Thou meaneste not hereby that the good dedes of faythfull menne are to no purpose and vnprofytable ¶ The childe I meane nothing lesse for god promyseth to rewarde them largely both in this worlde in the life to come And yet thys notwithstandyng those rewardes of God be not geuē for the worthy desertes of oure dedes but onely because it pleaseth GOD of his goodnes to loue vs freely so to couer and forget our fautes that he wil neuer cal them any more to remēbraunce ¶ The minister Aright faythe is neuer ydle May we perswade our selues that we are iuste without good woorkes without the diligente applying of oure selues to walke in al Goddes holy commaundementes ¶ The childe That is not possyble for to beleue in Christ is as much to say what it is to beleue in Christ as to receiue Christ in such sort with such properties as he doth geue himselfe vnto vs now this is an euident thing that Christ doth not only promes to deliuer vs from death to restore vnto vs the louing fauour of god his father thorow the onely merites of his innocency But also he promiseth to make vs newe creatures by his holy spirite to the ende that we should leade a holy conuersacion in al good workes ¶ The minister Then I see that it is so farre from the offyce or workyng of faythe to make men despysers of good deedes or negligent to lyue godly that it is the very roote or lyuelye fountayne whereout all good woorkes doesprynge ¶ The childe Ye saye as the trueth is The effecte of the gospell is fayth repentance and for thys cause the doctryne of the gospell doeth consyste in these two poyntes faith and repentaunce ¶ The minister Sonday 21 And what maner of thynge is Repentaunce ¶ The childe It is and earneste dyspleasure to warde what repentāce is synne and therwith al a feruente desyre or longyng for godlines proceadyng of the feare or God and inducing vs to the mortifying of our carnall affectyons inclining vs altogether to the guiding and gouernaunce of the holy gost to serue God vnfeynedly ¶ The minister Thys then whiche we haue touched is the second poynt of a christen mans lyfe which standeth in seruyng of God ¶ The childe wherein the right seruinge of god stādyth Yea verely and we haue sayd also that the very ryghte and alowable seruyce of God doeth consyst in submyttyng our selues humbly vnto hym studying earnestly to doe according to hys wil. ¶ The minister Wherfore standeth gods seruice herin onely ¶ The childe Because he wil not be serued or wurshipped after our fantasy and imaginacion but after his own good pleasure ¶ The minister What rules or ordinaunces hath he prescrybed vnto vs to leade our lyfe by ¶ The childe His lawe ¶ The minister What thynges dothe yt conteyne ¶ The childe It is deuided into .ii. partes The law hath two partes where of the first doth containe foure commaundementes the seconde contayneth .vi. so that there be .x. in the whole ¶ The minister Who hath made this diuision therof ¶ The childe God hymselfe Exod. 32.34 Deu. 4.12 who also gaue it written in two tables vnto Moises saying that the whole was reduced into ten sentences ¶ The minister What is the matter or substaunce of the first table ¶ The childe It toucheth the due maner of woorshyppyng God The effecte of the first table ¶ The minister What is contayned in the seconde table ¶ The childe It sheweth vs in what maner we ought to behaue our selues towardes our neghboures The effect of the secōd table and what duetye we owe vnto them ¶ The minister Sonday 22 Rehearse the fyrste commaundement ¶ The childe The first cōmaundement Exod. 20 Deu. 5 HEarkē ād take heede Israell I am the lorde thy God whiche hath broght thee furth of the land of Egypt out of the house of bondage Thou shalt haue none other God before my face ¶ The minister Declare the meanyng hereof ¶ The childe It is a preface to begynne withal or an introduction to the whole law for he doth chalenge here vnto himself first autoritie to commaund naming hymselfe euerlasting the creator of the world and agayne after he calleth himselfe oure God wherby he moueth our heartes to haue in reuerence to esteme highly hys doctrine for if that he be oursauior it is good reason that we be also hys louing subiectes and obedient people ¶ The minister what signifieth the deliurance out of Egypte But that whiche foloweth after touching the deliueraunce from the miserable bondage of Egipt is it not referred pecularely to the people of Israel ¶ The childe Yes verely as cōcerning the deliuerāce from bodely bondage howbeit it belongeth also generallye vnto vs all with out excepciō in so much as he hath delyuered oure soules from the spirituall captiuitie of synne and from the tirāny of the