THat fayth only before allwerfes and whith out all merites / but Christes ōly iustifieth & settith vs at peace with god ys provid by Paule in the first chapter to the Ro. I Am not ashamed (saith he) of the gos­pell / that is to saie / of the glad tithīges & pr­omises which god hath made & sworne to vs in Christ. For it (that is to saye the gospell) ys the power of god vnto salvacyon / to all that beleve. And it foloweth in the forsaid chap­ter / the Just or rightewes must live by faith. ¶ For in the faith which we have ī Christ ād in godes promises finde we mercye / lyfe / fav­oure / ād peace. In the law we find deth / dā ­natiō / & wrath: more over the curse & vēgea­unce of god apō vs. And it (that is to saye the lawe) ys called of Paule .ij. Cor. iij. the mini­stra ciō of deth ād damnaciō. In the lawe we are proovid to be the enimies of god / and that we hate him. For how can we be at peace wi­th god and love him / seinge we are conceav­ed and borne vnder the power of the devill ād are his possession and kingdome / his captives and bondmē / ād leade at his will / and he ho­ldith oure hertis / so that it is īpossible for vs to consent to the will of god / moch more is it impossible for a man to fufill the lawe / of his awne strnegth and power seynge that we [Page] are by byrth and of nature the heires of eter­nall damnacyon. As sayth Paule Ephe. ij. We (saith he) are by nature the chylder of wa­ath. Which thīg the lawe doth but vtter on­ly and helpyth vs not / yee requiryth impossy­ble thinges of vs. The law whē it cōmaun­deth that thou shalt not lust / geveth the not power so to do / but dānenith the / because th­ou canst not so doo.

IFF thou wylt therfore be at peace with God and love him / thou muste turne to the promyses of God and to the Gospel which is called of Paul in the place before re­hersed to the Corinthiās / the mynistracion of ryghtwesnes and of the spyryte. For fayth bryngeth pardō ād forgyvenes frely purcha­sed by Christes bloud ād brīgeth also the spry­te / the spryte loeseth the bondes of the devyll ād setteth vs at lybertye. For where the spryte of the lorde is there is libertie saith Paul ī the same place to the Corinhtiās / that is to saye / there the hert is fre ād hath power to love the wyl of God / and there the hert morneth that he cā not love ynough. Now is that cōsent of the hert vnto the law of God eternall lyfe / yee though there be no power yet in the mēbres to sulfyll it. Lat every mā therfore (according to Pauls coūcell ī the .vj. ch. to the ephes.) are me himselfe with the armoure of God / that is [Page iii] to vnderstand / wyth Godes promyses / and above all thing (sayth he) take vnto you the shyld of faythe / where wyth ye maye be able to quench all the f [...]rey dartes of the wicked / that ye maye be able to resyst in the evyll daye of rētaciō / ād namelye at the houre of death.

Se therfore thou have Godes promyses in thyne herte and that thou beleve thē wyth out waveringe: and when rētacyon arriseth / and the devyll layeth the lawe ād thi deades agaynst the / answare him wyth the promyses ād turne to God and confesse thy selfe to hym and say it is even so / or else how coude he be mercyfull? but remēbre that he is the God of mercye ād of truth and cā not but fulfyll hys promyses. Also remembre that hys sonnes bloud is stronger thē all the synnes and wye­fydnes of the whole worlde and there wyth quiet thy selfe and there vnto commit thi selfe and blesse thi self in all temtatyon (nameli at the houre of death) with that holy candle. O­else perishist thou though thou hast a thou­sande holy candles aboute the / a hundred ton of holy water / a shipfull of pardones / a cloth sack full of freres coetes and all the ceremo­nyes in the world and all the good workes / de servynges and merytes of all the men in the world / be they or were they never so holy. Godes word only lasteth for ever and that [Page] which he hath sworne doth abide / when all other thinges perishe. So lōge as thou findist ani cōsent in thine hert vnto y ^e lawe of God / y ^t it is righteous and Good / & also displeasure y ^t thou canst not fulfill it / despere not / nether d­oute / but y ^t Godes sprite is in y ^e / ād y ^t thou art chosen for Christes sake / to the enherytaunce of eternall life.

And again Ro. iij. We suppose y ^t amā is iu­stified thorow faith with out y ^e deades of y ^e la­we. And like wise Ro. iiij. we saie y ^t faith was rekened to Abrahā for rightwesnes. Itē Ro. v. seing y ^t we ar iustified thorowe faith / we are at peace with God. Itē Ro. x. With y ^e hert d­oth a mā beleve / to be made righteous. Item Galat. iij. Receavid ye y ^e spirite by y ^e deades of y ^e lawe or by hearīge of y ^e faithe? Doth he wi­hich ministreth y ^e sprite vnto you and worketh miracles amonge you / do it of the deades of the law or by heringe of fayth? Even as A­braham beleved God and it was rekened hym for righteousnes. Vnderstande therfore (saith he) that the chyldern of fayth are the chyldern of Abraham. For the scripture sawe before / that God wold iustifye the hethen or gentyls by fayth and shewed before Glatyd­inges vnto Abrahā / in thy sede shall all naci­ōs be blessed. Wherfore they which are of fa­yth are blessed / y ^t is to were made rightewes [Page iiij] with righteous Hbrahā For as māy as are of the deades of the lawe are vnder curse. For it is writtē / sayth he cursed is every man that cōtynueth not in all thīges which are writtē in the boke of the lawe to fulfyll them.

Itē Gala. ij. where he resysted peter in the face he sayth. We which ar Jewes by naciō ād not synners of the gētyls / knowe that a mā is not iustyfyed by the deades of the lawe / but by the fayth of Jesus Christ and have there­for beleved on Jesus Christe / that we might be Justified by the faith of Christ / ād not by the deades of the lawe: for by the deades of the lawe: shall no flesh be iustyfyed. Itē in the same place he sayth / twichīg that I now lyve I lyve in the fayth of the sonne of God / which loved me and gave him selfe for me I despice not the grace of God. For if righteousnes co­me by the lawe / thē is Christ deade in vayne. And of soch like ensamples are all the epistles of Paull full. Marke howe Paull laborith with hīselfe to expresse the exceadīge mistery­es of faith in the epistle to the ephesiās / and in the epystle to the Collossyans. Off thes and many soch like textes are we sure that the for­givenes of synnes and iustyfyinge ys appro­priate vnto fayth only wythout the addinge to of workes.

Take for the also the sicknes that Christ ma▪ [Page] keth Mathei. vij. A good tree bringeth forth good frute. And a bad tree bringeth forth b­ad frute. There seist thou that the frute mak­eth not the tree good / but the tree the frute / a­nd that the tree must afore hand be good or be made good: yer it can bringe forth good frute As he also sayth Math. xij. ether make the tr­ee good and hys frute good also / ether make the tree bad and his frute bad also. How can ye speake well while ye youre selfes ar evill? So lyke wise ys this true and no thing more true / that a man before all good workes must fyrst be good / & that it is impossible that wor­kes shuld make hym good / if he were not go­od before / yer he did good workes. For this ys Christes prīciple & (as we say) a generall rule. How can ye speake well / while ye are evyll? so like wise how cā ye doe good / while ye are evil.

This is therfore a playne / & a sure cōclusion not to be dowred of / that there must be fyrst in the hert of a mā before he doe any good wor­ke / a gretter & a preciouser thīg thē all y ^• good workes in y ^• world to recōsile hī to God to brī ­ge y ^• love & favoure of God to hī / to make hī love God agaī / to make hī righteous & good in y ^• sight of god / to do a maye his sinne / to deliver hī & loose hī / out of that captivite where in he was cōceavid ād borne / ī which he cou­de nether love God nether the wyll of God. [Page v] Or else how cā he worke any good werke that shuld please God / if there were not some sup­ernaturall goodnes in hī givē of god frely w­here of y ^e good worke must sprīg? evē as a sick man must first be healed or made whole / ye [...] he cā doe y ^e deades of an whole mā / & as y ^e bl­inde mā must first have sight givī hī yer he cā see: & he y ^t hath his feete in fetters gives or st­ockes must first be loosid or he can goe / walke or rūne / & evē as they which thou readist of in the gospell y ^t they were possessed of y ^• devils / could not laude God til y ^e devils were cast out.

That preciouse thinge which must be in the herte yer a mā cā worke any good worke is t­he word of god / which in y ^• gospel praecheth profereth & brīgeth vnto all that repēt & bel­eve / the favoure of God in Christ. Who so e­ver herith the word and belevith it / the same is there by righteouse and there by is geven hym the sprite of God / which leadith hym vnto all that is the wylll of God and is loosed from t­he captyvyte and bondage of the devyll / and hys hert is free to love God / and hath lust to doe the will of God. Therefore it is called the worde of lyse / the word of grace / the worde of health / y ^• worde of redēciō / the word of forge­venes / & y ^e worde of peace / he y ^t hereth it not or belevith it not / can by no meanes be made rightous before god. This cōfermith Peter i y ^• [Page] xv. of the actes / seyng that God through fa­yth doth purifie the hertes. For of what natu­re so ever the worde of God is / of the same n­ature must the hertes be which beleve theron and cleave thervnto. Now is the worde lyvi­nge / pure / righteouse and true / and even soe maketh it the hertes of thē that beleue therō.

IFF it be said that Paul (whē he saith in the .iij. to the Romains / no flesh shalbe or canbe iustyfied bi the deades of the law) meaneth it of the ceremonies or sacri­fices / it is a lye verilye. For it foloweth immediatly / by the lawe cōmeth the knowleage of sinne. Now are they not the ceremonies that vtture sinne / but the lawe of cōmandemētes. In the .iiij. (he saith) the lawe causeth wrath which can not be vnderstond of the ceremon­ies for they were gevē to reconsyle the people to god againe after they had sinned. If as they saye the ceremonies which were geven to pu­rge sinne and to reconsile / iustifye not nether blesse / but temporallie onlye / moch more the lawe of commaundmentes instifyeth not. For that which provith a man sicke healith him not / nether doth the cause of wrath bringe to favour / nether can that which dāneth save a man. Whē the mother cōmaundith her chil­de / but even to rocke the cradell / it grudgith▪ the commaundement doth but vttur the Po­yson [Page vj] that laye hidd / ād settith hī at ba [...]e with his mother and makith him beleve she lovith him not.

Thes cōmaūdmētes also (thou schalt not co­vet thy neigbours house thou shalt not lust desire or wisshe after thi neighbours wife ser­vāt / maide oxe or asse / or what so ever pertai­nith vnto thi neighboure) geve me not power so to doo / but vtter the poison that is in me & dāpne me / because I can not soe doo / ād pro­ve that god is wrathe with me / seīge that his wil and mine are so contrary. Therfore sayth Paul Gal. iij. If there had bin geve soch a la­we that coulde have geven life / then no doute righteousnes had come by the lawe but the scripture concluded all vnder sinne (saith he) that the promise might be gevē vnto thē that beleve thorow the faith that is ī Jesus Christ.

The promises whē the are beleved / are they that iustifie / for they bringe the spirite which Ioesith the hert giveth lust to the law and cer­tifieth vs of the good will of god vnto vs w­arde. Iff we submitte our selfes vnto god and desire him to heale vs / he will do it / and will in the meane time (because of the cōsent of the hert vnto the law) count vs for full hole and will no more hate vs / but pitie vs / cherish vs be tender hertid to vs and love vs as he doth Christ him selfe▪ Christ is our redemer savar / [Page] peace / attonement / and satisfaction / and hath made amendes or satisfactyon to Godwarde for all the synne which they that repent (con­sentinge to the lawe and beleving the promy­ses) doo / have done or shall doo. So that if thorow fragylite we fall a thousand tymes in a daye / yet if we doo repēt agayn / we have all waye mercy layd vp for vs in store in Jesus Christ our lorde.

WHat shall we sayethen to those scri­ptures which goo so sore apon good workes? As we rede Math. xxv. I was an hongred and ye gave me meate &c. And soch lyke. Which all sownd as though we shuld be i [...]styfied ād accepted vnto the fa­voure of God in Christ thorow good workes. This wise answare I. Many there are which when they heare or rede of fayth / at tonce they consent there vnto and have a certayne yma­ginaciō or opinion of the [...]ayth / as when a mā tellith a storye or a thinge done in astraunge lande / y ^t pertayneth not to them at all. Which yet they beleve & tell as a true thinge. And this imaginaciō or opiniō they call faith. They thinke no forther then y ^t [...]ayth ys a thinge which stondith in there awne power to have / as do other naturall workes which men worke: but they fele no maner workinge of y ^e spirite nether the terrible sentēce of the lawe / the fearfull iu­dgemētes [Page vij] of God / the horrible dānacion and captivite vnder satā. Therefore as sone as they have this opiniō or ymaginaciō in there her­tis: y ^t sayth / verely this doctrine semeth true / I beleve it is evē so. Thē they thinke that the ri­gtht faith is there. But afterward when they fele in thē selves / & also se in other that there is none alteraciō / ād that the workes folowe not but y ^t they are altogether evē as before / ād a­bide in there olde estate: thē thinke they y ^t fay­th is not sufficiēt / but that it must be some gr­etter thinge thē fayth that shuld iustifie a mā.

So fa [...]le they a waye frō faith again / & crye sayīge faith ōly iustifieth not a mā / ād maketh hī acceptable to God. Iff thou aske thē whe­refore. They āswere / se how many there are y ^t beleve ād yet do no moare thē they did before. Thes ar they which Judas ī his epistle callith dreamers which deceave thē selfes with there owne fantasi [...]s. For what other thinge ys ther ymaginaciō which they call faith / thē a drea­mīge of y ^• fayth / ād an opiniō of there owne y­maginaciō wrought with out y ^• grace of god? These must ne [...]des beworse at y ^• later ende thē at the biginninge. These ar the olde vessels / y ^t rēt whē new wine y [...] powred ī to thē Mat. ix y ^t is / they heare Godes word but holde it not / and therfore waxe worse thē they were before. But y ^• right faith sprīgeth not of mās fantes▪ [Page] nether ys it in any mans power to obtayne it / but is all to gether the pure gift of God pou­red in to vs frelye with out all maner doinge of vs with out deservinge and merites / yee & without sekinge for of vs. And is (as saith Paull in the seconde to the Ephesians) even godes gift ād grace purchasid thorou Christ. Therfore is it mighty in operatiō / full of ver­tue and ever workinge / which also renueth a man and begettith him a freshe / alterith him chaungeth him / and turneth him all togedre in to a new nature and conversacion: so that a man feareth his hert all togedre altered and chaunged & ferre oderwise desposed thē befo­re / and hath power to love that which before he could not but hate / & deliteth ī that which before he abhorred / ād hateth that which be­fore he coulde not but love. And it setteth the soule at libertie and maketh hyr free to folowe the will of god / and doth to the soule even as health doth vnto the bodie / after that a man is pined and wasted a waye with a lōge soe­kinge disease. The legges can not beare hym / he can not lift op his hādes to helpe him self / his tast is corrupte / suger is bitter in his mo­uth / his stomake abhorrith longinge after si­bbersause and shashe / at which a whole sto­make ys ready to cast his gorge. Whē health commith / she chaūgeth & altereth hym clea­ne / [Page viii] gevith hym strength in all hys membres and lust to doe of hys owne accorde that wh­ich before he could not doe neder could suffer that any man exhorted hym to doe / and hath now lust in holsome thinges / and his mēbres ar fre and at libertie and have power to doe of ther owne accorde all thinges which belōge to an whole mā to doe / which afore they had no power to doo / but were in captivitie & bo­ndage So like wise in all thīge doth right fa­ith to the soule.

¶ The sprite of god acompanieth faith / & br­ingith with her light where with a mā beh­oldith hī selfe ī the law of god / & seith hys mi­serable boundage and captiuite / & humbleth him selfe / and abhorreth hī selfe: she brīgeth Godes promises of all good thiges in Christe God worketh with his worde / & in his worde And as his worde is preached / faith wroteth her selfe in the hertes of the electe: ād as faith entreth & the worde of god is beleved / the po­wer of god loeseth the hert frō the captiuite & bondage vnder sinne / and kni [...]teh and coupl­eth hym to god and to the will of god / altere­th hym and chaungeth hym clene / facyoneth and forgeth hym a new / gevith him power to love and to doe that which before was vnp­ossible for him ether to love or doe / and turn­eth hī ī to a new nature: so that he loveth that [Page] which he before hated / ād hateth that which he before loued / ād is cleane altered ād chaun­ged and contrarie desposed / and is knyt and coupled fast to Gods wyll / and naturally br­ingeth forth good workes / that is to say / that which God commaundeth to doo / and not thinges of his owne ymagynacyon. And that doth he of hys owne accorde as a tree brin­geth forth frute of hyr owne accorde. And as thou neadist not to byd a tree to bringe forth fruyte / so is ther no lawe put vnto hī that be­leveth & is iustified thorou faith (as saith Paule ī y ^• fyrst pistle to Timothe the fyrst Chapter) Nether is it neadfull. For the lawe of God is written and graved in his herte / [...]o his plea­sure is therein. And as wyth out commaun­dement but even of his owne nature / he eateth drinketh / seeth / hereth / talketh / and goeth: even so of hys owne nature / wyth out coac­cion or compulsyon of the lawe / bryngeth he forth good workes. And as a whole man when he is a thurst / taryeth but for drinke / ād when he hongreth abideth but for meate / and then drinketh and eateth naturally: even so ys the faythfull ever a thurst and an hongred after the wyll of God / and taryeth but for oc­casyon. And when so ever an occasyon is ge­ven / he worketh naturally the wyll of God. For thys blessinge ys geven to all them that [Page ix] trust in Christes bloude / that they thrust and hongre to doo Gods wyll. He that hath not thys fayth / ys but an vnprofytable babler of fayth and workes / and wotteth nother what he bableth nor what he meaneth or where vnto hys wordes pertayne. For he fealeth not the power of fayth nor the workynge of the spirite in his herte / but enterpreteth the scrip­tures which speake of fayth and workes / after his owne blynd reason and folysh phantasies and not of any fealinge that he hath in hys herte: as a man reherseth a tale of an other manes mouth ād wotteth not wether it be soe or noe as he sayth / nor hath any experyence of the thinge selfe. Now doth the scripture ascrybe both fayth and workes not to vs / but to god only / to whom they belonge only / and to whō they are appropiate / whose gyft they are and the proper worke of his spirite.

