vnwritten traditions Alfonsus Uiruestus a Popish Bishop and a bitter enemie to Luther acknowledgeth so much For he saith That things may bee contayned in the Scripture eyther formally and expresly or materially being drawne by a necessary collection from the contents And this he saith is called Uirtualis continentia To denie this saith hee is not Christian wisedome but Iewish superstition And then teacheth that wee are as much bound to giue assent to those things that be materially conteyned and drawne thence by a lawfull collection as to those that be formerly and expresly conteyned Bellarmine cannot deny but that Scotus taught there was not any expresse place of Scripture to proue Transubstantiation without the declaration expositioÌ„ of the Church Neither dare the Cardinall reiect that assertion but saith that Transubstantiation belongeth to the Catholicke faith because it is collected out of the diuine Scripture In his iudgement then that is a written truth which is collected from the Scripture as well as that which is expressely set downe in the Scripture If therefore Preachers deliuer no other doctrines in their Sermons if they confute and condemne no other errors if they teach no other duties if they reproue no other sinnes if they minister no other consolations and if they vrge no other exhortations then they haue warrant in the written word of God eyther by expresse testimonies or by necessary collections the word which they preach is the very same in kind in nature and substance with the word written And so there is not one word written and another word preached as the Docter would beare men in hand but one and the same word diuersly vsed So absurd is this his obseruation so voyde of reason so destitute of proofe and so discreâ—ant from the doctrine of his owne Church that it may well be thought that rather malice against vs then any warrant from the text caused him to sâ—t it downe And heere behold how farre malice doth carry your teachers euen to forsake their owne companions and to ouerthrow the coÌ„mon and receiued doctrine of their owne Church that so they may crosse and condemne vs. And to conclude with him he that will regard what he writeth in the latter end of his obseruation may easily perceiue how hee ouerthroweth his owne note obserued in the beginning For he produceth the Apostle Peter as an in different witnes in this case who saith that the Word of God endureth for euer and this is the word which is preached among you whose testimonie doth euidently prooue that the word written and the word preached then by the Apostles and other Ecclesiasticall persons was the very same word For it is apparant by that verse which he alleadged that the word of God which endureth for euer and the word which then was preached were one and the selfe same word Now what was the word that endureth for euer was it not the word written If any will denye this let him reade the former verse in Peter and compare that verse and this with the words of the Prophet Isaiah and hee shall finde it to be the word written by the Prophet So as Peter maketh the word written by the Prophet and preached by the Apostles to be the same Againe this great Docter saith the Word is the Seede because it is vnchangeable in it owne nature and substance though diuers in explication and proueth it out of Basil and Uincentius Lyrenensâ—s who make that agreemeÌ„t betweene the word written and the word preached that they are both one in substance for they preached nothing but what was written yet the word writteÌ„ was made fruitfull by preaching SECT III. BVt to leaue the Doctor and his obseruation It may be some others will acknowledge contrarie to his minde that whosoeuer preacheth nothing but such doctrines as are either expresly taught or necessarily gathered from the scriptures preacheth nothing but the written word And yet will likewise contradict me because they hold that there is another word of God besides the written word Bellarmine saith there is verbuÌ„ Dei scriptuÌ„ verbum Dei non scriptum A word of God written namely the bookes of the old and new Testaments And a word of God not written namely the traditions of the Church which be not written in the scriptures Gregory de Ualentia holdeth it for a most certaine thing that the word of God is not onely conteyned in written letters as it pleaseth him to tearme the scriptures in way of disgrace but is also put in the voyce of the Church and there doth sound Coster the Iesuite speaketh more plainely and peremptorily That the consent of the Catholike Church and the consonant doctrine of all Christians throughout the world is the scripture And in many points excelleth the scriptures which the Apostles haue left vs in parchments And this he maketh the first and chiefest kinde of scripture which now wee haue vnder the Gospell and saith that is a scripture penned with their owne hands The scriptures penned by the Apostles and Euangelists he placeth in the second ranke And addeth that a scripture of the third kind is in the degrees of generall Councells The decrees whereof if a man respect truth if he respect the seale and confirmation of the holy Ghost or the presence of Christ haue the same waight and moment that the holy gospells of God haue And so whereas Bellarmine made but two words of God he maketh three and two of his three are neither of the Cardinalls two Now those who depend on such teachers as these wil hold that albeit the seede be the word of God and Preachers must teach nothing but the word yet they may preach the traditions of the Church and the canons of councells as well as the contents of the written word because these be the word of God as well as the written word Wherevnto I answere that if the Traditions of the Church the word put in the mouth of the Church and the decrees of Councells be eyther expresly taught in the written word or may be warranted thence by iust and lawfull consequence we will acknowledge them to be the word of God But if they be praeter verbum besides the word writteÌ„ hauing neither way any warrant thereby they are not to be preached as the word of God but to be taken as the word of man And if they be contrary to the word written they are so farre from being the word of God as they must rather bee reputed to be the word of the diuell I neede not to stand on the first and last kinde For we acknowledge the first as well as the papists and the papists doe in generall condemne the last as well as we though they iustifie some in particular All the doubt is whether such traditions and canons that bee praeter verbum are to be taught to the people as the true word of God and be the seede
hee and the rest of the Apostles preached and therefore he saith If wee or an Angell preach otherwise then that which wee haue preached And what worde hee preached I haue proued before not any traditions but the written word If it be true which Irenaeus and Nicephorus doe write that what the Apostles preached at first was afterward by the will of God set downe in the scriptures it must be acknowledged that they preached no traditions seeing we can finde no traditions penned by thē in their Epistles And though they had bene traditious when they were preached yet they ceased to be traditions when once they were written by them Againe the Fathers restraine the words of the Apostle to the scriptures as if he were accursed that would preach any thing not cōtained in them Augustine is most plaine therein Whether concerning Christ or concerning his Church or any other thing that pertaineth to our faith or life I will not say if wee for we are not to be compared to him who saide if wee but euen as he going forward added If an Angell from heauen shall preach vnto you besides that which ye haue receiued in the scriptures of the lawe and the Gospell let him be accursed Basill likewise teacheth that hearers who be skilfull in the scriptures ought to examine those things which bee deliuered of their teachers And to receiue those things which be agreeable to the scriptures and to reiect those that be not And produceth this testimonie of the Apostle to proue it which had bene an impertinent proofe if the Apostle had spoken as well of a word not written as of a word written The Cardinall mentioneth both these testimonies and would auoyd them by saying that they doe not of purpose expound this place but doe proue by this place that it is not lawfull to auouch any thing contrary to the scriptures Yet cānot he deny but that they doe alleadge this place of the Apostle And I hope he will not say but that they doe deliuer the true sense of it and doe alleadge it according to the true meaning of the Apostle Doth the Cardinall thinke that such learned fathers would giue one sense of it when purposely they expound it and another sense when they alleadged it to prooue a point which they haue in hād This were to wrest the scripture to make it serue their present turne I hope he will not so iudge of such reuerend men And to say that they onely proue thence that it is not lawful to auouch any thing contrary to scripture is to alter and inuert their words Doth not Augustine say praeterquam quod accepistis besides that which you haue receiued but of that afterward And if by that place they proue that nothing must be taught contrary to the scriptures then must they not hold with the Cardinall that the Apostle speaketh of each word as well written as not written but onely of the written word And so the Cardinall maketh them to confute him Chrysostome purposely expounding the place saith Paul preferreth the scriptures before angels comming from heauē As also that Paul doth not say if they preach contrary things or if they subuert the whole Gospell but if they preach but euen a little beside the Gespell which ye haue receiued let them be accursed Thomas Aquinas their Angelicall Doctor professedly expoūding that place doth write that nothing is to be preached but that which is conteyned in the Gospells and in the Epistles and in the holy scripture implicitely or expresly Will they say that their Traditions are conteyned in the scriptures either expresly or by way of implication or consequent thenare they not vnwritten verities as they tearme them A second answere of the Cardinall is this that the Apostle by Praeter vnderstood Contra. And therefore did not forbid new doctrines and precepts which were besides those that were deliuered but onely doctrines and precepts contrarie to the former Yet will not this serue his turne For in matters of faith and religion proeter and contra are both alike Whatsoeuer is taught as necessarie to saluation if it be besides the scripture must be condemned as well as that which is contrarie to the Scriptures The reason is because the Scriptures conteyne all thinges which Ministers are to teach as necessary to saluation And therefore Paul told Timothie that they were able to make him wise vnto saluation And were profitable to teach to improue to correct and to instruct in righteousnesse Two of which respect mens mindes what they are to know and beleeeue as the trueth and what they are to reiect as errors Two of them respect their maners what sinnes they are to auoyde what duties they are to performe Is there any things needfull to bee taught the people but these things And because the Cardinall answereth that the Scriptures are profitable for all these things but not sufficient Consider the wordes of the Apostle following where hee declareth the end of this profitablenes namely that the man of God may be absolute being made perfect to all good works By the man of God he meaneth the Minister of the Gospell That tytle had he in his former Epistle giuen vnto Timothie And Lyra saith the man of God was one ordeyned to the diuine office such a one as Timothie was If then the Scripture being profitable for those foure vses will thereby make a Minister of the Gospell absolute and perfect for each good worke belonging vnto him he is not to teach any things ouer and besides the Scripture Theophylact thus writeth on the former place Hee doth not inferre if they onely preach contrary things but if they preach that which is beside that which we haue preached that is if they shall adde any thing that is but a very little more they are subiect to the curse And indeed it may seeme strange that the Papists are so earnest to haue vnwrittē traditions as wel preached as written truthes seeing the things written are more cettaine more excellent and necessary and require a long time to bee all taught and learned They are more certaine because all men are more certainely assured that the Scriptures the doctrines conteyned in them bee the word of God then that vnwritten traditions be his worde Bellarmine confesseth that nothing is better knowne nothing more certaine then the sacred Scriptures which bee conteyned in the writings of the Prophets Apostles that he must needes be most foolish who denyeth that they are to be beleeued And produceth 5. inuincible and infallible proofes that they are the very word of God Whē he commeth to speake of traditions he alleadgeth no such proofes but onely goeth about to prooue by 4. places of Scripture which haue bene long agoe answered that there are some traditions though neyther he nor any of his fellowes can tell what they are nor can make a perfit Catalogue of them so vncertain are
