God the father whereby we fulfill the lawe And men by grace fulfilling the lawe doe merite their saluation But forasmuch as this grace cannot be geuen vs but by faith in the death merite of Christ Iesus therfore we say that by grace infused into vs by faith in Christ good works are wrought which are not now our works but the workes of grace and those workes merit saluation Who is able to ouerthrowe this Bulwarke buylded vpon so sure a rocke which being so profound is not possible for a man to vndermine the depth nor come neare the toppe thereof being so high But the God of heauen will with the breth of his mouth ouerthrow such wicked blasphemie whereupon by the helpe of whose power thus I aunswere that this is but a subtle cauill and vntruely spoken to say that they be not our works For although that by grace we receiue the holy Spirite of God who by his mighty power mightely stirreth vp our hearts replenished with faith in Christ Iesus to worke such charitable works as are prescribed in Gods booke though yet vnperfectly perfourmed on our parts yet can it not be saide but that they be our works euen as faith is saide to be our faith which wee receiue by grace As for example who will doubte of the woman which was diseased with an issue of bloud twelue yeares hauing a strong faith in Christ Iesus but that she had the same by grace And yet Christ saide vnto her thy Faith hath made thee whole here you see that Christ called it her faith though shee had the same by grace so of works they be our works though they be done by grace But let it be graunted for trueth that by the grace of God we being renouated receiue the holy spirite of God who worketh in vs all good things yea all the good workes that are wrought by man according to the saying of Saint Paul who saith It is God that worketh in you both the wil and the deede euen of his good pleasure And that wee could not haue obteyned grace from GOD the Father but by faith in the death and merite of Christ Iesus so that they are not now to bee called our workes but the workes of grace Let all this that is saide be graunted yet that by fulfilling of the law by the same grace we merite saluation that is vtterly false and repugnant to the word of God For Saint Iohn saith Beholde the Lambe of God which taketh awaie the sinnes of the world The sinnes of the worlde being taken away what followeth then The kingdome of heauen and saluation to them whose sinnes are taken away by the slaine Lambe Christ Iesus But it is not saide Beholde the good workes of grace which take away the sinnes of the worlde but Behold the Lambe of God which taketh away the sinnes of the worlde Then it is only Christ that meriteth heauen for vs by taking away our sinnes and not the workes of grace nor our fulfilling of the Law And why is hee called a Lambe because of his innocencie For Saint Peter saith He is a Lambe vndefiled and without spot And because hee was to be sacrificed and slaine as a sheepe to the slaughter He was innocent and as the Prophet saith He did neuer violence nor vnrighteousnes neither hath there beene any deceitfulnesse in his mouth He was without sin deserued not to die but he dyed therfore for something Trueth he died for our sins which were laid vpon him for Esay saith The Lord threw them al vpon him and so made him to be sinne for vs which knevve no sinne But by imputation were they made his sinnes And our sins being thus taken from vs and laide vpon him death had therby power ouer him which slewe him for our sinnes So that as by imputation Christ was made the only sinner for the elect and therfore dyed so are all the elect by imputatiō made as innocent Christ. And Christ clothing his elect with his innocencie God the Father beholdeth them no more as sinners to damnation but as Christ Iesus because Christ hath washéd cleane away in Gods iudgement all the filth of sinne from vs with his precious bloud which he hath shed vpon the crosse so as the filthy Chanelraker polluted with the filth of the Chanel durt is by the Barber washed cleane that no spot thereof is to bee seene so hath Christ out blessed Barber washed away all our filth the durt of sin in such sort as our heauenly father for his Christes sake beholdeth them no more And Christ once dying for the sinnes of his elect accordinge to the purpose of God in his secreate counsell before the creation of the world which purpose could not be altered but must stand still for euer hath thereby onely merited saluation for vs then is it great blasphemy to maintaine such an heresie which doth cut away the cause of our saluation by the only death and passion of Christ our Sauiour and attributeth the same to me rites and works by grace whereby they haue made the works of the lawe to put Christ cleane out of office in the merite of our saluation and only the workes of the lawe which are wrought by Faith and grace to be the meane to merite the same And Christ by his death and passion but only the cause of grace who in deede is the onely effectuall cause in the merit of our saluation so that the works of the Lawe and Grace haue no parte in the cause