receiueth all thinges in good part And whersoeuer anie fault shall be committed freendly to amend it with thy pen and especially for the pointing thereof And for the marginal notes and quotations also the like ouersights as before are coÌ„mitted wherfore good reader blame not the author without cause either for the one or for the other A greater volume thou maiest haue but a learneder treatise for the substance therof I perswade my selfe is hard to find Thus putting thee in mind of the old adage 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is easier to find fault and to carpe than to imitate or amend I commit thee to God who blesse thee with the knowledge of his truth Thine in the Lord Phillippe Stubbesâ—… Faultes escaped in the printing  Page Line Faulte Correction C. 1â—… 〈◊〉 for first read first Adam F. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for worke of the law read works of the law F. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which make read which walke A TREATISE OF Faith and works GOD by his eternall wisdome in his secrete counsayle before the foundatioÌ„ of the worlde decreed the creation of the same world And in that his secret counsell determined to make mankinde and also appointed a number certeine howe manie hee wold create before the end of the world and that the world should not end before that number certein were accomplished euen to the last person God decreed so to make man in his first creation as that he should bee perfect good and shoulde haue free wil that if he would he might stand and abide in that perfect goodnesse and not fall from the same and so neuer to be dampned But God foresawe thatnotwithstanding he wold make man the purest creature aboue all that hee would make vnder the compasse of the heauens and woulde giue him free will power and strength to keepe himselfe from falling if hee would yet notwithstanding he would fall and breake the commaundement which God woulde giue him wherby both himselfe and his whole posteritie should fall into the state of damnation and so the iustice and wrath of God should take holde and bee powred vpon al mankind for his so transgressing the onely cause of all their corruption The mercy and loue of GOD foreseeing this fall of man and perpetuall death for the same by the iust iudgement of God preassed forward and as it were pleaded against the iustice and wrath of GOD That though by the fall of a first Adam sin entered and the whole posteritie of mankind shuld bee brought into the state of damnation for in Adam all do die Euen so by the death of a second Adam Christ Iesus mankinde is to bee recouered bought made righteous and redeemed froÌ„ the paine due by that fal Which loue and mercie in God being as high or higher in dignitie then his iustice is to haue as great or greater interest in man then his iustice And the power of mercie is as well to be showed on man as the power of iustice But iustice replied that death must fall vpon mankinde for transgressing For the reward of sin is death and therfore iustice otherwise could not be answered but by death The mercie and loue of God to make a full agrement for mankinde and by iustice to satisfie the iustice of God ordeining That we shuld be made the righteousnesse of GOD in Christ. Graunted that death by death should be redeemed and that by innocent death euen the death of the verie sonne of God VVho onelie should take on him our infirmitie and beare our paines by whose stripes we should be healed And he shoulde bee the redeemer in iustice by death to satisfie the iustice appease the wrath of God Wherevpon the iustice and wrath of God being therewith aunswered and the elect freed from the same iustice and wrath of God The Lorde in mercie and loue decreed in the same his secrete counsell to giue vnto the redeemer those whome before they were he had bought and made sure to himselfe by a price which hee woulde giue in the appointed time before set downe in the secret counsell of God And those whome before they were he had bought chosen were vnto him certeinelie knowne the number certeine and euerie particular person hee knewe before they were For God was not ignorant thereof neither can there be ignorance in God neither would he redeeme those whome he knew not In the fulnes of time the word being the secoÌ„d person and verie God of verie God tooke flesh made of the substance of the virgin Marie in which flesh liuing here vpoÌ„ the earth he fulfilled the whole law to the vttermost Who did not sin neither was their guile found in his mouth TheÌ„ to satisfie the iustice of God for that number which were before they were created elected and chosen to be saued The same flesh being man ioyned to the Godhead and so one Christ laide vpon himselfe and bare all the whole burthen of sin in his bodie on the tree done from the first to the last end of the world by all his elect Thus bearing all our sinnes hee being yet an innocent lambe was slaine and hanged vpon the crosse suffering before diuers tormentes and passions And when the vttermost peny for mans ransome was paid Christ hanging vpon the crosse a little before his death saide It is finished That is to say all the prophesies which were prophesied of me by all the Prophetes from the first to