Christes glad tydings first through openyng of the law to rebuke all thinges and to proue all thynges sinne that procede not of the spirite of faith in Christ and to proue all men sinners and children of wrath by inheritaunce and howe that to sinne is their nature and that by nature they can no otherwise doe then sinne and therewith to abate the pride of man and to bring him vnto the knowledge of him selfe and of his miserie wretchednes that he might desire helpe Euen so doth S. Paule and beginneth in the first Chapter to rebuke vnbelefe and grose sinnes which all men see as the Idolatrie and as the grose sinnes of the heathen were and as the sinnes now are of all them whiche liue in ignoraunce without fayth and without the fauour of GOD and sayth The wrath of GOD of heauen appeareth through the Gospell vpon all men for their vngodly vnholy lyuyng For though it be knowē and dayly vnderstād by the creatures that there is but one God yet is nature of herself with out the spirit and grace so corrupt and so poysoned that men neither can thanke him neither worship him neither geue him his due honor but blind thē selues and faule without ceasyng into worse case euen vntill they come vnto worshipping of Images workyng of shamefull sinnes whiche are abhominable and agaynst nature and moreuer suffer the shame vnrebuked in other hauing delectation and pleasure therein In the second Chapter he procedeth further and rebuketh all those holy people also whiche without lust and loue to the law liue wel outwardly in the face of the world and condemne other gladly as the nature of all hypocrites is to thinke them selues pure in respect of open sinners and yet hate the law inwardly and are full of couetousnes and enuy and of all vnclēnes Math. xxiij These are they whiche despise the goodnes of GOD and accordyng to the hardenes of their hartes heape together for thē selues the wrath of God Furthermore S. Paule as a true expounder of the law suffreth no man to be without sinne but declareth that all they are vnder sinne whiche of freewill and of nature will liue well suffreth them not to be better thē the open sinners yea he calleth them hard harted and such as can not repent In the thyrd Chapter he mingleth both together both the Iewes and the Gentiles and sayth that the one is as the other both sinners no difference betwene them saue in this onely that the Iewes had the word of God committed vnto them And though many of them beleued not thereon yet is Gods truth and promise thereby neither hurt nor minished And he taketh in his way and allegeth the saying of the 50. Psalme that God might abyde true in his wordes ouercome when he is iudged After that he returneth to his purpose agayn and proueth by the Scripture that all men without difference or exceptiō are sinners and that by the workes of the law no mā is iustified but that the law was geuen to vtter and to declare sinne onely Thē hee begynneth and sheweth the right way vnto righteousnes by what meanes mē must be made righteous and safe and sayth They are all sinners without prayse before God and must without their own deseruyng be made righteous throughe fayth in Christe which hath deserued such righteousnes for vs and is become vnto vs Gods mercystole for the remission of sinnes that are past thereby prouyng that christes righteousnes which commeth on vs through fayth helpeth vs onely whiche righteousnes sayth he is now declared through the Gospell was testified of before by the lawe of the Prophetes Furthermore sayth he the law is holpē and furthered thorough fayth thoughe that the workes therof with all their boast are brought to nought In the iiij Chapter after that now by the 3. first Chapters the sinnes are opened and the way of faith vnto rightuousnes layd he begynneth to aunswere vnto certain obiections and cauillations And first putteth forth those blinde reasons whiche commonly they that wil be iustified by their owne workes are wont to make when they heare that faith onely without workes iustifieth saying shall men do no good workes yea and if fayth onely iustifieth what nedeth a man to studie for to do good workes He putteth forth therfore Abraham for an ensample saying what did Abraham with his workes was all in vayne came his workes to no profite And so concludeth that Abraham without and before al workes was iustified and made righteous In so much that before the worke of Circumcisiō he was praysed of the Scripture and called righteous by his fayth onely Gene. xv So that he did not the worke of Circumcision for to bee holpen there by vnto righteousnesse whiche yet God commaunded hym to do was a good worke of obedience So in likewise no doubt none other workes helpe any thyng at all vnto a mās iustifiyng but as Abrahams Circumcisiō was an outward signe wherby he declared his righteousnes which he had by fayth and his obedience and readynes vnto the will of God euen so are all other good workes outward signes and outward frutes of fayth of the spirite which iustifie not a man but that a man is iustified already before god inwardly in the hart through faith and through the spirite purchased by Christes bloud Herewith now stablisheth S. Paul his doctrine of faith afore rehearsed in the thyrd Chapter and bringeth also testimony of Dauid in the xij Psalme whiche calleth a man blessed not of workes in that his sinne is not rekened and in that fayth is imputed for righteousnes though he abide not afterward without good workes when he is once iustified For we are iustified receiue the spirite for to do good workes neither were it otherwise possible to do good workes except we had first the spirite For howe is it possible to doe any thyng well in the sight of God while we are yet in captiuitie and bondage vnder the deuill and the deuill possesseth vs all together and holdeth our hartes so that we can not once consent vnto the will of God No man therfore can preuent the spirite in doyng good the spirite must first come and wake him out of his sleepe with the thunder of the law and feare him and shew him his miserable estate wretchednes and make him abhorre hate him selfe and to desire helpe and then comfort him agayne with the pleasaūt rayne of the Gospell that is to say with the sweete promises of God in Christ and stirre vp faith in him to beleue the promises then when he beleueth the promises as God was mercyfull to promise so is he true to fulfill them and wil geue him the spirite and strength both to loue the will of God to worke there after So see we that God onely whiche accordyng to the Scripture worketh
all in all thinges woorketh a mans iustifiyng saluation and health yea poureth fayth belefe lust to loue Gods will strength to fulfill the same into vs euen as water is poured into a vessell and that of his good will and purpose and not of our deseruynges and merites Gods mercy in promising and truth in fulfilling his promises saueth vs and not we ourselues and therfore is al laude prayse glory to be geuen vnto God for his mercy and truth and not vnto vs for our merites and deseruynges After that he stretcheth hys example out agaynst all other good workes of the law and coÌ„cludeth that the Iewes can not be Arahams heyres because of bloud and kinred onely and much lesse by the workes of the law but must inherite Abrahams fayth if they wil be the right heyres of Abraham for as much as Abraham before the law both of Moses also of Circumcision was through faith made righteous and called the father of all them that beleue not of them that worke Moreouer the law causeth wrath in as much as no maÌ„ can fulfill it with loue and lust and as longe as such grudgyng hate and indignation agaynst the law remayneth in the hart and is not takeÌ„ away by the sprite that commeth by fayth so long no doubt the workes of the law declare euideÌ„tly that the wrath of god is vpon vs and not fauour wherfore fayth only receyueth the grace promised vnto Abraham And these ensamples were not written for Abrahams sake onely sayth he but for oures also to whom if we beleue fayth shall be reckened lykewise for ryghteousnesse as he sayth in the end of the chapter In the 5. chapter he commendeth the fruit and workes of faith as are peace reioycing in the conscience inwarde loue to God and maÌ„ moreouer boldnesse trust confidence and a strong a lusty mynd and stedfast hope in tribulation and suffering For all such follow where the right fayth is for the aboundant graces sake and giftes of the sprite which god hath geuen vs in Christ in that he suffred hym to die for vs yet his enemies Now haue we then that fayth only before all workes iustifieth and that it followeth not yet therfore that a man should do no good workes but that y t right shapeÌ„ workes abide not behind but accompany fayth euen as brightnesse doth the sunne and are called of Paul the fruites of the sprite Where y t spirite is there it is alwayes sommer and there are alwayes good fruites that is to say good workes This is Paules order that good works spring of the sprite y e spirit commeth by fayth and faythe commeth by hearyng the worde of God when the glad tidings and promises which God hath made vnto vs in Christ are preached truely and receiued in the ground of the hart with out waueryng or doubâ—ing after that the law hath passed vpon vs and hath damned our consciences Where the worde of God is preached purely and receiued in the hart there is faith the spirit of God there are also good workes of necessitie whensoeuer occasioÌ„ is geueÌ„ Where Gods word is not purely preached but mens dreames traditions imaginations inuentioÌ„s ceremonies superstition there is no fayth and consequently no spirite that commeth of GOD and where Gods spirite is not there can bee no good workes euen as where an apple tree is not there can grow no apples but there is vnbeliefe the diuels sprite and euill workes Of this Gods sprite and hys fruites haue our holy hipocrites not once knowen neither yet tasted how swete they are though they fayne many good workes of their own imaginatioÌ„ to be iustified withal in which is not one cromme of true fayth or spiritual loue or of inward ioy peace and quietnes of conscience for as much as they haue not the worde of GOD for them that such workes please GOD but they are euen the rotten fruites of a rotten tree After that he breaketh forth and runneth at large sheweth whence both sinne and righteousnesse death and life come And he compareth Adam and Christ together thus wise reasonyng and disputyng that Christ must nedes come as a seconde Adam to make vs heyres of his righteousnesse through a new spiritual birth without our deseruinges Euen as the first Adam made vs heyres of synne through the bodily generation without oure deseruyng Wherby it is euidently knowne and proued to the vttermost that no man can bryng himselfe out of synne vnto righteousnesse no more then he could haue withstaÌ„d that he was borne bodily And y t is proued herewith for as much as y t very law of God which of right should haue helped if any thyng could haue holpeÌ„ not onely came and brought no helpe with her but also encreased synne because that the euil and poisoned nature is offeÌ„ded and vtterly displeased with the law and y t more she is forbid by the lawe the more is she prouoked and set a fyre to fulfill satisfie her lustes By the law then we see clearely that we must needes haue Christ to iustify vs with his grace to helpe nature In the vi he setteth forthe the chiefe and principall worke of fayth the battayle of the sprite agaynst the fleshe how the sprite laboureth and enforceth to kyll the remnaunt of sinne and lust which remayne in the fleshe after our iustifiyng And this chapiter teacheth vs that we are not so free from sinne through fayth that we should henceforth go vp and down idle carelesse sure of our selues as thoughe there were now no more synne in vs. Yes there is sinne remayning in vs but it is not reckoned because of fayth and of the sprite which fyght agaynste it Wherefore we haue inough to doe all our lyues long to tame our bodies and to compell the members to obey the sprite and not the appetites that therby we myght be like vnto christes death and resurrection and might fulfill our baptisme which signifieth the mortifiyng of sinnes and the new lyfe of grace For this battayle ceaseth not in vs vntill the last breath and vntyll that sinne be vtterly slayne by the deth of the body This thyng I meane to tame the body and so forth we are able to doe sayth he seyng we are vnder grace not vnder the lawe What it is not to be vnder the lawe he himselfe expoundeth For not to be vnder the lawe is not so to be vnderstand that euery maÌ„ may do what hym lusteth But not to be vnder the law is to haue a fre hart renewed with the sprite so that thou hast lust inwardly of thine owne accorde to do that which the lawe commaundeth without compulsion yea though there were no law For grace that is to say gods fauour bringeth vs the sprite maketh vs loue the lawe so is there now no more sinne neither is the law now any more
him in their dedes as fast as they can runne The Turkes being in number fiue tymes moe then we are knowledge one God and beleue many thinges of God moued onely by the authoritie of their elders and presume that God will not let so great a multitude erre so long tyme. And yet they haue erred and bene faithlesse these eight hundred yeares And the Iewes beleue this day as much as the carnall sort of them euer beleued moued also by the authoritie of their elders onely and thinke that it is impossible for them to erre being Abrahams seede and the childrē of them to whom the promises of all that we beleue were made And yet they haue erred and bene faythlesse this xv hundred yeares And we of like blindnesse beleue onely by the authoritie of our elders and of like pride thinke that we can not erre beyng such a multitude And yet we see how God in the old Testament did let the great multitude erre reseruyng alway a litle flocke to call the other backe againe and to testifie vnto them the right way ¶ How this word Church hath a double interpretation THis is therfore a sure cōclusion as Paule sayth Rom. ix that not all they that are of Israell are Israelites neither because they be Abrahās sede are they all Abrahams childrē but they onely that folow the faith of Abraham Euen so now none of them that beleue with their mouthes moued with the authority of their elders onely that is none of thē that beleue with M. Mores fayth the Popes fayth and the deuils fayth which may stand as M. More cōfesseth with all maner abhominatiōs haue the right fayth of Christ or are of his Church But they onely that repēt feele that the law is good And haue the law of God written in their harts and the fayth of our Sauiour Iesus euen with the spirite of God There is a carnali Israell a spirituall There is Isaac and Ismaell Iacob Esau And Ismaell persecuted Isaac Esau Iacob the fleshly the spiritual Wher of Paul complayned in his tyme persecuted of his carnall brethrē as we do in our tyme and as the elect euer dyd shall do till the worldes end What a multitude came out of Egypt vnder Moses of which the Scripture testifyeth that they beleued moued by y ◠miracles of Moses as Symon magus beleued by the reason of Philippes miracles Actes viij Neuerthelesse the Scripture testifieth that vj. hundred thousād of those beleuers perished thorough vnbelief and left their carcasses in the wildernesse and neuer entred into the land that was promised them And euen so shal the children of M. Mores faythlesse faith made by the persuation of mā leap short of the test which our Sauiour Iesus is risē vnto And therfore let them embrace this present world as they do whose children they are though they hate so to be called And hereby ye see that it is a playne an euident conclusiō as bright as the sunne shynyng that the truth of Gods word dependeth not of the truth of the congregation And therfore when thou art asked why thou beleuest that thou shalt be saued thorough Christ and of such like principles of our fayth aunswere thou wottest and felest that it is true And when he asketh how thou knowest that it is true aunswere because it is written in thyne hart And if he aske who wrote it aūswere the spirite of God And if he aske how thou came first by it tell him whether by readyng in bookes or hearyng it preached as by an outward instrumēt but that inwardly thou wast taught by y ◠spirite of God And if he aske whether thou beleuest it not because it is written in bookes or because the Priestes so preach aunswere no not now but onely because it is writtē in thyne hart and because the spirite of God so preacheth and so testifieth vnto thy soule And say though at the beginning thou wast moued by readyng or preachyng as the Samaritans were by y ◠wordes of the woman yet now thou beleuest it not therfore any lēger but onely because thou hast heard it of the spirite of God and read it written in thine hart And concernyng outward teachyng we alledge for vs Scripture elder thē any Church that was this xiiij hundred yeares and old antenticke stories which they had brought a slepe where with we confounde their lyes Remēber ye not how in our owne tyme of all that taught Grammer in England not one vnderstode the Latin toung how came we thē by the Latin toung agayne not by them though we learned certaine rules principles of them by which we were moued had an occasion to seke further but out of the old authours Euen so we seke vp old antiquities out of whiche we learne and not of our Church though we receaued many principles of our Church at the begynnyng but more falsehead then truth It hath pleased God of his exceding loue wherewith he loued vs in Christ as Paul sayth before the worlde was made and whē we were dead in sinne and his enemies in that we did cōsent to sinne and to liue euill to write with his spirite ij conclusions in our harts by which we vnderstād all thyng that is to were the fayth of Christ and the loue of our neighbours For whosoeuer feleth the iust damnation of sinne and the forgeuenes and mercy that is in Christes bloud for all that repent forsake it and come and beleue in that mercy the same onely knoweth how God is to be honoured and worshipped and can iudge betwene true seruing of God in the spirite and false Image seruing of God with workes ▪ And y e same knoweth that sacramētes signes ceremonies and bodely things can be no seruice to God in his person but memorials vnto men and a remēbraunce of the testament wherewyth God is serued in the spirite And he that feeleth not that is blynde in hys soule and of our holy fathers generation and maketh God an Image a creature worshippeth him with bodely seruice And on the other side he that loueth his neighbour as himselfe vnderstandeth all lawes and cā iudge betwene good and euil right wrong godly and vngodly in all conuersation deedes lawes bargaines couenaunces ordinaunces and decrees of men and knoweth the office of euery degree and the due honour of euery person And he that hath not that writen in his hart is popishe and of y ◠spiritualtie which vnderstādeth nothing saue his own honour his own profite what is good for himself onely and when he is as he would be thinketh y ◠all the world is as it should be ¶ Of worshipping and what is to be vnderstand by the worde COncerning worshipping or honouring which two termes are both one M. More bringeth forth a difference a distinction or diuision of Greke wordes
was and how such ceremonies came vp and whence they had their begynnyng and what the frute thereof is and what is therin to be sought And though this were inough so that I might here wel cease yet because the vnquiet scrupulous and superstitious nature of man wholy giuen to Idolatrie hath styrred vp such traditions about this one Sacrament most specially I cannot but speake therof somewhat more and declare what my conscience thinketh in this matter Ye shall vnderstand therfore that there is great dissention and three opinions about the woordes of Christ where he sayth in pronouncyng the testament ouer the bread This is my body And in pronouncyng it ouer the wyne This is my bloud One part say that these woordes This is my body This is my bloud compell vs to beleue vnder payne of damnation that the bread and wyne are chaunged into the very body and bloud of Christ really As the water at Cana Galilee was turned into very wyne The second part sayth we be not bound to beleue that bread and wyne are chaunged but onely that his body and bloud are there presently The thyrd say we be bound by these woordes onely to beleue that Christes body was broken and hys bloudshed for the remissiō of our sinnes and that there is no other satisfaction for sinne then the death and passion of Christ The first say these woordes This is my body This is my bloud compell vs to beleue that thynges there shewed are the very body and bloud of Christ really But bread and wyne say they cannot be Christes naturall body ther fore the bread and wyne are chaunged turned altered and transubstantiated into the very body bloud of Christ And they of this opinion haue busied them selues in seekyng subtilties and similitudes to proue how the very body and bloud might be there vnder the similitude of bread and wine onely the very bread and wyne beyng thus trāsubstantiated And these men haue ben so occupyed in slaying all that wil not captiue their wits to beleue them that they neuer taught nor vnderstode that the Sacrament is an absolution to all that therby beleue in the body bloud of Christ The second part graunt with the first that the wordes compel vs to beleue that the things shewed in the Sacrament are the very body and bloud of Christ But where the first say bread and wine cannot be the very body and bloud of Christ There they vary and dissent from them affirming that bread and wine may and also is Christes body really and very bloud of Christ and say that it is as true to say that bread is Christes body and that wyne is hys bloud as it is true to say Christ beyng a very mā is also very God And they say as the Godhead and manhode in Christ are in such maner coupled togegether that mā is very God and God very man Euen so the very body and the bread are so coupled that it is as true to say that bread is the body of Christ and the bloud so annexed there with the wyne that it is euen as true to say that the wyne is Christes bloud The first though they haue slayne so many in and for the defence of their opinion yet they are ready to receiue the second sort to fellowshyp not greatly striuyng with them or abhorryng the presence of bread and wyne with the very body and bloud so that they yee by that meanes may keepe hym there still and hope to sell hym as deare as before and also some to bye hym and not to minish the price The thyrd sort affirme that the wordes meane no more but onely that we beleue by the thyngs that are there shewed that Christes body was brokē and his bloud shed for our sinnes if we will forsake our sinnes turne to God to kepe his law And they say that these sayinges This is my body and This is my bloud shewyng bread wyne are true as Christ meant them and as the people of that countrey to whō Christ spake were accustomed to vnderstand such wordes and as the Scripture vseth in a thousand places to speake As when one of vs sayth I haue dronke a cup of good wyne that saying is true as the mā meant that he dranke wyne onely and not the cup whiche wordes happely in some other nations eares would sound that he dranke the cuppe And as when we say of a child This is such a mans very face the wordes are true as the maner of our land is to vnderstand them that the face of the one is very like the other And as whē we say he gaue me his fayth and hys truth in my hand the wordes are true as we vnderstand them that he stroke handes with me or gaue earnest in signe or token that he would byde by his promise For the fayth of a mā doth alway rest in his soule and cannot be giuen out though we giues signes and tokens of them Euen so say they we haue a thousād examples in the Scripture where signes are named with names of thynges signified by them As Iacob called the place where hee saw the Lord face to face Phenyell that is Gods face when he saw the Lord face to face Now it is true to say of that field that it is Gods face though it be not his very face The same field was so called to signifie that Iacob there saw God face to face The chief hold and principall ancre that the two first haue is these words This is my body This is my bloud Vnto these the third aunswereth as is aboue sayd other textes they alledge for them selues whiche not onely do not strength their cause but rather make it worse As in y e sixt of Iohn which they draw and wrest to the carnall and flesh ly eating of Christes body in y e mouth when it onely meaneth of this eatyng by fayth For when Christ sayd except ye eate the flesh of the sonne of mā and drinke hys bloud ye haue no lyfe in you This cannot be vnderstanded of the Sacrament For Abraham had life and all the old holy fathers Christes mother Elizabeth Zacharias Iohn Baptist Symeon Anna and all the Apostles had lyfe already by fayth in Christ Of which not one had eatē hys flesh and dronke his bloud with theyr bodily mouthes But truth it is that the righteous liueth by his fayth Ergo to beleue and trust in Christes bloud is the eatyng that there was meant as the texte well proueth if they say we graunt that life commeth by faith but we all that beleue must be Baptised to keepe the law and to keepe the couenaunt in mynde Euen so all that lyueth by fayth must receiue the Sacrament I aunswere The Sacrament is a confirmation to weake consciences and in no wise to be despised howbeit many haue lyued by fayth in the wildernes whiche in 20. 30.
and glory that we owe to God Therfore it foloweth in the same texte vnto hym that worketh not but beleueth in him that iustifieth the wicked is his faith imputed for righteousnes Now if our saluatioÌ„ come of fayth and not through our workes desertes then is Purgatory shut out of doore quite vanisheth away Christ sayth So hath God loued the world that hee would geue hys onely sonne that all whiche beleue in him should not perishe but that they should haue euerlasting life Iohn iij. TheÌ„ what néedeth Purgatory Thou wilt peraduenture say it is true they shall haue euerlastyng lyfe but they must first go through Purgatory I aunswere nay verely But Christ affirmeth and that with an oth that he which heareth his word and beleueth his father which sent him hath euerlastyng life Yea and that he is gone already from death vnto life Iohn v. wilt thou now say that hee shall into Purgatory forsooth if that were true and the fire also so hote as our Prelates affirme then went he not from death vnto lyfe but rather froÌ„ a small death vnto a greater death The Prophet sayth precious is in the sight of the Lord the death of his Saintes Psal C. xvi And S. Iohn sayth blessed are the dead whiche dye in the Lord. Apocal. 14. but surely if they shoulde goe into the paynefull Purgatory there to be tormented of fendes theÌ„ were they not blessed but rather wretched God sayth by Moses Exod. 33. I will shewe mercy to whom I shewe mercy and will haue compassion on whom I haue compassioÌ„ Now if our saluation be of mercy and compassioÌ„ then caÌ„ there be no such Purgatory For y t nature of mercy is to forgeue but Purgatory will haue all payde satisfied so that they twayne bee desperate and can in no wise agrée And looke how many textes in Scripture commende Gods mercy euen so many deny this paynefull Purgatory The Prophet sayth hee hath not dealt with vs after our sinnes neither hath rewarded vs accordyng to our iniquities but looke how high heauens are aboue the earth eueÌ„ so high hath he made his mercy to preuayle ouer them that worshyppe him And looke how farre the East is from the Weast euen so farre hath he set our sinnes from vs. Psal Citj And before in the same Psalme y e Prophet exhorteth his soule to prayse the Lord saying Prayse the Lord O my soule whiche forgeueth thée all thyne iniquities and healeth all thy diseases Now if this be true that he ordereth vs not accordyng to our sinnes but powreth his mercy so plenteously vppon vs if also he forgeue vs all our iniquities why should there be any such Purgatory to purge and tormeÌ„t the sely soules specially sith all was for geuen them before Wilt thou not call him a shrewed creditour whiche after he hath fréely forgeueÌ„ his debtour will yet cast him in prison for the same debt I thinke euery man would say on this maner â–ª It was in his own pleasure whether hee would forgeue it or not and then of fauour and compassion he forgaue it But now he hath forgeuen it hee doth vnrighteously to punish his debtour for it And albeit man repente his forgeuyng and afterward sue for his debt yet God can neuer repeÌ„t him selfe of his mercyable gifts Roma xi And therefore will he neuer torment vs for our trespasses no nor yet once remember them Ezech. xviij Heb. x. Sith God forgeueth the greater offences why shal he not also forgeue y t lesse He forgaue fréely much greater offeÌ„ces vnto the Publicane which knowleged him selfe to bee a sinner Luke xviij then those be for whiche men fayne that we must be tormeÌ„ted in Purgatory For there is no soule as they graunt them selues that suffreth in purgatory for great crimes mortal sinnes But onely for litle pretie pecca duliaÌ„s if a maÌ„ may be bold to vse M. Mores word and for venial sinnes Dis xxv Cap. qualis He forgaue much greater enormities vnto the théefe to whom hee sayd this day shalt thou be with me not in Purgatory but in Paradise Luke 23. He forgaue much greater to Marie Magdalene Luke vij Is his hand now shortned Is not his power as great as it was Is he not as mercyfull as euer he was why leaue we y t cisterne of liuyng water and digge vs pittes of our owne which can hold no pure water Iere. â—j why forsake we Christ which hath wholly purged vs séeke an other Purgatory of our own imaginatioÌ„ If thou beleue that Christes bloud is sufficient to purge thy sinne why sekest thou an other purgatory S. Paul sayth I desire to be losed from this body and to be with Christ Phil. i. Verely if hee had thought to haue gone thorough Purgatory hee would not haue bene so hasty For there shoulde hee haue had an hote broth and an hartlesse and so might he rather haue desired long to haue liued And therefore I suppose that he knew nothyng of Purgatory but that he rather thought as y e truth is that death should finish all his euils and so rowes and geue hym rest in losing hym from his rebbellious members whiche were solde and captiue vnder sinne All ChristeÌ„ meÌ„ should desire death as Paule doth Phil. 1. not because of their crosse and trouble whiche they suffer in this present worlde for then they sought theÌ„ selues and their own profite and not the glory of God But if we will well desire death we must first consider howe sore sinne displeaseth God our father then our owne nature and frailtie and our members so bounde vnder sinne that we caÌ„ not doe nor yet thinke a good thought of our selues 2. Cor. 3. Then shall we finde occasion to lament our lyfe not for the troubles that we suffer in it but because we be so prone vnto sinne and so continually displease God our father What desireth he that would loÌ„g lyue but dayly to heape sinne vppon sinne And therefore should we haue a will to dye bycause y t in death our sinne is finished and theÌ„ shall we no more displease God our father Now if we should fayne a Purgatory it were not possible to imagine a greater obstacle to make vs feare flye from death For sith euery man must knowledge him self a sinner 1. Iohn 1. And not beleue that Christes death were sufficieÌ„t but that he must also go to Purgatory who should depart this world with a quiet mynde The wiseman sayth The soules of the righteous are in the hande of God They séemed to dye in the eyes of the foolish their end was thought to be payne and afflictioÌ„ but they are in peace Sapi. 3. There is no maÌ„ but he must néedes graunt me that euery faythfull is righteous in the sight of God as it
preached Ergo the workes of y t new lawe doth not iustifie of necessitie The anticedent I proue thus Abraham Isaac Iacob and Iohn Baptist and all the holy prophetes were perfectly iustified afore any new workes as you take new workes were spoken of Ergo men were sufficiently iustified alonely by fayth If Saint Paules argument conclude so must mine also Wherefore say what you can Here standeth holy S. Paule stifly and strongly for mée and against you and sayth That we bée fréely and alonely iustified by fayth without all maner of works But let vs sée what S. Ambrose sayth to this text They are iustified fréely for they doing nothing nor nothing deseruing alonely by fayth are iustified by the gift of God c. Here you not y e men working nothing at all nor nothing deseruyng are iustified by fayth onely yea and fréely you were wonte to cry for Sola sola sola onely onely onely Here haue you him and to helpe him you haue also gratis that is to saye fréely and also dono Dei that is to say the gyft of God and Nihill operantes that is as much as working nothing at all If these words doe not exclude workes and alowe fayth onely I can not tell what words will doe it graūt these wordes and I will bée content I will also bring you Origyne on this same text whose words bée these Paule sayth that the iustification of fayth is alonely sufficient So that if a man doe beléeue onely hée is iustified though there bée no workes done of hym at all By fayth was the théefe iustified without the workes of the lawe For our Lorde did not aske him what hée had done nor did looke for any workes of him but did accepte him all onely for cōfessing of Christ It foloweth Wherfore a man is iustied by fayth Vnto whom as concerning iustification the workes of y e law helpe nothing c. What say you to Origine that sayth how men bée iustified though they doe no good workes at all for workes doe help nothing to iustification but fayth onelye Bée not these plaine words Graunt these wordes and we will aske no more of you Here haue you also Sola sola sola So y e you néede not cry no more for Sola Also Origine bringeth an opē example of the théefe that no man can deny Who can haue lesse good works then a théefe which is neither good before God nor man So y t all y e worlde may sée that this is no new opinion séeing that the scripture and also holy doctours doth teach it Also S. Paule in the 9. chapter bringeth in the Gentyle which knoweth nothing of God nor hath done any good works but cōtrary blasphemed God his name hath alwayes lyued in Idolatrye and béene an vtter enemy vnto al goodnes Hée bringeth in also the Iewe full of good workes of the law which hath also great zeale vnto God and to his workes yea of that Paule beareth hym witnes Briefelye hée bringeth in for him such a Iewe that no man can complaine of but is full of good workes Yea take all the best of the Iewes togither for it were madnes of Paule to speake of the damnable Iewes that were open wretches damned by the iudgment of the lawe with all their good workes and yet S. Paule doth exclude them repelleth them clearely from iustifycation with all their good zeale and with all their good workes and concludeth with playne wordes that the gentyl which is full of damnable wordes and had neither zeale nor loue vnto goodnes is iustified by fayth onely These bée S. Paules wordes we say that the Gentils which folowed not righteousnes haue obtayned righteousnes I meane y e righteousnes which cōmeth of faith But I sraell which foloweth the lawe of righteousnes could not attayne vnto righteousnes Wherefore Because hée sought it not by fayth but as it were by the workes of the lawe Bée not these playne wordes That the Gentiles which folowed no righteousnes nor had any minde therunto are iustified fréely by fayth Is not here Sola fides only fayth Moreouer the Iew is reprooued with all zeale with all his loue with all his studye and with all his good workes Is not this a merueylous thing yes verely And so merueilous that you shall neuer vnderstand it without you beléeue But peraduenture here shall bée sayd that the good woorks of the Iewes dyd not profite thē because they had no faith But if they had had faith then would they haue holpen to their iustificatiō To this I make answere Trouth it is good workes did not profyte the Iewes for lacke of fayth But this is false That workes should haue holpen to iustification if they had had fayth For S. Paule proueth clerely that good workes helpe nothynge to iustification nor euell workes let not the iustification y t commeth by fayth And this hée proued by the example of the Gentyll which had no good workes but all damnable workes yet is iustified by fayth Moreouer the Iewe had y t zeale of God and all manner of good workes w t all things that the world cā deuise yea also S. Paule speaketh of the Iewes y t were Christened all this could not helpe Wherfore no maner of works whether they bée in fayth or out of faith can helpe to iustifye Neuerthelesse workes hath their glory and reward But the glory and prayse of iustificacion belongeth to Christ onely Also S. Paule proueth playnely in these wordes that workes haue no place in iustification To him that worketh is the rewarde not geuen of fauour but of duetye To hym that worketh not but beleueth on hym that iustifieth the wicked man is fayth coūted for righteousnes How thinke you by these wordes bée they not opēly agaynst all workes Sayth hée not y t iustification is imputed vnto him y t worketh not but alonly beléeueth in hym y e iustifieth y e wicked mā I pray you what good works doth the wicked mā Marke also how hée sayth that righteousnes is imputed vnto him Ergo it is not deserued For that that is deserued is not imputed of fauour but it must bée geuen of duety How thinke you Is not this Sola fides onely fayth You know that there bée but workes and fayth that doe iustifie And S. Paule excludeth workes clearely Ergo fayth alone remaineth But peraduenture you will say y e workes with fayth doe iustifie Neuerthelesse of méekenes and lowlynes auoyding of all boast of goodnes you wil geue all y t glory to fayth as vnto y t principal thyng without the which no workes can helpe Notwithstāding workes bée good and helpe to iustification thoughe of méekenes you will not know it Is not this damnable hipocrisie yea and that with God which were intollerable if it were with men But how cā you proue by Scripture that workes are worthy of any glorye of