Is yt not a froward and perverse blin­dnes? they reach how a man can do nothin­ge of hys owne selfe / and yet presumtuously take apon them the greatyst and hyest wor­ke of God / even to make fayth in them sel­fes of theyr owne power and of ther owne false ymaginacion and thoughtes. Therfo­re I saye / we muste despere of our selfes / ād pray God (as Christes Apostels dyd) to ge­ve vs fayth / ād to encrease our fayth. When [Page] we have that / we neade no other thinge mo­are. For she bringeth the spirite with her / & he not only teacheth vs all thinges / but workes thē also mightly in vs and carieth vs thorou aduersite / persecutiō / deeth and hell / vnto he­ven and everlastinge life.

MArke diligently therfore seinge we are come to āsware. The scripture becau­se of soch dreamers ād fained faithes sake / vseth soch maner of speakinges of wer­kes / not that a man shuld thereby be made good to Godwarde or iustified / but to decla­re vnto other / and to take of other the differē ­ce betwene false fained faith and right faith. For where right faith ys / there bringeth she forth good workes / yf ther folowe not good workes / it is no doute but a dreame & an opi­nion or fained faith.

Where fore loke as the frute maketh not the tree good / but declarith ād testifieth oute­wardly that the tree is good (as Christ saith) every tree ys knowē by his frute: evē so shall ye knowe the right faith by hir frute.

Take for an ensample mary that annoyn­ted Christes feete / Luke .vij. Whē Simō wh­ich bade Christe to his house had condemned hir / Christ defended hir and iustified hir sain­ge: Simō I have a certaine thinge to say vn­to the. And he said master saie on. There was [Page x] a certayne lender which had two detters / the one oug [...]te five hundret pense / and the other fiftie. When they had nothinge to paie he for gave bothe. Which of them tell me / will love him most? Simon answered & said: I suppo­se that he to whom he forgave most. And he said to him / thou hast truly iudged. And he turned him to the woman / & said vnto Simō Seist thou this woman? I entred in to thine howse / and thou gavest me no water to my feete / but she hath weshed my feete with tea­res / & wipte them with the heeres of hir heed Thou gavest me no kisse / but shesens the time I came in / hath not ceased to kisse my feete. My heed with oyle (which is but a vile thīg) thou hast not annoynted. And she hath an­noynted my feete with costlie & preciouse oyn­tement. Wherefore I say vnto the / many sin­nes ar forgeven her for she loveth moch. To whom lesse is forgeven / the same doth love lesse &c. Hereby se we that deades and wor­kes are but outward signes of the inwarde g­race of the bounteous and plenteous mercy of god frely receaved / with out all merites of deades / yee ād before all deades. Christ teacheth to knowe the inwarde fayth and love / by the outwarde deades. Deades are the frutes of love / and love ys the frute of faith. Love and also the deades are great or small accordinge [Page] to the proporciō of fayth. Where fayth is mi­ghty & strong there is love fervent ād deades plentuouse and done with excedinge mekenes Where fayth is weake / theris love colde and the deades fewe and fadith as flowres & blo­somes in winter. Simon beleved ād had fa­yth / yet but weaklie / ād according to the pro­porcyon of his fayth loved coldlye / ād had de­ades therafter: he bade Christe vnto a simple and a bare feest only / and receaued hī not wi­th ony great humanite. But Mari had a str­onge fayth / and therfore burninge love / and notable deades done with exceadinge pro­founde and deape mekenes. On the on syde shesawe her selfe clerely in the lawe / both in what daunger she was in / and her cruell bo­ndage vnder sinne / hyr horryble damnacyon and also the fearfull sentence and iudgeme­nt of God apon synners. On the odersyde she herd the gospell of Christ preached / and in the promysses she sawe wyth egles eyes the exce­adinge abundaunt mercye of God / that pas­seth all vtteraunce of speach / which is set fo­rth in Christ for all meke synners. Which kn­owleage ther synnes. And she beleved the w­ord of God myghtylye and glorifyed God o­ver his mercye and truth / and being overcome and overwhelmed with the vnspeakeable yee and incomprehensyble aboundante ryches of [Page xi] the kyndnes of God / dyd enflame and bur­ne in love / yee was so swolne in love / that she cowld not abyde nor hold / but must breake out / and was so dronke in love that she reg­arded no thinge / but evyn to vtter the ferve­nt and burnynge love of hyr hert only. She h [...]d no respecte to hyr selfe / though she was never so greate and notable a synner / neth­ther to the curyouse ypocrysye of the phareses which ever dysdayne weke sinners / nether the costlynes of hyr oyntement / but wyth all hu­mblenes dyd runne vnto his fete. Weshed them with the teares of hyr eyes / and wypyd them wyth the heyrys of her hede / and anoy­nted them wyth hyr precyous oyntement / yee and wold nodow [...]e have runne in to the gro­unde vnder hys fete to have vtt [...]ered hyr lo­ve towarde him / yee wold have descended do­wne in to hell / if it had byn possyble. Even as Paule ī the neynth Chapter of his pystle to the Romyans was dronke in love and overwh­elmed wyth the plentuousnes of the infinyte mercye of god (which he had receaved in Ch­ryste vnsought fore) wyshed hym self banesh­y [...] from Christe and damned / to save the Ie­wes / if it myght have bene. For as a man fe­aleth God in hym selfe / so ys he to hys negh­boure.

[Page]Marke an oderihinge also. We for the mo­st part because of our grossenes / in all oure knouwleage proceade from that which is last and hinmost vnto that which is first / begin­ninge at the later ende / disputinge ād making our argumentes backwarde. We beginne at the effecte and worke and procede vnto the naturall cause. As because of an ensam­ple we first se the mone derke / ād then sherch the cause / ād find that the puttinge of therth betwene the sone ād the mone is the naturall cause of the darknes and that the erth stoppe­th the light. Thē dispute we backewarde say­inge: the mone is darknede / therfore is the er­th directli betwene the sone & the mone. Now yet is not the derknes of the mone the natural cause that therth is betwene the sone and the mone / but the effecte therof and cause declar­ative / declarīge and leadinge vs vnto the knowleage / how that the erth ys betwene the so­ne and the mone directlye ād causeth the der­knes / stopping the light of the sonne frō the mone. And cōtrar [...]e wise the beinge of the er­the directelye betwene the sone and the mone is the naturall cause of the derknes. Lyfe wise he hath a sone therfore is he a father / and yet the sone is not cause of the father / but contra­rie wise. Not with stondinge the sonne is the cause declarative / where bye we knowe that [Page xij] the other ys a father. After the same maner here / many synnes ar forgeven her / for she lo­vethe moch / thou mayst not onderstand by the worde for / that love is the naturall cau­se of the forgeuinge of synnes / but declareth it onli / and contrary wise the forgevenes of syn­es ys the naturall cause of love.

¶ The workes declare love. And love declar­eth that ther is some benefite & kīdnes shewed or els wold ther be no love. Whi worketh one and an other not? Or one more then an other? Because that one lovyth and the other not / or that the one loveth more then thother. Whil­ovyth one and an other not / or one more then an other? Bycause that one fealeth the exced­inge kyndnes of god in hys herte and an oth­er not / or that on fealeth it more than an oth­er. Scripture spaeketh after the most grossest maner. Be dilygent therfore that thou be not deceaved wyth curyousnes. For men of no s­mall reputacyon have bene dceeaved wyth t­her owne sophistrye.

HEreby nowe seist thou / that ther is g­reat difference betwene beinge righte­ous & good in a mās self / & declarīge and vtterīge righteousnes and goodnes. The faith ōly maketh a mā safe / good / righteouse and the frēd of god / yee and the sonne and the heire of God and of all hys goodnes and pos­sesseth [Page] vs wyth the spyryte of God. The worke declareth the self fayth & goodnes. Now vse­th the scripture the cōmune māner of fpeatin­ge / and the very same that is amonge the peo­ple. As whē a father sayth to hys chyld / go ād be loving mercyfull and good / to soch or soch a pore man / he byddyth hym not / there with to be made mercyful / fynd and good: but to testyfye and declare the goodnes that is ī hym all redie wyth the outward deade: that it ma­ye breake out to the profet of other / and that other maye fele it which have neade ther of.

After the same maner shalt thou enterpre­te the scriptures which make mencyon of wo­rkes: that God therby wyll that we shewe fo­rth that goodnes which we have receaved by fayth / and let it breake forth and come to the profet of other that the false fayth may be kn­owen and weded oute by the roetes. For God geveth no man hys grace / that he shuld let it lye styll and doe noo good wyth all: but that he shuld encreace it and multyplye it wyth le­ndinge it to other / and wyth opynly declarin­ge of it wyth the outward workes / provoke and drawe other to God / As Christ sayth in Mathew the fyft Chapter let youre lyght so shyne in the syght of men that they maye se youre good workes / and gloryfye your father which is in heven. Or els were it as a treasu­re [Page xiij] dygged in the ground and hyd wysdome / in which what profett is ther?

More over ther wyth the goodnes / favo­ur / and gystes of God which are in the / not only shalbe knowen vnto other / but also vn­to ▪thyne awne self / and thou shalbe sure that thy fayth is right / and that the true spyryte of God is in the / and that thou art called and chosen of God vnto eternall lyfe / and loosed from the bondes of Sathan whos captyve thou wast / as Peter exhorteth in the fyrst of hys seconde epystle / thorow good workes to make oure callinge and elecetyon (where wy­th we [...]ar called and chosen of God) sure. For how dare a man presume to thynke / that hys fayth is right / and that Godes favoure is on hym / and that Godes spryte is in hym (wh­en he fealeth not the workynge of the spyryte / nether hym self desposed to any godly thinge. Thou canst never knowe or be sure of thy fa­yth / but by the workes / yf workes folowe n­ot yee and that of love / with out lokinge / af­ter any rewarde / thou maist be sure that thy faith is but a dreame and not right / and even the same that James called ī his pistel the .ij. Chapter deed fayth and not iustifienge.

Abrahā thorow workes Genesis .xxij. was sure of hys fayth to be ryght / and that the tr­ue feare of God was in hym / when he had off [Page] ered hys sonne (as the scripture saith) Now k­nowe I that thou fearest god / y ^• is to saie No­w is it open & manyfest that thou fearest G­od / in as much as thou hast not spared thy only sonne for my safe.

SO now by this abyde sure and fast y ^• a man inwardly in the hert & before G­od is ryghteons and good thorow faith only before all werfys. Not wyth standinge yet outwardly & opēly before the people / ye & before him self / is he righteons throw the w­orke / that is / he fuowith and is sure throw the outwarde worke that he is a true belever and in the favure of God and righteous and good thorow the mercy of God / that thou m­ayst call the one an opyn ād an owtward rig­htwesnes / ād the other an inwarde righteou­snes of the hert (so yet) that thou vndersiond by the outward righteousnes / no oder thinge save the frute that foloweth / and a derclarin­ge of the inward Justyfyinge & righteousnes of the hert / and not that it maketh a man rig­hteous before God / but that he must fyrst be­righteons before him in the hert. Even as th­ou maist call y ^• frute of the tree / the outward goodnes of the tree which folowith & v [...]erth the inwarde natur all goodnes of the tree.

This meaneth James in hys pystle where he saith / fayth wythout worfes is deed thes [Page xiiii] ye / if workes folowe not / is a sure and an ev­ydent sygne / that there is no fayth in the hert / but a deed ymagynacyon and dreame which they falssly call fayth.

Off the same wyse ys this sainge of Christ to be vnderstande. Make you frendes of the vnrighteous mammon / that ys showe youre fayth openly and what ye are within in the h­ert / with outwarde geving and bestowinge youre good is on the pore / that ye maye obta­yne frendes / that is / that the pore on whom t­hou hast shewede mercy maye at the daye of Judgement testyfye and witnesse of thy good workes. That thy faith & what thou wast w­ythin in the hert before God maye there ap­re by thy frutes openly vnto all men. For vn­to the right belevinge shall all thinges be co­nfortable and vnto consolacyon at that terry­ble daye. And contrary wyse vnto the vnbel­evinge / all thynge shalbe vnto desperacyon / and confucyon / and every man shalbe iud­ged openly and outwarly in the presens of all men / acordinge to ther deades and workes. So that not wyth oute a cause thou mayst call them thy frendes / which testyfie at that daye of the / that thou levedst as a true and a right Christen man and folowedst the step­pes of Christ in shewinge mercy / as no donte he doth which fealeth God mercyfull in hys [Page] herte. And bythe workes ys the fayth kno­wen / that it was right ād perfect. For the out­warde workes can never please God nor ma­ke frende / except they springe of fayth. For as moch as Christ hym selfe Maith. in the .vi. and .vij. Chapter dysaloweth and casteth a­waye the workes of the phareseys: yee pro­phesyenge and workinge of miracles and ca­stynge out of devyls / whych we counte and esteme for veray excellent vertues. Yet make they no frēdes with there workes / whyle ther hertes are false and vnpure and ther eye dou­ble. Now wyth out fayth is no herte true or eye syngle: so that we ar cōpelled to cōfesse that the workes make not a mā righteous or good but that the hert must fyrst / be righteous and good yer any good worke procede thense.

SEcōdarily all good workes must be do­ne free with a syngle eye with out respe­cte of any thinge / and that no profet be sought thereby.

That commaundeth Christ / where he sayth Mar. x fre have ye receaved / fre geve agayne. For loke as Christ with all his workes did not deserve heven / for that was his all redye / but dyd vs servyce therwith / ād nether loked nor soughte his awne profit [...] / but our profit / & the honoure of God y ^• father only. Evē so we with all oure workes maye not sefe oure awne pro­fit / [Page xv] nether in this world nor in hevē / but must ād ought frely to worke / to honour God wyth all / and without all maner respecte / sefe oure neyghbours profit and do hym service. That meaneth Paul Philip. ij. sayng. Bemynded as Christ was which beinge in the shappe of God / equall vnto God and even very God / laid that a part / that is to saie / hyd it. And to­ [...]e on him the forme ād faseyon of a servaunt. That is / as cōcerninge hym selfe he had yno­ugh / that he was full / & had all plentuous­nes of the Godhed / ād in all his workes sou­ght our profit and became our servant.

The cause is. For as moch as faith instifieth and putteth a waye synne in the sight of God / bringeth lyfe / helth and the favoure of God / maketh vs the heyres of God / powreth the spryte of God in to oure soules and fylleth vs with all godlifulnes in Christ / it were to great a shame / rebuke and wronge vnto the faith / yee to Christes bloud / iff a man wolde worke any thinge to purches that where wyth fayth hath indued him allredye / and God hath ge­ven hym frely. Even as Christ had done re­buke and shame vnto hym selfe / yff he wol­de have done good workes and wrought to have bī made therby Gods sonne & heire over all / which thing he was allredie. Now doth fayth make vs the sonnes or chyldern of God. [Page] Johan. i. he gave them myght or power to be they sonnes of God / ī that they beleved on his name. Iff we be sonnes / so are we also heires Ro. viij. and Gala. iiij. How can or ought we thē to worke / for to purches that entherytaun­ce with all where of we are heyres all redye by fayth?

What shall we saye then to those scriptu­res which sownde as though a mā shuld do good workes and lyve well for hevēs sake or eternall rewarde? As these are / make you frē ­des of the vnrighteous mammō. And Mat. vij. Gather you treasure together in hevē. Al­so Mat. xix. If thou wilte enter in to lyfe ke­pe the commaundemētes and soch lyke. Thys saye I / that they which vnderstonde nor / ne­ther fele in ther hertes what fayth meaneth / talke and thinke of the rewarde evē as they do of the worke / nether suppose they that a man ought to worke but in a respecte to the rewar­de. For they ymagen that it is in the kingdome of Christ / as it is in the worlde amonge men / that they must deserve heven with there good workes. How be it there thoughtes are but dreames and false ymaginacions. Off these men speaketh Malachias Chap. i. who is it amonge you that shutteth a doere for my ple­asure for nought? that is / with out respecte of rewarde. These are servātes / that seke gaynes [Page xvj] and vauntage / hyrelinges and day labourers which here on erth receave there rewardes / as the phareses with there prayers: and fasiīges Matth. v.

But on this wise goeth it with hevē / with evirlasting lyfe and eternall rewarde / like wi­se as good workes naturally folowe fayth (as it ys above rethersed) so that thou neadest not to cōmannde a true belever to worke or to cō ­pell hym with any lawe / for it is vnpossible that he shuld not worke / he taryeth but for an occasiō / he is ever desposed of hym selfe / thou neadest but to put him in remembrauuce / and that to knowe the false fayth frō the true. Evē so naturally doth eternall lyfe folowe fayth and good lyvinge / without sekingfor / and is impossible that it shulde not come / though no man thought there on. Yet ys it rether sed in the scripture / alleged and promised to knowe the differēce betwene a fals belever ād a true belever / & that every man maye knowe what foloweth good lyuinge naturally ād of it selfe with out takinge [...] thought for it.

Take a grosse ensample. Hell that is / ever­lastinge deth is threatned vnto synners / and yet folowith it synne naturally without sekin­ge for. For no mā doth evell to bedāned ther­fore / but had lever avoyde it. Yet there the one foloweth the other naturally / and though no [Page] man tolde or warned hym of it / yet shuld the synner fynde it / ād feale it. Neverthelesse it is therfore thretened / that men maye knowe w­hat folowyth evyll lyvinge. Now then as af­ter evell levinge folowyth his rewarde vnsou­ght for / even so after good levinge foloweth his reward naturally vnsought for or vnth­ought apon. Even as when thou drinkest wi­ne / be it good or badde / the tast foloweth of it selfe / though thou therfore drinke yt not. Yet testyfieth the scripture / and it is true / that we are by enheritance heyres of damnatyon / and that yer we be borne / we are vessels of y ^e wrath of God and full of that poyson wh­ence naturallye all synnes springe / and whe­re wyth we can not but synne / which thinge the deades that folowe (when we be holde oure selves in the glasse of the lawe of God) do declare and vtter / kyll oure consciences ād showe vs what we were and wist not of it ād certyfieth vs that we are heyres of damnacy­on. For iff we were of God we shulde cleve to God and lust after the wyll of God. But now our deades cōpared to the lawe declare the contrarie and by our deades we se our sel­fes / both what we be & what our ende shall be

Go now thou seyst that lyfe eternall and all good thynges are promysed vnto fayth and belefe: so that he that beleveth on Christ / [Page xvij] shalbe safe. Christes bloude hath purchea­syd lyfe for vs and hath made vs the heyres of God: so that heven cometh by Christes bloud. Iff thou woldist obtayne heven with the merytes and deservinges of thyne awne workes / so dyddist thou wronge / yee and shamedist the bloud of Christ / and vnto the were Christ deade in vayne. Now is the true belever heyre of God by Christes deservin­ges / yee and in Christ was predestynate and ordened vnto eternall lyfe / before the world began. And when the Gospell is preached vnto vs we beleve the mercye of God / and in belevinge we receave the spryte of God / which is the ernyst of eternall lyfe / and we are in eternall lyfe allready / and feale allre­ady in oure hertes the swetnes therof / and are overcome wyth the kyndnes of God and Christ and therefore love the wyl of God / ād of love are ready to worke frely / ād not to op­tayne that which is gevyn vs frely ād whe­re of we are heyres allready.

