and such like places of Scripture promise the grace of God and forgivenesse of sinnes Hebr. 8.12 not for a day or two onely but affirme that it shall alwayes bee of force and continue while life lasteth so that the forgivenesse of sinnes is dayly and continuall all our life long For a full and sufficient satisfaction hath beene made for them by Christ once for all For with one offering Hebr. 10.14 as the Apostle sayth hee consecrated for ever them which are sanctified Therefore seeing that Christ by his owne blood hath entred into the Holy place and hath obtained everlasting Redemption for vs and that our sinnes are taken away in his blood God cannot by right remember them any more For God is so iust as that hee will not have payment and satisfaction made for one thing twice But he is so well pleased with the satisfaction of Christ that he requireth no other satisfaction Isay 53.7 For the Lord hath layd vpon him the iniquity of vs all and Christ himselfe hath taken vpon him all the sincke of our iniquities that he might redeeme and free vs from eternall destruction This is our onely hope and comfort that Christ hath so once for all taken away all the sins of the world that not the least signe of them remayneth For this cause the Evangelist calleth Christ The Lambe of God that taketh away the sinnes of the world Surely Christ hath so satisfied for our sinnes by his death that not one of them remayneth for which satisfaction is not made fully and sufficiently So that by the benefite of Christ we are redeemed and iustified Rom. 5.1 and through him we have peace toward God This satisfaction of Christ whosoever doth with a true stedfast faith apprehend and apply vnto himselfe hath wherein hee may reioyce and be glad in himselfe and that much more then hee is wont to reioyce which hath runne so farre into other mens debt that hee hath nothing to pay who when he shall heare that an other hath payd it in his name and hath fully discharged the whole debt reioyceth heartily and is more glad in his mind then if he in his owne person had discharged the debt So also our conscience when it heareth that Christ hath satisfied for all our sinnes both great and small so that God will never call them to his remembrance doth much reioyce and conceaveth true peace within it selfe and relyeth most peaceably vpon that satisfaction of Christ and favour of God recovered agayne and is exceeding glad in it selfe that it hath and shall have everlasting reconciliation and peace with God By this we may playnely see how necessary the grace of God is to the remission of our sinnes Let every man therefore diligently weigh his owne misery for except a man doe well consider this hee can never vnderstand how much the remedy thereof is to bee desired Let every man therefore truely acknowledge that he is every way past recovery in himselfe that so he may be iustified by God onely and transported by Christ from destruction to Salvation And let no man repose himselfe or put any trust in his owne wisedome in this Article of Iustification For by how much the more a man leaneth vpon his owne wisedome and opinion by so much the more swift and grievous iudgement doth hee plucke vpon his head Furthermore let every man thinke that amongst all there is not one which standeth not in need of this inestimable benefite of God Psal 14 3. Rom. 3.23 All are gone out of the way and corrupted For the Prophets and Apostles whenas they thus speake doe vniversally accuse all of iniquitie and doe make every one guilty of iust condemnation and so doe frame theyr order of teaching from the generall vnto the particular that every man in particular may consider and weigh in his owne conscience whether it be so in him or no which is spoken generally of all For a man is little touched with a generall speech vnlesse hee vnderstand it particularly to appertaine vnto himselfe Therefore seeing all excuse is cutte off on every side let every man seriously acknowledge his owne sinnes and offences that so by Christ his Redeemer and Saviour he may be delivered from them Here is shewed what and how great good commeth vnto those that are iustified by this Iustification by Fayth Likewise vnto whom this Iustification doth properly appertayne CHAP. 28. NOw in a few wordes we must shew what and how great good things doe issue and are to be looked for from this free remission of sinnes And these benefites are especially foure and these the greatest of all benefites the first of which is everlasting reconciliation with God For when God doth forgive and pardon our sinnes freely he doth then receyve vs into favour and continue vs therein For whom he thus iustifieth those he embraceth and affecteth with the same love Iohn 17 23.26 wherewith he loveth his onely begotten Sonne For when he pardoneth vs our sinnes hee loveth vs as dearely as if we had never offended For the obedience of Christ is imputed and imparted vnto vs and for this imputation sake we are as deare and as acceptable to God as Christ himselfe is Secondly in this that God doth freely pardon vs all our sinnes he llikewise forgiveth all and every punishment which we have infinitely deserved and plucked vpon our selves by our sinnes For when the offence is taken away the punishment must needes bee taken away likewise for the offence is forgiven that the punishment might be taken away The third benefite is that our corrupt nature is reformed by the power of the holy Spirit and framed vnto the Image of God so that wee begin to love and worship God even in this life The fourth benefite which we receyve by Iustification is eternall Life and Salvation which God onely imparteth vnto those whom he hath iustified through the remission of sinnes and by his spirit made new creatures These are the foure great and excellent Benefites which follow vpon Iustification So that when our sinnes are abolished and blotted out the mercifull and fatherly countenance of God beginneth to shine vpon vs. Therefore this Iustification may bee discerned and knowne by that which followeth it as by the effects and benefites which proceed flow from thence Among those the feeling of the love of God toward vs and the calling vpon him doe chiefely excell For when hee iustifieth vs then doth hee manifest and shew his love toward vs. For although he loveth vs in Christ with an everlasting love yet doth hee then lively and manifestly shew and declare that his love toward vs when he forgiveth vs our sinnes and reformeth vs with his spirit Then doe we by certayne experience feele in our hearts the strength and most effectuall power of the love of God towards vs. Rom. 8.26 For the holy Spirit doth stirre vp and make in vs hearty prayers by which wee
Therefore nothing whether good or badde whether past or to come can escape this fore-knowledge of God And whereas I say that the fore-knowledge of God did from before the beginning fore-see and fore-know both things past and things present I would not have it so taken as if I thought that the distances and differences of times were to be attributed vnto him by time past and time to come but that all things which have beene created and made in heaven and in earth and which shall bee created and made vnto the end of the world are present before God and so present as that he seeth and beholdeth all and every of them not as by an imagination but truely and before his eyes indeede Things past therefore and things to come have alwayes beene in Gods sight as thinges present and so shall ever remaine So that all things whether things past or things to come are present to Gods fore-knowledge yea and so present as that neither things past are past nor things to come are to come vnto him So these differences of times have relation and ought to bee applyed vnto the creatures and not to God himselfe Wherefore whereas thinges past and things to come are attributed vnto Gods fore-knowledge it is not in the respect of God himselfe as if these or those spaces and distances of times fell out in him but it is in respect of the things themselves which cannot bee made knowne and applyed vnto the creatures without some certayne order and succession of times This is the first signification or acceptation of the fore-knowledge of God which as it foresaw and knew all things from before the beginning it is called the Wisedome of God and as it doth order and designe all things to their proper ende it is called his Providence So what thinges soever God hath foreseene from eternitie they are all certayne and cannot fall out nor be otherwise then hee hath most wisely ordeined Therefore as God in time beginneth to know nothing which hee fore-saw not for ever So also doth hee nothing in time which hee did not fore-see and decree that hee would doe from before beginnings For God doth nothing by a newe or sudden Will but doth and willeth all things by his constant and eternall Will And let this suffice to be spoken of the general fore-knowledge of God Now a few things remaine to be spoken of his particular fore-knowledge The particular Fore-knowledge of God is taken for the favourable affection of his everlasting Love by which he fore-knew his Elect from everlasting and separated them from the rest and loved them and that with a great and incredible Love For this word of seeing and knowing in the phrase and propriety of the Hebrew tongue doth oftentimes signifie the approbation of some thing and a ready and favorable affection and good liking towards it Of this Paul speaketh properly whenas he saith Those whom he knew before those also hath he predestinate This knowledge of the eternall Fore-knowledge of God is not onely very profitable for vs but also most necessary and comfortable that we may know that nothing can be hidde from or escape Gods eyes but that all and every thing even the greatest with the least and the least with the greatest as well internall as externall lie manifest and open in the sight of God These things ought to instruct vs in the feare of God and keepe vs in the same that wee should not thinke or doe any thing that might displease him or be contrary to his good liking And this feare of God being gathered from his fore-knowledge ought to bee vnto vs in stead of a Bridle by which wee should be bridled and withdrawne from all evill so that we shuld feare nothing more then to offend God by our wickednesse which is so terrible so iust and so severe a Revenger of evill For there is this relation betweene his anger and our sinnes that sinne can no sooner be committed of vs but we binde our selves as with an obligation or handwriting given vnto God vnto condigne punishment for the same Therefore if we shall be bold and hasty to commit sinne God also himselfe the iust Iudge and Avenger of all wickednesse is ready furnished and armed with his great and dreaded Power to punish vs so that it is as possible that God should cease to be God as that he should leave sinne vnpunished except it be redressed by true and hearty repentance and amendment of life Agayne the dayly remembrance of this fore-knowledge of God will be as it were a sharpe goade vnto vs that being awakened by it we may beseech Gods Maiestie with our fervent prayers that he would vouchsafe by the power of his spirite to turne our hearts and willes away from all evill and incline them to all goodnesse lest we follow the sway and course of our corrupt Nature running headlong into all kinde of wickednesse and lest that the abhominable workes and wicked deeds that we have committed and heaped vp together doe separate vs from God and thrust vs downe into everlasting paines and torments This Fore-knowledge therefore of God and the serious meditation thereof ought to be our best instructer to teach vs all humblenesse and lowlinesse of spirite especially then when wee fall into great and manifold sinnes which make vs odious and abhominable before God So this miserable condition of ours ought to excite vs dayly with severe and sharpe discipline on the one side to a true mislike and hatred of ourselves and on the other side to an earnest invocation of Gods divine power that for his great mercy sake he would graciously forgive and pardon vs all our sinnes through Christ which we alwayes have and doe commit against him and that hee would dayly more and more forme and fashion vs by his spirite vnto his owne Image that being so renewed we may truely acknowledge and from our hearts detest and abandon our horrible sinnes and every vncleanenesse that so at length wee may bee ashamed of our selves knowing that every least offence is such an vgly spot and detestable infection in the sight of God that he doth so much abhorre it with his whole Nature and Will and is so set against it that he neyther can nor will abyde or suffer the least remaynder thereof to stay amongst his Creatures They therefore that willingly and wittingly transgresse and sinne against the commandements of God they despise and dishonour God and serve the Divell as their Master and are become his living slaves and cursed habitations Looke how much therefore they despise God and fly from him so much doe they love Sathan and followe him and how much likewise they dishonour God and set him at naught by their vncleannesse so much doe they honour the Divell and increase his kingdome For God and the Divell are so contrary one to the other in their nature and will that there is a greater a more vehement contrarietie