deuyll and hys kyngedome whereof the bōdage of Egipt was but a figure ¶ The minister Why doeth he make mencion of thys in the very beginning of hys lawe ¶ The childe It is done to put vs in remembraunce how greatly we are bound to shewe vnto hym al obedience in performyng of his will and to sygnifye vnto vs what ingratitude and vnkindnes it is to do the cōtrary ¶ The minister And what is briefly the effecte of that he requyreth of vs in thys fyrst cōmaūdemēt ¶ The childe He enioyneth vs to reserue vnto hym onely the honor due vnto hym The summe of the first cōmaundement and that in no wyse we alienate or put it from him geuing the same vnto any other ¶ The minister What is the honour due vnto hym alone ¶ The childe To worship hym The honor that is due to god alone to put our whole trust in hym to call vpō hymād such other like which be attributed peculiarly and onely vnto his maiestye ¶ The minister Wherfore is that clause putte to before my face ¶ The childe Forsomuch as he seeth knoweth al thinges iudgeth the secret thoghtes of mens heartes he signifieth vnto vs that he doth not account it sufficient if we make a countenaunce or be are a faire shew before mē but that his wil is that also in very dede euen from the bottom of our heart with feruent affection we do take him for our only God ¶ The minister Sonday 23 Rehearse the seconde commaundement ¶ The childe The seconde cōmaundemente touching Images and the worshiping of them Se thou make thee no grauen image neither any similitude of any thing eyther in heauen aboue either in the earth beneath or in the waters which be beneth the earth thou shalt do no honor vnto them nor wurship them ¶ The minister Doth he vtterlye forbydde the makyng of any images ¶ The childe No but he doth forbid expresly eyther to make anye image thereby to represente or figure
god either to make any image to wurshyppe yt ¶ The minister Wherefore are we forbydden to make anie figure or image of God ¶ The childe Because there is no similitude nor comparison betwene hī that is an euerlasting spirite Deu. 4. Esa 41. Rom. 6. Actes 17. not able to be conceiued of the mind nor possible to be seene with eies and a material body mortal and apte to putrifye which we may both feele see ¶ The minister Thy mīde is then that he doth great dyshonor to Gods maiestie that goth about to represent or figure him in such sort ¶ The childe Yea verely ¶ The minister What maner of adoracion is here inhibited ¶ The childe We are forbydden here to come before any image to make our prayers Of honor forbyddē to images or to bowe oure knee before it or to make any other semblant or token of reuerence as though God were more present there or shewed furth hys power vnto vs more in that place than els where ¶ The minister This is not then to be taken as though al keruyng or painting of Images were vtterlye prohibited but alonly to make any image to doe God seruice therwith or therby to wurship him in visible thinges In what sort images are forbydden eyther finallye to make anye Image wherby the simple may take occasion to abuse it vnto any kind of superstition or idolatry all suche are vtterly forbydden ¶ The childe It is euen so ¶ The minister For what purpose principally was this commaundemente geuen ¶ The childe In lyke maner as in the firste commaundement God sheweth himselfe to be alone the verye same vnto whom all honor doth belong euen so now in this seconde cōmaundement he goeth about to withdrawe vs frō all superstitious kind of wurshipping proceding of our carnal imagitions ¶ The minister Sonday 24 Reharse that that foloweth this commaundement ¶ The childe He ioyneth vnto it a threatning saying I am the eternal your God almightie Iealous and punishing the wickednes of the fathers in their children vnto the third ād fowerth generatiō of such as dooe hateme ¶ The minister Wherfore doth he make mencion there of his myght ¶ The childe To put vs in remembraunce that he is of sufficient ablenes to vpholde maintayn and defende hys honour ¶ The minister What meaneth he by speaking of iealousy ¶ The childe He doth vs to wete that he can not abyde a companion with him for euen as he hath of his vnspeakable goodnes frely geuen hymselfe vnto vs in lyke maner also he chalengeth as duetye of our behalfe that we become altogether hys seruaūtes wholy addycte and geuen to please hym and thys is the spirituall chastitie whiche he looketh for of our soules that they be dedicated vnto hym ād kept holy for him And contrarywyse it is a very spirituall whoredome if our mindes be alyenated Thouching spiritual whordē or anye whitte withdrawen from hym to any kynde of Idolatry or supersticion ¶ The minister