Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	knowledge_n	sin_n	sin_v	2,885	5	9.7377	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A15859	Speculum Christianum or, A Christian suruey for the conscience Containing, three tractates of that eminent, graue, and learned diuine, maister Hierome Zanchius. 1. Of the end of the world. 2. Of the perseuerance of the saints. 3. A summarie abridgement of his protections. Englished for the good of Gods church, and for a warning to wicked and impenitent men. By H.N.; Speculum Christianum. English	Zanchi, Girolamo, 1516-1590.; Nelson, Henry, fl. 1614.	1614 (1614)	STC 26121A.7; ESTC S111786	125,039	404

that prayer Ioh. 17. prayed the Father for all the Elect which should beleeue in him That hee would keepe them in the faith and not permit them at all to fall away from the faith This doth Luther plainely deliuer vppon these words I pray for them I pray not for the World Saith hee So he prayeth for Christians and for all that shall be conuerted that they abide firme touching true faith and profit therin and proceed neither that they sall away from it These things Luther Therefore hath Christ obtained for all the Elect that they shall persist in the faith and neuer shrinke from it Wherefore it cannot bee in regard of this prayer of Christ that the Elect beeing indued with true faith should vtterly slide away from faith Hee that doubteth whether Luther was of this iudgement which I defend doth certainly declare That either he hath not been much conuersant in his books or doth not vnderstand Luther The testimonies of Bucer so many and such ye haue in my Lectures as that of his determination no doubt can be made But beside them I will also put downe these of new In Mat. 6. And leade vs not into temptation pag. 70. in the Entrance Seeing then none can take them out of the Lords hands Ioh. 10. And hee in no wise casteth off such as come vnto him Io● 6. It is necessarie that such as are Christs once shall neuer be alienated from him In Ioh. 4. Vpon these words If thou knewest the gift of God For saith hee as the liuing and springing water out of the fountaine doth alwaies flow to quench the thirst of men So the Holy Spirit giuing testimonie to our Spirit that wee bee the Sonnes of God doth for euer take away the thirst of the good in that it maketh them finally blessed in fulnesse and here doth refresh them continually with sure faith This is that fountaine neuer failing for that it neuer forsaketh such as it once inspireth Rom. 8. in the Quaestion of Praedestination pag. 361. not much before the conclusion of the Third Question He concludeth Predestination to be a Diuine designement of the Saints vnto this that they should bee made partakers of euerlasting saluation by Christ the Lord. This verily is saluation saith hee that being inspired with Gods Spirit thou maist most fully see soundly iudge that which is truely good and prose quute the same with a most eager and constant studie Here of it is a good consequent That therfore the Elect vnto life aeternall are also Elect to this that they should prose quute that which is good with a continuall studie or with perseuerance And that which is by God decreed cannot be made frustrate wherefore the Elect and Saints cannot but perseuere in faith Likewise in ep ad Eph s c●p 1. vpon these words Hee hath chosen vs that we should be holy Paul saith he Romans 8. doth treat of Election as is meete And when the Saints are compassed with most grieuous afflictions they would often distrust amongst these euills wherevnto they are throwne of the glorie promised to the sonnes of God if they did not relie vpon this buckler For it will come to passe that whatsoeuer their sufferings be they shal be at last glorified Neither can they be dispelled by any thing out of their inheritance which is in Christ Iesus He is our euerlasting Mediatour and we for euer ioyned vnto him our vnion with Christ is inseparable nether can it be but for euer Also vpon the same 1. chap. in his short treatise of faith page 34. Faith although it bee infirme euen in the Saints and therfore also more to be lamented they do commit the more sinnes as euery where both the old and new Testament doe testifie and examples too euident doe declare as in Peter Dauid and others yet doth it not suffer him who is therewith endued vtterlie to lie vnder as surprised He trieth our faith but yet for this purpose that wee may vnderstand how much imperfection is alwaies intermixed in vs. Hence are are afflictions and from thence these voices in the Psalm O God hast thou