the only author of all good and so deny him to be God For God cannot be God except he alone be set vp and acknowledged the onely fountayne of all goodnes For what manner of God should he be if not the only author and sole effecter of all goodnes But if the Papists should be vrged somewhat neerer and harder as namely out of what fountayne those works foreseene should slow and have their beginning if they answere from mans nature and free will they are farre deceived and are blinder then the very Moles For mans whole nature with all the parts thereof eyther of soule or body even vnto the least drop of his bloud is so corrupted and defiled with sinne that all his thoughts and whatsoever proceedeth from him any manner of way is only evill Gene. 6.5 and against God So that mans nature after his fall neyther will nor can do any thing else but strive and wrastle against God and that with a continuall and earnest desire This the holy scripture doth not only testify but also experience proveth to be so for men when they are left to themselves do not only not acknowledge their sinne but also thinke that there is nothing in them but that which is good and holy although they have nothing in them but that which is polluted and defiled with much vncleanenes And againe this corruption and vntowardnes of man hath taken so deepe roote in the nature of man as that it cannot be plucked vp by mans power therefore the amendement of mans nature doth farre exceede mans power For the restoring of Gods image is a farre greater and harder worke then the first creation of man And as no man could create himselfe so also could no man by his owne power amend his evill nature nor change his perverse will into good Therefore seeing man in his whole nature is depraved and that he cannot change nor amend his corrupted nature whatsoever the Papists do talke of workes foreseene is not so much theyr owne vayne fiction as the mischievous invention of the Divell Surely God from everlasting did foresee good works and knew them very well but yet no other but such as he himselfe determined to worke and bring forth in man By these good workes man can deserve nothing at Gods hands because they are his gifts and benefits God bestoweth life and salvation vpon man for his owne everlasting goodnes sake and not for any good deedes which he himselfe worketh in his children These good workes are the manifest effects and infallible testimonyes of his mercy By all this it appeareth that the Papists vnderstand nothing rightly nor soundly in the doctrine of Election for to vnderstand a thing rightly is to know it by the true and proper cause thereof But they know not Election by the true and proper cause thereof Therefore they vnderstand not Election at all or if they vnderstand it of meere malice they hide it and will not manifest it Wherefore the Papists do wander amisse beside their purpose and talke of a thing they know not much more ridiculously and foolishly then if a Shepheard or a Neate-heard should out of Astrology describe the rising and the setting of the Starres or out of Geometry measure out all the scituations and distances of places without the knowledge of eyther science Therefore the Papists when they refuse Gods free bounty as the first and proper cause of salvation and substitute faith fore-seene as a false and fayned cause thereof they runne into a grosse fallacy from that which is no cause as if it were a cause and so fall into a dangerous error And this fallacy is committed as often as for a true and naturall cause of some thing there is assumed that which is no cause of it as the Papists do heere in imagining and bringing forth good workes fore-seene as the cause of election whenas those good workes are not apt nor fit to bring forth salvation For those good workes which they dreame of neyther are nor can be produced or shewed in that sort as they do imagine Therefore they doe not onely bring a false cause but that which is no cause at all A false cause is that which is not fit to effect that for which it was purposed but is the cause of some other thing and so when in place and time convenient it is applyed vnto a thing that agreeth with the nature and quality thereof it may bring forth some-what But no cause is that which can bring forth nothing because it selfe is nothing For those good workes foreseene which the Papists so bragge of and build election vpon are not at all neyther indeede can be as is shewed before and to expect something from that which is nothing is extreame and ridiculous madnesse by which they mocke God and deceive men But seeing they fayne that to be the cause of salvation which is not at all nor can be they intangle themselves in a manifest contradiction and make themselves a laughing stock for very children But if GOD infinitely good and wise had not found out and shewed vs a better cause and way to salvation then the Papists have woe had it beene vnto mankinde Therefore farre be from vs that dreame of the Papists as the palpable invention of the Devill and most manifest breake-necke of mans Salvation because it derogateth from the grace of God and vndermineth and subverteth the Gospell for the foundation of it And let all the godly reverence and adore the mercy and goodnes of God which the scripture every where setteth downe for the onely and most true cause of salvation Also mans purpose when once it beginneth to bee good is holpen indeede by the grace of God But heere wee must diligently marke and observe that this purpose of man could not be good if the grace of God had not gone before and made it good Col. 1.21 2. Cor. 3.5 Gen. 6.5 Ephe. 1.18 Eze. 36.26 1. Ioh. 5.20 Luk. 24.45 For the whole nature and minde of man in himselfe and in his owne nature is onely bent vnto evill so that hee cannot have the least thought vnto any goodnes and so mans purpose is alwayes evill in it selfe but then it beginneth to bee good when God enlightneth his minde by the power of his spirit and changeth and renueth his will Furthermore it is GOD onely that of vnwilling maketh willing and of a stiffe-necked man maketh him more tractable and milde This hee teacheth by the Apostle to the Philippians Phili. 2.13 where he sayth it is God which worketh in you both the will and the deede even of his good pleasure Heere Paule sheweth that man by his owne power is not fit eyther to begin or finish any good worke but that all the power both of willing and doing good proceedeth from Gods onely free mercy because hee of an evill will maketh a good will and turneth and inclineth vnto good mans heart which is most proane vnto evill
and is very profitable for the Elect and the godly For they being affrighted by the hurt and example of others are thereby more humbled in spirite and the more mooved and stirred vp to the better acknowledgement and more earnest desire of Gods grace and mercy Agayne that they may learne the more diligently and studiously to hate and eschew sinne which hath procured so great dammage and such fearefull condemnation vnto others and heartily to abhorre it And on the contrary that they may frame and apply theyr whole studies and endevours to this namely to the care of conforming themselves their life and manners according to the will of God in all things that there may bee betweene their God and them one and the same will and one and the same vnwillingnesse in all thinges as there is wont to be betweene mutual and faythfull friendes So that no evill can bee so great so noysome or hurtfull but God knoweth how to order and direct it vnto the edifying and Salvation of his chosen whereby every man may easily perceyve with what tender affection God loveth his Children when as out of deadly poyson he produceth instruction and wholesome medicine for them Let them therefore with fervent prayers give great thankes to God their so good and mercifull Father in that he hath vouchsafed to save them from eternall death and confusion and to elect them vnto everlasting Salvation and Glory before others whom they excelled neyther by nature nor byrth nor were in the least respect better then they From hence it clearely appeareth and is without all controversie true that the reprobates and such as shall be condemned have not onely any iust cause for which they should murmure agaynst God and frette at his so severe iudgement but farre contrariwise they are bound to prayse and thanke God for his benefites receyved partly because they were by him created men partly because hee hath forborne them here a long time Rom. 2.4 with much patience and long suffering and hath bestowed sundry and great benefites vpon them filling them and refreshing their hearts with meat and drinke Actes 14.17 partly because he hath beautified adorned many of them with notable and excellent giftes whilest he hath made some excellent in the knowledge of narurall things some he hath not debarred from the knowledge of his word but hath wrought in them a certayne consent vnto religion and begotten in them some shew of fayth as appeareth in Iudas the traytor and in Balaam and in many others of whom Christ speaketh in Saint Matthew Cap. 7.22 But when these doe wickedly abuse those benefites and spirituall giftes they do turne to them to their greater damnation Therefore by how much they have receyved from God the greater benefites and more excellent giftes by so much the more grievous iudgement and more bitter punishment doe they by their owne default deserve and plucke vpon their owne heads Further likewise the longer that their life lasteth here the greater curse is there prepared for them But in that hee forbore them here so long and bestowed on them so many good turnes it is his incredible goodnesse and admirable clemency And in condemning of them on the one side he sheweth his iustice and on the other side he setteth forth his power his iustice in that he hth condemned them for sinne which his holy Nature and Will cannot suffer vnpunished and his power in this that hee could impose and inflict vpon them everlasting punishment and most exquisite torments Lastly the reprobates while they are in this life doe hate God their Creator cast away and make no account of his worde and grace and doe deryde and mocke at the whole religion and worship of his divine Maiestie and so honour and love not God but the divell rather Agayne many times they doe most cruelly persecute the religious worshippers of God which professe and embrace his holy Gospell that so they might satisfie their hatred they beare agaynst God and doe molest and kill them with most exquisite torments So that they are the cause of many troubles vnto the godly in this life and incense and arme the hatred and power of the whole world against them all which thinges notwithstanding God for his vnspeakeable goodnesse and love sake towards the Elect doth so guide and direct that by them theyr fayth is the more edified and theyr Salvation furthered For all things both externall and internall must needes turne and worke together for the best to them which have the most mightie God for theyr Father For although that godly men be predestinated by God and elected vnto the heavenly Glory through Christ from everlasting yet they can come vnto that glory by no other way but by the bitter crosse and sundrie troubles and afflictions of this life 2. Tim. 3 2â— Psal 34.20 For although that GOD doe love them with his most tender love that surmounteth all things yet such a lotte and condition is assigned and appointed vnto them in this life that an heavie and a continuall crosse is ioyned as an vnseparable companion vnto that his more then fatherly love For God loveth his children not with a pleasing but with a severe love so that hee chasteneth them sharpely here for their great profit that they might be made partakers of his holinesse But this is their onely hope and most strong consolation that the fatherly will of God for the verifyng and performance of their Salvation is more strong then an vnbatterable wall of brasse This reprobation ought to be preached abroad as wel as Election because that this is a great part of the holy Scriptures which are to be propounded wholy and not piece meale Rom 9.18 So Saint Paul flatly and freely affirmeth that God hardeneth who he will So the same Paul affirmeth 2. Tim. 2.20 that in a great house there are some vessels for dishonour So the same Paul sayth that Pharaoh was raised vp and appoynted for this Rom. 9.21 that God might shew his power in him Rom. 9.12 So also he affirmeth that Esau was reprobated of God Rom. 9.11 before hee had done any evill So also Christ himselfe denyeth Iohn 10.26 that the vnbeleeving Iewes are any of his stocke Matth. 22.11 So likewise he affirmeth in Matthew that to them which are without it is not given to vnderstand the mysteries of the kingdome of heaven So also in the same Gospel of Saint Matthew Cap. 13.19 hee doth by sure signes and infallible tokens discerne and make a difference betweene the elect and the reprobates and there calleth the Elect the wheate of God and the reprobate the tares of the Divell These and the like sayings and testimonies of Scriptures doe teach vs that the doctrine of reprobation ought publikely to be propounded and preached and that for these causes First that the Elect might so much the more certainely and surely repose themselves in the free