onely assent to the doctrines but also doe beleeue that the things which we aske to be done shall be accomplished by God which we call an assurance Stella also as plainely maketh two kindes of Faith There is a faith saith he whereby we beleeue whatsoeuer is to be beleeued and this is a theologieall vertue There is another faith which is a certaine confidence to wit that whereby we beleeue that the Lord will giue vs that which we aske of him I could produce more witnesses speaking to the same purpose but I spare them till I come to speake of the seuerall kindes by themselues yet consider that not onely the ancient Fathers but likewise some great Clearkes in the late Romish Church haue made diuers kindes of faith Why then should we be condemned as Heretikes for teaching the same SECT VII LEt vs now come to the seuerall kinds of faith in particular And let vs first coÌ„sider a little touching iustifying faith It may be you will mislike two things in that description of it which I set downe in one of the precedent sermons The one respecteth the nature of it the other respecteth the persons that be endued with it because some of your side teach contrary therevnto 1. Touching the nature of it I shewed that by it a Christian doth apprehend and apply to himselfe all the promises of God in Christ and all the merits of Christ for his present iustification and for his future saluation I know it as well as you that many of your learned meÌ„ teach the contrary and therefore I feare that you will rather beleeue them then me The Rhemists say that to apprehend Christs righteousnes by faith is a phâ—ntasticall apprehension of that which is not And that it is a false faith And afterward that the Apostle knewe not speciall faith the forged faith of Protestants whereby euery one of these new Sect-maisters and their followers as it pleaseth them in the meeknes of their spirit to tearme vs beleeue their sinnes are remitted and themselues shall be saued And else-where that a speciall faith is a forged faith that neither Paul nor Iames nor any other sacred writer euer knewe or spake of any such faith Cardinall Bellermine maintaineth that Faith is neither Fiducia an assurance of Gods mercie or the Pardon of a Man 's owne sinnes nor yet Notitia a cknowledge of such thinges but but onely a firme and certaine assent to the truth of those things which God hath propounded to be deliuered Doctor Stapleton calleth them Heretickes who place the whole nature propertie vertue and greatnes of faith in a particular applicatien of Gods geuerall promises to Belieuers Indeed that which they say is true if there were no other faith taught in the word nor wrought in the hearts of Christians then that which is generally taught and found in the present Romane Church But they which vnderstand the word aright and are iustified by Faith do know and feele another kinde of faith farre surpassing that Bellarmine doth much wrong vs and more trouble himselfe in this point then needed He saith that they differ from vs in the obiect of iustifying faith because we whom he commonly calleth by the name of Heretickes doe restraine it to a sole promise of a speciall mercy And afterward spendeth many chapters in prouing that the obiect of a iustifying faith is not a speciall mercy but all things which God hath reuealed For we doe not hold that the promise of a speciall mercy to a man in particular is the obiect of a true iustifying faith vnder the new testament we finde none such made to any of vs The generall promises of mercy in Christ are the material obiects which being indefinitly propounded it is an acte of faith to make a true Christian to apply them particularly to himselfe But to come to the matter now in question It may easily be proued that a iustifying faith is not onely an assent to the truth of things reuealed in the word but likewise an apprehension and particular applying of the generall promises of Gods mercies and Christs merits for the remission of sinnes In the scriptures faith is called a receiuing of Christ. And a receiuing of the promise Can there be a receiuing of a thing without application was Christ receiued generally of all together for all together and not particularly by euery one for himself When Thomas saide to CHRIST My God and my Lorde Did not he especially and particularly applye Christ and his benefites to himselfe who was GOD and Lorde to all true Christians Yet Christ gaue it the name and Tytle of Faith saying vnto him Because thou hast seene mee thou belieuest And maketh that his faith the very same with their faith who were blessed for belieuing when they had not seene Yea with the faith of Gentiles For Augusti thinketh he did thereby preach and commend the faith of the Gentiles When Paul saide Christ hath loued me and giuen himselfe for mee Did hee not applye particularly to himselfe Christ and his benefites yet this hee did by that faith whereof hee spake immediately before euen by that faith in the Sonne of God whereby he then liued Is not Christ that bread which must nourish our soules and is not Faith the eating of him as himselfe declareth at large Ioh 6. Whervpon Augustine said What preparest thou thy teeth and thy belly belieue thou hast eaten And can there be any eating vnlesse there be be a speciall Application of the meate to the person that is fed Doth not euery one pray in particular for speciall mercie And is not euery one to belieue that what he asketh he shall obtaine And certaine it is that whosoeuer doth worthilie by Faith receiue the sacrament of the Lords supper hee doth by faith particularly receiue Christ and all his benefites and particularly applyeth all the promises of Gods mercies in him Bellarmine confesseth that they agree with vs that Faith is necessarily required for the profitable receiuing of the Sacrament And is there not an Analogie betwixt the signes and the thing signied Looâ—…e then how wee receiue the outward Signes so must wee by faith receiue the thing signified As therefore euerie one doeth particularly with his owne hand receiue to himselfe and for himselfe the outward signe So euery one that belieueth doth particularly receiue to himselfe and for himselfe Christ and all his benefites Let vs come to the Fathers It may be some of you will neither yeeld to scriptures alleadged by vs nor yet to any reasons vnles you may heare the Fathers speake as we doe That godly Martyr Cyprian said that although a man daily rehearsed all the articles of the creede Yet he doth not beleeue in God who doth not place in him onely the assurance of his whole felicitie he holdeth that faith is a confidence or assurance and not in generall of the happines and saluation of
and growe for a while but not long if heate drought doe come it will be parched and wither away for lacke of moysture Such is the case of some hearers their hearts being mollified in part somewhat soft aboue but very hard below toward the bottome will not suffer the word to take any deepe rooting in them It may enter into their harts yet it cannot pearce into the bottome of them It may be some rooting yet very ebbe and shallow It may prosper for a while and they make some profession of it yet not long And in regard hereof they become vnprofitable hearers So as from hence we may obserue a double danger and inconuenience of an heart that is not throughly mollified to the bottome It both hindereth the rooting of the word and also the fruitfulnes of it 1. It hindereth the rooting of the word so as it cannot possibly go deepe enough the word should descend to the bottome of the heart and there take rooting and be continually nourished with the moysture of it but it cannot descend so farre vnles it be throughly mollified Not onely they whose hearts are altogether hard as was the hart of Pharaoh when he heard Moses and Aaron and the Scribes and Pharises when they heard Christ but also they whose hearts are softened onely in part are vnprofitable hearers As not onely those rockes which be bare on the top and altogether hard and haue no manner of soyle and moysture aboue but likewise those which be couered with a litle moysture and earth aboue but not much are vnfit to receiue seede The one will not receiue the seede at all nor suffer it to sprout or shoote forth a blade the other will cause it to sproute and shoote forth a blade but neuer to beare a ripe eare So they who haue hearts altogether hardened will not heare or at least not receiue the word of God at all into any part of their hearts but those who haue hearts partly soft and partly hard may receiue the word and retaine it for a time but will neuer bring forth the fruites of it Wherefore the holy Ghost saith in the Psalmes and it is applyed by the Apostle to the hearers of the Gospell To day if ye will heare his voyce harden not your hearts Because the hard hearted can neuer heare the word of God so reuerently and effectually as they ought to doe the Lord biddeth vs not to harden but to soften our hearts if we will heare his voyce The harder the heart is the more vnprofitable shall be the hearing the softer the heart is the more profitable shall the hearing be Againe this hardnes will cause men to deny the word in time of tentation The moysture and softnes aboue is the cause of receiuing the word with ioy and beleeuing for a time but the hardnes and drinesse below is the cause of reuolting afterward When Gods hand was heauie on Pharoh he somewhat relented humbled himselfe and confessed his sinne but as soone as it was remoued he returned with the dogge to his vomit and became as obstinate as euer he was before So if a mans heart be mollified onely in part he may relent while he heares the word and may embrace it with peace but in time of persecution may grow as hard as euer he was before euen as yron is soft in some measure while it is in the fire but becommeth hard againe when it is cold Let vs not therefore content our selues with an vpper softening but see that our hearts be softened to the very bottome that they may melt like waxe at the fire as good king Iosiahs heart did when he heard the lawe read I knowe that none of our hearts are so soft as they should be But if thou feelest thine owne hardnes doest mislike it desirest earnestly that it may be more and more mollified and doest vse all good meanes for the further mollifying of it thy heart either is alreadie or shall be within a while so softened as it may receiue the word profitably to thy saluatiō If Goates blood being warme can soften the hard Adamant doubt not but the blood of Christ can sufficiently mollifie thy heart though it were as hard as a rocke If thou pray earnestly vnto God to take away the stony heart of thy body and to giue thee an heart of flesh be assured that he will performe it seeing he hath promised it by his holy Prophet 3. Let vs now come to the third propertie of these hearers They belieue for a time Mathew and Marke say they endure for a season that is they endure in their faith but a while They doe belieue yet not long But it is to be considered what kinde of faith this is Though the Papists teach that there is but onely one kinde of faith yet may we find many seuerall distinct kindes thereof in the holy scriptures There be foure kindes of faith One is proper and peculiar to Gods elect and to the regenerate The rest are common both to the elect and the reprobate That which is proper and peculiar to the elect is a true iustifying faith whereby a man doth apprehend and apply to himselfe all the promises of God in Christ and all the merits of Christ for the pardon of his sinne and the saluation of his soule This is called by S. Paul the faith of Gods Elect because onely they and all they be endued with it And therefore it is said that as many as were ordained to eternall life beleeued Though all of them doe not receiue it at the same time but some sooner some later yet is there not any of the Elect but at one time or other they doe receiue it This is called an vnfayned faith or a faith without dissimulation or hypocrisie because it is not counterfaited and is a faith in deed and in truth and is seated not in the tongues or the head but in the bottome of the heart This faith is said to purifie the heart and is called the faith of the Saints because none haue it but those who be sanctified By this faith are we now iustified without the workes of the law and by this must we be saued as the Apostle proueth at large in his Epistles But this is not the faith here spoken of Againe there be other kindes of faith which be common both to the Elect and reprobate And these are either extraordinarie or ordinarie Extraordinarie as the faith of working miracles whereof the Apostle speaketh saying If I had all faith sothat I could remoue mountaines and had not loue I were nothing Iudas the childe of perdition had this faith as well as the rest of the Apostles for he wrought miracles as well as they And many shall say to Christ haue not we in thy name cast out diuells and by thy name done many great miracles to whom he shall answere I neuer knew you depart from