How ought this to be taken that he punisheth the trāsgressyōs of the fathers in theyr children ¶ The childe To pearce our hartes more depely with the terror of hys wrathe who doth not onely threaten to punishe the offenders but also their seede after theym ¶ The minister What is not this contrarie vnto the ryghteuousnes of God to punishe the one for the others faute ¶ The childe How God punisheth the fathers wickednes in the childe If we dooe waye and cōsider aryghte the state wherunto the whole nature of manne is broughte by the fall of Adā it maye be thought superfluous and more then nedeth to moue this doubte for we are euerye one of vs borne vnder the curse of God ād the childrē of hys wrathe so that we can not finde faute with God when he letteth vs alone and suffereth vs styll to contynue suche as we are of nature Nowe as it is a sure tokē of gods tender affectiō fauore towardes his seruauntes when he doth also enriche theyr children with his manyfolde blessynges so likewyse it is a most dreadfull token of Gods vengeance towardes the wycked when he suffereth theyr ofspringe to contynewe in their cursed state ¶ The minister What sayeth he more besydes this ¶ The chlide To the ende he myght styrre vs also with tender loue he saith moreouer that he sheweth foorth his aboundaunte mercy vnto the thowsand discent of suche as loue hym kepe his commaundementes ¶ The minister Doeth he meane therby that the obedyence and holye conuersacion of a faithfull man shal be suffyciente to saue his posterytie althouge it be naughte and wicked ¶ The childe Not so but the meaninge therof is How God sheweth mercye to a thowsand generacions that he wyll in suche sort shewe forth his beneficial goodnes towardes the faithful that for the fauour he beareth vnto them he will also be knowen vnto their childrē to be their God not onely midyng to prospere thē here in thynges of thys worlde but to saynctifie them also with the giftes of his spirite wherby they maye become seruisable and ready to please him ¶ The minister But this is not altogether a generall rule that the children of the wicked be accursed and contrarywyse faithfull mens children blessed ¶ The childe No Rom. 6. for our Lorde doth reserue this libertye to himselfe alwayes to shewe mercie vnto the childerne of the wicked and on the other part he hath not so bownd hys grace to the children of the faithfull but that he may at hys pleasure reiecte whome he wyll yet notwithstanding he doeth in such wyse order these thinges that all mēne may easely see that he hath not made this louyng promyse for noght ¶ The minister Wherfore doth he reherse here in the promes to a thowsand discent whereas in the threatnynge he made mencion but of .iii. or foure ¶ The minister That is done to sygnifye that God is of his owne goodwill and inclination alwayes more ready to vse gentlenes fauourablenes then roughnes or rygour accordyng as he sayeth of himselfe that he hath a ready inclinacion to do good or to shewe mercye Exod. 34. Psal 103. and cōtrariwise slowe vnto anger ¶ The minister Sonday 25 Let vs come nowe to the thyrde commaundement The iii. commaundement ¶ The chide Thou shalt not take the name of the Lorde thy God in vaine ¶ The minister What is the right vnderstanding of that ¶ The childe He doeth not onely forbid to abuse and blaspheme the blessed name of God by periurye but forbyddeth as wel al vayne Of othes and superfluous othes ¶ The minister Maye a man then sweare lawefully at any tyme ¶ The childe Yea verely when there is iust occasion that is to say to maintayne the trueth of a matter when the tyme shall require and lykewyse to kepe and nouryshe brotherly charytye amonge vs. ¶ The minister Doth he dysproue no othes but suche as are made to the
gatheringe of the whole lawe ¶ The childe The somme ād effect of the whole lawe Matt. 22. Yes verely the whole lawe is comprehended in these ii poyntes the one is that we loue God with all our hearte with all our mynde and with oure whole myghte The other is that we loue our neighboure as our selfe ¶ The minister What is included in the loue of God ¶ The childe It requireth of vs this duetye that we loue hym as oure God that we acknowledge and take hym for oure soueraine lorde master sauiour father so that hereby our duetye is to feare hym to honoure hym to put oure whole trust in him to obeye him and loue hym ¶ The minister What doest thou meane by these woordes with all oure hearte all oure mynde and oure whole strength ¶ The childe It is no more to say but that we must loue God with suche a zeale and feruente affection that there maye be in vs no desyre no will no thought no endeuour no maner of inclynacion