iustification Is not this open lyeng on fayth to geue all to him yet as you say hée is not worthy of all for workes bée worthy of parte If fayth bée not worthy alone confesse it openly and gene workes his prayse and faith her prayse say not one thyng with your mouth and thinke an other in your hart For God searcheth the priuities of hartes Who hath required of you such a méekenes But I praye you how can workes helpe to iustification lesse or more when they bée neyther done nor yet thought of Who is iustified but a wicked mā which thinketh nothing of good works But these méeke lyes deserue none aunswere Wherefore let vs heare what holy Doctours say on this texte To hym that worketh not c. Saint Ambrose sayth on this maner It was so decréed of God that after y e lawe the grace of God should require vnto saluation alonely fayth Which thyng hée prooueth by the example of the prophet saying Blessed is that man to whom God doth impute iustification without workes Hée sayth that they bée blessed of whom God hath determined without labour without all maner of obseruation alonely by faith that they shal bée iustified before God Blessed are they whose sinnes bée forgeuē Clearly they are blessed vnto whom without labour or without any worke their iniquitios be remitted and their sinnes bée couered and no maner of workes required of them but alonely that they should beleeue c. Bée not these wordes playne God hath decréed that hée shall require nothyng to iustification but fayth And hée is blessed to whom God imputeth iustification without all manner of works without all maner of obseruations Also their sinnes bée couered no maner of works of penaūcered of them but alonely to beléeue Here haue you Sola fides and Tantum fides and here can you not say that S. Ambrose speaketh alonely of workes of the law but of all maner of works of all maner of obseruations yea and also of penaunce Peraduēture it will bee sayd as a great doctour sayd once to me that S. Ambrose dyd vnderstād it of young children that were newly baptised them their fayth should saue alonely without workes How thinke you is not this a likely aunswere for a great Doctour of Diuinitie for a great Duns man for so great a preacher Are not S. Paule and S. Ambrose wel auoyded and clerkely But I made him this aunswere that this Epistle was written of S. Paule to the Romanes which were men and not children and also the wordes of Scripture speake of the man and not of the childe And S. Ambrose sayth blessed is that man But at this aunswere hée was not a litle moued and sware by the blessed God let Ambrose Augustine say what they will hée would neuer beléeue but that workes dyd helpe to iustificatiō This was a Lordly word of a Prelate of a pyller of Christes Churche But what medlyng is with such mad men But yet peraduenture you will say how that I take a péece of the Doctour as much as maketh for my purpose Notwithstandyng hée sayth otherwise in an other place which I doe not bryng What is that to me yet is not my Doctour thus auoyded For you cā not deny but this is his saying and vppon this place of Scripture and this doth agrée with Scripture or els hée doth expounde Scripture euill Wherfore you must aunswere to the saying of the Doctour in this place for this is the place that is layd agaynst you and this is y e place whereby other places must bée expounded And if you dare deny him in this place then will I deny him in all other places by that same authoritie then bée the holy doctours clearely gone Neuertheles holy Scripture standeth openly agaynst you which if you deny then haue I a cause to suspect you Wherefore take héede what you doe But yet peraduenture will ye say that I vnderstand not S. Ambrose nor holy Doctours as my Lord of Rochester sayd howe I vnderstode not Tertullian hée had none other euasion to saue his honour with But this is not inough so to say but you must proue it other mē must iudge it betwéene you and me Here haue I translated a great many of their sayinges into English let other men iudge whether I vnderstand them or not Go ye to the Latin and let vs sée what other sense you cā take out But my Lordes remember that our God is alyue whose cause we defende afore whom I dare well say you are already confounded in your conscience wherfore doubt you not but that terrible vengeaunce han geth ouer you if you repēt not which whē it cōmeth cōmeth sharpely How are ye able to defend a thing that you cā not proue opēly by holy scripture Say what you will your conscience will murmour and grudge and will neuer bée satisfied with mēs dreames nor yet with tyranny Thinke you that your lawes and your inuentiōs can bée a sufficient rule for Christen men to liue by and to saue their conscience therby Thinke you that your cause is sufficiently proued when you haue compelled poore men by violēce to graūt it Then may we destroy all Scriptures and receiue alonely your tyranny But my Lordes this matter is not righted by your iudgemēt but by our master Christ and his blessed worde afore whose strayte iudgement you shall bée iudged and that straytly For when all your grace all your honour all your dignitie all your pompe and pride briefly all that your hartes doe nowe reioyse in shall lye in the dust then shall you bée called to a strayte rekening It is no light game nor no childes playe Marke it well for it lieth on your necke But what nedeth me to loose many wordes for if you be halfe so full of grace as you say you bée of good workes then will you recken it better then I can moue you But againe to our purpose S. Paule proueth the iustification of faith onely in these wordes No man is iustified by the workes of the law but by the faith of Iesus Christ and we doe beléeue in Iesus Christ that we may bée iustified by the fayth of Christ not by the workes of the law Marke how hée sayth that no man is iustified by the workes of the law no not S. Peter Howe thinke you doth not S. Paule exclude workes bringeth in alonely faith yea and that the workes of the law whiche were the best workes in the world and hée beleeueth to bée iustified onely by the fayth of Iesus Christ and not by workes and that proueth hée in these wordes of the Prophet A righteous man lyueth by fayth Here you not how a righteous man liueth by faith What call you liuing by fayth If hée liue any part by workes then lyueth hée not by fayth but partly by workes Thē is S. Paules probation vnperfite But let vs sée how your Doctours doe
more then it helpeth the deuill So that this thing of S. Iames maketh nothing agaynst mée but rather wyth mée Also you haue an other Scripture for you which is this Before God they are not iustified which heare the lawe but they which doe the law shalbée iustified Of this texte you glory cry opera opera workes workes But if yee would consider the mynde of S. Paule you should well perceaue that hée meaneth not how workes might deserue iustification for then coulde hée not haue concluded thys agaynste the Iewes for they did the workes of the lawe to the vttermost and yet were they not iustified Wherefore S. Paule meaneth by the hearers of the lawe all them that doe the outwarde workes of the lawe for feare or for rewarde or of hypocrisie or els by them to bée iustified The doers caulleth hée them that doe the workes of the lawe after the intent of y e lawe and as the lawe commaundeth them that is in the true fayth of Christ Iesus which is the very ende of y e lawe and the fulfilling of the law as Saint Paule sayth to all them that beléeue Wherefore all men bée but hearers onely of the lawe till the tyme that that they haue the fayth of Christ Iesus which is imputed vnto them for iustice And the workes of the lawe bée no cause of iustification but alonely an outward testimonie and witnes that the lawe is fulfilled inwardly in their conscience afore God and fulfilled that it hath no accusation against them for Christ hath made satisfactiō for them of the which they bée partakers by their fayth And so the lawe must bée content to admitte all these men to bée fulfillers doers of y e law And now that you shall not say that this is my dreame here bée S. Augustines wordes The doers of the lawe shall bée iustified So must it bée vnderstāded that wée may know that they cā none otherwise bée the doers of the lawe excepte they bée first iustified not that iustification belongeth vnto doers but that iustification doth precéede all maner of doinges c. Heare you not that iustificatiō is first geuen that men might bée able to doe the workes of the lawe This is also the exposition of your glose I haue meruayle you studie it no better Also you haue an other Scripture and that is this Cornelius a Gētile did great almes and prayd vnto God alwayes Vnto whome the Aungell spake on this maner Thy prayer thy almes are come vp into remembraunce in the presence of God Of this texte you gather that hys good workes did helpe to iustifie hym I aunswere The holy ghost hath opēly declared hymselfe there For hée sayth that this Cornelius was a deuoute man and one that feared God How coulde this bée without y e God had taught hym inwardely by fayth Yea how coulde hée know God and that deuoutly but by fayth Ergo hée was iustified afore God by his fayth but y e world knew not his iustificatiō And therfore y t holy ghost doth declare hys inward iustificatiō whē hée saith that hée was deuoute feared God And also doth shew openly the fruits of his iustification when hée sayth that hée did almes Moreouer you haue there that the holy Ghost fell on them afore they were baptised in water the which declareth openly that they were iustified afore God This is well declared also in your owne lawe whose wordes bée these Cornelius Cēturio being yet a Heathē mā was made cleane by y e gifte of the holy ghost Here haue you playnely y t hée was iustified by y t gifte of y t holy ghost afore all good works For hée was an heathē mā An other scripture yée haue which is this If I haue all faith so y t I may trāspose moūtaines and haue no charitie I am nothyng Of this gather you that fayth wythout charitie can not iustifie I aunswere This can you not gather of S. Paule for it is open that hée speaketh not of this thyng whereby that men may bée iustified but alonely hée teacheth how they that bée iustified must worke with charitie It is also plaine that hée speaketh not of fayth that doth iustifie inwardly but of that faith that doth worke outwardely The which is caulled a gifte of the holy Ghost As y t gifte of tounges the gift of prophesies the gifte of healing the gifte of interpretation as it is opē in the chapiter afore Now is this fayth not geuen to iustifie but alonely to doe myracles wonders and signes by And therefore sayth Paule If I had all fayth so that I coulde moue mountaynes Also it is open that certayne men shall say vnto Christ Beholde wée haue done myracles and cast out deuils in thy name And yet hée shall say to them truely I know you not So that this fayth is a gifte of God that iustifieth not no more then the gifte of science or prophesies And sometyme is it in the Church and sometyme not and it is neuer of necessitie there to bée But the faith that wée speake of which doth béeleeue the promises of God and sticketh fast to the bloud of Christ hath none other vertue but to iustifie and must néedes iustifie wheresoeuer hée is and hée sticketh so fast to Gods worde that hée looketh for no myracles Thys fayth is neuer out of the Church for it is the lyfe of the Church and it is that fayth that our mayster Christe prayde for that it myght neuer fayle And therefore S. Paule when he describeth this fayth hée caulleth it a fayth that worketh by charitie not that it iustifieth by charitie For as he sayth there playnely it is neyther circumcision nor yet vncircumcision that is of any valure in Christ Iesu but fayth Here doth hée playnely exclude from iustification the hyghest worke of the lawe circumcision and setteth fayth alone not the gyfte of fayth that doth myracles but the gift of fayth that worketh by charitie And that yée shall not thinke thys to bée a dreame here bryng I you Athanasius sayinge whose wordes bée these There are two maner of saythes one is iustifieng as that of the which is spoken Thy fayth hath saued thée An other is cauled the gyft of God whereby myracles bée done Of the which it is written if you haue fayth as a grayne of mustard séede c. So that here haue you playne that fayth doth iustifie onelye and perfectly before all maner of works that is fayth is geuē of God fréely into our soules vnto the which fayth iustification is all onely promised and is all onely imputed and rekened of God Neuertheles this fayth in tyme and place conuenient is of that strength that hée must néedes worke by charitye not for to bée iustified thereby for if he were not afore iustified it were not possible that hée coulde haue charitie For after your owne schoole men an Infidell cā not
haue charitie but y e iustified mā hée is a frée seruaunt vnto God for the loue y e hée hath vnto him The which loue séeketh not in God his owne profit nor his owne aduaūtage for then were hée wicked but séeketh alonely the wyll of God and the profite of other men and worketh neyther for loue of heauen nor yet for feare of hell For hée knoweth well that heauen wyth all the ioyes thereof is prepared from the begynnyng of the world not by hym but by hys father And it must néedes folow as contrariwyse the Infidell and the wicked man doth not worke hys wicked déedes because hée woulde haue hell or euerlasting dampnation to hys rewarde but hée woulde rather the contrary Notwithstandyng hell and euerlasting dampnation must néedes follow his wicked déedes Finally a righteous man is a frée seruaunt of Gods and worketh not as an hyerelyng For if it were possible that there were no heauen yet woulde hée doe no lesse good for his respecte is to the maker of the worlde and the Lord of all rewardes There is also an other argument and that is thys Fayth is a worke but workes doth not iustifie Ergo fayth doth not iustifie Aunswere Truth it is that we doe not meane how that fayth for his owne dignitie and for hys owne perfection doth iustifie vs. But the Scripture doth say that fayth alonely iustifieth because that it is that thyng alonely whereby I doe hange of Christe And by my faith alonely am I partaker of y e merites and mercy purchased by Christes bloude and fayth it is alonely that receaue the promyses made in Christ Wherefore wée say with blessed S. Paule that fayth onely iustifieth imputatiue that is all y e merites and goodnes grace and fauour and all that is in Christ to our saluation is imputed and reckoned vnto vs because wée hange and beléeue of hym and hée can deceaue no man that doth beléeue in hym And our iustice is not as the schoole men teacheth a formal iustice which is by fulfillyng of the lawe deserued of vs for then our iustification were not of grace and of mercy but of deseruing and of duty But it is a iustice that is reckened imputed vnto vs for y e fayth in Christ Iesus and it is not of our deseruyng but clearely and fully of mercy imputed vnto vs. Now most honorable gracious Prince I haue declared vnto your highnes what faith it is that doth iustifie vs before God and also brought for my sentēce not alonely the blessed word of God the which were sufficient in this cause but the exposition of holy Doctours that your grace might sée that I am not moued to this opinion of a light cause nor that this doctrine of myne is so new as men hath noted it Moreouer I haue declared vnto your grace how that I woulde haue good workes done would not haue a Christen mans life to bée an idle thyng or els a life of vncleannes but I would haue them to bée chaunged into all vertue and goodnes and to liue in good workes after the commaundement will of God So that your grace may well perceiue that myne aduersaries hath not reported truely on me when they haue sayd how that I would that men should neither fast nor pray nor geue almes nor yet bée penitent for their sinnes I haue neuer sayd it nor yet taught no lyke sentence I take God to recorde my workes and my déedes and all my writynges that euer I wrote or made Wherfore I doubt not if it please your grace graciously to here me but that I wil proue them vntrue in this cause many other mo This doth almighty God know to bée true Who euer preserue your moste royall maiestie in honour and goodnes Amen What the Church is and who bee therof and whereby men may know her THe name of the holy church haue those mē of long tyme vsurped presumptuouslye and w t out all shame they were the greatest enemyes that holy church could haue in earth For they did no more agrée w t the maners of holy church then darknes and light then God and y t deuyll For where holy church hard no man but Christ onely They would heare all manner of men sauing Christ and neuer heare him except it weare to to their profit or glory Where as holy church was ruled in this world they would rule all the world where as holy church would bée holy by Christ onely they would bée holy by their owne helpe And where as holy church was allwayes despised and persecuted of the world They would bée honored of y t world and persecuters of all men And where as holy church was inwardly decked with spiritual vertues they would bée outwardly shinyng in spirituall araye And where as holy church would bée chaste in spryte they would with their mouthes vow chastite and spend all their liues in whore dome And where as holy church dyd allwayes shew méekenes in the worlde they would bée so proude y t hart could deuise no more Breifely whatsoeuer thing y e was agreable with the church of that had they neuer a crumme but allonely by violence vsurped the name of holy church So that if a man had had a crowne or a long goune and a white smock ouer his gowne thē was there no remedy but hée must nedes bée of the church yea and holy church her self So y e if a Barber had made a Bul a crowne a Taylor Iack napes a lōg gowne brought an Asse forth in a white rochet thē no mā might dout but y e there were holy church euerye man must fall downe to receyue clene remission a poena and a oulpa toties quoties for there came the successours of Peter Paule and they that haue the despensatiō of Christes bloud and the merites of holy saints and y e suffrages of holy church to distribute and the key bearers of heauē and hell Who can denye but this is truth It is to opē to néede an probation for wee sée it dayly before our eyes So that if a man will compare our M Christ y t is y e very head of holy church vnto these Prelates that call them selues his viccars hée shall finde but smale agréement betwéene the person and the vicar and hée that will consider S. Peter and S. Paule withall other Apostels shall think that eyther they were none of holy Church or els our prelals for they agrée in nothing Yea hée may reckē that S. Peter S. Paule were starke fooles ryght mad men that liued so despectuous a lyfe What néede me to make many wordes or to tell their names that I speake of There is no doubt but that galde horse will béewray hym selfe But shortly if the deuyll would come in his owne person disguised tell me how it were impossible that hée could bée more contrary to Christ and hys apostels
his daughter is rauished his wife is defiled and that of his owne sonne Rahell dyeth Ioseph is taken away yea as he supposed rent of wild beastes And yet how glorious was his ende Note the weakenesse of his children yea and the sinne of them and how God thorow their owne wickednes saued them These examples teache vs that a man is not at once perfect the first day he begynneth to liue well They that be strong therefore must suffer with the weake helpe thē in vnity and peace one with an other vntill they be stronger Note what the brethren sayd when they were tached in Egypt we haue verely sinned sayd they agaynst our brother in that we saw the anguish of his soule when hee besought vs and would not heare him and therfore is this tribulation come vppon vs. By which example thou seest how that cōscience of euill doynges findeth men out at last But namely in tribulation and aduersitie there temptatiō and also desperatiō yea and the very paynes of hell finde vs out there there y t soule feeleth the fierce wrath of GOD and wisheth moūtaines to fall on her and to hyde her if it were possible from the angry face of God Marke also how great euils folow of howe litle an occasion Dina goeth but forth alone to see the daughters of the countrey and how great mischief and trouble foloweth Iacob loued but one sonne more then an other and howe greuous murther folowed in their hartes These are examples for our learnyng to teache vs to walke warely and circumspectly in y t world of weake people that we geue no man occasions of euill Finally see what GOD promised Ioseph in his dreames These promises accompanyed him alwayes and went downe with hym euen into the depe dongeon And brought hym vp agayne And neuer forsoke hym till all y t was promised was fulfilled These are examples writtē for our learnyng as Paule saith to teach vs to trust in God in the strōg fire of tribulation purgatory of our fleshe And that they whiche submitte them selues to folow GOD should note and marke such thynges for learnyng and comfort is the frute of the scripture cause why it was written And with such a purpose to read it is the way to euerlasting life and to those ioysul blessings that are promised vnto all nations in the seede of Abraham whiche seede is Iesus Christ our Lord to whom be honour and prayse for euer and vnto God our father thorow him Amen A Table expoundyng certayne wordes in the first booke of Moses called Genesis ABrech tender father or as some will how the knee Arke a shyppe made flat as it were a chest or cofer Bisse fine white whether it be silke or lynen Blesse Gods blessings are his gifts as in the first Chapter he blessed them saying grow and multiply and haue dominion c. And in the ix Chapter he blessed Noe and his sonnes and gaue them dominion ouer all beastes and authoritie to eat them And God blessed Abraham with cattell and other riches And Iacob desired Esau to receaue the blessing whiche he brought hym that is the present and gift God blessed y t vij day that is gaue it a preheminēce that men should rest therin from bodily labour and learne to know the wil of God his lawes and how to worke their workes godly all the weeke after God also blesseth all nations in Abrahams sede that is he turneth hys loue fauour vnto them and geueth them his spirite and knowledge of the true way and lust and power to walke therin and all for Christes sake Abrahams sonne Cain so is it writtē in Hebrue Notwithstandyng whether we call hym Cain or Caim it maketh no matter so we vnderstand the meanyng Euery land hath his maner that we cal Iohn the Welshmen call Euan the Dutch Haunce Such difference is betwene y t Ebrue Greke and Latine and that maketh them that translate out of the Ebrue varie in names from them that translate out of Latine or Greke Curse Gods curse is the takyng away of his benefites as God cursed y t earth and made it barren So now hunger dearth warre pestilence and such like are yet right curses signes of the wrath of God vnto the vnbeleuers but vnto thē that know Christ they are very blessings and that wholsome crosse and true purgatory of our flesh through which all must goe that will liue godly and be saued as thou readest Math. 5. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for righteousnes sake c And Hebr. 11. The lord chastiseth whom he loueth and scourgeth all the children that he receaueth Eden pleasure Firmament the sky Fayth is the beleuyng of Gods promises and a sure trust in the goodnes and truth of God which fayth iustified Abrah Gen. 15. and was the mother of all his good workes whiche he afterafterward did for faith is the goodnes of all works in the sight of god Good workes are things of gods commaundement wrought in fayth And to sow a shoe at the commaundemēt of God to doe thy neighboure seruice withall with fayth to be saued by Christe as God promiseth vs is much better thē to build an abbey of thine owne imagination trusting to bee saued by the fained workes of hipocrites Iacob robbed Laban hys vncle Moses robbed the Egiptians And Abraham is aboute to slay and burne his own sonne and all are holye workes because they are wrought in fayth at Gods commaundement To steale robbe and murder are no holye workes before worldly people but vnto them that haue their trust in God they are holy when God commaundeth them What God commaundeth not getteth no rewarde with god Holy workes of mens imaginations receaue their rewarde here as Christ testisieth Math. 6. Howbeit of fayth and workes I haue spoken aboundantly in Mammon Let him that desireth more seeke there Grace fauour as Noe founde grace that is to say found fauour and loue Ham and Cam all one Iehouah is gods name neither is any creature so called and it is as much to say as one that is of himselfe and dependeth of nothing Moreouer as ofte as thou seest LORDE in greate letters except there be any error in the printing it is in Hebrue Iehouah thou that art or he that is Marshall in Hebrue he is called Sartabaim as thou wouldest say Lorde of the slaughter men And thoughe that Tabaim be taken for cookes in manye places for the cookes did slaye the beastes themselues in those days yet it may be taken for them that put men to execution also and that I thought it should here best signify in as muche as he had the ouersight of the kynges prison and the kyngs prisoners were they neuer so greate men were vnder his custodie therfore I cal him chief Marshal an officer as it were y t Lieuetenaunt of the tower or maister of the Marshalsey Slyme was their morter chap. 11. and slyme
God would not haue the secrets of Christ generally known saue vnto a fewe familiare frendes which in that infaÌ„cy he made of mans wit to helpe the other babes yet as they had a generall promise that one of the seede of Abraham shoulde come and blesse them euen so they had a generall fayth that God woulde by the same man saue them thoughe they wist not by what meanes as the very apostles when it was oft tolde them yee they could neuer comprehende it till it was fulfilled in dede And beyond all this their sacrifices and ceremonies as far forth as the promises annexed vnto them extend so far forth they saued theÌ„ and iustified theÌ„ and stoode them in the same steade as our Sacramentes doe vs not by the power of the sacrifice or deede it selfe but by the vertue of the fayth in y e promise which the sacrifice or Ceremonye preached and whereof it was a token or signe For the ceremonies and sacrifices were left with them commauÌ„ded them to keepe the promise in remembraunce and to wake vp theyr fayth As it is not enough to send many on errandes and to tell them what they shall do but they must haue a remembraunce with them and it be but a ringe of a rushe aboute one of their fingers And as it is not inoughe to make a bargayne with wordes onely but we must put therto an othe geue earnest to confirme the fayth of y e person with whom it is made And in like manner if a man promise whatsoeuer trifle it be it is not beleued excepte he hold vp hys finger also suche is the weakenesse of the world And therfore Christe himselfe vsed ofttymes diuers ceremonies in curyng y e sicke to stirre vp their fayth with al. As for example it was not y e bloud of y e Lambe that saued theÌ„ in Egipt when y e angell smote the Egiptians but the mercy of God and hys truth wherof that bloud was a token and remembrance to stirre vp their faythes withall For though god make a promise yet it saueth none finally but them that long for it pray God with a strong fayth to fulfil it for hys mercy and truth only and knowledge their vnworthinesse And euen so our sacramentes if they be truly ministred preach Christ vnto vs lead our faithe vnto Christe by which faith our sinnes are done away and not by the deede or worke of the Sacrament For as it was impossible that y t bloud of calues should put away sinne euen so is it impossible that the water of the riuer should wash our hartes Neuerthelesse the sacramentes clense vs and absolue vs of our sinnes as the priests do in preaching of repentance fayth for whiche cause either other of them were ordayned but if they preach not whether it be the priest or the Sacrament so profite they not And if a man alledge Christ Iohn in the iij. Chapter saying Except a man be borne agayne of water and the holy Ghost hee can not see the kyngdome of GOD and will therfore that the holy ghost be present in the water and therfore the very deede or worke doth put away sinne then I will send hym vnto Paul which asketh his GalathiaÌ„s whether they receaued the holy ghost by the dede of the law or by preachyng of fayth and there concludeth that the holy ghost accoÌ„panyeth the preachyng of faith and with the word of faith entreth the hart and purgeth it whiche thou mayest also vnderstand by Saint Pauls saying Ye are borne a new out of the water through the worde So now if Baptisme preach me the washyng in Christes bloud so doth the holy ghost accompany it and that deede of preachyng throughe fayth doth put away my sinnes For the holy Ghost is no dome God nor no God that goeth a mummynge If a man say of the Sacrament of Christes body and bloud that it is a sacrifice as well for the dead as for the quicke and therfore the very dede it self iustifieth and putteth away sinne I aunswere that a sacrifice is the sleyng of the body of a beast or a man wherefore if it be a sacrifice then is Christes body there slayne and his bloud there shed but that is not so And therfore it is properly no sacrifice but a Sacrament and a memoriall of that euerlastyng sacrifice once for all which he offered vpon crosse now vppon a xv hundred yeares ago preacheth onely vnto them that are alyâ—e And as for them that be dead it is as profitable vnto them as is a caÌ„dle in a LaÌ„terne without light vnto them that walke by the way in darke night and as the Gospell song in Latine is vnto them that vnderstand none at all and as a Sermon preached to him that is dead and heareth it not It preacheth vnto them that are a lyue onely for they that bee dead if they dyed in the fayth whiche that Sacrament preacheth they bee safe and are past all ieopardy For when they were alyue their hartes loued the law of GOD and therfore sinned not and were sory that their members synned and euer moued to sinne and therfore thorough fayth it was forgeuen them And now their synnefull members be dead so that they can now sinne no more wherfore it is vnto them that bee dead neither Sacrament nor sacrifice But vnder the pretence of their soule health it is a seruauÌ„t vnto our spiritualties holy coueteousnesse and an extorcioner and a builder of Abbayes Colledges Chauntryes and Cathedral Churches with false gotten good a pickepurse a polar and a bottomlesse bagge Some man would happely say that the prayers of the Masse helpe much not the liuing onely but also the dead Of the hoate fire of their feruent prayer whiche consumeth faster then all the world is able to bring sacrifice I haue sayd sufficiently in other places How beit it is not possible to bryng me in belief that the prayer whiche helpeth her own master vnto no vertue shuld purchase me the forgeuenes of sinnes If I saw that their prayers had obtained them grace to lyue suche a lyfe as Gods word dyd not rebuke the could I soone be borne in hand that what so euer they asked GOD their prayers shuld not be in vayne But now what good caÌ„ he wish me in his prayers that enuieth Christe the fode and the lyfe of my soule What good can hee wishe me whose hart cleaueth a sonder for payne when I am taught to repent of my euill Furthermore because that fewe know the vse of the old TestameÌ„t and the most part thinke it nothyng necessarie but to make allegories whiche they fayne euery man after hys owne brayne at all wyld aduenture without any certaine rule therefore though I haue spoken of them in an other place yet lest the boke come not to all mens handes that shall read this I will speake of them
sent where hee heard that they begon to faynte to comforte courage strength them with the word of GOD and in that also that he sent Timothe Paules Disciple both vertuous well learned and had in great reuerence it is easy to see that he was a faythfull seruaunt of Christes and of the same doctrine that Timothe was of yea and Paule hym selfe was of and y ◠he was an Apostle or in the Apostles tyme or nere thereunto And seyng the Epistle agreeth to all the rest of the Scripture if it be indifferently looked on why should it not bee authoritie and taken for holy Scripture The Prologue vpon the Epistle of S. Iames by W. Tyndall THoughe this Epistle were refused in the old tyme and denyed of many to be the epistle of a very Apostle and though also it laye not the foundation of the fayth of Christe but speaketh of a general fayth in god neyther preacheth his death and resurrection either the mercy that is layde vp in store for vs in him or euerlasting couenant made vs in his bloud which is the office and duety of a very apostle as Christ sayeth Iohn 15. ye shall testifye of me yet because it setteth vp no mans doctrine but cryeth to keepe the law of God maketh loue which is without parcialitie the fulfillyng of the law as Christ and all the Apostles did and hath thereto many good and godly sentēces in it and hath also nothing that is agreable to the rest of the scripture if it be loked indifferētly on me thinketh it ought of rigt to be takē for holy scripture For as for that place for which happely it was at the beginnyng refused of holy men as it ought if it had meant as they toke it and for which place onely for the false vnderstandyng it hath bene chiefly receiued of the Papistes yet if the circumstances be well pondered it wyll appeare that the authors entent was farre otherwise then they toke for For where he saith in the 2. chapter fayth without deedes is dead in it self he meaneth none other thyng then all the scripture doth how that that fayth which hath no good dedes following is a false fayth and none of that fayth iustifieth or receyueth forgeuenesse of sins For God promised thē only forgeuenes of theyr sinnes onely whiche turne to GOD to keepe his lawes Wherfore they that purpose to cōtinue still in synne haue no part in that promise but deceyue themselues if they beleue that GOD hath forgeuen them their olde synnes for Christes sake And after when he sayth that a man is iustified by deedes and not of faith only he will no more then that faith doth not iustify euery where that nothyng iustifieth saue fayth For dedes also do iustify And as fayth only iustifieth before God so do dedes onely iustify before the world whereof is inough spoken partly in y t Prologue on Paul to the Romaynes and also in other places For as Paule affirmeth Rom. 2. that Abraham was not iustified by workes before God but by fayth only as Gen. beareth record so wil Iames that deedes onely iustified hym before the world and faith wrought with his deedes that is to say fāyth wherwith he was righteous before God in the hart did cause hym to worke the wyll of God outwardly whereby he was righteous before the worlde and whereby the worlde perceiued that he beleued in God loued and feared God And as Hebr. 11. y t scripture affirmeth that Raab was iustified before God through faith so doth Iames affirme that through workes by whiche she sheweth her fayth she was iustified before the world and it is true And as for the Epistle of Iudas though men haue and yet do doubt of the authour and thoughe it seeme also to be drawne out of the second Epistle of S. Peter and thereto alleageth scripture that is no where founde yet seyng the matter is so godly and agreeyng to holy Scripture I see not but that it ought to haue the authoritie of holy Scripture An exposition vpō certaine wordes and phrases of the new Testament INfernus and Gehenna differ much in significatiō though we haue none interpretatiō for either of thē thē this english word Hell for Gehenna signifieth a place of punishment but Infernus is taken for any maner of place beneth in the earth as a graue sepulchre or a caue Hell it is called in Hebrue the valley of Hennon a place by Ierusalem where they brent their children in fyre vnto the Idoll Moloch and is vsurped and taken now for a place where the wicked and vngodly shal be tormented both soule and body after the generall iudgement Geue roume to the wrath of God Rom. 12. Wrath is there taken for vēgeaunce and the meanyng is let God auenge either by himselfe or by the officers that beare hys roume There tary and abide till ye go out It is Marke the 6. chap. whersoeuer ye enter into an house there abide tyll ye go out thence And Luke 9. it is Into whatsoeuer house ye enter there tary and go not out thence that is to say whosoeuer receiueth you there abyde as long as you are in the citie or towne and go not shamefully a begging from house to house as Friers doe Dust shake of the dust of your feete Math. 10. Why are they commaunded to shake of the dust for a witnes sayth Luke that that deede may testifye against them in the day of iudgement that the doctrine of saluation was offred for them but they would not receyue thē ye see also that such iestures and ceremonies haue greater power with them thē haue bare wordes onely to moue the harte and to stirre vp fayth as do the laying on of handes annointyng with oyle c. Hipocrites can ye discerne the face of heauen and not discerne the signe of the tymes that is to say they could iudge by the signes of the skye what weather should follow but they could not know Christe by the signes of the Scripture and yet other signes might not be geuen them He that sayth he knoweth Christ kepeth not his commaundementes is a lyar To know Christ is to beleue in Christ Ergo he that keepeth not the commaundementes beleueth not in Christ ¶ The end of such Prologues of the old Testament and new Testament as were made by William Tyndall The parable of the wicked Mammon published in the yeare 1527. the 8. of May by William Tyndall ¶ That fayth the mother of all good workes iustifieth vs before we can bryng forth any good worke as the husband marieth his wyfe before he can haue any lawfull children by her Furthermore as the husbande marieth not hys wyfe that she shoulde continue vnfruitefull as before and as she was in the state of virginitie wherin it was impossible for her to beare fruite but contrariwise to make her fruitefull euen so fayth iustifieth vs not that is to say marieth vs