forgotten mee hast thou forsaken mee From hence it fell out that Peter by the Damsell was assalted and afflicted with the batterings of temptation but yet he fell not for euer for that God put vnder his hand For God doth alwaies sppport his Elect that at last he shall swimme out and break through for the gifts and calling of God is without repentance And what shall wee say to these things If GOD be on our side who shal be against vs which words of Paul are not to be vnderstood of some but of al Gods elect And God doth solace vs against this debility of faith by the mightie power of Christ whereby hee beareth rule ouer all and hath dominion ouer death and sinne For he verily died but he rose againe death being subdued hee ascended to the Father sitteth at his right hand maketh intercession for vs and let all the Elect applie these things to themselues and say Hee arose for mee c. And seeing he is our head he shall ●●relie quicken vs and confirme vs neither can hee derelinquish the duty of a true head For we liue for his sake which loued vs therefore wee liue not for our owne loue Without doubt ours is required but it is imperfect and cannot vphold the hope of life aeternall Therefore that our hope might be certaine the cause of our life is setled in him not in vs. And therefore whatsoeuer excuse is alleadged touching vncertaintie of faith whatsoeuer commaunded and deliuered is vtterlie impious and blasphemous against the might amplenesses maiestie and loue and dispensation of Christ and doth o●erturne all faith and authoritie of the word which Paul presseth Rom. 8. and euerie where else Likewise pag. 38. in the Treatise of the Church quinto signo Touching Perseuerance saith hee wee haue a place 1. Ioh. 2. If they had been of vs they would surely haue continued with vs And that He that is borne of God sinneth not is thus to bee vnderstood Hee sinneth not wittingly and of knowledge Hee sinneth not impenitently for that a certaine efficacacie of the Spirit of Christ doth beare him vp For though many sins doe yet beset the godly yet doe they not perseuere in them or consent therevnto with a suffocation of conscience or of the Law of God See Augustine Of Repentance against the Donatists All these things Buc●r Here ye perceiue my Lords First that not vnfitly I did entreat of the perseuerance of the Saints when I did interpret that place of Iohn If they had beene of vs they would verily haue continued with vs. Againe neither did I interpret amisse that place of Iohn He that is born of God sinneth not in my Treatise of Perfeuerance when I gaue this interpretation That the Saints born of God did not sinne from the heart or with their totall and plenarie will and therefore not

And of infirmitie for that by the violence and force of sinne either presently smitten and quelled they voluntarily yeeld themselues which after a short resistance to the contrarie at last euicted they giue place a time Wherefore these first sort obey sinne willingly but not with a full will and totall consent for they doe not loue sinne these may be said to sinne against their conscience but not properly for they obey sinne wittingly and willingly but yet neither vpon perfect knowledge nor intentiue cogitation of that which they doe nor with full will and full consent as a little before is declared Others obey with the whole will full consent whole heart and all their might and these are such as doe offend of purposed malice or with studie and from the heart They properly sinne against the conscience for they know that they doe contrarie to the Law of God and that with contempt and they obey sinne with such a willing minde as that they loue it and would if they might with impunitie be perpetually seruiceable thervnto Therefore this is called euen that reigning sinne for that while we doe loue the concupiscences of the sinne of Nature and doe from the heart fulfill them we doe bring to passe effectiuely that it r●igneth in our hearts Therefore there be two sorts of Actuall sinnes drawne from the two different manners of willing one which is so voluntarie as that it is also partly involuntarie of which kinde of Actions Aristotle treateth in his Ethicks which indeed is not committed with plenarie consent as is expounded before This likewise I grant befalleth the Saints for thus sometime they sinne as Dauid and Peter therefore of this as is said before there is no controuersie Neither is it controuerted Whether by this sinne the Saints are obliged with a new guilt by the committing thereof and so also haue need of new remission of this new