CHAP. 23. FVrthermore that every man may the more safely exercise himselfe in this doctrine of Predestination and profite soundly in it these foure heads must alwayes be knowne and considered First that eternall and free Election in Christ be accounted to be the onely ground-worke of all Salvation and that so that not the least part of Salvation be sought elsewhere then from that one doctrine of Predestination which if it should be sought elsewhere the true naturall meaning of the Scripture in many places will not onely be missed and the conscience out of quiet and tormented being vexed as well with continuall feare as doubting but also Salvation it selfe will bee hazarded But seeing that I have spoken more fully of this matter in the Chapters fore-going and that this doctrine is confirmed by testimonies of Scripture I thinke there neede no more to be spoken of it in this place Secondly that concerning God he conceive nothing but a most sure and strong hope of his salvation and be most certainely perswaded in himselfe that he is one of the number of the elect and let no sinnes or continuall slippes weaken his faith or discourage his hope concerning his election For oftentimes many are of the number of the elect which live a very bad life and yet by the goodnes of God are brought to repentance through whose patience they are not taken out of this life in the very committing of their wickednes that it might be made knowne vnto them and their fellow heyres out of how great a mischiefe the grace of God can deliver them as Augustine speaketh Moreover Tom. 7. Colum. 170 Rom. 8. although the holy spirit do governe the children of God yet many times it suffereth them to fall into great sinnes that they might be more and more humbled and being so humbled they might repent the more hartily and have a fellow feeling of others that fall and yet afterwards he bringeth them againe into the right way to salvation by true repentance and if a man beleeve not that he is of the number of the elect he shall surely do great iniury against God as if he would mock any man or call any man vnto Christ in vayne Agayne although many more be ordeyned vnto destruction then to salvation yet that ought not to move or trouble any man because that the Scripture doth no where say that this or that man in particular is a reprobate therefore let not this or that man thinke himselfe of the number of the reprobates which if he shall do and beleeve that he is a reprobate he is iniurious against God and envious of his own salvation but let him much diligently betake himselfe vnto continuall prayer and give himselfe to the reading of the Gospell and exercise his faith in Christ by the study of holynes and say with the Apostle Luke 17.5 Lord increase my faith and then in the end he shall truly feele in his soule more and more that he is of the number of the elect Furthermore let no man presuppose that he is hated or detested of God by reason of any afflictions how great or how lasting soever they be For God is then most ready to bestow life everlasting when he sheweth himselfe to be contraryly minded as Augustine else-where well observeth So that whē he afflicteth Christians with these or those troubls he doth either chastice their sinnes or else they are exercised in a spirituall tryall and such are proposed vnto others as valiant and worthy captaynes eyther for their willing obedience or else for their invincible patience and strength and they being striken with these afflictions as with Gods rod are reduced vnto a more sober cariage and right-course of life So the fatherly love of God striveth with the perverse wickednes of man vntill at the last it softneth it and maketh it better And so S. Augustine rightly witnesseth elsewhere The common crosse and calamity of the godly is not a sentence to punish but an affliction to heale therefore he often punisheth his children to drive them to repentance and draw them to himselfe Hether apperteineth that of S. Austine which sayth elsewhere The afflictions that oppresse vs compell vs to go to God To this also belongeth that of the Prophet Amos Amos. 4.9 who sayth I have smitten you with blasting and mildew your great gardens and your Vineyards and your figge-trees and your olive-trees did the palmer-worme devoure yet have ye not returned vnto me sayth the Lord. By these things therefore it appeareth that God afflicteth his children that he might amend them and he amendeth them for this cause to save them Therefore let all the godly not onely submit both their hands but also their whole body and soule vnder his rod especially seeing that the afflictions that are sent vnto them are as Gods hammers by which as vpon an anvile they are fourmed and made fit for his kingdome and celestiall glory Seeing then that afflictions are as spirituall chariots to carry men into heaven they do minister much better matter to trust wel in God then any matter at all to despaire so that they are to be accounted the medicines of our sinnes and the remedies of our falls Againe out of them the godly learne that God doth not grant nor promise vnto his childrē a freedom from punishment but that he only promiseth them a fatherly moderation in their punishments that he will not execute vengeance on them in the highest degree So that betweene this great gentlenes of God which otherwise might be some alurement vnto sinne and his extreame rigor which would cast men hedlong into destruction this midle chasticement of his is put as wholesome temperature So also must we iudge of the inward temptations with which as often as God doth prick and vrge his children so often doth he try their faith prove their patience and stirre them vp vnto earnest prayer Therefore God will have his children to live heere vnder a continuall crosse both that being convicted of theyr owne infirmitie they might be humbled and that beeing humbled they might learne to seeke strength and helpe from God for if things went alwayes well with them according vnto theyr owne minde they woulde not acknowledge theyr owne weakenes nor thinke that they stand in neede of Gods helpe and also that the stubbornes of the flesh might dayly more and more bee subdued and brought vnder by the remedie of the crosse And lastly that they might be withdrawne from the desires of the world and the concupiscences of the flesh and be incited to the meditation and search of heavenly things knowing that their felicity consisteth not in the things of this world By this it may be playnely gathered that the afflictions of the godly are vnto them as it were spirituall provokements to call vpon God and most wholesome remedy and medicine for their sinnes In which respect those things which men thinke many times to be noysome evils
conteyned in the word of the Prophets and Apostles yet by reason of the blindnes of mans vnderstanding and the backwardnes and frowardnes of his will they are not sufficient to worke in vs a true knowledge of God and of Christ but that God must needes worke effectually in vs by his holy spirit that we may vnderstand them as wee ought to doe and soundly consent vnto them being so vnderstood Therefore there can come no greater benefite from heaven vnto man then the true knowledge of God and faith in Christ Heere for our better vnderstanding-sake wee must marke that God by his word doth lay open his will vnto all men in the whole Church but he revealeth it and maketh it knowne by his spirit vnto the elect onely and that not onely vnto all together in generall but to everyone by himselfe in particular This kinde of revealing is the proper worke of the Holy Ghost they therefore which stubbornely and of set purpose resist it do sinne against the Holy Ghost and shall be condemned without any hope of forgivenes as the scripture witnesseth Mat. â—2 31 And this effectuall vocation is manifested and revealed almost by the same meanes as election is revealed by But it appeareth by the outward preaching of the word of God by the inward instinct operation of the holy ghost In the outward preaching of the word God doth plentifully and playnely declare his will towards vs to wit that he wisheth well vnto vs in that he inviteth and calleth vs vnto himselfe which were wholy corrupted and altogether enemyes vnto him Heere therefore doth he indeed and by lively experience teach vs that he is more prompt and ready to defend and save vs then we can desire to be saved and defended by him whilest that of enemyes and foes he maketh vs his friends whilest that of vnwilling he maketh vs willing whilest that of infidels he maketh vs beleevers Doth he not thus offer salvation vnto vs of his owne accord Surely except God should call vs vnto him we should not onely never come vnto him but also we should remain sworne enemyes and adversaries to him and to our owne salvation But in the meane time by the inspiration of his spirit Ephes 1.9 1. Ioh. 5.20 he doth make fit and dispose our will to trust and beleeve in him For God doth not onely reveale vnto vs the misteryes of his hidden will but also giveth vs a minde that we may vnderstand and know those misteryes In this calling there is no violent motion to be dreamed of by which men are drawne against their will but it is a quiet and fatherly perswasion of the Holy Ghost by which of an vnbeleever Phili. 