Now when Christ sayth. Make you frēdes of vrighteous mammon. Geder you treasure together in hevē & soch lyke. Thou scist that the meaninge and entēt is no nother / but that thou shuldest do good / and so wyll it folowe of it selfe naturally / without seking & takinge of thought / that thou shalt fynde frēdes and [Page] treasure in heven and receave a rewarde. So late thyne eye be single / ād loke vnto good li­vinge only ād take no thought for the rewar­de: But be contēt. For as moch as thou kno­wist ād art sure that the rewarde & all thinge cōtayned in Gods promises folowe good ly­vingenaturally / and thy good workes do but testifie only and certyfie the that the spryte of God is in the / whō thou hast receaved in er­nest of Gods truth / and that thou art heyre of all the goodnes of God / & that all good thin­ges are thine all readye purcheased by Chri­stes bloude ād leid vppe in stoere agaynst that daye when every man shall receave accordin­ge to his deades / that is / accordinge as hys deades declare and testifie / what he is or was For they that loke vnto the rewarde / are slowe false / suttell and crafty workers / and love the rewarde moare then the worke / yee hate the laboure / yee hate God whych commaundeth the laboure / ād are wery both of the cōmaun­dement and also of the cōmaunder / and wor­ke wyth tediousnes. But he that worketh of pure love wyth oute sekinge of rewarde / worketh truly.

Thrydly that not the Sayntes / but God only receaveth vs in to eternall tabernacles / ys so playne and evident / that it neadeth not to decleare or prove it. How shall the Sayn­tes [Page xviij] receave vs in to heven / when every man hath neade for hym self / that God only re­ceave him to heven / and every man hath sca­ce for hym self: As it appereth by the fyve wyse vyrgyns Matth. xxv. which wold not geve of there oyle vnto the onwyse vyrgyns. And Peter sayth in the .iiij. of hys fyrst pistle that the righteous ys with difficultye saved. So seyst thou that the sayenge of Christ / ma­ke you frendes and so forth / that they may re­ceyve you in to everlastinge tabernacles / per­tayneth not vnto the sayntes which are in he­ven / but is spoken of the pore ād neady which are here present with vs on Erihe / as though he wold saye. What byldyft thou churches / foundest Abbays / chauntryes / and colleages in the honor of sayntes / to my Mother / saynt Peter / Paule ād sayntes that be deed to ma­ke of them thy frendes? They neade it not / yee they are not thy frendes but thers. Which ly­ved thē when they dyd / of whom they were h­elpen. Thy frendes are the pore which are no­w in thy tyme and lyve wyth the / thy pore ne­ybours which neade thy help and succoure. Them make thy frendes wyth thy vnrighteo­us mammon / that they maye testyfye of thy f­ayth / and thou mayst knowe and fele that thy fayth is right and not fayned.

UNto the secōde / soche receavinge in to everlastinge habitaciōs is not to be v­nderstonde / that mē shall do it. For m­any to whom we shew mercye and doe good shall not cōme there / nether skylleth it / so we mekely ād lovingly do our dutye / yee it is a si­gne of stronge fayth / and fervent love / if we doe well to the evyll / and studye to drawe th­em to Chryst in all that lyeth in vs. But the pore geve vs an occasyon to exercyce oure fa­yth / and the deades make vs feale our fayth and certyfye vs and make vs sure that we a­re safe / and are escaped and translated from death vnto lyfe / and that we are delyvered a­nd redemed from the captyvyte and bounda­ge of Saran / and brought in to the lybertye of the sonnes of God in that we fele lust an­d strength in our herte / to worke the wyll of God. And at that daye shall our deades ap­pere and comfort our hertes / witnese our fai­th and truft which we now have in Chryste which fayth shall then kepe vs from shame / as it ys wryttryn. None that beleveth in hym shalbe ashamed Rom. ix. So that good wor­kes helpe our fayth / ād make vs sure in oure consciences and make vs feale the mercy of God. Not withstandinge heven / everlastin­ge lyfe / Joye eternall / fayth the favoure of G­od the spyryte of God lust and strength vnto [Page xix] the wyll of God / are geven vs frely / of the b­ountoeus and plenteous riches of God pure­hasede by Christe / with out our deserving­es / that no man shulde reioyse / but in the lord only.

FOr a forder vnderstandinge of thys Gospell / may here be made .iij. questions. What māmonis / whi it ys call­ed vnrighteous / and after what maner Chri­st byddyth vs counterfet and folowe the vniu­st and wycked stuard which wyth his lordes damage provyded for his awne profit and v­antage / which thing no doute is vnrighteo­us and synne.

Fyrst Mammon ys an Ebrewe worde and signifyeth riches or temporall goodes / ād namelye all superfluyte / and all that ys above necessyte and that which is requyred vnto o­ur necessarie vses / where wyth a mā maye he­lpe an other / with out vndoīge or hurtīge hi­mselfe. For hamon in the Ebrewe speach sig­nifieth a multytude or abundaunce or many. And therehence cōmeth mahamō or māmon aboūdaūce or plēteousnes of goodes or riches

Secūdaryly / it is called vnrichteous ma­mmon / not because it ys goten vnrighteously or with vsury. For of vnrighteous gotē good [...]s can no man doo good workes / but ought to restore them whom agayne. As it ys sayd [Page] Ysaias .lxj. I ā a god that hateth offerīge th­at cōmeth of robbery. And Galo. pro. iij. say­th / honoure the Lorde of thine awne good. But therfore is it called vnrighteous / because it is in vnrighteous vse. As Paule speaketh vnto the Ephesiās .v. how that the dayes are evill thoughe that God hath made them / and they are a good worke of Goddes makynge. How be it they are yet called evill / because th­at evyll men vse them amisse / and moche syn­ne / occasyōs of evill / perrell of soulis are wro­ughte in thē. Evē so is riches called evill bec­ause that evill mē bestowe it amisse ād misv­se thē. For where ryches ys there goeth it after the cōmen proverbe. Be that hath money ha­th what him lysteth. And they cause fyghtin­ge / stelinge / leynge a wayte / lyinge / flatteringe and all vnhappynes agaynst a mās neyghbo­ure. For all men holde on ryches parte.

But singularly before God is it callled v­nrighteous mammon / because it is not best­owed and mynistred vnto oure neibours nea­de For if my neybour nede and I geve hym n­or / nether depart lyberally with hym / of that which I have: than wythhold I frō hym vn­righteously that which is hys awne. For as moch as I am bownden to helpe hym by the lawe of nature / which is / what so ever thou woldest that a nother dyd to the that do thou [Page xx] also to hym. And Christ Mathei. v. Geve to every man that desireth the. And John in hys first pystle / yf a man have this worldes good and se hys brother neade / how is the love of God in hym? And thys vnrighteousnes in o­ure mammon se very fewe men. Because it is sprituall / and in those goodes which argoren most truly and iustlye / which begyle men. For they suppose they do no man wronge in kepin­ge them / in that they gott them not wyth stel­inge / Robbinge / oppressiō / and vsury / nether hurt any man now wyth them.

Thrydly many have busyed thē selfes instu­dyēge what or who this vnrighteous steward ys / because that Christ so praiseth hym. But s­hortely ād playnely this is the answere. That Christ prayseth not the vnrighteotus stuard / nether setteth hym forth to vs to counterfett / because of hys vnrighteousnes but because of his wisdome only in that he with vnright so wisely provid [...]d for hi selfe As I if I wolde p­rovoke a nother to praie or studie saie. The the ves watche all nighte to robbe & stele: why c­āst not thou watche to praye & to studie? Here prayse not I the thefe and murderer for there evyll doīge / but for there wysdome / that they so wisely and diligētly waite on ther vnright­eousnes. Like wise when I saye misse women tyre them selfes wyth gold and sylke to please [Page] ther lovers. What wylt not thou garnysh thy soule wyth fayth to please Christ? here prayse I not whordome / but the diligence which the whore mysvseth.

Off this wyse Paule also Roma. v. likeneth Adam and Christ together / sayenge that A­dam was a fygure of Christe. And yet of Adā have we but pure synne / and of Christ grace only / which are out of measure contrarie. B­ut the symylytude or lyknes stondeth in the or­igynall byrth / and not in the vertue and vice of the birth. So that as Adam is father of all synne / so is Christ father of all righteousnes. And as all synners springe of Adam. Euen so all righteous men and women springe of Christ. After the same maner is here the vnr­ighteous stuarde an ensample vnto vs in hys wysdome and dylygence only / in that he pro­vided so wysely for hym selfe / that we wyth righteousnes shulde be as dylygente to prov­yde for our soules / as he wyth vnrighteousn­es provided for hys body.

Lyke wyse mayst thou soyle all other text­es which sounde as though it were betwene vs and God as it is in the worlde where the rewarde ys moare loked apon / then the labo­ure: yee where men hate the laboure and wor­ke falsly wyth the bodye / and not with the hert and no longer than they are loked apon / that [Page xxi] the laboure may appere outwarde only.

WHē Christ sayth Mathe. v. Blessyd are ye when they rayle on you / and persecute you / and saye all manere­vyll sayinges agaynst you / and yet lye / ād th­at for my sa [...]e / reioyse & be glad / for youre re­warde ys great ī hevē. Thou maist not yma­gen that our deades deserve y ^e Joye & glorie y ^t shalbe gevē vnto vs. For thē (paul. sayth Ro. xi.) favoure were not favour I cā not receare it of favour & of y ^e boūteous goodnes of God frely / & by deservig of deades also. But bele­ve as the gospell / glad tythynges and prom­yses of god saie vnto the y ^t for Christes bloud­es sake ōly thorowe faith / god ys at one wyth y ^• ād thou receaved to mercie & art become the sonne of god & heire ānexed with Christ of all the goodnes of god y ^e ernest where of y [...] y ^e sp­rite of god poured i to our hertes. Of which t­higes y ^e deades are wittenesses & certifie oure cōsciēces y ^t our faith ys vnfained & y ^t the right sprite of god is i vs. For if I paciētly suffer a­dversite & tribulatiō for cōsciēce of god only y ^• ys to say / by cause I knowe god & testifie y ^• tr­euth. Thā am I sure y ^t god hath chosen me in Christ and for Christes sake / and hath put in me hys spryte / as an erneste of hys promy­ses / whose workyng I feale in mine hert / the deades beringe wittenes vnto thei same. Now [Page] is it Christes bloud only that deserved all the promises of God ād that which / I soffre & do is partly y ^• curinge healinge and mortyfienge of my mēbres & killinge of that originall poi­son / where with I was cōceaved & borne / y ^t I might be altogedre lyke Christ / & partly y ^e do­inge of my durye to my neighboure / whos de­tter I am of all y ^t I have receavid of God / to drawe hī to Christ with all suffringe / with all paciēs & evē with shedīge my bloud for hī / n­ot as an offeringe or merite for his sinnes / but as an ensample to prouoke hym. Christes bl­oude ōly putteth awaye all the sinne y ^t ever w­as / is or shalbe from them that are electe and repent belevinge the Gospell that is to saye g­ods promises in Christe.

AGayn in the same .v. chaprer love yo­ure enemyes / blesse thē y ^t cursse you do wel to thē y ^t hate you & persecute you / y ^t ye may be y ^e sonnes of your father which is in hevin. For▪ he maketh his sonne shyne apō ev­yll & on good / & sendeth hys rayne apon Just & vniust. Not y ^t our workes make vs y ^e sonnes of God / but testifie only & certifie our cōsciēces y ^t we are y ^e sonnes of God & that God hath c­hosen vs & weshed vs in Christes bloude / ād hath putt his spryte in vs. And it foloweth / if ye love thē that love you / what reward ha­ve ye? doo not y ^e publicanes evē y ^e same? & if ye [Page xxij] shall have favure to your frēdes only what s­ynguler thinge do ye? do not y ^• publicanes ev­en the same? ye shalbe perfect therfore as your father which ys in hevē is perfect. That ys to say if y ^t ye do no thinge but that y ^e world doth / and they which have the spirite of y ^e worlde / wherebye shall ye knowe y ^• ye are the sonnes of God & beloved of God / more than the wo­rld? But & if ye counterfette and folowe God in well doinge thē no doute it ys a sygne y ^t the spyrite of God ys in you & also the favoure of God / which ys not in the worlde & that ye are enheretours of all the promyses of God / & e­lect vnto y ^e felowshippe of y ^e bloude of Christ.

ITem Math. vi. Take hede to your Al­mes / that ye do it not in y ^e sight of mē to the entēt y ^t ye wold be sene of thē / or els have ye no rewarde with your father which is in heven. Nether cause a trompet to be blowē a fore the when thou doest thine Almes / as y ^e ypocrytes doe yn the synagoges & in the stretes to be gloryfyed of the worlde. but when thou doist thine Almes let not thy lyft hand knowe what thy right hōd doth / that thy Almes m­ay be in secret / ād thy sather which seith in se­cret shall rewarde the opēly. Thys putteth vs in remembraunce of our dutye / and sheweth what foloweth good workes / not that workes deserve it / but that the reward is leyd vp fo [...] [Page] vs in store / and we ther vnto elect thorowe Christes bloude / which the workes testyfye. For if we be worldly mynded and doe our w­orkes as the world doth / howe shall we kn­owe that god hath chosen vs oute of the wo­rlde? But and if we worke frely / wyth out all maner worldly respect / to shewe mercye / & to doe our dutie to our neighboure / & to be vnto hī as God is to vs / thē are we sure that the f­avour & mercie of God is apō vs and that we shall enioy all the good promises of God tho­row Christ which hath made vs heyres therof

ITem in the same chapter it folowyth. When thou prayst be not as the ypocr­ytes / which love to stond and praye in the synagoges and in the corners of the stre­tes / for to be sene of men. But when thou prayest enter in to thy chamber and shutte thy dore to / and praye to thy father whych is in secret / and thy father which seith in secret sh­all rewarde the openlye. And lyke wyse when we fast (teacheth Christ in the same place) th­at we shuld behave our selfes that it appere not vnto mē how that we fast / but vnto our father which is in secret / and our father wh­ich seith in secret shall reward vs openly. Th­ese .ij. textes doe but declare what foloweth good workes / for eternall lyse cōmeth not by the deservinge of workes but is (sayth Pau­le [Page xxiij] in the .vj. to the Romayns) the gyft of God thorowe Jesus Christ. Nether do oure wor­kes iustyfye vs. For except we were iustyfyed by fayth which is our righteousnes and had the spryte of God in vs to teach vs / we cou­ld do no good worke frely wyth out respecte of some profit / other in this world or in the wor­lde to come / nether could we have spyrituall Joy in oure hertes in tyme of afflictiō and m­ortyfyinge of the fleshe

Good workes are called the frutes of the sprite / Gal [...]. v. Cap. for the sprite worketh th­em in vs / and some tyme frutes of righteous­nes / as in the seconde pystle to the Corrynthy­ans .ix. Chapter. before all workes therfore we must have a righteousnes wythin in the h­erte / the mother of all workes / and frō whēce they springe. The righteousnes of the scribes and Pphareses / & of thē that have the spirite of this world / ys y ^e glorious showe & outwar­de shininge of workes. But Christ sayth to vs Mat. v. except your righteousnes excede the righteousnes of the scrybes & pharises / ye can not enter in to the kingdome of hevē. It is ri­ghteousnes in the world / if a mā kyll not. B­ut a Christen perceaveth rihhteousnes if he love hys enemye / evyn whē he suffreth perse­cuc [...]ō and tormēte of hym / and the paynes of death / and morneth more for his adversaries [Page] blindnes than for hys awne payne / and pra­yeth God to opē his eyes and to forgeve hym his synnes / as dyd Steven in the Actes of the Apostles the .vij. Chap. and Christ Luc. xxiij.

A christen cōsidereth him self in the lawe of God / ād there putteth of him all maner ryg­hteousnes. For the lawe suffereth no merites no deservinges / no ryghteousnes / nether any mā to be iustifyed in the sight of God. The la­we is spirituall and requireth the herte and commaundementes to be fullfillyd with soch love and obedience as was in Christe. If any fulfyll all that is the will of God with soch love ād obediēce / the same may be bold to sell pardons of his merites / and els not.

A Chrysten therfore (when he beholdeth hym sylfe in the lawe) putteth of all maner ri­ghteousnes / deservinges and merites / ād me­kely and vnfaynedly knowleageth his sinne ād mysery / hys captyvite and bondage in the fle­sh / his trespasse and gylte / and is there bible­ssede wyth the poure in spyrite Math. v. Cha. Then he morneth in his hert / be cause he is in soch bondage that he can not do the wyll of God / and ys an hongred and a thrust after ri­ghteousnes. For righteousnes (I meane) wh­ich springeth oute of Chrystes bloud / for strē ­gth to do the wyll of God. And turneth him self to the promyses of God / ād desyreth hym [Page xxiiii] for hys great mercie ād trueth / and for the bl­oud of hys sonne Chryst to fulfyll hys pro­myses / and to geve hym strength. And thus his spryte ever prayeth wythin hym. Be fast­eth also not one day for a weke / or a lente for an whole yeare / but professeth in hys hert a perpetuall sobyrnes / to tame the flesh and to subdue the body to the spyryte / vntyll he wax stronge in the spyrite and growe rype in to a f­ull ryghteousnes after the fulnes of Christe. And be cause thys fulnes happeneth not tyll the body be slayne by deeth / a Christē ys ever a synner in the lawe / and therfore fasteth and prayeth to God in the spyryte / the world sein­ge it not. Yet in the promyses he ys ever right­eous / thorow fayth in Christe ād ys sure that he ys heyre of all goddes promyses / the spry­te which he hath receaved in ernest / bering h­ym wittenes / his herte also ād his deades te­stifyenge the same.

