Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	believe_v	faith_n	revelation_n	1,466	5	9.8611	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60520	Of the distinction of fvndamental and not fvndamental points of faith devided into two bookes, in the first is shewed the Protestants opinion touching that distinction, and their uncertaintie therin : in the second is shewed and proued the Catholick doctrin touching the same / by C.R.	Smith, Richard, 1566-1655.	1645 (1645)	Wing S4157; ESTC R26924	132,384	353

that there are true points of faith besids those which are principal or capital For this is the ground of al our discourse following 2. First whatsoeuer is clearely deliuered in Scripture and sufficiently proposed to vs is a matter of faith Manie matters of faith in Scripture besid fundamentals and ought to be beleued But there be manie things besids the principal and capital articles that are clearely deliuered in Scripture and sufficiently proposed to vs as that Saint Paul had a cloak Saint Timothe was sicklie and the like Therfore they also are matters of faith and ought to be beleued 3. Secondly matters of faith are not Matters of faith are to be measured by the formal obiect of faith to be measured only by the greatnes of the material obiect which is beleued but especially by the formal obiect of faith for which it beleues which is diuine reuelation sufficiently proposed to vs. For euerie habit reacheth to whatsoeuer hath is formal obiect But manie smal matters haue the like diuine reuelation sufficiently proposed as that of S. Pauls clooke and Timothes sicknes Therfore they are alike matters of faith 3. Thirdly the holie Scripture In faith are both great and lesser matters Mat. 5. and 22. saieth plainly that there are greatest and least commandements and that there are Iots or Tittles of the Law And why not likwise great and les matters of beleif If anie obiect that though there be great and litle things commanded to be done yet litle matters are not commanded to be done vnder paine of losse of Gods fauour or of saluation so though litle matters of saith be reuealed and ought to be beleued when they are sufficiently proposed as testifyed by God yet are we not bound to beleiue them vnder paine Difference betwene matters to be done and to be beleued of damnation I answer that litle matters are not commanded to be done vnder paine of los of Gods freindship or of saluation becaus smal matters of their nature do not break freindship For he were an vnreasonable freind who for trifles would break freindship and the end of the law is charitie but al litle matters testified by God and sufficiently proposed to vs oblidge vs to beleue them becaus in not beleuing them differēce betwixt Faith and charitie touching smal matters we account God not worthie to be beleued in such matters which is to denie his veracitie and consequently his deitie For who in things equally testifyed by God and equally proposed See Chillin infra c. 4. n. 3. Potter sec 5. p. 3. The principal ground on which faith relies is diuine reuelation So also p. 10. to vs as from God beleueth somethings and not others beleueth nothing for Gods authoritie but becaus himself iudgeth somethings more liklie to be true then others For if he beleued anie for Gods authoritie he would beleue al which Gods authoritie equally proposed doth equally testifie Wherfore we maie keep charitie with God though we obserue not litle matters commanded by him becaus breach of litle maters is not opposit to charitie but only to perfection of charitie But we cannot keep faith with God if we beleue not smal matters testified by him and sufficiently proposed to vs becaꝰ not beleif of thē is opposit to Gods veracitie which is the formal obiect of diuine faith and implicitly saieth God is not worthie of beleef in such matters For where is the lest vntruth there is not diuine or prime veracitie so his veracitie is denied by the lest vntruth but not his charitie by the lest sin Hereupon God in the last of the Apocalips threatned to put him out of the book of life who putteth out one word of that prophesie but no where threatneth the like to whosoeuer shal not keep the lest thing he commandeth 5. Holie Fathers also testifie that al things reuealed by God and sufficiently proposed to vs are matters of faith in that as we shal see hereafter c. 2. they account obstinat error in al such matters to be formal heresie and al such obstinat errants formal heretiks And as Saint Basil saied we should rather loose our liues Theodoret l. 4. c. 17. then fuffer one syllable of Gods Word to perish 6. Protestants likewise sometimes confes and must needs confes that al that is clearely testified by God