thee whatsoeuer thou art that readest this and note it well The Iewes loke for Christ and he is come xv hundred yeares agoe and they not ware we also haue loked for Antechrist and he hath raigned as long and we not ware and that because eyther of vs looked carnally for hym and not in the places where we ought to haue sought The Iewes had found Christ verily if they had sought hym in the lawe and the Prophetes whether Christ sendeth them to seke Iohn 5. We also had spied out Antechrist long ago if we had looked in the doctrine of Christ hys apostles where because y ◠beast seeth him selfe now to be sought for he roareth and seketh new holes to hyde hymselfe in chaungeth hymselfe into a thousand fashions with all maner wilinesse falshode suttletie craft Because that hys excommunications are come to lyght he maketh it treason vnto the kyng to bee acquaynted with Christe If Christe they may not raigne together one hope we haue that Christ shal liue euer The olde Antichristes brought Christ vnto Pilate saying by our lawe he ought to die and whē Pilate bade them iudge hym after their lawe they aunswered it is not lawfull for vs to kyll any man whiche they dyd to the intent that they whiche regarded not the shame of their false excōmunications should yet feare to confesse Christ because that the temporall sword had condemned hym They do all thing of a good zeale they say they loue you so well that they had rather burne you then y t you should haue fellowship w t Christ They are iealous ouer you amisse as sayth S. Paul Gal. iiij They would deuide you from Christe and his holy Testament and ioyne you to the Pope to beleue in his Testament and promises Some man will aske peraduenture why I take the labour to make this worke in as much as they will burne it seyng they burnt the Gospell I aunswere in burnyng the new Testament they dyd none other thyng then that I looked for no more shall they do if they burne me also if it be Gods will it shall so be Neuerthelesse in translatyng of the Testament I dyd my dutie and so doe I now and will doe as much more as God hath ordeined me to do And as I offered that to al men to correct it who soeuer could euen so do I this Who soeuer therfore readeth this compare it vnto the Scripture If Gods word beare recorde vnto it and thou also feelest in thine hart that it is so be of good comfort and geue God thankes If Gods word condemne it then hold it accursed and so doe all other doctrines As Paule counseleth his Galathians Beleue not euery sprite sodenly but iudge thē by the word of God whiche is the trial of all doctrine and lasteth for euer Amen The Parable of the wicked Mammon THere was a certain rich man whiche had a steward that was accused vnto hym that hee had wasted his goodes And called hym and sayd vnto him How is it that I heare this of thee Geue accoumptes of thy stewardshyp For thou mayst be no longer my steward The steward sayd with in him selfe What shall I do for my master will take away frō me my stewardshyp I can not digge and to begge I am ashamed I wote what to doe that when I am put out of my stewardshyp they may receaue me into theyr houses Then called he all his masters detters and sayd vnto the first how much owest thou vnto my master And he sayd an hūdred tonnes of oyle and hee sayd to hym take thy bill and sit downe quickely and write fiftie Then sayd he to an other what owest thou And he sayd an hundred quarters of wheate He sayd to hym Take thy bill and write foure score And the Lord commended the vniust steward because he had done wisely For the children of this world are in their kynde wiser then the children of light And I say also vnto you make you frendes of the wicked Mammon that when ye shall haue neede they may receaue you into euerlastyng habitations Luke xvi Chapter For as much as with this diuers such other textes many haue inforced to draw the people from the true faith from puttyng their trust in the truth of Gods promises and in the merites and deseruyng of his Christ our Lord and haue also brought it to passe for many false Prophetes shall arise and deceaue many and much wickednes must also be sayth Christ Math. xxiiij And Paul sayth ij Timo. iij. Euell mē and deceauers shall preuaile in euill while they deceaue and are deceaued them selues and haue taught them to put their trust in their owne merites and brought them in belefe that they shal be iustified in the sight of God by the goodnesse of their owne workes haue corrupt the pure word of God to confirme their Aristotle with all For though that y e Philosophers worldly wisemen were enemyes aboue all enemyes to the Gospell of God and though the worldly wisedome can not comprehend the wisedome of God as thou mayst see i. Corint j. and. ij And though worldly righteousnes can not be obedient vnto the righteousnes of God Rom. x Yet what so euer they read in Aristotle y t must be first true And to mainteine that they rent and teare the Scriptures with their distinctions and expounde them violently contrarie to the meanyng of the text and to the circumstaunces that go before and after and to a thousand cleare and euidente textes Wherfore I haue taken in hand to expounde this Gospell certaine other places of the new Testament and as far forth as God shall lende me grace to bryng the Scripture vnto the right sence and to digge agayne the welles of Abraham and to purge cleanse thē of the earth of worldly wisedome where with these Philistenes haue stopped them Whiche grace graunt me God for the loue that he hath vnto his sonne Iesus our Lord vnto the glory of his name Amen THat fayth onely before all workes and without all merites but christes onely iustifieth and setteth vs at peace with God is proued by Paul in the first chapiter to the Roma I am not ashamed sayth he of the Gospell that is to say of the glad tidinges and promises which God hath made and sworne to vs in Christ For it that is to say the gospell is the power of god vnto saluation to all that beleue And it followeth in the foresayd chapiter y ◠iust or righteous must liue by faith For in the fayth which we haue in Christ and in Gods promises fynde we mercy lyfe fauour and peace In the law we fynde death damnation wrath moreouer the curse and vengeaunce of GOD vpon vs. And it that is to say the lawe is called of Paule 2. Corin. 3. the ministration of death and damnation In the lawe we are
proued to be the enemyes of God and that we hate him For how can we be at peace with God and loue hym seing we are conceiued and borne vnder the power of the deuill and are his possession and kingdome his captiues and bondmen and ledde at his wyll he holdeth our hartes so that it is impossible for vs to consent to the wil of God much more is it impossible for a man to fulfill the lawe of his owne strength and power seyng that we are by birth and of nature the heires of eternall damnation As sayth Paul Ephe 2. We sayth he are by nature the children of wrath Whiche thyng the lawe doth but vtter onely and helpeth vs not yea requireth impossible thynges of vs. The lawe when it commaūdeth that thou shalt not lust geueth thee not power so to doe but damneth thee because thou caust not so do IF thou wilte therefore bee at peace with God and loue him thou must turne to the promises of God and to y t Gospell which is called of Paul in the place before rehearsed to the Corinthians the ministration of righteousnes and of the spirite For fayth bringeth pardō and forgeuenes freely purchased by Christes bloud and bringeth also the sprite the sprite looseth the bondes of the deuill and setteth vs at libertie For where the sprite of the Lord is there is libertie sayth Paule in the same place to the Corinthians that is to say there the harte is free and hath power to loue the will of God there the hart mourneth that he cannot loue inough Now is that consent of y t hart vnto the law of God eternall life yea though there bee no power yet in the members to fulfill it Let euery man therfore accordyng to Paules councell in the 6. chapter to the Eph. arme himselfe with y t armour of god that is to vnderstand with gods promises aboue all thing sayeth he take vnto you the shield of fayth wherewyth ye may be able to quenche all the fierye dartes of the wicked that ye may be able to resist in the euill day of temptation and namely at the houre of death See therfore thou haue Gods promises in thyne hart and that thou beleue them without waueryng when temptation ariseth and the deuill layeth the law thy dedes agaynst thee aunswere him with the promises and turne to God and confesse thy selfe to hym and say it is euenso or els howe could he be mercifull but remember that he is the God of mercy of truth and cannot but fulfil his promises Also remember that hys sonnes bloud is stronger then all the synnes and wickednes of the whole world and therewith quiet thy self and therunto commit thy selfe and blesse thy selfe in all temptation namely at the houre of death with that holy cādle Or els perishest thou though thou hast a thou sand holy candels about thee a C. ton of holy water a shipfull of pardones a clothe sacke full of Friers coates and all the ceremonies in the world and al the good workes deseruings and merites of all the men in the worlde bee they or were they neuer so holy Gods worde onely lasteth for euer and that which he hath sworne doth abide whē all other thynges perish So long as thou findest any consent in thyne hart vnto the law of God that it is righteous and good and also displesure that thou canst not fulfill it dispayre not neither doubt but that Gods spirit is in thee and that thou art chosen for Christes sake to the inheritaunce of eternall lyfe And agayne Rom. 3. We suppose that a man is iustified through fayth without the deedes of the lawe And likewyse Rom. 4. We say y t sayth was reckoned to Abraham for righteousnes Also Romaynes v. seyng that we are iustified through fayth we are at peace with God Also Roma 10. With the hart doth a man beleue to be made righteous Also Gal 3. Receiued ye the spirite by the deeds of the law or by hearyng of the fayth Doth he which ministreth the sprite vnto you worketh miracles among you do it of the deedes of the law or by hearyng of faith Euen as Abraham beleued god it was reckoned to hym for righteousnes Vnderstand therfore saith he that the children of fayth are the children of Abraham For the Scripture saw before that God would iustify the heathen or Gentiles by fayth shewed before glad tidings vnto Abraham in thy sede shall all nations be blessed Wherfore they which are of fayth are blessed that is to witte made righteous with righteous Abraham For as many as are of the deedes of the law are vnder curse For it is written saith he Cursed is euery man that continueth not in all thinges which are written in the booke of the lawe to fulfill them Item Gala. ij where he resisted Peter in the face he sayth We whiche are Iewes by nation and not sinners of the Gentiles know that a man is not iustified by the deedes of the law but by the fayth of Iesus Christ and haue therfore beleued on Iesus Christ that we might be iustified by the fayth of Christ and not by the deedes of the law for by the deedes of the law shall no flesh be iustified Item in the same place he sayth touchyng y t I now liue I lyue in y e fayth of the sonne of God which loued me and gaue him selfe for me I despise not the grace of GOD. For if righteousnes come by y e law thē is Christ dead in vayne And of such like ensamples are all the Epistles of Paul full Marke how Paule laboreth with him selfe to expresse the excedyng misteryes of fayth in the epistle to the Ephesians and in the Epistle to the Collossians Of these and many such like textes are we sure that the forgiuenes of sinnes and iustifying is appropriate vnto faith onely without the addyng to of workes Take for the also the similitude that Christ maketh Math. vij A good tree bringeth forth good frute And a bad tree bringeth forth bad frute There seest thou that the frute maketh not the tree good but the tree the frute that the tree must afore hand be good or be made good yer it can bryng forth good frute As he also sayth Math. xij either make the tre good and his frute good also either make the tree bad and hys frute bad also How can ye speake wel while ye your selues are euil So likewise is this true and nothyng more true that a mā before all good workes must first be good and that it is impossible that workes should make hym good if he were not good before yet he did good workes For this is Christes principle as we say a generall rule How can ye speake well while ye are euill so likewise how can ye do good while ye are euill This is therfore a playne and a sure
and good to such or such a poore man he biddeth him not there with to be made mercifull kinde and good but to testifie and declare the goodnes that is in him already with the outward deede that it may breake out to y t profite of other and that other may feele it which haue nede therof After the same maner shalt thou enterprete the Scriptures whiche make mention of workes that God therby wil that we shew forth that goodnes which we haue receaued by fayth and let it breake forth and come to the profite of other that the false fayth may be knowē and weded out by the rootes For God geueth no mā his grace that he should let it lye stil and do no good with all but that he should encrease it and multiplie it with lendyng it to other and with open declaryng of it with the outward workes prouoke draw other to God As Christ sayth in Mathew the v. Chapter let your light so shine in the sight of men that they may see your good workes and glorifie your father which is in heauen Or els were it as a treasure digged in the ground and hid wisedome in whiche what profite is there Moreouer there with the goodnes fauour and giftes of God which are in thee not onely shal be knowen vnto other but also vnto thyne owne selfe and thou shal be sure that thy fayth is right and that the true spirite of God is in thee and that thou art called and chosen of God vnto eternall lyfe and loosed frō the bondes of Sathā whose captiue thou wast as Peter exhorteth in y t first of his second Epistle through good workes to make our callyng and election wherewith we are called and chosen of God sure For how dare a man presume to thinke that his fayth is right and that Gods fauour is on him and that Gods spirite is in hym when hee feeleth not the workyng of the spirite neither him selfe disposed to any godly thyng Thou canst neuer know or be sure of thy fayth but by the workes if workes folow not yea and that of loue without lokyng after any reward thou mayst be sure that thy fayth is but a dreame and not right euen the same that Iames called in his Epistle the second Chapter dead faith and not iustifiyng Abraham through workes Genesis xxij was sure of his fayth to be right and that the true feare of God was in him when he had offered his sonne as the Scripture sayth Now know I that thou fearest God that is to say Now is it opē and manifest that thou fearest God in as much as thou hast not spared thy onely sonne for my sake SO now by this abyde sure and fast that a mā inwardly in the hart and before God is righteous good thorough fayth onely before all workes Notwithstandyng yet outwardly and openly before the people ye and before himselfe is he righteous through the worke that is he knoweth and is sure through the outward worke that he is a true beleuer and in the fauour of GOD and righteous and good thorough the mercy of GOD that thou mayst cal the one an open and an outward righteousnes the other an inward righteousnes of the hart so yet that thou vnderstand by the outward righteousnes no other thyng saue the frute that foloweth and a declaryng of the inward iustifying and righteousnes of the hart and not that it maketh a man righteous before God but that he must be first righteous before hym in the hart Euen as thou mayst cal the frute of the tree the outward goodnes of the tree whiche foloweth and vttereth the inward naturall goodnes of the tree This meaneth Iames in hys Epistle where he sayth fayth without workes is dead that is if workes follow not it is a sure an euidēt signe that there is no fayth in the hart but a dead imagination and dreame whiche they falsly call fayth Of the same wise is this saying of Christ to be vnderstande Make you frendes of the vnrighteous Mammō that is shew your fayth openly and what ye are within in the harte with outward geuing and bestowyng your goodes on the poore that ye may obtayn frendes that is that the poore on whome thou hast shewed mercy may at the day of iudgement testify witnesse of thy good woorkes That thy fayth and what thou waste within in thy harte before God may there appeare by thy fruites openly vnto all men For vnto the right beleuyng shal all thinges be comfortable and vnto consolation at that terrible day And contrariwyse vnto the vnbeleuing all thing shall be vnto desperation and confusion and euery man shall be iudged openly and outwardly in the presence of all men accordyng to their dedes and workes So that not without a cause thou mayest call them thy frendes which testifye at that daye of thee that thou liuedst as a true and a right Christen man and folowedst the steppes of Christe in shewyng mercy as no doubt he doth which feleth God merciful in his hart And by y t workes is the fayth knowen that it was right and perfect For the outward workes can neuer please God nor make frend except they spring of fayth Forasmuch as Christ himselfe Math. 6. and 7. disaloweth and casteth away the woorkes of the Pharises yea prophesiyng and workyng of miracles and castyng out of deuils which we count and esteeme for very excellent vertues Yet make they no frendes with their woorkes whyle their hartes are false vnpure and their eye double Now wythout fayth is no harte true or eye single so that we are compelled to confesse that the workes make not a mā righteous or good but that the hart must first be righteous good ereany good worke proceede thence SEcondarily all good workes must be done free with a single eye with out respect of any thing and that no profite be sought therby That commaundeth Christ where he fayth Mat. 10. freely haue ye receyued freely geue agayne For looke as Christ with all his workes did not deserue heauē for that was hys already but did vs seruice therewith and neither looked nor sought his owne profite but our profite and the honour of God the father only Euen so we with all our workes may not seke our own profite neither in this worlde nor in heauen but must and ought freely to worke to honoure God withall and without all maner respecte seeke our neighboures profite and do hym seruice That meaneth Paul Phil. 2. saying Be minded as Christ was which beyng in the shape of God equall vnto God and euen very God layd that a part that is to say hid it And tooke on hym the forme and fashion of a seruaunt That is as concerning himself he had inough that he was full had all plentuousnesse of the Godhed and in all his workes sought our profite became our seruaunt The cause
and therefore loueth agayne is glad to do his fathers will and studieth to be thankefull The spirit of the worlde vnderstandeth not the speaking of God neither the spirite of the wise of thys worlde neyther the spirite of Philosophers neither y ◠spirite of Socrates of Plato or of Aristotles Ethikes as thou mayest see in the first and second chapter of the first to the Corint Though that many are not ashamed to rayle and blaspheme saying how shoulde he vnderstand the scripture seing he is no Philosopher neyther hath sene his metaphisike Moreouer they blaspheme saying how can he be a deuine and woteth not what is subiectum in theologia Neuertheles as a man without the spirite of Aristo tell or Philosophy may by the spirite of God vnderstand scripture Euen so by the spirite of God vnderstandeth he that god is to be sought in all the Scripture and in all thynges yet wotteth not what meaneth Subiectum in Theologia because it is a terme of their owne makyng If thou shouldest say to hym that hath y e spirite of god the loue of god is the kepyng of the cōmaundements to loue a mans neighbour is to shew mercy he would without arguyng or disputyng vnderstand how that of the loue of God springeth the keping of his cōmaundementes and of the loue to thy neighbour spryngeth mercy Now would Aristotle deny such speakyng a Duns man would make xx distinctions If thou shouldest say as sayth Iohn the 4. of his Epistle how can he that loueth not his neighbour whom he seeth loue God whom he seeth not Aristotle would say loe a mā must first loue his neighbour and thē God and out of the loue to thy neighbour spryngeth the loue to God But he that feeleth the working of the spirite of God and also from what vengeaunce the bloud of Christ hath deliuered hym vnderstandeth how that it is impossible to loue either father or mother sister brother neighbour or his owne selfe a right except it spryng out of the loue to God and perceaueth that the loue to a mans neighbour is a signe of the loue to God as good frute declareth a good tree and that the loue to a mās neighbour accompanieth and foloweth the loue of God as heate accōpanieth and foloweth fire Likewise whē the Scripture sayth Christ shall reward euery man at the resurrection or vprisyng againe accordyng to his dedes the spirite of Aristotles ethikes would say loe with y t multitude of good workes mayst thou must thou obtayne euerlastyng lyfe also a place in heauen hye or low accordyng as thou hast many or fewe good workes yet wotteth not what a good worke meaneth as Christ speaketh of good workes as he that seeth not the hart but outward things onely But he that hath Gods spirite vnderstandeth it He feeleth that good woorkes are nothyng but frutes of loue compassion mercyfulnes and of a tendernes of hart whiche a Christen hath to his neighbour and that loue springeth of that loue which he hath to god to his will commaundements and vnderstandeth also that the loue whiche man hath to God springeth of the infinite loue and bottomlesse mercy◠which God in Christ shewed first to vs as saith Iohn in the Epistle and Chap. aboue rehearsed In this sayth he appeared the loue of GOD to vs-ward bicause that God sent his onely begotten sonne into the world that we might liue thorough hym Herein is loue not that we loued God but that he loued vs sent his sonne to make agreement for our sinnes In conclusion a Christē mā feeleth that that vnspeakeable loue and mercy which god hath to vs that spirite which worketh all thinges that are wrought accordyng to the will of God and that loue wherewith we loue God that loue whiche we haue to our neighbour and that mercy and compassion which we shew on him also that eternal lyfe which is layd vp in store for vs in Christ are altogether the gift of God through Christes purchasyng If the Scripture sayd alwayes Christ shall reward thee accordyng to to thy fayth or accordyng to thy hope and trust thou hast in God or accordyng to the loue thou hast to god thy neighbour so were it true also as thou seest 1. Pet. 1. receauyng the end or reward of your faith y ◠health or saluatiō of your soules But y t spirituall things could not bee knowen saue by theyr workes as a tree can not be knowen but by her frute How could I know that I loued my neighbour if neuer occasion were giuen me to shew mercy vnto hym how should I know that I loued GOD if I neuer suffered for hys sake howe should I know that God loued me if there were no infirmitie temptation perill and ieoperdy whence God should deliuer me THere is no man that forsaketh house either father or mother either brethren or sisterne wife or children for the kyngdome of heauēs sake which shall not receaue much more in this world and in the world to come euerlastyng lyfe Luke xviij Here seest thou that a Christen man in all his woorkes hath respect to nothyng but vnto the glorie of god onely and to the mainteining of the truth of god and doth and leueth vndone all thynges of loue to the glory and honor of god onely as Christ teacheth in the Pater noster Moreouer when he sayth he shall receaue much more in this world of a truth yea he hath receaued much more already For except he had felt the infinite mercy goodnes loue and kindnes of God and the felowshyp of the bloud of Christ and the comfort of the spirite of Christ in his hart he could neuer haue forsakē any thyng for gods sake Notwithstāding as saith Mark. x. Who soeuer for Christes sake the gospels forsaketh house brethren or sisters c. He shall receaue an hundred fold houses brethren c. that is spiritually For Christ shal be all thynges vnto thee The aungels all Christen and who soeuer doth the will of the father shal be father mother sister brother vnto thee and all theirs shall be thyne And god shall take the care of thee minister all thynges vnto thee as long as thou sekest but his honour onely Moreouer if thou were Lord ouer all the world yea often worlde 's before thou knewest god yet was not thyne appetite quenched thou thyrstedest for more But if thou seeke his honour onely then shall he slake thy thyrst and thou shalt haue al that thou desirest and shal be content yea if thou dwell among insidels and among the most cruelest nation of the world yet shall he be a father vnto thee and shall defend thee as he did Abraham Isaac and Iacob all Saintes whose lyues thou readest in the Scripture For all that are past and gone before are but ensamples to strength our fayth and trust in the word of god It
rather Idolatrie But she setteth her infirmities her lacke before her face and Gods promises sayinge Lorde for thy mercy and truth whiche thou hast sworne be mercyfull vnto me and plucke me out of this prison and out of this hell And loose the bondes of Sathan and giue me power to glorifie thy name Fayth therfore iustifieth in the hart and before GOD and the deedes iustifie outwardly before the world that is testifie onely before mē what we are inwardly before God Who soeuer looketh in the perfect law of libertie and continueth therein if he bee not a forgetfull hearer but a doer of the worke he shal be happy in his deede Iames. i. The law of libertie that is which requireth a free hart or if thou fulfill it declareth a free hart lowsed from the bondes of Sathan The preachyng of the law maketh no man free but bindeth For it is the key that byndeth all consciences vnto eternall damnation whē it is preached as the promises or Gospell is the keye that lowseth all consciences that repēt when they are bounde through preachyng of the law He shal be happy in his deede that is by his deede shall he know that he is happy and blessed of God whiche hath geuen hym a good hart and power to fulfill the law By hearyng the law thou shalt not know that thou art blessed but if thou do it it declareth y t thou art happy blessed WAs not Abraham iustified of hys dedes when he offered hys sonne Isaac vpon the altar Iames. iij. hys deede iustified hym before the world that is it declared and vttered the faith which both iustifieth him before God and wrought that wonderfull worke as Iames also affirmeth Was not Raab the harlot iustified whē she receaued the messengers and sent them out another way Iames. iij. that is lykewise outwardly but before GOD she was iustified by fayth which wrought that outward dede as thou mayest see Iosue ij She had heard what God had done in Egypt in the redde Sea in the desert and vnto the two kynges of the Amorreans Seō and Og. And she cōfessed saying your Lord God he is God in heauen aboue and in earth beneath She also beleued that God as hee had promised the children of Israell would giue thē the land wherein she dwelt and cōsented thereunto submitted her selfe vnto the will of God and holpe GOD as much as in her was saued his spyes and messengers The other feared that whiche she beleued but resisted God with al their might and had no power to submite themselues vnto the will of God And therefore perished they and she was saued and that through fayth as we read Heb. 11. where thou mayest see how the holy fathers were saued through fayth and how fayth wrought in them Fayth is the goodnes of all the deedes that are done within the lawe of God and maketh thē good glorious seeme they neuer so vile and vnbeliefe maketh thē damnable seeme they neuer so glorious AS pertaining to that which Iames in this 3. chapter sayth What auaileth though a mā say that he hath faith if he haue no deedes can fayth saue hym And agayne fayth without deedes is dead in it selfe And the deuils beleue and tremble And as the body without the spirite is dead euen so fayth without deedes is dead It is manifest and cleare that he meaneth not of the fayth whereof Peter and Paule spake in their epistles Iohn in hys Gospell first epistle and Christ in the Gospell when he sayth thy faith hath made thee safe be it to thee accordyng to thy fayth or greate is thy fayth so forth and of which Iames hymselfe speaketh in the first Chapter saying of his owne wyll begat he vs with the worde of life that is in beleuing the promises wherein is life are we made the sonnes of God Which thing I also this wise proue Paule sayth how shall or can they beleue without a preacher how should they preach except they were sēt Now I pray you whē was it heard that god sent any mā to preach vnto y ◠deuils or that he made them any good promise He threatneth them oft but neuer sent embassadours to preach any atonemēt betwene hym and them Take an ensample that thou mayest vnderstand Let there be two poore men both destitute of rayment in a colde winter the one strong that he feleth no griefe the other greuously mournyng for payne of the colde I then come by and moued wyth pitie and compassion say vnto hym that feeleth his disease come to such a place and I will geue thee rayment sufficient He beleueth commeth obtayneth that which I haue promised That other seeth all this knoweth it but is partaker of nought For he hath no fayth and that is because there is no promise made hym So is it of the deuils The deuils haue no fayth For fayth is but earnest beleuing of gods promises Now are there no promises made vnto the deuils but sore threatninges The olde Philosophers knew that there was one God but yet had no fayth for they had no power to seeke his wyll neyther to worship hym The Turkes and the Saresons know y t there is one God but yet haue no fayth For they haue no power to worship God in spirite to seeke his pleasure and to submit thē vnto his will They made an Idoll of God as we do for the most part and worshipped him euery man after hys owne imagination and for a sundry purpose What we wyl haue done that must God do and to do our will worship we hym and pray vnto hym but what God will haue done that wyll neyther Turke nor Sareson nor the most part of vs do What soeuer we imagin righteous that must God admitte But Gods righteousnes wyll not our hartes admitte Take an other ensample Let there betwo such as I spake of before and I promise both and the one because he feeleth not hys disease commeth not So is it of Gods promises No man is holpe by them but sinners y t fele their sinnes mourne and sorrow for them and repent wyth all their hartes For Iohn Baptist went before Christ and preached repētaunce that is he preached the lawe of God right and brought the people into knowledge of themselues and vnto the feare of God and then sent them vnto Christ to be healed For in Christ and for his sake onely hath god promised to receaue vs vnto mercy to forgeue vs and to geue vs power to resist sinne How shall God saue thee when thou knowest not thy damnation How shall Christ deliuer thee frō sinne when thou wilt not knowledge thy sinne Now I pray thee how many thousandes are there of them that say I beleue that Christ was borne of a Virgin that he dyed that he rose agayne and so forth and thou canst not bring them in beliefe that they haue any sinne at all
sawest workes also sawest the entent meaning of y e worker least hipocrisie deceaue thee Our deedes are the effect of righteousnesse and thereto an outward testimonie and certifiyng of the inwarde righteousnes as sourenes is of Leauen And when I say fayth iustifieth the vnderstanding is that faith receaueth the iustifiyng God promiseth to forgeue vs our sinnes and to impute vs for full righteous And God iustifieth vs actiuely that is to say forgeueth vs and reckoneth vs for full righteous And Christes bloud deserueth it and faith in the promise receaueth it and certifieth the conscience therof Faith chalēgeth it for Christes sake which hath deserued all that is promised and cleaueth euer to the promise and truth of the promiser and pretendeth not the goodnes of her worke but knowledgeth that our works deserue it not but are crowned and rewarded with the deseruinges of Christ Take an ensample of young children when the father promiseth them a good thing for y t doing of some trifle and when they come for their rewarde delayeth with them saying What that thou hast done is not worth halfe so much should I geue thee so great a thing for so little a trif◠▪ They will aunswere ye did promise me ye sayd I should haue it why did ye promise and why then did ye say so And let him say what he will to driue them of they will euer say agayne ye did promise me so ye did ye sayd I should haue it so ye did But hirelinges wyll pretend their woorke and say I haue deserued it I haue done so much and so much and my labour is worth it Now at the first couenaunt making with God and as oft as we be reconciled after we haue sinned the righteousnes commeth of God altogether But after the attonement is made and we reconciled then we be partly righteous in our selues vnrighteous righteous as farre as we loue and vnrighteous as farre as the loue is vnperfect And faith in y e promise of God y t he doth reckē vs for full righteous doth euer supply y t vnrighteousnes imperfectnes ▪ as it is our whole righteousnes at the beginning Finally our workes which God commaundeth and vnto which he annexed his promises that he will reward them are as it were very sacramētes and visible and sensible signes tokens earnest obligations witnesses testimonies and a sure certifiyng of our soules that God hath and will do according to his promise to strēgth our weake fayth and to keepe the promise in mynde But they iustifie vs not no more then the visible workes of the sacramentes do As for an example the worke of baptime that out ward washing which is the visible facramēt or signe iustifieth vs not But God onely iustifieth vs actiuely as cause efficient or workeman God promiseth to iustifie whosoeuer is baptised to beleue in Christ and to keepe the law of God that is to say to forgeue them their foresinnes and to impute righteousnesse vnto them to take them for his sonnes and to loue them as well as though they were full righteous Christ hath deserued vs y ◠promise and that righteousnes And faith doth receaue it God doth geue it impure it to faith not to y ◠washing And the washing doth testifie it and certifie vs of it as the Popes letters do certifie the beleuers of the Popes pardons Now the letters helpe not or hinder but that the pardōs were as good without them saue onely to stablishe weake soules that could not beleue except they reade the letters looked on the seale and saw the print of Saint Peters keyes O a mercifull God and a most louing father how careth he for vs first aboue all and beside all his other benefites to geue vs hys owne sonne Iesus and with him to geue vs hymselfe and all and not contēt therewith but to geue vs so many sacraments or visible signes to prouoke vs to helpe our weake fayth to keepe hys mercy in mynde as baptime the sacramēt of his body and bloud and as many other sacramentes as they will haue if they put significations to them for we destroy none but they destroy which haue put out the significations or fayned some without as wedlocke to signifie that Christ is the husband and we his wife and partakers wyth hym as the wife with her husband of all his riches c. And beyond all those visible sacramentes to geue vs yet more sensible and surer sacramentes suraunces of his goodnes euen in our owne selues as if we loue and geue almose to our neighbour if we haue compassion and pray for him if we be mercifull and forgeue him if we deny ourselues and fast and withdraw all pleasures from the flesh for loue of the life to come and to keepe the cōmaundemētes of God For whē such things beyng before impossible and now are easie and naturall we feele and are sure that we be altered and of a new creature shapen in righteousnesse after the image of Christ and God our father seing his lawes of righteousnes are written in our hartes When ye fast be not sad as the hipocrites are For they fashion them a new countenaunce that it might appeare vnto men how they fast Verely I say vnto you they haue their rewarde Thou therefore when thou fastest annointe thine head washe thy face that it appeare not vnto men how thou fastest But vnto thy father which is in secrete And thy father which seeth in secrete shall rewarde thee openly As aboue of almose and prayer enē so here Christ rebuketh the false entent and hipocrisie of fasting That they sought prayse of that worke that was ordayned for to tame the fleshe and vsed such fashions that all the worlde might know that they fasted to prayse them and to say O what holy mē are these how pale and pitifull looke they euen like death hanging downe their heades and beholding the earth as mē cleane out of the world If these come not to heauen what shall become of vs poore wretches of the worlde If these be not great in the fauour of god and their prayers be heard whatsoeuer they aske in what case are we laye people Happy is he that may be a brother among them partaker of their prayers and fastinges and other holy liuing In an vnhappy in an happy I woulde say houre was he borne that buildeth them a cell or a cloysture or geueth them a portion of his land to comfort them good men in this painfull liuing and straite penaunce which they haue taken vpon them Blessed were he that might kisse the edge of the coate of one of thē Oh he that myght haue his body wrapped in one of their olde coates at the houre of death it were as good to him as his Christendome c. It appeareth also by that they asked Christ why his disciples fasted not as well as
