodie and soule II. That by the confession of his faith he may seuer himselfe from all false Christians from Atheists hypocrites and all false seducers whatsoeuer And as this is the dutie of a Christian man to make profession of his faith so here in this Creede of the Apostles we haue the right order and forme of making it set downe as we shal see in hādling the parts therof The Creede therefore sets downe two things concerning faith namely the action of faith and his obiect which also are the parts of the Creede The action in these words I beleeue the obiect in all the words following in God the Father almightie maker c. And first let vs begin with the action I beleeue in God We are taught to say I beleeue not we beleeue for two causes First because as we touched before in the Primitiue Church this Creede was made to be an answer made vnto a question which was demanded of euery particular man that was baptized for they asked him thus What dost thou beleeue then he answered I beleeue in God the Father c. and thus did euery one of yeares make profession of his faith and it is likely that Peter alluded hereunto saying the stipulation or answer of a good conscience maketh request to God The secōd cause is howsoeuer we are to pray one for another by saying O our father c. yet when wee come to yeres we must haue a particular faith of our own no mā can be saued by anothers mans faith but by his own so it is said The iust shall liue by his faith But some will say this is not true For children must be saued by their parents faith the answer is this the faith of the parents doth bring the child to haue a title or interest to the couenant of grace and to all the benefits of Christ but yet it doth not applie the benefits of Christs death his obedience his merits and righteousnes vnto the infant for this the beleeuer doth only vnto himselfe to no other Againe some may say if they doe not apprehend Christs benefits by their parents faith how then is Christs righteousnes made theirs Answ. By the inward working of the holy Ghost who is the principall applier of all graces whereas faith is but the instrumēt And this is true men of yeares are iustified by their own faith the infāt by some other special working of Gods holy spirit Furthermore to beleeue signifieth two things to conceiue or vnderstand any thing and withall to giue assent vnto it to be true and therefore in this place to beleeue signifieth to know and acknowledge that all the points of religion which followe are the truth of God Here therefore we must remember that this clause I beleeue placed in the beginning of the Creede must be particularly applied to euery article following For so the case stands that if faith faile in one maine point it faileth a man in all and therefore faith is said to be wholly copulatiue It is not sufficient to hold one article but he that will hold any of them for his good must hold them all and he which holdes them all in shewe of words if he ouerturne but one of them in deede he ouerturnes them all Againe to beleeue
the Papistes are faultie tvvo vvayes First that they giue too much to the verie name of Iesus for they write in plaine tearmes that the bare name it self being used hath great power doth driue away deuils though the parties that use it be void of good affection whereas indeede it hath no more vertue then other titles of God or Christ. Secondly they are faultie that they giue too little to the thing signified For Christ must either be our alone and whole Sauiour or no Saviour Now they make him but halfe a Sauiour they ioyne others with him as partners in the work of saluatiō whē they teach that with Christs merits must be ioyned our works of grace in the matter of iustification and with Christes satisfaction for the wrath of God our satisfaction for the temporall punishment and when they adde to Christes intercession the intercession and patronage of saints especially of the virgin Mary whome they call the queene of heauen the mother of mercie vvithall requesting her that by the authoritie of a mother shee would commaund her sonne If this doctrine of theirs may stand Christ can not be the onely Sauiour of mankinde but euerie man in parte shalbe Iesus to himselfe But let us goe on yet further to search the speciall reason of the name which is notably set downe by the Angell Thou shalt saith hee call his name Iesus for he shall save his people from their sinnes In which words vve may consider 3. pointes I. Whome the sonne of God shall saue II. By what III. From what For the first he shall saue his people that is the elect of Iewes Gentiles and therefore he is called the Saviour of his bodie VVe must not here imagine that Christ is a Sauiour of all and euerie man For if that were true then Christ shoulde make satisfaction to Gods iustice for all and every mans sinnes and gods iustice being fully satisfied he could not in iustice condemne any man nay all men should be blessed because satisfactiō for sin the pardon of sin depend one upō another inseparably Againe if Christ be an effectuall Sauiour of all and euerie particular man why is any man condemned It will be said because they will not beleeue belike then mans will must over rule Gods will whereas the common rule of divines is that the first cause ordereth the second The meanes of saluation by Christ are two his merite and his efficacie His merit in that by his obedience to the law and by his passion he made a satisfaction for our sinnes freed us from death and reconciled us unto God Some may obiect that the obedience and the passion of Christ being long agoe ended can not be able to saue us now because that which he did 1500. yeres agoe may seeme to be vanished and come to nothing at this day Answere If Christs obedience be considered as an action his passion as a bare suffering they are both ended long agoe yet the value and price of them before God is euerlasting as in Adams fall the action of eating the forbidden fruit is ended but the guilt of his transgression goes ouerall mankind and continues still euen to this houre and shall doe to the ende of the world in those which shall be borne hereafter The efficacie of Christ is in that hee giues his spirite to mortifie the corruption of our natures that we may die unto sinne and liue to righteousnesse and haue true comfort in terrors of conscience and in the pangs of death The euils from which we are saued are our owne sinnes in that Christ freeth us from the guilt and the punishment and fault of them all when we beleeue Thus much for the meaning of this title Iesus Now followe the uses which arise of it First of all whereas wee are taught to make confession that the sonne of God is Iesus that is a Sauiour hence it must needs follow that wee are all lost in our selues And indeede before we can truly acknowledge that Christ is our Sauiour this confession must needes goe before that we are in truth therewithal do feel our selues to be miserable sinners under the wrath of God utterly lost in regarde of our selues for Christ came to save that which vvas lost And vvhen he talked with the woman of Canaan he checked her said he was not sent but to the lost sheepe of the house of Israel Christ Iesus came to poure oyle into our woundes Christ came to set them at libertie which are in prison and to place them in freedome that are in bondage Now a man cannot poure oyle into a wound before there be a wounde or before it be opened and wee feele the smart of it And how can we be set at libertie by Christ except we feele us in our selues to be in bondage under Hell death and damnation VVhen the disciples of Christ were vpon the sea in a great tempest they cried Master saue vs we perish So no man can heartily say I beleeue Iesus Christ to be my Sauiour before hee feele that in himselfe he is utterly lost and cast away without his helpe But after that wee perceiue our selues to be in danger to be ouerwhelmed in the Sea of the wrath of God then we crie out with the disciples Lorde Iesus saue vs wee perish Many protestants in these daies hold Christ to be their Sauiour but it is onely formably from the teeth outward and no further for they were neuer touched with the sense of their spirituall miserie that they might say with Daniel Shame and confusion belongeth unto us and with the Publican I am a sinner Lorde be mercifull to me And therefore the conclusion is this that if we will haue Christ to be our Saviour we must first beleeue that in our selues we are utterly lost and so must that place be understood where Christ saith he is not sent but to the lost sheepe of the house of Israel that is to those which in their owne sense and feeling are lost in themselues Secondly if Christ be a Sauiour then we must acknowledge him to be so But how shall wee doe this I ansvver Thus A man is taken to be a skillfull Phisition by this that many patients come unto him and seeke for helpe at his hands And so should it be with Christ. But alas the case is otherwise Every man can talke of Christ but few acknowledge him to be a Sauiour by seeking to him for their saluation because they iudge themselues righteous and feele not themselues to stand in need of the helpe of Christ. Nay which is more if a man be knowne that can cure straunge diseases men will seeke to him by sea and lande and sell both goods and landes to get helpe at his handes Euen so if men were perswaded that Christ were a perfect Sauiour and that they were sicke and utterly unable to be saued without him they