Marke this then. To se inwardlye that the lawe of God ys so spirituall / that no slesh can fulfyll it. And then for to morne ād sorrowe & to desyre / yee to hōger and thurst aftyr strēgth to do the will of God from the grounde of the herte / ād (not withstandīge all the soutelty of the devlis / wekenes and feblenes of the flesh / & wondringe of the worlde) to cleve yet to the promises of God / & to beleve that for Christes [Page] bloude sake thou art receaved to the enthery­taunce of eternall lyfe / ys a wonderfull thin­ge / ād a thinge that the world knoweth not of: but who so ever fealeth that (though he fall a thousande times in a day) doth yet ryse agay­ne a thousande times / ād ys sure that the me­rcye of God is apon hym.

IFF ye forgeve othermen there trespa­ses / your hevenlye father shall forgeve you youres / Matth. in the .vi. Chapter yff I forgeve / God shall forgeve me / not for my deades sake / but for his promises sake / for his mercie and trueth / and for the bloude of his sonne Christe our lorde. And mi forge­ving certifieth my sprite that God shall for­geve me / ye that he hath forgeven me all redye For if I cōsent to the will of God in my hert / though thorowe infirmite ād wekenes I can not doo the will of God at all times / more o­ver though I can not doo the wyll of God so purelye as the lawe requireth it of me / yet if I se my faute and mekely knowleage my sinne / wepinge in mine herte because I cā not do the will of God / and thurst after strength / I am sure that the sprete of God is in me / and his favoure apon me. For the world lusteth not to doo the will of God / nether soroweth be­cause he can not / though he sorrowe some ti­me for feare of the payne that he beleleveth [Page xxv] shall folowe. He that hath the sprite of this world can not forgeve with out amēdes ma­king or a greater vaūtage. If I forgeve now howe cometh it? veryly because I feale the m­ercie of God in me. For as a man fealeth god to hym selfe / so is he to his neyghboure I kn­ow by mine owne experience that all fleshe is in bondage vnder sinne and cā not but sinne / therfore am I mercyfull ād desyre God to loo­se the bondes of sinne even in mine enimye.

OEther not treasure to gether in erth &c. Matth. vi. But gather you treasure in heven &c. Let not your hertes be glued to worldy thinges studie not to heape treasure apō treasure & riches apō riches / but studie to bestowe well that which is gotē allready / ād let your habundāce succore y ^e lacke ād neade of the po [...]r which have not. Have an eye to good workes / to which if ye have lust & also power to do thē / then ar ye sure that the sprite of God is in you / and ye in Christ electe to the rewarde of eternall lyfe which foloweth good workes. But loke y ^t thine eye be single & robbe not Ch­rist of his honoure ascribe not y ^t to y ^e deservī ­ge of thy workes which is gevē the frely by the merites of his bloude. In Christ we ar sonnes In Christ we are heires / In Christ God chose vs ād elected vs before the beginninge of the world / created vs anewe by the worde of the [Page] Gospell / and put his sprite in vs / for because we shuld do good workes. A Christē mā wor­keth bi cause it is the will of his father only. Iff we doo no good worke nor be mercyfull / howe is our lust therin? Iff we have no lust to do good workes / how is Gods sprite in vs? If the sprite of God be not in vs / howe ar we his sonnes? How ar we his heyres / and hey­res annexed with Christ of the eternall life which is promysed to all them that beleve in hym? Now do our workes testifie and witte­nes what we are / and what treasure is leade vp for vs in hevē / so that our eye be syngle ād loke apon the commaundement with out re­specte of any thinge / save because it ys Gods wyll / and that God desyreth it of vs / and Ch­rist hath deserved that we do it.

Math. vii. Not all they y ^t saye vnto me lor­de / lorde / shall entre in to the kyngedome of heven / but he y ^t doth the wyll of my father which is in heven. Though thou canst laude God wyth thy lippes / and call Christ lorde / and canst bable and talke of the scripture / ād knowest all the storyes of the byble. Yet shalt thou there by never knowe thine election or w­hether thy fayth be right. But and if thou fe­ale lust in thyne hert to the wyll of God / and bringest forth the frutes therof / then hast thou cōfedence and hope / and thy deades and also [Page xxvi] the sprite whence thy deades springe certyfye th [...] ▪ Hert that thou shall enter / yee art all re­ady entred in to the kingdome of heven. For it foloweth / he that heareth the worde and doth it / / byldeth hys howse apon a rocke / and no tempest of temptacyons can over thorowe it. For the sprite of God is in his hert and cō ­forteth hym / and holdeth hym fast to the roc­ke of the merites of Christes bloude / in whom he is electe. Nothing ys able to pluck hym out of the hondes of God / God is stronger then all thinges. And cōtrary wyse he that heareth the worde and doth it not / byldeth on the son­de of his owne ymaginacion and every rēpest over throweth his byldinge. The cause is / he hath not Gods spyrite in hym / ād therfore vn­derstōdeth it not a right nother worketh a ry­ght. For no man knoweth the thinges of god (sayeth Paule in the .i. pistle to the Corinthiās in y ^e secōde Chapter) save the sprite of God: as no man knoweth what is in a mā / but a mās sprite which is in hym. So then if the sprite be not in a man / he worketh not the wyll of God nether vnderstōdeth it though he bable never so moch of y ^e scriptures. Neverthelesse soch a mā may worke after his owne ymaginacion / but Gods will cā he not worke / he maye offer sacrifice / but to do mercye knoweth he not. It is casye to saye vnto Christ Lorde / Lorde: but [Page] therby shalt thou never feale or be sure of y ^• kī gdone of hevē. But & if thou do y ^e will of God thē art thou sure that Christ is thy lorde in de­ade / & that thou in hī art also a lorde / in that thou fealest thy selfe loosed and free from the bondage of synne / and lusty and of power to do the will of God.

Where the spryte is there ys fealinge. For the spryte maketh vs feale all thinges. Whe­re the spryte ys not there ys no fealinge / but a vayne opynion or ymaginacyon. A physycian serveth but for syck men / and that for soch sy­cke men as feale ther sekeneses ād morne th­erfore / & longe for health. Christ like wise ser­veth but for sinners only as feales there synne & that for soch sinners / that sorrowe ād mor­ne in there hertes for health. Health is power or strēgth to fulfyll the lawe or to kepe the cō ­mandementes. Now he that longeth for that health y ^t ys to saye / for to do the lawe of God is blessed in Christe / and hath a promyse that hys lust shalbe fulsylled and y ^t he shalbe ma­de hole. Math. v. blessed ar they which hōg­re and thurst for rightwesnes sake (y ^• is to ful­fyll the lawe) for there lust shalbe fulfylled. This longyng and cōsent of the hert vnto the lawe of God / is the workynge of y ^e spryte wh­ich God hath poured in to thine hert in ernest [Page xxvij] that thou myghtyst be sure that God wyll f­ulfyll all hys promyses that he hath made y ^e. It is also the seale & marke which God putt­eth on all men y ^t he choseth vnto everlastinge lyfe. So lōge as thou seist thy sinne / & morn­est / & consentest to y ^e lawe & longest (thoughe thou be never so weke) yet the spyryte shall ke­pe the in all tēptacions from desperacion & c­ertyfye thine herte / y ^t God for hys trouth / sh­all delyver the & save y ^• / yee & by thy good dea­des shalt thou be saved / not which thou hast done / but which Christ hath done for the. For Christ is thine / and all hys deades are thy de­ades. Christ is in the and thou in him knyt to gether inseparably. Nether canst thou be da­mned except Chryst be damned wyth the. N­ether can Christ be saved except thou be saved wyth him. Moreover thy hert is good / right / holy ād Just. For thy hert is no enymye to the law but a frēd & a lover. The lawe and thy h­ert ar agreyd and at one / and therfore is God at one wyth the. The consent of the hert vnto the law / ys vnite and peace betwene God and man. For he ys not myne enemye which wold fayne do me playsure and morneth be cause he hath not where with. Now he that opened thy dysease vnto the and made y ^• longe for he­alth / shall as he hath promysed heal y ^• / and he y ^t hath loosed thy herte shall / at hys Godly l­aysur [Page] / loese thy mēbres. He that hath not the sprite hath no fealing / nether lusteth or lōgeth after power to fulfill the lawe / nether abhor­reth the pleasures of synne / nether hath any moare certente of the promyses of God / than I have of a tale of Robin hode / or of some test that a mā telleth me was done at Rome An­other mā maye lightely make me doute or be­leve the contrarye / seing I have no experien­ce thereof mi self. So ys it of them that feale not the workyng of the spyryte / and ther [...]ore in tyme of tem [...]acyon the byldinges of there y­magynacyons fall.

MAthei. x. He that recceavith a prophete in the name of a prophete / that ys because he is a prophete shall receave therewarde of a prophete and he that geveth one of thes lytleons a cuppe of colde water to drinke / in the name of a dyscyple / shall not lo­se hys rewarde. Note this that a prophete sig­nifyeth as well hym that enterpreteth the ha­rde places of scripture / as hym that prophisi­es thinges to come. Nowe he that receaveth a prophete / a iust man / or a disciple / shal have the same or lyke rewarde / that ys to saye / sh­all have the same eternalllyfe / which is app­oynted for them in Christes bloude and mery­tes. For except thou were electe to the same e­ternalllyfe / and haddest the same fayth and [Page xxviij] trust in God / and the same sprite / thou cowl­dest never consent to ther deades and helpe t­hem. But thy deades testyfye what thow art ād certyfye thy conscyence that thou art rece­aved to mercy / and santyfyed in Christes pa­ssyons and sofferinges / and shallt here after whyth all them that folowe God / receave the reward of erernalllyfe

Of thy wordes thou shalt be iustyfyed ād of thy wordes thou shalt be cōdēned. Math. xij. That ys thy wordes as well as other deades shall testifye wyth the or agaynst the at the d­ay of iudgemēte. Many ther are which abst­aine frō y ^• vttewarde deades of fornicaciō ād adulterie / never the lasse re [...]oise to tal [...]e ther of & laugh ther wordes & laughter restifie ag­aīst thē / y ^t there harte is vnpure / & they advl­terers and fornicatours in the syght of God▪ The tōge & oder signes of times vtter y ^e malice of y ^e hert / though a mā for many causes abst­ayne his hōde / frō y ^• owteward deade or acte.

Iff thou wylt enter in to lyfe kepe the cō ­maūdemētes Mathei. xix. Fyrst remē ­bre that whē God cōmaūdeth vs to doo onie thīge / he doth it not therfore / because th­at we of ourselves are able to doe that he cō ­mādeth / but that be the lawe we myghtse ād knowe our horrible dānaciō & captiuite vnd­er sinne & shuld / repēt & come to Christe / & receave [Page] mercye & the spryte of god to loose vs / strēgh vs & to make vs able to do goddes w­yll which ys y ^• law. Now whē he sayeth if th­ou wilt enter ī to life kepe the cōmandemētes / is as moch to say / as he y ^t kepeth the cōmāde­mētes ys intred in to life / for except a mā ha­ve fyrst the sprite of lyfe in hym by Christes p­urcheasinge / it is impossible for hym to keape the commādemētes / or that hys hert shuld be loose or at lybertye to lust after them / for of n­ature we ar enemyes to the law of God.

As towching y ^t Christ sayeth after warde if thou wilt be perfect / goe and sell thy substāce and geve it to the pore he saieth it not as who shuld saie y ^t there were any gretter perfection thē to kepe the lawe of God (for that ys all p­erfectiō) but to showe y ^• other his blīdnes w­hich sawe not that the law is sprituall and r­equireth y ^• hert. But because he was not kno­wīg that he had hurt any man with the out­warde deade / he supposed y ^t he loved his ney­ghboure as him selfe. But whē he was ba­de to shewe the deades of love / & geve of hys abūdāce to thē that neaded / he departed mor­ninge. Which is an evidēt tokē that he loved not his neyboure as well as hym selfe. For if he had nede hym selfe / it wold not have gre­aved hym to have receaved succour of an other mā ▪ Moreover he sawe not that it was [Page xxix] morther and thef [...]e that a man shulde have abondaunce of ryches lying by hym and n­ot to showe mercye therwith / and kindly to s­uccoure his neibours neade. God hath ge [...]ē one man riches to helpe an other at neade. Yf thi neighboure neade and thou helpe him n­ot being able thou wyth holdyst his dutye frō him and art a thefe before God.

That also that Christ saieth / how y ^t it is ha­rder for a rich mā (which loveth his riches so that he can not finde in his hert liberally ād frely to help the pore ād neady) to enter in to the kingdome of heven / then a camell to goo thorowe the eye of an nedle / declareth y ^• he w­as not intred in to the kingdome of hevē / that is to saye / eternall life. But he y ^• kepeth the cōmaundemētes is intred ī to life / ye hath life and the sprite of life in him

THis kīde of devyls goeth not out but by prayere and fastinge. Math. xxvij. Not that the devill is cast out by mer­ytes of fasting or prayinge. For he saieth bef­ore y ^t for ther vnbelefes sake they coulde not cast hī out. It is fayeth no doute y ^• casteth out the devils & faith it ys y ^t fasteth & praieth. Fa­yth hath the promyses of God where vnto s­he cleveth / and in all thīges thursteth the h­onour of God She fasteth to suddue the bo­die vnto the [...]prite that the prayer be not [Page] let / and that the sprite maye quyetly talke w­yth God: she also when so ever oportunyte ys geven prayeth god to fulsyll hys promyses v­nto hys prayse and glorye. And God which ys mercifull in promysinge and true to fulfill them / casteth out the devils and doth all that fayth des [...]reth and satysfyeth hyr thurst.

[...]Ome ye blessed of my father / enhrere the kingdome prepared for you / frō the beginnyng of the world. For I was a thurst and ye gave me drīke. & cet. Mat. xxv. Not that a mā wyth workes deserveth etern­all lyfe as a worke mā or labourer his hyre or wages. Thou readest in the text that the kīg­dome was prepared for vs frō the begīninge of the world. And we are blessed & santyfyed. In Christes bloud are we blessed frō that bit­ter curse & dānable captyuyte vnder sinne / w­here in we were borne & conceaved. And Chr­istes spryte is poured in to vs / to brynge forth good workes / and our workes a [...] the frutes of the sprite / and the kingdome ys the deserv­inge of Christes bloude / and so is fayth and t­he spyrite and good workes also. Not wyth­stondinge the kingdome foloethw good work­es / & good workes testyfye that we ar heyres ther of / and at the day of Indgemēt shall they testyfye for the electe vnto theyr cōfort and gl­orye / And to the confucyō of the vngodlie vn­belevyng [Page xxx] & faythlesse synners / which had not trust in y ^• worde of Goddes promyses nor lu­st to the wyll of God: but were caryed of the s­prite of there father the devill vnto all abho­minacion / to worke wy [...]kednes with all lust delectacion and gredines.

MAny sinnes ar forgevē hir for she lov­eth moch Lu. vij. Not y ^t love was cau­se of forgevenes of sinnes. But cōtrary wise y ^e forgevenes of sinnes caused love / as it foloveth / to whō lesse was forgevē / y ^t samel­oveth lesse. And afore he cōmēded the iudge­ment of Symon / which answared that he lo­veth most to whō most was forgeuyn: and a­lso said at the last / thy faith hath saved the or made y ^• safe / go in peace. We can not love e­xcept we se some benefete and kyndnes. As l­onge as we loke on the lawe of God only w­here we se but sinne and damnacyon and the wrath of God apō vs / yee where we were d­amned afore we were borne / we can not love God: No we can not but hate hī as a tyra­nte vnrighteous and vniust / and fle from h­ym as dyd Cayn. But when the Gospell th­at glad tidīges & ioifull promises are preach­ed how that in Christe god loveth vs first / fo­rgeveth vs / & hath mercie on vs / thē love we againe & the deades of our love declare our f­ayth. This ys the maner of speakyng / As we [Page] saye. Somer is nye / for the treys blosome. N­ow is the blosominge of the treys nor the cau­se that somer draweth nye / but y ^e drawynge nye of somer cause of the blosomes / ād the bl­osomes put vs in remēbraunce that somer ys at hand. So Christe here teacheth Simon by the fervētnes of love in the outewarde deades [...]o se a stronge fayth within whence soe greate love springeth. As the maner ys to save doe y­our charyte / showe your charyte / doe a deade of charite / showe your mercye do a deade of mercye / meaninge there by / that our deades d­eclare howe we love our neyghbours ād how moch we have compastion on them at ther neade. Moreover it is not possyble to love except we se a cause. Except we se in our hertes the love and kyndnes of God to vs warde in Ch­riste our lorde / it is not possible to love God a right.

We saye also he y ^t loveth not my dogge lo­veth not me. Nor that a man shuld love my dogge fyrst. But if a man loved me the love where with he loveth me / wold cōpell hī to love my dogge / though the dogge deserved it n­ot / yee though the dogge had done hī a displ­aisure. yet if he loved me / y ^e same love wold r­efrayne him from venging him selfe / ād eause him to refer the vēgeaūce vnto me. Soch sp­ [...]akinges finde we in scripture. Ihon in the fo­rth [Page xxxj] of hys fyrst pistle sayth / he that saith. I lo­ve God / and yet hateth his brother is a lyar. For how cā he that loveth not his brother w­hom he seith / love god whom he seyth not? T­is is not spoken that a man shuld fyrst lore h­ys brother and then God / but as it folowith. For this commaundement have we of hym / that he which loveth God shulde love hys brother also. To love my neyghboure is the commanndement / which commaundement he that loveth not / loveth not God. They ke­pinge of the commaundement declareth wh­at love I have to God. Iff I loved God pu­rely / no thinge that my neyghboure cowld do were able to make me eyther to hate hym ey­ther to take vengeaunee on hym my selfe / seing that god hath commaunded me to love him / and to remitte all vengeaunce vnto hym. M­arke now how moch I love the cōmaunde­ment / so moch I love God how moch I love God / so moch beleve I that he is mercyfull / kind and good / yee and a father vnto me for Christes sake / how moch I beleve that God y [...] mercyfull vnto me / and that he woll for C­hristes sake fulfyll all his promises vnto me: so moch I se my sinnes / so moch do my sinnes greve me / so moch do I repent ād sorrow th­at I sinne / so moch displeaseth me that poyson that moveth me to sinne / and so greatly desyre [Page] I to be healede. So now by the naturall order fyrst I se my sinne. Then I repēt and sorrowe. Thē beleve I Gods promises / that he is mer­cyfull vnto me ād forgeveth me / and will hea­le me at the last: then love I ād then I prepa­re my selfe to the commaundement.