the last are fulfilled And with all I haue finished the woorke which was giuen me to doe of my Father I haue satisfied the iustice and wrath of my heauenly father against the sinnes of mine elect I haue paid their full ransome I haue redeemed all from eternall death haue for euer destroied death and hell for them Death is swallowed vp in victory So that now there is no more to be laide against them nor to bee done for the redeeming of them from their sinnes all is finished The elect of God being thus redeemed And elected before the foundation of the world before they were or had done either good or euill And that of a certeintie infallible without alteration of purpose and without repentance by God in any respect in his secret counsell For in God there is no repentance nor alteration of any thing decreed in his secret counsell but his purpose standeth firme and stable for euer This election being thus in certeintie determined the number persons certeinlie knowne to God by name set downe writteÌ„ in the booke of life by the finger of God not one of them to be lost For Christ said those whome thou gauest me haue I kept none of them be lost but the lost child that the scriptures may be fulfilled Nor anie one to be added therevnto but the decreed number to stand full without alteration of the same or any person therof because that God is altogither perfect wisedome
number and cōdemned sort Faith therefore may bee without good workes and yet saluation to the beleeuer in Christ. The theefe that hanged on the Gibbet on the right hand of Christ at his death hee did no good workes yet he had Faith and that but at the instant before his death And Christ pronounced him his elect saying To day shalt thou bee with mee in Paradise But rarely may Faith be found without good workes though workes done in ciuill charitie may be without Faith For Turkes and Iewes do as many ciuil charitable workes as all the Christians doe and yet are they without faith in Christ and therfore remaine in the state of damnation and their ciuill workes of charitie auaileth them nothing neither can they be saued by them Therfore Faith which apprehendeth Christ doth onely iustifie but so doth not workes for Faith is aboue good workes and good works are but handmaidens to Faith to wait vpon hir but not to merit saluation because of imperfection For the best works that euer were wrought by man besides Christ if they be brought to Gods tutch-stone they shall be found to be drosse and no fine golde Therefore we are to take hold onely on Christ Iesu by Faith and so shall wee stande sure of our saluation without doubting which workes cannot assure vs of And why then should any man hang vpon good workes which cannot assure vs of our saluation or think his owne workes Friers workes Priests workes or workes of supererogation to merit for them whē as the good works of Christ which were most pure and vndefiled could not saue mankind and because they coulde not saue mankinde Christ therefore would die to purchase that which good workes could not Peraduenture some will aske wherefore Christ should worke all his good works which he wrought in the worlde Was it not to merit our saluation and to purchase heauen for his elect I say no. Neither was it the purpose of the eternitie to send downe from heauen into the world the second person in Trinitie to take our mortall flesh and by fulfilling of the law to merit heauen for his elect But the purpose and end of his comming downe to take flesh was to die for the saluation of his chosen children who could not bee saued nor enter into the kingdome of heauen but onely by the bloudie sacrifice and death of that vnspotted and innocent lambe of God Christ Iesus And so heauen which was lost by Adams fall was not merited by fulfilling of the lawe or by doing the good works of grace either by Christ himselfe or by his chosen children You will aske againe to what end then did Christ all that was commanded in the lawe and fulfilled the same most perfectly if thereby hee should not merit heauen for his elect It is to be answered for fiue causes The first cause is to shewe that Christ by fulfilling of the lawe was a iust person had therefore no cause of death in him and that also hee dying suffered his death most wrongfully For Christ liuing iustly in the world without sin and without spot or blemish of sin fulfilling the whole lawe in such sort as neither the iustice of God nor all the deuils in hel coulde laie anie thing to his charge or could finde any one sparke of sin wheron they might take holde thereby to put Christ iustly to death and shewing him selfe thus to be a iust and most righteous person so fulfilling the whole lawe to the vttermost that might be ought not to haue died but to liue in the same according to the word Doe this and liue And therefore he was most wrongfully put to death But most graciously for poore miserable man whose deliuerance from the wrath of God and fiery lake of hell was wrought by the same death who otherwise must haue liued in perpetuall torments Christ his good works in deed was a fulfilling of the lawe in his owne humaine person alone but not for any others neither could mankind thereby be saued And therefore Christ would suffer his passion and death