me ye workers of iniquitie This was extraordinarie giuen to some fewe at the first preaching of the Gospell but hath ceased long agoe The ordinary kindes of faith which may be found in the reprobate are two in number The one is called an hystoricall the other a temporarie faith The one I say is called an hystoricall faith or a dogmaticall because it is a bare knowledge and acknowledgment of the historie of the scriptures and of the things written therein concerning God his workes his promises and concerning Christ his merites and benefites without any apprehension of the things knowne and acknowledged This is the faith whereby men beleeue Moses and his writings This is the faith which Paul would needes fasten on Agrippa to beleeue the Prophets This is not fides qua cridimus in deum sed qua credimus deo id est credere vera esse quae loquitur It is not the faith whereby we belieue in God but the faith whereby we belieue God that is whereby we belieue all things to be true which he speaketh And so differeth very much from a iustifying faith This faith is found in the vnregenerate They may belieue all things to be true which are written though they little regard them yea this faith is in the deuells for they belieue and tremble as Iames teacheth And therefore those Atheists those prophane and obstinate scoffers against religion which will not belieue the scriptures nor acknowledge the truth of the things therein reuealed are worse then the diuels And if they be worse then diuells of hell they must needes be farre from entring into heauen The other kind of common faith is termed a temporary faith which is a certaine ape of iustifying faith yet is not the same for although it goe some degrees beyond an historicall faith yet it comes short of a iustifying faith not onely in regard of sinceritie and manner of apprehension but also in regard of the efficacie in internall and externall actes and in regard of the time of continuance This is called a temporary faith not onely for distinction sake to put a difference betwixt it and other kinds but also because it continueth but for a time as appeareth by this place For this is the faith here spoken of And although some Papists laugh at the very name which we giue it as if it were a new coyned tearme yet you see it is grounded on this text And they might also haue seene it taught by others if either they had read the writings of the ancient or their malice against vs had not blinded their eyes Augustine giues the tytle and Bernard doth not onely giue it the like tytle in calling it sides ficta and comparing it to earthen vessells that are easily broken but likewise distinguisheth it frō the dead faith which is without good workes and from the tryed faith which endureth to the end And also describeth it at large by the very words of this my text This faith was in those Iewes who by the sight of Christs miracles at Ierusalem beleeued in him They are said to beleeue in his name and so doubt were perswaded did acknowledge that he was the Messiah to come yet Iesus did commit himselfe vnto them because he know them all and what was in them If he had seene a sound and permanent faith in them no doubt he would haue trusted them but because he saw their faith was neither sound nor constant he would not trust them he foresaw that for all their present profession they might forsake him afterward as the Capernaites did The faith also was in Simon Magus who though before he had bene a notorious sorcerer yet hearing Philip preach did beleeue and was baptized and continued with Philip as a professour of the Gospell and wondered when he saw the great miracles which were wrought yet when he would afterward haue bought the gifts of the holy Ghost for money and haue made a marchandise of them Peter told him that he had neither part nor fellowship in that busines that his heart was not right in the sight of God that he was in the gall of bitternes and in the bond of iniquitie And after that if we may giue credit to humane writings and Ecclesiasticall hystories hee became a sorcerer againe and an open enemie to Peter and the rest of the Apostles and in a fearefull manner died at Rome This faith was in Iudas one of the twelue he vnderstood the misterie of the Gospell professed himselfe an Apostle of Christ preached the Gospell as well as other Apostles and for a long time was of honest behauiour yet Christ called him a diuell and the childe of perdition Afterward he betrayed his Maister for money and then hanged himselfe through desperation This faith was also in those who fell into the vnrecouerable sinne against the holy Ghost for they were enlightened had a taste of the heauenly gift were partakers of the holy Ghost and tasted of the good word of God and of the powers of the world to come And yet they so fel away as they could not be renewed by repentance did crucifie againe the sonne of God and made a mocke of him And this faith haue many others who heare the word acknowledge the truth of it hope to be saued by it make prosession of it liue in outward obedience and receiue the Sacraments and yet in time of persecution proue Apostataes But that you may the better discerne the nature of this faith I will note the seuerall degrees of it for thereby you may clearely see how farre it doth agree with an historicall a iustifying faith and how farre it doth differ from them both There be sixe degrees of it 1. The first degree is illumination and knowledge These beleeuers haue a knowledge of Gods word especially in the chiefest poynts of Gods will and worship in the fundamentall points of mans redemption and in the most necessary points of mans duetie Iudas could not haue beene a Preacher of the Gospell vnlesse he had knowne these things Christ would not haue sent him to teach these things to others if him selfe had beene ignorant of them Those which fell away to the fearefull sinne against the holy Ghost were before enlightned Vnlesse men know the truth they cannot beleeue it How shall they beleeue except they haue heard And herein this faith agreeth both with an historicall and a iustifying faith Christ sayd of the Apostles They haue knowne surely that I came out from thee and haue beleeued that thou hast sent me Knowledge is the first step and degree to each kinde of faith And therefore those who be ignorant of the principles of Religion come so farre short of a true sauing and iustifying faith that as yet they haue not attayned to an hystoricall or temporary faith 2. The second degree is an assent to the truth of the Gospell They are infallibly perswaded that the whole
say with the Apostle It is not I but the grace of God which is with me and by his grace I am that I am The more lowly thou art the better are thy fruites The more and the better graines that an eare of corne hath in it the lower it will bowe downeward but the fewer and the worse graines it hath the higher and straighter will it stand vp Euen so the more good fruites for number and the sounder for qualitie that any man hath the more lowly and humble will he be The prouder he is and the more he insulteth ouer others the fewer worse be his gifts and fruits Therfore be lowly and humble not Arrogating to thy selfe but ascribing to God the glory of all thy fruites Not disdayning any for the small measure of their fuits but honoring them for their good beginning and praying to God that they may abound more and more And this I pray for you all as the Apostle did for the Phlippians that your loue may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all iudgement that yee may discerne things that differ that yee may be pure and without offence vntill the day of Christ filled with the fruites of righteousnes which are by IESUS CHRIST vnto the glorie and prayse of GOD. The Lorde graunt you all these things for his mercies sake in his beloued Sonne Amen A POSTSCRIPT to the Papists in Lancashire I Am not ignorant how hasty and rash manie of you bee in condemning all things spoken and written against the Doctrine of your moderne Priestes If you vouchsafe to reade our wrytings you commonly giue no more fauourable Censure of them then Iulian the Emperour gaue of the Ancient Fathers bookes who thus said of them I read I vnderstood I condemned And we might iustly answere you as Basil and other Learned Byshops answered him Thou hast read but not vnderstod For if thou hadst vnderstood thou wouldst not haue condemned Some of you are like those men whereof the Apostle Iude spake who condemne those things which they knowe not Others of you knowe and vnderstand more yet reiect all things as erronious and Hereticall which you knowe to be contradictorie to the positions of your popish priests Yea many of you be such vnequall iudges that although you cānot but approue almost all points in the booke yet if there bee but one only thing which you distaste you presently condemne all the rest for it And take it to bee as a leafe of Coloquyntis which marreth a whole messe of pottage and as a deade Flye that spoyleth a whole boxe of Oyntment In regard whereof I may iustly feare your sharpe and bitter censures of these my Sermons nowe put foorth to open sight I can expect no more indifferencie and fauour at your hands thē others my betters haue formerly found Notwithstāding as often hereto fore I haue laboured by many meanes to giue you satisfaction in your Doubtes and demaundes both by priuate Conference with diuers of the Layitie by seuerall Answeres made to the wrytings of the learned on your side and also by open disputations with your priests as some of you cannot denie if you would testifie truth So would I now giue you full contentment if any reasonable thing will content you for all such exceptions which I thinke you wil take against these Sermons Whereas the learned on your side doe charge vs that in our sermons and writings we interpret the Scriptures according to our owne fancies and priuate conceits and not according to the vniforme sense giuen by the Fathers and the common exposition of the Church and thervpon would perswade you not to heare or reade or belieue any thing which we proue by the scriptures I will make it apparant that in those points of cōtroucrsie touched in these sermons and confirmed by seuerall texts of scripture I haue the consent of the ancient Fathers and also of many of your owne late wryters Cardinall Bellarmine acknowledgeth that before the Pelagian heresie arose the Fathers did not exactly handle the questionof Praedestination by grace but onely when occasion was offered did briefly set down their opinions And that Chrysost did not plainly preach preuēting grace because at that time they were not risen vp which denyed it As if the Fathers did speake and write plainely fully of