1.13 a man is made a beleever For first he doth cleere and illuminate our mind by his holy spirit that we may vnderstand Secondly he doth renew and change our will to affect that which is good and do that which is right So God by this effectuall calling doth beget faith in vs whereby we may apprehend the obedience and merit of Christ and apply it vnto our selves This incomprehensible goodnes and mercy of God toward vs is to be embraced beloved with our whole soule For when he draweth vs vnto Christ and calleth vs vnto himselfe then are we as it were created anew and do arise out of nothing because we have not the least sparkle of the least good thing in vs which may make vs worthy or fit for the kingdome of God So that faith and a spirituall life is wrought in vs from above altogether of nothing Faith followeth this calling which ariseth from the word of God being well vnderstood and the inward motion of the holy spirit Heere is to be noted that the word of God and the holy spirit ought to be ioyned together in this effectuall calling so that neither the word should be separated from the spirit nor the spirit from the word For those things which God hath ioyned together are by no meanes to be put asunder And that God hath ioyned togother the word and the spirit in the publike ministery of the Church it is manifestly cleered out of Esay Esa 59.21 where God speaketh thus This shall be my covenant with them sayth the Lord My spirit that is vpon thee and my words which I have put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth nor out of the mouth of thy seede sayth the Lord even from henceforth for ever This is a most sweete promise that God by his ministery will alwayes even to the end of the world teach and gather together his Church with his word and spirit They which reiect this order which God hath established in his Church are but vayne boasters that they obey God so that they which seperate the spirit from the word and seeke for new revelations are mad and turne aside out of the right path of heavenly wisedome and wander altogether from the way of salvatio for the spirit separated from the word is not the spirit of God but of the Devill They therefore wliich brag of the name of the spirit despising and reiecting the word they are not the ministers of God but of the devill for whom also they gather together a Church but the spirit ioyned together with the word is the soule and life of it For the spirit doth quicken the word in the ministery of the Church maketh it frutefull and taketh wholsome roote in the hearts of men bringeth forth fruit Seeing therfore that this word of God is that only instrumeÌ„t by which the holy ghost sheweth forth his power to the saving of men his ministers therfore should with earnest vndaunted study give themselves vnto it that they may handle it rightly and deliver it vnto the people most diligeÌ„tly And that they may the more commodiously performe this they must duly consider daily practise these three things First that they keep that word of God pure vncorrupted not adding to it nor taking from it as do the Papists being lyers in adding and sacrilegious in taking from it Secondly that they vnderstand it rightly according to the will of God the analogy of Christian faith Thirdly that they interpret and apply it vnto those ends and vses for the which God hath ordeyned and appoynted it These three things except they shall dayly consider practise they shall not only beate the peoples eares with an empty sound without any edifying but also they shall set open a wide gap for Sathan himselfe for to sow errors by for he neglecteth not such an occasion offred but most carefully layeth hold vpon it wheresoever he may For the word of God being distracted drawne from the right and naturall meaning therof ceaseth to be the word of God and becommeth a snare to intrap deceive men But the whole fault shall fall vpon the Ministers which shall in no wise escape vengeance And where it is well
by sinne But here the Papistes doe shamefully erre and are grossely deceyved in that they measure the ability of man by the commandements of God For when God teacheth that which is right hee doth not regard what man can doe of himselfe but he sheweth and commandeth man that which hee is indebted and bound to doe So that man is not loosed and freed from this obligation because hee is not able to satisfie and pay it Therefore when as hee cannot performe that which the law of God exacteth of him he is convinced as guilty of his iniquity that hee may be constrayned to acknowledge his sinne lest he should lay the cause of his condemnation vpon some thing els So that as often as the law of God doth will and command man this or that it standeth not to skan how farre mans power is able to stretch but exacteth that simply of him which by right it may And when man cannot performe it hee is fast in bonds on every side so that he can neyther excuse his fault nor lay it elsewhere And so all cavilling and complayning are at an ende And although man bee not able to performe those things that are prescribed and commanded by the law yet notwithstanding hee cannot bee excused or defended as guiltlesse seeing this infirmitie and defect of strength came not nor proceeded from the Creation but from the fall and fault of our first Parents Therefore from this our frailty and weakenesse there is no excusing of our selfe to bee taken or pleaded but rather an accusation For the lawe in the commandements requireth that which was given vs in our first creation Therefore the Elect and godly do vnderstand by the commandement that they are not able to doe that which is prescribed in the lawe and therefore they flie vnto the mercy of God and helpe of the holy spirit pray that iust revenge be not inflicted vpon them but all excuse and defence is cut off from the reprobate Therefore that vnsavory inference and conclusion of the Papists ought to be hissed out by which they conclude thus God hath commanded it therefore man may performe it whenas God by that meanes sheweth man his iniquity frailty that acknowledging it he may fly vnto his grace for it is hee that worketh in man both to will and to doe Phil. â— 13 as Saint Paul teacheth the Philippians Let every man therefore sincerely and from his heart acknowledge that he is the servant of sinne that hee may be delivered and freed by the benefite of Christ no other freedome may bee found which mny prevayle with God As often therefore as wee finde the commandements of God in the Scripture which inioyne vs that which we cannot doe so often let vs remember that notable saying of S. Augustine Epistol 24. which sayth Give me O Lorde that which thou commandest and command what thou wilt otherwise if thou enioynest vs but the least thing we shall not be able to beare it Here the Papistes discover theyr grosse ignorance of the Scripture because they fayne any concurring of free-will with grace as if man in things spirituall pertayning vnto Salvation could of himselfe perfourme any thingâ— by which doctrine they labour to proove that man is not beholding to the grace of God for that good which he hath and is able to performe But the true Church of Christ doth most rightly beleeve and most soundly confesse that God causeth and worketh all that good in man which he hath and doth performe For the Scripture doth every where and manifestly attribute that wholy vnto God as when God sayth by the Prophet EZechiel I will give vnto you a new heart Chap. 36 26 11.19 and will put my spirite in the middest of you and will take away the stony heart out of your bodies and will give you an heart of flesh Here God ascribeth regeneration vnto himselfe because hee alone doth mollifie and change an hardened and stubburne heart Therefore this cannot bee translated vnto the abilitie in man but that something shall be detracted from the grace of God Therefore this ground and principle must firmely be holden and kept that there can no good thing come into our mindes which proceedeth not from God This whosoever doth from his heart beleeve and freely confesse holdeth the foundation of pietie vnshaken Li. 1. ca. 20. as Augustine saith in his booke of Free-will Therefore this whole division which they make betweene the grace of God and the abilitie of man ought to bee reiected as wicked and blasphemous for it hath no proofe out of the holy Scriptures Furthermore the Papists whenas they preferre theyr owne ability before the grace of God and make his promises of no effect by their preceptes do indeede sufficiently declare that they have more confidence in themselves then in God that promiseth Out of doubt being glutted with their owne righteousnesse they doe not hunger much after the righteousnesse of God But let the godly which love the righteousnesse of God and their owne Salvation know this that all the power of free-will such as the Papists dreame of is a vayne fantasie of mans brayne and a fayned and cursed fable which these idle bellies have invented for filthy lucre sake and doe force it vpon the ignorant common people and labour to perswade them thereof vnder the shew of holinesse But the word of God expressely and manifestly teacheth vs that the will of man of his owne power is not able to begin any inward obedience without the holy spirite much lesse to performe it For God is hee alone which worketh in man both to wil and to do Phil. 1.6 Iohn 15.5 The holy spirit is the onely teacher of all heavenly wisedom and hee is the onely author and finisher of all spirituall goodnesse and vertue hee onely worketh in vs all the knowledge and worship of God he worketh in vs faith and the feare of God hee sanctifieth vs and quickneth vs hee comforteth vs and saveth vs to him onely bee praise and glory for ever Certainely the wickednesse and corruption of mans nature is horrible in that it is so much voyd and empty of all goodnesse and so deprived and bereft of all power to will well or to doe good that not the least thought can proceed or be drawne out of it which may bee acceptable and well pleasing vnto God So that man in his owne nature is wholy turned away from God and from all goodnesse and by his owne power is not able to change or subdue this his rebellion whereby it commeth to passe that he sinneth of necessity and erreth continually vntill he bee renewed and amended by spirituall power from above From hence therefore it may most truely bee concluded that the saving knowledge of God and true fayth in Christ is a farre more high and heavenly wisedom then the vnderstanding of man by his owne ability can attayne vnto Moreover this Vocation which we speake of
as it neither ariseth nor dependeth of any naturall causes so also can it not bee knowne by them Agayne the knowledge thereof is not to be sought in the secret hidden fore-knowledge of God but to bee found out by the latter namely by the effects and signes thereof For there is nothing more preposterous nothing more dangerous then omitting and neglecting the effects of Vocation to seeke for the certaynety thereof in the counsell of God And they which labour to do this enter into an endlesse Labyrinth out of which the light of mans reason can never ridde or deliver them Now the effects whereby every man may know his Calling are sundry and manifest First whosoever are called effectually vnto Christ Iohn 8 47. do desire earnestly to heare the word of God and to profile truely in it Secondly Gal. 4 6. the holy Ghost doth stirre vp in them a diligent worship of God and doth kindle and inflame theyr hearts with the desire of thinking and doing good workes Tit. 2.14 and doth beget in them a true hatred of evill as to detest avoyd sinne with all their strength They therefore which love God are called of him 1. Cor. 8.3 for no man can love him except first he be called and taught of him Thirdly God doth beget in his children an hatred of this world and a love of theyr heavenly Country which can be in none but in those that are called and regenerate So that faith and the fruites of fayth are the true and infallible effects and signes of a saving Calling all which as vnseparable companions and vndoubted witnesses doe follow an effectuall Calling by which is begotten in a man a lively and an effectuall feeling of the favour of God Whereas otherwise if a man were not called and regenerate his whole mind and will would be set vpon evill things he should feele no true taste of the grace of God and should be able to doe no good thing before God as furnished onely with humane strength They therefore which doe conceave in theyr minde any good thing and feele it in themselves all that hath his beginning from God that calleth them which worketh in them every good thing that maketh for the Salvation of their soules iustification before God For he onely enclineth the wils and the hearts of men to thinke and doe that which is good and iust They therefore which have an hearty desire to doe that which is good howsoever the worthinesse of their worke answere not their will yet neverthelesse they may know that they are called of God and that they have the holy spirite within them which worketh effectually vnto their Salvation For where hee stirreth vp that spirituall contention betweene vertue and vices there doth an effectuall calling manifest it selfe and declareth and sheweth the power that it hath because that striving betweene the spirit and the flesh can be in none but in those that are called and regenerate For sinne doth wholy possesse the vnregenerate men but it doth but onely hinder the regenerate and set vpon them with great and continuall bickerings They therefore which doe acknowledge and confesse themselves to be vnperfect they may certaynely resolve with themselves that they are called and renewed For this is as one sayth the perfection of Christians to acknowledge theyr owne imperfections But if men feele no such effectes at all or very small and slender effects yet from thence they ought to take no occasion to doubt of the mercy of God or of theyr calling For God doth not give all his gifts and benefites at the first and in one day but enlargeth and encreaseth them by degrees Rom. 1.17 and by little and little Agayne there are sundry and divers times of calling Matth. 