sinne for none of vs doe deny it Another sort is so vn vluntarie as that in no respect it is involuntarie for which cause it is called the sinne properly against the conscience that is to say plenarie and vtterly wasting the conscience and therefore euen reigning Therefore the difference betweene vs is concerning that other kinde of actuall sinne For our Aduersaries doe vouch That the Saints as Peter do offend with the whole will and with all their heart and so properly against the conscience And for that such sinne cannot in any wise consist with faith therefore hence they conclude That the Saints may loose faith totally But contrariwise I doe deny that this kind of sinne can befall the Elect being sanctified an regenerate and so consequently I deny That the Elect sanctified can vtterly fall from faith and wholly loose the Holy Spirit And why I should deny that this kinde of sinne can befall the Saints I am induced by these reasons and testimonies For how can Sin reigne and by Sinne Satan where Iustice and Christ reigneth And how can Faith reigne there and by Faith Christ where Sinne and Satan reigneth The Parable of Christ is famous When the strong man keepeth his Tower it cannot bee inuaded of the enemie vnlesse hee bee stronger then the Owner of the Tower doe expell him from it Now Christ is stronger then Satan therefore Christ doth often banish Satan out of his Kingdome and there doth reigne himselfe And Satan though hee doe often besiege the Cities of Christ that is the Elect yet can he not surprise them and by e●ecting Christ the King there reigne himselfe for hee is not stronger then Christ Therefore is it vtterly impossible That Sinne should properly reigne and get dominion in the Elect. Sinne in his dominion or reigning Sinne is that to whose concupiscences ● as to the Kings mandates Men without any resistance with heart and with full and cheerefull will obey and are alwaies obsequious with readinesse according to that of the Apostle Rom. 6. Let not therefore Sinne reigne in your mortall body to obey the lusts thereof As touching the Saints first before Satan and Sinne doe make any assault against them in them there is no purpose to obey or serue Sin for they hate it with perpetuall hatred Againe in the assault and incursion of Sinne striuing to draw them to the obedience therof they so farre as strength will worke doe resist encounter against it though sometime they are wounded and fall downe buffeted but this commeth vpon them against their wils Finally after this by imbecillitie sometimes beeing surprized they doe obey sinne a fresh they doe by the force of the Spirit thereunto fortified redintigrate the battell against Sinne as against a Capitall and perpetuall enemie and doe continue this combate vnto the end of their daies Gal. 5. How therfore can it be said that Sinne reigneth in the Saints or that the Saints doe obey Sinne as their King to fulfill the lusts thereof Iohn in his Canonicall Epistle doth specially labour in this That it cannot be that such as are truely sanctified and borne of GOD should commit such sinnes which are called sometimes sinnes wasting the conscience sometimes sinnes vnto death sometimes reigning and therefore that they are lyers who boast themselues to be the sonnes of God to acknowledge God when yet in the meane while they sin in securitie hate their brethren and doe not endeuour to obserue Gods Law and therefore that they onely are Saints and borne of God who study to avoyd sinne and keepe the Law of God cap. 2. He that saith that he knoweth God and doth not keepe his commandements is a lier and the truth● is not in him And Gods precepts a●● specially obserued when they are laid vp firmely in the heart and beloued So saith Dauid In the volum● Psal 41. of thy booke is it wrttten of me that I should doe thy will O Lord I am c●●tent to doe it yea thy law is in the middest of my heart scilicet I haue it the●e written and ingrauen If the Saints haue the Law so fixed in their harts how then therfore should sin reigne in their hearts cap. 3. Euery one wh● abideth in him sinneth not and euery one that sinneth haeth not seene him not knowne him againe hee that doth sin is of the diuel because the diuel sinneth from the beginning Hereof it is apparant of what sort of sinnes the Apostle speaketh when he saith He that doth sinne is not borne of God but is of the diuell that is of such as are like to the sinne of Satan the Father of all the wicked And of what quality is the sinne of the diuell sinne committed of purposed malice sinne reigning and perpetuall For the Diuell sinned from the beginning that Aliud est proijcerese in lutum vt sues aliud labi in lutū vt solent munditiei studiosi Zanchius is to say from the beginning vnto this present houre he doth continually sinne and adhaere vnto sinne Wherefore it cannot be that

