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A40370
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Of free justification by Christ written first in Latine by John Fox, author of the Book of martyrs, against Osorius, &c. and now translated into English, for the benefit of those who love their own souls, and would not be mistaken in so great a point.; De Christo gratis justificante. English
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Foxe, John, 1516-1587.
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1694
(1694)
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Wing F2043; ESTC R10452
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277,598
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530
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promulgation of the Law I would ask him What the Law is which if it is nothing but the Rule of Righteousness how can any man be just where there is no Law But what man was there ever in the World but he carried about with him the Law of God if not written in Tables yet written on his heart and engraven on his conscience But the Decalogue was not yet engraven on Tables of Stone But what was contained in the Moral Decalogue which that holy man did not already comprehend within his own heart both of loving God and his Neighbour of not Murthering of not committing Adultery or honouring Parents c. 3. As touching the scope of this Epistle how greatly is campian mistaken For who is so void of sense that he doth not clearly perceive that the drift of the Apostle is not that which those Iesuits dream of to attribute our Salvation or Iustification to any Works either going before or following after Neither was this Office of an Ambassadour committed unto him that he might contend with the Iews about Ceremonies or with the Gentiles about Moral Duties but as Peter was entrusted with the Apostleship of the Circumcision so also the Preaching of the Gospel to the Uncircumcision was committed unto Paul not that he should Preach the Law but the Faith which before he opposed Not that he might declare the Righteousness of Works in which there is no Salvation but that God by him might reveal his Son amongst the Gentiles and might manifest unto the World that heavenly Trophy and glad Tydings of Peace and Victory obtained in Heaven by Christ and spread abroad far and wide through the Churches the boundless riches of Divine Grace which he had experienced in himself For he was called for this purpose to the Apostleship that the infinitely gracious Lord and Redeemer Christ Iesus might first exercise his Mercy towards him and afterwards by him declare his great Mercy towards Sinners not only by hisExample but also by his Ministry For thus he bears witness of himself that the Ministry of Reconciliation was committed to him for which he was appointed to be a Preacher and Apostle and Teacher of the Gentiles in Faith and Truth that he being an Ambassadour in Christ's stead might invite all men yea and beg of them that they would be reconciled unto God And this seems to be the principal scope that Paul aims at not only in the Epistle to the Romans but also in all his Doctrine to proclaim amongst the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ and that he might set before the view of all men what is the Communion of the Mystery that was hidden with God in former Ages c. But now in the Righteousness of Works no such Mystery lay hidden with God from former Ages Therefore it is false and abominable which Campian the Iesuit and such like Sophisters assert concerning the scope and sense of Paul's Epistle to the Romans For by the Law which Paul excludes from Iustification they understand that part thereof which comprehends Ceremonial and Iudicial Works wherein the Iews gloried or Works purely Moral performed before Faith on which the Gentiles relied Yea on the contrary when Paul removes the Law from Iustification he doth not only exclude it upon the account of Iewish Ceremonies or Moral Works performed before Faith but also upon the account of its weakness through the flesh both in Iews and Gentiles both in the regenerate and the unregenerate so that it cannot make sufficient satisfaction to the Iustice of God And Paul affirms That for this cause God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh What did God do but what flesh could not do For sin he condemned sin in the flesh In what flesh ours or his own Sons Who of all the Regenerate though endued with great habitual Faith and Grace hath so led his life walking not according to the flesh but according to the spirit but he always carries about with him flesh that is weak in many respects and vicious and subject to sin Concerning which every one may complain with the Apostle I know that in me that is in my flesh dwells no good thing And again I find a Law that when I would do good evil is present with me c. For what they speak of Works following Faith and Grace how little that helps their cause appears not more evident by any Argument than by the Lives of those that maintain this Controversie if they be strictly enquired into If that be true which Campian with his Iesuits pleads for That Righteousness is not obtained in men come to years but by Works that follow after Faith Let us behold then what excellent Works this Faith of the Mother Church of Rome brings forth seeing they so much glory in the Title of Catholick Faith and Preach so many things about Charity which is the fulfilling of the Law Let us look into the Life and Works of the Roman Popes Cardinals and Bishops and the whole Crew of the Monks and Iesuits Where can you find more of the flesh or less of true holiness than in those false-hearted and painted Hypocrites whose whole profession of Religion consists in Purple Gowns high topped Mitres Purple Caps Rings adorned with Iewels solemn Vows Ceremonies which in reality are rather Stage-playes than Exercises of Piety This appears to be too true by the unhappy Tumults raised in the World the Wars and Persecutions that are stirred up by none more than by those very men that call themselves Spiritual and Catholick whom it should become to be the chiefest encouragers of Concord and Messengers of Peace But having so much enlarged upon this sort of men with their Works and Merits let us return to the Examples of those of whom we spake before who were freely admitted unto Baptism and received into favour by Faith without any commendation of Merits at all yea without mention of any Works except such perhaps as were evil Amongst which number those Iews may be reckoned of whom three thousand at one time were Baptized by Peter Likewise also the Eunuch whom Faith only without Works made not only meet for Baptism but also an Heir of the Heavenly Kingdom And the Iaylor whom Paul Baptized Moreover Paul himself and all the Apostles and Publicans the family of Cornelius Zacehaeus Mary Magdalen and the Thief on the Cross If Faith without Works was sufficient to them for the Grace of Baptism why not also for the obtaining of Iustification and Life Eternal Vega and those of his Association answers after his usual manner that in all these Repentance was joyned with Faith and other things also belonging to good Manners and a godly Life But it easily appears how vain and insignificant this Answer of Vega is He says Repentance and other Vertues are joyned with Faith Which tho' I confess to be in some sense true in the lives and persons of