those poynts onely which were controuerted and impugned in those dayes Now is it certaine that few of those poyntes which I mentioned were called into question in their dayes There were many controuersies de eo quod creditur non de eo quo creditur as the M. of Sentences out of Augustine distinguisheth of the things to bee beleeued or of the obiect of faith yet not of the habite of faith or of the gift or qualitie whereby we beleeue And therefore the trueth is not to be gain-sayed though we could not produce very pregnant and plentifull testimonies out of their writings touching the nature and kindes of faith Notwithstanding they haue not left themselues without witnes in that they do vpon occasions declare their iudgements therein which serue to confirme the trueth on our side These testimonies of theirs and the testimonies of your owne Doctors I did forbeare to recite in the Pulpit or write in the copie of the Sermons that so I might auoyde tediousnes Yet hauing diligently perused them and hoping that they would be of force with some that duly consider them I thought good to set them apart by themselues and to adde them as a postscript after all SECT II. WHereas I taught that the word of God is the spirituall seede which must bee sowne in our hearts to make vs fruitfull in all good workes And that Preachers ought to teach and people ought to heare and receiue nothing but the word and did limit the word to the word written I know it crosieth the doctrine of some in your Church and therefore may perhaps be misliked by you First your countrey-man Doctor Stapleton writing a Postill for the instruction of Popish Preachers could not finde in all this Parable any poynt to be obserued against vs but onely this that the word is the seed And will haue not the word written but the word preached to be the seede Yea he maketh two words of God the one Now what is preaching but expounding of Scripture and deliuering the true sense of it As appeareth by the practise of Ezra and the Leuites who reade the Lawe of God distinctly and then gaue the sense and caused the people to vnderstand what was read Those then who in their Sermons deliuer the true sense of the word written according to those seuerall kindes of expositions must needes deliuer the word of GOD euen the selfe-same word that is written Againe not onely the things expresly set downe in the Scriptures but likewise such things as by sound and necessarie consequence bee collected thence are taken for written truthes and not
they Indeede hee deliuereth fiue rules whereby true traditions may bee discerned from false and counterfait traditions yet those rules are grounded on the authoritie of men and do not infallibly proue them to bee the word of God Yea he teacheth that al traditions haue not the like authoritie some haue diuine authoritie some haue Apostolical some ecclesiastical And therfore all of them cannot haue the same authority with the written word which himselfe before proued to haue diuine authoritie And how do they know any thing to bee a tradition but by humane writings and histories which as the Cardinall confesseth can breede but humane beleefe wherein may be falshood Neither are they so necessarie and profitable as the Scripture It is able to make a man wise to saluation It is the seede ofregeneration It is the foode of our soules It is the sword of the spirit to defend vs from the Diuell It bringeth vs to faith and saluation as before I proued Can such profite bee reaped from traditions Did euer any approued authour ascribe such vertue and efficacy to them Did euer any Christian obteyne these benefites by them Moreouer the thinges taught in the Scripture are not easily learned Augustine wrote that the profunditie of the Scripture is so great that hee might hee might dayly profite in them if from the beginning of his childhood to his crooked old age he should with greatest leisure chiefest studie and better wit endeuour himselfe to learne them onely The Papists will not gain-say this seeing they hold the Scripture to be very obscure Pambo confessed that in 19. yeeres hee had not learned to practise one lesson taught him out of Psal. 39. to refraine his tongue from euill How many yeeres then may our people require to learne the meaning and the practise of al things written in the Olde and New Testament I would therefore wish our Popish Priestes and people first to learne how to vnderstand and practise all thinges that bee written and when they haue learned all those then to begin with traditions It is no wisedome to contend much and busie themselues greatly about traditions before they haue learned and practised all things written which be farre more certaine more necessarie and profitable If they would take this course I am assured that there is not any one of them though he liued to be as old as Methuselah that would euer trouble eyther himselfe or vs with traditions But it skilleth not what doctrine Papists heare if Tollet say truely That a countrey man beleeuing his Bishop deliuering hereticall doctrine doth merit by beleeuing SECT IIII. IN describing the second propertie of hearers which was their beleeuing for a time to shew what kind of faith that was I taught that there be diuers kinds of faith one proper to the elect and others common both to them and to the reprobate I may iustly feare left that doctrine will not be receiued of all my countrey men and neighbours because the contrary is taught by many Romish Rabbines The Catechisme of the Tridentine Counsel teacheth That though there bee diuers degrees of faith yet it is but one in kind The Rhemistes holde that the dead faith whereof S. Iames speaketh and the Catholicke faith is all one Maldonatus scoffeth at them who make three kinds of faith Historicall Miraculous Iustifying Bellarmine maintaineth it very stifly that there is but one faith And that the historicall faith the the faith of miracles and the faith of promises are all one and that this is the iustifying faith Lest I bee mistaken I would haue you to vnderstand that I acknowledge that there is but one faith in respect of the obiect or of the things which are to be beleeued In regard whereof the Apostle saith There is one Faith one Baptisme Meaning that we all beleeue the same thing as we are all baptised with the same rite as Bellarmine doth truely expound it And in this respect Agustine taught that there was but one faith of all beleeuers Eadem credentium fides vna But one faith of all them which beleeue the same things And in this respect the Fathers write that there was but one faith in all ages that the beleeuing Iewes vnder the Lawe and beleeuing Christians vnder the Gospel had one and the same faith differing onely in the manner not in the matter they beleeued in Christ who was to come and Christians in him alreadie come Augustine sayd truely Aliud sunt ea quae creduntur Aliud fides qua creduntur The things which are beleeued and the faith whereby they are beleeued are not one and the same The former saith he consist in things which haue beene which are and which shall be but the other is in the minde of the beleeuer And therefore though there bee but one faith in respect of the obiect and thinges to bee beleeued yet there may bee diuers kinds of faith differing much one from another in respect of the habite or facultie of the minde whereby we doe beleeue them because all persons doe not beleeue the same things after one and the same maner Againe I doe confesse that there is but one true sauing and iustifying faith in all the Saints and in all the elect Though euery one of them haue a proper and peculiar faith of his owne yet it is the same with the faith that is in others The faith of one may differ from the faith of another in degrees so as one is stronger another weaker but not in knde not in nature and substance Yet there bee in other persons diuers other kinds of faith besides this which bee not the same with it but doe much differ in substance and kinde not onely from it but likewise one from another The difference and diuersitie of these kinds I haue in the Sermons going before sufficiently proued by testimony of holy writte I will now proue the same by the testimonies of ancient Fathers and late Popish writers And that first in generall then in particular In generall that there is not onely one kind of faith but diuers and seuerall kindes of faith SECT V. MOst of the Fathers and many of the Romish writers haue distinguished betwixt these three Credere Deo credere Deum credere in De◠To beleue God to beleue that he is God and to beleeue in God As namely Augustine Eusebius Emissenus Beda Bernard Lumbard The Ordinary glosse Thomas Aquinas Antonius Bernardinus de Senis Iohannes de Combis and Ferus And I maruell much that Bellarmine writing so much of the difference and vnitie of faith did neuer mention this distinction beeing so rife in all Authours Now these three doe so much differ among thēselues as that they cannot possibly be actes of one and the same faith in kinde First they differ in respect of the nature and properties of them
all Gods children but in particular of his owne happines This his assertion doth so gall the Papists that Pamelius said it must be read warily because he knewe that if it were reade in the very sense which the words did beare and the author meant without some corrupt glosse contrary to his meaning it would iustifie our doctrine of faith and make most of the popish crew who haue no confidence of their owne saluation but an assent to the truth of Gods worde to be a company of vnbelieuers The same Father saith That how much Faith we bring thither to receiue so much we draw of Gods ouerflowing grace This is appointed of God saide Ambrose that hee who belieueth in Christ should bee saued without works by faith only receiuing freely the remission of sinnes To the like effect speaketh Hesychius Grace of mercie is both offered and also apprehended by faith alone without workes Augustine maketh Faith the hand whereby euery one must lay holde of Christ now sitting in Heauen Is not that more then a bare assent to thinges reuealed Is not this a speciall Application When the same Father stirred vp his owne soule with these wordes Let my soule say yea let it altogether confidently say Thou art my God who doth say to my soule I am thy saluation c. Did hee not in particular appropriate and apply to himselfe the generall fauours and mercies of God and made him who was God ouer all to be his God in particular And when he sayd Behold we belieue in Christ whom we receiue by faith In receiuing we know what we thinke we receiue a little and are fed in the heart he shewed the nature of faith to be rather an apprehension and application then an assent Chrysostome writing of the promises made to the Patriarches and of the maner how they receiued them saith thus They did by faith alone conceiue a certaine assurance of them seeing them a farre off before foure generations they had such a certain perswasion of them that they did euen salute them as Sea-faring men doe a farre off see the Cities desired which they salute before they enter into them Thou seest that this they receiued is to expect and haue confidence of them If therefore to haue confidence is to receiue We also may receiue them Wherein he declareth the nature of faith not to consist onely in an assent giuen to the truth of things reuealed but a confidence and assurance of the promises of God made to man And that by this confidence beleeuers are saide to receiue the promises And that as they then receiued the promises by that their confidence so also we now by the like confidence are to receiue them Damascen expounding the Apostles description of faith that it is the ground of things hoped for hath these words Faith is an vndoubted and vniudge-able hope as well of those things which are promised vs of God as of obteyning our petitions If then any man may particularly aske the forgiuenes of his owne sinnes and the saluation of his owne soule he may in particular beleeue that his owne sins shall be pardoned his owne soule saued Bernard is plentifull this way thus he saith If thou beleeuest that thy sinnes cannot be blotted out but by him against whom onely thou hast sinned thou doest well but yet adde more that thou also beleeue this that thy sinnes are forgiuen thee by him Is not this a speciall faith Is not this more theÌ„ an assent