Pope hath made a playne decree in which he commaundeth saying though y e Pope sinne neuer so greuously and draw with him to hell by his ensaÌ„ple thousaÌ„des innumerable yet let no man be so hardy to rebuke him For he is head ouerall none ouer him Distinct 〈◊〉 Si Papa And Paule saith Rom. xiij let euery soule obey the hyer powers that are ordeyned to punishe sinne The Pope will not nor let any of his And Paule chargeth 1. Cor. 5. if he that is a brother be an whorekeeper a dronkard couetous an extortioner or a rayler and so forth that we haue no felowship with him No not so much as to eate in his company But the Pope with violence compelleth vs to haue such in honour to receaue the sacrameÌ„tes of them to heare their Masses and to beleue all they say and yet they will not let vs see whether they say truth or no. And he compelleth x. parishes to pay their tithes and offeringes vnto one such to goe and ruÌ„ne at riote at their cost and to do nought therefore And a thousande such like doth the Pope contrary vnto Christes doctrine ¶ The argumentes wherewith the Pope woulde proue hymselfe the church are solued NOtwithstanding because as they be all shauen they be all shamelesse to affirme that they be the right church and can not erre though all the world seeth that not one of theÌ„ is in the right way and that they haue with vtter defiaunce forsaken both the doctrine and liuing of Christ of all his Apostles let vs see the sophistry wherwith they would perswade it One of their high reasons is this The Church say they was before y â— heretikes y â— heretikes came euer out of the church and left it And they were before all them which they now call heretikes and Lutherans and the Lutherans came out of them c. Wherefore they be the right church and the other heretikes in dede as they be called Well I will likewise dispute First the right church was vnder Moses and Aaron and so forth in whose rowmes sat the Scribes Phariseis and hye priestes in the tyme of Christ And they were before Christ And Christ and his Apostles came out of them and departed from theÌ„ and left them Wherfore the Scribes Phariseis and hye priestes were the right Church and Christ and hys Apostles and disciples heretikes and a dampnable secte And so the Iewes are yet in the right way and we in errour And of truth if their blynde reason be good theÌ„ is this argumeÌ„t so to For they be like are both one thing But in as much as the kingdome of God standeth not in wordes as Paul sayth 1. Cor. 4. but in power therefore looke vnto the marow and pith of the thinges selfe and let vayne woordes passe Vnder Abraham Isaac Iacob was the church great in fayth and small in number And as it encreased in number so it decreased in fayth vntill y â— tyme of Moses And out of those vnbeleuers God stirred vp Moses brought â—heÌ„ vnto y â— faith right agayne And Moses left a glorious Churche both in faith cleauing vnto the word of God and deliuered them vnto Iosuah Eleazer Phineas and Caleb But assone as the generation of theÌ„ that saw the miracles of God were dead they fell to Idolatrie immediatly as thou seest in the Bible And god when he had deliuered them into captiuitie for to chastice their wickednesse stirred them vp a Prophet euermore to call them vnto his testameÌ„t againe And so he did well me an hundred tymes I suppose yer Christ came for they neuer bode any space in the right fayth And against the comming of Christ the Scribes Phariseis Caiphas Anna and the Elders were crept vp into the seat of Moses AaroÌ„ and the holy Prophetes Patriarkes and suceded them linially and had the scripture of God but euen in captiuitie to make marchaundise of it and to abuse it vnto their owne glory and profite And though they kept the people from outward Idolatrie of worshipping of Images with the Heathen yet they brought them into a worse inward Idolatrie of a false fayth trust in their owne deedes and in vaine traditions of their owne fayning And had put out the significatioÌ„s of all y â— ceremonies and sacramentes of the olde testameÌ„t and taught the people to beleue in the workes selfe and had corrupt the scripture with false gloses As y â— maist see in the Gospell how Christ warneth his Disciples to beware of y t leauen of y â— Phariseis which was their false doctrine gloses And in another place he rebuked the Scribes and the Phariseis saying wo be to theÌ„ because they had taken away the key of knowledge and had shut vp the kingdome of heauen and neither would enter in themselues nor suffer theÌ„ that would How had they shut it vp verely with their traditions and false gloses which they had sowed to y â— scripture in plaine places and in the taking away y â— meaning of the ceremonies and sacrifices and teaching to beleue in the worke And our hipocrites are in like maner crept vp into the seat of Christ and of his Apostles by succession not to do the deedes of Christ and his Apostles but for lucre onely as the nature of the wily Foxe is to get him an hole made with a nother beastes labour and to make marchaundise of the people with fayned wordes as Peter warned vs before and to do according as Christ and all his Apostles prophesied how they should beguyle and leade out of the right way all theÌ„ that had no loue to follow and liue after the truth And in like maner haue they corrupt the Scripture and blynded the right way with their owne constitutions with traditions of duÌ„me ceremonies with takyng away the significations of the sacramentes to make vs beleue in the worke of the sacramentes fyrst whereby they might the better make vs beleue in works of their setting vp afterward and with false gloses which they haue patched to the Scripture in playne places to destroy the litterall sence for to set vp a false fayned sence of allegories when there is none such And thereby they haue stopt vp the gates of heaueÌ„ the true knowledge of Christ and haue made their own belâ—es the dore For thorow their bellies must thou creepe and theâ—e leaue all that fall behynde thee And such blynde reasons as oures make against vs made they agaynst Christ saying Abraham is our father we be Moses disciples how knoweth he the vnderstanding of the Scripture seing he neuer learned of any of vs onely the cursed vnlearned people that know not the scripture beleue in hym Looke whether any of the rulers or Phariseis do beleue in hym Wherefore the scripture truely vnderstode after the playneâ— places and generall articles of y t fayth which
thou findest in the scripture and the ensamples that are gone before wyll alway testifie who is the church Though the Phariseis succeded the Patriarkes prophetes and had the scripture of theÌ„ yet they were heretikes and falleÌ„ from the fayth of them and froÌ„ their liuing And Christ and his disciples Iohn the Baptist departed from the Phariseis which were heretikes vnto the right sence of y â— scripture and vnto the faith and liuing of the Patriarkes and Prophetes and rebuked the Phariseis As thou seest how Christ calleth them hipocrites dissimulers blynde guides and painted sepulchers And Iohn called them the generatioÌ„ of vipers and serpentes Of Iohn the angell sayde vnto his father Luke i. he shall turne many of the children of Israell vnto their Lord God which yet before Iohn beleued after a fleshly vnderstanding in God and thought theselues in the right way And he shall turne the harts of the fathers vnto the children That is he shall wyth hys preaching and true interpreting of the scripture make such a spirituall hart in y â— childreÌ„ as was in their fathers Abraham Isaac and Iacob And he shall turne the disobedient vnto the obedience of the righteous and prepare the Lord a perfect people That is them that had set vp a righteousnes of their owne and were therefore disobedient vnto the righteousnes of fayth shal he conuert from their blindnes vnto the wisdome of them that beleued in God to be made righteous and with those fathers shall he geue the childreÌ„ Egles eyes to spye out Christ and his righteousnesse and to forsake their own and so to become perfect And after the same maner though our Popish hypocrites succede Christ and his Apostles and haue their scripture yet they be fallen from the fayth liuyng of them and are heretickes and had nede of a Iohn Baptist to conuert them And we depart from them vnto the true Scripture and vnto the fayth and liuyng therof and rebuke them in like maner And as they which depart from the fayth of the true Church are heretickes eueÌ„ so they that depart froÌ„ the Church of heretickes and false fayned fayth of hypocrites are the true church which thou shalt alway know by their fayth examined by the Scripture by their profession and conseÌ„t to liue according vnto the lawes of God ¶ An other Argument AN other like blind reasoÌ„ they haue wherein is all their trust As we come out of them and they not of vs so we receaue the Scripture of them they not of vs. How know we that it is the Scripture of God and true but because they teach vs so How can we beleue except we first beleue that they be the Church and can not erre in any thyng that perteyneth vnto our soules health For if a man tell me of a maruelous thyng whereof I can haue no other knowledge theÌ„ by his mouth onely how should I geue credence except I beleued that the maÌ„ were so honest that he could not lye or would not lye Wherfore we must beleue that they be the right Church that can not erre or els we can beleue nought at all This wise reason is their shoteancre all their hold their refuge to flye vnto chief stone in their foundation wheron they haue built all their lyes al the mischief that they haue wrought this viij huÌ„dred yeares And this reason do the Iewes lay vnto our charge this day and this reason doth chiefly blynd them and hold them still in obstinacie Our spirites first falsifie the Scripture to stablish their lyes And when the Scripture commeth to light and is restored vnto the true vnderstaÌ„dyng and their iugglyng spied they like to suffer shipwracke then they cast out this ancre they be the Church and can not erre their authoritie is greater then the Scripture and the Scripture is not true but because they say so and admitte it And therfore what soeuer they affirme is of as great authoritie as the Scripture Notwithstandyng as I sayd the kyngdome of heauen standeth not in words of maÌ„s wisedome but in power and spirite And therfore loke vnto the examples of the Scripture and so shalt thou vnderstand And of an hundred examples betwene Moyses and Christ where the Israelites fell from God were eueâ— restored by one Prophet or other let vs take one euen Iohn the Baptist Iohn went before Christ to prepare his way that is to bryng meÌ„ vnto the knowledge of their sinnes and vnto repentaunce through true expoundyng of the law which is the onely way vnto Christ For except a man knowledge his sinnes repent of them he can haue no part in Christ of Iohn Christ fayth Math. xvij that he was Elias that should come restore all thyng That is he should restore the scripture vnto the right sence agayne which the Phariseis had corrupt with the leuen of their false gloses and vayne fleshly traditions He made croked thinges straight as it is written and rough smoth Which is al so to be vnderstand of the Scripture which the Phariseis had made croked wrestyng them vnto a false sence with wicked gloses so rought that no man could walke in the way of them For when God sayd honour father mother meanyng that we should obey them and also helpe theÌ„ at their nede the Phariseis put this glose thereto out of their owne leuen saying God is thy father and mother Wherfore what soeuer nede thy father mother haue if thou offer to God thou art hold excused For it is better to offer to God then to thy father and mother and so much more meritorious as God is greater then they yea and God hath done more for thee then they is more thy father and mother then they As ours now affirme that it is more meritorious to offer to God and his holy dead Saintes then vnto the poore liuyng Saintes And wheÌ„ God had promised the people a Sauiour to come blesse them and saue them from theyr sinnes the Phariseis taught to beleue in holy woorkes to be saued by as if they offered and gaue to be prayd for As ours as oft as we haue a promise to be forgeueÌ„ at the repentaunce of the hart through Christes bloud shedding put to thou must first shriue thy selfe to vs of euery sâ—…abe we must lay out handes on thine head and whistell out thy sinnes and enioyne the penaunce to make satisfaction And yet art thou but loused from the synne onely that thou shalt not come into hell but thou must yet suffer for euery sinne seuen yeres in Purgatory which is as whot as hell except thou bye it out of the Pope And it y â— aske by what meanes the Pope geueth such pardon They aunswere out of the merites of Christ And thus at the last they grauÌ„t against theÌ„selues that Christ hath not only deserued
for the spedy preachyng of the Gospell among the heathen throughout the world Now Christ as he was promised so was he sent vnto the Iewes or Israelites And what by Christes preaching the Apostles after his resurrection there were innumerable Iewes conuerted haply an hundred thousand or mo in Ierusalem and Iewry and in the countreys about and abode still in the laÌ„d Then Paul rose vp and persecuted theÌ„ in IerusaleÌ„ and throughout all Iewry and Damasco slaying all that he could catch or making them for â—weare Christ For feare of which persecution they fled into all costes preached vnto the Iewes that were scattered prouing that Iesus was Christ the Sauiour of the world both by the scripture also by miracles so that a great part of the Iewes came to the fayth euery where and we heathen came in shortly after and part abode still in vnbelefe as vnto this day Now the Iewes beyng borne and bred vp rooted and noseld in ceremonyes as I haue shewed and as ye may better see in the. v. bookes of Moses if ye would read them could but wyth great difficultie depart from them as it is to see in all the Epistles of Paule how he fought agaynst them and in processe gat the vpper hand And therto the first that were christened and all the officers and Byshops of y â— church euen so much as y e great God of Rome were Iewes for the most part a great season And moreouer as Paule sayth Ro. ix not all that came of Israel are right Israelites neither are all they Abrahams sonnes that are AbrahaÌ„s seede why so because they followed not the steps of y â— faith of their graundfathers Euen so not all they that were called and also came vnto the mariage which God the father made betwene Christ his sonne all sinners brought theyr mariage garment with them that is to were true fayth wherwith we be maried vnto Christ and made his flesh his bloud and one spirit with hym his brethren and heyres with him and the sonnes of God also But many of theÌ„ to fulfill the saying of Christ that the kyngdome of heaueÌ„ which is the gospell is like a net that ketcheth good bad were driuen into the net and coÌ„pelled to coÌ„fesse that Iesus was Christ and that seede that was promised AbrahaÌ„ and Messias that should come not of any inward felyng that the spirite of God gaue them neyther of any louely consent that they had vnto the law of God that it was good mourning both because they had broken it and because also they had no power to fulfill it and therfore to obtayne mercy and power came to Christ and vnto the father thorow him with the hart of naturall children which receaue all thyng freely of their fathers bounteous liberalitie and of loue become seruauntes vnto their brethren for their fathers sake But were compelled onely with violence of the scripture which euery where bare witnesse vnto Christ and agreed vnto all that he did and ouercome also with the power of myracles that confirmed the same That is to say they came wyth a story faith a popish fayth a faithlesse faith and a fayned faith of their owne making and not as God in the scripture describeth the fayth so beleuing in Christ that they would be iustified by their owne deedes which is the denying of Christ As our Papistes beleue which more mad theÌ„ those Iewes beleue nothing by the reason of the scripture but onely that such a multitude consent thereto compelled wyth violence of sworde with falsifiyng of the scripture and fayned lyes Which multitude yet is not the fift part so many as they that consent vnto the lawe of Mahomet And therfore by their own argumentes the fayth of the Turkes is better then theirs And their fayth thereto may stand by their owne confession with all mischiefe as it well appeareth by them and with yeldyng themselues to worke all wickednesse with full delectation after the ensample of the faith of their father the deuil and without repenraunce and consent vnto the lawe of God that it is good And the popish also do so beleue in Christ and so will be his seruauntes that they will be bound vnto dumme ceremonies and dead workes putting their trust and confidence in them and hoping to be saued by them and ascribing vnto them the thanke of their saluation and righteousnes And therfore because as I sayd the Iewes ye and the Heathen to were so accustomed vnto ceremonies and because such a multitude came wyth a faithles fayth they went cleane coÌ„trary vnto the mynde of Paul and set vp ceremonies in the new testameÌ„t partly borowing them of Moses and partly imagening like as ye now see and called them sacraments that is to say signes as it is plaine in the stories the sacrament of holy water of holy fire holy bread holy salt and so forth And they gaue theÌ„ significations As holy water signified the sprincling of Christes bloud for our redemption which sacrament or signe though it seeme superstuous in as much as the sacrament of Christes body and bloud signifieth y e same dayly yet as loÌ„g as y e signification bode it hurted not And the kissing of the Pax was set vp to signifie that the peace of Christ shoulde be euer among vs one to loue an other after his ensample as the word it self well declareth For pax is as much to say as peace And as for confirmation it is no doubt but that it came this wise vp that this was the vse which the word it selfe well declareth We read in the stories that they which were conuerted vnto the fayth of the age of discretion were full taught in the law of God as right is and in the fayth of our sauiour Iesus yer they were baptised vppon the profession or promising to to keepe that law and faith were baptised And then for the sâ—ccour helpe of young children baptised before the age of discretion to know the lawe of God and fayth of Christ was confirmation instituted that they should not be alway ignoraunt and faythlesse but be taught the profession of their Baptim And this no doubt was the maner as we may well gather by probable coniectures and euident tokens when the children were of sixe or seuen yeares olde their elders brought them vnto the priest or Deacon in euery parish which officer taught the children what their baptim ment what they had professed therein that is to wete the law of God and their dutie vnto al degrees and the faith of our sauiour And then because it should not be neglect or left vndone an higher officer as the Archdeacon for it hath not bene as I suppose in the Byshops handes alway as now neither were it meete came about from parish to parishe at tymes conuenient And the Priestes brought the children vnto hym at xj
IN the viij he sayth the Saintes be more charitable now then when they liued I answere Abrahā was while he lyued as charitable as the best And yet dead he answered hym that prayed to hym they haue Moses and y ◠Prophetes let them heare them And so haue we not Moses and the prophets onely but a more cleare light euen Christ and the Apostles vnto which if we harken we be Saintes already And to proue that they in heauen be better then we in earth he alleageth a text of our Sauiour Luke vij that the worst in heauen is better then Ihon Baptist Now y e text is he that is lesse in the kingdome of God is greater thē he We that beleue are Gods kyngdome And he that is least in doyng seruice vnto hys brethren is euer the greatest after the doctrine of Christ Now Christ was lesse then Ihon and therfore greater then he And by theyr owne doctrine there was no Sainte in heauen before the resurrection of Christ but what care they what they say blynded wyth theyr owne sophistrye Moreouer cursed is he that trusteth in ought saue God sayth the text and therfore the Saintes would haue no man to trust in them whyle they were aliue As Paule sayth 1. Cor. 3. What is Paule saue your seruaunt to preach Christ Did Paule dye for you were ye baptised in the name of Paule Did I not mary you to Christ to put your trust in hym And agayne let no man reioyce or trust in man sayth he For all are youres whether Paule or Appollo or Cephas whether the world life death present thynges or thynges to come all are youres and ye are Christes and Christ is Gods If my fayth be stedfast in the promises that I haue in Christes bloud I néede but to pray my father in Christes name and he shall send me a legion of Angels to helpe me so that my fayth is Lord ouer the Angels and ouer all creatures to turne them vnto my soules health and my fathers honour and may be subiect vnto no creature but vnto Gods woorde in our Sauiour Christ onely I may haue no trust therefore in the Saintes If ye say ye put no trust in them but onely put them in remembraunce of their dutie as a man desireth his neighbour to pray for him remembring hym of hys dutie and as when we desire our brethren to helpe vs at our neede That is false for ye put trust in all your ceremonies all your holy deedes and in whosoeuer disguiseth hymselfe and altereth hys coat from the common fashion ye and euen in the coates of them that be not yet Saintes after your dortrine If a priest sayd masse in his gowne would ye not rise against hym and slea hym and that for the false fayth that ye haue in the other garmētes For what honour can those other garmentes do to God more then hys gowne or profite vnto your soules ▪ seyng ye vnderstand nought thereby And therto in the collectes of Saintes ye say saue me God and geue me euerlastyng lyfe for the merites of thys or that Saint euery man after his phantasie chusing hym one Saint singularly to be saued by Wyth which collectes I pray you shew me how standeth the death of Christ Paule woulde say that Christ dyed in vayne if that doctrine were true And therto in as much as ye say the Saintes merite or deserue not in heauen but in this worlde onely it is to be feared least their merites be sore wasted and the deseruynges of many all spent thorowe our holy fathers so great liberalitie Abraham and the Prophetes and y ◠Apostles and many since prayed to no Saintes and yet were holy inough And when he sayth they could helpe when they were aliue That was thorow their fayth in beleuing the promise For they had promises that they shuld do such miracles to stablish their doctrine and to prouoke vnto Christ and not vnto them selues And whē he proueth that y e Saintes be in heauen in glory wyth Christ already saying if God be their God they be in heauē for he is not the God of the dead There he stealeth away Christes argument wherewyth he proueth the resurrection that Abraham and all Saintes shoulde rise agayne and not that their soules were in heauē which doctrine was not yet in the worlde And wyth that doctrine he taketh away the resurrection quite and maketh Christes argumēt of none effect For when Christ alleageth the Scripture that God is Abrahams God addeth to that God is not God of the dead but of the liuing and so proueth that Abraham must rise agayne I deny Christes argument and say wyth M. More that Abraham is yet aliue not because of the resurrection but because hys soule is in heauē And in like maner Paules argument vnto the Corrinthians is nought worth For when he sayth if there be no resurrection we be of all wretches the miserablest Here we haue no pleasure but sorrow care and oppression And therfore if we rise not agayne all our suffering is in vayne Nay Paul thou art vnlearned ▪ go to Maister More and learne a new way We be not most miserable though we ryse not agayne for our soules go to heauen assoone as we be dead and are there in as great ioy as Christ that is risē againe And I maruell that Paule had not comforted the Thessalonians wyth that doctrine if he had wist it that the soules of their dead had bene in ioy as he did wyth the resurrection that their dead should rise agayne If the soules be in heauen in as great glorie as the aungels after your doctrine shewe me what cause should be of the resurrection And when hee sayth Whether the Saintes do it them selues or by intercession made to God it maketh no matter so we be holpe it appeareth by his doctrine that all is good that helpeth though a man pray vnto the deuill by whom many be holpe Now in Christ we haue promises of all maner helpe not in them Where then is our faith to be holpe by Christ when we hope to be holpe by the merites of Saintes So it appeareth that the more trust we haue in Saintes the lesse we haue in Christ And whē he bringeth in a similitude that we pray Phisitions though God can helpe vs and therefore we must pray to Saintes It is not like for they haue naturall remedies for vs which we must vse not tempt God But the Saints haue no natural remedies nor promise of supernaturall And therfore it can be but a false superstitious fayth And where no natural remedy is there god hath promised to helpe thē that beleue in hym And moreouer when I pray a Phisition or Surgion and trust to be holpe by them I dishonour God except I first pray to God beleue that he will woorke with their doctrine and medicines
new old holy doctours that haue made the Pope a God They knew of no power that man should haue in the kyngdome of Christ but to preache Christ truly They knew of no power that the Pope shoulde haue to send to Purgatory or to deliuer thence neither of any Pardon 's nor of any such confession as they preach and teach neither were many that are articles with you Articles of their faith They all preached forgeuenesse of sinnes thorough repentaunce toward the law and fayth in our Sauiour Christ as all the Scripture playnly doth and can no otherwise be taken and as all the hartes of as many as loue the law of God do fele as surely as the finger feeleth the fyre hoate An aunswere vnto Master Mores third booke IN his third boke he procedeth forth as before to proue that the opinions which the Popish teach without Scripture are of equal authoritie with the Scripture He asketh what if there had neuer bene Scripture written I aunswere God careth for his elect therfore hath prouided them of Scripture to trie all thynges and to defend them from all false Prophetes And I say moreouer that if there had ben no scripture written that God for his mercy fatherly loue and care toward his elect must haue prouided that there should neuer haue bene heresies or against all tymes when sectes should arise haue styred vp preachers to coÌ„found the he resies with miracles Take this example the Grekes haue the Scripture serue God therin much more diligently theÌ„ we Now let vs geue that there were no Scripture but that we receaued all our fayth by y e authoritie of our elders the Grekes by y e authoritie of their elders WheÌ„ I shall dispute with a Greke about the articles of the fayth which my elders taught me and his elders deny as eareconfession the holy pardons of the Pope and all his power that he hath aboue other Bishops many other thynges beside the Scripture which we hold for articles of our faith they deny If there be no other proofe of either part then to say my elders which caÌ„ not erre so affirme that he should aunswere his Elders which can not not erre so deny what reason is it that I should leaue the authoritie of my elders and goe beleue his or that he should leaue the authoritie of his elders and come and beleue myne none at all verely But the one partie must shew a miracle or els we must referre our causes vnto auteÌ„ticke scripture receaued in olde tyme confirmed wyth myracles and therewith trie the controuersie of our Elders And when he asketh whether there were no true fayth from Adam to Noe. I answere that god partly wrote their fayth in their sacrifices and partly the Patriarkes were ful of miracles as ye may see in the Bible And when More to vtter his darcknes and blynde ignoraunce sayth that they which were ouerwhelmed wyth No yes floud had a good faith and bringeth for hym Nicolaus de Lira I answere that Nicolaus de Lira delirat For it is impossible to haue a fayth to be saued by except a man consent vnto Gods law with all his hart and all his soule that it is righteous holy good and to be kept of all men and thereuppon repent that he hath broken it and sorow that his flesh moueth vnto the contrary and then come and beleue that god for his mercy will forgeue him all that he hath done agaynst the lawe wyll helpe hym to tame his flesh and suffer his weakenes in the meane season till he be waxed stronger which fayth if they that perished in Noyes floud had had they coulde not but haue mended their liuinges and had not hardened their harts thorow vnbeliefe and prouoked the wrath of God and waxed worse and worse an hundred twenty yeares which God gaue theÌ„ to repent vntill God could no loÌ„ger suffer theÌ„ but washed their filthines away with y e floud as he doth y e Popes shamefull abhominacions with like invndacions of water destroyed theÌ„ vtterly And wheÌ„ he asketh whether AbrahaÌ„ beleued no more theÌ„ is writteÌ„ of him I aske him how he will proue that there was no writing in Abrahams time that AbrahaÌ„ wrot not And againe as for Abrahams person he receaued his faith of God which to coÌ„firme vnto other myracles were shewed dayly And when he fayneth forth that they beleued onely because they knew their elders coulde not erre How could they know that without myracles or wryting confirmed wyth myracles more theÌ„ the Turke knoweth that hys elders so many hundred yeares in so great a multitude can not erre teach false doctrâ—ne to damne the beleuers And y e contrary doth M. More see in all y e Bible how after all was receaued in scripture confirmed with myracles though miracles ceased not but were shewed dayly yet y e elders erred fell to idolatry an huÌ„dred for one y t bode in the right way and led the younger in to errour wyth them so sore that God to saue the younger was faine to destroy the elders and to begin his testameÌ„t a freshe with the new generatioÌ„ He seeth also that y e most part were alway Idolaters for all the scripture and true myracles therto and beleued the false miracles of the deuill because his doctrine was more agreable vnto their carnall vnderstanding then the doctrine of Gods spirit as it now goeth wyth the Pope did not y â— Scribes Phariseis and Priestes which were the elders erre And when he asketh who taught the church to know the true scripture from false bookes I answere true miracles that confounded the false gaue authoritie vnto the true scripture And therby haue we euer since iudged all other bookes and doctrine And by that we know that your legendes be corrupt wyth lies As Erasmus hath improued many false bookes which ye haue fayned and put forth in the name of S. Hierom Augustine Ciprian Dionise and of other partly wyth autenticke stories and partly by y e stile and latine and like euident tokens And when M. More â—ayth vnto theÌ„ that beleue nought but y e scripture he will proue with y e scripture that we be bounde to beleue the church in thinges wherefore they haue no scripture Because God hath promised in the scripture that the holy ghost shall teach hys church all truth Nay that text wil not proue it For the first Church taught nought but they coÌ„firmed it with myracles which coulde not be done but of God till the scripture was autentickly receaued And the Church folowing teacheth nought that they will haue beleued as an article of the fayth but that which the scripture proueth and mainteineth As S. Augustine protesteth of his workes that men should compare them vnto the scripture therby iudge them and cast away whatsoeuer the scripture
desperation and partly that he fall not into hate of his father and of his commaundement thereto and thinke that his father is a tyraunt and his law but tyranny M. More seleth with his good endeuour inspiration together that a man may haue the best fayth coupled with the worst lyfe and with consentyng to sinne And I feele that it is impossible to beleue truly except a maÌ„ repent and that it is impossible to trust in y â— mercy y â— is in Christ or to fele it but y â— a man must immediatly loue God his commaundementes and therfore disagree disconsent vnto the fleshe and be at bate therewith and fight agaynst it And I feele that euery soule that loueth y â— law and hateth his fleshe and beleueth in Christes bloud hath his sinnes which he committed and payne which he deserued in haryng the law and consentyng vnto his flesh forgeuen him by that fayth And I feele that the frailtie of the flesh agaynst whiche a beleuyng soule lighteth to subdue it is also forgeuen and not rekened or imputed for sinne all the tyme of our curyng as a kynde father and mother reken not or impute the imposuÌ„bilitie of their youÌ„g children to consent vnto their law and as when the children be of age and consent theÌ„ they reken not nor impute the impossibilitie of the flesh to folow it immediatly but take al a worth and loue them no lesse but rather more tenderly then their old and perfect children that do their commaundemeÌ„tes so long as they go to schole learne such thynges as their fathers mothers set theÌ„ to And I beleue that euery soule that repeÌ„teth beleueth and loueth the law is thorough that fayth a member of Christes Churche and pure without spot or wrincle as Paule affirmeth Ephe. v. And it is an Article of my beleffe that Christes elect Church is holy and pure without sinne and euery meÌ„ber of the same thorow faith in Christ and that they be in the full fauour of God And I feele that the vncleanesse of the soule is but the consent vnto sin and vnto the fleshe And therefore I feele that euery soule that beleueth and consenteth vnto the lawe and here in this life hateth his flesh and the lustes therof and doth his best to driue sinne out of his flesh and for hate of the sinne gladly departeth from his flesh when he is dead and the lustes of the fleshe slaine with death needeth not as it were bodely tormenting to be purged of that wherof he is quit already And therfore if ought remaine it is out to be taught and not to be beaten And I feele that euery soule that beareth fruit in Christ shal be purged of the father to beare more fruit day by day as it is written Ioh. xv not in the Popes Purgatory where no man feeleth it but here in this life such fruit as is vnto his neighbours profite so that he which hath his hope in Christ purgeth himselfe here as Christ is pure 1. Ioh. 3. and that euer yet the bloud of Iesus onely doth purge vs of all our â—…s for the imperfectnes of our woorkes And I feele that the forgeuenes of sinnes is to remitte mercifully the payne that I haue deserued And I do beleue that the payne that I here suffer in my fleshe is to keepe the body vnder and to serue my neighbour and not to make satsfaction vnto god for the sore sinses And therfore when the Pope describeth God after his couetous complexion and when M. More feleth by inspiration and captiuating his wittes vnto the Pope that God forgeueth the euerlasting payne and will yet punish me a thousand yeares in the Popes purgatory that leauen sauoreth not in my mouth I vnderstand my fathers wordes as they sound and after the most mercifull maner and not after the Popes leauen and M. Mores captining his wittes to beleue that euery Poetes fable is a true story There is no father here that punisheth his sonne to purge hym when he is purged already and hath vtterly forsaken sinne and euâ—â—l and hath submitted himselfe vnto his fathers doctrine For to punishe a man that hath forsaken sinne of his owne accorde is not to purge him but to satisfie the lust of a tyrant Neyther ought it to be called Purgatory but a Iayle oftormenting and a satisfactory And when the Pope sayth it is done to satisfie the righteousnes as a iudge I say we that beleue haue no iudge of him but a father neither shal we come into iudgemeÌ„t as Christ hath promised vs but are receaued vnder grace mercy and forgeuenes Shew the Pope a litle money and God is so mercifull that there is no Purgatory And why is not the fire out as well if I offer for me the bloud of Christ If Christ hath deserued all for me who gaue the Pope might to keepe part of his deseruinges from me and to buy sell Christes merites to make marchaundise ouer vs wyth fayned wordes And thus as M. More feleth that y â— Pope is holy church I feele that he is Antichrist And as my feeling can be no proofe to him no more caÌ„ his wyth all his captiuating his wittes to beleue phantasies be vnto me wherefore if he haue no other probation to proue that the Pope is holy church then that his hart so agreeth vnto hys learning he ought of no right to coÌ„pell with sword vnto his sect How be it there are euer two maner people that will cleaue vnto God a fleshly and a spirituall The spirituall which be of God shall heare Gods woorde and the children of the truth shall consent vnto the truth And contrary the fleshly and children of falshead and of the deuill whose harts be full of lyes shall naturally consent vnto lyes as young children though they haue eate themselues as good as dead with fruit yet will not nor caÌ„ beleue him that telleth them that such fruit is nought but him that prayseth them wyll they heare and eate themselues starcke dead because their harts be full of lyes and they iudge all thinges as they appeare vnto the eyes And the fleshly mynded assoone as he beleueth of God as much as the deuill doth he hath inough and goeth to and serueth God with bodely seruice as he before serued his Idoles and after his owne imaginacion and not in the spirite in louing his lawes and beleuing his promises or longing for them no if he myght euer liue in the fleshe he would neuer desire them And God must do for him againe not what he hath promised but what he lusteth And his brother y â— serueth God in y e spirit according to Gods word hym will the carnall beast persecute So that he which will godly liue must suffer persecution vnto the worldes end according vnto the doctrine of Christ and of his Apostles and according vnto the
