Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	command_v	servant_n	unprofitable_a	1,244	5	10.6349	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09453	A reformed Catholike: or, A declaration shewing how neere we may come to the present Church of Rome in sundrie points of religion: and vvherein we must for euer depart from them with an advertisment to all fauourers of the Romane religion, shewing that the said religion is against the Catholike principles and grounds of the catechisme.	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.	1598 (1598)	STC 19736; ESTC S114478	146,915	390

some fewe but all and euery commaundement of the lawe of God as Dauid saith psal 119. 6. Then should I not be confounded when I haue respect to AL THY COMMANDEMENTS And this endeauour is a fruite of perfection in that it proceedes from a man regenerate For as all men through Adams fall haue in them by nature the seedes of all sinne none excepted no not the sinne against the holy Ghost so by grace of regeneration through Christ all the faithfull haue in them likewise the seedes of all vertues needefull to saluation and hereupon they both can and doe indeauour to yeelde perfect obedience vnto God according to the whole law And they may be tearmed perfect as a childe is called a perfect man though it want perfection of age and stature and reason yet hath it perfection of parts because it hath all and euery part and faculty both of body soule that is required to a perfect man Conclus II. There be certaine works of supererogation that is such works as are not onely answerable to the law and thereupon deserue life euerlasting but goe beyonde the lawe and merit more then the lawe by it selfe can make any man to merit But where may we finde these works not in the person of any meere man or angel nor in all men and angels but onely in the person of Christ God and man whose workes are not onely answerable to the perfection of the law but goe farre beyond the same For first the obedience of his life cōsidered alone by it selfe was answerable euen to the rigour of the lawe and therefore the sufferings of his death and passion were more then the lawe could require at his hand considering it requireth no punishment of him that is a doer of all things conteyned therein Secondly the very rigour of the lawe requireth obedience onely of them that are meere men but the obedience of Christ was the obedience of a person that was both God man Thirdly the lawe requires personall obedience that is that euery man fulfill the lawe for himselfe and it speaks of no more Now the obedience which Christ performed was not for himselfe alone but it serueth also for all the elect and considering it was the obedience of God as Paul signified whē he said feede the Church of God which HE purchased VVITH HIS BLOOD it was sufficient for many thousand worlds and by reason the law requireth no obedience of him that is God this obedience therefore may truely be tearmed a worke of supererrogation This one we acknowledge and beside this we dare acknowledge none And thus farre we agree with the Church of Rome in the doctrine of the estate of perfection and further we dare not goe The difference The Papists hold as the writings of the learned among them teach that a man being in the state of grace may not onely keepe all the commandements of the law and thereby deserue his owne saluation but also goe beyond the law and doe workes of supererrogation which the lawe requireth not as to performe the vow of single life and the vow of regular obedience c. And by this means they say men deserue a greater degree of glorie then the law can afoard Of perfection they make two kinds one they cal necessarie perfection which is the fulfilling of the law in euery commandement whereby eternall life is deserued The second is profitable perfection when men do not onely such things as the lawe requires but ouer and besides they make certen vowes and performe certaine other duties which the lawe inioynes not for the doing whereof they shall be rewarded with a greater measure of glorie then the lawe designeth This they make plaine by comparison Two soldiers fight in the field vnder one and the same captaine the one onely keepes his standing and thereby deserues his pay the other in keeping of his place doth also winne the enemies standard or doe some other notable exploit now this man besides his pay deserues some greater reward And thus say they it is with all true Catholickes in the state of grace they that keepe the lawe shal haue life eternal but they that doe more then the law as workes of supererrogation shall be crowned with greater glorie This is their doctrine But we on the cōtrarie teach that albeit we are to striue to a perfection as much as we can yet no man can fulfill the lawe of God in this life much lesse do works of supererrogation for the confirmatiō wherof these reasons may be vsed I. In the moral law two things are commanded First the loue of God and man Secondly the manner of this loue now the manner of louing God is to loue him with all our heart and strength Luc. 10. 27. Thou shalt loue the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soule with all thy strength AND VVITH ALL THY THOVGHT c. As Bernard saide the measure of louing God is to loue him vvithout measure and that is to loue him with the greatest perfectiō of loue that can befall a creature Hence it followes that in louing God no man can possibly doe more then the lawe requireth and therefore the performance of all vowes whatsoeuer and all like duties comes short of the intention or scope of the law II. Reason The compasse of the law is large and comprehendeth in it more then the minde of man can at the first conceiue for euery commaundement hath two parts the negatiue and the affirmatiue In the negatiue is forbidden not onely the capitall sinne named as murther theft adulterie c. but all sinnes of the same kinde with all occasions and prouocations thereto And in the affirmatiue is commanded not onely the contrarie vertues as the loue of God and the loue of our neighbours honour life chastitie goods good name but the vse of all helps and meanes wherby he said the vertues may be preserued furthered and practised Thus hath our Sauiour Christ himselfe expounded the lawe Math. chap. 5. and 6. vpon this plaine ground I conclude that all duties pertaining to life and manners come within the list of some morall commaundement And that the Papists making their workes of supererogation meanes to further the loue of God and man must needs bring them vnder the cōpasse of the lawe Vnder which if they be they can not possibly goe beyond the same Reason III. Luc. 17. 20. When ye haue done all those things that are commanded vs we are vnprofitable seruantes we haue done that which was our duty to doe The Papists answere that we are vnprofitable to God but not to our selues but this shift of theirs is beside the very intent of the place For a seruant in doing his dutie is vnprofitable euen to himselfe and doth not so much as deserue thankes at his masters hand as Christ saith v. 9. Doth he thanke that seruant Secondly they answer that we are vnprofitable seruants in doing things cōmaunded yet