contrarye vnto this loue ¶ The minister What is the meaning of the seconde point ¶ The childe We are taught therby that as we be naturally inclyned to loue our selues and as this affection is moste vehemente doth passe al the rest euen so our loue towardes our neighbours oughte in suche sorte to beare rule in our hartes that it shoulde rule and guyde vs altogether and shoulde be a lyne and rule therby to order all oure thoughtes and deedes ¶ The minister And whome meanest thou whan thou sayest oure neyghbours ¶ The childe I doe not onely sygnyfye by the word our kindred frendes and suche other as be of oure familier acquaintance but such also as be straungers vnto vs and more then that oure verye enemyes ¶ The minister In what bande or alliance are we in with them ¶ The childe There is a knot of frendshyp the which God hymselfe hath fastened which cannot be loosed by any mans malyce or wickednes ¶ The minister Then thou wylte saye yf any man beare any malycious hatred vnto vs that euyll affection cometh of himselfe and yet in the meāe time by the very ordre whych God himselfe hathe appoynted he ceasseth not to continue stil our neighboure and we are bounde euen so to take hym ¶ The childe Yea verely ¶ The minister Seing the law requireth such a perfect vpright maner of seruing God is not euery christen man bound to frame hys lyfe and conuersacyon after the same ¶ The childe Yes truely but we haue in vs so much weakenes No mā can fulfill the lawe that there is no man whiche fully doth perfourme all that the lawe requireth ¶ The minister Why doth God therefore require of vs suche an exquisite perfection as we be not hable to reache vnto ¶ The childe God requireth nothyng of vs but that whiche we are bound to do and our own consciences witnes that we are charged with already And agayn if we bend our selues and geue diligence to frame our lyues to this rule set furth in the law than albeit we be farre from being able to attayne vnto the perfection therof yet the lorde wil not lay to our charge that defaut or lacke of dooyng the same as our duetie requireth ¶ The minister Speakest thou generally of al men either elles meanest thou the faythful onely ¶ The childe I speake not of such as beleue not for no man is able to begyn to frame hymselfe to doe the leaste poyncte that the lawe requireth vntyll he be regenerate and fashyoned agayne throughe the spirite of God Moreouer if it were possiblé to fynde out anye manne who were able to perfourme some part of that Deu. 27 Gal. 3. that the law demaundeth it should not be enough to dyscharge hym before god for the lorde pronounceth openly thys sentence that whosoeuer doth not throughly accomplishe euerye poynte conteyned in the lawe is accursed ¶ The minister Sonday 33 Hereof we must needes gather that the law hath two distinct offices accordyng as there be two sortes of menne ¶ The childe Rom. 3. To what vse the lawe serueth touching the vnfeythful 2. Cor. 3. What elles for as touchynge them that beleue not it serueth to no other purpose but to reproue condemne them and to take from them al maner occasion to excuse themselues before god thys is that part of the office of the law which S. Paule speaketh of namyng it the instrumente of death and damnaciō but as touchyng the faythfull it serueth to an other vse ¶ The minister What profite doeth the lawe bring to the faythful ¶ The childe To what vse the lawe serue the as touchin the feithfull Fyrst the lawe maketh it knowen vnto them that they cannot be iustified by their woorkes so by humbling them through the knowledge of their miserable state it doth stirre them to search their health saluaciō in our sauiour Christ Secondarily wheras it requireth more then is possible for any man to do it warneth them to pray vnto God that he wil vouchsafe to geue them suffyciente strength that they may at least haue a ready willing minde to obey hys will and therby they haue also occasion to knowledge their daylye fautes and so to thynke lowely of them selues Thyrdelye it serueth them in steade of a bridle to represse theyr carnal affections and to holde them faste in the feare of God ¶ The minister We may then finally conclude as touching thys matter that albeit for the time of this transitory lyfe we neuer attaine to be able to render perfect obedience vnto the law yet it is not to be thought a vayne thyng and to no purpose that it requireth of vs suche a precyse and exquisite perfection for thereby it setteth vp a marke vnto vs to the ēd that we euery one according to the grace wherwith God hath endued vs might continually with so muche more feruente affection walke towardes it and study dayly more and more to come vnto it ¶ The childe Ye haue vttered the thing euen as I ment it ¶ The minister Haue we not a perfect rule of all rigthtuousnes set out in the law ¶ The childe Yes verelye so that God demaundeth no other thynge of vs Obedience to the law is gods onely seruice and the sacrifice that he requireth of vs. 1. Sam. 15. Ierem. 