because that neither by his owne nor by others good workes mankinde could be saued which as afore is said if saluation for mankinde might haue come thereby Christ should neuer haue needed to haue died And now ye childrē of God heare the Trump of Christ Iesu sounding in your eares a conquest a conquest victorie victorie A conquest Victorie By whome Ouer whome And for whome Euen by Christ Iesu the most innocent and vnspotted lambe of God sacrificed slain And he it is that triumpheth ouer death hell and all the power of hell and ouer the wrath and iustice of God the Father and ouer the lawe of God so that now the iustice and lawe of God hath vtterly lost their force and Satan with all the power of hell hath lost their interest which they had woon against the elect by Adams fall And that by the most wrongfull putting to death the most innocent and immaculate lambe of GOD Christ Iesu. And for the chosen children in Christ is this most royall and victorious conquest woon Christ hath suffered the paine and we haue reaped the gaine And this hath the death of the blessed sonne of God Christ Iesu done which all the good workes in the world coulde neuer doe The second cause was that all persons should knowe that God had not commanded that which was impossible to be done by man for Christ beeing man did in his owne person fulfill the whole lawe did worke all the good works that the lawe required to be done euen to the vttermost silable of the lawe all was performed by Christ. The third cause was for example that all persons should follow Christ in well doing to liue in the world as hee liued in the world to hate sin as he hated sin to loue vertue as hee loued vertue that thereby our conscience might stand assured of our election that the world might iudge vs by seeing the workes of Faith to proceed from vs to be the elect of God in Christ Iesu and those whome Christ died for The fourth cause was to shewe the difference betwixt the first Adam the second Adam Christ Iesu. The first Adam in his first creation was the perfect image of God For God saide Let vs make man in our image according to our owne likenesse And hee was good in the sight of God hauing free-will to keepe himselfe so if hee would but hee fell by breaking the commandement The second Adam was borne the verie perfect sonne of God hauing also freewil which held and kept himselfe in the obedience of his heauenly father all the daies of his life and kept all the commandements which God had commanded The first could be tempted with an apple or fruite of the tree The second Adam Christ Iesu coulde not be tempted vvith all the kingdomes of the worlde The first Adam was Of earth earthly and subiect
Godlie and fruitfull Treatise of Faith and workes Wherein is confuted a certaine opinion of merit by workes which an aduersary to the Gospell of Christ Iesu held in the conference had in the Tower of London Math. 7. ver 21. Not euerie one that saith vnto me Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdome of heauen but he that doth my Fathers will which is in heauen Iohn 6. verse 40 And this is the will of him that sent me that uery one that seeth the Sonne and beleeueth on him may haue euerlasting life and I will raise him at the last day LONDON Printed for Gregory Seton and are to be sold at his shop vnder Aldersgate 1583. To the Right honorable and his very good Lord Ambrose Earle of Warwicke Baron Lisley maister of her Maiesties ordenance knight of the most honorable or der of the Garter and one of her highnes priuy Councell H. D. wisheth all prosperitie in this life with increase of honour and in the life to come eternall felicitie in the heauenly hierarchie by Iesus Christ. AT what time Right honorable I had finished these my slender labours containing such holesome doctrine I trust as may semeneces sary for the time Certein of good iudgement hauing per used the same made some perswasion to suffer the impression thereof which at the firste considering my own weakenes the slender handling of so weightie a matter the pretence in the beginning for my priuate exercise I disassented to their desire But being somewhat pressed to do some good to the Church how litle soeuer and to cast forth some publike stone to the repairing of the building leauing the successe to almightye God I was in the ende contented to yeeld and imboldened to commit this litle treatise to the printe The first and onely occasion of the writing wherof was an argument which an aduersary of the truth held in the cōferēce had in the Tower of London the force whereof seemed to me so weake as that I thought my simple skill might easely confute the same wherefore committing that argument to memory I applied my endeuour to the confutation therof And although arte the eloquent order forme of the learned herin be wanting yet I doubt not but done according to the truth Yet iudge I this my labour litle worth and smally or nothing able to preuaile against the cauils and slaunders of the aduersary vnlesse your honorable L. were patrone thereof to whom I do dedicate both my good hart and worke also not as to teach your L. ought contained in this treatise whose honor aboundes both in Zeale and knowledge of this doctrine but by your authoritie to get it the more fauourable