in generall to things reuealed Is not this the faith so much impugned by our late papists And for a speciall application of Christs merits vnto vs for the pardon of a mans owne sinnes and the saluation of his owne soule he speaketh as plainely But that Caine was not of the members of Christ nor had any thing to do with the merit of Christ that he might presume the same to be his he would haue called that his owne which was Christs as the member doth that which is the heades Thereby teaching that the true beleeuer being a member of Christ doeth call that his owne which is Christs and doth without sinne presume that the merit of Christ is his in particular And therefore in the next words he saith thus of himselfe Whatsoeuer is wanting vnto me from my selfe I boldly take it vnto me out of the bowels of the Lord Iesus because they flow out with mercy Let vs descend to the Popish writers we may finde many of them to iumpe with vs herein Ferus was commended by Sixtus Senensis to be a man excellently learned in the diuine Scriptures whose equall in the office of preaching the Gospell the Catholicke Churches of the Germaines haue not in this our time Yet doeth hee in many places condemne the Popish description of faith and approue ours That is not alwayes faith whith we call faith we call it faith to assent to those things which be deliuered in the diuine histories and which the Church propoundeth to be belieued The Scripture speaketh farre otherwise of Faith For according to the Scriptures faith is nothing else but a consideÌ„ce of Gods mercy promised in Christ. And he bringeth Abrahams example for proofe thereof And of this faith saith hee mention is made in the Gospell where it is sayd Hee that beleeueth in the Sonne of God shall not bee condemned The faith which the Scripture commendeth is no other thing then to trust to the free mercy of God this is the true faith whereby the iust man liueth this alone is it which God requireth of vs. An example of this faith we haue in the Centurion for we do not read that he rehearsed the Articles of faith but that he came to Christ with great trust These wordes make so much for vs that Sixtus Senensis sayd of them that hee seemeth to allude to the error of them who teach that iustifying faith is nothing else but an assurance of Gods mercy forgiâ—ing our sinnes through Christ. And Dominicus Soto tooke vpon him to confute him in that poynt but Michael Medina defended him against Soto And else-where he speaketh as fully for vs To belieue in Christ saith hee is not to know his works for Sathan knoweth this neyther is it to remember or thinke with himselfe that Christ hath suffered and risen againe for euen vngodly men remember these things and thinke of them and yet are made nothing better But it is with certaine sure and stedfast trust to take hold of Christ and all his benefits and to sticke to them with all the heart all the soule and all the strength Pighius in his booke of controuersies dedicated to the Pope Paulus 3. doth teach that although Faith as it is vsually taken by ecclesiasticall writers bee that habite of the minde whereby we do certainly and without any doubting assent to those things which for our saluation are reuealed of God to his Church
Yet vnto this faith assent of reason and the minde that it may be called a perfect faith there ought also to be adioyned a certaine sure and firme trust of the heart whereby the belieuing soule doth so stay vpon trust to the worde and truth of God that without all doubting whatsoeuer it is he hath it as sure as if he held it in his handes And hee further addeth that this is the Faith and not that assent of reason which the Lord euery where required of them whome hee vouchsafed to heale Of that he spake when he saide Daughter be of comfort thy Faith hath made thee whole And this is the same Faith which maketh prayer effectuall which Christ and Iames require in them that pray Didacus Stella hauing distinguished of faith that there is one to belieue whatsoeuer is to be belieued called a Theological vertue another is a Considence by which we belieue that the Lorde will giue whatsoeuer we aske He saith that without this faith 1. this Confidence our sinnes cannot be forgiuen For although a man belieue all thinges contained in holy Scriptures to be true and all things which the Church belieueth yet if he shuld not trust and most certainly belieue that they shall be forgiuen him they should neuer be forgiuen him And saint Iames saith Let him aske in faith nothing doubting To the like purpose doth he afterward distinguish of faith describe the later kinde saying Faith is taken two wayes One way for the habite of belieuing according to which we doe assent to the trueths of the Scripture And this is the Faith without which it is impossible to please God And this is one of the three Theologicall vertues 1. Cor. 13. And by this faith a belieuer differeth from an Infidell There is another faith which is called a Confidence whereby a man asketh of God confidently hoping and belieuing most certainly that he shall obtaine of the Lord that which he asketh Which faith is needefull for him that prayeth otherwise hee shall neuer obtaine any thing If this be the faith required of them that pray aright it is the faith of all Gods Saints and of them which are iustified for they pray often and are heard And if this man write truely then those who teach and haue no other faith then an assent to the truth of things reuealed can neuer obtaine pardon of their sinnes nor haue their petitions graunted Tollet taught and that out of Euthymius that Faith in many places of scripture is takeÌ„ Not for the assent of the minde but for the assuraÌ„ce of the will Iansenius also writeth the same Therfore most rightly as appeareth it may be saide that by the name of Faith in the Gospells wheÌ„ saluation or the obtaining of those things which wee desire is ascribed vnto it both these are comprehended both that firme assent in things to be belieued concerning God and Christ and also a Confidence conceyued from his goodnesse c. For these two doe so cleaue together that neyther can there be any Confidence without Credulitie neyther can Credulitie without Confidence obtayne any thing of God And to the same effect afterward thus These two to wit Credulity and Confidence seeme to be included together in the name Faith when it is set downe that the Lord saâ—d According to your Faith be it vnto you That the meaning may be As ye belieue that I can heale you and for this doe trust that I will heale you So be it vnto you If then by the testimonie of these Authors Faith bee often so taken in the Scriptures And if this be the only Faith whereby we obtaine such things at the handes of God Why should wee be condemned as Hereticks for teaching such a faith Ought not we to haue such a faith in Christ for the saluation of our soules that those men had in him for the curing of their bodyes Though Stapleton denie this speciall Considence yet hee acknowledgeth that for one and the same faith Christ gaue them both outward inward health Paulus Burgensis saith that Abraham by the Faith which was imputed to him for Righteousnes did not onely belieue that he should be the Father of many Nations but rather that he his seed should obtaine euerlasting life in heauen In Genes 15. Addit 2. The Diuines of Colone taught that through the faith of the word of God working in vs true Contrition and Repentance and other works of preuenting grace we are iustified as by a certaine cause preparing and disposing vs. But through the Faith whereby without doubting we doe firmely trust our sinnes are forgiuen vs through Christ wee are iustified as by a cause receiuing it And also adde further that the Righteousnes of Christ is the cause of our Iustification not as it is out of vs in him but as and when the same is imputed vnto vs for Righteousnes yet so that it be apprehended by faith Cassander who was so highly esteemed for learning and wisedome that two Romane Emperors Ferdinand and Maximilian 2. sent to him for his aduise howe to compound the controuersies in religion approueth their opinion saith that Booke was greatly commended of all the Learnedst diuines through Italy France as a Booke that excellently relateth the summe of the Ancients opinion touching religion out of whose writings the booke is as it were confirmed And with great approbation citeth these words out of it Wee confesse it to be true that it is altogether required for the iustifying of a man that a man doe certainly belieue not onely generally that for Christ sinnes be forgiuen to them that be truely penitent but also that they be forgiuen to the man himselfe for Christ by faith Hee also alledgeth out of the Ratisbone booke these words We call a liuely faith a motion of the holy Ghost whereby they who truely repent are lifted vp to God and doe truely apprehend mercie promised in Christ that now they truely perceiue that they haue through the free goodnes of God receiued remission of sinnes and reconciliation for the merits of Christ and doe crye Abba Fâ—ther And therevpon hee inferreth that rightly agreeably to the scriptures it is saide that this is the nature of a Iustifying Faith that it perceiue that feeling of Gods fauour which the holy Ghost worketh in vs. And further addeth that to obtaine Iustification Such a Faith is required whereby a man after the example of Abraham doth not doubt of the promise of God through distrust but aboue hope belieueth vnder hope that God will impute to him that belieueth in him who raised Iesus from the dead this Faith to his iustification and will not impute his sinnes to him An example whereof as he saith we haue in the cure of corporall diseases which beareth an image of the inward cure For there Christ required a Faith whereby a man did belieue that Christ
was endued with that power that he was able to heale him and trusted that such was his goodnes that he would cure him Cardinall Bellarmine after hee had written very much to prooue that Faith is only an assent to the truth of things reuealed and not an assurance or speciall application of the promises doth at last ouerthrowe all and yeelde to vs. For thus hee writeth of vs they say rightly that euery one may by faith applye to himselfe the generall promises For as I doe belieue by the Catholicke faith that Christ dyed for all So by the same faith I doe belieue that hee dyed for me who am one of them What need we any better witnes then hee who before was our greatest aduersarie Doth not this lay open the nature of Iustifying faith to bee the same that wee teach Is a particular application of generall promises no more then a bare assent to the truth of things reuealed By that faith whereby I beleeue Christ dyed in generall for all doe I also beleeue that hee dyed in particular for me And yet shall wee say that a speciall faith is a forged faith that it is against the nature of faith to apprehend and apply particularly to my selfe the promises of God and the merits of Christ Yet for all this the Cardinall will not graunt that any man is to beleeue the pardon of his owne sinnes in particular because the generall promises are not absolute but conditionall euen with the condition of faith as we acknowledge And therefore demaundeth how a man can absolutely beleeue that his sinnes are forgiuen him seeing he caÌ„not learne by any worde of God that hee hath such a faith as is required for the obteyning of the pardon of sinnes And saith that none which beleeue are saued vnlesse they beleeue as they ought to beleeue But therein the Cardinall doth not onely contradict himselfe but likewise many of his fellowes who teach that there is but one faith at all that the dead and Catholicke faith are all one as was shewed before If some beleeue as they ought to beleeue and some beleeue not as they ought haue they all one and the same faith If some so beleeue as by beleeuing they shal bee saued and some so beleeeue as by beleeuing they cannot be saued shall wee say they haue all one and the same faith Then may wee also say that Peter and Iudas had one and the same repentance The Cardinall here sheweth that they do indeede beleeue as they ought to beleeue who haue faith which worketh by loue Yet else-where he laboureth to prooue that a true and Christian faith which by way of disposition iustifyeth the vngodlie may be separated from charitie