20. vers 1. and so forward For some he calleth in theyr first age some in theyr middle age some in their old age some for his great mercy sake he draweth to himselfe in theyr last gaspe of life So that they which as this day feele not the effectes of theyr Vocation they may feele them to morrow or the day after But when God deferreth fayth and repentance even vnto the last pang of death then doth hee witnesse his singular love and mercy towardes miserable sinners For by such examples he comforteth them who have fallen into such or such sinnes and have remayned in them as it were ensnared and lulled a sleepe for a long time that they should not for those sinnes though growne old by long continuance be cast downe and despayre of obtayning mercy because that the incomprehensible grace of God doth remit all manner of sinnes vnto those which are penitent from the bottome of theyr hearts and because that the greatnesse and power of grace is of farre more force to save man then the strength and power of iniquitie is to condemne him as Barnard elsewhere speaketh Lastly we must thinke this that true conversion vnto God and repentance is never too late Whosoever therefore shall truely and heartily repent even at the panges and poynt of death for him is the grace of God prepared and hee may hope for certayne Salvation Agayne true and lively experience teacheth vs by the examples of those whom God calleth even in the last gaspe of life that Salvation and Life eternall is altogether free and every way an vndeserved benefite Therefore no man should despayre of the great Grace of God but all should be in very good hope of it as long as they live here in this world And these thinges bee spoken of Vocation Now it remayneth to speake of Iustification Here is intreated of free Iustification and shewed how it may bee knowne by Vocation or Calling also what it is for a man to be iustified after the phrase of the Gospel and lastly what are the speciall causes of Iustification CHAP. 26. IVstification is the fourth lincke in Pauls Chayne and this is set vnder Vocation or calling in a most convenient and methodicall order For after that God hath called a man vnto himselfe and hath wrought fayth in him by his spirite through the word straight wayes are shewed by the Apostle those benefites which fayth seeketh in God and receyveth of him Fayth therefore that ariseth from an effectuall calling hath respect vnto Iustification Moreover fayth doth not by the proper merite and worke thereof absolve and iustifie any man but it is sayd to iustifie a man because it beholdeth and apprehendeth the free mercy of God in his promises So that true fayth embracing the promises of God and applying them vnto it selfe is imputed by God vnto man for righteousnesse or that I may speake more properly the obedience of Christ his death is imputed to him for righteousnesse through fayth For our righteousnesse before God consisteth in the forgivenesse of our sinnes Rom. 4.6.7 as it appeareth by the wordes of Saint Paul vnto the Romanes But the remission of our sinnes could not
sayth expressely Cap. 2.13 that God pardoneth all our trespasses I have put away sayth God by Isayas all thy sinnes as a cloud and thine iniquities as a mist Isay 44.22 Againe in the same Prophet he speaketh thus I am he which putteth away thine iniquities Isay 43.25 and that for mine owne sake and will remember thy sinnes no more So also David teacheth vs Psal 103.12 that God removeth our sinnes as farre from vs as the East is from the West So also Michah teacheth vs Michah 7.19 that God will cast all our sinnes into the bottome of the sea and blot them quite out Likewise S. Iohn in the Revelation affirmeth Revel 1.5 that Christ hath loved vs and washed vs from our sinnes in his bloud The same Isayas likewise affirmeth Isay 1.18 saying though your sinnes were as Crimsin they shall be made white as snow though they were red as Scarlet they shall be as wooll So the holy Prophets and Apostles speake all as with one mouth and constantly affirme that not some of our sinnes onely are forgiven vs of God but that all our sinnes are pardoned vnto vs how great and fearefull how many and sundry soever they be But God doth not only wipe out those sinnes that are committed and past but doth also pardon the dayly slips of the penitent This let no man storme at as a paradox vnheard of For if God would punish the dayly falls of his children and take vengeance on them for theyr sinnes that are to come and yet pardon those that are past what would it profit I pray you So that the great and incredible goodnes and mercy of God doth extend and stretch it selfe as well to the pardoning of sinnes that are to come as to the remitting of those that are past otherwise the mercy of forgivenes of sinnes should be but halfe a mercy onely and not perfect and absolute None of vs ought to take vnto himselfe liberty to sinne from this fatherly compassion of God for this were to make a mocke of God and to tread his grace vnder foote and to shew that a man is a stranger from God and from his spirit For the least sinne cannot be committed of any man without manifest contempt of God But it should rather be an encouragement and provocation vnto vs to the more earnest study of godlynes for by how much the greater benefits God hath bestowed vpon vs by so much the greater obedience are we bound to yeeld him which we cannot performe without a studious care to avoyd evill and to do good They therefore which sinne rashly and securely do indeede shewe that they are prophane and have nothing to do with God Iude. 4. This the scripture delivereth playnely saying that they are appoynted of old vnto condemnation which from the grace of God take to themselves liberty to sinne securely and let loose the reynes to their owne lusts and obey them for they which so abuse the grace of God and his lenity in pardoning vnto wantonnes do not onely abrogate the kingdome of Christ and deny that there is a God but also do shew that they are wholy given over vnto Sathan as his very bondslaves But the godly which do feare and obey God as their father and Lord though there were no hell nor punishment to be feared yet they would vtterly abhorre to sinne and displease God Wherefore that infinite goodnes of God in forgiving sinne should be vnto no man an enticement to sinne but a teacher vnto every one to live holy and without blame For he which liveth wickedly loseth the price of his redemption and belongeth not vnto Christ as long as he sinneth securely and defileth and poluteth himselfe with abhomination But they which earnestly labour to order and frame themselves according to the rule of Gods law they do indeed and lively declare that they have the holy spirit and belong vnto Christ Moreover it ought to move nor trouble no man because that some of the promises of the forgivenes of sins before rehearsed are spoken without any generall note and seeme to be as it were particular So that we must know that notwithstanding they are indeed vniversall and generall for indefinite propositions are equall vnto generall propositions This the multitude of them doth argue and shew Or if a particular word or a word that signifieth but one thing be set downe Iohn 1.29 as The Sonne of God taketh away the sinne of the world then the generall word is signified which conteineth vnder it all and every particular kind And he that taketh away the generall thing it must needs be that he must take away also all and every particular kind thereof For sinne that is heere put in the singular number although it be referred by some vnto the common vice corruption of nature and that not amisse yet nothing hindreth but that it may be taken figuratively for every iniquity Synecdoche as if the Evangelist should have said whatsoever corruption or vnrighteousnes is amongst men by which God may be offended or alienated from mē all that is taken away and satisfied for everlastingly by the only sacrifice of Christ made once for all This benefite of Christ ought to be enlarged and applied as well vnto all actuall sinnes as vnto the originall sinne and corruption of nature that all occasion of cavilling should be shut vp from the Papists which in their Synagogues do babble and blatter that Christ hath satisfied only for originall sinnes not for actuall for which they impudently say that we ought to make satisfaction So that sinne in the singular number with the Evangelist is as an il-favoured head vnder which many vnseemely members are couched and it is as an vncleane fountaine out of which many vncleane chanels do spring flow and as an evill and corrupt tree out of which much evill and corrupt fruit do bud and grow all which and every of which the Lambe of God hath taken away with his pretious bloud In this free forgivenesse of sinnes the most excellent glory of the Mercy of God shineth brightly and triumpheth infinitely over the rest of the workes of God Therefore the Prophet sayth in expresse words Psal 145.9 God is loving vnto every one but his mercy is above all his workes For the Hebrew word which the Prophet vseth in the place rehearsed signifieth an inward Mercy such as remaineth in the very bowels which the Scripture is wont to vse when there is any speech of the Free-mercy of God and the receyving of a wretched sinner vnto grace Therefore the Prophet doth preferre the infinite mercy of God farre before all temporall benefites as if hee should have sayd The goodnesse of God is great in that he mercifully vpholdeth this world in that hee favourably provideth for all creatures and maintayneth and keepeth them in their estate but that goodnesse of God by which hee plucketh miserable man out of
doe call vpon God Gal. 4.6 as our loving and mercifull Father without trembling So that fayth by which we relie vpon God and love which wee have towardes God and prayer by which wee call vpon him are three most certayne signes of our Iustification For these doe necessarily follow Iustification But of these more shall be spoken hereafter in Glorification Last of all this Iustification belongeth onely to the Elect and such as shal be saved This Paul plainly teacheth here whilest hee sayth that God calleth and iustifyeth those onely whom hee hath predestinate Here therefore Vocation and Iustification are set vnder Predestination as the effects vnder theyr cause So that Iustification doth not reach farther then Predestination For the effectes cannot bee larger and reach farther then theyr causes They therefore which thinke that Iustification belongeth vnto all in generall ought first to teach and proove by the word of God that Predestination or Election is common to every one Agayne Act. 13.48 Tit. 1. Iohn 10.26 the Scripture playnely teacheth vs that Iustification is given and belongeth onely vnto those that are appoynted before vnto Life eternall But this thing is so cleere and manifest that it needeth no long proofe Let these things therefore bee spoken here briefely concerning Iustification Here is declared by what remedy the corruption of our nature is amended and the Image of God restored in man and in what partes especially regeneration is wrought Likewise how grossely the Papists and the grosser sort of Vbiquitaries doe erre which thinke that there is an hidden power in the outward water of Baptisme which is able to convert a man in the very act of Baptizing CHAP. 29. NOw Glorification beeing the last Lincke of Pauls Chayne this followeth to be set vnder Iustification very fitly For so Paul teacheth that the gift of the holy Spirit and the renewing of our corrupt nature vnto the Image of God doth necessarily follow our free receyving into the favour of God and cannot bee separated from it Wherefore Glorification followeth Iustification in a most divine order because it is the finall cause of it For therefore is this or that man iustified that in the end he may be glorified Therefore after Paul had taught that sinnes are forgiven men by the onely free mercy of God now he proceedeth rightly to teach and declare how sinnes are abolished and purged and so sheweth how Glory and the Image of God is recovered