against their ful conscience Thirdly yee see that to bee impious which my Aduersarie did publish in the Schooles That such men are Regenerate and sanctified who may sinne against conscience and euen perseuere in the same sins with madnes Againe pag. 39. Of them saith he when it is said that they cannot sinne it is onely to bee vnderstood of Perseuerance and a studie to sin Thus Bucer Therefore the Saints do not sin neither purposely nor with perseuerance And then presently They sinne saith hee but they doe not lie in their sinnes neither doth sin reigne in them but finally they are erected and heare and follow their shephea●d Rom. 8. Sect. 4. vpon this In that we pray c. pag. 343. The Saints indeed do liue and are led with the spirit of Christ as Paul taught a little before but while our most gracious Father doth humble vs with aduersitie and doth make vs see our Nothingnes of our selues There this spirit whereby wee cry Abba Father which doth contestate the good will of God towards vs in all things and withall doth make vs euen glory in our afflictions as it were is oppressed the flesh which is weake to all honest things preuaileth the terrour of Gods iudgment doth wholly possesse vs. From hence wee feele nothing but detestarion of Gods iudgements but a deploring of our owne lot and accusation of God to burst forth and to be tossed too and fro in our mindes Herevpon are those most grieuous complaints of Iob Ieremie and the Psalmist God now is accused of excessiue and vniust seueritie we curse his holy and iust workes wee doe execrate our whole life and such things as were seruiceable to produce or preserue life So Iob and Ieremie did curse the very night and day wherein they were conceiued and borne But because in that though most grieuous praecipitation and intolerable exagitation of mind the Saints doe still liue in the Spirit of God for the same doth neuer forsake them therefore hath it vncessantly its operation in them and alwayes the motion thereof And that is nothing else but to crye Abba father that is to pray for Gods helpe In his Booke of the true reformation of Churches fol. 135. out of those words Ioh. 6. Whither shall we● goe thou hast the wordes of eternall life he inferreth saying whereby he doth clearely expresse that such as do truly beleeue and by beleeuing do soundly know the Lord Iesus Christ to be the Sauiour of mē to haue the words of eternal life cannot depart from him Wherevppon the Lord so often heere of vseth repetition That such haue eternall life who beleeue in him Againe vpon the three last verses of the 80. Psalme This likewise redounded out of the same spirit saith he Wee wil not decline from th●e for that they are sealed with such a spirit of the sonnes of God insomuch as that they can neuer fall away from it And whereas to all these and other most manifest places of Bucer in a manner infinite touching perseuerance some do obiect three places ex Refor Coloniensi as though there were a repugnancie therein they doe nothing effect thereby For we haue giuen demonstration in our answers to our accusers arguments That they are so far from being contradictory as that they implie mutuall confirmation First there it is taught that true faith cannot consist with sinne against the Conscience and this we concluded out of Bucer but we added withall both according to the Scriptures Bucers doctrine That the Saints doe not sinne against plenary conscience nay therefore the Saints not to commit these sins because they are endued with true faith which cannot endure these sinnes to be with it Agame there it is laid downe that many haue and do fall from grace and faith The examples which are alleadged are partly of the reprobate partly of the Elect as of Dauid We likewise according to Bucers doctrine doe teach thatt both the Elect and Reprobate when they sinne by consent may be said to fall from grace and faith but not altogether after the same manner For the Reprobate for that they doe sinne against conscience plenarily they do vtterly and fully fall from grace and doe entirely loose that temporary faith totally which they had But the Elect for that they doe not sinne with a full will and full consent therefore neither fully nor vtterly they fall away from grace neither vtterly loose their faith but partly that is they are