is the naturall sonne of Neri and the legall sonne of Iechonias Now Saint Luke sets downe the naturall descent of Christ from Dauid by Nathan and Saint Matthew the other descent which is legall by Salomon whome Christ succeeded in the right of the kingdom being borne the king of the Iewes none that could possibly be named hauing more right to it then he By this discent of Christ we haue occasion to consider that Christ was euen in his birth the most excellent and noble man that euer was descending of the eternall father as he is the sonne of God and as he man descending of the Patriarks and of the renowmed kings of Iudah And this his nobilitie he conuaies in part to his members in that he makes them the sonnes of God a royall priesthood and a peculiar people to himselfe inriching them also with the reuenewes of the whole world and with the title and right to the kingdome of glorie in heauen as their inheritance And withall Christ beeing the liuely patterne of true nobilitie by his example men of blood are taught not to stand so much on their pedigree and their ancetours as though nobilitie stood in this that man descends of man but to labour with all that they may to be the sonnes and daughters of God by regeneratioÌ„ in Christ. This in deede is the ornament of the blood the best part in the noble mans skutchin and the finest flowre in his garland And though a man be neuer so noble or great an estate yet if he be not a repentant sinner he is base and vile and his nobilitie stinks in the nostrils of God Christ in his genealogie doth not so much as vouchsafe to name those his ancetours that ruled wickedly and hereupon Saint Matthew omitteth three kings of Iuda Achaziah Ioas Amaziah whereas neuerthelesse hainous offendours that repented are mentioned as Ruth and Thamat and Bathshabe Thus much of the incarnation of Christ Now followeth the third and last point which is to be considered in the description of Christ namely the estate of Christ after his birth which is two-fold the estate of humiliation and the estate of exaltation The estate of humiliation is the condition of Christ the Mediatour in which he abased himselfe euen to the death of the crosse that by that meanes he might performe the office of a priest in making satisfaction to the iustice of his father This estate agrees to the whole person of Christ according to both natures For first of all his manhoode was abased and humbled in that it was made subiect to the infirmities of mans nature as also to the miseries and punishments which were due vnto man for sinne Secondly his Godhead was abased not as it is considered in it selfe For so it admits no alteration or chaunge But in respect of the flesh or manhoode assumed vnder the which as vnder a vaile the Godhead lay hid from the first moment of the incarnation to the time of his resurrectioÌ„ without any great manifestation of his power and maiestie therein The order of these two estates must be marked First is the estate of humiliation and then in the second place followes the estate of exaltation As Christ saith of him selfe O fooles and slow of heart to beleeue c. ought not Christ to haue suffered these things and to enter into his glorie And here we for our part must learne a lesson The same which was true in Christ the head must be verifyed in all his members they must also haue their two-fold estate First in this life the estate of humiliation secondly after this life the estate of glorie And as Christ first entred into the state of his humiliation and then into glorie so it is with his members first they must be abased in this life and secondly exalted in the worlde to come He that will raigne with Christ and be exalted must first suffer with him and be humbled hee that will weare the crowne of glorie must weare first a crowne of thornes they that will haue all teares wyped from their eyes must here first in this life shed them And the children of God before they can sing the song of Moses and of the seruants of God and of the lambe must first swimme through the sea of burning glasse wherby it is signified that those which after this life would sing songs of praises to Christ must in this life be cast into a sea of miserie And if this be true then we may heare learne that it is a wretched case for a man in this life to haue perpetuall ease rest and quietnes both in bodie and soule goods and good name for we see by Christs example that through aduersitie we must come to happines and if a man would haue rest and peace in the life to come then in this life he must suffer trouble persecution and sorrow Indeede in the iudgement of the world they are blessed that alwaies liue at rest but before God they are most miserable and as oxen which are made fat in the best pasture readie for the slaughterhouse euery day Secondly here is an excellent consolation for those which professe the Gospell of Christ in the time of trouble and persecution they must reioyce because the state of humiliation in this life is a signe that they are in the plaine and right way to saluation and glorie A man is to take his iourney into a farre countrey and inquiring for the way it is told him that there are many plaine waies but the straight and right way is full of woods and hills and mountaines and great daungers now when he is traueiling and comes into those places he gathereth certenly that he is in the right way so the child of God that is going to the kingdome of heauen though there be many waies to walke in yet he knowes that there is but one right way which is very straight and narrow full of trouble sorrow and persecution full of all manner of crosses and afflictions and when in this life he is persecuted and afflicted for good causes whether in bodie or in minde if he be content to beare his crosse it agreeth plainly that he is in the right way vnto saluation for thorough many afflictions wee must enter into the kinâ—dome of heauen The humiliation of Christ is first of all set downe in the Creede generally and secondly by his parts or degrees Generally in these words suffered vnder Pontius Pilate Where we must consider two things the passion it selfe and vnder whome it was For the first that we may the better conceiue the passion in his owne nature seuen speciall points must be opened I. The cause efficient The principall cause of the passion as it is the price of our redemption was the decree and prouidence of God as Peter saith expressely that Christ was deliuered by the determinate counsell and foreknowledge of God The impulsive cause that mooued God to worke
this First of all we must set it before our eyes as a looking glasse in which we may cleerely behold the horriblenes of our sinnes that could not be pardoned without the passion of the sonne of God and the vnspeakeable loue of Christ that dyed for vs and therefore loued his owne enemies more then his owne selfe and lastly our endles peace with God and happines in that considering the person of our redeemer who suffered the pangs of hell we may after a sort finde our paradise euen in the middest of hell Secondly the meditation of Christs passion serues as a most worthie meanes to beginne and to confirme grace specially when it is mingled with faith and that tâ—o waies For first it serues to breede in our hearts a godly sorrowe for our sinnes past when we doe seriously with our selues consider that our owne sinnes were the cause of all the paines and sorrowes and calamities which he suffered in life and death When any man had sinned vnder the Law he brought vnto the temple or tabernacle some kinde of beast for an offering according as he was prescribed laying his hande vpon the heade of it and afterward slaying it before the Lord. Now by the ceremonie of laying on the hand he testified that he for his part had deserued death and not the beast and that it beeing slaine and sacrificed was a signe vnto him of the sacrifice of Christ offered vpon the crosse for his sinnes And hereby we are taught that so oft as we remember the passion of Christ we should lay our hands as it were vpon our owne heads vtterly accusing and condemning ourselues euermore keeping this in heart that Christ suffered not for himselfe but for our offences which were the proper cause of all his woe and miserie And as Christs passion was grieuous and bitter vnto him so should our sinnes likewise be grieuous and bitter vnto vs let vs alwaies remember this otherwise we shall neuer reape any sound benefit by the passion of Christ. Againe the passion of Christ is a notable meanes to stirre vp in our hearts a purpose and a care to reforme our selues and liue in holines and newnes of life on this manner Hath the Sonne of God so mercifully dealt with me as to suffer the curse of the whole law for my manifold iniquities and to deliuer me from iust and deserued damnation yea no doubt he hath I am resolued of it if I should goe on in mine old course I should be the most vngratefull of all creatures to this my louing Sauiour I will therefore by his grace returne and reforme my life And in this very point of reformation the passion of Christ is set before vs as a most liuely patterne and example to follow For as much saith Saint Peter as Christ hath suffered for vs in the flesh arme your selues likewise with the same minde which is that hee which hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sinne Where hee teacheth