and sufficiently proposed or that those points which they cal vnfundamental if they be sufficiently proposed are matters of faith and of Religion Whitaker controuer 2. q. 5. c. 17. Shal it not be a true Church if it think not sincerely of al heads of Religion if it corrupt anie point of Religion God forbid Not fundamentals are heads parts and points of faith and Religion yea it maie be a Church though it think not sincerely of some parts of faith and Religion so they be not fundamental Loe not fundamentals are heads points and parts of faith and Religion And controu 4. q. 1. c. 2. p. 527. It is not necessarie that faithful men agree in al things which are of faith so they agree in the highest the cheifest and the necessarie Behold againe vnfundamental points matters of faith Matters of faith Doctor Potter sec 2. p. 38. calleth them diuine truthes and p. 39. intending to declare his distinction of fundamental and not fundamental points saieth Points of Religion are wel distinguished Points of Religion by Thomas and Stapleton Some saie they are primitiue articles others are Secundarie So that Secondarie or Not fundamentals are points of Religion as wel as primitiue or fundamentals And sec 7. p. 71. Being to proue his distinction into fundamental and not fundamental saieth There be diuers degrees of truths and errors in Religion and commendeth Aquinas for Of the obiect of faith So also Chilling c. 4. p. 193. deuiding the obiect of faith into that which is so by itself and that which is by accident and secondarily The first be to that wherby a man is made blessed the latter that which is reuealed whatsoeuer it be as that Abraham had two sonns Loe whatsoeuer is reuealed is a truth of Religion and of the obiect of faith P. 73. There is a certaine measure Are reuealed and to be beleued The like he hath sec 6. p. 58. See white in his Def. c. 17. and quantitie of faith without which none can be saued and these are his fundamentals but euerie thing reuealed belongs not to this measure It is enough to beleue some things by a virtual faith Behold vnfundamental points belong to faith though not to the highest measure therof and are to be beleued with a virtual faith And p. 73. 74. By fundamental doctrins we meane such Catholik verities as principally and essentially perteine to faith such as properly constitute a Church and are necessarie in ordinarie course to be distinctly beleued by euerie Christian that wil be saued Other points of truth are Belong to the vnitie of faith

OF THE DISTINCTION OF FVNDAMENTAL AND NOT FVNDAMENTAL POINTS OF FAITH DEVIDED INTO TVVO BOOKES In the first is shewed the Protestants opinion touching that distinction and their vncertaintie therin In the second is shewed and proued the Catholik doctrin touching the same By C. R. Doctor of Diuinitie Ephes 4. One God one Faith one Baptisme AN. M. DC XLV IN this Treatise is refuted the general doctrin of Protestants concerning the distinction of Fundamental and Not fundamental points of faith in their sense but particularly the doctrin of the Late English Protestant Writers touching the same namely W. Laude Lord of Canterburie in his Relation of Conference c. D. Potter in his Answer to charitie mistaken wherof I cite the first edition for want of the second and of Mr Chillingworth in his Answer to Mercie and Truth wherby is refuted the most material parte of their said Books This Treatise was made some yeares agoe but not printed in hope that thes tumults in England wold haue bene ended before this time but seing no end of them is now published THE PREFACE to the Reader VVHERIN ARE SET dovvne the contents of this Treatise 1. 1. PRotestants do teach See infra c. 2. n. 3 c. 12 n. 2. that only the principal or capital points of Christian faith are of the substance of sauing faith true Church and waie of saluation and alone truly and indeed Protestants make onely fundamētal points necessarie necessarie to them and that al other points of faith are at most of the perfectiō of sauing faith true Church and waie of saluation and maie be not beleued though they bee sufficiently proposed without los of the substance of sauing faith true Church or saluation And in this sense they call the principal points Fundamental that is alone substantial and truly necessarie to sauing faith to true Church and to saluation and call al other points Not Fundamental that is nether substantial nor truly necessarie to sauing faith true Church or saluation howsoeuer they be proposed And hereupon they teach that al who beleue the principal points of faith howsoeuer they sinfully beleue not other points though they be sufficienty proposed to them haue sauing faith are in the true Church and in waie of