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A11054 A godlie and short discourse shewing not onely what time the inhabitants of this land first receyued the Christian faith: but also what maner of doctrine was planted in the same. Whereby may appeare, howe the reformation at this day in England is not a bringing in of a newe religion, but a reducing againe of the olde and auncient fayth. Rosdell, Christopher, b. 1553 or 4. 1589 (1589) STC 21320; ESTC S101597 36,383 98

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sauiour testifieth of them saying in vaine doe they worshippe me teaching for doctrines mens precepts And the Lord by his Prophet sayeth who hath required these things at your handes But such we commende vnto the people as are prescribed vnto vs of God in his holy worke As it is saide What works are good Deut. 6 5 Thou shalt kéepe the commaundements of the Lord thy God Deut. 12. and thou shalt put nothing thereto neither shalt thou take any thing there from neither shall ye goe there from either to the right hande or to the left Ye shall not doe euery man what séemeth good in his owne eyes And therefore as S. Paul saith Rom. 12. Ephe. 5. wee exhort men to prooue what is the will of God acceptable and perfect which is in déede the reasonable seruice of God and besides the which all other seruings are vnreasonable For looke whose workes we doe his seruants we are if we doe the works of mans inuention then are we the seruants of men but and if we doe the workes which God hath required then are we the seruants of God Now touching the workes which God would haue vs to walke in some of thē are specified by our Sauiour saying Whē I was hungry ye gaue me meat Mat. 25. whē I was a thirst ye gaue me drinke when I was naked ye clothed me in prison and sicke ye visited me c. And by the Prophet Esay Esay 1. saying Cease to do euill learne to doe good séeke iudgement reléeue the oppressed iudge the fatherles and defend the widow Likewise the Apostle Peter saith 1. Pet. 3. Be ye all of one minde one suffer with another loue as brethren be pitifull be curteous not rendring euill for euill neither rebuke for rebuke but contrariwise blesse knowing that ye are thereunto called 1. Pet. 2. that ye should be heires of blessing And in another place Lay aside all malice guile dissimulation enuie and euill speaking To be briefe therefore these such like are the workes which the holy Apostle haue taught christian people to bee conuersant in loue ioy Gal. 5. peace long suffering gentlenesse goodnesse fayth méekenesse and temperancie Concerning which vertues whiles our Popish doctors in these later dayes haue incombered themselues much about the workes of their owne inuentions they haue scarsely so much as once thought vpon them And not this onely but also that which is more absurd they ascribe the goodnesse of their workes to the power of mans fréewill or to the habit of vertue or strēgth of nature c. Wheras in old time men were taught to ascribe all the dignitie worthines of their workes to the faith of Christ For this is the nature office propertie of faith The nature of faith not only to reconcile vs to God by procuring vnto vs through the mediation of Christ the forgiuenesse of sinnes and so to iustifie vs before God in heauen but also here in earth by renuing our hearts to bring foorth good workes and to make the same workes acceptable in the sight of God which otherwise through the infirmitie and corruption of our nature were impure and execrable in his sight For whatsoeuer is not of faith Rom. 14. Heb. 10. is sinne and without faith it is impossible to please God To this effect our Sauiour saith Make the trée good and his fruit good For like as an euill trée cannot bring forth good fruit it may bring foorth faire fruites and such as to the eye may séeme good but when they come to the triall of the taste then it appeareth they are nothing lesse euen so an euill man such as all men are by nature and without faith cannot bring forth good works he may well bring forth such workes as may séeme faire and good but when they shall come to the tryall of the Lords taste they shall be found vnsauerie Paul before his conuersion liued after the strict maner of the Pharisées and did many faire and goodly workes yet had he no good works in déed before the grace of Christ had rooted faith in him The efficient cause of good works As touching the efficient or formall cause therefore of good workes next vnder God there is no other but faith For as a man séeth and féeleth by faith the loue and grace of