that there must be in vs a spirituall passion answearable to the passion of Christ. For as his enemies did lade him with miseries euen to the death of the crosse so should we lade our owne flesh that is the corruption of our natures with all such meanes as may subdue and weaken crucifie and kill it To the doing of this three things especially are required First we must consider that the corruption of our rebellious natures is like the great and mightie Goliath and the grace of God which we haue receiued like young and little Dauid and therefore if wee desire that grace should preuaile against corruption we must disarme the strong man and strippe him of all his weapons which is done by giuing all the members of our bodies to be instruments of the seruice of God in righteousnes and holines Secondly we must indeauour to keepe in the corruption of nature as it were choking and smothering at the heart that by it neither the worlde nor the deuill preuaile against vs. And this must be done by hauing a narrow regard vnto all the powers and faculties of bodie and soule setting a watch before our eyes eares lippes and all other parts of the bodie that are in any action the instruments of the soule and aboue all as Salomon saith by countergarding the heart with all diligence By the outward senses of the bodie as through open windows the deuill creepes into the heart and therefore our duetie is to stoppe all such waies of entrance Thirdly when originall corruption begins to rebell either in the minde will or any of the affections then must we draw out the sword of the spirit which is the word of God and incounter with that hidious gyant laying load vpoÌ„ him by the iudgements and threatnings of the law as it were beating him down with clubbes as Paul speaketh And if it fall out that concupiscence beginne to conceiue and bring foorth any sinne we must cruise it in the head dash it against the ground as a bird in the shell least it growe vp to our vtter confusion These are the dueties which wee should learne by the passion of Christ. But lamentable are our daies in which all for the most part goes contrarie for commonly men are so farre from killing and subduing the rebellion of the naturall concupiscence that all their studie and care is howe they may feeede and cherish it and make it stronger then the mightie Goliah But let vs for our parts be conformable to Christ in his passion suffering in our flesh as he suffered in bodie and soule for vs. And let vs daily more and more by the hand of faith apprehend and applie to our hearts and consciences the passion of Christ that it may as a fretting corasive eate out the poyson of our sinnefull natures and to consume it Now followeth the second point concerning the passion of Christ which is vnder whome he suffered namely vnder Pontius Pilate And Christ may be said to suffer vnder him in two respects First because he was then the President of Iurie For a little before the birth of Christ the kingdome of the Iewes was taken away by the Romane Emperour and reduced into a Province Pontius Pilate was placed ouer the Iewes not as king but as the Romane Emperours deputie And this circuÌ„stance is noted in the historie of the Gospell here specified in the Creede to shew that the Messias was exhibited in the time foretold by the Prophets Iacob foretold that Shilo must be borne after the scepter is removed from Iuda Isaiah saith that the familie of Ishai shall be worne as it were to the root before Christ as a branch shall spring out of it Againe Christ suffered vnder Pontius Pilate as he was a iudge whereby we are giuen to vnderstand of a woonder namely that Christ the sonne of God King of heauen and earth was arraigned at the barre of an earthly iudge there condeÌ„ned
the proofes of Christs resurrection which are diligently to be obserued because it is one of the most principall points of our religion For as the Apostle saith He died for our sinnes and rose againe for our iustification and againe If Christ be not risen then is our preaâ—hing vaine and our faith is also vaine The proofes are of two sorts first Christs appearances vnto men secondly the testimonies of men Christs appearances were either on the first day or â—n the daies following The appearances of Christ the same day he rose againe are fiue And first of all â—arely in the morning he appeared to Marie Magdalen In this appearance diuerse things are to be considered The first of what note and qualitie the partie was to whome Christ appeared Answer Mary Magdalen was one that had beene possessed with seuen deuils but was deliuered and became a repentant sinner and stoode by when Christ suffered and came with sweete odours when he was dead to embaulme him And therefore to hir is graunted this prerogatiue that shee should be the first that should testifie his resurrection vnto men And hence we learne that Christ is readie and willing to receiue most miserable wretched sinners euen such as haue beene vassaâ—ls and bondslaues of the deuill if they will come to him Any man would thinke it a fearefull case to be thus possessed with deuills as Marie was but let all those that liue in ignorance and by reason thereof liue in sinne without repentance know this that their case is a thousand times worse then Marie Magdalenâ— was For what is an impenitent sinner Surely nothing els but the castle hold of the deuill both in bodie soule For looke as a captaine that hath taken some hold or skonse doth rule gouerne all therein and disposeth of it at his wil pleasure euen so it is with all blinde and impenitent sinneâ—s not one deuill alone but euen legions of deuills possesse them rule their hearts therfore howsoeuer they may sooth themselues say all is well for God is mercifull yet their case is farre worse then Mariâ—s was Now then would any be freed from this feareful bondage let them learne of Marie Magdalen to follow Christ and to seeke vnto him and then albeit the deuill and all his angels possesse their heaâ—ts yet Christ beeing the strong man will come and cast them all out and dwell there himselfe The second is what Christ in his appearance saide to Marie Answ. He said Touch me not for I am not yet ascended to my father Mary no doubt was glad to see Christ therfore looked to haue coÌ„versed as familiarly with him as shee was wont before his death but he forbids her to touch him that is not to look to inioy his corporal presence as before but rather to seeke for his spirituall presence by faith considering he was shortly to ascend to his father For this cause when he appeared to his disciples he staied not long with them at any time but onely to manifest himselfe vnto theÌ„ thereby to prooue the certentie of his resurrection This prohibition shows first of all that it is but a fond thing to delight in the outward picture and portraiture of Christ as the Iesuits doe who stand much vpoÌ„ his outward forme and lineaments Secondly it ouerthroweth the popish crucifixes and all the carued and molten images of Christ wherein the Papists worship him for corporall presence is not now required therefore spirituall worship onely must be giuen vnto him Thirdly it ouerthroweth the reall presence of Christ in the Sacrament Many are of minde that they cannot receiue Christ except they eat drink his bodie blood corporally but it is not much materiall whether we touch him with the bodily hand or no so be it we apprehend him spiritually by faith Lastly as we must not haue earthly considerations of Christ so must we on the coÌ„trarie labour for the spiritual hand of faith which may reach vp it selfe to heauen there lay hold on him This is the very thing which Christ insinuateth vnto Mary in saying Touch me not And S. Paul saith Henceforth know we no man after the flesh yea though we had knowne Christ after the flesh yet now know we him no more that is we know him no more as a man liuing among vs therfore he addes If any maÌ„ be in Christ he is a new creature and this new creation is not by the bodily presence of Christ but by the appreheÌ„sioÌ„ of faith The second appearance was to Marie Magdalen to the other Marie as they were going from the graue to tell his disciples at which time Christ meeteth them bids them go tell his brethreÌ„ that he is risen again And wheras Christ sendeth womeÌ„ to his disciples he purposed hereby to check theÌ„ for their vnbeliefe For these womeÌ„ forsooke him not at his death but stood by saw him suffer wheÌ„ he was buried they came to embalme him but all this while what became of Christs disciples Surely Peter denied him al the rest fled away eueÌ„ Iames Iohn the sonnes of thuÌ„der saue that Iohn stood a loofe to behold his death Herupon Christ to make theÌ„ ashamed of their fault sendeth these women unto them to publish that to them which they by their calling ought aboue all other to haue published Secondly this teacheth that whereas Christ buildeth his kingdome publisheth his Gospell by Apostles Euangelists Pastors teachers hee can if it so please him perfourme the same by other meanes In this his second appearance he used weak and silly women to publish his resurrection and thereby shewes that he is not bound to the ordinarie means which now hee useth Thirdly hee sent them to his disciples to shew that howsoeuer they had dealt unfaithfully with him by forsaking him and denying him yet hee had not quite forsaken them but if they would repent and beleeue hee would receiue them into his loue and fauour againe and therefore calleth them his brethren saying Goe and tell my brethren This teacheth us a good lesson that howsoeuer our sinnes past are to humble us in regard of our selues yet must they not cut us off or dismay us from seeking to Christ yea euen then when we are laden with the burdeÌ„ of them we must come unto him he will ease us Fourthly whereas silly women are sent to teach Christes disciples which were schollers brought up in his owne schoole wee are admonished that superioritie in place and calling must not hinder us sometime to heare and to be taught of our inferiours Iob saieth he neuer refused the counsell of his seruant And Naaman the Syrian obeyed the counsell of a silly maide which advised him to go to the Prophet of the Lorde in Samaria to be cured of his â—eprosie and when he had beene with the Prophet hee obeyed the counsell of his seruant that perswaded him