and from other vertues How repugnant are these things one to another Againe hee that beleeueth may know that he hath faith orherwise Paul would not haue bidden the Corinthians to proue themselues whether they were in the faith Augustine sayd Euery one doth see faith to be in his owne heart if he do belieue or not to be if hee doe not beleeue And that no man can see faith in another but euery one may see it in himselfe The Cardinall saith They beleeue as they ought who haue faith working by loue yet may a man easily know whether hee haue loue or not Therefore sayd Augustine Let a man looke to his heart and see if he haue charitie and then let him say I am borne of God Yea let not any one aske another let euerie one returne to his owne heart if he there finde brotherly charitie hee may bee sure hee hath passed from death to life Would hee haue sayd thus if a man could not haue knowne whether he had charitie or not Michael Medina as Sixtus Senensis testifyeth in defending Ferus against Soto saith There is no man which doubteth but that wee may know true loue and faith to be in vs. Seeing then that by charitie a man may know as the Cardinall teacheth whether hee beleeue as hee ought to beleeue and seeing a man may know whether he haue charitie or not hee may also know whether hee beleeue as he ought and if he beleeue as he ought then by the Cardinals owne confession he may particularly apply to himselfe the generall promises and certainely beleeue that his owne sinnes are pardoned And to conclude this poynt seeing this speciall faith hath such testimony not onely from the diuine Scriptures but likewise from the ancient Doctors of the Church and also from the late Romish writers doe not condemne it as hereticall but seeke earnestly for it as the speciall meane of your saluation SECT VIII THere remaineth another point to be considered touching the persons that be endued with a iustifying faith I taught that it is proper to the Elect. Notwithstanding I knowe that Cardinall Bellarmine goeth about to confute Caluine for holdin that Faith and true righteousnes is proper to the Elect Yet doth he not bring any one argument to proue that it is not proper to them but onely laboureth to proue that faith may be lost Touching this point we will acknowlâ—dge that the best faith which many of the popish prelates doe teach is common both to the reprobate and Elect. The reprobate may giue an assent to the trâ—th of things reuealed as well as the Elect. But there is another faith besides that and more excellent then it as I haue proued before and that is peculiar to Gods Elect. No maruaile though those papists who knowe it not or will not acknowledge it doe hold that there is no faith peculiar to Gods Elect. If they knew the nature of a iustifying faith they would not contend with vs about the persons who haue it Though many haue not written of this point yet besides the texts of scripture alleadged we haue the testimonies of some Augustine as was declared before saith that the faith which worketh by loue onely the seruants of God haue only the Saints of God onely the sonnes of Abraham by faith onely the sonnes of loue the sonnes of promise Will any say that the reprobate are the seruants and saints of God or the beloued sonnes of God or sons of promise If once they were such they should alwaies continue such For as the Apostle teacheth whosoeuer is borne of God sinneth not yea he keepeth himselfe and the wicked toucheth him not Is God the father of the wicked said Augustine God forbid The same father said that the faith of the praedestinate either doth not fayle at all or if there be any of them whose faith fayleth it is repayred againe before this life be ended But as for those that finally fall away from faith out of doubt saith he at that time when they liued well and godly they were not to be reckoned in that number for they were not seuered from that masse of perdition by the prescience predestination of God And therefore
same words doth in his owne name expound it of the same faith and distinguisheth it from the other faith saying Faith is here taken not for that vertue whereby wee are called belieuers as it is taken of Paul when hee saith there are three vertues Faith Hope Charitie which faith all Christians haue and then the Apostles had But it is taken for the faith of miracles which Paul putteth 1. Cor. 12. among the diuision of Graces which the holy Ghost imparteth to diuers men diuersly euen as he will And this kinde of faith is no hing else but a Confidence of obtaining or working miracâ—es when it is needfull or profitable by calling vpon the Name of God Caietane doth put as great difference betwixt them writing vpon those words 1. Cor. 12. Alteri fides in eodem spiritu saith thus There is no speech heere concerning the faith of things to be belieued but concerning the faith of thinges to be done For that is common to all Christians but this agreeth onely to some certaine persons Pighius also writeth that the faith which is Fiducia an Assurance or Confidence is in the whole kinde diuerse from that Catholike faith where vnto the power of miracles was adioyned For the one doth properly respect the truth of God for the obiect the other respecteth the goodnes of God as made ours after a manner by mutuall loue That goeth before the loue of God and is separable from it so as the Apostle affirmed that he might haue all faith of that kinde though hee had not loue But this doth follow loue and is a bud of it That may be euen in the workers of iniquitie who at the day of iudgement shall heare Christ say to them I neuer knew you But this belongeth onely to iust and holymen who haue already sanctified or Dedicated their soules to God through the obedience of Charitie So many wayes doth hee distinguish them and so farre was he from making them one and the same kinde of faith or making the one to be a degree of the other Consider then I pray you how the Rhemistes and Bellarmine are singular in this their conforming of a miraculous faith with a iustifying faith hauing not only the scriptures but also all sorts of writers gainsaying them And therefore it may well be supposed that rather a desire to contradict vs then any consent of theyr owne Church or any sound reason to warraÌ„t them hath moued them to make that confusion of two distinct gifts And will you giue credite to such spitefull and partiall writers SECT X. Of Hystoricall Faith THe first kind of ordinary faith which is common both to the Elect and reprobate I called an historicall or dogmaticall faith yet I knowe there be many who neither can abide the name and tytle of historicall faith nor yet will acknowledge any difference betwixt the thing signified thereby and a iustifying faith but make them both one Touching the name Gregory Martine said that historicall and speciall faith are hereticall tearmes newly deuised Cardinall Bellarmine saith that Catholikes do not vse the name of historicall faith least they should seeme to thinke that the deedes of the Saints which are recorded in scripture are not beleeued but for the authoritie of the historie writers And that there is but one faith which is neither to be called historicall nor miraculous but a Catholike faith Yet the thing feared by the Cardinall to arise vppon the vse of the Name is but a vaine pretence If he and his fellowes had feared the like daunger in the vse of other Names they would neuer haue allowed the name of Transubstantiation lest any should thinke that they holde a reall Conuersion of the substance of the Bread and Wine into the substance of Christs bodie for so much doth the proper signification of the word import when as the name of hystoricall faith importeth no such thing as he feareth The onely reason why hee and his fellowes contemne the tytle is because we sometime vse it Such is their hatred to vs that they are vnwilling to vse anie Terme of ours though it bee neuer so fitting and proper But first let them knowe that we may lawfully vse terms and tytles to expresse our meaning if the thing meant thereby may be prooued by the Scripture though the Terme it selfe bee not expressely found in the Scripture The ancient Fathers gaue to CHRIST the name and Tytle of omousios consubstantiall to expresse the equalitie of his Godhead with the Father The Arians misliked it because they found it not in the Scriptures Yet the Fathers one after another defended it and vsed it still because though the Name it selfe were not there yet the thing signified thereby was found there Euen as the Arians themselues gaue to the Father the tytles of Unbegotten Incomprehensible Incircumscriptible Incorporall and such like which words were not found in the Scripture yet were the things meant thereby The Cardinall relateth this at large with many testimonies And acknowledgeth that in expressing the mysterie of the Trinitie they vse many names and words which although they be not found in scripture yet their seedes and equiualents are there found And the Rhemists graunt that wee may not measure the newnesse or oldenesse of wordes and tearmes of speaking in Religion by holy Scriptures onely as though all those or onely those were newe and to be reiected that are not expresly found in holie Writte but we must esteeme them by the agreeablenesse or disagreeablenesse they haue to the true sense of Scripture Now wee meane nothing by this Hystoricall Faith but that firme assent which men doe giue to the thinges written in Scripture Not onely to the hystories of Acts done but likewise to all doctrines of faith manners there taught And therefore we also call it a Dogmaticall Faith a faith whereby wee beleeue all the Doctrines of the Scriptures to bee true By which tytle the Cardinall confesseth Cyrill and Chrysostome haue called this faith And hee himselfe calleth that a Dogmaticall Faith which hee saith wee call an Hystoricall Faith And the faith which we meane by the Hystoricall Faith wee prooue out of Scriptures as may be seene in my former Sermons Yea the Papists will not deny but that there is such a faith taught in the Scriptures Yea this is the onely faith which they require Yea Bellarmine though he scarce dare vse the name yet he acknowledgeth that by our Historicall faith wee meane that faith which they call An assent which they giue to the narration of things past not for the authoritie of men but of God himselfe who hath reuealed them And that faith he proueth by Scripture If then they agree with vs about the thing why doe they wrangle with vs about the name It is a folish thing saith Bellarmine to striue about the name when men are agreed of the thing Moreouer not onely the old Doctors