so said to fal from the grace of their heauenly father as sonnes from the grace of their parents when as they by their euil manners or offences do prouoke them to anger yet so as that they neither cease to be parents nor they to be children And so they are said to loose faith as fire is said to bee extinguished when either by wet fuel cast vppon it it is suffocated or for want of wood the heat is remitted but yet so as the whole fire is not put out Therefore by these places nothing is concluded against such and such others produced by me for Perseuerance O Ecolampadius in Ep. Ioh. trimam demegor 8. vpon these words If they had heene of vs t●ey would haue continued with vs From hence saith hee some do collect That such as are once truly illuminated cannot fall totally from faith and vtterly slie out of the Church for although Peter denyed Christ yet went he not vtterly away We know that a reuelation was made vnto him of the father not from flesh and blood and that he sinned we are not ignorant neither yet did his faith vtterly faile as neither of Dauid the adulterer from whence by repentance both of them returned But if some goe out so as that they doe not returne we do at no hand belieue that they were truely illuminated For such as reuert haue yet safe the seeds of faith neither are they altogether desperate neither do any of such so go out as do the Antichrists who not being truly illnminated did go out so that either they should oppugne the knowne truth or their brethren for the truthes sake for we do not read that any such haue returned for they sinned with an vnpardonable sinne that is against the Holy Ghost which is neither remitted in this nor in the life to come Let euery one consider what faith he hath hitherto had and pray God continually to encrease my faith help mine vnbeleefe least either he be drawne away with such a number of Antichrists or be vnprepared when the Lord Iesus commeth and calleth Soe bee it Amen This testimony of OEcolampadius can neither my aduersary nor any other reiect as discordant with the Augustane confession or coudemne it as haereticall doctrine but he must withal reiect and condemne D. Hedion as one who did approue doctrine both haeretical and repugnant to the Augustane Confession and proposed it to be read and receiued of the people of a Argentme for Strausburg he translated these

such as are truly borne of God should commit sinnes of such qualitie that is deuilish and persist in them therefore he addeth saying All that are borne of God sinne not because the seed abideth in him neither can he sinne because he is borne of God This also is the doctrine not onelie of the Godly Fathers nor onely of Luther and Bucer but also of all Protestants For such things as were defended in the disputation at Ratisbone were defended in the name of all the Protestants And there in many pages this doctrine is pressed and defended That such haue not true faith as doe commit sinnes wasting the conscience And contrariwise they that are truly faithfull do nor entertaine these sinnes much lesse persist in them for that the nature of true faith cannot end●●e such sinnes page 241. Sinne say they against the conscience or as Augustine speaketh wasting the conscience true faith cannot tolerate to be with it neither doth hee euer continue in such a sinne who liueth by a true and iustifying faith But pag. 242. they doe first demonstrate that the faith of them who doe adh●ie to such sins against the conscience is no true fayth but a vaine opinion Then of such as are endued with a true faith thus they say yet touching faith whereby a iust man liueth the case is otherwise for they that haue that faith are the sonnes of God and them the Holy Spirit leadeth to holy and rightfull thinges as that the things contrary wittingly and in vnderstanding they doe not much lesse perseuer in them although they doe some-time and sinne of the imbecillity of the flesh and not of fayth but not sinnes wasting the conscience or such as exclude presently from the Kingdome of God In this place they verifie foure things of such as are true Saints and the true sonnes of God of whome is this our Question One is That they are guided by the Holy Spirit to doe those things which are holy and rightfull The next that they are so led by the Holy Spirit to such things as are holy as that witting and with vnderstanding they doe not the contrary The third That if the Saints doe not admit such sinnes as wast the conscience much lesse therefore doe they perseuer therein The fourth That yet oftentimes through infirmity of the