with a preposition that ruleth an accuseth or ablatiue case but with a datiue case on this manner Beleeve Moses David the Prophets and it doeth not import any affiance in the creature but onely a giuing of credence by one man to another Secondly they alleadge that ancient fathers reade the article on this manner I beleeve in the holy Catholike Church Ansvver Indeed some haue done so but by this kinde of speech they signified no more but thus much that they beleeued that there was a Catholike Church Thus hauing found what words are to be supplyed let us come to the meaning of the article And that wee may proceede in order let us first of all see vvhat the Church is The Church is a peculiar company of men predestinate to life everlasting and made one in Christ. First I say it is a peculiar company of men for Saint Peter saieth Yee are a chosen generation a royall priesthood an holy nation and a peculiar people He speakes indeede of the Church of God on earth but his saying may be also extended to the whole Church of God as well in heauen as in earth Now because there can be no companie vnlesse it haue a beginning a cause whereby it is gathered therefore I adde further in the definition predestinate to life everlasting Noting thereby the ground and cause of the Catholike Church namely Gods eâ—ernall predestination to life euerlasting and to this purpose our Sauiour Christ saieth Feare not little flocke for it is your fathers will to give you the kingdome signifying thereby that the first and principall cause of the Church is the good pleasure of God whereby hee hath before all workes purposed to aduance his elect to eternal saluatioÌ„ Therfore one saith well only the elect are the Church of God And further because no companie can continue and abide for euer vnlesse the members thereof be ioyned and coupled togither by some bonde therefore I adde in the last place made one vvith Christ. This union maketh the Church to be the Church and by it the members thereof whether they be in heauen or in earth are distinguished from all other companies whatsoeuer Now this coniunction betwene Christ and the Church is auouched by Saint Paul when hee saieth Christ is the heade to his bodie vvhich is his Church and vvhen he ascribes the name of Christ not onely to the person of the sonne but to the Church it selfe as in the Epistle to the Galatians To Abraham and his seede vvere the promises made hee saieth not and to his seedes as speaking of many but and vnto his seed as speaking of one vvhich is Christ that is not the redeemer alone but also the Church redeemed For Christ as hee is man is not the onely seede of Abraham And this definition of the Church is almost in so many words set downe in the Scriptures in that it is called the Family of God partly in heauen and partly in earth named of Christ and it is also called the heavenly Ierusalem the mother of vs all and the celestiall Ierusalem and the congregation of the first borne Nowe for the better understanding of the nature estate and partes of the Church two pointes among the rest must be considered the efficient cause thereof Gods predestination and the forme the mysticall Vnion In handling the doctrine of Predestination my meaning is onely to stande on such pointes as are reuealed in the worde and necessarie tending to edification And first I will shewe what is the trueth and secondly the contrarie falshood In the trueth I consider foure things I. what Predestination is II. what is the order of it III. what be the partes of it IIII. what is the use Predestination may thus be defined It is a parte of the counsell of God whereby hee hath before all times purposed in him selfe to shevve mercie on some men and to passe by others shevving his iustice on them for the manifestation of the glorie of his ovvne name First I say it is a parte of his counsell because the counsell or decree of God universally extends it selfe to all things that are and Predestination is Gods decree so farre foorth as it concernes the reasonable creatures especially man Now in euery purpose or decree of God three things must be considered the beginning the matter the ende The beginning is the will of God whereby he willeth and appointeth the estate of his creatures and it is the most absolute supreme and soueraigne cause of all things that are so farre foorth as they are having nothing either aboue it selfe or out of it selfe to be an impulsiue cause to mooue or incline it and to say otherwise is to make the will of God to be no will Indeede mens willes are mooued disposed by externall causes out of themselues borrowed from the things whereof deliberation is made because they are to be ruled by equitie and reason and a mans bare will without reason is nothing Now Gods will is not ruled by any other rule of reason or iustice but it selfe is an absolute rule both of iustice and reason A thing is not first of al reasonable iust theÌ„ afterward willed by god buâ— it is first of all willed by God thereupon it becomâ—s reasonable and iust The maner of his purpose is a decreed manifestation of two of the most principall attributes of the godhead mercy and iustice that with a limitation or restraint of mercy to some of the creatures iustice to some others because it was his good will and pleasure And wee are not to imagine that this is a point of crueltie in God for his verie essence or nature is not iustice alone or mercie alone but iustice and mercie both togither and therfore to purpose the declaratioÌ„ of them both upoÌ„ his creatures ouer whome he is a soueraigne Lorde that without other respects upon his very will pleasure is no point of iniustice The supreme end of the counsel of God is the manifestatioÌ„ of his own glory partly in his mercy partly in his iustice For in coÌ„mon equity the end which he propouÌ„ds unto him self of al his doings must be answerable to his nature which is maiesty glory as I haue said iustice mercy it self And because Pauls disputation in the 9. to the Romans giues light sufficient confirmation to this which I now teach I will stand a litle in opening resoluing of the same FroÌ„ the 1. verse to the 6. he sets downe his griefe conceiued for his brethren the Iewes therwithall that it might not be thought that he spake of malice he doth onely in close and obscure manner insinuate the Reiection of that nation This done in the 6. verse he answeres a secrete obiection which might be made on this manner If the Iewes be reiected then the worde of God is of none effect that is then the couenant made with
the forefathers is void but the couenant can not be void therefore the Iewes are not reiected The assumption he takes for graunted and denies the consequence of the proposition And the ground of his deniall is because there is a distinction betweene man and man euen among the Iewes whereby some are indeed in the couenant some not And this distinction is prooued by 3. examples the first in this ver that of the children of Iacob the common parent of all the Iewes some are Israel that is truly in the couenant as Iacob was some are not Israell Nowe it might be further obiected that the Iewes are not only the posterity of Iacob but the seed of AbrahaÌ„ in whom all nations of the earth are blessed and therefore not to be reiected And to this Paul answeres vers 7. alledging a second example of the distinction betweene man and man out of the family of Abraham in which some were indeede sonnes some were not For the proofe of this first he settes downe the wordes of the text in Moses In Isaac shall thy seed be called secondly makes an exposition of them with a collection on this maner All they which are the sons of the promise are the seed of AbrahaÌ„ or the sons of god but Isaac is a son of promise not Ismael therefore Isaac is the seed of AbrahaÌ„ heir of the blessing not Ismael The proposition is in the 8. ver the assumptâ—oÌ„ in the 9. ver the coÌ„clusion in the 7. ver Here mark I. how he makes a double seed one according to the flesh the other spirituall two kinde of sonnes one of the flesh the other the sonne of the promise or the sonne of God for he puts the one for the other II. that the distinctioÌ„ betwene Isaac Ismael wherby one is in the couenaÌ„t of grace the other not stands not in their foreseene faith unbelief the fruits of theÌ„ but in the purpose wil of God it selfe For Isaac is called the child of promise because by the vertue of it he was borne beleeued was adopted the child of God made heire of the couenaÌ„t giueÌ„ to AbrahaÌ„ therefore consequently