THis do ād thou shalt lyve Luc. x. that is to say / love thy lorde God with all thy hert / with all thy soule / ād with all thy strengh / ād with all thy mynde / ād thy neigh­boure as thy selfe. As who shuld saie / if thou do this / or though thou canst not do it / yet if thou fealest lust ther vnto / & thy sprite sigheth morneth / and longeth after strength to do it / take a signe and evident token thereby that the sprite of lyfe is in the / and that thou art electe [...]o life everlastinge by Christes bloude / whos gift and purchase is thy fayth and that sprite that worketh the wyll of God ī the / whos gift also are thy deades or rather the deades of the spirite of Christ and not thine / and whos gift is the rewarde of eternall lyfe which folowe­th good workes.

It foloweth also in the same place of luc. when he shuld depert / he plucked ou [...] .ij. pēce / and gave them to the host / and sayd vnto hym Take the charge or cure of hym / and whatso­ever thou spendest more I will recompense it the at my cominge agayne. Remēbre this is a [Page xxxij] parable / and a parable maye not be expoun­ded word by worde. But the entent of the si­militude must be sought out only in the whole parable. The entēt of the similitude is to sho­we to whom a man is a neighboure or who is a mans neyghboure (which is both one) ād what it is to love a mās neyghboure as hym selfe. The Samaritane holpe him and shewed mercy as lōge as he was present / ād when he cowld be no lenger present / he left his monye behinde him. And if that were not sufficient / he left his credēs to make good the rest / ād for­soke him not / as longe as the other had neade Then said Christ go thou and do like wise / that is / without difference or respection of persons who so ever neadeth thy helpe / him count thy neighboure / ād his neyboure be thou ād she­we merci on hī as lōge as he neadeth thy soc­coure / and that is to love a mans neyboure as him selfe. Neyghboure is a worde of love and signefieth that a man shuld be ever nye and at hand and readie to helpe in time of neade.

They that will enterpret parables worde for worde fall in to straytes oft times / whēce they can not rid thē selfes. And preach lies in steade of the trueth. As do they which ēterpret by the twoo pence the old testament and the newe / & by that wich is bestowed / Opera supereroga­ [...]ionis. How beit superarogancia were a me­ter [Page] terme. That is to saye / deades which are moare then y ^e lawe requireth / deades of perfe­ctiō & of liberalite / which a mā is not bownde to doo / but of hys fre will. And for thē he shall have ā heyer place in hevē / & may give to other of his merites: or of which y ^e pope after his de­ath maye gyve pardons▪ from the paynes of purgatorye.

Against which exposiciō I answere. Fyrst a gretter perfection thā the lawe / is there not. A gretter perfection thē to love God ād his will / which is the cōmaundementes / with all thine hert / with all thy soule / with all thy strength / with all thy mīde / is there none. And to love a mās neiboure as hī self / is like y ^• same. It is a wonderfull love where with a mā loveth hym selfe. As glad as I wold be to receave pardon of mine awne life (if I had deserved deeth) so glad ought I to be to defēde my neybours life whith out respect of my life / or of my good. A mā ought nether to spare his goodes nor yet hī sylf for his brothers sake / after the ensample of Christ .i. Iohn. iij. Here in sayeth he / perceave we love / in that he (that is to saye Christ) gave his lyfe for vs. We ought therfore to bestowe our lives for the bretherne. Now sayth Christ Iohan .xv. there is no gretter love than that a man bestowe his lyfe for hys frende.

More over no man cā fulfyll the lawe. For [Page xxxiij] (Ihon sayth .i. Chapter of the sayd pistle) if we saye / we have no sinne / we deceave our selves & trueth is not ī vs. if we knowleage our sinn­es he is faithfull & righteous to forgeve vs our sinnes / & to purge vs frō all iniquite. And in y ^• pater noster also we say father forgeve vs oure sinnes. Now if we be all sinners / none fulfille­th y ^e lawe. For he that fulfilleth y ^• law is no si­nner. In the lawe maye nother Peter nor Pa­ulener any other creature save Christ ōly reio­yse. In the bloude of Christe which fulfylled y ^• lawe for vs maye every parson that repenteth bileveth / loveth the lawe ād morneth for strē ­gh to fulfyll it reioyse / be he never so weake a synner. The two pence therfore and the crede n [...] that he left behynde hym / to bestowe more if neade were / signefieth that he was every w­here mercyfull / both present and absent / with our faynīge / cloking / cōplaynīge / or excusinge ād forsoke not his neyboure as lōge as he had neade. Which exemple I praye God men m­aye folowe & let / opera superrogationis a lone

MAry hath chosen a good parte which shall not be taken from her. Lucc. x. She was fyrst chosen of God & called by grace / both to knowe hyr sinne / & also to h­eare the worde of faith health & gladtidinges of merci in Christ & faith was gyvē hyr to be­leve & y ^• sprite of God loosed hyr hert from the [Page] boundage of sinne. Then consented she to the wyll of God agayne / and above all thinges had delectacyon to heare y ^t worde wherin she had obtayned everlasting health / & namely of his mouth which had purchased so grete m­ercy for hyr God choseth vs fyrst ād loved vs fyrst & opineth our eyes to se hys eyceading a­bundaunt love to vs in Christe / & then love we agayne & accepte hys wyll above all thinges / and serve hī in that offyce where vnto he ha­th chosen vs.

Selle that ye have ād gyve almes. And m­ake you bagges which wax not old / & treas­ure which faileth not / in heven Lu. xij. This & soch lyke are not spokē that we shuld work as hyrelinges in respecte of rewarde / & as thou­gh we shuld obtayne heven with merite. For he sayth a litle afore / feare not litle flocke for it ys your fathers playsure to gyve you a kingd­ome. The kingdome cometh then of the good wyll of Almyghty God thorove Christ. And soch thinges are spoken partlie to put vs in re­mēbrance of our dutye to be kinde agayne. As is that sayēge lat your lyght so shine before mē that they se your good workes and gloryefye your father which is in heven. As who shuld seye / if God hath gevē you so great gyftes se ye be not vnthankfull / but bestowe thē vnto hys prayse. Some thinges ar spoken to move vs [Page xxxiii] to put our trust in God / as ar thes. Behold y ^• lyllyes of the feld. Behold the briddes of y ^• he­yre. If your childerne aske you bred wyll ye profer them a stoon? and many soch lyke. So­me ar spoken to put vs in remembraunce to be sober / to wache ād pray / & to prepare our sel­fes agaynst tēptatyons / & that we shuld vnd­erstonde & knowe / how that tētacions & occa­syon of evell come then most / whē they are lest loked for: lest we shuld be carelesse ād sure of ourselves / neclygent / & vnprepared. Some thinges ar spokē / that we shuld feare the wō ­derfull and incomprehensible iudgementes of God lest we shuld presume. Some to confort vs that we despayre not. And for lyke causes ar all the ensamples of y ^e old testamēt. In cō ­clusion the scripture speaketh many thīges as the world speaketh. But they may not be worldly vnderstōde / but goostlye & spirituallie / yee the spryte of God only vnderstondeth thē / and where he is not there is not y ^e vnderstondinge of the scripture. But vnfrutefull disputynge & braulinge abowt wordes.

The scripture sayeth / God seeth / God hereth God smelleth / God walketh / God is with thē God is not with thē / God is angrye / God is pleased / God sendeth hys spirite / God taketh his sprite away / & a thousand soch lyke. And yet is non of thē true after y ^e worldly maner & [Page] as the wordes sounde. Rede the seconde Cha­pter of Paule to the Corinthians / the naturall man vnderstondeth not the thinges of God / but y ^e sprite of god only and we (sayeth he) ha­ve receaved the sprite which is of God / to vn­derstonde y ^e thinges which ar gevē vs of god. For without the sprite it is īpossible to vnder­stonde thē. Rede also the .viij. to the Romayns They that are leed with the sprite of God / are the sonnes of God. Now the sonne knoweth his fathers will & the servāt not he that hath not the sprite of Christe (sayeth Paule) is none of his. Likewise he that hath not the sprite of God is none of Gods / for it is bothe one spri­te / as thou mayst se in the same place.

Now he that is of God / hereth the worde of God Jo. viij. and who is of God but he that hath the sprite of God. Forther more / sayeth he ye heare it not / because ye ar not of God / that is / ye have no lust in the worde of God / for ye vnderstōd it not / ād that because his sprite is not in you.

For as moch then as the scripture is no thi­ge els but that which y ^e sprite of God hath spo­kē bithe Prophetes & Apostles / ād can not be vnderstāde but of the same sprite: Let every mā pray to God to send hym his sprite to loose vs frō our naturall blindnes ād ignorāce / and to geve vs vnderstonding ād fealinge of y ^• thin­ges [Page xxxv] of God and of the speakinge of the sprite of God. And marke this processe. First we ar dā ­ned of nature / so cōceaved & borne / as a serpēt is a serpēt / ād a tode a tode ād a snake a snake bi nature. And as thou seyst a yōg chyld / wh­ich hath playsure in many thinges where in is present deeth / as i ^o fire / water ād so forth / wold slee hym selfe with a thowsande dethes / if he were not wayted apon ād kept therfro. Evē so we / if we shuld lyve this thousande yeres cou­ld in all that time delite in no other thinge nor yet seke any other thing / but that where in is deeth of the soule.

Secūdarily of the hole multitude of the na­ture of mā / whō God hath electe ād chosen ād to whō he hath apointed mercy & grace in Ch­rist / to thē sendeth he his sprite / which openeth ther eyes / showeth thē ther miserye / & brīgeth thē vnto the knowleage of them selves / so that they hate ād abhorre thē selves / are a stonyed ād amased ād at ther wittes ēdes / nether wott what to do or where to seke helth. Thē lest they shuld flee frō God bi desperacion / he cōforteth thē agayne with his swete promises in Christe ād certifyeth there hertes that for Christes sake they ar receaved to mercye ād ther sinnes for­geven ād they electe & made the sonnes of god ād heyres with Christe of eternall life: ād this thorowe fayth ar they set at peace with God.

[Page]Now maye not we axe why god choseth one & not ā other / other thinke that God is vniust to damme vs afore we do any actuall deade / seing that God hath power over all his crea­tures of right / to do with them what he lyst or to make of every one of them as he listeth. Oure darknes cānot perceave his light. God wilbe fered and not have his secret iudgemē ­tes knowen. More over we bi the light of faith se a thousande thinges which are impossible to an infidle to se. So like wise no doute in the light of the clear visiō of God we shall se thī ­ges which now God wyll not have knowen. For payde ever accompanyeth hye knowleage but grace accōpanyeth mekenes. Let vs ther­fore gyve dylygence rather to do the wyll of God / then to search hys secrettes which ar n­ot profytable for vs to knowe.

When we ar thus reconsyled to God / m­ade the frendes of God and heyres of eternall lyfe / the sprite that God hath powred in to vs testyfyeth that we may not lyve after our ol­de deades of ignorance. For how is it possyb­le / that we shulde repente and abhorre them / and yet have lust to lyve in them. We ar sure therfore that God hath created and made vs newe in Christ / and put hys spryte in vs that we shuld lyve a newe lyfe / which ys the lyfe of good workes.

[Page xxxvj]That thou maist knowe what are good w­orkes / or what workes are good & the ende & entēte of good workes / or wherfore good wo­rkes serve / marke this that foloveth.

The lyfe of a Christen man ys inwarde be­twene hym and God / and properly ys the co­nsente of the sprite to the wyll of God / and to the honour of god. And godes honour ys the fynall ende of all good workes.

Good workes ar all thīges y ^t are done wyth in the lawes of God / in which God is hono­ured & for which thākes are gevē to God.

Fastīge ys to absteine from surfetīge or ov­er moch eatīge / frō drōkenes & care of the wo­rlde (as thou maist reede Lu. xxj.) & the ende of fasting is to [...]ame the bodie / that the spri­te may have a free course to God / & may qu­yetly talke wyth God. For over moch eatinge and drinkinge and care of worldly busines pr­esse downe the sprite / choeke hyr and tāgle hyr that she can not lyft vp hyr selfe to God. No­w he that fasteth for any other entenre than to subdue the bodye / that the sprite may wayre on God / and frely exercice hyr self in the thin­ges of God: the same ys blinde & worteth nor whit he doth / erreth and shoteth at a wron­ge marke / and hys entente and vinagynacyō ys abho mynable in the syght of God. When thou fastest from mea [...] and druikest all day / [Page] is that a Christen fast▪ eyther to eate at one m­eale that were sufficiēt for foure. A mā at fou­re tymes maye beare that he can not at ones. Some fast from meate and drinke / and yet so tangle thē selves in worldly busynes that they can not ones thinke on God. Some abstayne from butter / some from egges / some from all māner whitte meate / some this day / some that day / some in the honour of this saynt / some of that / ād every man for a sondry purpose. So­me for the toth ache / some for the hed ache / for fevers / pestelence / for sodē death / for hangin­ge / drounding / ād to be delyverde frō the pay­nes of hell. Some are so mad that the fast one of the thursdayes betwene the two saynt ma­rye dayes in the worship of that saynt whos day ys halowed betwene cristenmas and can­delmas / ād that to be delyverd from the pesti­lence. All those men fast without consciēce of God / and without knowleage of the true en­tente of fastinge / and do no other than hono­ur sayntes as the gentyles and heathen wor­shiped / ther ydolles / and ar drowned in blyn­dnes and knowe not of the testament that God hath made to manwarde in Christes bl­oude. In God have they nother hope nor co­nfydence / nether beleve hys promyses nether know hys wyll / but ar yet in captyvyte vnder they prince of darkenes.

Watche ys not only to absteyne frō sle­pe / but also to be circūspect & to cast all perels: as a mā shuld watch a toure or a castell. we must remēbre y ^t the snares of y ^• devill ar infinite & innumerable / & that e­very momēt arise new tēptacions & that in all places mere vs fresh occasions. Against wh­ich we must prepare ourselves / and turne to God / and complayne to hym / and make out mone / and desyre hym of hys mercye to be o­ur shylde / our toure / our castell and defence f­rom alle vill / to put hys strēgth in vs (for w­ythout him we can do nought) and above a­ll thinges we must call to mynde what pro­mises God hath made / and what he hath s­worne y ^t he will doo to vs for Christes fake / ād with stronge fayth cleve vnto thē / and desyre him of hys mercye and for the love that he h­ath to Christe / and for hys truthes fake to fu­lfyll hys promyses. If we thus cleve to God wyth stronge fayth / and beleve hys words: t­hen (as sayth Paule .j. Corint. x.) God ys fa­ythfull / that he wyll not suffer vs to be tēpt­ed above that we ar able or a above our myght that ys to say / yf we cleve to hys promyses & nor to our fantasyes and ymagynacyons / he wyll put myght and power in to vs / that sh­all be strōger thē all the tēptacyon which he shall suffre to be agenst vs.

PRayer ys amornynge a longinge & a desy­re of the sprite to godward for y ^t which she lacketh / as a sick morneth & foroweth ī his hert lōgīge for health. Faith ever praieth. For after y ^• by faith we are recōsiled to god & have receaved mercie & forgivenes of god the sprite longeth & thursteth for strēgth to do y ^e will of God / & y ^t god may be honoured / his name h­alowede / & his pleasure & will fulfilled. The sprite waiteth & watcheh on y ^e will of god and ever hath hir awen fragilite & weaknes bifore hir eies / and whē she seeth tētaciō & perell dr­awe nie / she torneth to God & to the testamēte y ^t God hath made to all that beleve & trust [...] Christes bloud & desireth God for his mercy / trueth and for the love he hath to Christ / y ^t he woll fulfill his promise / y ^• he will soc [...]re & helpe & give vs strēgth / ād y ^t he woll sanctifie his name in vs & fulfill his godly will in vs / and that he will not loke on our sinne & īiquite / b­ut on his mercy / on his trueth / & on y ^e love th­at he oweth to his sone Christ & for his sake to kepe vs frō tētacion / that we be not overcōme ād that he delyver vs frō evill / & what so ev­er moveth vs contrary to his Godly wyll.

More over of his awne experiēce he fealeth other mēs neade / & no lesse cōmēdeth to God y ^• infirmites of other thē his awne knowinge that ther ys no strēgth / no helpe / no succure [Page xxxvii] but of God only. And as mercifull as he fea­leth god in his hert to hī selfe warde / so merc­yfull ys he to other / & as greatly as he fealyth his awne misery / so gretre cōpassiō hath he on other. His neiboure ys no lesse care to bī then hī selfe. He fealeth his neibours greffe no lesse thē his awne. And whē so euer he sceth occa­siō he cā not but pray for his neyboure as wel as for hī selfe: his nature ys to seke y ^e honore of god ī all mē / & to drawe (as moch as in hī ys) all mē vnto god. This is y ^• lawe of love whi­ch sprigeth out of Christes bloude ī to y ^e hertes of all thē y ^t have ther trust ī hī. No mā nead­eth to bid a crestē mā to pray if he se his ney­bours neade: if he se it not put hī in remēbraū ­ce only / & thē he cā not but do hys dutye.

Now as towchīge we desire one another to pray for vs / y ^t doo we to pur our neibour in re­mēbraūce of his dutie & not y ^t we trust ī his h­olines. Oure trust ys in god / in Christ ād in y ^• trueth of goddes promises / we have also a pr­omise y ^t whē .ij. 02. iij. or moe agre together in ony thīg acordīge to y ^e will of god / god hear­eth vs. Not withstādīg as god heareth many so heareth he few / ād so heareth he one / if he pray after y ^• will of god & desire the honour of god. He y ^• desireth mercie / y ^• same fealeth hys▪ awne miseri / & sine & morneth ī his hert for to be delyverd / that he myght honour God and [Page] God for his trueth must heare him / which s­ayeth by he mouth of Christ Mat. v. Belssed ar they y ^t honger & thurst after righteousnes / for they shalbe fufylled. God for his truethes sake must put y ^e righteousnes of Christ in hī & was he his vnrighteousnes awaie in y ^e bloude of Christe. And be y ^e sinner never so weke / ne­ver so feable & frayle / sinne he never so oft & so grevous / yet so longe as this lust desire & in­orninge to be delyuerd remaineth in him. God seeth not his sinnes / rekeneth thē not / for his truethes sake & love to Christe. He is not a si­nner in the syght of God / y ^t wold be no sinner. He y ^t wold be delyuerd hath his hert loose all readi. His hert sinneth not / but morneth re­penteth / & cōsenteth vnto y ^• law & will of God and iustyfieth God / y ^t is / beareth recorde that God which made y ^e lawe / is righteous & iust. And soch an hert trustinge in Christes bloud / is accepted for full righteous. And his wea­knes / infirmite & fraylte is pardoned & his si­nnes not lokede apon: vntyll God put moare strength in him and fulfyll his lust.