7. then to frame and ordre al our doinges by it and contrary wise God disaloweth and refuseth whatsoeuer man taketh in hand to doe besydes For obedience is the onelye sacrifice and seruice which he requireth ¶ The minister To what purpose then doth al those monicions declarations exhortations commaundementes serue whiche the Prophetes make the apostles ¶ The childe The doctrine of the prophetes Apostles be nothing els but exposicions of the selfe same law more at large the ende of which doctrine is so farre of from the leadyng of vs from the obedience due vnto God that
we seeke for thys hys woorde ¶ The childe It is conteyned in the holye scripture ¶ The minister How must we vse thys woorde to haue thys profit by it ¶ The childe We must receyue it beyng perfitly perswaded therof in oure conscience as of an vndoubted trueth sent down from heauē submittyng our selues vnto it with due obedience louing it hartely with a feruent ād vnfeyned affectiō hauing it so imprinted in our hartes that we may folowe it and conforme our liues wholy vnto it ¶ The minister Doe all these thynges lye in our power ¶ The childe No verely not one of theym all but God woorketh them in oure heartes in thys wise by hys holy spirite ¶ The minister Is it not required of our part that we take payne doe oure diligence both to heare and to reade thys doctrine whiche is set furth vnto vs ¶ The childe Yes forsoth firste it is requisite we must geue diligente labour to learne gods word that euerve man priuatly in his own house geue himselfe to the studye of this word but principally euery man is bound to haunt duely al such sermons as be made in the congregation of Christ for the better vnderstandyng of this his doctrine ¶ The minister Thinkest thou then that it is not inough that euerye manne dooe geue diligence to reade gods worde in his owne house onlesse they come also together to heare it preached openly ¶ The childe I thynke so at the least waye if God of his goodnes doe prouyde suche meanes that we may heare it ¶ The minister What is the reason ¶ The childe Ephe. 4. Because oure sauior hath set established thys ordre in hys church not to the ende that .ii. or three onely shoulde obserue it but as a generall ordre for all men he hath like wise declared that this is the onely way to build hys church to preserue the same let vs therfore euery one be content to haue recourse to this rule not become wyser then our maister ¶ The minister Pastours or ministers in the church are necessary Is it then a thing necessary to haue pastoures and ministers in the congregaciō ¶ The childe Yea very necessary at theyr mouthes men are bound to receyue the woorde of the Lorde with all humble obedience so that whosoeuer doeth set light of thē Matt. 10. Luk. 10. and regard not to heare theyr sayinges they contemne also Iesus Christe and deuyde themselues from the felowship of hys flocke ¶ The minister Is it sufficiente that we haue bene once instructed by theyr meanes either elles must we heare their doctrine continually ¶ The childe It is nothyng if a man begyn well vnlesse he continue styll in the same for we must keepe vs in Christes schole and continue stil his scholers vnto the end and for that cause he hath ordayned Ministers in the churche to teache vs continually in hys name ¶ The minister Sonday 46 Is there no other meane besides hys word by whiche God sheweth hymselfe vnto vs ¶ The childe God hath ordeined and coupled the sacramentes with the preachyng of hys woorde ¶ The minister What thing is a sacramente ¶ The childe A sacramente is an outwarde token of gods fauor Of sacramētes which by a visible signe dothe represent vnto vs spirituall thīgs to the ēd that gods promises myght take the more deepe roote in oure heartes and that we myghte so muche the more surely geue credite vnto them ¶ The minister What is this possyble that a visible and a material sygne should haue such vertue to certifye oure conscience ¶ The childe No not of it selfe but God hath ordained it forsuch an end ¶ The minister Since it is the proper office of Goddes holy spirite to seale imprinte the promises of God in our heartes how can thou attribute or geue this propertie vnto the sacramentes ¶ The childe There is a great difference betwene the one and the other for goddes spirite is he alone who in very deede is hable to touche