the right of adoption befell him by the meere good pleasure of God which is the first cause of our saluation without respect of any thing in the person of Isaac For what God by his promise brings to passe in time that he most freely decreed before all times Now coÌ„sidering the Iewes might say that Ismael was reiected because he was born of the handmaid Hagar wheras they for their partes descend of AbrahaÌ„ Sara by Isaac the lawfull sonne Paul addes a third exaÌ„ple of the distinctioÌ„ betwene man maÌ„ out of the family of Isaac in which Iacob was a true sonne and heire of the promise and Esau was not Now the distinction of these two persons is propounded in the 10. ver confirmed v. 11 12 13. In which are set down 3. things I. the time of this distinction yer the chilâ—reÌ„ were born therfore wheÌ„ they had neither don good nor evill And this circuÌ„stance is noted to shewe that God was not mooued by any prevision or preconsideratioÌ„ of Iacobs godlinesse and Esaus prophanenesse to preferre the one before the other II. The ende why the distinction was made at this time and not afterward when they were borne is that the purpose of God vvhich is according to his election might remaine sure not of workes but by him that calleth that is that by this meanes it might appeare that when God receiues any man into the couenant of eternal life it proceeds not of any dignitie in the man whome God calleth but froÌ„ his mercy alone good pleasure that his decree of sauing the elect might remaine firme and sure for euer Hence it is manifest that there is an unchangeable decree of election of some men for he that takes all and excepts none can not be said to choose to saluation depending upon the alone will of God and therfore necessarily by the law of contraries there is an opposite decree of reprobation for in that God ordaineth some to eternall saluation he testifies therby that his purpose is to passe by some without shewing of mercy III. The authour of this distinction God himselfe by his purpose before all times which purpose he made manifest by testimonie giuen to Rebecca saying The greater shall serve the younger that is the first borne and more excellent according to the flesh shall loose his birthright the blessing of his father and in respect of title to the couenant be subiect to the yonger And because this testimony concerning the freedome and seruitude of Iacob and Esau might seeme insufficient to proue the election of the first the reiectioÌ„ of the secoÌ„d therfore Paul addes a second testimony out of Malachi I haue loved Iacob and hated Esau that is I haue purposed to loue Iacob to hate Esau. And these wordes no doubt are alledged to expound the former place out of Moses and shewe that the bondage of Esau was ioyned with the hatred of God the freedome of Iacob with the loue of God as tokens thereof Against this receiued expositioÌ„ of the former words which I haue now propounded sundry exceptions are made First that the prerogatiue of Isaac aboue Ismael Iacob aboue Esau was only in temporarie blessings in that God vouchsafed unto theÌ„ the right of the laÌ„d of Canaan Ans. If these places are to be understood of teÌ„porall blessings not spiritual then the Apostle hath not fitly alledged the former examples to prooue the reiectioÌ„ of the Iewes from the Couenant For though it be graunted there be a difference betweene man and man in respect of earthly blessings yet doth it not follow that there shall be the same difference in things concerning the kingdome of heauen If a father for some cause disinherite one or two of his children it were absurd thereupon to conclude that he might therefore kill any of the rest Againe the land of Canaan was not onely an earthly inheritaÌ„ce but also a pledge and figure vnto our forefathers of a better inheritance in heauen and therefore the excluding of Ismael and Esau from the land of Canaan was a signe that they were excluded from the couenant of grace and the right of eternall life Some others say that by Iacob and Esau are not meant two persons but the two nations of the Idumeans and the Israelites Answer It is a manifest vntruth For it was not possible for two nations to striue in the wombe of Rebecca vnlesse we consider them as they were comprehended vnder there two heads to wit the very persons of Iacob and Esau. And wheras they say that Esau in person neuer serued Iacob but onely in his posteritie the answer is that Iacobs freedome and prerogatiues were spirituall and not temporall which by faith he saw a farre off but inioyed not
and therefore proportionally Esau was debased to the condition of a seruant in respect of his younger brother not so much in respect of his outward estate and condition as in regard of the couenant made with his auncetours from which he was barred And though it be graunted that by Iacob and Esau two nations and not two persons are to be vnderstood yet all comes to one head for the receiâ—ing of the nation of the Israelites into the couenant and the excluding of the nation of the Edomites both descending of Iacob and â—sau serue as well to prooue Gods eternall election and reprobation as the receiuing and reiecting of one man Others say that these words I haâ—e hated Esau are thus to be vnderstood I haue lesse loued Esau then Iacob But how then shall we say that Paul hath fitly alleadged this text to prooue the reiection of the Iewe from the fauour of God and the Couenant of grace considering that of men whereof one is loued more of God the other lesse both may still remaine in the Couenant Lastly it is alleadged that the former exposition makes Ismael and Esau damned persons Answer Wee must leaue vnto God all secret iudgement of particular persons and yet neuerthelesse Paul doeth very fitly in there two persons both descending of Abraham and both circumcised set foorth examples of such as for all their outwarde prerogatiues are indeede barred from the couenant of life euerlasting before God And againe the opposition made by Paul requires that the contrarie to that which is spoken of Isaac and Iacob should be saide of Ismael and Esau. And there is nothing spoken of either of them in the Scriptures which argues the disposition of men ordained to eternall life Ismael is noted with the brande of a mocker and Esau of a prophane man To proceede in the text because the doctrine of Paul deliuered in the former verses might seeme straunge vnto the Romanes therefore in the 14. verse hee laies downe an obiection and answeares the same The obiection is this If God put distinction betweene man and man without respect had to their persons vpon his owne will and pleasure then hee is vniust but hee is not vniust therefore hee makes no such distinction The answeare is God forbid Whereby he denies the consequence of the proposition on this manner Though God should elect some to saluation and reiect some others and that vpon his will yet were there no iniustice with God The reason of this answeare followes in the 18. vers God hath absolute povver of will whereby without beeing bound to any creature he may and can first of all haue mercie on whome he will and secondly harden whome he wil. For the proofe of the first that God hath mercie on whome he will he laies downe the testimonie of Moses vers 15. I will haue mercie on him on whome J will shew mercie and I will haue compassion on him on whome I will haue compassion And in vers 16. makes his collection thence that it namly the purpose of God according to election v. 11. is not in him that willeth or in him that runneth but in God that shevveth mercie Whereby hee teacheth that the free election of God in order goes before all things that may in time befall man and that therefore neither the intentions and indeauours of the minde nor the workes of our life which are the effects of election can be the impulsive causes to mooue God to choose vs to saluation The second that God hardens whome he will is confirmed and made plaine by the testimonie of Scripture concerning Pharao vers 17. In the 19. vers there followes an other obiection arising out of the answeare to the former on this manner If God will haue some to be hardened and reiected and his will can not be resisted then with no iustice can he punish them that are necessarily subiect to his decree but God will haue some to be hardened and reiected and his will can not be resisted therefore saith the aduersarie with no iustice can he punish man that is necessarily subiect to his decree Here marke that if there had beene an vniuersall election of all men and if men had beene elected or reiected according as God did foresee that they would beleeue or not beleeue the occasion of this obiection had beene cut off But let vs come to Pauls answeare In the 20. verse he takes the assumption for graunted that some are reiected because God will and that the will that is the decree of God can not be resisted and onely denies the coherence of the preposition checking the malipert pride of the aduersarie and shewing that the making of this wicked and blasphemous collection against the will of God is as if a man should sue God at the lawe and bring him as it were to the barre and pleade against him as his equall whereas indeede the creature is nothing to the creator and is absolutely to submit it selfe to his will in all things In vers 21. he proceeds to a second answeare shewing that Gods will is not to be blamed because by his absolute