Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	dead_a	faith_n	lively_a	5,187	5	10.6802	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A18066	The voyage of the wandering knight. Deuised by Iohn Carthenie, a Frenchman: and translated out of French into English, by VVilliam Goodyear of South-hampton merchant. A vvorke vvorthie of reading, and dedicated to the Right worshipfull Sir Frauncis Drake, Knight; Voyage du chevalier errant. English	Cartigny, Jean de, 1520?-1578.; Norman, Robert, fl. 1590.; Goodyear, William.	1581 (1581)	STC 4700; ESTC S104901	93,834	138

the will worketh his feats at libertie And it is called Frée will because of the iudgement of the soule therefore Frée will is in the superiour part of the soule for thereby we differ from brute beasts who haue a sense as well as we but no iudgement of Frée will Nowe when we say that vertue is a good qualitie of the soule that is to saie of Frée will For vertue qualifies Free-will disposeth and prepareth it to doe and will well neither of which cannot be done without the aide and grace of God The second part of the definition is Wherby a man liueth rightly But no man liueth rightly vnles he liue iustly no mā liueth iustly w tout vertue Ergo no man liueth rightly without vertue Who so liueth rightly liueth wel who so liueth well if he continue in so doing atchiueth true felicitie It followeth then y t by vertue we atchiue true felicitie for vertue prepares Frée will which is corrupt depraued therfore vnapt either for well willing or well doing but the grace of God reseruing it by vertue it is made capable of perfect blessednesse The third part of y e definition is And committeth none euill Wherein is comprehended the excellencie of vertue great goodnes by the which none can do il Men may abuse al y e goods al y e arts sciences in the world as indéed very often they are ill vsed as with monie wine women but by vertue they be neuer abused who vseth vertue he doth y e works of vertue Who so vseth y e deeds of vertue he doth wel if by vertue none doth ill thou oughtest rather to loose all y t is in the world then to lose vertue seeing she excels in goodnesse all things in the world The fourth part of the definition is Which thing indeed is the only work of God in man Uertue thē is a work of God in vs as witnesseth S. Austen vpon y t sentence which is spoken in the 118. Psalme I haue done iudgement iustice Iustice saith he is a great vertue of the soule comming more then he sawe for he sawe a man and he beléeued that the same man was God also which he sawe not for he said Thou art my God and my Lord. In this consisteth the merite of faith when a man at y e commandement of God beleeueth that thing which he séeth not To beleeue saith Saint Austen is to thinke vppon a thing with consent to that thought as when thou thinkest the Son of God was borne of a Uirgin had tooke mans nature vpon him consentest to y e thought it is properly called beliefe This thought may come often by séeing and often by hearing And therefore Saint Paule saith that Faith commeth by hearing and hearing by the word of God He vnderstands that by hearing Faith comes into the minde and thought if we consent therevnto For we maye beholde a Preacher without consenting to that he saith because men doe not alwaies beleeue what the Preacher speaketh for y t the consent wherin consisteth the perfection of Faith comes of the méere gift of God not from séeing nor hearing but frō the light of grace speking in the soule of the beleeuer beléeuing the principal truth which is God working in him a consent agreement w t that principal souereign trurh aboue al other things So that Faith is a foundation vnmoueable both of beleeuers and of truth by the which Faith when it is ioyned with Charitie our Lord Iesus Christ who is the onely foundation of true blessednesse dwelleth in the hearts of the beleeuers and so long as Faith is in man he shal be sure not to perish but Faith without Charitie is no foundation because such Faith is vaine and vnprofitable Faith then ioyned with Loue or Charitie belongs to good Christians and Faith without Loue belongs to euill Christians It is necessarie therfore that we note the difference in these three saiengs or speaches namely To beleeue a God to beleeue of God and to beleeue in God To beleeue of God is to beléeue that all is true which God saith so beleeue the euill Christians as well as the good vnlesse they be Heretikes To beleeue a God is to beléeue that he is the onely true and almightie God and so the Diuells doe beléeue as well as the euill Christians But to beléeue in God is to loue God and to trust in God and in beléeuing to ioyne thy selfe to God by loue and obedience incorporating thée with his mēbers that is to say his Church This Faith iustifieth and maketh righteous the sinner and this Faith being knit with Loue and with Charitie begins to doe good deedes which cannot be done without Loue. The Faith which euill Christians haue is indéede a qualytie of fréewill but it is not knit with Loue and Charitie which is the bonde of perfection and the life of Faith as Faith is the life of the soule And yet such an vnshapen Faith being naked and voide of Charitie may be termed a gift of God for that the euill man may haue some gifte of God but that cannot properly be called Vertue because that by Vertue we learne to liue rightly and for that the Diuels and euill Christians doe liue wickedly it is a signe that the faith which they haue is dead and therefore is not properly Vertue nor yet a worke of Vertue If thou wilt then haue thy Faith to be good and wholesome it must haue foure properties that is to say it must be plaine and simple it must be whole and sound it must be constant and vnmouable it must be quicke and liuely Touching the first that it must be plaine and simple that teacheth thée thus much in effect that thou must beléeue the word of God plainly simply whatsoeuer is therein contained without enquiring or searching in Gods mysticall matters by humaine reasons but simply beléeuing in thy heart that euery thing contained in the holy Bible is most true Secondly thy Faith must be whole and sound that is to say thou must not take parte with heretikes or leane to the erronious opinions of the enimies of Gods truth for this is no good or wholesome Faith And therefore for a testimonie of thy Faith be not ashamed to make open confession in the congregation of thy beliefe saieng with y e felowship communion of Saints I beleeue in the holy Trinitie as y e holy Church founded by Christ whereof he is y e head hath taught me so do I frame my faith· Thirdly it must be constant and vnmouable that is to say without doubting for any reson of mans braine that séemeth contrarie nor for any temptation promises or threatnings either of torment or of death And let not the obstinacie of such as inchaunt with the vaine pleasures of this life although they liue most ioyfully allure thee to leane to their opinion which is flat heresie For that