and moue our heartes to illuminate our mindes and to assure oure consciences in suche sorte that all these ought to be accounted and reputed hys only workes so that the whole prayse and glory hereof ought to be geuē vnto hym onelye yet this notwithstandyng it hath pleased our Lorde to vse hys sacramentes as certaine meane aydes or instrumētes therof according as it seemed good vnto hym without diminisshinge in the meane tyme any poynt of the vertue and woorking of his spirite ¶ The minister Thou meaneste then that the efficacy or vertue of the sacramentes doth not consyst in the outwarde elemente or visible signe but so farre furth as it pleaseth God to moue the conscience therwithall by the working of hys spirite ¶ The childe I meane euen so according as it is gods pleasure to woorke by meanes by him ordeined without any derogacion therby to his gloryous power ¶ The minister What moued God to institute such instrumentes or meanes ¶ The childe He ordeyned them to helpe and counforte oure weake nature The sacramētes were ordained to helpe our infirmitie for if we were wholye of a spiritual nature as the angelles are then we were apt to consider both God hys manifolde graces or benefites after a spiritual maner also but forsomuch as we are clogged withe earthely bodyes it was needefull for vs that God did institute sensible sygnes to represente vnto vs spirituall and heauenly thynges for otherwyse we coulde not so wel comprehende them Moreouer it is necessarye for vs that al our senses be exercised in his holy promises that we might be the better stablyshed in the same ¶ The minister Since God hath ordeined his sacramentes for our necessitie it were a point of arrogancye and presumpcion to thinke that they myghte be as well left of as vsed ¶ The childe Ye saye trueth so that whosoeuer doth willingly forbeare the vse of them estemyng them as thynges more then nedeth The sacramentes are necessarye of no importance he dishonoreth Iesus Christ he refuseth his gracious benefites and doeth willingly quenche hys holy spirite ¶ The childe But what sure certitude of gods grace be the sacramentes hable to geue seing bothe the godlye and wicked doe receiue them ¶ The minister Albeit the infideles wicked doe make the grace which is offered presented vnto them by the sacramentes voyde and to stand them in none effect yet it foloweth not that theyr office and property is such for al that ¶ The childe How is it then and when is it that the sacramentes doe produce or bryng furth theyr operacion and effect ¶ The childe When a man receyueth them in faith whan the sacramentes take theyr effect leaning onely vnto our sauior Christ his merites seking nothing els but him in thē ¶ The minister What meanest thou by saying that we may seke nothyng els but Christ in them ¶ The childe
parte what is the ryghte vsynge or receauyng of baptysme ¶ The childe The ryght vse therof standeth in these two faith and repentaūce that is wherein the right vsing of baptisme standeth in that we be sure that we haue oure consciences cleansed in the bloude of Christe And in that we both feele in oure selues and make it knowen to others by oure woorkes that hys spirite abydeth in vs to mortyfye oure affections and desyres and so to make vs ready to doe the wyll of God ¶ The minister Sonday 50 Seyng al thys is required in the ryght vsynge of baptisme how is it that lytle children be baptysed ¶ The childe I dyd not meane that fayth repentaunce oughte alwayes to goe before the ministracion of this sacrament The baptisme of infantes for that is only requisite in them that be of age and discretion so that it is sufficienre if the lytle children shew forth the fruites of baptysme when they are come to sufficient age to knowe it ¶ The minister How wylt thou proue that there is no inconuenience in thys doyng ¶ The childe For in lyke maner circumcisyon was a sacrament of repentaunce Deu. 10. and. 30. Iere. 4. Rom. 4. as Moses the Prophetes doe wyttnes ād also a sacramente of fayth as sainct Paul teacheth and yet God dyd not debarre and exclude lytle chyldren from the receyuyng of the same ¶ The minister No but arte thou able to proue sufficiently that there is as good reason they should be receiued to baptisme as that the other should be circumcised ¶ The childe The promises whiche wer made to the Iewes only are nowe offered to al men Yea for the reason is largely as sufficienente for the same promyses whiche God dyd make in tyme past to hys chosen people of Israell are now extended with muche more euydente declaration into all coastes of the worlde ¶ The minister And foloweth it therefor that we muste vse also the signe ¶ The childe Yea if