When the weake in the fayth & vnexpert in the misteries of Christ desire vs to pray for thē thē ought we to leade thē to the trueth & pro­myses of God / and teach thē to put ther trust in the promises of God / in love that God hath to Christe and to vs for his sake / ād to strēgth [Page xxxix] ther weke conscrēces / shewinge & proving by y ^• scripture / that as lōge as they folowe the sp­rite and resiste sinne it is impossible they shu­ld faule so depethat God shall not pulle them vp againe / if they hold fast by y ^e anker of faith hauinge trust and confidence in Christ. The lo­ve that God hath to Christ is infinite / & Chr­ist dyd and suffered all thinges / not for hī sel­fe / to optaine favoure or ought else: for he had ever y ^• full favoure of God ād was ever lorde over all thinges / but to reconsile vs to God & to make vs [...]heyres with him of his fathers k­yngdome. And God hath promised / y ^• who so ever calleth on his name shall never be cōfo­unded or ashamed Ro. ij. yf y ^• rightwes fall (sayth the scripture) he shall not be broysed / y ^• lord shall put his hande vnder hī. Who is ri­ghteous but he y ^t trusteth in Christes bloude / be he never so weke? Christ is oure righteo­usnes and in him ought we to teach all men to trust / and to expounde vnto all men y ^• test­amēt that God hath made to vs sinners ī C­hristes bloude. This ought we to do & not m­ake a praye of them to leade them captyve / to sit [...]e in ther conscyences and to teach them to trust in our holynes / good deades and pr­ayers / to the entent that we wold f [...]de our ydle and slowe belyes of ther great labour and s­weate / ād so to make ourselves Christes and [Page] saviours. For if I take ō me to save other bi mi merites / make I not my selfe a Christe & a sa­vioure / & am in deade a false prophete & a true antichrist / & exalt my self and sytt in the tēple of God / that ys to were the cōsciences of mē [...]

Amonge Christen men love maketh all thi­nges commune: every man ys others detter & every man is bounde to minister to his neigh­boure / & to supplie his neyghbours lacke / of that where with God hath endued him. As t­hou seyst in y ^e world how the lordes & offycers minister peace in y ^• cōmune wealth / punnysh murderers / theves & evyll doers / & to maynt­tene there ordre & ese ate doo the cōmunes mi­nister to thē againe rēt / tribute / tolle & custome So in y ^e Gospell the curates which in every p­arish preach y ^• Gospell ought of duety to rece­ave an honest living for thē & theyr howfhol­des and even so ought y ^• other officers which ar necessarilye required in y ^e cōmune wealth of Christe. We neade not to vse filthy lucre in the Gospell / to chope & chaunge & to playe y ^e tav­ernars / alteringe y ^e word of God / as they do there mines to theyr most avauntage / & to fascion Goddes worde aftyr every mās mouth / or to abuse the name of Christ to obtayne ther­eby autorite and power / to fede our flowe bel­yes. Now seyst thou what prayerys / the ende therof and wherfore it seruyth.

[Page xl]Iff thou give me a thousand pownde to p­ray for the I am no more bounde then I was before. Mans ymaginacion can makethe cō ­maundemēt of god nether greater nor smal­ler nether can to y ^e lawe of God exther adde or minishe. Goddes cōmaundement is as great as him self. I am bownde to love y ^• Turke w­ith all my might & power / yet and above my power even from y ^• grounde of my hert / aftyr the ensample y ^• Christe loved me / nether to sp [...] re goodes / bodye or life to win him to Christe. And what can I do moare for y ^• if thou gav­est me all y ^• world? Where I se neade ther can I not but pray if Goddes sprite be in me.

Almes is a greake worde & signifieth mercy One Christē is detter to an other at his neade of all y ^t he is able to do for hī vntill' his neade be suffised. Every Christē man ought to have Christ all ways before his eyes / as an ensam­ple to counterfaite & folowe / & to do to his ne­yboure as Christ hath done to hī / as Paulte­acheth in all his pistles ād Peter in his fyrst & John in his first also. This order vseth Paule in all his pistles. First he preacheth y ^e lawe ād proveth y ^t the whole nature of mā is damnyd in that y ^• hert lusteth cōtrary to y ^• will of God. For if we were of God / no dowe we shuld ha / ve lust in his will. Thē preacheth he Christ / y ^• Gospel y ^e promises / & the mercie y ^t God hath [Page] set forth tō all men in Christes bloude. Which they that beleve & take it for an ernest thynge / turne thē selves to God / beginne to love God agayne / & to prepare thē selves to his wyll by y ^• working of the sprite of God in thē. Last of all exorteth he to vnite / peace ād sobernes / to avoyde beaulīges / sectes / opiniōs / disputinge ād arguinge abowt wordes / ād to walke ī the playne ād syngle fayth ād fealinge of y ^• sprite / & to love one an other after y ^• ēsample of Chr­ist / even as Christ loved vs & to be thākfull / & to walke worthy of y ^• Gospell ād as it becom­eth Christ and with the ensample of pure liv­ing to drawe all to Christe.

Christ is lorde over all / & every cristē is heyre ānexed with Christ ād therfore lorde of all / ād every one lorde of what so ever an other hath. Yf thy brother on neiboure therfore neade and thou have to helpe hī ād yet showest not mercy but with drawest thy hādes frō hī: thē robbest thou hī of his owne ād art a these. A Christen mā hath Christes sprite. Now is Christ a mer­cifull thinge: if therefore thou be not mercyfull after y ^e ēsample of Christe thē hast thou not his sprite. Yf thou have not Christes sprite / then art thou none of his Ro. viij. nor hast any parte with hī. More over though thou shewe mer­cye vnto thy neibour / yet if thou do it not with soch burnīg love as Christ did vnto y ^• / so must [Page xlj] thou knowleage thy sinne and desyre mercy in Christ. A cristē mā hath nought to reioyse in / as cōcerninge his deades. His reioysinge is y ^t Christ died for hī / ād y ^t he is washed ī Christes bloude. Of hys deades reioyseth he not / nether coūteth his merites / nether giveth pardone of thē / nether seketh ā hyer place ī evē of thē / ne­ther maketh hī self a savoure of other mē / tho­rowe his good workes. But geveth all hono­ur to god / & ī his greatist deades of mercy knowleageth hī self a sinner vnfainedly / & is abū ­dātly cōtēt with y ^• place y ^t is prepared for hī of Christ. and his good deades ar to hī a signe ōly that Christes sprite is in him / ād he in Christe / and thorowe Christe electe to eternall lyfe.

The order of love or charite which some dreame / y ^• Gospell of Christ knoweth not of / that a mā shuld begīne at hī self & serve hī selfe fyrste & thē descēde I wot not by what steppes. Love seketh not hyr own profer .ij. Cor. xij. but ma­keth a mā to forgette hī self / & to turne his profet to ā other mā / as Christe sought not hī selfe or hys own profet but oures. This terme my self is not ī y ^• Gospell / nether yet father / mother sister / brother / kīsmā / y ^t one shuld be preferred ī love above ā other. But Christe is all ī all t­hīges. Every christē man to an other is Chri­ste hym self / and thy neigbours neade hath as good ryght in thy goodes as hath christe hym [Page] self which is heyre and lorde over all. And lo­ke what thou owest to Christe that thou owest to thy neybours neade. To thy neybour owest thou thine herte / thy selfe ād all that thou hast & canst do. The love that springeth out of Ch­rist excludeth [...]o mā nether putteth difference betwene one ād an other. In Christe we ar all of one degree without respect of persons. Not withstonding though a Christē mans hert be open to all men / and receaveth all men. Yet be cause that his abilite of goodes extendeth not so ferre / this provisionis made / that every mā shall care for his own howsehold / as father & mother and thine elders that have holpē the / wife chyldern and servantes. If thou shuldest not care and provide for thine howseholde / thē were thou an infidele / seinge thou hast taken on the so to do / and for as moch as that is thy part committed to the of the congregacion. When thou hast done thy dutie to thine how­sehold / and yet hast forder aboundance of the blessinge of God / that owest thou to the pore that can not labre / or wold labre and can gett no worke / ād are destitute of frendes / to the po­re I meane which thou knowest / to thē of thi­ne own parysh. For that provision ought to be had in the congregacion / that every parysh ca [...]e for there pore. If thy neibours which th­ou knowest be served / ād thou yet have super­fluyte / [Page xlij] and hearest▪ necessite to be amonge the bretherne a thousand myle of / to thē art thou detter. Yee to the very infidels we be detters / if they neade / as ferforth as we mayntene thē not agaynst Christ or to blasfeme Christ. Thus ys every man that neadeth thy helpe / thy father / mother / syster / and brother in Christ: even as every man that doth the wyll of the father / is father / mother / sister / ād brother vnto Christe.

More over if any be an infidele and a fals Christen and forsake his houshold / hys wyfe / chylder and soch as cā not helpe them selves / then art thou bound & thou have where with / evē as moch as to thine own houshold. And they have as good right in thy goodes / as th­ou thy selfe. And if thou with drawe mercye from them / and hast where with to helpe thē: then art thou a thefe. Yf thou showe mercy / so doyst thou thy dutie and art a faythfull mini­ster in the houshold of Christe / and of Christ shalt thou have thy rewarde and thanke. Yff the whole world were thine / yet hath every brother his right in thy goodes and is heyre with the / as we are all heyres with Christe. More over the rich ād they that have wisdome with thē must se the pore set a worke / that as many as are able maye fede them selves with the la­boure of there owne handes / according to the scripture and commaundement of God.

[Page]Now seyst thou what almes deade mea­neth and wherefore it servith. Be that seleth with his almes moare than to be mercyfull / to be a neybour / to succour his brothers neade / to do his dutye to his brother / to give his brother that he oweth hym / the same is blind ād seeth not what it is to be a christen mā / and to have felowship in Christes bloude.

As partayning to good workes / vnderstād that all workes ar good which are done wyth in the lawe of God in fayth and with thankes gevinge to god / and vnderstonde that thou in doinge them pleasest God / what so ever thou doist with in y ^t lawe of God / as whē thou ma­kest water. And trust me if other wind or wa­ter were stopped thou shuldest feale what a p­reciouse thing it were to do ether of both / and what thankes ought to be gevē God therfore. More over put no differēce betwene workes / but what so ever cemeth in to thy handes that do as time / place ād occasion geveth / and as God hath put the in degre hye or lowe. For as [...]witching to please God / ther is no worke bet­ter then an other. God loketh not fyrst on thy worke as y ^• world doth / as though the bew­tysulnes of the worke pleased hym / as it doeth the worlde or as though he had neade of thē. But God loketh fyrst on thy hert / what fayth thou hast to hys wordes / how thou belevest [Page xliij] him / trustest hym ād how thou lovest hym for hys mercie that he hath showed the he loketh with what hert thou workest / and not what thou workest / how thou acceptest the degre t­hat he hath put the in and not of what degree thou art / whether thou be an Apostle or a sh­ew maker. Get this ensample before thine ey­es. Thou art a kehinpage and washest thy ma­sters dyshes / an other ys an Apostle and p­reacheth the worde of God. of this Apostle herfe what Paule saith in the seconde to the Corinthians .ix. If I preach (sayeth he) I h­ave nought to reioyse ī / for necessite ys put ūto me as who shuld say / God hath made me soe. Woe is vnto me if I preach not. If I do it w­yllingly (sayth he) thē have I my rewarde th­at ys / thē am I sure that Goddes spirite ys in me and that I am electe to eternall lyfe. Yf I do it against my will an office is cōmitted v­nto me / y ^t is / if I do it not of love to God / but to gete a living ther by & for a worldly purpos & had lever other ways lyve / then do I that office which God hath put me in & yet please not God my selfe. No [...]e now if this Apostle preach not as many do not / which not ōly m­ [...]fe thē selves Apostles / but also cōpell mē to [...]afe thē for gretter thē apostles / yee for gretter thē Christ hī selfe) thē wo ys vnto him / y ^t is / his damnacion is iust. If he preach & his hert no [...] [Page] right / yet mim [...]treth he y ^e office that God hath put hym in / ād they that have the spirite of god heare the voyce of God / yee though he speake in an Asse. More over how so ever he preach­eth he hath not to reioyse / in that he preacheth. But & if he preach willyngly / with a true hert and of conscience to God: then hath he his re­warde / that is / thē fealeth he the ernest of eter­nall lyfe and the workinge of the sprite of god in hym. And as he fealeth Gods goodnes and mercy / so be thou sure he fealeth hys own infir mite / weaknes and vnworthines / and mor­neth & knowleageth hys sinne / in that the hert will not arrise to worke with that full lust ād lone that is in Christ our lorde. And neverthe­lesse is yet at peace with God thorowe fayth ād trust in Christ Iesu. For the ernest of y ^e spri­te that worketh in hym testifieth & beareth wit nes vnto his hert that God hath chosen hī / & that his grace shall suffice hym / which grace is now not ydle in hym. In hys workes put­teth he no trust.

Now thou that miuistrest in the kechen & art but a kechē age receavist all thinge of y ^• hond of God / knowest that God hath put the in that office / submutest thy selfe to hye will and ser­vest thy master / not as a man / but as Christe hym self with a pure hert / accordinge as Pan­le teacheth vs / puttest thy trust in God / and▪ [Page xliiij] wyth him seakest thi rewarde. More over ther ys not a good deade done / but thi hert reioyse­th therin / yee when thou heareste that y ^e word of God ys preached by this Apostle & seyst the people turne to God / thou consentest vnto the deade / thine hert breaketh out in ioye / sprīgeth and leapeth in thi brest / that God is honoured And in thine hert doist y ^e same that y ^e Apostle doth & happly wyth greater delecraciō & a moare fervent sprite. Now he y ^t receaveth a pro­phere in the name of a prophete shall receave the reward of a prophet. Math. x. that is / he y ^t consenteth to y ^e dede of a prophete & mainten­eth it / the same hath the same sprite & ernest of everlasting lyfe which the prophete hath & ys electe as the prophete is.

Now if thou cōpare deade to deade ther ys difference bitwixt / wasshinge of disches and preaching of y ^e worde of God. But as twiteh­inge to plaise God none at all. For nother y ^t nor this pleaseth / but as ferforth as God hath c­hosen a man / hath put his sprite in hī ād pu­rifyed his hert by fayth and trust in Christe.

Let every man therfore wayte on the offyce wherin Christ hath put him & therin serve his bretherne. If he be of lowe degre let him pac­yently therein abide tyll God promote hī & ex­alte hym hier. Let kinges & hed officers seke Christe in ther offices & ministre peace & quie­tres [Page] vnto the bretherne / punnish sinne / & that with mercy / even with y ^e same sorowe & grefe of mīde as they wold cutt of a finger or ioyn­te a legge or harme of there own bodie / if there were soch dysease in thē / that ether they must be cutte of or else all the body must pereshe.

Let every mā of what so ever craft or occup­acion he be of / whether bruer baker tailer vi­tailer marchaūt or husbāde mā refer his craft & occupacion vnto y ^e cōmune wealth / & serve his bretherne as he wold do Christ hī selfe. Let hī bye & sell truely & not set dice on his brether ne / & so showeth he merci / & his occupaciō pl­easeth God. And whē thou receavest money for thi laboure or ware thou receavest thi du­tie. For wherī so ever thou minster to thi bretherne / thi brether are dettours to geve y ^e where with to maītene thi selfe & thi houshold. And let your superfluires succoure y ^e pore / of which sort shall ever be some in all townes cityes / & villages / & y ^t I suppose y ^• greayest nowmbre. Remēbre y ^• we ar mēbres of one bodie & oug­ht to minister one to an other mercifully. And remēbre y ^t what so ever we have / it is gyvē vs of God to bestowe it on our bretherne. Let hī y ^t eateth eate & give God thākes / only let not thy meate poele thine hert from God. And let hī y ^t drinketh do like wise. Let hī y ^t hath a wife gyve God thākes for his libertie / ōly let not thi wife wyth drawe thyne hert frō god & thē pleasest [Page xlv] thou God & hast y ^e worde of God for the. And in all thinges loke on the worde of God & there in put thi trust / and not in a visure / in a dys­gysed garment and a cutte shwee.

Seke y ^e worde of God in all thīges / & with out y ^e worde of God do nothinge / though it appere never so gloriouse. What so ever is do­ne with out y ^e worde of God / y ^t coūt ydolatrie. The kīgdome of hevē is with in vs. Luc. xvij. Wōder therfore at no monstrous shapp ner at any outwarde thīge with out y ^e worde. For the world was nerver drawn frō God / but with an outwarde showe & glorious apperaūce ād shininge of ypocrysie & of fained & visured fastinge / prainge / watchinge / singing / offeringe sacryfycinge / halowīge of supersticious cere­monies and monstrouse dysgysinge.