Christ and their brethren for his sake and do all thyng for their sakes onely not once thinking of heauen when they worke but on their brethrens neede When they suffer themselues aboue might then they comfort their soule with the remeÌ„braunce of heauen that this wretchednes shall haue an ende and we shall haue a thousand folde pleasures and rewardes in heauen not for the merites of our deseruings but geuen vs freely for Christes And he that hath y t loue hath the right faith and he that hath y t faith hath the right loue For I caÌ„ not loue my neighbour for Christes sake except I first beleue that I haue receaued such mercy of Christ Nor can I beleue that I haue receaued such mercy of Christ but that I must loue my neighbour for his sake seing that he so instantly desireth me And when he alleageth S. Iames it is aunswered him in the Mammon and S. Augustine answereth hym And S. Iames expoundeth himselfe For he saith in the first chapter God which begatte vs of his owne will wyth the worde of truth which worde of truth is his promises of mercy and forgeuenesse in our Sauiour Iesus by which he begat vs gaue vs life and made vs a new creature thorow a fast faith And Iames goeth and rebuketh the opinion and false fayth of them that thinke it inough to be saued by if they beleue that there is but one god that Christ was borne of a virgine and a thousand things which a man may beleue and yet not beleue in Christ to be saued from sinne thorow him And that Iames speaketh of another faith then at the beginning appeareth by his ensample The deuils haue faith saith he yea but the deuilles haue no faith that can repent of euil or to beleue in Christ to be saued thorow him or that caÌ„ loue God and worke his wil of loue Now Paule speaketh of a fayth that is in Christes bloude to be saued thereby which worketh immediatly thorough loue of the benefite receaued And Iames at the beginning speaketh of a fayth that bydeth trying saying the trying of your faith worketh or caâ—seth pacience But the faith of the deuilles will bide no trying for they will not woorke Gods will because they loue him not And in like maner is it of the fayth of them that repent not or that thinke themselues without sinne For except a maÌ„ feele out of what daunger Christ hath deliuered hym he can not loue the worke And therfore Iames sayth right that no such fayth that will not woorke can iustifie a man And when Paule saith faith onely iustifieth And Iames that a man is iustified by woorkes and not by fayth onely there is great differeÌ„ce betwene Paules onely and Iames onely For Paules onely is to be vnderstand that faith iustifieth in the harte and before God without helpe of workes yea yer I can worke For I must receaue life thorow faith to worke wiâ—h yer I can worke But Iames onely is thys wise to be vnderstand that faith doth not so iustifie that nothyng iustifieth saue fayth For deedes do iustifie also But faith iustifieth in the hart and before God and the deedes before the worlde onely and maketh the other seene as ye may see by the scripture For Paul sayth Rom iiij it AbrahaÌ„ haue woorkes he hath whereof to reioyce but not before god For if AbrahaÌ„ had receaued those promises of deseruing then had it ben AbrahaÌ„s prayse not gods as thou mayst see in the text neither had God shewed AbrahaÌ„ mercy and grace but had onely geuen hym his dutie and deseruyng But in that Abraham receaued all the mercy that was shewed hym frely through fayth out of the deseruynges of the seed that was promised him as thou mayst see by Genesis by the Gospell of Iohn where Christ testifieth that Abraham saw his day and reioyced and of that ioy no doubt wrought it is gods prayse and the glory of his mercy And the same mayst thou see by Iames when he sayth Abraham offered his sonne so was the Scripture fulfilled that Abraham beleued it was rekened him for righteousnesse and he was thereby made Gods frend How was it fulfilled before God Nay it was fulfilled before God many yeares before and he was Gods frend many yeares before euen from the first appointement that was made betwene God and hym Abraham receaued promises of all mercy beleued and trusted God and went wrought out of that fayth But it was fulfilled before vs which can not see the hart as Iames saith I wil shew thee my faith out of my workes and as the aungell said to AbrahaÌ„ now I know that thou dreadest God Not but that he knew it before but for vs spake he that whiche can see nought in Abraham more then in other men saue by his workes And what workes ment Iames verely the workes of mercy As if a brother or a sister lacke rayment or sustenaunce and ye be not moued to compassion nor feele their diseases what fayth haue ye then No fayth be sure that feeleth the mercy that is in Christ For they that feele that be mercyfull agayne thankefull But looke on the workes of our spiritualitie which will not onely be iustified with workes before the worlde but also before God They haue had all ChristeÌ„dome to rule this viij hundred yeares and as they onely be annointed in the head so haue they onely bene Kyng and Emperour and haue had all power in their hands and haue bene the doers onely and the leders of those shadowes that haue had the name of Princes and haue led them whether they would haue brethed into their braynes what they lysted And they haue wrought the world out of peace and vnitie and euery man out of his wellfare and are become alone well at ease onely free onely at libertie onely haue all thyng onely do nought therefore onely laye on other meÌ„s backes beare nought theÌ„ selues And the good woorkes of them that wrought out of fayth and gaue theyr goods landes to finde the poore theÌ„ deuoure they also alone And what workes preach they Onely that are to them profitable wherbey they raigne in mens coÌ„sciences as God to offer to geue to be prayed for to be deliuered out of Purgatory and to redeme your sinne of them and to worshyp ceremonies and to be shryuen and so forth And when M. More is come to him selfe and sayth the first fayth and the first iustifying is geuen vs without our deseruyng God be thanked and I would fayne that he would describe me what he meaneth by the second iustifying I know no more to do then wheÌ„ I haue receaued all mercy and all forgeuenesse of Christ frely to go and powre out the same vpon my neighbour M. Dauid lost not his fayth when hee committed adultery Tyndall No and therfore he could not
graffed in Christ the roote of all goodnes In Christ God loued vs his elect and chosen before the world began and reserued vs vnto the knowledge of his sonne and of his holy Gospell and when the Gospell is preached to vs openeth our hartes and geueth vs grace to beleue and putteth the spirite of Christ in vs and we know him as our father most mercyfull and consent to the law and lone it inwardly in our hart and desire to fulfill it and sorrow because we can not which will sinne we of frailtie neuer so much is sufficient till more strength bee geuen vs the bloud of Christ hath made satisfaction for the rest the bloud of Christ hath obteyned all thyngs for vs of God Christ is our satisfaction redemer deliuerer sauiour from vengeaunce and wrath Obserue and marke in Paules Peters Iohns Epistles in the Gospell what Christ is vnto vs. By faith are we saued onely in beleuyng the promises And though fayth be neuer without loue good workes yet is our sauing imputed neither to loue nor vnto good workes but vnto faith onely For loue and woorkes are vnder the law which requireth perfection and the ground and fountayne of the hart and damneth all imperfectnes Now is fayth vnder the promises which damne not but geue pardō grace mercy fauour and what soeuer is contayned in the promises Righteousnes is diuers for blynd reasō imaguieth many maner of righteousnesses There is the righteousnes of workes as I sayd before when the hart is a way and is not felt how the law is spirituall and can not be fulfilled but from the bottome of the hart As the iust ministration ▪ of all maner of lawes and the obseruyng of them for a worldlye purpose and for our owne profite and not of loue vnto our neighbour without all other respect and morall vertues wherein Philosophers put their felicity and blessednes whiche all are nothyng in the sight of God in respect of the lyfe to come There is in like maner the iustifying of ceremonies whiche some imagine their owne selues some counterfaite other saying in their blynd reasō such holy persons dyd thus and thus and they were holy men therfore if I do so likewise I shall please God but they haue none aūswere of God that that pleaseth The Iewes seke righteousnes in their ceremonies which god gaue vnto them not for to iustifie but to describe and paynt Christ vnto thē of which Iewes testifieth Paule saying how that they haue affection to god but not after knowledge for they go about to stablish their owne iustice and are not obedient to the iustice or righteousnesse that commeth of God which is the forgeuenesse of sinne in Christes bloud vnto all that repent and beleue The cause is verely that except a man cast away his owne imagination and reason he can not perceaue God and vnderstand the vertue power of the bloud of Christ There is a full righteousnes when the law is fulfilled from the ground of the hart This had neither Peter nor Paule in this life perfectly vnto the vttermost that they could not be perfecter but sighed after it They were so farreforth blessed in Christ that they hungred and thyrsted after it Paule had this thyrst he consented to the law of God that it ought so to be but he found an other lust in his members cōtrary to the lust desire of his mynde that letted him and therefore cryed out saying Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliuer me from this body of death thankes bee to God through Iesus Christ The righteousnes that before God is of value is to beleue the promises of God after the law hath confounded the conscience As when the temporall law ofttymes condenmeth the thefe or murtherer bringeth him to execution so that he seeth nothyng before him but present death and then commeth good tydinges a charter frō the kyng and deliuereth hym Likewise when Gods law hath brought the sinner into knowledge of himselfe and hath confounded his conscience opened vnto him the wrath and vengeaunce of God then commeth good tydinges the Euangelion sheweth vnto him the promises of God in Christ and how that Christ hath purchased pardon for him hath satisfied the law for him and peased the wrath of God And the poore sinner beleueth laudeth and thāketh God through Christ and breaketh out into exceedyng inward ioy and gladnes for that he hath escaped so great wrath so heauy vengeaunce so fearefull and so euerlastyng a death And he henceforth is an hūgred and a thurst after more righteousnes that he might fulfill the law mourneth continually commendyng hys weakenes vnto God in the bloud of our Sauiour Christ Iesus Here shall ye see compendiously and playnly set out the order and practise of euery thyng afore rehearsed The fall of Adam hath made vs heyres of the vengeaunce and wrath of God and heyres of eternall damnatiō And hath brought vs into captiuitie and bondage vnder the deuill And the deuill is our Lord and our ruler our head our gouernour our Prince yea and our God And our will is locked and knit faster vnto the will of the deuill then could an hundred thousand chaines bynde a man vnto a post Vnto the deuils will consent we with all our hartes with all our myndes with all our might power strēgth will and lust so that the law and will of the deuill is written as well in our harts as in our members and we runne headlong after the deuill with full seale and the whole swyng of all the power we haue as a stone cast vp into the ayre cōmeth downe naturally of his owne selfe with all the violence and swyng of his owne wayght With what poyson deadly and venemous hate hateth a man hys enemy With howe great malice of mynde inwardly do we slea and murther With what violence and rage yea and with how feruent lust commit we aduoutrie fornication and such like vncleannes with what pleasure and delectation inwardly serueth a glotton his belly With what diligence deceaue we How busily seke we the thinges of this world What soeuer we doe thinke or imaginne is abhominable in the sight of God For we can referre nothyng vnto the honour of God neither is his law or will written in our members or in our hartes neither is there any more power in vs to folow the will of God then in a stone to ascende vpward of hys owne selfe And beside that we are as it were a slepe in so depe blindnes that we cā neither see nor feele in what misery thraldome and wretchednes we are in till Moses come and wake vs and publish the law When we heare the law truly preached how that we ought to loue and honour God with all our strength and might from the low bottome of the hart because he hath created vs and both heauen and earth for our sakes and made vs Lord
2. To pray for all mē and all degrees saying that to bee acceptable vnto our Sauiour God whiche will haue all men saued and come to the knowledge of the truth that is some of al natiōs and all degrees not the Iewes onely For sayth hee there is one God and one mediatour betwene God and man the man Christ Iesus whiche gaue him selfe a redemption and full satisfaction for all men Let this therefore be an vndoubted Article of thy fayth not of an hystorie fayth as thou beleuest a gest of Alexander or of the old Romains but of a liuely fayth and belefe to put thy trust and confidēce in and to by and sell theron as we say and to haue thy sinnes takē away and thy soule saued thereby if thou hold it fast and to continue euer in sinne and to haue thy soule damned if thou let it slip that our Iesus our Saniour that saueth his people from their sinnes our Christ that is our kyng ouer all sinne death and hell annoynted with fulnesse of all grace and with the spirite of God to distribute vnto all men hath accordyng vnto the Epistle to the Hebrues all the scripture in the dayes of his mortall flesh with fastyng praying sufferyng and crying to God mightily for vs with shedyng his bloud made full satisfaction both a poena a culpa with our holy fathers leaue for all the sinnes of the world both of theirs that went before of theirs that come after in the faith whether it be Original sinne or actual not onely the sinnes cōmitted with consent to euill in tyme of ignoraunce before the knowledge of the truth but also the sinnes done of frailtie after we haue forsaken euill and cōsented to the lawes of God in our harts promising to folow Christ and walke in the light of his doctrine Hee saueth his people from their sinnes Math. 1. and that he onely So that there is no other name to be saued by Actes 4. And vnto hym beare all the Prophets recorde that all that beleue in hym shall receaue remission of their sinnes in his name Actes 10. And by him onely we haue an entring in vnto the father and vnto all grace Ephe. 2. 3. and Rom. 5. And as many as come before hym are theues murtherers Iohn 10. That is whosoeuer preacheth any other forginenesse of sinne then through fayth in hys name the same slayeth the soule This to be true not onely of originall but of actual and aswel of that we commit after our profession as before mayst thou euidently see by the ensamples of the Scripture Christ forgaue the woman taken in adulterie Iohn 8 and an other whom be healed Iohn 5 And he forgaue Publicanes and open sinners and put none to do penaunce as they call it for to make satisfactiō for the sinne which he forgaue through repentaunce fayth but enioyned them the lyfe of penaunce the profession of their Baptisme to tame the flesh in kepyng the commaundementes and that they should sinne no more And those sinners were for the most part Iewes and had their Originall sinne forgiuen them before through fayth in the Testament of God Christ forgaue his Apostles their actuall sinnes after their professiō which they committed in denyeng hym put none to do penaunce for satisfactiō Peter Actes 2. absolueth the Iewes thorough repentaunce and fayth from their actuall sinnes whiche they dyd in consentyng vnto Christes death and enioyned them no penaūce to make satisfaction Paul also had his actuall sinnes forgiuen hym frely thorough repentaunce and fayth without mention of satisfactiō Actes 9. So that accordyng vnto this present texte of Iohu If it chaūce vs to sinne of frailtie let vs not dispayre for we haue an aduocate and intercessour a true attorney with the father Iesus Christ righteous toward God and man and is the reconcilyng and satisfaction for our sinnes For Christes workes are perfect so that he hath obtained vs all mercy and hath set vs in the full state of grace and fauour of God and hath shade vs as welbeloued as the aungels of heauen though we be yet weake As the yoūg childrē though they can do no good at all are yet as tenderly beloued as the old And God for Christes sake hath promised that whatsoeuer euil we shal do yet if we turne and repent he will neuer more thinke on our sinnes Thou wilt say God forgiueth the displeasure but we must suffer payne to satisfie the righteousnes of God A then God hath a righteousnes whiche may not forgeue paine al y t the poore sinner shuld go skotfre without ought at all God was vnrighteous to forgiue the theefe his payne and all thorough repentaunce faith vnto whom for lack of laysure was no penasice enioyned And my faith is that whatsoeuer exāple of mercy God hath shewed one that same he hath promised all ye will he peraduenture forgiue me but I must make amendes If I owe you xx l. ye will forgiue me that is ye will no more be angry with me but I shal pay you the. xx poundes O Popishe forgiuenesse with whom it goeth after the common prouerbe no peny no pardon His fatherhode giueth pardō frely but we must pay money aboundantly Paules doctrine is Rom. 9. if a man worke it ought not to be sayd that his hyre was giuē hym of grace or fauour but of dutie But to hym that worketh not but beleueth in hym that iustifieth the vngodly his faith he sayth not his workes although he commaundeth vs diligently to worke and despiseth none that God commaūdeth his faith saith hee is rekened hym for hys righteousnes Confirmyng his saying with the testimonie of the prophet Dauid in the 32. Psalme saying Blessed is the man vnto whō God imputeth or rekeneth not his sinne that is to say which man although he be a sinner yet God layeth not it to his charge for his faithes sake And in the. xi hee sayth If it come of grace then it cōmeth not of works For then were grace no grace sayth he For it was a very straunge speakyng in Paules cares to call that grace that came of deseruyng of workes Or that deseruyng of workes whiche came by grace for he rekened workes grace to be contrary in such maner of speach But our holy father hath coupled thē together of pure liberalitie I dare say not for couetousnes For as his holynesse if hee haue a cause agaynst any man immediatly bretheth out an excommunication vppon hym and will haue satisfaction for the vttermost farthing and somwhat aboue to teach thē to beware agaynst an other tyme yet he will blesse agayne from the terrible sentence of his heauy curse euen so of that blessed complection hee describeth the nature of the mercy of God that God will remitte his anger to vs vppon the appointment of our satisfaction When the Scripture sayth Christ is our
rayne bow to be a signe of the promises and for to make it the better beleued and to kepe it in mynde for euer he sayd when I bryng cloudes vpon the earth I will put my bow in the cloudes and will looke on it and remember the euerlastyng couenaunt made betwene God and all liuing creatures And Abram whiche signifieth an excellent father he named Abraham the father of a great multitude of people because he had promised to make hym euen so and that his seede should be as the Starres as the sand of the Sea innumerable and that name gaue he him as a seale of the promise to confirme it and to strengthen the fayth of Abrahā and his posteritie and to kepe the promise in minde that they might haue wherewith to binde God and to coniure him as Moyses and the holy Prophetes euer do holdyng hym fast to his owne promise and binding him with his owne wordes and bringyng forth the obligation and seale therof in all tymes of necessitie and temptation After that he made a couenaūt with Abraham to be his God and the God of his posteritie and their shield defender and Abraham promised for him and his seede to be his people and to beleue and trust in him to kepe hys commaundementes which couenaunt God caused to be written in the flesh of Abraham and in the males of all hys posteritie commaundyng the males to be Circumcised the eight day or to be slayne whiche Circumcision was the seale and obligation of the sayd couenaūt to kepe it in minde and to testifie that it was an earnest thyng wherby God chalenged them to be his people and required the kepyng of his lawes of them and fayth to trust in him onely and in no other thyng for helpe and succour and all that can be nedeful and necessarie for man And wherby he cōdemned the disobediēt and rebellious and punished them and whereby also the godly chalenged hym to be theyr God and father and to helpe and succour them at neede and to minister all thyngs vnto them accordyng to all his promises And though the seale of this couenaunt were not written in the flesh of the females yet it serued the womankynd bound them to God to trust in him and to kepe his lawes as well as it dyd the men children the womankynd not Circumcised in the flesh yet through the helpe of the signe written in the males louyng Gods law trustyng wholly in hym were truly Circumcised in the hart and soule before God And as the mayde children beleuyng and louyng God wherunto the outward Circumcision bounde them were truly Circumcised before God Euen so the males hauyng the fleshe Circumcised yet not beleuyng nor louyng God whereunto the outward Circumcision bounde them were vncircumcised before God and God not bounde to them but had good right therby to punish them so that neither Circumcision or to be vncircumcised is ought worth as S. Paule sayth Rom. 2. saue for the keping of the law for if Circumcision helpe not to keepe the law so serueth it for nought but for to condemne And as the womankind vncircumcised were in as good case as the males that were Circumcised euen so the infātes of y t maydēs which dyed vncircumcised were in as good case as the infantes of males whiche dyed Circumcised And in as good case by the same rule were the men children that dyed before the eight day or els let them tell why the couenaūt made betwene God and Abraham saued the manchilde as soone as it was borne yea as soone as it had lyfe in the mothers wombe for the couenaunt that God would be God of Abrahās seede went ouer the frute as soone as it had life and thē there is no reason but that the couenaunt must nedes pertayne to the males as soone as to the females Wherfore the couenaunt must needes saue the males vnto the eight day and then the couenaunt was that the ruler shoulde slay the males onely if their frēdes did not Circumcise them not that the Circumcision saued them but to testify the couenaunt onely And then it foloweth that the infantes that dye vnbaptised of vs Christen that would baptise them at due tyme and teach them to beleue in Christ are in as good case as these that dye Baptised for as the couenaunt made to the faith of Abraham went ouer his seede as sone as it had life before the signe was put on them euen so must needes the couenaunt made to all that beleue in Christes bloud go ouer that sede as soone as it hath lyfe in the mothers wombe before the signe be put on it For it is the couenaunt onely and not the signe that saueth vs though the signe be commaunded to be put on at due tyme to styrre vp fayth of the couenaunt that saueth vs and in stede of Circūcision came our Baptisme wher by we be receaued into the Religiō of Christ and made partaker of his passion and members of his Churche and whereby we are bounde to beleue in Christ and in the father through hym for the remission of sinnes and to kepe the law of Christ to loue eche other as he loued vs whereby if we thus beleue and loue we callyng God to be our father and to do his will shall receaue remission of our sinnes through the merites of Iesu Christ hys sonne as he hath promised So now by baptisme we be bounde to God and God to vs and the bond and seale of the couenaūt is writtē in our flesh by which seale or writting God chalengeth faith and loue vnder payne of iust damnation And we if we beleue and loue chalenge as it is aboue rehearsed all mercy and what soeuer we neede or els God must be an vntrue God And God hath bound vs Christen men to receaue this signe for our infirmities sake to be a witnes betwene hym and vs and also to put this signe vpon our childrē not bindyng vs to any appointed time but as it shal seme to vs most conuenient to bring them to the knowledge of God the father and of Christ and of their dutie to God and his law And as the Circūcised in the flesh and not in the hart hath no part in Gods good promises euen so they that bee baptised in the fleshe and not in hart hath no part in Christes bloud And as the Circumcised in the hart and not in the fleshe had part in Gods good promises Euen so a Turke vnbaptised because he either knoweth not that he ought to haue it or cannot for tyrānie if he beleue in Christ and loue as Christ did and taught then hath he his part in Christes bloud And though the outward Circumcision by the whiche God chalengeth them to do him seruice yea whether they would or not and by the whiche they were taught to beleue in God in the seede of Abraham
eyes at his last Supper when he offered hym selfe willyngly to dye for vs hys enemyes Whiche incomparable loue to commende bryng in Paules Argumentes so that this hys flocke may come together and be ioyned into one body one spirite and one people This done let hym come downe and accompanyed honestly with other Ministers come forth reuerently vnto the Lordes table the congregatioÌ„ now set round about it and also in their other conuenient scates the pastour exhorting them all to pray for grace faith and loue whiche all this Sacrament signifieth and putteth them in mynde of Then let there be read apertely and distinctly the vi Chapter of Iohn in their mother toung Wherby they may clearely vnderstand what it is to eate Christes flesh and to drinke his bloud This done and some brief prayer and prayse song or read let one or other minister read the xj chapter of the first to the Corinthians that the people might perceiue clearely of those woordes the mistery of this Christes Supper and wherfore he did institute it These with such lyke preparations and exhortations had I would euery man present should professe the Articles of our fayth openly in our mother toung and confesse his sinnes secretly vnto God praying intierly that hee would now vouchsafe to haue mercy vpon hym receiue his prayers glewe hys hart vnto hym by fayth and loue encrease his fayth geue hym grace to forgyue and to loue his neighbour as him selfe to garnish hys lyfe with purenes and innocency and to confirme hym in all goodnes and vertue Then againe it behoueth the curate to warne and exhorte euery man deepely to consider and expende with hym selfe the signification substauÌ„ce of this Sacrament so that he sit not downe an hipocrite and a dissembler sith God is searcher of hart and raines thoughtes and affectes and see that he come not to the holy table of the Lorde without that fayth whiche he professed at hys Baptisme and also that loue which the Sacrament preacheth and testifieth vnto hys hart lest hee now founde gilty of the body and bloud of the Lord that is to wytte a dissembler with Christes death and sclaunderous to the congregregation the body bloud of Christ receiue his own damnation And here let euery man fall downe vppon hys knees saying secretly with all deuotion their Pater noster in English theyr Curate as example kneelyng downe before them Which done let hym take the bread and eft the wyne in the sight of the people hearing him with a loude voyce with godly grauitie and after a Christen religious reuerence rehearsyng distinctly y e wordes of the Lordes Supper in their mother toung And theÌ„ distribute it to the ministers which taking the bread with great reuerence will deuide it to the congregation euery man breakyng and reaching it forth to hys next neighbour and member of the mistike body of Christ other ministers folowyng with the cuppes powring forth dealing them the wyne all together thus â—â—yng now partakers of one bread and one cuppe the chyng thereby signified and preached printed fast in their hartes But in this meanâ— while must the minister or pastour be readyng the communicatioÌ„ that Christ had with his Disciples after his Supper beginnyng at the washing of their feete so readyng till the bread wyne be eaten and dronken and all the action done And then let them all fall downe on their knees geuing thankes highly vnto God the father for this benefite and death of his sonne whereby now by faith euery man is assured of remission of his sinnes as this blessed Sacrament had put them in mynde and preached it them in this outward action and Supper This done let euery man commende and geue them selues whole to God and depart I would haue hereto put my name good Reader but I know well that thou regardest not who writeth but what is writteÌ„ thou estemest the word of the veritie and not of the authour And as for M. More whom the veritie most offendeth and doth but mocke it out when he cannot soyle it he knoweth my name well inough For the deuill his gardian as him selfe sayth commeth euery day into Purgatory if there be any day at all with his haynous and enuious laughter gnashing his teeth and grynnyng tellyng the Proctour with hys Popes prisoners what soeuer is here done or written against them both his person and name to And he is now I dare say as great with his gardian as euer he was If any man tel ye loe here is Christ or there is hee beleue hym not For there shall aryse false Christes false annoynted giuyng great miracles Take hede I haue told ye before if they therefore tell ye loe hee is in the desert go not forth loe hee is in the preuy pixe beleue it not FINIS A diligent and necessary Index or Table of the most notable thynges matters and woordes contayned in these workes of Master William Tyndall The letter A. signifieth the first columne and B. the second columne of the same side A. A Aron added nothyng to Moses law Representeth Christ euery true preacher 125. a Abbottes and Bysshops kepe MoÌ„kes in ignoraunce 361. a Abhominable blasphemie 330. a Abiectes from God who 25. a AbrahaÌ„ 303. his childreÌ„ haue his faith 45. a. and are the childreÌ„ of faith 63. a Abraham how iustified 334. a AbstineÌ„ce outward is hypocrisis 76. b. for common wealth sake is conunendable 228. a Abstainyng from Images 22. a AbsolutioÌ„ of the Popes Legate 181. b Abuse of Abbeyes 359. b. of confirmatioÌ„ 277. a. of Images 271. a. of scriptures and Sacraments by Papistes 13. b. 339. b. 427. b. 365. b. in prayer 249. b Actual sinne washed away in Christes bloud 32. a Adam must be ouerthrowen Christ put on 90. b Adelstone kyng 102. b Admonition 207. b. to blynde guides to rulers 341. a. to ministers 427. b. to More 251. a. to al subjectes 376. b to votaries 21. a Adrian the first Pope 349. a Adrian the ij and iij. 351. a Aduauncement of the Pope 348. b. of the Clergy 347. a Aduengers robbe God of his honour 178. b Aduoutry 205. a Adultery of Dauid 169. b Aduersaries to Christ knowen by their deedes 102. a Aduersitie how profitable 120. a Affinitie of the passeouer and Christes Supper 467. a Afflicted in this World wherewith coÌ„forted 190. a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 253. a Age to be preferred before youth 311. a. to be honored 345. b Agreement in doctrine betwene Papistes and Phariseis 17. b. and in Scriptures 265. a Albe 277. b Alchouse a pulpit for Papistes 2. a Allegories 166. a. not agreable to the text are false 167. b. their right vse 167. a. they proue nothing cause blindnes Well to be weyed How to be vnderstode 14. a. they are no sense of Scripture 167. a Almosse 217. a. and 228. a. What in signifieth 83. b. How truly bestowed 74. b Almose of
the poore become Peters patrimonie 352. b Altar 277. b Alteration of Gods word intollerable 23. a AlteratioÌ„ of bread into Christs body not proued by any scripture 465. b Alteration of thynges for the abuse therof 299. b Ambition 290. b. altereth her masters message 201. a Ambitious personnes haue neither fayth nor can doe good message 141. b Amendement of lyfe foloweth true faith 303. b. the same to be wished for 177. b Amendement may be in all thinges 393. a Amice 277. b Anger how no sinne 203. a Anker of our saluation 188. b Annoyntyng 408. b Annoyntyng of the head 227. a. and of Priestes sincerely 133. a Answere of the Popishe Churche 292. b. of Cloysterers to the poore 243. a Answere to the Papistes by Paule concernyng iustification 44. b Anselmus the Popes Chapleine 362. b Antichrist 406. b. What it signifieth 60. a. who it is 407. b Antichrist is knowen 286. b Antichrist his Churche 290. a. his properties 60. b Antichrist beleueth Christ to be commen in the fleshe 415. a. wresteth Scriptures 357. a Antichrist sendeth hys soorth with false names and signes 134. a Antichrist hath reigned among vs long tyme. 60. b. 407. a. subuerteth all thynges 162. b. turneth the roote vpward 130. a Antithesis betwene Christ and the Pope 175. b. betwene the Popes Church and Christes 292. b Antioch Peters see 358. b A poena culpa 151. a Apostles alledge not their owne authoritie 344. a. their fayth rayled on by Papistes 422. b. all had like authoritie of Christe 257. b. all sent out 358. a Apostles howe they blessed vs. 157. a. gaue vs no blynde ceremonies 129. a Apostles doubtfull 261. a. their ignoraunce 26. a Apostles howe they first celebrated the Lordes Supper 476. a. neither shauen shorne nor annointed 133. a. knew not the Popes vsurped authoritie 392. b Apostles taught thynges they write not 255. b. they taught obedience 340. preached Christ and not Peter 125. b. their doctrine is firme 256. b. must be cleaâ—ed vnto 40â— a Apostles preached repentauÌ„nce to the Iewes 28. a. made heretikes of the pope with their master Christ 265. a Apparaunt godlynesse in Popishe Decrees 312. a Appearaunce of godlynes 291. a Application of vowes 21. a Argumentes Popishe to bee noted 260. a. to know false Prophetes by 403. a Argumentes prouyng our saluation in Christ 432. a. Worthy notyng touchyng the Sacrament of the Lordes Supper 447. b Aristotle 103. a beleued of Papistes before Christ 61. b Aristotle and Plato cannot vnderstand the Scriptures 88. a Armour of the Popishe spiritualty 176. b. of a Christian man 423. a Armes sent into Fraunce 371. b A true story 369. a Attrition a new seyned word 148. b Auarice 405. a Aungels bound of the Pope 150. a Authority of Peter 358. b. of his successour onely is to preache 173. b. not aboue the rest 343. b Authoritie of the Pope 149. b. chalenged ouer God and man 150. a Auricular contession opened all secretes 116. b. standeth not with Gods Testament 155. b Austen his opinioÌ„ of the SacrameÌ„t Calleth it a signe of Christes body 474. b Austen his place of the Churche expouÌ„ded 266. a. he complayneth one hys tyme. 277. b B. BAdges of sundry fashions among the shauelynges 140. a Badge of loue 417. b Baggages superstitious 271. b Baggage all the Popes doctrine 248. b Balaam 251. a. 254. b Balaam an example 306. a Baptisme 14. b. 187. b. 226. a. description therof 14. b Baptisme figured by Circumcision compared with CircumcisioÌ„ 467. b. is euerlastyng 148. a. to vs as Circumcision to the Iewes 437. b Baptisme inward of the soule what 187. b â–ª Baptisme to what ende 411. a. teacheth repentaunce 14. b. what it woorketh in vs. 441. b. without fayth not auaylable ibidem Baptisme 〈◊〉 y t SacrameÌ„t of Christes Supper are most necessary 467. b Barren fayth without loue 332. b Bâ—…le betwene the spirite and the flesh 46. a Beauty of the tabernacle 9. a Beggers in times past not suffred to runne abroad 133. b Beggers Friers 355. a Begynnyng of penaunce and Purga toâ—… 97. b. of the Popes authoritie 352. b Behauiour in readyng Scriptures and Doctours 106. b Beleâ— in Christ what 131. a. in God and contempt of the world 7. b. of Christes humanitie and diuinitie 390. b Belefe in Gods promise iustifieth 117. b. in Christ 390. b Belefe must be takeÌ„ heede to 286. b Beâ—… of the resurrection is an article 〈◊〉 our fayth 431. b Belefe in Christ and that he dyed not alâ—â—e 130. b Belefe in God 238. b Beleuers in God whom 287. b. in man cursed 267. a Beleuers in Christ must folow him 132. b Beleuing remissioÌ„ of sinnes in Christ 321. a Belly Gods reproued of Christ 457. a Bels christined 152. a Benefite of Christes death of whom receaued 443. b Beren garius kyng of Lombardy 352. a â—…wyng of benefices wickedly 360. a Bibles searched for to bee burned 454. b 〈…〉 straunge worde to Popishe Curates 102. a 〈…〉 warnyng to y â— godly 454. b Byndyng lowsing 123. by the meanyng therof 174. a. and 150. a. b Byndyng and lowsing commeth thoroâ—…chyng 15. a. are of one 〈…〉 174. a Bâ—… 1â—4 a. and â—4â— b. ouerse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a. why ordayned 251. b Byshop described â—4 a Bysâ—… of Fraunce 114. b. of â—yn 〈…〉 b. 〈◊〉 Alâ—…e 114. b. of 〈…〉 â—â—essed downe the 〈◊〉 1â—… a 〈…〉 of Rome 〈◊〉 the proue 〈…〉 Their ofâ—… in primitiue 〈…〉 346. b 〈…〉 must not be â—â—gitiue 2â—2 a. 〈◊〉 should be 〈…〉 and not 〈…〉 285. b Bâ—â—hops 〈…〉 all 〈◊〉 b. they perseâ—… 114. b 〈…〉 not swâ—… 〈◊〉 kynges but 〈…〉 to them 〈◊〉 b. they 〈…〉 141. a 〈…〉 thâ—◠〈…〉 or reach false doctrine none of Gods annoynted 135. b Bishop of Durham 374. a Birdes and beastes examples of securitie 334. a Blasing of armes 113. a. and of hypocrites 291. b Blasphemy of Christes death by papistes 16. b Blessed who 34. b Blessednes through whom 394. a Blessyng 110. a. of God to Abraham 436. b. of Bishops 157. a Blessyng what it meaneth 145. a Blindnes through Allegories 14. a. of the Iewes 457. a. of our nature 44. a Bloud of Christ in whom lost 132. b Bloud of fayth feedeth Christ Gospell 453. b Bloud of Christ washeth away actual sinne 32. a. maketh perfect our workes 31. a Bloud sacrifices 424. b Bodyly exercise 280. a Bodyly seruice satisfieth not God 184. b. and 284. a. nor purgeth the soule 306. b Bodyly eatyng of Christe profiteth not 464. b Body of Christ spirituall in the Sacrament 310. b. naturally not in the Sacrament 316. b Body and bloud of Christ how to be receiued 316. b Body subiect to the Prince soule to God 271. b Boldnes of spirite in Christes cause bringeth immortalitie 454. a Bones not to be worâ—hypped 281. b Boniface the thyrd 347. b Bootes 134. b Borne of God all that loue hym 416. a Borowed spech 397. a Bountifulnes towarde our neighbour 383.