therof but only as effects do de clare vs to be the elect of God Saint Luke saith Feare not litle flock for it is your fathers plesure to giue you a king dome To giue you a kingdome see here is the kingdome of heauen giuen vs and that which is giuen cannot be said to bee bought or merited and if it were either bought or merited it cannot be said properly nor rightly to be geuen Then being geuē vs we by the works of the law and grace haue not merited it And so are we not iustified by them before God so the proposition that the workes of grace or the deedes of the law doe merit or iustifie before God is false though they be wrought through faith by the power of the holy Ghost and by grace because it is the proper office of Christ immediatly that is to say without any o ther mean or cause to purchase mans saluation and not the office of the holye Ghost by grace working in man for saluation coulde not bee purchased but by death and the holy Ghost coulde not die but Christ only by taking our flesh was lead as a sheepe to be slaine and made a sacrifice for sinne Therefore Christ is the onely purchaser of our saluation Neither doe the workes of the Law iustifie vs before God nor merite saluation for vs though they bee done after grace receiued But with what face can you O
Papistes and Iesuites mainteine that the works of the lawe doe iustifie vs before God and merite saluation when there is no good workes wrought by the children of men frō Adam to the last person created that were of force to iustify before God if he wey our works wrought by grace in the ballance of his righteous iudgement what saith Dauid The Lord looked down from heauen vpon the children of men to see if there were any that would vnderstand seeke God all are gone out of the way they are all corrupt there is none that doth good no not one Here you see the sentence vpon all flesh there is none that doth good c. Saint Paul hath the like saying which he repeteth out of the same 14. and 53. Psalme There is none righteous saith he no not one there is none that vnderstandeth there is none that seeke after God they are all gone out of the vvaye They are all become vnprofitable there is not one that doeth good no not one The Prophet and the Apostle you see are of one minde and speaking by one spirite affirmeth no goodnesse to be in the children of men not one good and none that doth good And yet these Papistes wil maintaine that the children of men bee iustified by the workes of the Lawe and grace which is cleane contrary to the word of God and to them that are the mouth of God speaking by the holy Ghost The holy Prophet and the blessed Apostle say that none doeth good the Papistes and the Iesuites geue them the lie and teach cleane contrarie For say they our priests friers monkes Iesuits such like do not only work so much good as wil serue their own turne to bring thēto heauē but haue also works of supererrogation to help others out of purgatory to heauen But by your leaue sir it must cost your purse first for no peny no pater noster with thē But O you foolish papists who hath bewitched you that you should not obey the trueth Before we proceed further let it be vnderstode that in the popish church be ii sorts of works The first sort is such as both we they do allow to be good works being wrought by faith els they are not good neither please God For vvithout Faith it is impossible to please God and they be those our sauiour Christ speketh of in the gospel when he saith For I was hungry and ye gaue me meat c. That is to say when you saw your poore brother hungry you gaue him meat thirsty you gaue him drink a stranger you toke him in naked you clothed him sick you visited him in prison you came to him these indeed be good works which true Christians doe delight in and they please God But the second sort of works the papistes tearme them also good workes but in deede they be the deuils works as erecting of idols and images offering to idols and images going on pilgrimage maintaining of lightes before Images geuing ornamēts iuels to deck images crouching and kneeling to the cros and to images geuing money to pray for the soules departed mainteining of idle mas priests friers monkes nuns Iesuites and such like geuing money for pardons and to be released out of purgatorie to geeue money for popish ornaments to sing and say masse with to geue yerely pentiōs to such as sing say masse for soules departed saying Aue Marias on our beades by number trusting in holy bread and holie water cristning of bels and other infinite matters beside too long to stande vpon But of these no more because they are not worthie to beare the name of good worke but the deuils workes But for the first sort of good works before rehersed which are conteined in the second table of the law of Moises which yet standeth in force and is called the moral law which consisteth in manners teaching vs to loue our neighbors as our selues to doe good to them Let it bee examined what is to be gathered out of the worde of God touching the same the works therof such as think to be iustified by those workes of the lawe wrought