in man This hee sheweth in the worde glorifying Therefore to glorifie is nothing els then to abolish the corrupt nature of man and so to reforme man vnto the Image of God and make him fit for eternall Glory So that regeneration from the effect and last end thereof is called by the name of Glorification in asmuch namely as the Elect by it are renewed vnto the Image of God and then translated into everlasting Glory For God wil have his Glory and holinesse to shine in the Elect here after a sort And fayth being in some sort inflamed by the holy Spirite in our calling and our will somewhat changed is here more inflamed and changed But this is perfourmed and brought to passe by no other meanes but onely by our regeneration For God doth not beginne and finish the worke of our regeneration in one day and at one instant but doth continue and perfect it by little and little Here therefore a few things ought to be spoken concerning Regeneration which that they may be handled and intreated of the better and more plainely with the greater fruite wee ought to consider these foure severall heads First what Regeneration is and by what meanes it commeth Secondly in what parts it consisteth and of what sort it is in this life Thirdly how necessary it is and for what thinges it is profitable Fourthly by what signes and tokens it may bee knowne Concerning the first thing Regeneration is not the abolishing of the former substance and the establishing agayne of a new neyther is it the changing of one substance into an other but it is the reforming of our corrupt nature and the repayring and restoring of the Image of God in man So that in this Regeneration there remayneth the same frame of the body and substance but the inward and wicked affections of the mind onely are amended and changed which seeing it is a spirituall change it is felt inwardly before it bee learned as Saint Cyprian speaketh elsewhere And it is nothing els but the amending and abolishing of the corrupt and wicked qualities that remayne in the substance of man Therefore whom God hath iustified those also hee doth regenerate and change vnto his most blessed glorie and purity of life that they may repent and be ashamed of theyr former life that so they may betake themselves vnto a better course For no man can have an earnest desire vnto the grace of God except first he know his sins and be displeased with himselfe in them So that a renewing is required For God will not have his Elect to abuse his gentlenesse and long suffering and therefore doth he renew and frame them to sincere manners and holy actions Therefore they which are effectually regenerated do begin to be displeased with themselves for their sins and to be grieved in their hearts that they have displeased God and with theyr whole heart doe detest all wicked deedes whatsoever so that hereafter they will not commit or doe them and so doe shew theyr thankefulnesse by eschewing of evill and doing of good and there is in them a turning away from Sathan and evill deedes and a turning vnto God and to good workes And although the regenerate doe fall often yet they doe not defend nor allow of theyr sinnes but desire dayly more and more to hate and eschew them So they which are converted begin to savour of better thinges and doe change theyr evill custome and kind of life and revoke theyr former course of living and so convert theyr actions and endevours from evill vnto good as from one contrary vnto an other They which are thus affected doe feele true ioy in theyr hearts in that they have God at one with them for theyr Mediatours sake from whence followeth an earnest desire to obey God in all his Commandements Let the regenerate therefore know that now the time is come wherein they ought to approve and fulfill those most wholesome precepts of divinity not so much by discoursing of them as by performing them constantly living godly because they can by no other way obtaine blessed immortality heavenly Glory but onely by true fayth and ready obedience vnto the commandements of God Therefore how much or little soever it be which the children of God have and savour of regeneration to it they ought to frame theyr manners sayth Augustine Tom. 7. colum 694. Now this renewing as is abovesayd in the Treatise of Vocation is begun and finished by the word and spirit of God By
the word he sheweth vs what things he wil have done or not done by vs and by his Spirite there is strength ministred vnto vs to performe them This regeneration is especially wrought continued in the mind will and heart of man So that God sheweth forth and declareth his goodnesse towards his children here three manner of wayes First hee doth enlighten and dispell the blindnes of the mind by the Sun-shine of his Spirit For whatsoever man savoureth of his owne selfe Rom. 8.6 7. is enmity against God bringeth death with it This blindnesse of mans mind is not simply the ignorance of God and of himselfe but it is a stubborne rebellion and prowd presumption against God So that by how much a man excelleth and is indued with the greater quicknes of nature by so much the more doth he resist and strive against God himselfe and his owne Salvation Because such an one feareth not to charge the wisedome of God with extreame folly For all men as long as they are not renewed with this new and heavenly light do thinke the holy mysteries of God to be foolishnesse So Paul whilst hee preached Christ crucified vnto the Grecians sayth 1. Cor. 1.23 that to them he preached foolishnes So that the enlightning of this rebellious and hurtfull blindnesse is a great and inestimable benefite of God After this inlightning followeth a right iudgement and opinion of God of his will and of his workes because that then men begin to know God rightly and to iudge of him accordingly when they be inlightened by the spirit of God Secondly it changeth and reformeth the will of man which is extreamely contrary vnto the law of God And of evill it maketh it good and of vnwilling and stubborne it maketh it ready and obedient Phil. 2.13 So the will of man doth then begin to be good when it is reformed and renewed by God Here also the infinite goodnesse of God sheweth it selfe whilest that it maketh man of an adversary and foe to become a friend and heyre of heavenly glory which otherwise in himselfe is so corrupted and depraved that hee hath mind to nothing but evill and hateth God extremely This will of man howsoever by nature it be so wicked and perverse as to resist and withstand God and his will yet no will can be so wicked and stubborne but God if he will can mollifie it and make it good as Augustine sayth well Now God will doe this in the Elect Ezech. 36.26 27. because that of his owne accord hee hath promised that he will doe it Thirdly it converteth and reneweth the stubborne vnapt and disobedient heart and so doth weaken and debilitate the strength of sinne in his children and doth create in them an earnest study and desire to live godly and maketh them altogether forward vnto all piety Lastly it stirreth vp in them good workes and endueth them with sincere and holy behaviour Phil. 2.13 So God worketh in them both to will that which is good and doe that which is right So that all power to live godly proceedeth and commeth not from theyr owne power but from God onely which worketh in them effectually by his Spirit For this spirituall renewing is called in many places of the Scripture by an excellencie The creation and worke of God because that it is his worke to illuminate the blind vnderstandings of men with the knowledge of himselfe and to change theyr crooked willes and hard heartes and to frame them vnto the obedience of his owne will For these are so hard and difficult workes that they can bee brought to passe and effected by none other but by God onely Therefore the Lord by EZechiel promiseth that he will cause that we shal walke in his commandements shewing that regeneration and power to doe well is a worke farre surmounting all creatures The vse of this doctrine is divers First that the grace of God by which onely the Elect are changed into new creatures may be maintayned agaynst that divellish invention of free will which the Papists dreame of But here the Papists offend grievously for looke how much they attribute vnto the power of man so much doe they detract from the grace of God and merit of Christ For the grace of God and the power of man are in this matter two contraries which cannot be maintayned of one and the selfe same subiect at one time Therefore Saynt Austine in one place sayth very well that that is not free which the grace of God hath not made free For the Scripture as we have sayd before doth not leave a man so much as a good thought which is the least part of a good worke 2. Cor. 3.5 For such is the blindnesse and frailty of mans wit that it is not onely vnable to conceyve and bring forth of it selfe any thing rightly or truely but also that it frameth and inventeth to it selfe many and most dangerous errors even from most true principles An evident example of this we may see in the free-will of the Papists But that most fond dreame of theyrs vanisheth like a vapour by this doctrine of regeneration and the spirit of God onely is prooved to bee the onely beginning and true cause of every good worke Agayne seeing God doth regenerate man and make him fit for good works that other fiction which the Papists have dreamed concerning workes fore-seene is overthrowne and beaten to pieces For seeing no man can doe good except by the grace of God hee be changed into a new creature it thence followeth that God could fore-see no other workes in man but such as hee himselfe should worke in him whence a man may easily gather which considereth the matter any thing at all that this opinion concerning workes fore-seene is a meere and forged fable Moreover the Papists and the more grosse sort of Vbiquitaries do in this place after their manner erre and invent a new fiction whenas they thinke that there is some secret and hidden power in tne water of Baptisme which is able to convert and renew a man And from thence they labour to inferre that they which are baptized are regenerate in the very act of Baptisme This vnsavory invention is the fosterer of noysome errours But the falshood thereof is found first in this that it evidently appeareth by the holy Scriptures that all are not regenerate which are baptized as we may see not onely in Simon Magus but also in many others eyther openly wicked or hypocrites vnder hand and secretly which although they have beene baptized and receyved Baptisme as a true marke of their regeneration yet theyr lives sufficiently declare that they were not regenerate For although that the Sacraments are meanes or instruments by which the holy Ghost is effectuall in the Ministery of the Church yet in his power and efficacy hee hath not tyed himselfe vnto them neyther doth hee so worke by them that that working should alwayes shew it selfe