of the Church but likewise the Romish writers doe teach that there is an historical sense of the Scriptures and that both simple and figuratiue proper and metophoricall yea and that this sense is especially to be beleeued and that no arguments are of any force but those that be drawn from that sense Now may not wee well call that an historicall faith whereby wee beleeue all things to be true which are taught and proued out of the word according to that historicall sense And indeede the Papists haue no more reason to mislike the tytle of an historicall faith then to mislike the tytle of an historicall sense but that the one is vsed by vs the other is often vsed by themselues They themselues haue inuented strange names and tytles which they giue to faith as to call one Faith vnformed an other formed one Implicitie an other Explicite when as they can prooue neither the names nor the things signified thereby out of the scriptures Why then wil they blame vs for vsing a tytle the meaning whereof by their owne confession is warranted in the Scripture Yet was not this Tytle first inuented by xs Augustine did long agoe vse the name and distinguished it from other kinds of faith saying Let vs distinguish what faith we owe to the Historie or Hystoricall sense what faith we owe to the vnderstanding or mysticall sense and which is a stedfast Faith whether Hystoricall and Temporall or spirituall and Eternall Ferus a learned preaching Fryer vseth the Tytle and maketh this faith to be the same with th popish vnformed faith for writing of the Centurions faith hee saith This is not spoken of an Hystoricall or vnformed faith but of a Confidence of mercie to bee shewed thorough Christ. SECT XI AS there is some Difference betwixt vs our aduersaries touching the name so is there greater difference betwixt vs touching the thing Namely whether this hystoricall and dogmaticall faith be the selfe same with Iustifying faith or whether it be a distinct kind of it selfe differing from a iustifying faith Many of our aduersaries make them both one The Rhemists say that the Faith which was reputed for Iustice to Abraham was his beliefe of an Article reuealed vnto him by God that is to say his assent and credite giuen to Gods speeches And that iustice shall be reputed to vs by belieuing the artâ—cles of Christs death and Resurrection not by any speciall faith And that the Catholicke Faith is that wherewith we belieue the articles of the Faith which onely iustifieth And Bellarmine alleadgeth much to proue that faith which iustifieth is neither Fiducia nor Notia but onely an assent to the truth of those things which God hath reuealed And in very truth the Papists must hold that either this faith iustifieth or none at all because they teach no better ordinary faith then this as appeareth by their treatises of faith But it may euidently appeare that this is not the faith which iustifieth vs. There is another faith aboue this and farre more excellent then this and much differing from this which doth iustifie vs alone none other but it I will declare the difference betwixt them that so you may perceiue that they bee not one and the same 1. First they differ in their nature For I proued before that by the iustifying faith a Christian doth apprehend and particularly applye to himselfe all the Promises of Gods mercies and of Christs merites for the pardon of his sinnes and the saluation of his soule But the Papists themselues acknowledge that this faith is of another nature onely an assent to things reuealed Compare that which I wrote before touching the nature of a true iustifying faith with that which the Papists teach to be the nature forme of this faith and you may see great difference 2. They differ in their essentiall degrees and therefore cannot be the same faith in specie I knowe that magis minus non diuersificant speciem more and lesse doe not alter the kinde as the Logicians speake Yet the waÌ„t of the true vnderstanding of that Axiome and of applying it aright to the matter in question hath caused some papists to erre in coufounding different kindes of faith It is true in accidentall but not in substantiall and essentiall degrees for there be degrees of both sortes There be accidentall degrees as degrees of quantitie quantitatis continuae quantitatis discretae A great horse is of the same kind with a litle horse And the greatest number of the same species with the least There be also substantiall and essentiall degrees as appeareth in the faculties of the soule The sensitiue facultie is a degree aboue the vegetatiue and the reasonable facultie another degree aboue the vnsensitiue These being substantiall and essentiall Degrees doe alrer the kinde though not in the same indiuiduo yet in diuers So as that creature which hath an higher degree is of an other kinde then that which hath a lower degree Faith hath the like degrees Some be accidentall and respect the quantitie of Faith So there is Eligopistia a little faith or weake assurance And Plerephoria tes pisteos a full assurance and strong faith And so faith is saide to be lesser and greater both extensiuely when more credible things are knowne and belieued expressely as may be seene in belieuers who know much And intensiuely when credible things are more clerely knowne and more firmâ—ly and ferueÌ„tly held There be also substantiall and essentiall degrees of faith which respect the substance and forme the nature and naturall propertâ—es of it When one bâ—lieueth all that another doth and also more and that in an other manner and forme So he that hath a iustifying faith belieueth all things that hee belieueth who hath an historicall or dogmaticall Faith and that in the same manner Yet doth hee belieue more also and after an other manner Hee doth not only belieue that all things written in the Scriptures be true but likewise belieueth that God will performe his generall Promises in particular towards him for the pardon of his sinne and the saluation of his soule The one of these is Credere Deo to giue credite to God the other is Credere in Deum to belieue in God Augustine thus said of them If yee belieue in him yee giue credite to him But not alwayes he that giueth credit vnto him belieueth in him For the Diuels giue credite to him yet did not belieue in him Yea al papists do freely acknowledge a substantial differeÌ„ce betwixt these two in the very forme manner of belieuing And therfore some doe make of them 2. seuerall kindes of faith as before I proued Others say that there is no such Degree aboue dogmatical faith which before I confuted And which heere by the testimony of Augustine is conuinced 3. They differ in their obiects for the one respecteth the truth of God shewed in
charitie loueth Faith respecteth the first trueth Charitie the chiese good Not the second because although charity arise of faith yet it doth not arise as a proper passion which doth necessarily flowe from the subiect but as a vertue vnto which an other doth dispose and encline And Thomas Aquinas saith Seeing Charitie is without the essence of faith by the comming or departure of it the substance of faith is not changed And although Bellarmine holde with the school-men that Charitie is the forme of faith yet he tteacheth that it is an outward not an inward forme And such a forme as doth not giue beeing vnto it but motion Howe then can it make it make any essentiall differēce betwixt that faith which hath it and that faith which wanteth it I know that the Fathers do sometime note loue as a difference betwixt the faith of Christians and diuels and betwixt the faith of good Christians and bad Yet do they not make it the onely difference betwixt them they teach an essentiall differēce by belieuing in God with trust and confidence Againe they might better make it a difference of theyr faith then the Papists can make it a difference of the faith which they teach because it was a necessary and proper effect proceeding from that their faith not from any other For those that do so belieue in God with hope and confidence of his mercie and goodnes towards them cannot but loue him But papists haue no such confidence nor assurāce in their faith which should make them to loue God they may haue all theyr faith without loue And therefore loue cannot distinguish it essentially from the faith of diuels So then to shut vp this point it still remaineth apparent that in the nature and substance there is no difference at all betwixt popish assenting faith and the faith of diuels And surely those that now content themselues with such a faith as is no better in substance then the faith of diuels may iustly feare least hereafter they shall haue no better estate in substance then the deuils haue SECT XII THe last kinde of faith which I mentioned I called a Temporary faith which differeth from a dead faith because while it lasteth it bringeth forth outward fruites And yet is not the same with a iustfying faith because it commeth short of it by many degrees doth not saue any and continueth not vnto the end This faith is scarce knowne to the papists very fewe of their writers make any mention of it Yet lest any should thinke that it is a new coyned tearme and a newly inuented faith I will shew what authors write of it Augustine long agoe vsed the name and tytle together with the name of Historicall faith as before I declared Bernard doth at large describe it and sheweth the difference betwixt it and other kindes of faith he maketh a diuisiō of a threefold faith There is a dead faith a fained faith and a tried faith The dead faith the Apostle defineth to be a faith without workes which doth not worke by loue The fained faith saith he I thinke that is called which hauing receiued life from charitie begins to be moued to worke well but not perseuering doth faile and die as an vntimely birth In the same sense indeed I may call it fained or fashioned that we call the potters vessels fictilia non because they are not profitable so long as they last but because seeing they are brickle they doe not last long Of this fayning of faith I thinke they are noted in the Gospell who beleeue for a while and in time of tentation goe away When and whither doe they depart surely from faith to infidelitie And these saith Christ haue no rootes He doth not deny but they haue that which is good but he rather blameth them that they were not rooted in that which is good Such are the soules hauing as yet a little and tender charitie and for this cause their faith though liuely yet fained or fraile must needes faile in tentation What kinde of faith euery mans is tribulation doth try If any man faile it is knowne to be fained If any mans continue it is iudged to be a tried and a perfect faith c. So likewise in another place he hauing described what is an vnfained faith he addeth that it is called an vnfained faith to shew the difference of it from a dead faith and a fained faith A dead faith is that which is without workes A fained faith is that which beleeueth for a season and in time of tentation goeth away whence it is called ficta fayned that is fraile or brickle Bernardine hath the same distinction and almost the very same wordes with Bernard in the former place and proueth the difference of a fained and failing faith from a dead faith and a tried faith by the words of the Euangelist Luk. 8. 13. they beleeue for a time Michaell Medina was so farre from thinking that this temporarie faith was the same with a iustifying faith that he accounted it while it continued to be no true faith at all For this he writeth True faith is the faith of Gods elect onely I confesse the reprobate doe belieue but for a season For in the time of tentation they goe away Which faith because it hath no rootes the holie Scripture doth not call a true faith And that faith which doth not bring forth the fruite of glorie is no faith before Christ. In this respect the reprobate are accused of vnbeliefe Because although they seemed in outward appearance to belieue yet they did not truely belieue because they wanted eyther true Charitie or Constancie which is so annexed to true faith that in Scripture faith is taken for fidelitie and that hee proueth by the wordes of the Apostle 1. Pet. 2. 6. These wordes and many more to the same effect are related by Sixtus Senensis yet not confuted nor condemned and therefore seeme to be approued Doe not you therefore condemne me for teaching the temporary faith to be another faith then iustifying faith is Thus I hope you plainely see that there is not one only faith in all men as some of your teachers would bear you in hand but that there be diuers kindes of faith really distinct one from another in nature in degrees in efficacy and operation And that this hath beene the ancient doctrine of the true Church and still hath bene taught by some in the Romane Church I pray God that you may not deceiue your selues with a fained faith nor content your selues with that assenting faith which some doe falsely tell you is sufficient But that you may seeke and also obtaine that iustifying faith which is able to saue your soules Take heede of giuing too much credite to some late popish writers Their malice against vs prouoketh them to speake worse of faith then they ought Though it be the most necessary and most effectuall grace which