by grace Saint Paul saith As many as are of the works of the law are vnder the curse for it is writtē cursed is euery mā that cō tinueth not in al things which are writtē in the booke of the law to do thē that no man is iustified by the law in the sight of god it is euidēt For the iust shall liue by faith the law is not of faith but the mā that shall do those things shall liue in thē Here you see Saint Paules sentence against all you papists that will hang vpon the good works or the deedes of the lawe wrought by grace You see by his wordes that you are vnder the curse as many as be of the workes of the Law if you doe them not in their perfection but that you or any els of the children of men be not able to doe that which the law commandeth it is euident For saint Paul saith it is euident that no man is iustified by the law in Gods sight therfore none of the children of men do fulfill the law which if they did then they should liue by the law then not doing the law they must die by the lawe if they will stand to the law But the iust shall liue by faith to wit the iust by imputatiō for no man is iust in the sight of God al are wic ked and al are gone out of the way al are become vnprofitable there is none that doeth good no not one Here we see what we are and in what state wee stande before the Lorde not able of our selues to doe the workes of the Lawe and yet will those aduersaries to Gods trueth say that they doe merite their saluation by fulfilling of the Lawe which is cleane contrarye to that which is said by the Apostle who againe saith in the third to the Romans That by the workes of the lawe there shall no flesh be iustified in Gods sight The holie Ghost foreseeing that this generation of vipers should start vp to deface the glorie of Christ in the saluation of mankind by mainteining this grosse error of iustification by the workes of the lawe hath plentifully set down in Gods booke most excellent matter words of great force to ouerthrowe this deuilish opinion In the same third Chapter after that the Apostle had laide abroad the wicked state of man complaining That there is none righteous no not one and that the righteousnes of God commeth by Faith in Christ Iesus without the lawe vnto all and vpon all that beleeue And so lapping vs vp altogither in one bundle saith There is no difference For all haue sinned and haue need of the glorie of God but are iustified freely by grace through the redemption that is in Christ Iesus whome God hath set foorth to
fute in his booke of Predestination of Saints where in his 18. chapter he allead geth saint Paul in the first to the Ephesians to confute them saying He chose vs that we should be holy Not for that wee would be holy But S. Paul in this place is very plain against you scā the words wel he tels you that before the childrē of God had done either good or euil that the pur pose of God might remain according to election Gods wil purpose then is the first chiefest cause of electio reproba tiō the wil purpose of god as touching saluation being once past stands firm for euer There is no shadovv of turning in God And election reprobation resteth not only vpon Iacob Esau but it stretcheth ouer the whol world man womā and childe S. Paul saith as he hath chosen vs in him before the foundations of the vvorld c. and vvho hath predestinated vs c. Here he includes al the elect not Iacob alone And as the good wil purpose of God is the first cause so the free mercie of Cod in Christ Iesus being also a first cause in the second person is the meane an inferior cause of our saluation bicause the wil purpose of god was first in God before election and to cut you off from your opinion that the works of grace to come and past which you say doe merit was and is the cause of election and saluation Saint Paules sword is redy at hād for he saith that the purpose of God might remaine in prede stinating he meaneth according to electi on not by works but by him that calleth And may it be doubted that the workes done by Iacob the elect vessell of God which Saint Paul speaketh of here were not wrought by grace Was elected Iacob without grace when hee did those good workes He was not for the Lord had chosen him and therefore hee could not be without grace And Iacob was elected but not by works saith he I praie you marke it well for hee saith not by workes Is the election not by workes Paule By whome then By him that calleth And who is he that calleth Euen God the Father through his mercie in Christ Iesus his sonne Then election wherein saluation is included resteth not in our workes and wil but in God who for Christ his sonnes sake by suffering passion and death for vs hath in his free mercie chosen called and appointed his elect to saluation And then resteth it not in our wil workes wrought by grace For Saint Paule in the same Chapter saith So then is it not in him that vvilleth nor in him that runneth but in God that sheweth mercie You shall further see how Saint Paule in this Chapter if you please to reade it proceedeth still to mainteine election and reprobation of which he maketh a further discourse frō the