lay hold of any thing and to receiue a gift but the hande hath no propertie to cut a peice of wood of it selfe without saw or knife or some like instrument and yet by helpe of them it can either deuide or cut Euen so it is the nature of faith to goe out of it selfe and to receiue Christ into the heart as for the duties of the first and second table faith cannot of it selfe bring them forth no more then the hand can deuide or cut yet ioyne loue to faith and then can it practise duties commanded concerning God and man And this I take to be the meaning of this text which speaketh not of iustification by faith but onely of the practise of common duties which faith putteth in execution by the helpe of loue III. Reason Faith is neuer alone therefore it doth not instifie alone Ans. The reason is nought and they might as well dispute thus The eye is neuer alone from the head and therefore it seeth not alone which is absurd And though in regard of substance the eye be neuer alone yet in regard of seeing it is alone so though faith subsist not without loue and hope and other graces of God yet in regard of the act of iustification it is aloue without them all IV. Reason If faith alone doe iustifie then we are saued by faith alone but we are not saued by faith alone and therefore not iustified by faith alone Ans. The proposition is false for more things are requisite to the maine ende then to the subordinate meanes And the assumption is false for we are saued by faith alone if we speake of faith as it is an Instrument apprehending Christ for our saluation V. Reason We are saued by hope therefore not by faith alone Ans. We are saued by hope not because it is any cause of our saluation Pauls meaning is onely this that we haue not saluation as yet in possession but waite patiently for it in time to come to be possessed of vs expecting the time of our full deliuerance that is all that can iustly be gathered hence Nowe the doctrine which we teach on the contrarie is That a sinner is iustified before God by faith yea BY FAITH ALONE The meaning is that nothing within man and nothing that man can doe either by nature or by grace concurreth to the act of iustification before God as any cause thereof either efficient materiall formall or finall but faith alone All other gifts graces as hope loue the feare of God are necessarie to saluation as signes thereof consequēts of faith Nothing in mā concurrs as any cause to this worke but by faith alone And faith it selfe is no principall but only an instrumentall cause by we receiue apprehend and apply Christ and his righteousnes for our iustification Reason I. Iohn 3. 14. 15. As Moses lift vp the serpent in the wildernesse so must the sonne of man be lift vp that whosoeuer beleeueth in him should not perish but haue eternall life In these wordes Christ makes a comparison on this manner when any one of the Israelites were stung to death by fiery serpents his cure was not by any phisicke surgery but onely by the casting of his eye vp to the brasen serpent which Moses haderected by Gods commandement euen so in the cure of our soules when we are stung to death by sinne there is nothing required within vs for our recouery but onely that we cast vp and fixe the eye of our faith on Christ and his righteousnes Reason II. The Exclusiue formes of speach vsed in scripture proue thus much We are iustified freely not of the lawe not by the lawe wiihout the lawe without workes not of workes not according to workes not of vs not by the workes of the lawe but by faith Gal 2. 16. Alboasting excluded onely beleeue Luc. 8. 50. These distinctions wherby works and the law are excluded in the worke of iustification doe include thus much that faith alone doth iustifie Reason III. Very reason may teach thus much for no gift in man is apt and fit as a spirituall hand to receiue and applie Christ and his righteousnes vnto a sinner but faith Indeede loue hope the feare of God and repentance haue their seueral vses in men but none serue for this ende to apprehende Christ and his merits none of them all haue this receiuing propertie and therefore there is nothing in man that iustifieth as a cause but faith alone Reason IV. The iudgement of the auncient Church Ambr. on Rom. 4. They are blessed to whome VVITHOVT ANY LABOVR OR VVORKE DONE iniquities are remitted and sinne couered NO VVORKES OF REPENTANCE required of them but ONELY THAT THEY BELEEVE cap. 3. Neither working any thing nor requiting the like are they iustified by FAITH ALONE through the gift of God And 1. Cor. 1. This is appointed of god that whosoeuer beleeueth in Christ shalbe saued without any worke BY FAITH ALONE freely receiuing remission of sinnes Augustine There is ONE propitiation for all sinnes to beleeue in Christ. Hesyc on Levit. lib. 1. c. 2. Grace vvhich is of mercy is APPREHENDED BY FAITH ALONE and not of workes Bern. Whosoeuer is pricked for his sinnes and thirsteth after righteousnes let him beleeue in thee who iustifieth the sinner and beeing iustified by FAITH ALONE he shall haue peace with God Chrysost. on Gal. 3. They said he which resteth on faith alone is cursed but Paul shevveth that he is blessed vvhich resteth ON FAITH ALONE Basil. de humil Let man acknovvledge himselfe to want true iustice and that he is iustified ONELY BY EAITH in Christ. Origen on c. 3. Rom. We thinke that a man is iustified by faith without the works of the law and he saith that iustification by faith alone sufficeth so as a man onely beleeuing may be iustified And Therefore it lieth vpon vs to search who was iustified by faith vvithout workes And for an example I thinke vpon the theefe who beeing crucified with Christ cried vnto him Lord remember me vvhen thou commest into thy kingdome and there is no other good worke of his mentioned in the Gospell but for this alone faith Iesus saith vnto him This night thou shalt be with me in Paradise III. Difference The third difference about iustification is concerning this point namely how farforth good works are required thereto The doctrine of the Church of Rome is that there be two kindes of iustification the first and the second as I haue saide The first is when one of an euill man is made a good man and in this workes are wholly excluded it beeing wholly of grace The second is when a man of a iust man is made more iust And this they will haue to proceed from works of grace for say they as a man when he is once borne can by eating and drinking make himselfe a bigger man though he could not at the first make himselfe a man euen so a sinner