grouÌ„ded and stablished in the fayth are in hys â—ight without faulte for their sinnes are not imputed vnto them but forgeuen through Christes bloud wherfore of necessitie I must conclude that no faythfull shall euer come there Euery man that departeth this world is either faithfull or vnfaithful if he be faithful then commeth he not there as y e foresaid argumeÌ„t proueth And if he be vnfaythfull theÌ„ commeth he neuer in Purgatory but is all ready damned Iohn iij. Marke the last Now if neither â—aythfull nor vnfaithfull enter into it then should it be in vayne but there is nothyng made in vaine wherfore I must conclude that there is no such Purgatory Paule sayth he that spared not his owne sonne but deliuered him for vs all how shal he not with him geue vs all thynges also who shall lay any thyng to the charge of Gods chosen Roma viij Forsooth Lord God our prelates lay so sore vnto their charge that they would haue them broyle in Purgatory But Lord be our protectour for it is thou that iustifiest vs hast fréely geuen vs all thynge with him Roma viij Paule sayth the law of the spirite wherein is lyfe through Christ Iesu hath deliuered me from the lawe of sinne and death Roma viij Seyng we be so deliuered what nâ—…de vs seke an other deliueraunce specially â—ith they make it so paynefull Sâ—yng we are on y e maner deliuered how â—hauÌ„ceth it that we are taken prisoners agayne vnder sinne that we must be purged a fresh by the fire of Purgatory I pray God geue vs grace that we may be purged froÌ„ this our blynd ignoraunce thorough hys spirite of knowledge that we may perceaue how it is Iesus Christ that purgeth our sinnes and hath deliuered vs thorough his bloudshedyng So should we geue hym the prayse whiche hath deserued it And not be so vnkind vnto hym as we now be Paule sayth y e there is no condeÌ„natioÌ„ to them which are in Christ Iesu Roma 8. But if we continue firme stable in Christ vnto the end theÌ„ shall we be saued Math. 24. what néedeth theÌ„ purgatory yea what should purgatory doe Is not Christ sufficient theÌ„ is our faith in vayne And if he be sufficient theÌ„ is Purgatory in vayne Paule sayth if you be iustified by the law then is Christ dead in vayne Now if the lawe beyng good iust and holy Roma vij And euen of Gods owne makyng caÌ„ not iustifie vs thinkest thou to be iustified by fryenge in Purgatory They that are the chief patrones and proctours of Purgatory do fayne it for no other intent but to purgeeuill workes and to be as a penaunce to supply the good workes whiche we lacked beyng in this world But all this can not bryng vs into heaueÌ„ For then were Christ dead in vayne And of this haue we euident examples Abraham Isaac Iacob Dauid and all holy Prophetes were excluded from heauen vntill Christe had suffered death this all men testifie But if good workes or penaunce could haue brought them to heauen they should not haue taryed out of it so loÌ„g Therfore I may conclude that it is but vanitie to imagine a Purgatory for to purge euill workes and supply good For as I haue shewed that holpe not the Patriarches Peraduenture thou wilt say vnto me shall I then do no good workes I aunswere yes Thou wilt aske me wherfore I aunswere thou must do them because God hath commauÌ„ded them Thou wilt say for what intent hath he commaunded them I aunswere because thou art liuing in this world and must nedes haue conuersation with men therfore hath God appointed â—hée what thou shalt doe to the profite of thy neighbour and tamyng of thy flesh As Paule testifieth Ephes 2. we are his worke made in Christ Iesu to good woorkes whiche woorkes God hath prepared that we should walke in them These workes God would haue vs doe that the vnfaythfull might sée the godly and vertuous conuersation of his faythfull thereby be compelled to glorifie our father whiche is in heauen Math. v. And so are they both profitable for thy neighbour and also a testimonie vnto thée by the which meÌ„ may know that thou art the right sonne of thy heaueÌ„ly father and a very Christe vnto thy neighbour and euen as our heauenly father gaue his Christ vnto vs not for any profit that he should haue ther by but onely for our profite likewise y â— shouldest do all thy good workes not hauing respect what coÌ„modities thou shalt haue of it but euer attendyng through charitie the wealth and profite of thy neighbour Thou wilt yet obiect then sée I no great profite that I shall haue by them I aunswere what wouldest y â— haue First Christ is geuen thée fréely and with him hast thou all thinges He is thy wisedome righteousnes halowyng and redemption i. Cor. i. by him art thou made inheritour of God and felowheyre with Christ Roma viij This is fréely geuen thée with Christ before thou wast borne thorough the fauour and election of God whiche election was done before the foundations of the world were cast Ephes i. Now were thou very fonde and vnkynde if thou thoughtest to purchase by thy workes the thyng which is already geueÌ„ thée Therefore must thou do thy workes with a single eye hauyng neither respect vnto the ioyes of heaueÌ„ neither yet to the paynes of hell but onely do them for the profite of thy neighbour as God commaundeth thée and let him a lone with the residue To this well agréeth Paule Ephe. 2. saying by grace are ye made safe through fayth and that commeth not of your selues but it is y t gift of God coÌ„meth not of workes lest any man should boast him selfe Loe here sayth Paule playnly that our saluatioÌ„ is the gift of God coÌ„meth not of workes if it come not of workes then are we worse then mad to fayne a Purgatory For the chiefest operation of that should be but to supply the woorkes which we haue not accomplished beyng in this body Paule sayth Roma xi The remnaunt which are left at this time are through the election of grace If it be through grace theÌ„ is it not by workes for then grace were no grace Or if it be for the workes sake so is it not of fauour and grace accordyng to that which he wrote before Roma iiij If AbrahaÌ„ sayth Paul were iustified by his workes then may he reioyse but not before God But what sayth the Scripture Abraham beleued God that was imputed vnto hym for righteousnes for he that worketh receaueth his reward not of fauour but of dutye Now if it be duty then nedeth he not to thanke God but rather him selfe for theÌ„ God geueth him nothing but that which is his owne of dutye Where is then the prayse
are all ready damned in hell and some are all ready in heauen And to proue this true he alledgeth the parable of the rich mā Luke xv I am sure my Lord is not so ignoraūt as to say that a parable proueth any thyng But the right vse of a parable is this to expound an harde texte or poynte that was before touched could not entre into euery mans capacitie Neither are all thynges lyke which are spoken in a similitude neither yet all thynges true that are touched in a parable but we must consider the thyng wherefore they be spokē and apply them onely to that they are spoken for and let the residue go as William Tyndall hath well declared vnto you in the parable of wicked Mammon This parable is very hard to be expounded The cause is this no man can wel espye by the text for what purpose it was spoken But this should séeme to be the cause that there were many of the Phariseis other multitude which would not beleue the preaching of Christ although he confirmed his wordes with the authoritie of Moses and the Prophetes but they were curious and some deale phantasticall and therfore would they not beleue his woordes except some apparitions had bene made vnto thē that they might haue bene assured by them that were before dead that hys wordes were true Vnto such it is lyke that hee speaketh this parable playnly concludyng that they should haue no such apparitions of the dead and also that it was not necessary but that they had Moses the Prophetes to whom if they would geue no credence then should they not beleue although one of the dead should ryse againe tell it them Notwithstandyng let me graunt it hym that some are all ready in hell and some in heauen which thyng he shall neuer bee able to proue by the Scripture yea and which playnly destroyeth the resurrection and taketh awaye the argumentes wherewith Christ and Paule doe proue that we shall ryse yet I say let me graunt it hym to sée how he will cōclude What foloweth on that Neither it is credible sayth he that all whiche are cast into hell should streight way goe to heauen therfore must we put a Purgatorye where they may be purged I aunswere All that liue are faythfull or vnfaythfull If he be vnfaythfull then is he damned Iohn 3. If he beleue then is he not condemned but is gone from death to lyfe Iohn 3. 5. The righteous man when hee dyeth shall rest in peace Sapi. 3. And euery faithful mā is righteous before God as y t whole Epistle to the Romaines proueth Ergo then euery faythfull man shall rest in peace and be tormented in the paynes of Purgatory And as touchyng this poynte where they rest I dare be bold to say that they are in the hand of God and that God would that we should be ignoraunt where they be and not to take vpon vs to determine the matter Peraduenture you would enquire of me sith the parable sayth that Lazarus rested in Abrahams bosome what Abrahams bosome is To that would I aūswere that Abrahams bosome were nothyng els then Abrahams fayth For all we are called the children of Abraham because of hys perfite fayth whiche we ought to folow In this fayth are many and in a maner infinite degrées notwithstandyng if it be no greater thē a mustard séede that is to say very small yet shal it saue vs. He that departeth in this fayth resteth in peace and wayteth for the last day when God shall geue vnto hys faythfull that is to his elect for onely are the elect faythfull the faythfull elect the crowne of his glorie which he hath prepared for them that loue hym This crowne doth Paule say that he shall receaue it in that day 2. Timo. 4. that is in the day of iudgement And in the meane season God hath so prouided for vs that they shall wayte vntill the number of their brethren which dayly suffer and shall suffer for Christ be wholy fulfilled and so shall they not be made perfite without vs. Hebr. xj If my Lord will vnderstād by Abrahams bosome heauen I will not be contentious let the Christen iudge which sentence semeth most true But this is once a cleare case that of this he cā proue no Purgatory For the vnfaythfull are all ready dāned and the faythfull rest in peace let him call that what he wil whether to rest in heauen or to rest in their fayth vntill the last day For I am sure there is no man so madde as to say that to rest in peace should signifie to lye in the paynes of Purgatory Furthermore this text shal rather make sore agaynst hym thē any thyng with hym For Lazarus whiles hée was lyuyng was not without sinne nor no man els 1. Iohn 1. so that no man as long as he hath breath in hys body can say that he is without sinne for then should hee make S. Iohn a lyar And yet was not Lazarus caried into purgatory to be purged of his sinnes which were remainyng in his body the houre of his death wherefore I may conclude that there is no such Purgatory For God is as iust vnto hym as vnto vs and therefore would he purge hym as well as vs agayne he is as mercyfull vnto vs as vnto him and will as wel forgeue vs as hym without broyling on y t coales in purgatory for his iustice and mercye are euer one and not alterable But our perfite purgatiō is the pure bloud of Christ which washeth away the sinne of the world And albeit we euer haue the remnauntes and dregges of sinne and rebellion of our mēbers as long as we haue lyfe yet are they wholy finished in death for of such efficacitie is Christes death that it hath turned the death of hys faythfull which was layed vpon vs as the payne of sinne into a medicine agaynst sinne which fully cureth it and maketh an end of it as it was well figured in Golias that was slaine with hys owne sword ANd where as my Lord bryngeth for his purpose Math. xij that mē shal geue accoumptes of euery idle worde I haue soluted that before agaynst M. More that I thinke he shal say hym selfe that he is aunswered For if men shall geue a rekonyng for them on the day of dome as the text sayth that should rather argue that there were no Purgatory wherein those sinnes should be purged for if they had bene purged before of them then shoulde they not geue an accoumpte for them And if it proued any thyng at all it should proue that there were a Purgatory after domesday which no man was euer so foolish as to graunt But the true vnderstādyng of this text is this There are two kyndes of men one faythfull the other vnfaythfull The faythful through their fayth in Christes bloud are all
the eyes of thy mynde and haue geuen thée spirituall wisedome thorough the knowledge of his word boast not thy selfe of it but rather feare and tremble for a chargeable office is committed vnto thée whiche if thou fulfill it is lyke to cost thée thy life at one tyme or other with much trouble and persecution But if thou fulfill it not then shal that office be thy damnation For S. Paule sayth Wo is to me if I preach not And by the Prophet Ezechiel God saith If I say vnto the wicked that he shall dye the death thou shew hym not of it the wicked shall dye in his iniquitie but I shal require his bloud of thy hand But peraduenture our Diuines would expounde these textes onely vpon them that are sent and haue cure of soules Wherunto I answere that euery man whiche hath the light of Gods worde reuelated vnto hym is sent when soeuer he séeth necessitie hath cure of his neighbours soule As by example If God haue geuen me my sight and I perceiue a blynde man goyng in the way which is ready for lacke of sight to fall into a pytte wherein he were lyke to perish then am I bounde by Gods commaundement to guide hym till hee were past that ieopardy or els if he perish there in where I might haue deliuered hym his bloud shal be required of my hand And lykewise if I perceiue my my neighbour lyke to perish for lacke of Christes doctrine then am I boūd to instruct hym with the knowledge that God hath geuen mee or els hys bloud shal be required of my hand Paraduenture they will say that there is all ready one appoynted to watch the pitte and therefore if any man fall into it he shall make it good and that therfore I am discharged néede to take no thought Wherunto I aunswere I would be glad that it so were Notwithstandyng if I perceaue that the watchman be a sléepe or runne to y t ale house to make good cheare or gone out of the countrey a whorehunting and thorough his necligence espy my neighbour in daunger of the pitte then am I neuerthelesse bounde to leade hym from it I thinke that God hath sent me at that tyme to saue that soule frō perishyng And the law of God and nature byndeth me therto which chargeth me to loue my neighbour as my selfe and to doe vnto hym as I would be done to And I thinke there is no mā that is in this case but he would haue hys neighbour to helpe hym and therfore is he bound to helpe his neighbour if he be in lyke ieopardy And euen thus art thou bound to geue good counsell to hym that lacketh it to distribute what soeuer talent thou hast receiued of God vnto the profite of thy neighbour Moreouer besides that ye can not auoyde this my solution yet I desire you to note how the text it selfe which I alleged doth condemne your vayne obiection the wordes are these Ezech. iij. If I say vnto the wicked that he shall dye the death and thou shewe him not of it the wicked shall die in his iniquitie but I shall require his bloud of thy hande Marke I pray you that the Prophet saith not as you obiect that he which should shewe the wicked his iniquitie and doth not so shall perish only and the wicked hym selfe to be saued bicause his faut was told him by him which take charge to teach him But contrarywise y e wicked shall perishe in his iniquitie saith God by his prophet Ezechiel and his bloud shall be required of the hand of him which should haue instructed him in the truthe If God haue geuen thée faythe in Christes bloude be not proude of it but feare for sith God hathe not spared the naturall braunches I meane the Iewes which were hys elect people sith he spared not the angels that sinned but hath cast them into hell to be reserued vnto iudgement sithe he spared not the olde worlde but ouerwhelmed them with waters deliueryng Noe the preacher of righteousnes take héede lest he also spare not thée Truth it is that where fayth is present no sinne can be imputed but this faith is not in thy power for it is the gift of God And therfore if thou be vnkynde endeuour not thy selfe to walke innocently to bryng forth the fruites of fayth it is to be feared that for thyne vnkyndnesse God will take it from thée and hyer out his vyneyard to an other whiche shall restore the fruite in due seasō and then shall thyne end be worse then thy begynnyng Let vs therfore with feare and tremblyng séeke our health and make stable our vocation and electiō mortifiyng our members and man of sinne by exercising our selues in Christes preceptes that we may be the children of our father that is in heauen and felow heyers with our Sauiour and brother Christ Iesu If God haue geuen thée riches thou mayst not thincke that he hath committed them vnto thée for thine owne vse only but that he hath made thée a stuard ouer them to destribute them to the profite of the commontie For indéede thou art not the verye owner of them but God is the owner whiche sayth by the Prophet Agge Golde is mine and siluer is mine and he hath committed them for a ceason to thy hande to sée whether thou wilt be faythfull in distributing thys wicked Mammon according to his commaundementes And that it so is thou mayst well note by the parable of the riche man whych was clothed in silke and fared delicately in this worlde and after was buryed in hell Wheruppon S. Gregory noteth that he was not damned because he despoiled any other mans but because he did not distribute his own as y t processe of y ◠Text doth also well declare Wherefore if we must geue accompts of all that is geuē vs then haue we litle cause to glory but rather to feare and tremble and to count him most happy to whom least is committed For God to whom this accomptes must be made can not be deluded although the world may be blinded If God haue geuen thée thy perfite limmes and members then gette to some occupation and woorke wyth thyne owne handes that thy members which are whole and perfite may minister to theyr necessitie that lacke theyr members for that is acceptable in the sight of God and the contrarye so detestable that if thou withdraw thy members from ayding thy neighboures thou shalt of God be recounted for a théefe and a murtherer And therfore I affirme that all our holy hypocrites and idle bellyed Monkes chanons and priestes whether they be regulare or seculare if they laboure not to preache Gods woorde are théeues and also murtherers for they maintaine their strong members in idlenesse which ought to labour for the profite of theyr neyghboures that theyr perfite members might minister vnto the necessitie
naturall inheritaunce is planted thorough Adams fall in vs as to be vnfaythfull angrie enuious couetous slouthfull proud and vngodly these and suche other vses wherewith oure nature is venemed ought we withall diligence to cutte of and mortifie that we may daily be more pacient liberall and mercifull according to that oure baptisme doth signifie In so much that a Christen mannes lyfe is nothing els saue a continuall baptisme whych is begon when are dipped in the water and is put in continuall vre and exercise as long as the infection of sinne remaineth in oure bodyes whych is neuer vtterly vanquished vntill the houre of death and there is the great Golias slayn wyth hys owne sweard that is deathe whych is the power of sinne and the gate of euerlasting lyfe opened vnto vs and thus is Paule to be vnderstand Galat. 3. where he saythe All ye that are baptised into Christ haue put Christe on you that is you haue promised to dye wyth Christe as touching youre sinnes and worldly desires passed and to become new meÌ„ or creatures or members of Christ this haue we all promised vnto the congregation and it is represented in our Baptisme But alas there are but few which in déede fulfil that they promise or rather that the Sacrament promiseth for them And for this cause it is called of Paule the fountaine of the new byrth and regeneration Tit. iij. bicause it signifieth that we will in déede renounce vtterly forsake our old life purge our meÌ„bers froÌ„ the workes of iniquitie thorough y e vertue of y e holy ghost which as the water or fire doth clense the body Euen so doth it purifie the hart from all vncleanesse yea it is a commoÌ„ phrase in Scripture to cal the holy ghost water and fire because these two elementes expresse so liuely hys purgyng operation Now haue we expounded the signification of Baptisme which significatioÌ„ we may obtaine onely by fayth for if thou be baptised a thousaÌ„d times with water haue no fayth it auayleth thée no more towardes God the it doth a Goose when she ducketh her selfe vnder the water Therefore if thou wilt obtaine the profite of Baptisme thou must haue fayth that is thou must bee surely persuaded that thou art newly borne agayne not by water onely but by water and the holy ghost Iohn iij. thou art â–ª become y e child of God that thy sinnes are not imputed to thée but forgeueÌ„ through y e bloud passion of Christ according vnto the promise of God This fayth haue neither y e deuils neither yet the wicked For the wicked caÌ„ not beleue y e remissioÌ„ of their sinnes but fall vnto vtter desperation and make God a lyer as much as in theÌ„ is For they beleue not the testimony which he gaue his sonne and this is that testimony that all which beleue on hym haue euerlastyng lyfe Iohn v. And the deuils can not beleue it for they haue no promise made vnto them Thus through Christes bloud wherof our Baptisme hath his full strength and vigour are we regenerate and made at one with the father For by our first naturall byrth we are the children of wrath Ephes ij and the enemyes of God Roma vj. Finally baptisme is an ordinaunce institute of God and no practise of mans imagination put in vse in Christes time and after his resurrection commaunded to be ministred vnto all that beleeue whether they were Iewes or Gentiles For Christ sayth to his Apostles Go ye teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost Wherfore although it séeme neuer so exterior a thing yet ought it to be had in great price and much reuerence because it was commauÌ„ded of God to be done Beside that it is an outward signe or witnesse vnto the coÌ„gregation of the inuisible promise geuen before by grace vnto euery priuate man and by it doth the congregation receiue hym openly to be couÌ„ted one of theÌ„ which was first receiued by faith or through the grace of the promise it putteth vs also in remembrauÌ„ce that we aduertising the kyndnesse of God and our promise in Baptisme may learne to dye and mortifie our rebellyng members otherwise gyueth it no grace nether hath it any secret vertue as we haue sufficiently proued and therfore is he sore to blame that so vnaduisedly condemneth these infaÌ„tes iudgyng his brother which is in Gods hand yea and peraduenture baptised in Christes bloud For Gods election is vnknowen to man Now will I endeuour my selfe to ouerthrow and vtterly put out the second errour whiche hath long raigned and seduced many and that is of them which so strongly sticke vnto the weake ceremonies Concerning the ceremonies of Baptisme yea and all other we must behaue our selues wisely as charitie teacheth vs séekyng the profite of many that they may be saued We must coÌ„sider that we haue our conuersation with men in this world of the which the most part know not God Some are young some weake some peruerse and some stiffenecked and obdurate vnto the young ceremonies which although they be not noysome vnto the fayth nor contrary to the word of God yet will it be hard to finde such They are good and expedient as milke to leade the young tenderly into the more perfite knowledge of God The second sort are the weake vnto whom in all thynges it behoueth vs to haue respect beare their infirmities by charitie for their sake Actes xv dyd Paule circumcise Timothe yea and for their sake hée had leuer to captiue his libertie and neuer eate flesh nor drinke wyne theÌ„ to offende one of them The thyrde kynd of men are perfite I meane not so perfit that they are cleane without sinne hauyng no remnauntes of old AdaÌ„ assailyng them for such are there none but onely Christ but I call theÌ„ perfite which haue perfit knowledge in the vse of thynges whiche know that what soeuer entreth into the belly deffâ—eth not the man which know that all such thynges be pure vnto theÌ„ that are pure Tit. i. whiche know that if we eate we are nothyng the better or if we eate not we are nothyng the worse 1. Cor. 8. these are frée betwene God their conscieÌ„ce may vse all thinges howbeit they are yet bounde as coÌ„cernyng their neighbour whiche is weake and hath not the knowledge yea bound vnder the payne of sinne to abstaine from wouÌ„dyng of their coÌ„science for he sinneth against God that woundeth an other mans conscieÌ„ce 1. Cor. 8. The fourth kynde are selfe willed and obstinate which put confidence in such indifferent thynges For I thinke them not néedefull vnto our saluation Then ought we to resist in the face and not to yeld an inche vnto them as Paule geueth vs example which would not for theyr pleasure circumcise Titus but vtterly
ye haue as it appeareth vnto you the euident wordes of Christ and therefore consiste in the barke of the letter yet are we compelled by conferring of the scriptures together within the letter to searche out the mynde of our Sauiour which spake the wordes And we say thirdly that we do it not of an obstinate mynde For he that defendeth a cause obstinately whether it be true or false is euer to be reprehended But we do it to satisfie our coÌ„scieÌ„ces which are coÌ„pelled by other places of Scripture reasons and Doctours so to iudge of it And euen so ought you to iudge of your partie and to defende your sentence not of obstinacie but by y e reason of Scriptures which cause you so to take it And so ought nether partie to dispise other for eche séeketh the glory of God and the true vnderstaÌ„ding of the Scripture This was the foundation of my first treatise that he hath left vnshakeÌ„ which is a great argumeÌ„t y â— it is very true For els hys pregnant wit could not haue passed it so cleane ouer but would haue assayled it with some sophisticall cauillation which by hys painted poetrie he might so haue coulered that at the lest he might make y e ignoraunt some appearance of truth as he hath done agaynst the residue of my first treatise which neuerthelesse is true and shall so be proued And first that it is none article of our fayth necessary to be beleued vnder payne of damnation may thus bee further confirmed The same fayth shall saue vs whiche saued the olde fathers before Christes incarnation But they were not bounde vnder payne of damnation to beleeue this pointe therefore it shall followe that we are not bounde therto vnder the payne of damnation The firste part of myne argument is proued by S. Agustine ad DurdamuÌ„ And I dare boldly say almost in an C. places For I thinke there be no propositioÌ„ which he doth more ofteÌ„ inculcate theÌ„ this y â— the same fayth saued vs which saued our fathers The second part is manifest that it néedeth no probation For how coulde they beleue y e thyng which was neuer saide nor done and without the word they could haue no fayth vppon the truth of these two parties must the conclusion nedes folow Notwithstanding they all dyd eate Christes bodye and dranke hys bloud spiritually although they â—ad hym not present to their téeth And by y e spirituall eating which is the fayth in his body and bloud were saued as well as we are For as soone as our forefather Adam had transgressed Gods precept and was fallen vnder condemnation our most mercyfull father of hys gracious fauour gaue hym the promise of health and comfort whereby as many as beleued it were saued from the thrauldome of their transgression the worde promise was this I shal put enmitie betwene thée and the woman betwene thy séede and her séede that séede shall treade thée on the head and thou shalt treade it on the hele In thys promise they had knowledge that Christe should become the séede or sonne of a woman and that he shoulde destroye the deuill with all his power and deliuer his faythfull from their sinnes And where he sayde that the deuyll should treade it on the hele they vnderstoode right well that the deuyll should finde the meanes by his wyles and wicked ministers to put Christ to death And they knew that God was true and would fulfill hys promise vnto them and hartely longed after this séede and so did both eate his body and drinke his bloud knowledging wyth infinite thankes that Christ should for their sinnes take y â— perfect nature of maÌ„hode vppon him and also suffer the death This promise was geuen to Adam and saued as many as did beleue and were thaÌ„k full to God for hys kyndnes and after it was established vnto our father Abraham by the word of God which sayde In thy séede shall all nacions of the earth be blessed And with hym God made a couenant that he would be his God and do him good And Abraham agayne promised to kéepe his preceptes and walke in his wayes Then God gaue him the sacrament of circumcision and called that his couenaunt which thing notwithstanding was not the very couenaunt in déede although it were so called But was onely a signe token â—acrament or memoryall of the couenaunt that was betwene God and hym which might expounde our matter if men had eyes to sée After that God promised him a sonne wheÌ„ his wife was past childe bearing and he also very olde Neuerthelesse he doubted not of Gods worde But surely beleued that he which promised it was able to performe it And that was recounted vnto hym for righteousnes This Abraham did both eate his body and drinke hys bloud through fayth beleuing verely that Christ should take our nature spring out of his séede as touching his fleshe and also that he shoulde suffer death to redéeme vs. And as Christe testifieth he hartely desired to sée the day of Christ And he sawe it and reioysed he sawe it in fayth and had the day of Christ that is to say all those thinges that shoulde chaunce hym playnely reuelated vnto him albeit he were dead many huÌ„dred yeares before it were actually fulfilled and reuelated vnto y e world And by that fayth was he saued and yet neuer did eate his fleshe with his téeth nor neuer beleued that bread shoulde be his bodye and wyne hys bloud And therfore sith he was also saued without that fayth and y e same fayth shall saue vs which saued hym I thinke that we shall also be saued if we eate him spiritually as he dyd although wee neuer beleue that the bread is his body Furthermore that mercifull Moses whiche brought the children of Israell out of Egypt into the wildernes obtayned of God by prayers both Manna from heaueÌ„ to féede his people and also water out of the stone to refreshe and comfort theÌ„ This Manna and water were euen the same thyng vnto them that the bread and wyne is to vs. For Saint Austen sayeth Quicunque in manna Christum intellexerunt eundem quem nos cibum spiritualem manducauerunt Quicunque autem de maÌ„na solam saturitatemquè sinerunt manducabant mortui sunt Sic etiam eundeÌ„ potuÌ„ petra enim erat christus That is to say as many as in that manna vnderstoode Christ did eate that same spirituall meate that we doe but as many as fought onely to fill their bellies of that manna the fathers of the vnfaythfull did eate and are dead And likewise y â— same drinke for the stone was Christ Here may you gather of S. Austen that the Manna was vnto them as y e bread is to vs and likewise that the water was to them as the wyne is to vs whiche anone shall appeare more playnly S. Austen sayth further