saluation and that who be deuided in secondarie points though sufficiently proposed are not deuided in the substance of sauing faith of the true Church or of the waie of salvation 2. And the cheif ground though they pretend Scripture of this doctrin Their ground therof that alone the principal points of faith are of the substance and truly necessarie to sauing faith true Church and saluation is that the principal points are termed Fundamental or the foundation by Fathers and Catholiks as if the wals and roof were not of the substance or necessarie to a howse becaus they are not fundamental Their end or the foundation of it But the end for which they teach this doctrin is to mainteine by it that such persons or Churches as they cannot denie but sinfully err in some points of faith ether sufficiently proposed to them or which would be so proposed if it were not their avoidable fault haue neuertheles a sauing faith are true Churches and in waie of saluation nor deuided from them in the substance of faith of true Church or way of saluation So that mere necessitie of mainteining Churches sinfully erring in some points of faith drew them to this sinful and pernitious doctrin that the principal points of faith are wholy sufficient and al other points howsoeuer proposed wholy vnnecessarie to the substance of sauing faith true Church and saluation And this is in truth their doctrin concerning fundamental and not fundamental points of faith and their ground and end of it wherof the ground is sillie the end sinful and the doctrin pernitious and Antichristian as quite ouerthrowing al Christian faith as hereafter shal clearely appeare and so abhominable as the verie authors of it are ashamed to exprès it in plaine termes yea sometimes forced to denie it inwords 3. For albeit they teach expresly and absolutely and without al exception or limitation of sufficient or not sufficient Proposal of not fundamentals that fundamentals are sufficient and abundantly sufficient and Not fundamentals are vnnecessarie to sauing faith true Church and saluation They are ashamed expresly to auouch their doctrin yet they are ashamed to saie so expresly with this addition euen then when not fundamentals are sufficiently proposed or when it is the Vnbeleuers faults that they are not so proposed or when one sinfully erreth in not fundamentals Yea sometimes they denie they teach so and affirme the contrarie Yet that in effect and in deed they teach so and meane so we wil Yet are forced to it proue out of their common Tenets and Principles and their plaine words and deeds Nether in truth would 1. this distinction of fundamental and not fundamental points afford them anie colour of mainteining such erring Churches as they endeauour to mainteine by it vnles they meant that fundamentals are sufficient and not fundamentals vnnecessarie to sauing faith true Church and saluation euen when not fundamentals are sufficiently proposed or it is the Vnbeleuers fault that they are not so proposed becaus it is euident that such Churches err in some points of faith which ether are sufficiently proposed to them or would be if it were not their fault and so doe sinfully err in such points Nether also 2. would there otherwise be anie controuersie about the sufficiencie of fundamentals and vnnecessarines of Not fundamentals to sauing faith true Church and saluation betwixt Catholiks and Protestants becaus Catholiks grant that fundamental points are sufficient and not fundamentals vnnecessarie to be actually beleued to sauing faith to a true Church and to saluation when not fundamentals nether are sufficiently proposed nor it is the Vnbeleuers fault that they are not so proposed Nether finally 3. would such Churches as they seek to mainteine by this distinction giue them anie thanks if they would afford sauing faith true Church and saluation only to such of them as inuincibly err in some not fundamental points not sufficiently proposed to them or which not for their fault are not so proposed and would denie sauing faith true Church and saluation to al that err sinfully in anie point of faith Wherfore as long as by this distinction they seek to mainteine erring Churches or communicate with such Churches without excepting thos who sinfully err in not fundamental points and also hold such common Tenets and Principles as they hold in vaine they denie that they teach that fundamental points are sufficient and not fundamentals not necessarie to sauing faith true Church and saluation euen when not fundamentals are sufficiently proposed or would be if it were not the vnbeleuers fault 4. And this their doctrin that Protestants cal their doctrin of defending sinfully errants in faith charitie