God towards him in Christ his sonne so beginneth hee to loue againe both God and man and to doe for his neighbour as God hath done for him Whereunto Saint Augustine beareth witnes in these words saying August super Ioani ē Like as in the roote of the trée there appeareth no shew of beauty and yet whatsoeuer beautie or comelinesse is in the trée it procéedeth from the roote so from the roote of fayth as from a foundation procéedeth whatsoeuer merite or beautie the soule shal receyue Thirdly whereas the word of God doth not only teach men that their good works are euer vnperfect therefore are so farre from iustifying them that they haue néede dayly to pray vnto God that he may remit their imperfections The end vse of good workes Mat. 5. 2. Pet. 1. 2. Tim. 1. 2. Cor. 9. Heb. 10. but also that we are to doe good workes to set forth Gods glory to assure our consciences of our election to exercise our faith to relieue our neighbours and to prouoke others by our example to do the like They contrarily and most falsely teach men not only to doe good workes to the ende they may be iustified by them in the sight of God saying Tho. Aqui. Hosius in a. tom confes cap. 1. that Christ suffered for originall sinne or sinnes going before baptisme but the actuall sinnes which follow after baptisme must be done away by mēs merits so assigne vnto Christ the beginning of saluation or obteining of the first grace as they call it but the perfection or consummation therof they ascribe to workes and our strength against the truth of holy Scripture saying There is no remission of sinnes without blood Heb. 9. 1. Iohn 1. and the blood of Iesus Christ cleanseth vs from all sinne Also that man being holpe by grace is able not only to doe all that the law requireth but more also And hereof come the workes of supererogation contrarie not onely to that principle of holy Scripture which sayth 1. Iohn 1. If we say that we haue no sin we deceiue our selues and truth is not in vs but also to the institution of Christ who hath not onely commanded but also taught his whole church and euery member of the same continually to pray saying Forgiue vs our trespasses Thus they derogate frō the benefite of Christ and attribute vnto works a great or the greatest part of our iustification directly against the veine of S. Pauls doctrine and first institution of the auncient Church of Rome and against all the principles of holy Scripture The tenth Chapter
as may appeare not onely by the decrée of Boniface the eight wherein he commaundeth euery man vpon paine of damnation not onely to beléeue but also to be subiect to the primacie or supreme authoritie of the Bishope But also by that they doe euery where burne those for heretikes which acknowledge not the same The seuenth Chapter Howe the Bishops of Rome in olde time were subiect to ciuill Magistrates AND as in olde time the Bishops of Rome kept themselues within the bounds limits of their own prouince and precinct so were they also as wel as all other ecclesiastical persons subiect to their Emperors lawful magistrates yea and that not onely in causes ciuill but also in ecclesiasticall gouernement Gregorius surnamed Magnus was subiect to Mauritius called him Lord saying you were then my Lord when you were not Lorde of the whole Empire Gregor ad Mauritium August lib. Epist 3. Epist 61. behold Christ himselfe shall make you answer by me which am his most simplest seruant and yours And before him Eleutherius his predecessor bishop of Rome writing to Lucius king of this realme calleth him by the name of Christs vicar Boniface also the first by humble supplication obteined of Honorius his Emperour that a lawe was established none should be made Bishop of Rome by ambition Dist 97. ca. Ecclesiae ca. Victor Iustinian also Emperour of Rome ordeined and constituted many wholesome lawes for the ordering and gouernement of the Cleargie as that no Bishop or Priest should excommunicate any man before his cause were knowen and proued to be such as for the which the auncient Canons of the Church woulde him to be excommunicate And if any should otherwise procéed contrarie to the same then the excommunicate person to bée absolued by an higher degree and the excommunicator to be sequestred from the Communion 24. q 3. cap. dc illicita so long as it should be thought méete by him that had the execution thereof c. Besides these many other such like examples if it were not to auoyde tediousnesse might be inferred But séeing the question groweth to this issue whether the Bishops of Rome ought by the diuine law of