intertainement with others when they shall behold this simple discourse shrowded vnder the protection of your honorable good L. Thus being bold in all humilitie to prostrate this litle booke before your honour obseruing the examples of others in like oblations for the better defence thereof I pray to the Lord Iesus long to preserue you in much honour and felicitie Amen Your honors most humble to commaund H. D. To the vnlearned Papists VNto you I write yee vnlearned Papists whom the Pope and his Prelates haue so blinded and dulled your sences that you haue eares and heare not eyes and see not a hart and yet cannot vnderstand the trueth nor finde the waie of your saluation For blind ignorance who among you is called the mother of deuotion though most vntruely hath so lulled you a sleepe in popish dreames that you can neither heare see nor vnderstand the word of life but hath shut vp the same from you so as you cannot learne Christ truly nor obey your Prince faithfullie but doth nussell you vp in old wiues fables and legions of lies as they thinke most meetest for your study fearing that if they shuld suffer you to read the word of truth the blinde way which they haue ledde you in all this while would bee by you so espied as their great hypocrisie and false doctrine could no longer lie hid but would be knowne to their great shame and vtter condemnation The Lord hath opened the eies of a number of his people which haue bene led in the waie of your blindnesse and the Lord in mercie may also open your eies and wil if you will not too obstinatlie withstande his offered grace The Lord calleth you if you wil hear him He bids you search the scriptures for therin you shal find life and wisedome which is Christ. But your Antichrist forbiddeth you to reade them because he would haue you still blind and know no other Christ as a leader to heauen but him Forsake not him that is life to followe him that leadeth to death whose doctrine draweth to dispaire taking awaie al confidence by the merites of Christ and leaueth you in perpetuall blindnesse and confidence of your workes And therfore awake out of these Popish dreames flie from that whore of Rome who hath made you drunken with the cuppe of hir fornication Imbrace Christ Iesus the onlie Sauiour and onelie rest vpon him for your saluation Doe as much good as you can and fulfill the lawe to the vttermost of your power that God maie be glorified therby but repose no trust of saluation nor merite therein Leaue that onelie to Christ vnto whom it doth apperteine for he onlie hath obteined it by shedding his moste precious bloud without the helpe of our woorkes For if those woorkes might saue vs thē Christ died in vaine for what need is there of his death when our works maie saue vs. But forasmuch as this is most vntrue and that there was nothing in the world whatsoeuer that was able to redeeme the soule of man the commandement of God being once broken by Adam but Christ. Therefore the most precious bodie of Christ was made the alone and onelie sacrifice for to redeeme vs. Wherefore staie no longer forsake all vaine helpes from the Pope and flie to Christ onelie and there rest yee And so farewell H. D. 〈◊〉 the Christian Reader a preface premonitorie I Nede not good Christian Reader to stand vpon either the commendation of the Author of this booke or the worke it selfe for Vino vendibili hadera suspensa nihil est opus both the one and the other such is the exellencie of them both may fusticiently commend themselues Onely this I am to request at thy hands good Reader that what faultes or escapes soeuer thou shalt meete withall in this booke as there be some I beseech thee impute them not to the negligence of the Author who is greatly agreeued at them but to the ouersight of the printer through whom they were cōmitted Wherefore gentle Reader I beseech thee read this booke being I assure thee a learned worke cum iuditio not praeiuditio with the spirite of modesty not of contumacie knowing that as the Apostle saith charitie couereth the multitude of faultes enuieth no man speaketh ill of no man but
to falling The second Adam was Of heauen heauenly and could not fall The fift cause and end of all his good workes his godlie life and conuersation in this world was to set foorth the glorie of his heauenly father And he so glorified him thereby that his heauenly father from heauen said This is my welbeloued sonne in vvhom I am well pleased c. And that we also which are the elect of God Might haue our light so shine before men that they may see our good workes and glorifie our heauenly Father which is in heauen according to the example of our maister Christ. Now here you may perceiue to what end the godly life and good workes which Christ did in this worlde did tende too which was not to merit saluation for mankind neither was that the pointed price for the same neither could that obteine it But as it is saide the verie price of our saluation was onelie the passion and death of Christ Iesu and not the works of grace And in Gods election before the creation of the worlde the saluation of mankinde was made as sure for them and Christ as sure of his elect whiche hee bought before they were though the price for the same was not then paid but to be paid