sixteenth verse to the one and thirtie and then he saith But Israel which followeth the lawe of righteousnesse coulde not atteine vnto the lawe of righteousnesse Wherefore Because they sought it not by Faith but as it were by the workes of the law c. You may see now that our workes can neither atteine righteousnesse nor iustification But Christ onely doeth iustifie vs by Faith without workes For it is written Beholde I put in Syon a stumbling stone and a rocke of offence and whosoeuer beleeueth in him shall not bee confounded Againe VVee which are Iewes by nature and not sinners of the Gentiles knowe that a man is not iustified by the woorkes of the law but by Faith in Iesus Christ. Euen vvee I saie haue beleeued in Iesus Christ that wee might bee iustified by the Faith of Christ and not by the woorkes of the lawe Because that by the workes of the lawe no flesh shall be iustified I doe not abrogate the grace of God For if righteousnesse be by the lawe then Christ died in vaine But Christ died not in vaine for our sins were the cause of his death therefore righteousnesse is not by the lawe Saint Paule himselfe hath so largelie and so plainlie laide abroad this matter of iustification by Faith without the works of grace that there needeth not any more to be saide of anie other for better vnderstanding of the matter then himselfe in plaine termes hath set downe But this is the malice of Satan in his impes to impungne the truth and by the deuils sophistrie to peruert whatsoeuer hath been set downe by the Saints of God to the glory of Christ Iesus But make what blind distinctions soeuer you wil vpon S. Paules wordes his wordes are plaine inough to ouerthrow your iustification by workes wrought by grace And Saint Paul speaketh plainlie to the whole world Iewe and Gentile of the whole lawe of Moses as well morall as ceremoniall that it iustifieth not before God And it doeth appeare that Bildad in the 25. Chapter of Iobe was of Saint Paules minde That a man cannot be iustified before God his wordes be these And how may a man be iustified vvith God Or hovv can he be cleane that is borne of a vvoman The meening of these wordes may thus be taken that if a man or the best life of man be compared with God it is so base so vile and so vncleane in the sight of God that it is impossible that he should be iustified before God And yet you Papistes will be so pure that by good workes you wil be iustified But will you heare what Saint Paule saith to the Iewes and so cōsequently to you Papists that will be iustified by the lawe hee saith whosoeuer are iustified by the lavv ye are fallen frō grace for vve through the spirit vvait for the hope of righteousnesse through Faith Though the circumcised were the cause that Saint Paule wrote these wordes and telleth them that they are bound to keepe the whole lawe that they were abolished from Christ. Then as in the former wordes plainely appeareth he telleth all iusticiaries That whosoeuer are iustified by the lawe or that will be iustified by the lawe they are fallen frō grace And in what state you stād that are fallen from grace I doubt not but you know euen frō saluatiō And I trust that in this place you will not saie but that Saint Paule speaketh as well of the morall lawe as of the ceremoniall lawe if you will not be too blinde or twoo wilfull And because you shall the better vnderstand that he speaketh here of the morall lawe he saith in the 14. verse of the same Chapter thus For all the lawe is fulfilled in one worde which is this Thou shalt loue thy neighbour as thy selfe And so going on still vpon the morall lawe telling them that if they bite or deuoure one another they shall be consumed one of another signifying vnto them that if they walke in the spirite they shall not fulfill the lustes of the
an outcry and with a pittifull lamentation saith O wretched man that I am who shall deliuer me from the bodie of this death Where is now Saint Paules righteousnes wherein he is to repose as the Papist say his hope of merit by his righteous works He crieth out on it accounting and iudging all things as afore to bee but dung in respect of the excellent knovvledge of Christ. Thus you see S. Paul beholdeth nothing but Christ onely and laieth all his righteousnesse aside hauing no hope at all therby to merit heauen Then if S. Pauls righteousnes bee laide aside as not meritorious to purchase heauē vvhat shal become of al your popish righteousnes but euē be laid aside as S. Paule hath laid his nay rather cōmit it to the dunghill as not vvorthie to bee compared vvith S. Pauls righteousnesse But methinks I heare one demand a question the same that vvas demanded in the 3. to the Gala. vvhich is this VVherefore thē serueth the lawe if whē we haue done the works of the law we shall not merit by them nor be iustified by thē S. Paule maketh the answer It was added saith he because of the transgressions till the seede came vnto the which the promise was made c. Is the law thē against the promise of God God forbid for if there had ben a lawe giuen which could haue giuen life surely righteousnes shuld haue bin by the