soueraignitie and the right of creation he hath power to chose men or to reiect and harden them And where there is right and power to doe a thing the wil of the doer is not to be blamed Now that God hath this right and power ouer his creature it is prooued by a comparison from the lesse to the greater on this manner The potter hath power ouer the clay to make of the same lumpe one vessell to honour and an other to dishonour therefore may God much more make some vessells of mercie and some vessells of wrath prepared to destruction The first part of the comparison is vers 21. the second part vers 22 23. And least any man should thinke that God makes vessells of honour and dishonour without sufficient and iust cause in himselfe as the potter may doe therfore he sets downe ends of the will of God he makes vessels of dishonour to shew his wrath and to make manifest his power and againe he condemnes no man till he haue suffered him with long patience And he makes vessels of honour that he might declare the riches of his glorie vpon them Hence it is manifest first that the ende of predestination is the glorie of God which is to be made manifest partly in his iustice and partly in his mercie secondly that men are not elected or refused of God for their foreseene corruptions or vertues for then Paul would not haue said that God made vessells of dishonour but that beeing so alreadie he left them in their dishonour Thus from the 6. verse of this chapter to the 24. Paul hath described vnto vs the doctrine of Gods eternall predestination and that by the iudgement of Diuines in all ages The order of Gods predestination is this It is the propertie of the reasonable creature to conceiue one thing after an
penned by the Prophets and Apostles the answear is that they doe it with adding to the Canon and by corrupting the natiue sense of the Scriptures in the very foundation and therefore they are but as a lanthorne that shews light to others and none to it selfe Fourthly it is further said that they hold the Creede of the Apostles and make the same confession of faith that we doe I answeare that in shew of wordes they doe so indeede but by necessarie consequents in the rest of their doctrine they ouerturne one of the natures and all the offices of Christ and therewithall most of the articles of the Creede And herein they deale as a father that in outward shew tenders the bodie of his child and will not abide the least blemish vpon it and yet by secret conveiances inwardly annoies the heart the braine or the liuer and so in truth destroies the same Fifthly it is alledged that Antichrist must sit in the Temple of God that is the Church therefore say some that desire an vnion between vs and the Papists popish assemblies are true Churches but the argument is not good For it is one thing to be in the Church an other thing to be of it And Antichrist is said to sit in the Church not as a member thereof but as an vsurper or as the pyrate in the ship of the marchant heÌ„ce it cannot be prooued that assemblies of Papists are Churches but that in them and with them there is mingled an other hidden Church in the midst whereof Antichrist the Pope ruleth though himselfe hath no part therein Lastly whereas some being no Papists think their Churches to be like a bodie diseased and full of soares and wounds froÌ„ the head to the foot the throat also cut yet so as life is still remaining we may better thinke their foule errours considered their worship of God which is nothing els but a mixture of Iudaisme and Paganisme that it is a rotten and dead corps void of spirituall life And therefore we haue seuered our selues from the Church of Rome vpon iust cause neither are we schismaticks in so doing but they rather because the grouÌ„d the proper cause of the schisme is in theÌ„ As for the Assemblies of Anabaptists Libertines Antinomies Tritâ—eits Arrians Samosaâ—eniaÌ„s they are no churches of God but conspiracies of monstrous heretikes iudicially condemned in the primitiue Church and againe by the malice of Satan renewed and revived in this age The same we are to thinke and say of the Familie of loue As for the Churches of Germanie commonly called the Churches of the Lutheranes they are to be reputed of vs as the true Churches of God Though their Augustane Confession haue not satisfied the expectation of other Reformed Churches yet haue they all the same enemies in matter of religion and doe alike confesse the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost and of the office of the Mediatour of faith and good works of the Word the Church and the Magistrate are all of one iudgement They differ indeede from vs in the question of the Sacrament but it is no sufficient cause to induce vs to hold theÌ„ as no Church for that there is a true or reall receiuing of the bodie and blood of Christ in the Lordes supper wee all agree and wee ioyntly confesse that Christ is there present so farre forth that hee doth truly feede vs with his very bodie and blood to eternall life and all the controuersie lies in the manner of receiuing we contenting our selues with that spirituall receiuing which is by the hande of faith they adding therto the corporall whereby they imagine themselues to receiue Christ with the hand and mouth of the bodie And though to maintaine this their opinion they be constrained to turne the ascension of Christ into a dispaâ—ition whereby his bodie being visible becomes invisible yet in the maine points we agree that Christ ascended into heauen that he entred into his kingdome in our name and for vs that we are gouerned and preserued by his power and might and that whatsoeuer good thing we haue or doe proceeds wholly from the grace of his spirit Indeede the opinion of the Vbiquitie of the bodie of Christ reviveth the condemned heresies of Eutiches and Nestorius and it ouerturneth by necessarie consequent most of the articles of faith but that was priuate to some men as Brentius and others and was not receiued of whole Churches and whereas the men were godly and learned and we are vncerten with what affection and how long they held this errour we rest our selues in condemning it leauing the persons to God Againe Popish Transubstantiation and Lutherian Consubstantiation are both against the truth of the manhoode of Christ yet with great difference Transubstantiation is flat against an article of faith for if Christs bodie be made of bread and his blood of wine which must needes be if there be a conuersion of the one into the other then was not he conceiued and borne of the Virgin Marie for it can not both be made of bakers breade and of the substance of the Virgin Againe it abolisheth the outwarde signe in the Lordes supper and the analogie betweene the signe and the thing signified but Consubstantiation doth not so neither doeth it ouerturne the substance of any article of Religion but onely a maine point in Philosophie which is that A body doth occupy only one place at once Furthermore the Churches of Heluetia Savoie the free cities of France the low Countries Scotland are to be reuereÌ„ced as the true churches of God as their ConfessioÌ„s make manifest And no lesse must we thinke of our owne Churches in England and Ireland For we hold beleeue and maintaine and preach the true faith that is the auncient doctrine of saluation by Christ taught and published by the Prophets and Apostles as the Booke of the articles of faith agreed vpon in open Parliament doe fully shewe withal now we are and haue bin ready to testifie this our faith by venturing our liues euen in the cause of religion against forraigne power and especially the Spainard and hereupon all the Churches in Europe giue vnto vs the hand of fellowship And whereas sundrie among vs that separate and indeed excommunicate themselues giue out that there is no Church in England no Ministers no Sacraments their peremptorie asseuerations wanting sufficient grounde are but as paper-shot They alleadge that our assemblies are full of grieuous blottes and enormities Ansvv. The defects and corruptions of Churches must be distinguished and they be either in doctrine or manners Againe corruptions in doctrine must be further distinguished some of them are errours indeed but beside the foundation some errors directly against the foundation and these ouerturne all religion wheras the former do not Now it can not be shewed that in our Churches is taught any one errour that raceth the foundation and consequently annihillateth the