morall workes which by their owne worth can make men gratious and acceptable vnto God before they have bin regenerate and grafted into Christ by faith And those merits they call merits ex congruo so called because that as they say by right and equity they deserve some reward which God by right is bound to repay them If this were true why then man belike should not be wholy infected and corrupted with originall sin But man as we have testimonyes in the holy scripture is wholy infected and corrupted with originall sinne Gen. 6.5 Psal 51.7 therefore that idle fiction of the Papists is nothing else but a meere invention of the Devill Surely those works which proceede from any man before his regeneration are every way foule and vgly sinnes to which by right and equity there is no reward else due but onely everlasting torment But it goeth very well and fayrely with vs if God doe not punish them in vs as they deserve Agayne all those workes of men although they seeme fayre and comely in the sight of man yet if they be skanned according to the rule of Gods lawe they will be found to be meere filth and vnsavoury pollution And that as the Starres which although they seeme most bright in the night time yet at the arising and presence of the Sunne they lose their brightnes so likewise those workes of men which in the common view seeme to be right and beautifull shall be manifest iniquity in the sight of God so lawdable sincerity heere shall be greater vncleanenes there and that which heere is approved as great glory shall there be reiected as extreame shame and reproach Farre therefore be from vs these faire-shewing and foule-meaning hipocrites which cover the corruption and wickednes that is wrapped vp in the heart of man with a vayne flourish and fayned maske and by their merits which are worse then extreame filthines doe labour to winne the favour of God and to make him beholding vnto them Surely it is without all doubt that they do provoke God more and more by these their workes seeing that they are execrable sinnes Agayne they doe plucke vpon their heads the more grievous iudgement and do aggravate theyr punishment in that they thinke that theyr workes which are nothing else but damnable sinnes extreamely contrary vnto the lawe and will of God are pleasing vnto God and worthy of his favour for by this meanes as much as in them lyeth they do as it were change God into a Devill and make him the patrone of sinnes to appoynt a reward for them therefore farre be from a Christian mans heart all those workes which are thus farre opposite vnto the will of God and condemned of him as meere offences Then after that God hath begun to renew men by the power of his spirit of evill they become good and that but in part onely for the corruption of nature is but onely restrayned and amended in some sort for as is aforesayd the elect are regenerate but imperfectly in this life therefore they are not wholy good and conformeable vnto the lawe of God wherefore theyr workes also can be good but in part onely and not perfect for there cannot be more in the effect then there is in the cause but whatsoever is in the effect that shall be in the cause much more therefore the workes of the godly are partly good and partly evill They are good as they proceede from the operation and motion of the holy spirit and are agreeable vnto the law of God And they are evill as they proceede from the flesh and vnregenerate part and do decline and stray from the rule and obedience of Gods law By this it manifestly appeareth that no worke of man is so prayse-worthy as Augustine sayth well which is not defiled and stayned with some blemish or other These works deserve nothing at all toward the attainement of salvation because they are imperfect and stray and swarve very farre from the law of God For the law requireth so great perfection as that it condemneth the least thought of the least sinne Agayne vnperfect works according vnto the Canonicall rule which the Lawyers so call are as if they were not done at all for such as the cause is such also must the effect needs be Seeing therefore that the cause is vnperfect the effect must needs follow vnperfect for it were extreame and ridiculous madnes to loke for a perfect and durable worke from an imperfect and transitory cause therefore these workes are proved and convinced to be vnperfect from their cause which is vnperfect so that if a man seeke for a reward by them he shall finde punishment as Saint Augustine saith for man in the least thing is not able to perfourme so much as the lawe requireth therefore he cannot be thought righteous and acquited before God and before his iust iudgement seate by the merit of his owne works Wo therefore vnto the life of men even the most commendable as the same Augustine sayth if it should be iudged according vnto the strict rigor of the lawe without the mercy of God Moreover seeing these good works proceed not from mans strength but do spring the power and grace of the holy spirit man cannot deserve or get any thing by them seeing they be not his owne but the works of God for man doth them not of himself but God doth worke them in him So that to do that which God commandeth to receive those things which he promiseth are both the gift of God and so man had no merits of his owne therefore the free works of God fall not within the compas of mans merit because those works are the effects of the holy ghost and not the deeds of mē proceeding from their own strēgth Therefore the Papists in as much as they hunt for salvation by these works are of all hunters the most vayne for their labours and endeavours are alwayes frustrate and without effect for they shall never attayne vnto that which they seeke for by them and they play the fooles more absurdly then if they should say they were able to strike fire out of the sea Certaynely in this their foole-hardy enterprise they do manifestly tempt God in that they go about to bring to passe things that are infinitely farre greater then their strength will suffer or permit Agayne in that they boast their owne deserts so confidently and boldly it is a manifest signe that they are not regenerate and that they know not themselves at all for by how much the more a man is regenerate by so much the more doth hee see and bewayle his owne sinnes and infirmityes and so findeth and perceiveth by experience that hee can do no good thing without the grace of God Therefore from his heart doth he humble himselfe before God and in the griefe of his heart with much lamenting doth he earnestly pray against those plagues which he hath deserved also he confesseth his
a reward vnto the works of the godly hee doth it not as if the works by theyr worth and dignity deserved any thing but as a good Father he applyeth himselfe to the affections desires of his childrē For he knoweth that men are thus affected that they will take paines for no man freely but that they looke for some reward from him for whom they labour and so that he might make his children diligent and obedient in his service he calleth his owne free gifts and vndeserved benefites bestowed vpon them by the name of a Reward Therefore God setteth the title of a Reward befor his benefites not to that ende to obscure the prayse of his bounty or any way to diminish it but to encourage his children and make them more willing and ready to the sincere study of obedience And so that hee might give them the more encouragement to live innocently he casteth that vpon their workes which is proper to his owne free goodnesse and mercy So that whatsoever God promiseth or performeth vnto the workes of the Sayntes he doth it not for the perfection and worthines of them but because he hath iustified them and perfumed them with the sweete savour of his grace For hee iustifieth theyr workes and cleaseth them from all the spots wherewith they are defiled and polluted So that he giveth a reward vnto them not as they are vnperfect in themselves and do savour of the flesh but because by his grace he doth account them iust and righteous By this it is more cleerely apparant then the light at mid-day that the reward which God promiseth vnto the workes of the godly is not to be referred vnto the merit of man but vnto the benefite of God Therefore whomsoever God pardoneth to those also doth he give and bestow the spirit of holinesse and righteousnesse by which they are cleansed and made studious of good workes Therefore for this cause are the godly and theyr workes wel-pleasing and acceptable vnto God because he doth behold and accept them and theyr works together with his owne gifts of the spirit Agayne hee doth appoynt sure and great rewards vnto his children that so hee might ease and asswage all the troubles all the iniuries and reproaches to which they especially are subiect and with which they are afflicted in this life as in a miserable and sorrowfull exile So that the promise of a reward doth contayne a great measure of the mercy of God and doth exclude all worthinesse of workes Otherwise if God would sift and examine the workes of his children as they are in themselves according vnto the rule of his law surely there could not be found among all mankind one worke though performed of the very best which might seeme worthy of the least reward Here therefore we must neyther dreame of any relation betweene the reward and the merit nor yet of any recompence that should be due vnto vs. Moreover if any mortall man could be found which had most perfectly fulfilled the law in every respect or could fulfill it yet could he deserve nothing for himselfe thereby nor iustly aske any reward at Gods hands for it Luk 17.10 because he hath performed that onely vnto him which by the right of creation he was bound to performe vnto him Wherefore although a man shall doe all thinges which are commanded him yet he is to be counted as an vnprofitable servant because hee hath done but that which he ought to doe cannot interest or intitle himself vnto any thing from God therby So that they are all to be condemned of intollerable pride and extreame arrogancie which say that they that they can deserve any thing at Gods hands for the worthinesse of theyr owne workes For God in this matter hath no respect of any merit and worthinesse of our owne but is altogether a free debter So that vnto the godly which stand faythfully and fight manfully vnder his banners God is made a debter not by receyving any thing of them whereby he should be bound vnto them but by promising them that which pleased him Thus the godly are they which say vnto God Thou art indebted vnto vs because thou hast promised and the wicked are they which say vnto God Thou art indebted vnto vs because we have given vnto thee as Augustine speaketh Serm. 16. col 336. Therefore all good works which the regenerate and the godly doe are not workes that deserve any thing but obedience which is due vnto God by the right of creation and redemption Agayne although the Scripture in some places doe seeme to ascribe salvation and life eternall vnto good workes this is not so to be taken as if they were the true and proper cause of Salvation but because they from whom such works doe proceed are iustified through the merit of Christ and regenerate by the holy Ghost and renewed vnto a diligent care of religion and to the bringing forth of good workes Secondly there is shewed from the effects of Iustification what are the parts and exercises of true and vnfayned religion So the Sonne of God in S. Matthew Cap. 25.35 ascribeth eternall life vnto good works not because those works do deserve life eternall but because they are certayne meanes by which God bringeth his children into the heavenly inheritance So Christ wil teach vs that this heavenly life salvation is appoynted and promised onely vnto them which with a ready and vndaunted spirit give themselves vnto good workes and strive dayly vnto the price of theyr high Calling Thus the Scripture setteth forth true faith by that which followeth namely by good workes and the fruite thereof and sheweth certayne tokens whereby men that are iustified and regenerate may bee discerned Hether appertayne all such like places of Scripture which seeme to attribute Salvation vnto the workes of men So fayth is not defyned by the causes from that which goeth before but is onely described by the effects from that which followeth after Let these thus suffice to be spoken of the second thing Now the third thing remayneth to be handled First here is to be noted that wee reiect not the good workes which God commandeth and the law setteth downe as certayne popish divines with theyr lying lips doe slaunder vs but we admit here a wise and necessary distinction because that they are not to be done to that purpose that by them the iustice of God might be satisfied and Salvation attayned For this were nothing els but to deny the merite of Christ to mocke God and leade men out of the true way to Salvation seeing there is none to be found that can performe perfect workes and agreeable vnto the Law of God So that concerning workes this is the controversie and manifest difference betweene vs and the Papists For they admit and defend workes to bee the causes of grace but wee embrace them as the effectes of grace And they have no ground for theyr opinion but onely