Take this for an ēsample. Iohn baptist which had testimonie of Christ & of y ^• Gospel / y ^t there never rose a gretter amōge wīmens childern / with his fastīg / watchīg / praīg / raimēt & st­raite lyuīge deceaved y ^e iewes & brought thē in doute / whether Iohn were very Christ or not & yet no scripture or miracle testifying it / so greatly y ^e blind nature of mā loketh on y ^• outeward shinīg of workes / & regardeth not y ^e inwarde worde which speaketh to y ^e herte. whē thei sent to Iohn axige hī whether he ware Christe / he denied it. whē thei axed hī what he was & what he said of hī self. he āswared not / I am he y ^• [Page] watcheth / praieth / drinketh no wyne nor str­onge drinke / eateh nother fysh nor flesh / but l­yve with wild hony and grasshopers and w­eare a cote of camels heare & a girdle of a stī ­ne: but said I am a voice of a criar. My voice only pertaineth to you. those outeward thīges which ye wonder at / partaine to my self only vnto y ^• tamīge of my bodie. To you am I a voyce ōly & y ^• which I preache. My preachīg (if it be receaved in to a penitēt or repērīge hert) shall teach you how to live & please god / accordīge as god shall shede out his grace on every mā. John preached repētaūce / saynge prepare y ^• lordes waie & make his pathes straight T­he lordes waie ys repētaūce & not ypocrisie of mās ymaginaciō & invēciō. It is not possible y ^• y ^• lorde Christ shuld come to a mā / eycept he knowe hī selfe & his sinne & truely repēt. Ma­ke his pathes streight: y ^• pathes are y ^• lawe / if thou ūderstōde it a right as god hath givē it. Christ saieth ī .xvij. of Mat. Helias shall first come / y ^• is shall come before Christ & restore all thīges meanīge of Io. bap. Io. ba. did re­store y ^• lawe & y ^e scripture vnto y ^• right sence ād vnderstōdīge / which y ^e phariseis partly had darkned & made of none effecte / thorowe ther owne tradiciōs Matth. xv. where Christ re­buketh thē saynge: whi trāsgresse ye y ^• cōma­ūdemētes of god thorou your tradicions: and [Page xlvj] partly had corrupt it with gloses and falfe in­terpretacions / that no man coude vnderston­de it. Wherefore Christe rebuketh thē Math. xxiij. sainge: wo be to you pharises ypocrites which shut vppe the kīgdome of hevē before mē: ye enter not your selves / nether suffer thē that come / to enter in: ād partly did begile the people & blīde ther eyes in disgisinge thē selv­es / as thou readest in y ^• same .xxiij. Cha. how they made brode & large philateries / & ded all ther workes to be sene of mē / y ^• the people sh­uld wōder at ther disgisinges & risurīge of t­hem selves other wise thē god had made thē: & partly mocked thē with ypocrisie of f [...]lse h­olines in fastīge / praīge & almes giuīg Mat. vj. & this did they for lu [...]re to be ī authorite / to sitte in y ^• cōsciēces of people / & to be coūted as god hī selfe / y ^t the people shulde truste ī ther h­olines & not ī god / as thou readest ī y ^• place above rehersed Mat. xxiij. wo be to you phar­eses ypocrites which devoure widowes how­ses vnder a color of lōge praier. Counterfette therfore no thīg without y ^e worde of god whē thou vnderstōdest y ^t / it shall teach y ^e all thīges how to applie outwarde thīges / & where vnto to referre thē. Bewarre of thy good entent / g­ood minde / good affectiō or zele as they call it. Peter of a good minde & of a good affection or zele chode Christ Math. xvj. be cause he sayde [Page] that he must goe to Hierusalē & there be slai­ne. But Christ called hym satan for hys labo­ure a name that belongeth to the devyll. And said that he perceaved not godly thinges but worldly. Of a good entēt & of a fervent affe­ction to Christ the sonnes of Zebedei wold ha­ve had fyre to come downe from heven to cō ­sune y ^e Samaritanes Lu. jx. But Christ rebu­ked thē saiēge y ^• they wist not of what sprite t­hei were: y ^t is / that they vnderstode not how y ^• they were altogedre worldly & fleshly mynded. Peter smote malchus of a good zele: but Chr­ist codēned his deade. y ^• very Jewes of a good ent [...]e & of a good zele slew Christ & persecut­ed y ^e apostles as Paull berith thē recorde Ro. x. I beare thē recorde (saith he) y ^t they have a fervēte mīde to god warde but not accordīge to knowelege. It is a nother thīge thē / to do of a good minde & to do of knowlege: Labour for knowlege y ^• thou maist know goddes will & what he wold have y ^• to doe Oure mīde en­tēte & affection or zele are blīde & all y ^t we do of thē is dāned of god / & for y ^• cause hath god made a testamēte betwene hī & vs where ī ī cōtayned bothe what he wold have vs to do / & what he wold have vs to axe of hī. Se th­erfore y ^• thou do no thinge to plaise god with all but y ^• he cōmaūdeth / nether axe any thinge of hī but y ^• he hath promised the. The Jewes [Page xlvij] also (as it appereth Act. vij) slewe Stevē of a good zele. Because he proved by the scriptu­re / that God dwelleth not in churches or tem­ples made with handes. The churches at the beginnynge were ordeyned / that the people s­hulde thider resorte to here the worde of God there preached only / & not for the vse where in they now are. The temple wherein God wil­be worshipped is the herte of mā. For God is a sprite (sayth Christ Io. iiij.) & will be worsh­eped in the sprite & in trueth: That is / when a penitente herte consenteth vnto the lawe of g­od / & with a stronge fayth lōgeth for the pro­mises of God. So is God honored on all sy­des in y ^t we counte hī righteous in all hys la­wes and ordinaunces and also true in all his promyses. Other worshepinge of God is the­re none / excepte we make an ydole of him.

IT shalbe recōpēsed y ^• at y ^• risinge againe of y ^• rightewes Lu. xiiij. Rede y ^• texte b­efore & thou shalt perceave y ^t Christ d­oeth here y ^t same y ^t he doeth Mathe. v. y ^t ys he putteth vs ī remēbraūce of our dutie / y ^t we be to y ^e pore as Christ is to vs / & also teacheth vs how y ^• we can never knowe wether our love be right / and whether it springe of Christ or no as lōge as we are but kīde to thē only wh­ich doe as moch for vs againe. But & we be­mercifull to y ^• pore / for cosciēce to God and of [Page] compassion & hertily love / which cōpassion & love springe of y ^• love we have to God in Chr­ist for y ^• p [...]e mercy ād love y ^t he hath showed on vs: then have we a sure tokē / that we are be loved of God & waschen in Christes bloude & electe by Christes deservīge vnto eternall life.

The scripture speaketh as a father doeth to his younge sonne / do this or y ^t & thē will I lo­ve y ^• / yet the father loveth his sonne first & stu­dieth with all his power and witte to overco­me his childe with love & with kīdnes to ma­ke him do y ^t which is comly honeste & good for it selfe / A kinde father & mother love ther ch­ylder evē whē they are evyll / y ^t they wolde sh­ede there own bloude to make thē better / ād to bringe thē in to y ^e right waye. And a naturall childe studieth not to obtayne his fathers love with workes / but considereth with what lo­ve his father loveth hī with all / & therfore lo­veth agayne / is glad to do his fathers will ād studieth to beth ankefull.

The sprite of the worlde vnderstondeth not y ^• speakinge of God / nether y ^• sprite of the wise of this worlde / nether y ^• sprite of Philophers ne­ther y ^• sprite of Soerates / of Plato or of Ari­stoles Ethikes / as thou maist se in y ^e fyrst & seconde chapter of the first to the Corint. Thou­ghe y ^t many are not ashamed to rayle ād blas­pheme sainge / how shuld he vnderstonde the [Page xlviij] scripture seinge he is no philosopher nether h­ath sene his metaphisike? More over they bl­aspheme saienge how cā he be a devine & wo­tteth not what is subiectū ī theologia? Never y ^• lesse as a mā with oute y ^• sprite of Aristotell or philosophie / may by the sprite of God vnd­erstonde scripture: Evē so by the sprite of God vnderstondeth he y ^t God is to be sought in all the scripture / and in all thinges & yet wotteth not what meaneth Subiectū in theologia / because it is a terme of ther own makinge. If th­ou shuldest saie to him that hath y ^e sprite of G­od / the love of God is the kepinge of y ^e cōma­undementes / & to love a mans neyboure is to showe mercie / he wold with oute arguinge or disputinge vnderstonde / how that of the love of God springeth y ^• kepīge of his cōmaund­emētes & of the love to thy neiboure springeth mercie. Now wold aristotell denie soch spea­kinge / & a Duns man wold make .xx. distin­tiōs. If thou shuldest say (as sayeth saīte John in the fourth of his pistle) how cā he y ^t loveth not his neyboure whom he seith love God w­hom he seyth not? Aristotell wold saye loo a man must first love his neyboure ād thē God and out of the love to thi neyboure springeth the love to God. But he y ^t fealeth the workin­ge of the sprite of God / and also frō what ve­ [...]igeaunce the bloude of Christ hath delyverid [Page] him / vnderstondeth how that it is impossible to love other father or mother / syster / brother / neiboure / or his own sylfe a right / except it sp­ringe out of the love to God / and perceaveth that the love to a mans neyboure is a signe of y ^• love to God / as good frute declareth a good tree / and that the love to a mans neyboure ac­companieth and foloweth the love of God as heete accompanieth and foloweth fyre.

Lyke wyse when the scripture sayeth. Christ shall rewarde every mā at y ^• resurrectiō or vp­risinge againe accordīge to his deades / y ^• spri­te of Aristotles ethikes wold saye / loo with the multitude of good workes mayst thou / & must thou obtayne everlastinge life / & also a place in hevē hye or lowe accordīge as thou hast many or few good workes / & yet wotteth not what a good worke meaneth as Christ speaketh of good workes / as he y ^t seyth not y ^e hert / but ou­tewarde thinges only. But he that hath gods sprite ūderstōdeth it. he fealeth y ^t good workes ar no thinge but frutes of love / cōpassiō / mer­cyfulnes / & of a tēdernes of herte which a Ch­ristē hath to his neiboure / & y ^t love sprīgeth of y ^t love which he hath to God / to his will & cō ­maundemētes / & vnderstōdeth also y ^t the love which mā hath to God springeth of y ^• infinite love & botomelesse mercy which God in Chri­ste shewed first to vs / as sayth John in y ^• pistle and Chap. above rehersed. In this (saieth he) [Page xlix] appered y ^• love of God to vs warde / bicause y ^• god sent his only begotē sonne in to y ^• worlde y ^t we might live thorowe hym. here ī is love / not y ^t we loved god / but y ^t he loved vs / & sent [...]e his sonne to make a gremēte for oure sinnes. In cō clusiō a Christē mā fealeth that y ^t ūspeakeable love & mercy which God hath to vs / & y ^t sprite which worketh all thinges y ^t are wroght ac­cordinge to y ^• will of god / & that love where w­ith we love god / and y ^t love which we have to oure neiboure / ād y ^t mercy ād cōpassion which we showe on hī / & also y ^t eternall life which is laid vp ī stoere for vs in Christ are all togeder y ^• gift of God thorowe Christes purchasinge.

Iff y ^• scripture said alwaies Christ shall re­warde y ^• accordīge to thy faith / or accordīge to thy hope & truste thou hast in god / or accordinge to y ^• love thou hast to god & thy neiboure so were it true also as thou seist. [...]. Pe. i. receavīge y ^• ende or rewarde of your fayth / y ^e helth or sal­vacion of your soules. But y ^• spirituall thin­ges coude not be knowē save by ther workes / as a tree can not be knowen / but by hyr frute. how coude I knowe y ^t I loved my neiboure / if never occasiō were givē me to showe mercy vn to hī? how shulde I knowe y ^t I loved god / if I never suffered for his sake? how shulde I kno­we y ^t god loved me / if ther were no infirmite / temptacion / perell ād Ieoperdye whence God shuld delyver me.

THere is no man that forsaketh house / other father / or mother / other bretherne or sisterne / or wife / or chylderne for the kingedome of hevens sake / which shall not re­ceave moch moare in this worlde / and in the worlde to come everlastinge lyfe. Luc. xviij.

Here seyst thou that a Christen mā in all his workes hath respecte to nothinge / but vnto y ^• glorie of God only ād to the mayntenīge of the trueth of God / ād doeth ād leveth ondone all thinges of love to the glorie and honor of god only / as Christe reacheth in the pater noster. Moare over when he sayeth he shall receave moch moare in thys world / of a trueth yee / he hath receaved moch moare all ready. For ex­cepte he had felte the infinite mercy / goodnes / love ād kindnes of God ād the feloweshippe of the bloude of Christe ād the cōforte of y ^• spi­rite of Christe in his herte / he coude never ha­ve forsakē anythynge for Gods sake. Notwithstondinge (as seyth Marke in the .x. Chapter) Who so ever for Christes sake ād the Gospels forsaketh house / bretherne or systers etc. He sh­all receave an hūdrede folde houses / brether­ne etc. that is spiritually. For Christe shalbe all thinges vnto the. The angels / all Christē and who so ever doth the will of the father / shall­be father / mother / sister and brother vnto the / ād all there shall be thine. And god shall ta­ke [Page l] the care of the and minister all thinges vn­to the / as longe as thou sekyste but his honor only. Moare over if thou were lorde over all y ^e worlde / yee of ten worldes byfore thou knewi­ste God: yet was not thine appetite quēched / thou thurstodeste for more. But if thou seke hys honoure only / thē shall he flake thy thurste and thou shall [...]e have all that thou desyrest / & shall be contente: yee if thou dwell amōge in­fideles / ād emonge the mooste cruelst nacion of the worlde / yet shall he be a father vnto the ād shall defende the / as he did Abrahā / Isaac and Jacob & all sayntes whos lives thou rea­dest in the scripture. For all that are past & gone before are but ensamples to strength oure fayth and trufte in the worde of God. It is the same God and hath sworne to vs all that he sware vnto thē / and is as true as ever he was and therfore can not but fulfyll his promises to vs as well as he dyd to them / if we beleve as they dyd.

The honre shall come whē all they that are in the graves shall heare his voyce / that is to say Christes voyce / and shall come forth / they that have done good in to the resurtection of lyfe ād they that have done evyll in to the resur­rection of damnacion / Jhon .v. Thys & all like textes declare what foloweth good workes / & y ^t oure deades shall testifie with vs or agayn­ste [Page] vs at that daye / and putteth vs in remem­braunce to be diligente and rervente in doynge good. Here by mayste thou not vnderstonde y ^t we obtayne y ^• favoure of God and the enheri­tannce of lyfe thorowe y ^• merites of good wor­kes / as hyrelinges ther wages. For then shul­dest thou robbe Christe / of whose fulnes we h­ave receaved favoure for favoure Jo. i. that is Gods favoure was so full in Christe y ^• for hys sake he geveth vs his favoure / as affirmeth also Paule Ephe. i. he loved vs in his beloved by whō we have (sayth Paule) redēcion thoro­we his bloude / and forgevenes of sinnes. The forgevenes of sinnes thē is oure redemcion in Christe / & not y ^• rewarde of workes. In whom (sayth he ī the same place) he chose vs before y ^• makinge of y ^e worlde / that is longe before we dyd good workes. Thorowe fayth in Christe ar we also y ^e sonnes of god / as thou readist Jo. i. in that they beleved on his name he gave them powere to be the sonnes of God. God with all his fullnes ād ryches dwelleth ī Christe / & out of Christe must we feach all thīges. Thou rea­dist also Jo. iij. he y ^t beleveth on the sonne hath eternall life. And he y ^t beleveth not shall se no lyfe / but y ^• wrath of god abideth apō hī. Here seist thou y ^t the wrath & vengeaūce of god pos­sesseth every mā till fayth come. Faith & trust ī Christe expelleth y ^e wrath of god / ād bringeth [Page lj] favoure y ^• sprite / powere to do good & everlasting lyfe. More over vntill Christ have gevē y ^• light thou knoweste not where in stondeth the goodnes of thy workes / & till his sprite hath lo [...]sed thine herte thou canste not consent vnto good workes. All y ^t is good in vs both wyll and workes cometh of y ^e favoure of God tho­rowe Christe to whom be the lawde Amen.

IF any mā will doe his will (he meaneth the will of y ^• father) he shall knowe of y ^• doctrine whether it be of God or wheth­er I speake of my selfe. Jo. vij. This text mea­neth not y ^t any mā of his own strēgth powere & fre will (as they call it) can doe y ^e will of G­od / before he hath receaved the sprite & strēgth of Christe thorowe faith. But here is ment y ^t which is spoken in the thred of John when [...]ecodemus marveled howe it were possible that a man shulde be borne againe. Christe answered / that which is borne of y ^e fleshe is fleshe ād that which is borne of the spryte is spryte as who shulde saye / he that hath the sprite thorowe fayth and is borne againe and made a new in Christe / vnderstondeth the thinges of the sprite and what he that is spirituall mea­neth. But he that is flesh & as Paule saith .j. Corin. ij. a naturall man & leed of his blinde reasou only / cā never ascēd to y ^• capacite of y ^e sprite. And he geveth an ēsample saīge / y ^• wīd [Page] bloweth where he lysteth and thou hearest his voyce and wottest not whence he cometh nor whyder he wyll. So is every mā that is borne of the sprite / he that speaketh of y ^e sprite cā ne­ver be vnderstonde of the naturall mā which is but flesh ād savereth no more then thinges of the flesh. So here meaneth Christ if any mā have y ^e sprite / & cōsenteth vnto y ^e wyll of God / this same at ones wotteth what I meane.

IFF ye vnderstonde thes thinges / hap­pie are ye if ye do them Joā. xiij. A cristē mans herte is with y ^e will of God / wyth the lawe & cōmanndementes of God / and hō ­greth ād thursteth after strength to fullfyll thē and morneth daye ād night desyringe god ac­cordinge to hys promises / for to geve hym po­wer to fullfyll the will of God with love ād luste: then restifyeth hys deade that he is blessed and that the sprite whych blesseth vs in Christe is in hym ād ministreth soch strength. The ou­tewarde deade testifieth what is with in vs / as thou readest Joan. v. The deades whych I do / testifie of me sayth Christ. And Joā. xiij. hereby shall all men knowe that ye are my disci­ples / if ye love one an other. And Joā. xiiij. he that hath my cōmaundementes & keapeth thē the same it is that loveth me. And agayne / he that loveth me kepeth my cōmaundementes / ād he that loveth me not kepeth not my com­maundementes / [Page lij] the outwarde deade testifyinge of the inwarde herte. And John .xv. Yf ye shall kepe my cōmaundementes ye shall con­tinue in my love / as I kepe my fathers cōma­undemente and continue in his love. That is / as ye se y ^• love that I have to my father in that I kepe his commaundementes / so shall ye se the love that ye have to me in that ye kepe my commaundementes.

Thou mayst not thīke that oure deades bles­se vs fyrst and that we prevent God and his grace in Christe / as though we in oure natu­rall gyftes and beinge as we were borne in Adam / loked on the lawe of God and of oure owne strength fulfylled it and so became rig­htewes / and thē with that rightewesnes obtayned the favoure of God. As philosophers write of rightewesnes / & as the rightewesnes of temporall lawe is / where the lawe is satis­fied with the ypocresie of the outwarde deade. For contrarie to that readeste thou John .xv. Ye have not chosen me (sayth Christ) but I h­ave chosen you / that ye goo & bringe forth frute / and that youre frute remayne. And in y ^e sa­me chapter. I am a vine ād ye the braunches and with oute me can ye do no thinge. With vs therfore so goeth it. In Adam ar we all as it were wilde crabtres / of which God choseth whom he wyll and plucketh them oute of A­dam [Page] and planteth them in the garden of hys mercye and stocketh them and graffeth the sprite of Christe in them / which bryngeth fo­rth the frute of the wyll of God / which frute testifyeth that God hath blessed vs ī Christe. Note this also / that as longe as we lyve we are yet partly carnall ād fleshly (notwithstōd­inge y ^t we are ī Christe & though it be not im­puted vnto vs for Christes sake) for there ab­ydeth and remayneth in vs yet of the old Adā as it were the stooke of the crabtree / ād ever e­monge when occasion is gyven him / shoteth forth hys / braunches and leves / buddde / bl­osome and frute. Agaynst whom we muste fyght and subdue hym and chaunge all hys nature by a lytle and a lytle / wyth prayer fast­inge / watchinge / with vertnose meditacion ād holy workes / vntyll we be all together spry­te. The kingdome of hevē sayth Christ Math. xiij. ys▪ lyke leven which a woman taketh and hydeth in .iij. peckes of meale tyll all belev­ended. The leven is the sprite and we the me­ale which must be seasoned with y ^e sprite a litle and a lytle tyll we be thorowe owre sprytuall.