flesh they doe admit somethings which are not of faith and so doe sinne And they speake of actuall sinnes the selfe-same thing they doe signifie by the word of acting sinne Therefore although the Saints doe often sinne euen actually and with some consent by frailty of the flesh as be fell Dauid and Peter who did sinne of infirmity as we haue before proued euen by Luthers testimony yet vpon them neuer fall the ●eigning sinnes which properly are called by the Protestants sinnes against the conscience and wasting the conscience And this doctrine they comfirme by the Scriptures and chiefly by this Syllogisme taken from Saint Iohn Hee that truely beleeueth that the Lord Iesus is the Christ is borne of God 1. Ioh. 5. But he that is borne of God sinneth not neither can sinne 1. Ioh. 3. Therefore he that truely beleiueth he cannot sin that is the sinne wasting the conscience much lesse porsist in it These things are in that place word for word Neither did I euer teach otherwise And indeed when I did interpret the Epistle of Saint Iohn both in the Argument of the Epistles and in explication of the second Chapter I confirmed at large the same doctrine Let my Praelections bee read specially vpon these wordes of the second Chapter Hee that saith hee knoweth God and keepeth not his commandements is a lier Wherefore it appeareth what indignity to such men as professe Christ this voice did bring which my aduersaries bruited abroad fasely against mee perswading many as also left in writing scilicèt That I should teach That the Saints although they doe sinne against conscience and liue wickedly and perseuer in their sinnes yet that they do not loose faith whereas I did alwaies teach the contrarie according to the Scriptures That such as commit such things and perseuere therein not to be Saints neither at any time to haue had a true faith but to be the sonnes of the Diuell For these sinnes cannot befall the Saints who though somtime they doe sinne and that with some consent yet not plenarie yet notwithstanding neuer of set malice nor of contempt of Gods Law and therefore doe they not sinne properly against the Conscience as is aboundantly explained before QVEST. IIII. Whether the Saints doe perseuere in Sinne FOR hence it easily appeareth what I thinke and what is to be holden concerning the fourth Question which is controuerted betweene vs scilicet Whether any of the Saints being iustified and regenerate doe perseuere in their sinnes to the end and perish in them For a certaine Diuine doth affirme and endeuoreth to defend this And I deny and doe contend That this doctrine is repugnant to Holy Writ and ouerturneth the whole course of the Gospell For how can this be a concordance hee that beleeueth in me hath euerlasting life how can it be euerlasting if he fall into aeternall destruction how likewise shall that chaine of the Apostle continue inuiolable Rom. 8. Those whom hee hath Predes●inate hee hath called scilicèt of purpose and whom he hath called them also he hath iustified if that the iustified can outragiouslie continue in sinne vnto the last breath of their life and runne headlong into aeternall destruction Againe if sinnes reigning cannot befall the Saints as is before manife-fested how can they perseuere therein Therefore the Protestants in their Disputation at Ratisbone did more truely put downe in writing as we haue seene in the places before related That the Saints and they who are endued with a true faith and liue thereby although they fall of frailetie yet doe they not commit sinnes wasting the conscience much lesse doe they perseuere therein Better also writ Luther in Gal. 5. fol. 422. If they do not repent but going on in obstinacie doe perfect the desires of the flesh it is an infallible signe that fraud is in their heart that is that they are not truly sanctified but Hypocrites Besides hee that obeyeth the flesh and goeth on in securitie to perfect the lusts thereof let him know that he doth not belong to Christ and howsoeuer hee adorne himselfe in the highest degree with the name of a Christian yet doth he deceiue himselfe For they that are Christs haue crucified the flesh with the vices and lusts thereof Luther in these words teacheth That it is impossible that such as are truely Christs and Saints should perseuere in their sinnes and proceed in practising the lusts thereof for that i● any be found that do continue they doe giue open testimonie that they are Hypocrites and in no case pertaine vnto Christ QVEST. V. Whether the Saints do persist vnto the end in faith once giuen THIS is the state