truth of Gods Church Indeed there is controuersie among vs touching the point of Ecclesiasticall regiment but marke in what manner VVee all ioyntly agree in the substance of the regiment confessing freely that there must be preaching of the word administration of the sacraments according to the institution and the vse of the Power of the kaies in admonitions suspencions excommunications the difference betweene vs is onely touching the persons and the manner of putting this gouernment in exequution and therefore men on both parts though both hold not the truth in this point yet because both hold Christ the foundation they still remaine brethren and true members of Christ. As for corruptions in manners they make not a Church to be no Church but a badde Church When as the wicked Scribes and Pharisies sitting in Moses Chaire taught the things which he had written the people are commaunded to heare them and to doe the thinges which they say not doing the thinges which they doe And whereas it is saide that we hold Christ in word and denie him in deede that is answeared thus deniall of Christ is double either in iudgement or in fact deniall in iudgement ioyned with obstinacie makes a Christian to be no Christian deniall in fact the iudgement still remaining sound makes not a man to be no Christian but a badde Christian. When the Iewes had crucified the Lord of life they still remained a Church if any vpon earth and notwithstanding this their fact the Apostles acknowledged that the couenant the promises still belonged vnto them and they neuer made any separation from their Synagogues till such time as they had bin sufficiently conuicted by the Apostolicall ministerie that Iesus Christ was the true Messias Thus wee see where at this day we may finde the true Church of God Nowe I come to the third question and that is at what time a man may with good conscience make separation from a Church Answeare So long as a Church makes no separation from Christ wee must make no separation from it and when it separates from Christ wee may also separate from it and therefore in tvvo cases there is vvarrant of separation The one is when the vvorshippe of God is corrupt in substance And for this we haue a commandement Be not saith Paul vnequally yoked with infidels for what fellowshippe hath righteousnes with vnrighteousnes or what communion hath light with darknes or what concord hath Christ with Belial or what part hath the beleeuer with the infidell or what agreement hath the temple of God with idoles wherefore come out from among them and separate your selues saith the Lord. And we haue a practise of this in the old testament When Ieroboam had set vp idoles in Israel then the Priests and Leuites came to Iudah and Ierusalem to serue the Lorde The second is when the doctrine of religion is corrupt in substance as Paul saith If any man teach otherwise and consent not to the wholesome wordes of our Lord Iesus Christ and to the doctrine which is acdording to godlines he is puffed vp from such separate your selues A practise of this wee haue in the Apostle Paul who beeing in Ephesus in a Synagogue of the Iewes spake boldly for the space of three moneths disputing and exhorting to the thinges which concerne the kingdome of God but when certen men were hardned and disobeied speaking euill of the way of God he departed from them and separated the disciples of Ephesus and the like he did at Rome also As for the corruptions that be in the manners of men that be of the Church they are no sufficient warrant of separation vnlesse it be from priuate companie as we are admonished by the Apostle Paul and by the examples of Dauid and Lot By this which hath beene saide it appeares that the practise of such as make separation from vs is very badde and scismaticall considering our Churches faile not either in the substance of doctrine or in the substance of the true worship of God Now to proceede in the Creede The Church is further set forth by certen properties and prerogatiues The properties or qualities are two holines and largenes That the Church is holy it appeares by Peter which cals it an holy nation and a chosen people and by Saint Iohn who calls it the holy citie And it is so called that it may be distinguished from the false Church which is tearmed in Scriptures the Synagogue of Satan and the malignant Church Now this holines of the Church is nothing els but a created qualitie in euery true member thereof whereby the image of God which was lost by the fall of Adam is againe renewed and resâ—ored The author of it is God by his word and spirit by little and little abolishing the corruption of sinne and sanctifying vs throughout Ioh. 17. vers 17. Father sanctifie them in thy truth thy word is truth And holines must be conceiued to be in the Church on this manner it is perfect in the Church Triumphant and it is onely begunne in the Church Militant in this life and that for speciall cause that we might giue all glorie to God that we might not be high minded that we might worke ouâ— saluation with feare and trembling that we might denie our selues and wholly depende vpon God Hence wee learne three things first that the Church of Rome erreth in teaching that a wicked man yea such an one as shall neuer be saued may be a true member of the Catholicke Church for in reason euery man should be answearable to the qualitie and condition of the Church whereof hee is a member if it be holy as it is hee must be holy also Secondly we are euery one of vs as Paul saith to Timothie to exercise our selues vnto godlines making conscience of all our former vnholy waies endeauouring our selues to please God in the obedience of all his commaundements It is a disgrace to the holy Church of God that men professing themselues to be members of it should be vnholy Thirdly our dutie is to eschewe the societie of Atheists drunkardes fornicatours blasphemers and all wicked and vngodly persons as Paul saith Be no companions of them and haue no fellowship with the vnprofitable workes of darknes And he chargeth the Thessalonians that if any man among them walke inordinately they haue no companie with him that he may be ashamed The largenes of the Church is noted in the worde Catholicke that is generall or vniuersall And it is so called for three causes For first of all it is generall in respect of time because the Church hath had a beeing in all times and ages euer since the giuing of the promise to our first parents in Paradise Secondly it is generall in respect of the persons of men for it standes of all sortes and degrees of men high and lowe rich and pore learned and vnlearned c. Thirdly it
Considering we looke for life euerlasting after this life we must not deceiue our selues lingring and deferring the time till the last gaspe but wee must lay the foundation of life eternall in our selues in this worlde and haue the earnest thereof laide vp in our hearts against the day of death But how is that done wee must repent vs heartily of all our sinnes and seeke to be assured in conscience that God the father of Christ is our father God the sonne our redeemer and God the holy Ghost our comforter For as Christ saith this is life eternall to knowe thee the onely God and whome thou hast sent Iesus Christ. And wee must goe further yet endeauouring to say with Paul that we liue not but that Christ liueth in vs which when wee can say wee haue in vs the very seede of eternall life The second degree is in the ende of this life when the bodie freed from all diseases paines and miseries is laid to rest in the earth and the soule is receiued into heauen The third is aftâ—r the day of iudgement when bodie and soule revnited shall both be aduanced to eternall glorie Againe in this thirde degree of life there be in all likelihood sundrie degrees of glorie Daniel speaking of the estate of the elect after this life saieth They that be wise shall shine as the brightnesse of the firmament and they that turne many to righteousnesse shall shine as the starres for evermore Now wee knowe there is difference betweene the brightnesse of the firmament and the brightnesse of the starres Agane there be degrees of torments in hell as aâ—peares by the saying of Christ It shall be easier for Tyrus and Sydon in that day then for this generation and therefore there be proportionall degrees of glorie And Paul saieth There is one glory of the Sunne another glory of the moone another glory of the Stars for one starre differeth from another in glory so is the resurrection of the dead In which words he applies the differences of excellencie that be in the creatures to set forth the differences of glorie that shall be in mens bodies after the resurrection Furthermore if we may coniecture it may be the degrees of glorie shall be answerable to the diuers measures of giftes and graces bestowed on men in this life and according to the imployance of them to the glorie of God and edification of the Church And therefore the twelue Apostles who were exceedingly enriched with the giftes of the spirite and were master-builders of the Church of the new Testament shall sit on 12. thrones and iudge the twelue tribes of Israel But it may be obiected that if there be degrees of glorie in heauen some shall want glory Ansvvere Not so though some haue more and some lesse yet all shall haue sufficient Take sundry vessels whereof some are bigger and some lesse and cast them all into the sea some will receiue more water and some lesse and yet all shall be full and no want in any and so likewise among the saintes of God in heauen some shall haue more glorie some lesse and yet all without exception full of glorie And whereas it is alledged that all the labourers in the vineyarde receiue each of them a pennie equallie for their hire the answere is that our Sauiour Christ in that parable intendes not to set foorth the equalitie of celestiall glorie and what shall be the estate of the godly after this life but the verie drifte of the parable is to shew that they which are called first haue no cause to bragge or insulte ouer others which as yet are uncalled considering they may be made equall or be preferred before them Thus much of life it selfe now followes the continuance thereof which the scriptures haue noted in calling it eternall or euerlasting And to this ende Paul saieth that Christ hath abolished death and brought not onely life but also