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	infallible_a	scripture_n	2,072	5	7.3203	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A00796	A treatise of faith wherin is briefely, and planly [sic] shewed, a direct way, by which every man may resolue, and settle his minde, in all doubtes, questions, or controuersies, concerning matters of faith.	Fisher, John, 1569-1641.	1605 (1605)	STC 10915.5; ESTC S2122	65,176	166

dominicam infi●iunt Nothing can bee more perillous then these heretiques who when they runne vprightly through all the rest yet with one word as with a droppe of poyson doe infect that true and sincere faith of our Lord. CHAP. V. That there must be some meanes prouided by Almighty God by which all sorts of men may learne this faith which is so necessary to saluation AS this one infallible entire faith is necessary to saluatiō to al sorts of men as well vnlearned as learned so we must say that almighty God Qui vult omnes homines saluos fieri ad agnitionem veritatis venire who would haue all men to be saued and to come to the knowledge of truth hath for proofe that this of his part is a true will prouided some rule or meanes wherby euery man learn●d and vnlearned may sufficiently in all points questions or doubts of faith be infallibly instructed what is to bee holden for the true faith and that the only cause why any man misseth of the true faith is either because hee doth not seeke out and find this rule meanes or hauing found it he will not vse it in all pointes submitting his owne sense self-opinion and proper Iudgement obediently yeeld assent vnto it as the nature of diuine faith and the duety of euery Christian bindeth him to do This is proued Because if Almighty God hath a true will of his part to leade all men to this happy end of eternall saluation as it may bee plainely proued that he hath out of Scripture and Fathers hee must needes prouide them sufficient meanes by which it may at least bee possible for them to attaine that end For wee neuer say that God hath a will to do any thing vnlesse he do either absolutely worke the thing or at least prouide meanes sufficient by which it is possible to be done But vnlesse there bee such a rule or meanes prouided by which euery one learned vnlearned may attaine to this one infallible entire faith of which I haue spoken before there are not sufficiēt meanes prouided by which it is possible for all men to come to saluation sith as I proued without that faith it is vnpossible for any one to come to saluation Therefore wee must needes say that Almighty God hath prouided this rule or meanes by which euery man euē the most vnlearned may sufficiently bee instructed in matters of faith To this purpose saith S. Austen Si Dei prouidentia praesidet rebus humanis non est desperandum ab eodem ipso Deo auctoritatem aliquā constitutam esse qua velut certo gradu nitentes attollamur in Deum If Gods prouidence saith he rule and gouerne humane matters as he proueth that he doth we may not despaire but that there is a certaine auctority appointed by the same God vpon which staying our selues as vppon a sure step wee may be lifted vp to God Saint Austen therfore doth acknowledge some auctority to be needful as a meanes whereby wee may bee lifted vp to God The which lifting vp to God is first begunne by true faith and because this auctority is so needfull a meanes he would not haue vs doubte but that God whose prouidence stretcheth it selfe to all humane matters hath not failed to prouide this meanes for vs it being a principall matter and so principall as vpon which according to the ordinary course depēdeth the summe of our saluation We are not therefore I say to doubt but that almighty God hath prouided a meanes whereby Animalis homo qui non percipit ●a quae sunt spiritus Dei a sensuall man who hath no vnderstanding of the diuine misteries of faith may come to know them by a firme and infallible beliefe Onely the question is what manner of thing this meanes must be and where euery man must seeke and finde it that hauing found it he may as S. Austen speaketh stay himselfe vpon it as vpon a sure steppe thereby to bee lifted vp to a true faith and by faith to God The which question being of so great consequence that it being well determined a mā need neuer make more question in matters of faith I will God willing in the chapters following endeuor to resolue it as clearly as I can And this I purpose to do first by setting downe what conditions or properties this rule of faith must haue afterwards by prouing particulerly that neither Scripture alone nor any natural witte or humane learning nor priuate spirit can be this rule of faith And finally that this rule which all men may safely and must necessarily follow can be no other but the teaching of the Catholique Church CHAP. VI. What conditions or properties must be found in the rule of faith THis rule which almighty God hath prouided as a sufficient meanes to direct mē to the knowledge of true faith necessary to saluation must haue three conditions or properties First it must be certaine infallible for otherwise it cannot be a sufficient foūdation whereupon to build faith which as is proued before is absolutely infallible Secondly it must bee such as may bee certainely and plainely knowne of all sortes of men For if to any sorte it could not be knowen or not certainly known it could not be to them a rule or meanes wherby they might direct themselues to the certaine knowledge of the true faith Thirdly it must bee vniuersall that it may not only make vs know certainely what is the true faith in some one two or moe pointes but absolutely in all pointes of faith For otherwise it were not a sufficient meanes whereby we may attaine to an entire faith which integrity of faith is necessary to saluation in such wise as hath beene declared and proued before CHAP. VII That Scripture alone cannot bee this rule of faith OVT of these former grounds foure conclusions The first cōclusion is that Scripture alone especially as it is by Protestants translated into the English tongue cannot bee this rule of faith This I proue First for that these translations faile in the first condition that is to say they are not infallible as the rule of faith must be for neither were the Scriptures written in this language immediately by the holy Ghost neither were the translators assisted by the same holy Ghost infallibly Infallibly I say that is in such sort as it were vnpossible that they should erre in any point Sith therefore the translators as being but men may erre To say nothing of that which by Gregory Martin is proued and by the often changes of new and variable translations is shewed that some haue erred how can a man and especially an vnlearned man who hath not sufficient meanes learning nor leisure to compare the translations with the prime authentical originall how can I say such a man be infallibly sure that this particuler trāslation which he hath doth not erre if in some places it erre