in the appointed time as a man is sure of a peece of lande that is voide of encombrance which hee buyeth to paie for the same at a daie appointed The bargaine of which lands being set downe vnder hande and seale and all thinges done that ought to be touching the sale sauing payment which is reserued to the appointed daie The land is now the buiers and no man can take it out of his hands and the seller hath no more to do with the landes though yet hee bee not paide for the same neither can the seller haue action against the lande but against the buier And so the lande doth remaine firmely to the buyer still euen from the first concluding of the bargaine Euen so standeth it with the iustice and lawe of God and the mercie and loue of God in Christ for mankinde elect They haue nowe no more action against the elect which were bought by Christ and in time paide for the same then the seller hath against the lande which hee solde and in time was paide for it The elect were Christes from before the beginning after hee had bought them and they could not be taken out of his hands after the bargaine was once set downe and written vnder hande and Seale that is to saie written in the booke of life and sealed with the promised passion and death of Christ Iesu and so remained surely his owne for euer And therefore it is plaine that good woorkes hath no part in the saluation of the chosen children in Christ seeing the same was made sure to them before they were created or had done either good or euill neither could Gods election rest vncerteine vpon woorkes to come as a cause of saluation which are but the fruits of Gods children and of Faith And although good woorkes proceeding from iustifying Faith haue no part in the merit of our saluation yet be they of great vertue and force and haue their crowne For a godlie and a vertuous life in the children of GOD and the good workes which they doe which are the children of God elect in Christ Iesu doe please God and doe staie the wrath of God that the plagues due for sin as war pestilence famine and such like fall not vpon vs as a iust rewarde for our wickednesse And therefore to staie the wrath of God that his heauie hande fall not vpon vs and that the fauour and loue of God may still be bent towardes vs. The children of God by the operation of the holy Ghost who worketh both the will and the worke in all the elect of God because of our selues we are not able to thinke a good thought do make their humble prayers vnto God doe all the good workes that they are able to doe to the glory of God and are made by the holy Spirite of God to hunger thirst after righteousnesse to detest and abhor sinne and thereby doe worke out their saluation That is to say they outwardlye shewe vnto the world by their good life and conuersation that they are the elect of God And they are assured in their owne consciences hauing a feeling of the holy Ghost working in them and by leading a godly Christian life that they are of that number which were chosen and appointed to saluation before the creation of the world And God blesseth that land that peple that obey and worke good in his sight by true faith in Christ geueth his peace plenty of al good thinges vnto them And thus the Lord doth crowne our good works rewardeth the same by these blessings the worldly blessings which god giueth vs are infinitely of greater value and more then al the best works that all the whole world is able to doe or deserue Therfore O miserable man what art thou that darest presume to lay thy defiled workes which euen the very best of them are most impure before the most high iust mighty pure god the iudge of righteousnes to merite thy saluation who setting aside his mercy cānot abide inperfection Augustine cryeth out woe be to the most vpright life of man if God examin the same setting his mercy aside Then when all the best workes that we are able to doe cannot deserue one of the least blessings which God hath daylie doth bestowe vpon vs what shouldest thou meane O miserable man to holde them meritorious to purchase saluation For thy best works thy best life is sin wilt thou haue sin to merit thy saluation what saith Gregory vpō the words of Iob in the 9. chapter whose words be these Man cannot be iustified being com pared to God The holy mā saith Gregorie doth perceiue that all the deseruing of our best works are faulty if they be weied in the righteous ballāce of the iust iudge And can that which is faulty deserue other then damnation if mercy in Christ Iesu go not betwixt therefore is Christ only the merite for vs and not our good works Wil you heare what Barnard saith who making a long discourse as out of a learned fathers booke I gathered of the vnrighteousnes of mans righteousnesse demaunding in the end of what value all our righteousnes may be in the sight of GOD. Shall it not be imputed filt hie like vnto a foule menstruous cloth according to the saying of the Prophet and if strickt narrowe examination be made thereof shall not all our righteousnesse befound vnrighteousness and nothing worth But there is yet another shifte in the Papistes storeboxe which I trowe will strike the matter dead And what is that trowe you Forsooth that by grace we be renouated which grace is geuen vs from