immortalitie to light by the gospell And this verie circumstance serues greatly to commende the happinesse of the godly in that after they haue made an entrance into it they shal neuer see terme of time or end Suppose the whol world were a sea and that euery thousand yeeres expired a bird must carrie away or drinke up one onely drop of it in processe of time it will come to passe that this sea though verie huge shall be dried up but yet many thousand millions of yeres must be passed before this can be done Now if a man should enioy happinesse in heauen onely for the space of time in which the sea is in drying up he woulde thinke his case most happie and blessed but behold the elect shall enioy the kingdome of heauen not only for that time but when it is ended they shall enioy it as long againe and when all is done they shall be as farre from the ending of this their ioy as they were at the beginning Hauing thus seene what life euerlasting is let us now come to the use of the article And first of all if wee beleeue that there is an eternall happinesse and that the same belonges unto us then wee must use this present world and all the things therin as though we used them not and whatsoeuer wee doe in this worlde yet the eyes of our mindes must be alwaies cast toward the blessed estate prepared for us in heauen As a pilgrime in a straunge lande hath alwaies his eyes towarde his iourneyes ende and is then grieued when by any meanes hee is out of the way so much wee alwaies haue our mindes and heartes set on euerlasting life and be grieued when wee are by any way hindred in the strait way that leadeth thereunto wee haue a notable patterne of this dutie set out unto us in the patriarke Abraham who beeing called of God obeyed to goe out into a place which hee shoulde afterward receiue for inheritance and hee went out not knowing whither hee went and by faith aboade in the lande of Canaan as in a straunge cuntrey and as one that dvvelt in tentes Now the cause that mooued him was life euerlasting for the text saith Hee looked for a citie having a foundation whose builder and maker is God And wee ought euerie one of us for our partes to be like affected to all the things of this life neuer setting our hearts upon them but using them as a pilgrime doth his staffe in the way so long as it is an helpe and stay for him in his iourney hee is content to carrie it in his hande but so soone as it beginneth to trouble him he casteth it away Secondly all that professe the Gospell of Christ may hence learne to beare the crosses and afflictions which God shall lay on them in this worlde It is Gods usuall manner to begin corrections in his owne family upon his owne children and as Peter saieth Iudgement beginneth at Gods house Looke as a mother that waines her
saluation by this meanes was nothing in man for all mankinde was shut vp vnder vnbeleefe and therefore vnable to procure the least fauour at Gods hād but the will and good pleasure of God within himselfe The instruments which the Lord vsed in this busines were the wicked Iewes and Gentiles the deuill himselfe by whō he brought to passe the most admirable worke of redemption euen then when they according to their kind did nothing els but practise wickednes and malice against Christ. II. The matter of the passion is the whole malediction or curse of the Law containing in it all manner of aduersities and miseries both of bodie and minde All which may be reduced to three heads the temptations of Christ his ignominies and slaunders his manifold sorrows and griefes especially those which stande in the apprehension of the vnsupportable wrath of God III. The forme of the passion is that excellent and meritorious satisfaction which in suffering Christ made vnto his father for mans sinne We doe not rightly consider of the passion if we conceiue it to be a bare and naked suffering of punishment but withall wee must conceiue it as a propitiation or a meanes satisfactorie to Gods iustice The passion considered as a passion ministers no comfort but all our ioy and reioycing stands in this that by faith we apprehend it as it is a satisfaction or a meanes of reconciliation for our offences In this very point stands the dignitie of the passion whereby it differs from all other sufferings of men whatsoeuer Therefore most damnable and wicked is the opinion of the Papists who besides the alone passion of Christ maintaine workes of satisfaction partly of their owne and partly of the Saints departed which they adde to the passion as an appendance thereof IV. The ende of the passion is that God might bring to passe a worke in which hee might more fully manifest his iustice and mercie then he did in the creation and that is the reconciliation betweene God and man And here remember with the passion to ioyne the obedience of Christ in fulfilling the lawe for Christ in suffering obeyed and in obeying suffered And they must be ioyntly conceiued together for this cause In reconciliation with God two things are required the remoouing of sinne in regard of the guilt of the fault and the punishment and the conferring or giuing of righteousnes Now the passion of Christ considered apart from his legall obedience onely takes away the guilt and punishment frees man from death and makes him of a sinner to be no sinner and that he may be fully reconciled to God and accepted as righteous to life euerlasting the legall obedience of Christ must be imputed And therefore in the Scriptures where all obedience is ascribed to the death and passion of Christ this very obedience which stands in the perfect loue of God and man must be included and not excluded V. The time of the passion was from the very byrth of Christ to his resurrection yet so as the beginnings onely of his sufferings were in the course of his life and the accomplishment thereof to the very full vpon the crosse VI. The person that suffered was the sonne of God himselfe concerning whome in this case two questions must be resolued The first how it can stand with Gods iustice to lay punishment vpon the most righteous man that euer was and that for grieuous sinners considering that tyrants themselues will not doe so Answer In the passion Christ must not be considered as a priuate person for then it could not stande with equitie that he should be plagued and punished for our offences but as one in the eternall counsell of God set apart to be a publike suretie or pledge for vs to suffer and performe those things which we in our owne persons should haue suffered and performed For this cause God the father is said to giue his sonne vnto vs and the sonne again to giue his life for his friends The second question is how by the short temporary death of the sonne of God any man can possibly be freed from eternal death damnation which is due vnto him for the least sinne Answer When wee say that the sonne of God suffered it must be vnderstood with distinction of the natures of Christ not in respect of the Godhead but in respect of the assumed manhood yet neuerthelesse the passion is to be ascribed to the whole person of Christ God and man and from the dignitie of the person which suffered ariseth the dignitie and excellencie of the passion whereby it is made in value and price to coūteruaile euerlasting damnation For when as the sonne of God suffered the curse for a short time it is more then if all men and angels had suffered the same for euer VII The difference of the passion of Christ and the sufferings of Martyrs and that stands in two things First Christs passion was a curse or punishment the sufferings of the Martyrs are no curses but either chastisments or trials Secondly the passion of Christ is meritorious for vs euen before God because he became our Mediatour and suretie in the couenant of grace but the sufferings of martyrs or not of value to merit for vs at Gods hand because in suffering they were but priuate men and therefore they nothing appertaine to vs. By this it appeares that the Treasurie of the Church of Rome which is as it were a common chest containing the ouerplus of the merits of Saints mingled with the merits of Christ kept and disposed by the Pope himselfe is nothing else but a sensles dotage of mans braine And whereas they say that Christ by his death did merit that Saints might merit both for themselues and others it is as much as if they should say the sonne of God became Iesus to make euery one of vs Iesus And it is a manifest vntruth which they say For the very manhood of Christ considered apart from the Godhead cannot merit properly considering whatsoeuer it is hath or doth it is hath and doth the same wholly and onely by grace whereas therefore Christ meriteth for vs it is by reason he is both God and man in one person For this cause it is not possible that one meere man should merit for an other The vse of the passion followeth It is the manner of Friers and Iesuits in the Church of Rome to vse the consideration of the passion of Christ as a meanes to stirre vp compassion in themselues partly towards Christ who suffered grieuous torments and partly towards the virgin Marie who for the torments of her deere sonne was exceedingly troubled and withall to kindle in their hearts an indignation towards the Iewes that put Christ to death But indeede this kinde of vse is meere humane and may in like manner be made by reading of any humane historie But the proper and the speciall vse of the passion in deede is