we wyll consyder the thynge effectually For Christ hath not made vs partakers of that grace which belonged in time paste to the children of Israel to the intente he woulde in vs dimynishe dimynishe it and deale it more sparyngly or that he woulde make it nowe more doubteful or lesse knowen than it was before but rather to the ende he would shew forth his goodnes not onely more euidentely but also more plenteouslye ¶ The minister Doest thou coumpt then that if we dyd denye baptysme to lytle chyldren the grace and goodnes of God should be dymynished and darkened by the commynge of Christ ¶ The childe Yea surely for we shoulde be by that meanes destytute of the expresse signe of Goddes bountyfull mercye towardes our children the which thing they that were vnder the lawe had in very dede this thing serueth highly to our comfort as to the stably shynge of the promes which hath bene made vnto vs from the begynning ¶ The minister Thy minde is then that forsomuche as it pleased GOD in olde tyme to declare hymselfe to be the sauyoure yea of lytle children and that he thoughte it also good to seale hys fauorable promise in theyr bodyes by an outwarde sacramente and marke that therfore it is very good reason that ther be no lesse tokens of assuraunce after Christes comming since the self same promyse cōtinuynge styll is reiterate and more openly vttered as wel by worde as dede ¶ The childe Yea and moreouer it semeth a thyng worthy of notable reprehencyon if menne woulde doe so muche wronge vnto chyldren as to denye them the signe whiche is a thynge of lesse price since the vertue and substance of baptysme belongeth vnto them whiche is of muche hygher estimacion ¶ The minister For what consideration ought we to baptise lytle children ¶ The childe To what purpose children are baptised They are christened in token and wytnes that they are enherytours of the blessynge of God which is promised to the lynage of the faythfull to this ende that when they come to age they shoulde be instructed what the substaunce and meaning of baptisme is to profite them selues therby ¶ The minister Sonday The 51. Let vs now speake of the Supper and firste what is the signyfycacion therof ¶ The childe Our lord did ordaine it to put vs in assuraunce Of the lordes Supper that by the distribuciō of his body bloud oure soules are nouryshed in the hope of lyfe euerlastynge ¶ The minister Why is it that our Lorde representeth vnto vs hys bodye by the breade and hys bloude by the wyne ¶ The childe To sygnyfye vnto vs that euen what propertie the bread hath towardes our bodies to wete Christ offereth to vs his body by the bread and hys bloude by the wyne to feede sustayne them in this transytorye lyfe the selfe same propertye also his body hath touchīg our soules that is to nourishe and refresh them spirytually And in lyke maner as the wine dothe strengthen comfort and quicken the body of man euen so hys bloude is our ful ioye our comforth and spiritual strength ¶ The minister Doeste thou meane that we must be in dede partakers of the bodye and bloude of the Lorde ¶ The childe Yea verely I meane so The onely stay of our truste for since the whole truste and assuraunce of our health and saluacion doth consist in the obedience which he hath perfourmed vnto god hys father in that that God doth accept it take it as if it were oures in deede we must fyrste needes possesse him seeing that hys benefites doe not belong vnto vs vntill he haue firste geuen hymselfe vnto vs. ¶ The minister Why did not Christ geue himselfe vnto vs what tyme he gaue himselfe to be crucified to the intēt that thereby we myght be brought into the fauour of God hys father and be deliuered from damnacion ¶ The childe Yes but that doth not suffyce vnlesse we doe receiue hym withal in such sorte as we may feele in our consciences the fruicte and efficacye of his death and passion ¶ The minister After what sorte we receiue Christe Is not faith the ready meanes to receyue Christ by ¶ The childe Yes forsoth not onely by that that we belieue that he dyed rose again to delyuer vs from euerlasting death and to procure vs also euerlastyng lyfe but also by that that we feele by fayth that he dwelleth in vs and is ioyned with his membres to the end to make vs partakets of al his graces and benefites because we are vnto hym vnited and made all one ¶ The minister Sonday 52 Haue we not Christe ioyned vnto vs so that we become partakers of hys benefytes by no other meanes than by hys Supper ¶ The childe Yes verelye for we receyue Christ with the fruicion of his benefites 1. Cor. 1. at the preaching of the gospel as S. Paule witnesseth in that that our lord Iesu doeth promise