draught But this meate y t I here receaue is spirituall meate receaued with fayth norisheth vs euerlastyngly both body soule neuer entreth into the draught And euē as before the outwarde eyen doe sée the bread yet the outward eyen doe not regarde that or thinke vpō it So likewise the outward man digesteth the bread casteth it into the draught And yet the inward man doth not regarde that nor thinke vppon it But thinketh on the thyng it selfe that is signified by that bread And therfore sayd Chrisostome euen a litle before the wordes whiche they here alleaged lift vp your minde hartes sayd hée whereby hée monisheth vs to looke vppon and consider those heauenly thinges which are represented and signified by the bread and wyne not to marke the bread and wyne in it selfe Here they will say vnto me that it is not Chrisostomes mynde for by his example hée playnly shewith that there remaneth no bread nor wyne that I deny For the example in this place proueth no more but y t ye shall not think on y t bread wine no more then if they were not there but onely on that thyng whiche is signified by them And that ye may euidently perceiue by the wordes folowyng where hée saith thinke that the misteries are cōsumed by the substance of the body Nowe whether Chrisostome thought that there remained bread or no both wayes shall our purpose bée proued First if hée thought there remained still bread and wyne then we haue our purpose Now if he thought that the bread wyne remayned not but were chaūged then are the bread and wyne neither mysteries nor Sacramentes of the body and bloud of Christ For that that is not can neither bée mystery nor Sacrament Finally if hée speake of y e outward appearaunce of bread then we know that that remaineth still is not consumed by the substaunce of the body And therfore hée must néedes bée vnderstanded as I take him I thinke many men wonder how I can dye in this article seyng that it is no necessary article of our fayth for I graunt that neyther parte is an article necessary to bée beléeued vnder payne of damnation but leaue it as a thyng indifferent to thynke therein as God shall instill in euery mans mynde and that neyther parte condemne other for this matter but receiue eche other in brotherly loue reseruing eche others infirmitie to god The cause of my death is thys because I can not in conscience abiure and sweare that our Prelates opinion of the sacrament that is that the substaunce of bread and wine is verely chaunged into the fleshe and bloud of our sauiour Iesus Christ is an vndoubted article of the fayth necessary to bée beléeued vnder payne of damnation Now though this opinion were indéede true which thing they can neither proue true by scripture nor doctours yet coulde I not in conscience graunt that it shoulde bée an article of the fayth necessary to bée beléeued c. For there are many verities which yet may bée no such articles of our fayth It is true that I lay in yrons when I wrote this howbeit I would not haue you to receaue thys truth for an article of our fayth For you may thinke the contrary without all ieopardy of damnation ¶ The cause why I can not beleeue their opinion of transmutation is this 1 FIrst because I thinke verely that it is false and can neither hée proued by scripture nor faythfull doctours if they bée well pondered 2 The second cause is thys because I will not bynde the congregation of Christ by mine example to admitte any necessarye Article beside oure Creede and specially none such as can not bée prooued true by Scripture And I say that the Church as they caule it can not compell vs to receaue any such articles to bée of necessitie vnder payne of damnation 3 The thirde cause is because I dare not bée so presumptuous in entering into Gods iudgement as to make the prelates in this pointe a necessary article of our fayth For then I should damnably condemne all the Germanes Almaines with infinite moe which in déede doe not beléeue nor thinke that the substaūce of bread and wine is chaunged into the substaūce of Christes naturall body And surely I can not bée so foolishe hardy as to condemne such an infinite number for our prelates pleasures Thus all the Germaynes and Almaynes both of Luthers side and also of Oecolampadius doe wholy approue my matter And surely I thinke there is no man that hath a pure conscience but hée will thinke that I dye righteously For that this transubstantiation should bée a necessary article of the faith I thinke no man can say it with a good conscience although it were true in déede By me Iohn Frith An exact and diligent Table wherby you may readely turne to any speciall matter that is contained in all Iohn Frithes bookes 1572. A. ABraham 20 Abrahames bosome what it signified 55 Abraham by faith dyd eate Christes bodye and drinke Christes bloud 109 Ambrose opinion of Purgatory 52 Antithesis betweene Christ and the Pope 97 Argumentes to proue that Christes naturall body is not in the Sacrament 142 Articles of our faith are to bee beleeued vpon payne of damnation 111 Articles of our fayth are as many as are necessary for our saluation 145 Augustine beyng 400. yeares after Christ doubted of Purgatory 32 Augustines opinion of purgatory 52 B. BAptisme defined what it is 92 Baptisme is the founteine of our new byrth 94 Bishopricke in the primatiue church was a charge and not a Lordshyp 116 Blasphemie to saye that Christes bloud is not the full remission of our sinnes 11 Blessyng what it is 154 Bookes of the Machabees are not Canonicall 37 Bookes agaynst Rastall 60 Boasting that is modest is commendable 64 Body of Christe eaten by our fathers and his bloud dronke 109 Body of Christ is no more in the Sacrament thē a mans face in the glasse 146 Brethren is an auncient name in the holy Scripture 114 Bread and wyne remayne in the Sacrament 117 Bread why it is called our body 160 C. CAuse of our blyndnes and grosse errours 3 Causes why the Sacramentes were first instituted 112 Ceremonies of some sortes are guydes vnto the knowledge of God 95 Christ onely hath satisfied for our sinnes 14. 15 Christes merites putteth out the fier of Purgatory 14. 17. 18 Christ is our Aduocate 17 Christes sacrifice onely taketh away sinne 17. 38 Christ onely is our head 43 Christes death hath ouercōmed our death 55 Christ was meeke and gentle 57 Christ onely is the meane to put away our sinnes 73 Christes bloud is the strength of our Baptisme 94 Christ and the Pope compared togither 97. 98. 99. 100. 102. 103. 104. 105. 106 Christ is not to bee eatē carnally but spiritually 118. 119 Christes wordes are spirituall and not carnall 124 Christe gaue
of workes is excluded and yet will you boaste your workes Heare you not playnely S. Paules sentence that iudgeth clearely wyth fayth and agaynst all workes How can this bée auoyded Is it not cleare What can bée aunswere to it Is not thys Paules proposition that hée tooke to prooue faith onely iustifieth It were but lost labour for Paule to proue that workes did helpe to iustification For that the Iewes did graunt and required no more but that workes might not bée clearely excluded They were Christened and content to receiue Christ for their sauiour but not onely and alonely This was the contentation In so much that they gloryed agaynst the Gentiles which had no maner of workes and for that dispised them as people vnworthy to bée iustified But paraduenture here wyll bée sayde that Paule condemneth the workes of the olde lawe but not the workes of the newe lawe Are you nowe satisfied in your conscience Thinke you that you haue well assoyled S. Paules argumeÌ„t Thinke you that this is sufficient to auoyde Saint Paule that hath takeÌ„ so great labour to prooue this cause Thinke you that you shall bée thus discharged afore God If you doe then goe boldly into the straite iudgement of God with this euasion and doubt you not but there shall you finde S. Paule as stifly and as strongly against you and your newe workes as euer hée was agaynst the Iewes and theyr olde workes And if hée did condemne the works of the law that were instituted by the mouth of God and the best workes that euer were Thinke you that those workes that you haue inuented shal be there alowed Briefely what workes can you doe or excogitate that bée good which bée not in the olde lawe and of the olde lawe Ergo hée speaketh of all maner of workes for the lawe includeth all workes that euer God instituted The highest and the best and most of perfection of all workes bée Opera decalogi the workes of the ten Commaundementes And these bée the workes of the olde lawe and can not iustifie after your owne saying Nowe what workes haue you of the nowe lawe other then these or better then these Our mayster Christ sheweth that in fulfilling ij of these Commaundementes bée all workes included What workes then bée of the newe lawe that were not commaunded in the olde Paraduenture you will say All those workes that Christ speaketh of in the v. of Math. bée of the newe lawe and not of the olde For Christ sayth I say vnto you He that calleth his brother foole or that looketh on a woman to desire her and such like doth offend These séeme to bée workes of Christ and not of Moyses Ergo there bée works of the newe lawe that were not coÌ„maunded in the olde and against theÌ„ disputeth not S. Paule say yée To this I aunswere that our maister Christ doth there reprooue y t false interpretation that the Scribes and Pharysies did set to the lawe but hée teacheth no newe workes nor is no geuer of any newe lawe For Saint Iohn sayth The lawe is geuen thorough Moyses but grace and veritie came by Iesus Christ Hée is the géeuer of grace and mercy as all the prophetes testifieth and not an other Moyses And therfore to purchace vs fauour hée dyed on the crosse and so did not Moyses But hée commaundeth vs to doe this and doe that But Christ sayth hange thou on my doing beléeue thou that I haue done for thée for thée and not for mée Now to our purpose Christ I say doth interprete and declare the olde lawe agaynst the Scribes and Pharyses which learned that the lawe was fulfilled and content wyth outwarde workes and that was their iustification This false doctrine doth our mayster Christ reprooue And sayth that the lawe doth require a pure and a cleane hart and will haue hys workes fulfilled out of the hart and not alonely wyth hand and séete and toothe and nayle as the Pharyses sayth and teacheth So that our mayster Christ teacheth no new workes but alonely expresseth the vertue of the olde lawe And thus doth holy Doctours declare this v. chapiter of Math. and specially S. Augustine Wherfore out of that place caÌ„ not bée prooued that there bée certayne workes of the new law that were ueuer commaunded in the olde Moreouer looke in the olde lawe whether these thinges bée forbidden or commaunded and you shall finde that the wordes of the law and Christes exposition doth agrée So that our mayster teacheth no newe thyng nor yet any newe workes But now graunt that there bée certayne workes of the new lawe which bée not of the olde yet haue you not nor caÌ„ not prooue that those shall iustifie For there can bée no more goodnesse in workes then were in workes of the olde lawe for they were to Gods honour and to the profite of our neighbour What goodnes can works haue more And yet you graunt that they can not iustifie How then shall your newe workes iustifie Blessed Saint Paule disputeth agaynst them that were Christened and had both workes of the olde lawe and also of the newe And yet concludeth hee that Christ alonely was their iustifier Marke his argument if righteousnes coÌ„meth of the law then is Christ dead in vayne As hée woulde say if the lawe helpe to iustifie for that was the opinion of the Iewes then is not Christ alonely your iustifier If hée be not your iustifier alonely then is bée dead in vayne How will S. Paule proue this consequent On this maner Eyther Christ doth thys thyng alone or els hée is dead in vayne for hée will haue no helper Thys must néedes bée the meaning of hys argument there Now will I take this argument of S. Paule and likewise dispute agaynst your newe woorkes If newe woorkes doe helpe to iustifie then is Christ deade in vayne But Christ is not dead in vayne Ergo new workes doe not helpe to iustify The first part is Paules The second you graunt Therfore the third must â—â—edes folow But let vs sée how S. Paule proueth this preposition by an example not of the olde lawe as though hée disputed alonely agaynst the works of the ould lawe But by that holy and excellent Patriarch Abraham whoÌ„ no maner of workes coulde iustifye but fayth onely Thynke you y t S. Paule doth speake here of the workes of the ould lawe nay doubtles For how could AbrahaÌ„ doe y t works of lawe there was no lawe geueÌ„ 400. 30. yeares after wherefore S. Paule constrayneth you to conclude that no maner of good workes though they bée soe good as Abrahams workes can helpe to iustificacion Note also S. Paules argument AbrahaÌ„ was instified so many yeares before y t lawe was geuen Ergo saith hée the lawe doth not iustifie So like wise dispute I agaynst your newe workes Men were sufficiently and perfectly iustifyed alonely by fayth afore any new workes were geuen or
Lykewise was not Rahab the harlot iustified when she receiued the messengers and sent them out an other way S. Augustine doth declare in diuers places y t blessed S. Paule and S. Iames semed for to bée contrary in this matter And therefore S. Agustine willing to saue the estimacion of this epistle doth declare how that S. Paule doth speake of workes that goe béefore fayth and S. Iames speaketh of workes that folow fayth And yet S. Agustine will not bée compelled by the wordes of this epistle to graunt y e any workes doe iustifie by the reason that Saint Paules wordeâ— bée so appartly and vehemently to the contrary Wherefore séeing that there sheweth a controuersy here in two places of y e scripture it standeth with all reason and learning that the same place which séemeth for to bée féeblest also darkest should bée expounded and declared by that part of scripture that is clerest and most of autorite Now is this of truth that the auctoritie of S. Paule hath alwayes in the church of God béene more of estimacion and strength then euer was this epistle though that this epistle hath bene receyued and especially in this cause y t we now here speake of For in all the scripture is not this article of iustifycation so playnely and plenteouslye handled as it is by blessed S. Paule this must euery learned man graunt Wherfore it standeth with reason and lerning that this saying of Saint Iames must néedes bée reduced and brought vnto blessed S. Paules meaning not S. Paule vnto S. Iames saying Now therefore in as much that both blessed S. Paule and also Saint Iames meaning is that good workes should bée done and they y e bée christeÌ„ men should not bée idle and doe no good because that they are the childreÌ„ of grace but that they should rather in their lyuynge expresse outwardlye their goodnes receiued of grace and as blessed S. Paule sayth To geue their membres to bée seruantes vnto righteousnes as they were afore seruauntes vnto vncleanes For this cause I say S. Iames saying must néedes bée vnderstanded for to bée wrytten agaynst those men that bosted them selues of an idle and vayne opinion that they thought theÌ„ selues to haue which they reckened to bée a good fayth Now S. Iames to proue that this fayth was but an idle thing of none effect doth declare it clerely by y e that it brought forth in time and place conuenient no good works And therefore hée cauleth it a deade fayth Hée bryngeth in also a naked brother the wich hath néede of clothing vnto these men y t boasted their fayth which hath no compassion of his necessitie Wherefore hée concludeth y e that they haue no true fayth And therefore hée sayth vnto them shew vnto mée thy fayth without workes and I shall shew vnto thée of workes my fayth Heare is it playne that S. Iames would no more but that that fayth is a dead fayth and of no valure y e hath no workes For workes shoulde declare and shew the outwarde fayth workes should bée an outward declaration and a testimonie of y e inwarde iustification receiued of fayth not y e workes can or may take away our synne or els bée any satisfaction for any part of synne for that belongeth all onely to Christ As blessed S. Iohn sayth and also S. Paule hée hath appered once for al to put sinne to flight by the offering vp of hym selfe And that this is S. Iames meaning it is declared by that that foloweth Thou séest sayth hée that fayth wrought in Abrahams déedes through y e déedes was his fayth made perfect Marke how fayth wrought in hys déedes That is his fayth because it was a lyuyng fayth brought forth wrought out y e high worke of oblation Also his fayth was perfect through his déedes That is his fayth was declared and had a great testimonye afore all the worlde y e it was a lyuyng and a perfect and a right shapen faith that Abraham had So y t his inward fayth declared him afore God his outward workes afore the worlde to bée good and iustified And thus was his faith made perfect afore God and man Now vnto this doe we all agrée that y t fayth alonely iustifieth before God whiche in tyme and place doth worke well yea it is a liuyng thing of God which can not bée dead nor idle in man But yet for all that we doe geue to fayth and to Christes bloud that glory that belongeth to them onely that is to say iustificatioÌ„ remissioÌ„ of sinnes satisfieng of Gods wrath takyng awaye of euerlastyng vengeaunce purchasing of mercy fulfillyng of the law with all other like things The glorye of these I say belongeth to Christ onely we are pertakers of them by fayth in Christes bloud onely For it is no worke that receyueth the promise made in Christes bloud but fayth onely Take an example God sayth to Abraham In thy seede shall I blesse all people Now can Abrahams workes doe nothyng to receiuyng of this blessing nor yet can they make him hang on that séede but hée beléeueth God and sticketh fast by fayth to that promise and thinketh that God shall bée true though hée bée a lyer and so is hée partaker of the blessing made in y t séede Note also that this blessing is promised in Abrahams séede and not to Abrahams workes Ergo Abraham is blessed because hée hangeth on the séede not on his workes Also blessed S. Paule doth driue a sore argument agaynst workes in as much as Scripture sayth in semine non in seminibus quasi in multis sed in vno Now if workes doe helpe lesse or more to iustificatioÌ„ then must néedes the promise bée made and pertaine to many and not to one onely y e which were sore agaynste blessed S. Paule Wherefore I conclude that the glory and prayse of iustification belongeth onely to fayth in Christes bloud and not to workes in any wise NotwithstaÌ„dyng we doe also laude and prayse good workes and doe teach diligently to doe good workes in as much as God their maker hath commaunded them yea also to profite their neighbours by their good workes and furthermore that other men which blasphemeth the veritie might bée moued through their vertuous liuyng conuersatioÌ„ to the holy religioÌ„ of Christ For these causes and other moe I say doe I teach good meÌ„ to liue wel and vertuously yea also wée teach that good workes shall haue a reward of God as scripture testifieth but not remission of sinnes nor yet iustication for their rewarde Wherfore this saying of S. Iames must néedes bée verified against theÌ„ that boasted them selues of vayne fayth that was indéede but an idle opinion and no true fayth for it did worke thorough charitie And therfore S. Iames disputeth well agaynst them that this fayth was but a dead fayth and coâ—â— not helpe them no
Tyndall vpon the Gospell of Luke The Prologue of W. Tyndall vpon the Gospell of Iohn The epistle to the Romaynes to the excellentest part of the new Testament Here you must note these wordes law sinne c. Law how it is to be vnderstand The law of God requireth the bottom of our hartes S. Paul was a great persecutor of the christians If we be not willing to do good then doth sinne raign in vs. No man can fulfill the law but Christ onely The pâ—â—e and perfect kepyng of the law is to do the â—aâ—e of 〈◊〉 〈…〉 but oâ— inward loue The law encreaseth sinne The law is spiritual The spirite of god maketh a maÌ„ spirituall The law is good righteous and holy Workes of the law the fulfilling of the law are two things By the workes of the law no man can be iustified As the law is spiritual so it must be fulfilled spiritually Where true fayth is there is the spirit of God Our iustification is by fayth in Christ Out of true fayth springeth all good workeâ— Oâ—synne Sinne what it is Sinne in y â— scripture is chiefly called vnbe liefe Grace how it is vnderstand in the scriptures Gift what it is God for Christes sake receaueth vs. There is no damnation to theÌ„ that are in Christ Faith what it is False and fained faith True faith is liuely Fayth is not idle The true definition of fayth Good workeâ— cannot be separate from true fayth Righteousnes how it is to be vnderstaÌ„d Flesh spirite what they are â—ow to vnderstand them How this word fleshe is to be vnderstand in the Scripture Increduâ—â—tie is the chief of all sinnes Fleshe is here well described What soâ—euer procedeth of faith is spirituall A necessary and profitable instruction for all preachers The maner of S. PauÌ„les doctrine Nature is so blinde that we caÌ„not see nor vnderstand the goodnes of God hys mercy shewed vnto vs in Christ Iesu hys â—owne S. Paule coÌ„demneth all hipocrisiâ— How S. Paul rebuketh hypocrites The difference betwene the Iewe the Gentile All men are sinners The waye howe wee must bee made righteous Faith obteineth the fulfillyng of the law S. Paule auÌ„swereth to the caueling question that our Papistes vse agaynst iustificatioÌ„ of faith onely Good workes are ouâ— ward signes of true fayth Wee are first iustified theÌ„ foloweth good workes Gods mercy moueth vs to fayth in his promises so that God in al things worketh our iustification Gods mercy saueth vs and not we our selues If we lack Abrahams fayth we cannot be Abrahams children Fayth onely receaueth the grace that coÌ„meth by Abraham The frutes workes of fayth Fayth before all workes iustifieth Good workes are the fruites of fayth Where true fayth is there are good workes Where fayth lacketh there is all euill workes As by â—â—aÌ„ came sinne so by Christ came saluation The principall work of faith and the battaile betwen the spirite and the flesh What it is not to be vnder the law What it is to be vnder the lawe The right fredome libertie froÌ„ sinne and from the law Example Our consciences bound and in daunger to the lawe by olde Adam so loÌ„g as he liueth in vs. The law requireth of vs that which we cannot pay The law doth vtter and declare what sinne is What wâ— may do of our selues and what we may not do Where feare and shame is away there all wickednes is committed The fleshe is contrary to the sprite The sprite lusteth contrary to the flesh There is no daunger to theÌ„ that are in Christ The right worke of fayth is to mortify the flesh Predestiâ—… cion is in the handes of God How farre we may proceede in predestination Predestinâ—tion is not rashly to be disputed of Which are good workes mete to be done Loue is y â— fulfilling of the law We must deale louingly with our weake brethren The weaknes of our brethren is to be considered In the epistle to the Romaines is conteyned a sufficient doctrine for a Christen man Beware of the traditious of men This epistle declareth it self Weake and yong consciences as to be stubborne for the last shal receiue the equall reward with the first Loue fulfilleth the law It is the parte of a good shepherd to veÌ„ture hys lyfe for hys sheepe tribulatioÌ„ for the Gospell sake maketh vs sure of eternall lyfe All that repent are iustified thorough saith by Christ and not by workes The law condeÌ„neth but the beleuyng of Gods promises iustifieth In sekyng any other satisfaction theÌ„ Christ we beceauâ— our selues Hereby are we warned that workes saue vs not but the word that is the promise Mannes righteousnes zeale or imagination without Gods worde is odious For fayth when it is preached bringeth y e spirite and power to fulfill the law Who so hath a pure fayth can not but abouÌ„d with good workes Not the receauyng of the Gospel but the coÌ„tinuaunce to the latter ende maketh vs blessed He meaneth therby lest they should fall from the worde they had already receaued PatieÌ„ce in persecution for Christs sake rewarded with y â— crowne of euerlasting ioy and felicitie Hereby haue we euident signes that the latter day is at hand The office of a bishop The Pope his Prelates are here playnly set forth for what Christ loosed freely the Pope did bynd it to lose it agayne for money Vertuous Byshops are worthy double honor Byshops must be vigilant in their vocationâ— This hath already ben fulfilled in our spiritualtie What maner a man a Byshop or Curate ought to be Good deedes please god so farre foorth as they are applied to the kepyng of the commaundements but Christ onely iustifieth Christ is all to a Christen man MeÌ„ ought to rule theyr wiues with godâ— word To watch is not onely to abstaine from slepe but also to auoyde all occasions that may drawe vs to sinne As god reioyceth not in the dede it selfe â–ª so doth he not in â—…dle faith without works Good workes are a shew of our fayth as the fruit is of the tree He prophesieth of the popes spiritualtie The condition of the worlde shall waxe worse and worse Where 〈◊〉 true fayth is there are also good workes Christes bloud purchaseth forgeuenes of sinnes and not mans workes Whether this were Paules epistle or no great learned men haue doubted Some deny it to haue bene written by anye Apostle and refuse it as not Catholike A solution of the former doubts This not to be denied to be Paules Epistle Mercy is locked vp from hym which wilfully yeldeth his body 〈◊〉 soule to sinne No place in the scripture so plainly describeth the significations figures of the olde testament as this epistle doth This epistle for that it agreeth with the rest of the scripture ought to be of equal authoritie with the other This epistle is to be taken as holy scripture The papistes alleage this text for their purpose thorough misunderstandyng the same Fayth only