law But the scripture hath concluded al vnder sin that the promise by the faith of Iesus Christ should be giuen to all that beleeue but before Faith came wee were kept vnder the law and shut vp vnto the faith which should afterward bee reuealed wherfore the lawe was a schoolemaister to bring vs to Christ that wee might be made righteous by Faith Now heere you see wherfore the law serueth it is as a glasse for vs wherin to behold our sins for our sins were the cause that the lawe was added And the lawe shewing vs our sinnes we finding no helpe therby but damnation because no man can fulfil the law in such sort as it can giue life Therfore it teacheth vs like a good schoolmaster to whō we shall resort for life pointing vs as with a finger vnto Christ Iesu. For the scripture hath cōcluded all vnder sin man all his works no hope in our selues nor in our workes but to runne to Gods promise by Faith in Christ Iesus And this is our last refuge and the verie vpshot of our game wherby the kingdō of heauen saluation is woon for euer And to make an end of this little worke I will ioine 3. verses of Te Deum which the Papists sing daily in their Churches but in the lattin tongue so as neither the singers nor the hearers can vnderstād the same But blessed bee our God that hath planted amongst vs such teachers who hath giuen vnto vs which are vnlearned the same in our naturall tongue so as we may vnderstand the same to our comfort and find therin that you Papists do teach vs false doctrine when you teach vs that by the workes of grace saluation is merited wherby you make Christ no redeemer nor Sauiour but the meanes whereby we receiue grace and by which grace we doe good workes by which works saie you but falsly wee merit saluation But you shall heare vvhat Te deum teacheth you to say to Christ thus it teacheth VVhen thou tookest vpon thee to deliuer man thou diddest not abhor the virgins wombe when thou haddest ouercome the sharpnesse of death thou didst open the kingdome of heauen to all beleeuers we therfore praie thee helpe thy seruants whome thou hast redeemed with thy most precious bloud In the 1. verse of the three vvee say to Christ Whē thou tookest vpon thee to deliuer man c. So that Christ tooke vpon him to deliuer man from the iustice of God from death hell and damnation before he vvas cōceiued in the vvombe of the blessed virgine and before any of you Papists vvere created vvhich vvill bee iustified by your works And deliuered you from the pain of hell if any of you bee deliuered before you did anie good vvorkes And it is not to be saide that he vvoulde deliuer those vvhome he knevve not he knevv them vvhom he vvould deliuer that before the creation of the vvorld And vnto this I am sure you agree but the difference is in this as aforesaide that you Papistes will say that Christ tooke vpon him to deliuer man because hee knew before that they would doe good works to merite to bee deliuered from perpetuall death to eternall life But we by Saint Paul doe maintaine the contrarie as before is sufficiently proued But if it were as you say then should it haue bin said thus When thou with the helpe of our good workes tookest vpon thee to deliuer man c. But it is not so said but when thou tookest vpon thee to deliuer man c. And therfore Christ alone toke vpon him the deliuerance of man without mans works but if the workes of grace merite saluation thē no doubt but the works of grace doe set open the king dome of heauen to all good workers by grace and then what neede haue wee of Christ But because this is false therfore wee say to Christ in the seconde verse when thou hadst ouercome the sharpnes of death Thou not thou and the workes of grace but thou diddest set open the kingdome of heauen to whom I praye you to whom to all good workers by grace no but to all beleeuers that beleue in the passion and death of Christ Iesus In the third verse we pray our blessed sauiour to helpe his seruantes whō what that hath merited heauen by the workes of grace surely that is forgotten No no but those whom thou haste redeemed with thy precious bloud here is not with thy precious bloud and the workes of grace but with thy precious bloud alone without the workes of grace And to confirme all this most true and vnreprouable doctrine of iustification by faith onely in the passion and death of our sauiour Christ Iesus And to stop the mouthes of all the aduersaries of Gods truth from caueling any more against the same Let vs heare the words of the Lord Iesus himselfe which he spake vnto his Apostles saying VVho is yet also of you hauing a seruant plowing or feeding cattell would say vnto him by and by when he were come from the field goe and sit downe at the table and would not rather say to him dresse wherewith I may sup gird thy selfe and serue me til I haue eaten and dronken afterward eate thou drinke thou Doth he thanke that seruant because he did that which was commaunded vnto him I trow not So likewise ye when ye haue done all those things which are commaunded you say we are vnprofitable seruants we haue done that which was our duety to doe Note here the most