God here bestoweth on man yet are they greater enemies to it and seeke more to disgrace it then any other gift or grace whatsoeuer Some haue thought so basely of it as they haue taught it was too mean a grace for the Virgine Mary to be endued withal Though Augustine sayd Mary was more blessed by perceiuing the faith of Christ then by conceiuing the flesh of Christ. Yet Albertus Magnus who as Hosius saith was not without cause called Gteat goeth about to proue that she had not faith at all but a certaine kinde of knowledge aboue faith Such a knowledge and puritie as neuer any had in the way but the Angels haue in heauen Oh consider that this is the Dâ—uels pâ—llicie and practise that if he cannot make men otherwise to thinke then that faith is absolutely necessarie to saluation hee then stirreth vp some to teach them a false and insufficient faith because hee knoweth that will no more profite them then no faith as all Wherefore searce out the true faith and seeke for it SECT XIII IN speaking of that Faith which is called Temporary and may be lost I touched a question whether true Iustifying Faith may be quite lost And the rather because some popish writers alleadge that place to proue that it may bee lost Not to say any thing of those reasons and texts of Scripture then produced by me to proue that true faith cannot be lost I will now for your further satisfaction set downe the testimonies of diuers learned men approoued by your side who consent with mee in this poynt Augustine taught that those who haue this faith shall neuer perish but shall certainely be saued The Faith which worketh by loue suffereth no man to perish said he So in another place when he exhorted men to a true and right faith so to beleeue in Christ as that they loued him Not to beleeue in him as the Diuels did who though they beleeued yet did not loue Christ and therefore saide to him What haue wee to doe with thee thou Sonne of God But so to beleeue him as wee loue him and say not What haue wee to doe with thee but rather say Wee belong to thee thou hast redeen ed vs. He therevpon inferreth that all they which thus beleue are as liuely stones of which the Temple of God is built and as those neuer putrifying plancks and timber of whieh the arke was made that could not bee drowned in the Flood If they that thus beleeue cannot perish then their faith cannot be lost for they are kept and saued by faith If any will answere that if they keepe their faith they shall not perish but they may lose their faith and so perish Let them heare the same Father in plain tearms denying that For speaking of the praedestinate he saith These mens faith which worâ—eth by loue eyther doth not fayle at all or if there be some of them whose faith fayleth it is repayred before this life bee ended and the iniquitie which came betwixt being blotted out they are reputed to haue perseuerance vnto the end And further teacheth that they whose faith finally faileth were neuer of the number of the elect nor of the number of Christs Disciples Yet more plainely afterward Christ therefore praying for these that their faith might not faile without doubt it shall not fayle vnto the end and therefore it shall continue vnto the end neyther shall the end of this life finde it otherwise then continuing This hee speaketh of them who were called according to Gods purpose as the words immediately going before doe testifie In whom as there hee saith the gifts and calling of God are without repentance And in this respect hee there preferreth the state of the praedestinate aboue the estate of Adam in Paradise And sheweth that this gift of perseuerance is more needfull for the praedestinate now because they are assaulted with so many and so great Tentations And at last concludeth the faithfull man not onely because he hath obteyned mercy that he may be faithfull but also because his faith it seâ—fe fayleth not When he glorieth let him glorie in the Lord. Beda rehearseth the words of Augustine touching the efficacie of Christs prayer in keeping the faith of them who be called according to Gods putpose from fayling reckoneth faith as one of those gifts of God that are without repentance and faith they are without repentance because they are stedsastly fastened without changing And those who beleeue are taught of God and none of them shall perish because Christ looseth none of those whome the father hath giuen him Gregory the great did very fitly distinguish of Gods gifts and shewed the difference betwixt them in regard of continuance There be some gifts of his without which a man cannot attaine to life There be others by which holines of life is declared for the profit of others for meekenes bumilitie patience faith hope charitie are his gifts but those without which men can neuer come to life but prophecie the gift of healing diuersitie of tongnes interpretation of speech are his gifts yet such as shew the presence of his power for the correction of the beholders In those giftes therefore without which men cannot come to life the holy Ghost doth alwayes abide in his preachers or in all the elect But by the other he doth not alwayes abide To the same effect hee likewise speaketh else-where saying The holy Ghost according to certain vertues doth alwayes abide in the harts of the Saintes But according to other hee doth come and goe away goe away and come againe For by Faith Hope and Charitie and other graces without which a man cannot come to Heauen he neuer forsaketh the hearts of the perfect Bernard propouâ— ded a question How any of those who are vnited to Christ by faith can be cut off from him as vnfruitfull branches are cut off from the Vine Seeing be that is coupled with Christ is one spirite with him And answered it by distinguishing of faith that there is a dead faith a fained faith a perueâ—se faith and a right faith And therevpon inferred that hee whoÌ„ had any of the three former might be cut off but he who had the last could not be cut off from that Vine Hee shall abide in Christ and beare fruite and the Father will purge him that hee may beare more fruite Most of the learned Papists seeme to come neere vnto vs in this point Though Stapleton teach that saith cannot be lost by euery mortall sinne but by sinning often and falling often into the same sinnes it may be lost As the rootes of a Tree will not wither if onely one twig be pluâ—ked away but if all be plucked away they will dye Yet is he contradicted by all his fellowes Thomas Aquinas acknowledgeth that faith remaineth in men when they fall from holynes to sinne Whereas some helde that man sinning
and of a professed Christian become an Infidell but he who hath a true Justifying faith cannot quite loose it he may fall in outward shew onely still retayning faith in his heart so did Peter in his fall as shall afterward appeare but he who falleth away indeed and in truth totally and finally neuer had this iustifying faith Marcellinus Bishop of Rome seemed to fall into infidelitie when he sacrificed to Idols did he then loose his faith was he then become an Infidell indeed Then may the Bishop of Rome not onely erre in matters of faith but likewise quite loose his faith and become an Infidell yea an Infidell then may be the head of the Romane Church To auoyd this inconuenience Bellarmine answereth that he was neither Hereâ—icke nor Infidell but onely in outward acte for feare of death did sacrifice to Idolls As if he kept faith in his heart when he performed the outward act of an Infidell And of Liberius another Bishop of Rome he likewise saith That though it be true that he subscribed to the Arian heresie yet hee was no Hereticke but onely sinned in outward acte as Marcellinus did Why then may we not say that a Iustified beleeuer though hee through feare fall to the outward act of Infidelitie yet still keepeth faith in his heart Moreouer the testimonies which I alleadged out of the Fathers are absolute generall as well against the losing of faith by infidelitie as against the losâ—oâ—g of it by sinne But if any did fall to Infidelitie not onely in outward act but also in hart totally in deed in truth they were iudged by the Fathers neuer to haue had this faith Augustine said that those who doe not perseuere but so fall away from Christian faith and conuersation that the end of this life finde them such out of doubt at that time when they liued well and godly were not to be reckoned in the number of the elect and of them who are called according to his purpose So hee writeth of the Discciples which forsooke Christ at Capernaum That they were called Disciples the Gospell so speaking and yet they were not Disciples in truth because they abode not in his word According to that which he saith If yee abide in my Worde yee are verily my Disciples Therefore because they had not perseuerance As they were not truely the Diseiples of Christ So neyther were they truely the sonnes of God Euen when they seemed to bee and were so called And if they were not truely the Sonnes of God they had no faith For by Faith are we made the Sonnes of God as the scripture teacheth Yea the same Father professedly expoundsng the place of Iohn where those Disciples are mentioned saith They were to be reckoned among vnbelieuers though they were called Disciples If any suspect that I wrest his wordes contrary to his meaning Let him reade Maldonatus a Papist who writeth that 52 the Disciples which beleeued not when they followed Christ were Iudas and the murmurers And that Augustine and Beda doe thinke that those which went backe neuer had faith no more then those which S. Paul said were turned backe after Satan But of what faith must this be vnderstoode What faith did those Disciples and othe Reuolters want when they were taken for Disciples and Christians Was it an Hystoricall or assenting faith The Iesuites will not yeeld that Castor holdeth that all in the Church haue such a faith yea though they be as Tares among wheat bad fish among good foolish virgins wanting oyle in their Lamps as the guest wanting a wedding-Garment and like the incestuous Corinthian Bellarmine auoucheth that all in the Church are such beleeuers though they be wicked ones and instanceth in the forenamed Parables as if all the persons noted therein had that faith though they wanted charity good works Those Disciples and other reuolters before their backe-sliding were in the Church and yet wanted faith As Christ himself Augustine and others haue taught And therefore seeing that by the doctrine of the Iesuites they could not want an historicall and assenting faith they must needs want another faith namely a true iustifying faith But of all others Michael Medina is most plaine and copious in this point as in parte I declared when I spake of a temporary faith yet more may be added to shew his resolute opinion that none haue true faith but they which keepe it to the end According to Christian veritie saith he onely that is to be iudged a true faith which hath the efficacy of obtayning saluation According to that Hee that beleeueth in mee hath eternal life And afterward he addeth That true faith indeede doth consist with true loue but that onely is called true loue by a moral truth which hath perseuerance and continuance And that the Scripture neuer called the faith of them who beleeue for a time to be true saith And that those who are damned neuer had true faith And in conclusion he asked Soto whether he is to be called faithfull or a friend who should be ioyned vnto him for an houre by frieÌ„dship and faith which if he will not say because continuance and constancie is of the nature and being of true faith and charitie then cannot such offenders be called true beleeuers in Christ. Cardinall Bellarmine holdeth against some who then liued that Christ did not onely pray that Peter might continue in faith and in the fauour of God vnto the end but that he also prayed a little after for the perseuerance of all the Apostles yea also of all the elect Ioh. 17. Holy Father keepe them in thy Name whom thou hast giuen me How then can the Faith of any of the Elect faile Shall wee thinke that Christs Prayer was not heard Doth not hee else-where acknowledge that the Father heard him alwayes Was his prayer effectuall against the losse of grace and faith by sinne not against the losse of them by Infidelitie Then was his prayer heard but in part How can they proue that difference SECT XIIII IN prosecuting this point I produced Peuer for an Example who though he denyed his master with an Oath yet still kept Faith in his heart And least any should thinke that this was a speciall priuiledge in Peter I shewed that Christ prayed for others as well as for him Now if there be any who imagine that Christ prayed for them after a different maner and to another end let them remember what I alleadged before out of Augustine touching Christs prayer for all the elect namelie That Christ praying for them that their Faith might not fayle without doubt it shall not fayle vnto the end and therefore shall continue vnto the end neyther shall the end of this life find it otherwise then remayning But because that Bellarmine and others doe teach that Peter did quite loose his faith and the righteousnes thereof I will