Gods word to be subiect to their lawful magistrates or not we will omit and cease to heape vp a multitude of examples out of mās law and produce a fewe witnesses out of the worde of God And first of all Christ our Sauiour did not onely commaund his disciples to giue their alleageance to Cesar but also himselfe paide tribute And the Apostle Paul writing to the ancient Romanes saith Rom. 13. Let euery soule be subiect to the higher powers vnder whose obedience neither Pope Cardinall Patriarch Bishop Priest Frier nor Monke is excepted nor exempted Theophil as Theophilactus expounding the same place declareth saying Hee teacheth all sorts whether he be Priest or Monke or else Apostle that they should submit themselues vnder their Princes And S. Augustine writing ad Bonifacium sayeth in such like sort Whosoeuer refuseth to obey the lawes of the Emperour which make for the veritie of God incurreth the danger of great punishment Aug. contra Cresco lib. 3 cap. 5. Also writing vnto Cresconium hee hath these wordes Kings according as it is inioyned them of God doe serue God in that they are kings if they in their kingdome commaund those things that be good and forbid things that be euill such as appertaine not onely to humane societie but also to Gods religion Vnder the olde Testament were not the Priests and Leuites subiect to the ciuill Magistrates yea euen in matters of Ecclesiasticall gouernement when king Dauid disposed them into foure and twentie orders or courses appointing them continually to serue in the ministerie 1. Para. 23. 24. 25 euery one in his proper order and turne as came aboute And when good king Ezechias renued the same institution of the Cleargie being decayed 2. Para. 31. 2. Parapo Chap. 31. But the Byshop of Rome at this day with his shaued Cleargie can not in anie kinde abide to bée ordered or disposed by any and therefore iudge good Christian Reader whether wée or they in this respect come nearer vnto the auncient constitution of the Primitiue Church The eight Chapter Of iustification NOw as we haue heard how the ancient Bishops in former time neither exempted themselues frō subiection to their lawful magistrates nor chalenged vnto themselues any vniuersall iurisdiction ouer others so let vs also in other points of their religion doctrine compare them with the first and primitiue time and we shall most plainly sée they are altogether vnlike vnto themselues And here to begin with the article of iustification first the blessed Apostles thēselues in al their writings and namely Paul the doctor teacher of the gentiles setteth forth no other meanes for iustificatiō or remission of sinnes but only faith aprehending the body or person of Christ Iesus crucified For as there is no way into the house but by the doore so is there no comming to God but by Christ alone which is by fayth And as the mortall bodie without bodily sustenance of bread and drinke can not but perish so the spirituall soule of man hath no other refreshing but only by faith in the bodie blood of Christ Iesus And for this cause it is saide To him doe all the Prophets witnesse that through his name Acts. 10. all that beléeue in him shall receiue remission of sinnes Hee that beléeueth in the sonne hath euerlasting life Iohn 3. and be that obeyeth not the sonne Ephes 2. shal not sée life but the wrath of God abideth on him For by grace are ye saued through faith and that not of your selues it is the gift of God When the kéeper of the prison at Philippos asked Paul and Silas what he should doe to be saued they answered him Acts 16. saying Beléeue in the Lorde Iesus Christ and thou shalt bee saued With this Charge and to this end our Sauiour sent foorth his disciples into all the world saying He that beléeueth and is baptised shal be saued but he that will not beléeue shall bee damned So Paul witnesseth that hee was called and sent of God to call the people to repentance that they might receyue forgiuenesse of sinnes Acts 16. and inheritance among them which are sanctified by fayth in Christ Thus the Apostles preached and thus were the olde Romanes to whom Paul sent a worthie Epistle notably deciding this question taught Acts. 10. The same did Cornelius a Romane and first that was baptised of all the Gentiles learne of Peter when he receiued the holy Ghost not by his own workes which he did according to the lawe but onely by hearing the fayth of Iesus preached And in this faith and doctrine not only the Church of Rome but the whole congregation of Gods people continued many yéeres as more plainely may appeare by the