condemnation or salvation according to theyr workes so that none shall then be saved except he be endued and clothed with good workes By all this it appeareth manifestly with what an vniust and vndeserved slander the Papists do accuse and backbite vs among the rude and ignorant common sort of men when with open and impudent mouth they cry out vpon vs that we despise and reiect good works when as they rather are they which do this for they reiect and despise those workes which are acceptable and well pleasing vnto God and out of theyr owne brayne do forge and invent workes of their owne by which they say they can prevent and deserve the grace of God With these fayned workes they vaunt themselves vnto the rude and simple that they can attayne vnto glory by them but seeing they have not true workes which proceede from the renewing of grace or at the least do not teach the right vse of true workes they lost theyr glory with God And heere an end of these things thus spoken briefely as by the way concerning good workes Now returne we vnto the further handling of regeneration Although the regeneration of the godly be vnperfect and but onely begun in this life yet it is so necessary vnto every Christian as that without it not one can be saved Secondly although it he vnperfect yet it is never at an end Lastly it is declared by the scripture vnto whom regeneration hapneth CHAP. 33. ALthough regeneration be vnperfect and be but onely begun in this life so that the godly can never in deed and in act perfourme so much as in will they are prest to do Heb. 12.14 yet neverthelesse it is so necessary vnto every one that without it no man can attayne vnto salvation For the generation of every one is condemned in Adam as in the common father of vs all for which cause as Augustine sayth Tom. 10. col 336. every one that is begotten is condemned except he be begotten againe Therefore the scripture sayth playnely and absolutely that no man can see the kingdome of God except he be borne againe Iohn 3.3 Heb. 12.14 their eyes onely shall see God which have bene renewed vnto his image For man in his nature is wholy corrupted and a stranger from God Ephes 4.18 and from the life of God and sinne doth wholy possesse him By this it is cleere enough Rom. 7.16 how necessary regeneration is and a new creature in Christ Iesus Moreover although regeneration in this life be very small and vnperfect continually yet by the holy spirit it is made so great in the elect as that the power of sinne is restrayned and weakened in them that it beareth not the whole sway nor raigneth and ruleth at large So that although the godly and the regenerate doe fall now and then into such or such sinnes Rom. 7.18 yet they never sinne with all their mind and with their whole will but do so resist the corruption of nature that they never fully approve and do that which it perswadeth and biddeth So that in them there is such reluctation and striving Rom. 7.25 that the refourmed will desireth one thing and the corruption of nature perswadeth another Thus they doe not that which they would but that which they hate that do they So with theyr minde they serve and obey the lawe of God but with their flesh the â—â—â—w of sinne so that in them there is in a divers respect both a will and no will There is a will as they are reformed and renewed by the heavenly grace There is no will in them as farre forth as they are not regenerate and obey the flesh In them the refourmed and renewed will fighteth and striveth with the vnregenerate part that at the length it becommeth conquerour and overcommer For the grace of regeneration that perswadeth and inviteth men vnto goodnes is more mighty then the corruption of nature that tempteth vnto evill And thus farre of the second poynt to be observed in this regeneration now the third remayneth briefely to be vnfolded and declared This regeneration and renewing of the corrupt nature is afforded vnto none but vnto the elect onely This the scripture in expresse words sayth and playnely proveth that they onely are enlightened and do come vnto faith which are ordeyned vnto eternall life Act. 15.48 for faith proceedeth and commeth from regeneration and both are conteyned vnder election Therefore none are regenerate but the elect and againe none are elected but they which shall be regenerate and endued with faith Heere therefore are convertible termes which are equall one to an other and may one be affirmed of the other Also Paul in this cheyne affirmeth playnely that the elect onely are glorified For so hee sayth whom hee predestinated those also hee called and whom hee called those also hee iustifyed and whom hee iustifyed those also hee glorifyed therefore this glorification happeneth vnto none but vnto those that are predestinated By this most heavenly gradation from the highest vnto the lowest it commeth to passe that the conclusion of the grace of God answereth and agreeth very fitly vnto the preface or beginning thereof Now they which are glorified are first regenerate vnto a sincere and holy life then they are renewed more fully and perfectly dayly by continuall proceeding toward the attaynement of everlasting life vntill that their glorification being fully ended and finished they be made happy both in body and soule together and translated into the heavenly rest So God doth prepare man and make him fit by regeneration for the heavenly inheritance which can neither perish nor be defiled 1. Pet. 1.4 nor fade away Therefore whom he adorneth in this world with his grace those also he crowneth in heaven with glory This regeneration howsoever in respect of man it be very weake yet in respect of the foundation and beginning thereof it is farre more firme then the frame of heaven for it hath the holy spirit the Almighty God for the effector and preserver thereof Hee therefore which will disanull and overthrow that must first vanquish God and thrust him from his throne for God doth not onely glorify his children but also doth preserve them in that glorification and other spirituall gifts vntill at the length he finally glorify and crowne them both in body and soule For after that true faith hath once begun to be in a man it can never fall quite away and wholy decay for it is grounded and propped vp by the power of God 1. Pet. 1.5 and in it it hath a most strong foundation Indeed it may be that the course and fervency of faith may be much interrupted and alayed by this or that fall but the roote of faith being fastned and planted in the heart of man by the holy spirit and the bud that springeth from thence can never be quite supplanted and cleane rooted out And if that faith once given
striveth vnto the obedience of Gods law with a carefull endeavour Therefore this wrestling betweene the flesh the spirit and the love of goodnes and hatred of evill are such works in a man as can be found in none but in the regenerate only for where there is no regeneration there can be no strife betweene the flesh and the spirit but men wallow nuzzle themselves in sin without feare But in a regenerate man there are contrary affections which alwayes fight one with an other They therefore which feele within themselves this conflict betweene the flesh the spirit and yet in the meane while doubt whether they be elected vnto salvation or no they do great iniury vnto God as if he did regenerate and call men vnto Christ in vayne and would not save them By this conflict the imperfection of the godly in this life may easily be perceived because that the corruption of nature is not fully and wholy vanquished and subdued in this world so that the godly should strive and contend manfully against it vntill by the holy spirit they have subdued it and so obtayne a ioyfull victory and rule over the stubbernes of the flesh Therefore Paul commaundeth Gal. 5.17 that the godly should not doe that which they would So in this life there is such a condition and conflict in the Saints that the flesh alwayes lusteth against the spirit Rom. 7.15 and the spirit against the flesh So that what they do they approve and allow not for that which they would they doe not but that which they hate that do they So Paul in his owne person as in the common example of all the godly doth teach vs that such is the infirmity of the best that they cannot do that good which they would but contrarywise that they doe that evill which they would not By this it is evident that the children of God are never such good proficients heere as that the perfection of their worke should be answerable vnto their will And so Paul sayth playnely and confesseth freely of himselfe That to will is alwayes present with me but I finde no meanes to do that which is good so the corruption of nature doth alwayes hinder the most godly in this life that they cannot perfectly serve and obey God Therefore let every Christian carefully examine himselfe whether he do acknowledge Christ for his redeemer and stedfastly beleeve in him or no if he shall find that he hath any whit of Christ within him so that for the love and feare of God he hateth evill loveth that which is good then surely he hath the beginning of life in himselfe Rom. 8.1 and neede to have no feare of condemnation at all They therefore which beleeve that they are elected do honour God by giving credit vnto his word Certainely we should by faith embrace the promise of God and not respect the frailty of man for they which by a true faith do beleeve that they shal be saved for Christ his sake his merit are the sonnes of Abraham shal be the heires of promise Gal. 3.29 Therfore by faith may every one be assured of his salvation So that this is a sure infallible conclusion I do beleeve truly and sincerely in Iesus Christ and do put the whole confidence of my salvation in him alone therefore I am elected and cannot be lost For true faith is a most certayne and vndoubted argument of salvation that is to say a most infallible and evident token which maketh an end of all wavering and doubting For the scripture sayth in playne and expresse words 2. Thes 3.2 Tit. 1.1 Act. 3.28 Rom. 5.1 14.17 that faith is not given vnto every one but is a gift peculiar vnto the elect only Now this faith is not idle but doth glad the conscience and bringeth peace vnto it This the scripture expresseth saying that God sheadeth abroade the feeling of his love into the hearts of the elect by the holy spirit by which they cry Abba father So Paul sayeth playnely that hee knoweth whom he hath beleeved on 2. Tim. 1.12 teaching every of the godly by his example that he may iudge and discerne of his owne faith Therefore whosoever beleeveth in his heart and desireth to go forward that is to make better proceedings in faith and in the workes thereof he may set it downe for a certayne truth that he is elected of God redeemed by Christ and regenerate by the Holy Ghost So God witnesseth and declareth in theyr consciences how he is affected toward every one so that where there is a quiet and peaceable conscience toward God there doth God set vp the throane of his fatherly and saving grace and ruleth and worketh by his holy Spirit vnto everlasting life Moreover although faith be an evident testimony of election yet the want of faith is no evident signe of reprobation Therefore this consequence is false and deceitfull I beleeve not therefore I am not elected but reprobated That is as vntrue as this The Sunne is not as yet risen therefore it will never rise for after a little while it may rise So also although this or that man beleeve not to day nor feeleth any effect of faith yet when the time shall come which God hath appoynted and set downe for his calling hee may have faith attaine vnto the true feeling therof Therfore we should hope very well in our good God evē vntil the last gaspe of life especially seeing he is endewed with so kind and mercifull a nature as that he is infinitely more desirous to save miserable sinners then they are to be saved of him Let every man therefore repent him and betake himselfe vnto a better way and through Christ he shall obtayne salvation For sinnes passed as Augustine sayth do not hurt a man if sinnes that are present do not delight him And he that is displeased with himselfe in his sinnes he is well pleasing vnto God in grace For the favour of God and a wicked life agree not together neyther can be in one man both together Therefore 2. Tim. 2.19 let every man that nameth Christ depart from iniquity for so hee shall indeede feele that hee is not of the number of the reprobates but of the elect So that whosoever loveth God truly 1. Cor. 8.3 and studieth and desireth to order his life according to his will let him know that he is truly elected and regenerate indeede For the vnregenerate men with their whole soule and will are at enimity with God Rom. 8.7 Col. 1.21 and are wholy caryed headlong into all wickednes and every kinde of sinne for theyr minde is alienated from that which is good and is wholy addicted and given vnto that which is evill These things being thus considered both in a generality and common view concerning the chayne of salvation is also being divided and vnfolded through the five linckes thereof as it were by