Scripture as it is the manner of euerie sect maister to confirme his errour with words of Scripture yea the Diuell himselfe doth sometime for his purpose alledge words of Scripture Wherefore there is no reason wherby wee may bee assured that such men haue the Spirit of God but we may finde many reasons to conuince that they haue not this Spirit And to omitte for breuity sake the seeking out of any other euen the singularity or priuatenes of their spirit is sufficient not onely to moue vs to suspect it but also to condemne it and to assure vs that it cannot bee the Spirit of truth as is very well signified by S. Augustine who saith Veritas tua Domine nec mea est nec illius sed omnium quos ad eius communionem publicè vocas terribiliter admonens nos ne eam habere velimus priuatam ne priuemur ea Nam quisquis id quod tu ad fruendum omnibus proponis sibi propriè vendicat suum esse vult quod omnium est à communi propellitur ad sua id est à veritate ad mendacium Thy truth O Lord is neither proper to mee nor him but common to all whom thou dost publiquely call to the common partaking of its warning vs terribly to take heede that wee will not haue it priuate to our selfe least we be depriued of it For whosoeuer doth challenge that to himselfe priuately which thou dost propose publiquely to be enioyed of all and will haue that his owne which is common to all he is driuen from the common to this owne that is to say from the truth to a lie CHAP. X. That the doctrine and teaching of the true Church is the rule of faith THE fourth Conclusion is that this infallible rule which euery one ought to follow in all points of faith is the Doctrine and teaching of the true Church or cōpany of the true faithfull of Christ. This I proue by this reason If our Sauiour Christ hath promised to any cōpanie of men the presence of himselfe and the assistance of his holy spiritt of purpose to instructe teach them all trueth giuing withall peculiar charge commission to them to teache all natiōs and to preache to euery creature giuing also warrant to all that they may safely heare them giuing also commandement whereby he bindeth all to doe in all thinges according to their saying and threatning greatly those who will not heare and beleeue them then certainely the doctrine teaching of these men is in all pointes most true and infallible such as if the other conditions required in the rule of faith be not as they are not wanting may well be proposed to all sortes as an assured ground whereupō they may safely build an infallible Christian faith For looke what our Sauiour Christ hath promised must needes be performed and whatsoeuer he warranteth or commandeth may safely without danger of errour be done nay must of necessity be done especially whē he threatneth those and will not doe it and consequently if he haue promised to sende his holy spirit to teach any company of men all trueth it is not to be doubted but that he sendeth this his holy spirit and by it teacheth them all trueth sith the teaching of this spirit is vnfallible we are not to doubt but that this company is in all pointes infall●bly taught the trueth If also the same our Sauiour gaue warrant and commandement that they should teach vs that we should heare them and doe in all thinges according to their saying we may not likwise doubt but that they shall be able to teache all sortes of men in all pointes the infallible trueth and that all sortes of men may if they will learne of that company what in all pointes is the infallible trueth For otherwise by this generall commaundement of hearing them and doing according to their saying we should be boūde sometime to heare beleeue an vntruth and to doe that which were not vpright and good which without blasphemy to Christ his veritie goodnes can no way be thought But so it is that Christ our Sauiour hath in holy Scripture promised giuen commission warranted commaunded and threatened in manner aforesaide Therefore we can not doubt but that their is a certaine company the which is called the true Church of Christ which both is in all pointes of faith infallibly taught by the holy spirit and is likewise to teach all sortes of men in all pointes of faith what is the infallible trueth and therefore the teaching of this companie may well be assigned and proposed to all men as an vndoubted sufficient rule of faith The promise of our Sauiour Christ we haue first in the Gospell of S. Mathew ego ●obiscum sum omnibus diebus vsque ad cōsum●ationem seculi I am with you al the daies vntill the ende of the world in which wordes is promised the continuall presence of Christ himselfe who is veritas the trueth it selfe with his Church not for a while then or for a while now but all the daies vntill the end of the world Secondly we haue an other promise in the gospell of S. Iohn Ego rogabo patrem alium paraclitum dabit vobis vt maneat vobiscum in aeter●um spiritum veritatis I will aske my father and he will giue you an other paraelite the spirit of trueth that he may remaine with you not only for 600. yeares but for euer And againe in the same S. Iohn to shew vs for what purpose he would haue his holy Spirite remaine among vs for euer he saith Paraclitus quā●ittet pater in nomine m●o ille vos docebit om●●a suggeret vobis omnia quaecunque dixero vobis the paraclite whom my Father will sende in my name shall teach you all things shal put you in mind of al things whatsoeuer I shall say vnto you And againe Cum venerit ille spiritus veritatis docebit v●s omnē veritatē Whē that spirit of truth shall come hee shall teach you all truth The charge and commission is plaine in S. Mathew cuntes docete omnes gentes Going teach all nations And in S. Marke euntes in mundum vniuersum praedicate Euangelium omni creaturae Going into the whole world preach the Gospell to euery creature The warrant we haue in S Luke Qui vos audit me audit Hee that heareth you heareth mee By which wordes appeareth plainely that our Sauiour Christ would haue vs to heare and giue credit to his Church no lesse then to himselfe The commandemēt is expressed in S. Mathew Super Cathedram Moysisederūt Scribae Pharisaei Omnia ergo quaecunque dixeri●t vobis seritate facite The Scribes Pharisies haue sitten vpon the chaire of Moses All things therfore whatsoeuer they shall say vnto you obserue and doe Out of which words we may gather that wee are bound in all pointes