iustifieth The cause why W. Tyndall put his name to some bokes left it out in some William Roye a falâ—e Disciple Ierome a brother of Grenewich 2. Timo. 2. 2. Timo. 3. 2. Thess 2. 2. Cor. 10. 1. Cor 3. Actes 6. Antechrist what it is Scribes Phariseis were very Antechristes The properties of Antechrist 2. Cor. 11. Antechrist hath bene among vs a loÌ„g tyme. Iohn 〈◊〉 Antechrist accompteth it treason to bee acquainted w t Christ Galâ— 4. Luke 16. Math. 2â—… 2. Timo. 3. 1. Cor. 1 â–ª and. 2. Roma 10 â–ª Faith onely iustifieth Roma 1. Faith bringeth lyfe The law bryngeth death 1. Cor. 3. Ephe. 2. The Gospell is the ministratioÌ„ of righteousnes Resiste the deuill with the shield of fayth Faith is y â— holy canâ—de wherewith we must blesse our selues at y â— last houre Roma 3. Roma 4. Fayth is accompted to vs for righteousnes Gal. 3. The children of fayth are the children of Abraham Gal. 2. Fayth only iustifieth vs. Math. 7. Mat. â—2 A principle taught by Christ Fayth beyng ioyned with the worde of God bringeth forth good fruit Acts. 15. The law cannot iustify vs. Gal. 3. Fayth in christes promises doth iustify vs. Christ is the store-house of mercy for vs. The definition of true fayth Faith that bringeth not forth fruite is but a dreame Mat. 9. Faith is the gift of God Ephe. 2. The spirite of God accompanieth Faith Fayth of her selfe bringeth forth good frutes that is good workes True fayth is not with out good workes True fayth and good workes are the gift of God and come not of our selues The difference betwene false fayth and right faith As the tree is knowen by his fruit â—o right fayth is knowen by her fruit Example The frutes of fayth A differeÌ„ce betwene true faith fained faith Rome 9. Backeward disputations The kindnes of God moueth vs to loue god Fayth onely maketh vs the sonnes and heires of God Faith possesseth the spirite of God Workes declare fayth and Gods goodnes Goddes grace is to be exercised in vs. Where true fayth is good workes folow Gene. 2. The outward righteousnes the inward righteousnes what they are Outward workes declare where true fayth is Good workes are witnesses for vs before God Math. vi vij Math. 10. We must of duety do good workes without hope of reward Fayth maketh vs the sonnes and children of God Roma 8. Gala. 4. Math. 7. Math. 19. They that seeke heauâ— for theyr workes are such as vnderstand not the treasures of Christ Math. v. As good workes naturally folow fayth So eternal life foloweth fayth good lyuyng As good workes folow faith So hell foloweth euil workes Of our selues we are the vessels of y â— wrath of God and the heyres of daÌ„natioÌ„ To beleue in Christ is saluatioÌ„ To seeke heauen by good workes were to derogate the dignitie of the bloud of Christ All that is good is purchased for vs by Christ Sainteâ— can â—ot helpe vs in to heauen Math. â—5 1. Pet. 4. How â—â—e may make frendes of the wycked Mammon To do good to such as 〈…〉 is â—…able Rom. 9. All our righteouscommeth â—â—â—ely from Christ Mammon what it is Esay 61. Prou. 3. Ephe. 5. The dayes are called euil because euill men vse them We are bound by the law of nature to helpe our needye neighbour The vnrighteous Stuard who it is Christ is the father of all righteousnes Math. 5. For Christes bloud sake onely through fayth God is at one with vs. Christes bloud onely putteth away all sinne We must follow 〈◊〉 in 〈◊〉 â—oâ—ng Math. 〈◊〉 We may not do good worken to be praysed of the world We must 〈◊〉 to our neighbour â—s God is to vs. 〈◊〉 seeke to be praysed of men Rom. 6. Faith 〈◊〉 lâ— in 〈◊〉 vs and no good â—…e can be done without Faith Good workes are the 〈◊〉 of Faith 〈…〉 〈◊〉 Act. 7. Luke 23. True righteousnes springeth out of Christes bloud True fasting what it 〈◊〉 No fleshe can fulfill the lawe We cannot deserue forgeuenes of God but he of hys mercy pardoneth vs. Mat. 〈◊〉 A true bestowing of almes In Christ we are all in all We must do good workes because it is Gods will that we should do them We must heare the word of God and 〈◊〉 1. Ceâ— 2. Christ is our onely Phisitian to heale 〈◊〉 deliuer vs of our sins Christ is our ankerhold to saluation A Prophet what hee is Math. 12. The absteinyng from sinne outwardly is but hypocrisie Math. 19. To beleue vnfaynedly in Christ is to kepe the coÌ„maundementes The law is spirituall and requireth the hart If the rich helpe not y â— poore in their nede they are but theues before god Math. 27. Faith casteth our deuils Faith fasteth Faith prayeth Math. 25. In Christes bloud we are blessed from y â— curse of the law Luke 7. The law condeÌ„neth The Gosspell coÌ„forteth maketh vs saâ—e Certaine phrases of spech expounded Iohn 4. Where perfect loue to God is there are all good workes Luke 10. What it is to loue god withall our hart c. The true vnderstandyng of a parable We must euer be ready to helpe our neighbour Iohn 3. Iohn 15. 1. Iohn 1. Workes that the Papistes called workes more then the lawe requireth Luke 10. Luke 12. Whatsoeuer we haue we receaue it of the mercy goodnes of God The great diuersitie maner of the speaking of the Scriptures The sayinges of the Scriptures may not be grossely vnderstaÌ„d The naturall man vnderstandeth not the thinges of God Rom. 8. Iohn 8. The scripture is nothing els but that which the spirit of God hath spoken By Faith in Christ we are brought to the state of saluation God worketh his owne will with all his creatures If we beleue in god we must put of the olde man his works Good workes what they are and to what ende they serue Fasting the true vse thereof true fasting what it is Supersticious fasting Supersticious watching True watching Prayer what it iâ— True prayer True prayer is not without faith charitie Math. 5. He that repenteth his sinne is no sinner before God How we should pray for our neighbour Rom. 9. Christ is our righteousnes Loue amoÌ„g Christen meÌ„ maketh all thynges common Mans ImaginatioÌ„ cannot alter the law of god neither make it more or lesse Almesâ— what it is 1. Pet. 1. 1. Iohn 〈◊〉 He that is mercyfull hath the spirite of God Rom. 〈◊〉 Loue seketh not her owne profite 2. Cor. 12. Christ is all in all thynges Euery one must care for their owne housholdes First looke to thyne owne houshold and then to the poore We must for christes sake shew our coÌ„passion charitie to all men so far as our habilitie will extend Good workes what they arâ— 2. Cor. 9. We must do good workes yet put no trust in them God is no accepter of persons but receaueth all that submit them selues vnto him Math. â—0 As all
Apostles Paule is greater theÌ„ Peter Paul proued his Apostleshyp with preachyng and sufferyng The Byshops proue there Apostleshyp w t bulles shadowes The Apostles were sent of Christ w t like authoritie The authoritie that Christ gaue was to preache Christes word ☞ ☞ Why Byshops make them a god on earth AaroÌ„ made a calfe And the Pope maketh Bulles The shaueÌ„ nation hath put Christ out of hys â—owme and all kinges and the Emperour Christ is but a vaine name Proper ministers Rochester is proued both ignorant and malicious The Epistles of Paule are the Gospell What Gospell signifieth One Gospell one spirite one truth The authoritie of Paule and of hys Gospell Rochester playeth boâ— pepe Neuer maÌ„ for bad to marry saue the Pope The cause why they will not haue the scripture in Englishe Tully chiefe of Oratours Rochester alleageth Paule for his blinde ceremonies contrary to Paules doctrine It is not lawfull for vs to tell what prayer is what fasting is or wherefore it serueth Payne of cursing damnatioÌ„ and so forth If Paule had none authoritie theÌ„ had Peter none where had then the Pope this authoritie Rochester is improued Wherefore the spirituall officers are ordayned Rochester alleageth heretikes for his purpose for lacke of scripture Robynhode is of authoritie enough to proue the Pope withall Rochester is an Oratoure Rochester is cleane beside hymselfe If Rochester be such a iuggler What suppose ye of the rest let Rochester be an example therfore to iudge them all Faith is the roote and loue springeth of fayth Though Rochester haue not the spirite to iudge spirituall thinges yet ought reason to haue kept him from so shameful lying But God hath blynded him to bring their falshod to light The controuersy betwene Iames Paule Why deuils haue none of Paules fayth nor sinners that repent not A maÌ„ may beleue that Christ died and many other thynges 〈◊〉 not beleue in Christ What it is to beleue in Christ Why say men can not rule Men feare the Popes oyle more then Gods coÌ„maundement Fayth driueth y â— deuilâ— away Why doe not the Byshops make hym flee from shotyng of gunnes Ceremonies dyd not the miracle but fayth Let them tell what the ceremony meaneth The priest disguiseth hym selfe with the passion of Christ Domme ceremonies quench fayth and loue and make the infidels to mocke vs. The prophesie of Christ is fulfilled The testament of the obseruauntes False annoynted Christes prophesis â–ª be it neuer so terrible must be yet fulfilled Christ was neither shanen nor shorne nor annoynted with oyle Hee that doth ought to make satisfaction or to get heauen hath lost his parte of Christes bloud To our neighbour make we amendes The Apostles were neither shaue nor shoren nor annoynted with oyle Byshop an ouersear The true annoynting old Priest This oyle is not among our Byshops Priestes ought to to haue wiues why What the Priestes dutie is to do what to haue Men are not bound to pay the Priest in tithes by Gods law Deacon what it signifieth and what is his office No beggers How holy dayes and offerynges came vp Saintes were not yet Gods Why laÌ„des were geueÌ„ vnto the spirituall officers befor we fell from the fayth False annoynted Shauyng is borowed of the heathen and oylyng of y â— Iewes False names Lying signes No wife but â—n whore Take a dispensation Knaueate Bootes Miters Cite them Pose theÌ„ Make theÌ„ heretickes Burne theÌ„ Curse theÌ„ Feare theÌ„ All in Latine Rolle theÌ„ Syng Ryng Lulle theÌ„ Rocke theÌ„ a slepe Pray in Latin Say them a Gospell What quod my Lord of Canterbury Crosse Turmoylers The craft of the Prelates Interdict Peter 〈◊〉 neuer to schole at the arches The Pope hath one kyngdome more then God hymselfe Shering what it signifieth Tot quot Bishops that preach not Tithes Temporall landes Frechappell Testamentes Offering dayes Priuy tythes Mortuaries If he die froÌ„ home Thou must paye ere thou passe Pety pillage Confession First Masse Professinges Conturations Parson Vicare Parishe priest Fryers Spirituall lawe A proper commoditie of confession Laye your hand on the booke No man may aueÌ„ge saue the kyng â–ª and he is bound by his office Kinges are in captiuitie The dutie of kynges Vnlawfull othes ought to be broken and may without dispensation The kyng only ought to punish sinne I meane that is broken forth the hart must remaine to God The sprite perteineth vnto the shauen onely The kings law is Gods law How men ought to iudge questions of the scripture We come oft to schole But are neuer caught Kinges ought to see what they doe and not to beleue the Byshoppes namely seing their liuing is so sore suspects It perteineth vnto all men to know the scriptures ☞ Be learned ye that iudge the earth The kings are become Antichrists hangmen Be learned ye that iudge the earth Who slew the prophetes Why were the prophetes slayne What deedes of mercy teach the hipocrited Why flew they christ The keyes Christ is a traitor and a breaker of the kynges peace How the hypocrites bynde and lose ☞ Be learned ye that iudge the earth â—or rebukyng this 〈…〉 And for the same cause are we persecutes They bee 〈…〉 Purgatory that make perpetuâ—… Why it is 〈◊〉 Pur gatory Scala Câ—… The doore is stopt vys ye must clyme and scale the walles Some are prayed for and prayed to also The craft that helpeth other helpeth not his owne master Prayer was not sold in the old tyms Their prayer breaketh the great commaundement of God It is tyme that they were tyed by therfore The burdens of our spirituall lawyers Confession tormenteth the conscience robbeth the purse of money and the soule of fayth Bagges or bables to be knowen by Glorious names How are they estemed Kinges are down they can not go lower Our hypocrites lyue by theft ConscieÌ„ces that are so narrow about traditions haue wyde mouthes about gods coÌ„maundementes As the Iewes are the childreÌ„ of AbrahaÌ„ so are the Byshops the successours of the Apostles The spiritualty haue taught to feare their traditions They wynne somewhat alwayes ☜ They that seke honor haue no fayth neither can they do Gods message Be learned Gods wordought all men to know They do all secretly ☞ Gods wordought so iudge â—he right way to vnderstaÌ„d the scripture The kings haue a iudge before whom my soule for yours helpeth not Preach what thou wilt but rebuke nor hypocrisie The Prelates are clothed in red Pollaxeâ— Iudge the free by hys fruite and not by his leanes Sacramentes are signes of Gods promises The promise which the Sacrament preacheth iustifieth onely How the sacrameÌ„tes iustifie Matrimony was not ordeined to signifie any promise If wedlocke be holy why had they leuer haue whores theÌ„ wines Character Sacerdos Presbiter Priestes now ought not to be annointed with oyle The office of a Priest They will be holier but their deedes be not holy at all Compare their dedes to the doctrine end deedes of Christ
good worke except we beleue that our sinnes are forgeueÌ„ in Christ More Sinne. Tyndall More Vnbelâ—efe Tyndall More Frewill Tyndall We haue no freewill to preuent grace prepare our selues Math. 12. Iohn 5. 1. Cor. 6. The hearing of gods word causeth repentaunce Iohn 19. There can be no repeÌ„taunce in vs but god doth first worke in vs by hys grace More Tyndall All power that we haue to good or euil is of God But y e croked and naughty vsage of the same is of our owne câ—â—kerd corrupt nâ—ture More Matrimonye Tyndall Matrimony caÌ„ be no SacrameÌ„t except a doctrine be added therunto that the people may know the benefite of Christ that we haue by matrimony More Orders Tyndall No Sacrament is wtout signification More CoÌ„secrate Tyndall WomeÌ„ that are vertuous and discrete may in cases of necessitie minister the Sacramentes as well as the Priest More Sacrifice Tyndall In ensample The supper of the Lord is geuen vs to be a memoriall of his death once offered for all Christes memoriall Masse More Bread Tyndall The corrupt and vayne disputations of men to proue christ to be really in the Sacrament Iohn 〈◊〉 More Masse Tyndall The Sacrament of Christes body when it is faithfully ministred doth profite as many as do beleue in Christes death More Tyndall More Touch. Tyndall More Worship Tyndall The true worshipping of the SacrameÌ„t is to beleue that it is a true signe that Christ suffered death for vs. More Tyndall More Purgatory Tyndall More Soules sleepe Tyndall The soules departed rest at Gods will pleasure Deut. 2â— More Saintes Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall Saintes are not to be called vpon for we haue no promise nor assuraunce that either they heare vs or can profite vs. The children of god are obedieÌ„t to hys lawes Images Hierome Images were not allowed in the primitiue church Epiphanius cut the Image Gregory Cirenus A Councel gathered in Grece dyd put downe all Images Ezechias Images are not to be had in Churches More Our Lady Tyndall More Salue Regina Tyndall â–ª Mors. Tyndall Math. 12. Luke 1â— The prayers of all good womeÌ„ are aswell accepted of God as the prayers of our Lady More Crosse Tyndall More Tyndall More Vow Tyndall More Martine Tyndall Martine All falsehode is not espyed on in one 〈◊〉 More Tyndall ☜ More Martine Tyndall More Martin Tyndall â–ª Vnâ—â—n More Tyndall How far a Christen man is bounde to suffer More Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall More Tyndall Vnlawfull vowes are not to be obserued Vowes All vowes are to be made wyth great aduisement We mâ—st vse Gods creatures for our necâ—…e All our abstinence chastising of our selues is to our owne profite Freewiâ—t More blasphemeth God Our dedes are euill because we lacke know ledge to referre them vnto the glory of God 2. Cor. 4. The deuill is the blinder kepee of vs froÌ„ y â— vnderstanding of gods wyll The deuill is the blindeâ— and keper of vs from the vnderstandyng of Gods wil. We may not be curious to search gods secretes A Papisticall opinioÌ„ Witte reason iudgement goeth before will Faith is the gift of God commeth not by free wil. Phil. 1. Phil. 2. God is the first worker bringger to passe of our well doynges Math. 24. The Christians seeke helpe of Christ O abhominable blasphemy Doct. Ferman Master doctour Fermon was a vertuous godly and learned maÌ„ A true note to know hypocrites M. More 〈◊〉 a iuggleâ— with termes The order of iustifying A lyuely descriptioâ— of our 〈◊〉 fication The great mercy and kindenes of God moueth maÌ„ to repeÌ„tauÌ„ce The right order of our iustificatioÌ„ 1. Iohn 4. Faith only apprehendeth our iustification what faith iustifieth There are diuersities of faith and but one faith that iustifieth vs. Workes Out of a liuely and iustifiyng faith springeth good workes Fayth alone iustifieth A similitude More is maliciously blynde An apâ— and proper exsample of loue Rom. 5. God loued vs first that we should loue him againe ☜ He that loueth God loueth hys neighbour Note here the mercy goodnes of God Faith may be had wtout loue but it is a barreine naked faith Ciprian Martyrs that suffered all a yeare long The deuils Martyrs We must doe good workes of loue and not for reward Our doynges can deserue nothyng but Christe hath deserued for vs. Iames. 〈◊〉 Iames â—eproueth selâ—â—â—â—â—tes and not a true and liuely sayth Fayth that will not woorke when oportunitie serueth caÌ„ not iustifie How workes iustifie Rom. 4. Iohn 8. AbrahaÌ„ beleued gods promises therefore was iustified Hee that seeth hys neighbour in necessitie hath no compassion on him hath no fayth The Papistes preach workes that are profitable to them selues More Dauid Tyndall Psal 51. When we haue offended God we must returne quiâ—kly by repentaunce and call vpon God to heare vs for Christ our Sauiours sake Poena culpa As we haue receaued at the haÌ„d of God mercy so must we shewe mercy to our neyghbours Workes of them selues iustifie not He that loueth hys neighbour for Christs sake the same is righteous All our workes if they procede not of loue are nothyng Fayth in Christ maketh our small workes acceptable ☞ The righteous lyueth by â—aith Faith in Christes bloud doth onely iustifie vs. More Tyndall Iohn Baptist and our Lady also were sinners looked for the redemptioÌ„ in Christ Chrisostomus There was neuer any but Christ that was without sinne 1. Iohn 1. Workes are vnder the law Fayth is vnder no law More Tyndall More Tyndall The blinde and â—ond reasoning of More Luke 22. Iohn 17. The difference betwene Peters fall the fall of Iudas Iudas Iudas perished in desperatioÌ„ By Adam we are all made the children of the wrath of God Rom. 9. God worketh by diuers to make vs to call vpoÌ„ and to trust in his mercy Frewill The witte leadeth the will Mores wittes are captiuated A prety example ☞ King Henry the. v. King HeÌ„ry the 4. was an vsurper of y e crowne ☜ The Turk is to be resisted The vnion of Doctors a good booke ☜ More Tyndall sweareth More Tyndall Eare confession More Purgatory Tyndall More Clergy Tyndall Note More Tyndall Paule dyd excommunicate but our Byshops do burne Math. 23. An old practise of the Phariseis newly practised by the Pope his Prelates Wordly prefermentes are leâ—â—es to true Christianitie The Jewâ—◠〈◊〉 accuâ—ed Christ The câ—â—ell Iewes by persecutyng Christ his Apostles procured the vengeaunce of God to lighten vpoÌ„ them selues The Apostles 〈…〉 all oâ—… The practise of our Prelates in these dayes The geneâ—ation of Seâ—pentes A good admunition to all blynde guides Our Prelates seeke to be chiefe and highest Swarmes of sectes set vp by the Pope his Prelates Our Prelates professethe Pope to be their Lord but yeâ— keepe no part of hys lawe The Popes clergie are murtherers A good admonition to all rulers The commoÌ„ perswasion
remission for our sinnes 5. There is no satisfaction for sinne but Christes death 6. 1. Why temporall paynes are ordeined 2. Worldly paynes can not sufficiently punish sinne Scripture maketh no mention of Purgatory Rastels first argument Frith A fond argument The Maior of Rastels argument is a lye Rastell Frith Christes death onely is the cause of the forgâ—â—enes of our sinnes Rastell Rastels fond argument beaten to the ground Frith Three lyes at once What folye is in naturall reason to reason agaynst the Scripture A good conclusion Gods honour consiâ—teth not in our seruice Why man was made God made vs not for his pleasure but that we should receaue pleasure by him Gene. 19. Exod. 14. Math. 8. Rastell An other of Rastels foolish argumentes Frith Repentaunce is no satisfactioÌ„ for our sinne but Christes death onely Rastell Frith God forgeueth for Christes â—ake not otherwise Rastell groundeth hym vppon lyes imaginations 8. Heb. 10. Christes merites vtterly setteth aside Purgatory 9. There is no meane to purge vs but onely the death of Christ 10. Christ is hable fully to saue all that commeth to God by him Roma 5. Rastell Frith Rastels similitude is not good Rastell Frith Maior Minor CoÌ„clusio Rastels similitude clearely coÌ„founded Our doynges can maâ—… God neither better nor worse 11. Ezech. 33. 12. Ezech. 36. If Christ haue purged vs cleane wâ—…deth an other Purgatory 13. â—erem 33. 14. Ierem. 32. The second argument Rastell Frith Rastels second argument confuted Anyppyng conclusion Rastell Frith Rastell Rastelles fond argument to proue a Purgatory Frith Rastels second argument clearly coÌ„futed An aunswere to an obiection 15. 1. Iohn 2. If we fall into sinne We haue no remedy but Christ our aduocate 16. Iohn 13. 17. Math. 11. Purgatory â—icke purse 18. Esay 43. Broylyng in Purgatory putteth not away sinne 19. Those whom God calleth he iustifieth 〈◊〉 glorifieth Roma 8. 20. 1. Thess 4 â–ª Purgatory is but a phansie of mans imagination The thyrde argument Rastell The solution of Rastels thyrd argument Frith Rastell Frith Rastels naturall reasoÌ„ doth fouly deceaue both hym his Turke Gingeâ—…in The iiij argument Ephes 5. Cant. 4. Rastell Rastelles aunswere to his iiij argument Rastell Frith Rastell 21. Frith Hebr. 9. Sinne can not be takeÌ„ away but by y t bloud of Iesu Christ Rastell Frith A mery coÌ„clusion of Iohn Frith 22. Iohn 1. Heb. 1. Ephe. 1. 1. Iohn 1. Rom. 4. No nede of Purgatory The v. argument Rastell Frith How Rastel proueth that Purgatory is vpon the earth 23. Rastelles fond conclusioÌ„ of his v. argument We may not absteine from sinne for feare but for loue The law of God the law of man doth greatly vary The law of God requireth the hart and mynde The law of man requireth the body and outwarde deedes Rastels foolish solutioÌ„ of his fifth argument Rastelles solution Psal 143. Rastels reason fayleth hym Frith Rastell doth to much abuse him selfe Rastell Frith Rastell is contrary to hym selfe Rastell hath here a foule ouerthrow Rastels solution confuted Luke 16. A true and good conclusion Rastell Frith Rastell can not tell where purgatory is whether on the earth or els where Rastell proueth all the scholemen to be double fooles Rastell Purgatory is not in one place onely but in many diuers plates Rastels vi argument Frith Rastell Frith There can bee no cause in vs that may deserue the forgeuenes of sinne Luke 23. There is no Purgatory Roma 5. God of his mere mercy reconciled vs when we were hys enemyes 25. The shedyng of Christes bloud is our saluation Heb. 1. Rastell Frith Roma 3. Rom. 11. Gene. 12. Gallat 4. God for his truthes sake is mercyfull vnto vs. 1. Cor. 1. Roma 3. and 26. Phil. 2. 2. Cor. 5. Christ onely submitted himselfe to death for our sinnes Rastels ignorauncy Rastell A foolishe example set foorth by Rastell There is no way to pacifie the wrath of God agaynst our sinnes but fayth in Christ Frith Hebr. 7. Math. 6. Math. 18. There are two maner of satisfactions one to God and the other to our neighbour Except we be ready to forgeue theÌ„ that offend vs God will not forgeue vs. Rastelles seueÌ„ argument This similitude is not proper betwene God and man as it is betwene man and man Frith Agge 2. 〈◊〉 Cor. 12. God forgeueth no maÌ„ that offendeth hys neighbour except he first reconcile him self to his neighbour Rastell Rastelâ—… solution to his seuen argument Frith A perfect definition of Gods absolute power Marke â—6 God caÌ„ not be agaynst hym selfe Math. 1â— Whether God haue an absolute iustice There is no one power in God greater then an other Rastels imaginatioÌ„ of Gods absolute power is childish The conclusion of Rastels booke Frith The feare of Purgatory cannot kepe vs froÌ„ sinne but rather y â— fearâ— of hell and euerlastyng damnation Such as feare not God but for Purgatory and helles sake shall neuer come in heauen All the penaunce and repentauÌ„ce in y e worlde without fayth in Christes bloud can not saue vs. 27. 2. Cor. 5. Contradictories How two contradictories may be both true 28. We are recoÌ„ciled to god by y e death of Christ therefore neede not to booke for any other Purgatory The â—…th 〈…〉 〈◊〉 Purgatory although there were one 29. Iohn 3. â—…e â—…oÌ„ to say there is a Purgatory 30. Roma 8. Wâ—… dâ—… that God 〈…〉 〈…〉 Râ—… Christ hath purged ouâ— sinnes Roma 8. Math. 24. There is no Purgatory 33. Roma 〈…〉 34. Purgatory is a vayne imaginatioÌ„ Obiections Good workes we must do good workes because God hath so commauÌ„ded vs. Ephe. 2. Math. 5. An aunswere to an other obiection 1. Cor. 1. Roma 8. Ephe. 〈◊〉 We must worke with a single eye 35. Ephe. 2. Our saluatioÌ„ is y t gift of God and coÌ„meth not by workes 36. Roma 11. Rom. 4. Faith in Christ is our righteousnes Fayth is imputed for righteousnes 37. Iohn 3. Purgatory is nedelesse Iohn 5. I forged famed Purgatory 38. Psal 116. Apoca. 14. 39. Exod. 33. Mercy and Purgatory cannot agree 40. God is mercyfull forgeueth vs our sinnes Psal 103. 41. God hath forgeueÌ„ vs our sinnes and therfore wil not punish vs in Purgatory Rom. 11. Ezech. 18. 42. Luke 18. Luke 23. Luke 7. The thefe went not to Purgatory but to Paradise 43. Phil. 1. S. Paule knewe of no Purgatory Howe a Christen man should desire death 2. Cor. 3. Because dayly we offeÌ„d God therfore we should pray to be dissolued as Paul dyd 1. Iohn 1. 45. Sapien. 3. Abacuc 2. Roma 5. It is mere foolishnes to thinke there is a Purgatory 46. Rom. 10. The Pope sendeth no preachers into Purgatory M. More my Lord of Rochester can not agree 47. Prou. 23. Roma 7. we haue a will and minde to obey the law of God but our sinfull flesh will not consent thereunto Example God accepteth our good will if we do that in vs is to obey his
not lawfull Israelites Gods peculiar people SacrameÌ„tes and figures thereof grossely vnderstode breede errors Roma 〈◊〉 Gods church largely taken what it is Math. 13. Math. 25. Gods elect Church is without spotte and onely knowen to God Man is vncertaine of his election vntill the holy ghost working in hym assure hym therof Good and bad are of the sensible Church Math. 〈◊〉 Luke 〈◊〉 Infanteâ— may be â—â—ptised because they be partakers of the promise although they as yet haue no fayth The second thyng to be considered in Baptisme Roma 6. Dipping in the water and liftyng vp agayne of intantes what it signifieth The whole course of mans life is a continuall Baptisme Galat. 3. Tit. 3. Baptisme is the fountaine of our new byrth The signification of Baptisme that is to say banishyng the old maÌ„ and puttyng on the new acquired onely by fayth Iohn 3. The wicked distrustyng in Gods promises dispayre Iohn 5. Christes bloud is the streÌ„gth of our Baptisme Roma 5. Matthew the last Math. 28. Causes why the SacrameÌ„t of Baptisme shold bee had in great reuerence Sundry sortes of meÌ„ which we haue conuersation withall diuersly affected Ceremonies of some sortes are as guides vnto the knowledge of God Actes 15. The perfection of man Math. 15. Tit. 1. 1. Cor. 8. Weake consciences eyther by breaking of any auncient custome or neglecting ceremonies not to be offended 1. Cor. 8. The obstinate which put trust in thinges not needefull to saluation must be resisted Actes 8. Philip the Apostle vsed not so many outward ceremonies in Baptisme as papistes doe Ministers must be circumspect in the vses abuses of ceremonies â—…i 33. Exod. 20. Deut. 5. Exod. 31. Sabaoth abrogated for feare of superstition Gallat 4. Sabaoth kept on the Sonday Coll. 2. Exod. 13. Deut. 4. and. 5. Ezech. 3. and. 30. Math. 7. 1 â–ª Cor. 11. 2. Timb 3. Exod. 8. Iohn 4. Math. 8. Iohn 6. Iohn 6. Iohn 17. Iohn 13. Luke 22. Phil. 2. Math. 21. Math. 10. Luke 22. Math. 14. and. 15. Math. 8. Math. 21. Luke 2. Math. 11. Math. 21. Mark 16. Iohn 19. Math. 5. Iohn 19. Ca. ConstaÌ„t dist â—â—vi Math. 10. Luke 23. Math. 10. Iohn 19. Exod. 16. Heb. 9. Math. 25. Math. 18. Iohn 21. Math. 8. Marke 1. Luke 5. Math. 5. Math. 8. 17. Iohn 22. Luke 2. Math. 5. Actes 2. Math. 3. Iohn 12. Iohn 9. Luke 10. Iohn 19. Math. 19. Luke 22. Math. 23. Marke 9. â—ath 17. Iohn 14. Marke 11. Math. 4. Math. 5. Math. 17. Math. 11. Luke 12. Math. 23. Math. 17. Math. 26. Math. 26. Iohn 15. Math. 19. 1. Cor. 7. Math. 15. Roma 14. Collos 2. Tit. 1. Math. 16. Math. 18. Iohn 15. Luke 17. Oh abhomination Math. 2â— Osea 〈◊〉 Math. 9. Roma 4. Iohn 11. 1. Iohn 2. Iames. 5. Math. 5. Roma 13. Ephe. 1. Collos 1. 1. Cor. 10. 2. Pet. 2. 2. Timo. 3. Tit. 1. Iohn 19. Luke 6. Luke 〈◊〉 Math. 5. Luke 6. Math. 23. Math. 23. Acte 7. Esay 66. 2. King 7. 1. Cor. 3. Actes 17. Exod. 20. Iohn 5. Iohn 1. Dist. xxij ca. sacrosancta Math. 10. 1. Timo. 3. Tit. 1. The order that Iohn Frith kepeth in shewyng his mynde in the Sacrament of the body bloud of Christ The occasioÌ„ that moued Iohn Frith to write on the Sacrament The spirituall eatyng of the Sacrament is by fayth The Sacrament to be the naturall body of Christ is no article of our fayth necessary to be beleued vpon payne of damnation Obiection Solution Obstinate defendyng of any cause is worthy of reprehention The foundation of Iohn Frithes first treatise vppon the Sacrament It is no article of our fayth to beleue it to be the naturall body of Christ The same fayth saueth vs that saued our fathers Adam Gene. 3. How our fathers did eate the body of christ and dronke his bloud Abraham Gene. 12. Circumcision was the Sacrament of Gods couenasit made with Abraham AbrahaÌ„ by fayth dyd eate and drinke Christes body and bloud Iohn 8. The spirituall eating drinkyng of Christ shall saue vs. Manna was to the Israelites the same that the SacrameÌ„t is to vs now August de vtilitate poenicentiae Aug. super Ioan. tract 26. A goodly saying of S. Augustine Beda suter 1. Cor. 10. To eate the SacrameÌ„t by fayth spiritually is to eate the body of Christ c. There is no cause why we should accompt the SacrameÌ„t to be Christes naturall body for that were to grosse an imaginatioÌ„ We are not boundâ— to beleue vpoÌ„ payne of daÌ„natioÌ„ more then our fathers beleued Gene. 1. Psal 1. Esay 7. Acte 3. Actes 2. Psal 16. We must beleue the articles of our fayth vpon payne of damnation but in the other there is no perill Aug. contra Faustum Lib. 19. cap. 11. There be thre causes why y e Sacramentes were instituted The first is necessity August ad MarcellinuÌ„ The second cause of the institution of Sacramentes How diligently Christ set forth y e Sacrament of hys body bloud that we might by that outward signe assure our fayth that his very true body was crucified for our sinnes The thyrd cause of the institution of Sacramentes The sacrament is profitable to none but to such as vnderstaÌ„d the doctrine therof An example of the Alepole The true significatioÌ„ of the sacrament of the body and bloud of Christ The sacrifices of the Iewes as loÌ„g as they were rightly vsed were well accepted More Frith 1. Pet. 2. Luke 22. Ephes 6. Math. 10. Mich 5. Iohn 6. Math. 10. 3. Cor. 11. Ioh. Frith mette with false brethren 2. Cor. 10. An exhortation to stand manfully by the profession of Gods word More Frith BrethreÌ„ is an auncient name in the scripture Amos. 8. Math. 11. Luke 18. Roma 1. Actes 24. More Frith Ioh. Frith feared not death Frith wisheth all his workes to be seene More Frith He that seeth his brother in peril of ieoperdy must warn him therof Deut. 12. Note here the earnest zeale of Frith An offer made to the Clergie by Io. Frith More Frith 2. Thes 2. 1. Iohn 4. Actes 20. The propâ—esie of S. Paule â—the latter times Siluester when corruption entred into y e Church Bishoprickes wer not gredely sought in y e primitiue Church for then it was a charge and not a Lordship Math. 27. Mark 15. Iohn 19. A great alteration in the church sithen the time of Christ and hys Apostles 1. Cor. 11. A litle flock is left that are not corrupted More Frith 1. Cor. 10. Paule calleth the Sacrament bread 1. Cor. 11. Actes 2. Luke 22. Nature sayth there is bread in the Sacrament The wyne will waxe sowre if it be kept loÌ„g The Doctors proue that bread remayneth in the Sacrament Gelasius a Pope Contra Eutych Nestorium This is the saying of Gelasius a Pope Wickleffe Wickleffe buried xv yeare and then brent Math. 10. Malach. 2. Oecolampadius Tyndall Tyndall declareth his innocency Zwinglius Zwinglius slayne in a iust and righteous cause