if they are righteous and not sinners whom Christ helps What need have the Righteous of a Redeemer What need have the whole of a Physician Moreover how will that saying of Paul hold true whereby Christ being made Man is said to have come into the World not to save the Righteous but Sinners I beseech you now O ingenuous Man according to your Modesty that I may deal very modestly with you If any Man treat with you on this manner in disputing about the Doctrine of Iustification what would you answer him if he should ask these things of you If any such Man should come to you who being affrighted in his mind and astonished at the greatness of his sins and burdened with horrour of Conscience and almost dead with the fear of the Iudgment of God should ask the help of counsel and comfort from you of which sort there are found not a few Examples in the Folds of the Lord's Flock what Remedy would you reach forth unto him Perhaps you will send him to those Books of yours concerning Righteousness and what will he find there whereby his afflicted and cast down Mind may be refreshed and recover it self what will you send him to the Law but what will he draw from thence fit for healing his wounds especially seeing that Law of Righteousness can only bring us in guilty because we have not kept the Law and oblige us thereunto as by bond at least it cannot by any means restore Righteousness that was once lost or satisfie the Iudge It remains then that you should bring over the miserable Soul of a Sinner from the Law in which there appears no hope of defence unto Christ seeing it is He only by whose Wounds and Stripes we are healed and who hath taken upon himself all the Impieties of us all that he might communicate unto us his own Righteousness That is very true indeed and upon that account I think you and yours are to be commended who though you seem not to have a clear enough sight of the genuine Office of Christ and his Divine Greatness in procuring our Salvation yet ye refuse not to profess his Name and a certain external reverence of Faith But because at present you have to do with men that are troubled and to whom it is not sufficient to retain only the Name of a Saviour unless we have also a right understanding of the Efficacy of his Death which he suffered for us and of the Power that he hath to save and the great benefits he hath bestowed upon us and his exceeding great Love and Good-will towards us and the infinite Riches that are promised to us in him Therefore you must proceed further and help the afflicted Minds of the Godly as much as may be that they may know and believe not only that there is eternal and durable Life in Christ but also that they may be taught the way and means and manner how that Life comes to us and to whom it belongs and what we must observe in attaining unto it What the power and efficacy of Faith is whom it justifies and how IN which matter there is great variety of Sentiments and Opinions amongst Divines For whereas Paul proclaims with a very audible Voice That Man is justified by Faith without the Works of the Law Those Men by the additions of their Comments do not explain the most evident meaning of the Apostle but render it obscure they do not expound but cavil So that some take the word Faith not as Paul for that Faith only which is in Christ Iesus but which is formed by Charity and Works Others interpret that which Paul saith of Faith without Works to be understood concerning Ceremonial Works Some interpret it of the Works of the Law in this sense that those works are undertaken not by Faith but by the command of the Law without Grace Others expound it otherwise without antecedent works only Some think it should be understood of the first Iustification only which they attribute to Faith alone as in little Children that are Baptized but the second in men come to years they attribute to Faith indeed but not without Works The scope of all which dispute is that Faith being adorned with Works may do something and on the contrary that if Works are not joyned with it it may seem a kind of rude matter void of life and form not only unprofitable to purchase Righteousnes but a certain dead and destructive thing Which if it be true I would know this of them and chiefly I would ask of you Osorius in what Common-wealth in what Church in whose Kingdom do you coyn this new piece of Divinity If it is the Church of Christ that is not yours It is his Kingdom in which you are only a servant What Shall not Christ have a free power permitted to him of administring his own affairs as in his own lawful Common-wealth And whence is this your great boldness in anothers Dominion in a Church that ye never founded to alter and change as you list the appointments and institutions of your Prince contrary to Law and Right Or by what authority do you oppose your selves but that every man may act in his own possession according to his own right and freedom of command What if it seems good in the Eyes of Christ to communicate freely the glory of his Kingdom to whom he will Will ye forbid him What if the most Gracious Lord will pay a full reward to those that come to work at the last hour of the day and make all equal by making the like agreement with them all should your Eye therefore be evil because he is good But now the Lord himself the Prince and Author of the Church professes in very evident words that eternal life shall be given to them that believe in his name What can be said more evident in signification or more clear to be understood He that believeth in me saith he hath eternal life And again repeating the same in the same words He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life And chap. 11. He that believeth in me though he were dead yet he shall live And lest he should seem to testifie this of himself without the consent of his Father he adds This is saith he the will of him that sent me that every one that seeth the Son and believeth in him should have life eternal Who doth no less most evidently confirm these things by performances which he expresses in word adding also miracles thereunto For how great a multitude do ye meet with every where through all the Evangelists whom you see saved and healed by no other thing but faith only which relied on Christ. How often do we hear from the mouth of the Lord in the Gospel thy Faith hath made thee whole without hearing any mention of works And what Christ performed to faith will Osorius attribute that to Works