Wich shall rewarde every man accord­inge to his deade. Rom. ij. that is accordinge as the deades are / so shall every mans rewar be / the deades declare what we are / as the fr­ute the tree / accordinge to the frute shall the [Page liij] tree be praysed. The rewarde is gyven of the mercy and trueth of God / and by the deservi­nge and merytes of Christe. Whosoever repe­nteth / beleveth the Gospell / and putteth hys truste in Christes merytes / the same ye heyre with Christe of eternall lyfe / for assuraunce where of the sprite of God is powred in to his herte as an erneste / which louseth hym from the bondes of Sathan / and gyveth hym luste and strength every day more and more accor­dinge as he is diligente to axe of God for Ch­ristes sake. And eternall lyfe foloweth good lyvinge. I suppose (sayth saynte Paule in the same pystle the .viij. Chapter) that the afflicty­ons of thys worlde are not worthye of the gl­orye which shalbe showed on vs / y ^t is to say / that which we here suffer can never deserve that rewarde which there / shalbe gyvē vs.

Moare over yf the rewarde shulde depēd and hange of the werkes / no man shulde be saved. For as moch as our beste deades / co­mpared to the lawe / are damnable synne. By the deades of the lawe is no flesh iustyfyed / as it ys wryttē in the thrid Chapter to y ^• Rom. The lawe iustifieth not / but vttereth the sinne only & compelleth & dryveth the penitēt or re­pentinge sinner to fle vnto y ^e seyntory of mercy in y ^• bloude of Christe. Also repēte we never so moch / be we never so well willīge vnto y ^• la­we [Page] of God. Yet are we so weake / and the sna­res ād occasions so in numerable that we fal­le dayly & hourely. So that we coude not but dispere / if the rewarde hanged of the worke. Whosoever ascribeth eternall lyfe vnto the deservinge and merite of workes / must faule in one of two inconvenientes / ether must he be a blinde pharisey not seinge that the law ys sprituall and he carnall / and loke and reioyse in the outewarde shinynge of his deades / de­spysynge the weke and in respecte of them Justifie him selfe. Or else (if he se how that the lawe is sprituall and he never able to ascende vnto that which the lawe requyreth) he must neades despere. Let every Christen man ther­fore reioyse in Christe oure hope / trust and ri­ghtewesnes / in whom we are loved / chosen and accepte vnto the enheritaunce of eternall lyfe / nether presumynge in oure perfectnes / nether desperinge in oure weaknes. The per­fecter a man is / the clerer is his sight / and se­yth a thousande thinges which desplease him and also perfectenes that can not be obtayned in this lyfe. And therfore desyreth to be with Christe / where is no moare synne. Let hym th­aris weake and can not doe that he wolde fa­yne doe not despeare / but turne to him that ys stronge and hath promysed to geve stren­gth to all that axe of him in Christes name / [Page liiij] and complaine to God and desyre him to full­fill his promises / and to God committe him selfe. And he shall of his mercye and trueth strength him and make him feale / with what love he is beloved for Christes sake / though he be never so weake.

THey are not righteous before God w­hich heare the lawe / but they which do the lawe shall be iustyfyed. Romano. ij. This rexte ys playner than that it neadeth to be expouned. In the chapter before Paule proveth that the lawe naturall holpe not the gentyles. For the lawe of God was written in the hertes of the gentyles (as it appereth by the lawes / statutes and ordinaunces which they made inther cytes) yet kepte they them not. The grete kepe the smalle vnder forther owne profette with the violence of the lawe. Every man prayseth the lawe as fer forth as it is profitable and pleasaunte vnto him selfe. But when his awn appetites shulde be refr­ayned / then grudgeth he agaynst the lawe. More over he proveth that no knowleage holpe the gentyles. For though the lerned men (as the philosophers) came to the know­leage of God / by the creatures of the worlde / yet had they no power to worsheppe God. In thys seconde chapter proveth he that the Ie­wes (though they had the lawe written) yet is [Page] holpe them not: they coude not kepe it / but we­re ydolaters and were also murtherers / adul­ters and what so ever the lawe forbade. He cō cludeth therefore that the Iewe is as well dā ­ned as the gentyle. Iff hearinge of the lawe only myght have iustifyed / then had the Ie­wes bin ryghteous. But it required y ^t a mā do the lawe / if he will be ryghteous. Which be­cause the Iewe did not / he is no lesse damned then the gentyle. The publishinge and decla­ringe of the lawe doth but vtter a mās sinne / and geveth nether strength nor helpe to full­fylle the lawe. The lawe kylleth thy consciens and geveth the no lust to fullfyll the lawe. Fayth in Christ geveth lust and power to doo the lawe. Now is it true that he which doeth the lawe is righteous / but that doth no man save he that beleveth and putteth hys trust in Christe.

IFF any mans worke that he hath bylde apon abyde / he shall receave a rewarde .i. Corint. ij. The circumstance of the sa­me Chapter / that is to were / that which goeth before & that which foloweth / declareth playnly what is mente. Paule talketh of lerninge doctrine or peachinge. He sayth that he hym selfe hath layd the fundacion / which is Jesus Christe: and that no man can laye any other. He exhorteth therfore every mā to take heade [Page lv] what he byldeth apon / ād boroweth a simili­tude of y ^e goldsmyth which trieth hys metal­les with fyre sayenge that the fyre (that ys) the iudgemente of the scripture / shall trye every mans worke / that is every mans preachinge and doctrine. Yf any byld vpon the fundaey­on layd of Paule / I meane Jesus Christ / go­ld sylver or precious stoone / which are all one thynge and signifye true doctrine / which wh­en it is examined the scripture aloweth / then shall he have hys rewarde / that ys he shall be sure that his lernynge is of God / and that Goddes spryt ys in hym and that he shall h­ave the rewarde that Christe hath purchas­ed for hym. On the other syde yf any man byl­de ther on tymbre / heye or stubble / which are all one and sygnyfye doctrine of mans yma­genacyon / tradicyons and fantasyes which stonde not wyth Christe when they are exa­myned and iudged by the scripture / he shall sofre damage / but shalbe saved hym selfe / yet as yt were thorowe fyre / that ys / it shalbe pa­ynesull vnto hī / that he hath lost hys labou­re / and to se hys byldinge perishe / not wyth­stondinge yf he repente and enbrace the tru­th in Christe / he shall obteyne mercy & be sa­ved. But if Paule were now a live & wolde defende his awne lernīge / he shulde be tried tho­rowe fyre / not thorowe fyre of y ^• iudgement of [Page] scripture (for that lyght men now vtterly ref­use) but by the popes lawe and with fyre of fagottes /

WE must all appere before the iudge­mente seate of Christe / for to receave every mā acordinge to y ^e deades of his body .ij. Corin. v. As thi deades testifie of the so shall thi rewarde be. Thy deades be ev­yll / then is the wrath of God apon the / and thine herte is evill and so shall thi rewarde be iff thou repente not. Feare therfore and crye to God for grace / that thou mayst love hys lawes. And when thou lovest them cease not tyll thou have optayned power of God to fullfyll them: so shalt thou besure that a go­od rewarde shall folowe. Which rewarde not thye deades / but Christes have purchased for the / whose purchasinge also is that lust which thow hast to Goddes lawe / and that mighte where wyth thou [...]ullfyllest them Remembre also / that a rewarde ys rath­er called that whych is gyven frely / then that which is deserved. That which is dese­rved / is called (if thou wilt gyve hym hys right name) hyre or wages. A rewarde is g­yven frely to provoke vnto love and to make frendes.

Remēbre y ^• what so ever good thinge any man doeth / that shall he receave of the lorde. [Page lvj] Ephesy. vj. Remembringe that ye shall re­ceave of the lorde the rewarde of enheritance. Collossens. iij. These two textes are exceadin­geplayne. Paul. meaneth as Peter doeth .j. Petr. ij. that servauntes shuld obey ther ma­sters with all ther hertes and with good will though they were never so e [...]ill. Yee he will that all that are vnder powere obeye / even of herte and of conscience to God / be cause G­od will have it so / be the rulers never so wic­ked. The chylderne must obeve father and m­other be they never so cruell or vnkynde / lyfe wyse the wyfe hyr husbonde / the servaunte his master / the subiectes and communes th­eir lorde or kynge. Why? For [...]e scrve the lorde sayth he in the thryd to y ^e Coll. Wear Christes and Christe hath boughte vs / as thou read­est Ro. xiiij. j. Cori. vj. j. Peter. j. Christe is oure lorde and we hys possessyon / and hys also is the commaundemente. Now ought not y ^• cr­ueluesse and churleshnesse of father and mot­her / of husbonde / master / lorde or kinge / cause vs to hate the cōmaūdemēte of oureso kynde a lorde Christe. Which spared not his bloude for oure sales which also hath purchased for vs with his bloude / y ^t rewarde of eternall life which life shal folowe y ^e paciēce of good levīg & where vnto oure good deades testifie y ^t we are chosen, Forthermoare we are so carnall / [Page] that if the rulers be good / we can not knowe whether we kepe the commaundemente for y ^e love that we have to Christ and to God thor­owe him or no. But and if thon canst fynde in thine herte to doe good vnto him that rew­ardeth the evyll agayne / then art thou sure that the same spirite is in the that is in Chri­ste. And it foloweth in the same chapter to the Collossiens. He that doeth wronge shall re­ceave for the wronge that he hath done. Th­at is God shall avenge the aboundantly / w­hich seyth what wronge is done vnto the and yet sofereth it for a tyme / that thou myghtest feale thy pacyence and the workynge of hys sprite in the / and be made perfecte. Therfore se that thou not once desyre vengeaunce but remitte all vengeaunce vnto God as Christ dyd. Whych (Sayth Peter .i. Petri. ij.) when he was revyled / revyled not agayne / nether thretned when he sofered. Vnto such obedien­ce / vnto such pacyence / vnto such a pore he­rte / and vnto such fealinge / is Pauls mean­ynge to bringe all men / and not vnto the va­yne dysputynge of them that ascrybe so hye a place in heven vnto there pylde merytes. W­hych as they feale not the workynge of God­des spryte / so obey they no man. Yf the fy­nge do vnto them but ryghte / they wyll inte­rdyte the hole realme / curse / excomunycate [Page lvij] and sende downe fer beneth the botome of hell / as they have brought the people oute of there wyttes / and made them madd to beleve.

THy prayers and almes ar come vp in to remembraunce in the presens of G­od. (in the tenth Chapter of the Actes) That is God forgetteth the not / though he come not at the fyrst callynge / he loketh on ād beholdeth thy prayers and almes. Prayer cometh from the herte. God loketh first on the herte / and then on the deade. As thou readist Genesis .iiij. God be helde▪ loked fyrst on A­bell / and then on hys offerynge. Yf the hert be vnpure / the deade veryly playseth not / as thou seyst in Cayn. Marke the order. In the begynnynge of the chapter thou readest / t­here was a certayne man named Cornelius which feared God / gave moch almes / and praied God alwaye. He feared God / that is he trēblede and quakede to breake the cōmaū ­demētes of God. Thē praied he allwaie. Pra­yer is the frute effecte / deade or acte of faith & is no thige but the lōgige of the herte for tho thinges which a mā lacketh and which God hath promised to geve him. He doeth also al­mes. Almes is the frute / effecte or deade of compassiō and pitie which we have to our n­eyboure. Oh a gloryouse fayth and a ryght [Page] which so tru [...]eth God and beleveth his pro­mises / that she feareth to breake his cōmaun­demenres and is also mercyfull vnto hyr ney­boure. This is that fayth where of thou readest namely in Peter / Paule ād John / that we are there by both iustifyed and saved. And who so ever ymageneth any other fayth / deceaveth hym selfe and is a vayne disputer and a b­ [...]auler a boute wordes / and hath no fealin­ge in his herte.

Though thou consent to the lawe / that it is good righteous and holy / soroweste and repē ­test because thou hast broken it / mornest be­cause thou hast no strength to fullfill it: yet art not thou there by at one with God. Yee thou shuldest shortly despayre and blaspheme God if the promises of forgevenes and of helpe were not there by / and fayth in thine herte to be­leve them. Fayth therfore setteth the at one wyth God.

Fayth prayeth allwaye. For she hath all­waye hyr infirmites and weakneses before hir eyes / and also Gods promises / for which she alwaye longeth and in all places. But blinde vnbelefe prayeth not alwaye nor in all places / but in the church only / and y ^t in soch a church / where it is not lawfull to preach gods promi­ses / nether to teach mē to truste there in. Faith when she prayeth setteth not hyr good deades [Page lviij] before hyrsayng: Lorde for my good deades do this or that. Nor bargeneth with God sayinge lorde graunte me this or do this or that / ād I will do thys or y ^t for the / as mumble so moch daily / goo so ferre or fast this or that fast / entre in thys religyon or that / wyth soch other po­yntes of infidelyte / yee rather ydolatrye. But she setteth hyr infirmities and hyr lacke before hyr face ād Gods promyses sayinge: Lorde for thy mercye and trueth which thou hast sworne be mercyfull vnto me / and plucke me oute of thys pryson and oute of this hell. And loose the bondes of Satan and gyve me power to glorifye thy name. Fayth therfore iustifyeth in the herte and before God / and the deades iu­stifye outewardly before the worlde / that is / testifye only before men / what we are inwardly before God.

Who so ever lokes in the perfecte lawe of libertye and continueth ther in (Yf he be not a forgetfull hearer but a do [...]r of the worke) he shalbe happye in his deade. James .i. The la­we of libertye / that is / which requyreth a fre hart / or (if thou fullfyll it) declareth afre harte lowesed from the bondes of satan. The prea­chinge of the lawe maketh no mā fre / but byn deth. For it is the keye that byndeth all cōsci­ences vnto eternall dānacion / when it is prea­ched: as the promyses or Gospell is the keye [...] [Page] lowseth all consciences that repe [...]t when they are bound thorowe preachinge of y ^e lawe. He shalbe happye in his deade / that is / by his de­ade shall he knowe that he is happye ād bles­sed of God which hath gevē hī a good harte & power to fullfyll the lawe. By hearinge the lawe thou shalt not knowe that thou art bles­sed but if thou do it / yt declareth that thou art happye and blessed.

WAs not Abrahā iustifyed of his dea­des / when he offered his sonne Isa­ac apō the altar? James .iij. his dea­de iustifyed hym before the worlde / that is / yt declared and vttered the fayth which both in­stifyeth hym before God / ād wrought that wō derfull worke as James also affermeth.

Was not Raab the harlo [...]t iustyfied when she receaved the messingers and sent them on­ [...]e an other waye? Jam .iij. that is lyke wyse outewardly / but before God she was iustified by fayth which wrought that outewarde deade / as thou mayste se Josue .ij. She had herde w­hat God had done in Egypte / in the redd see / in the deserte / and vnto the two kinges of the Amorreās / Seon / ād Og. And she confessed seynge: youre lorde God / he is God in heven / above ād in erth benethe. She also beleved y ^t god as he had promised y ^• chylderne of Israell wold gyve thē the londe where in she dwelt / & [Page lix] consented there vnto / submitted hyr selfe vnto the will of God / & holpe God (as moch as in hyr was) ād saved his spies & messingers. The other feared y ^• which she beleved / but resysted God with all ther might ād had no power to submitte thē selfe vnto the will of God. And therfore perished they / ād she was saved & that thorowe fayth / as we reade Hebre. xi. where thou maist se how the holy fathers were saved thorowe fayth / ād how faith wrought in them. Faith is y ^• goodnes of all y ^e deades y ^• are done with in the lawe of god & maketh thē good ād gloriouse / seme thei never so vile & vnbelefe m­aketh thē dānable seme they never so glorious.

AS pertaninge to y ^t which James ī this .iij. Ch. saith. What avayleth though a mā say that he hath fayth / if he have no deades? cā fayth save hī? ād agayne. faith wit­houte deades is dead in it selfe. And y ^• devils beleve & trēble. And as y ^• body withoute y ^• spryte is deed / evē so faith withoute deades is deed. It is manifest ād cleare y ^t he meaneth not of y ^• faith where of Peter ād Paule speake in there pistles / John in his Gospell ād first pistle / and Christe in the Gospell when he saith / thy fayth hath made the safe / be it to the accordinge to thy faith / or greate is thy faith & so forth / & of which James hym selfe speaketh in the fyrste Chapter sayinge: of hys own will begate he vs [Page] whith the worde of lyfe / that is in belevīge the promyses where in is lyfe / are we made the sonnes of God.

Whych thinge I also thys wise prove. Paul sayth / how shall or can they beleve wythoute a preacher? how shulde they preach / excepte they were sente? Now I pray you whē was it hearde that God sent any man to preach vnto the devyls / or that he made thē any good pro­mes? He threatneth them oft / but never sent embassadours to preach any atonement be­twene hym and them. Take an ensample that thou mayst vnderstonde. Let there be two po­re men both destitute of raymente in a colde winter / the one stronge that he fealeth no grefe the other grevously / morninge for payne of the colde. I then come by and moved with pitye and compassion saye vnto hym that fealeth his dysease / come to soch a place and I will gyve the raymente sufficiente. he beleveth / cometh / and obtayneth that which I have promised. That other seeth all thys and knoweth it / but is partaker of noughte. For he hath no fayth / ād that is because ther is no promise made hī. So is i [...] of the devyls The devyls have no fa­yth▪ For fayth is but ernest belevinge of Gods promyses. Now are there no promyses made vnto the devyls / but sore thretninges. The olde Philosophers knewe that there was one God / [Page lx] but yet had no fayth / for they had no powere to seke his will nether to worshippe hym. The turkes and the saresons knowe that there is one God / but yet have no fayth. For they ha­ve no power to worshippe God in sprite to seke his playsure and to submytte them vnto hys will. They made an ydolle of God (as we do for the most parte) ād worshipped him every man after hys owne ymagination and for a sundry purpose. What we will have done / th­at must God do / and to do oure will wors­hippe we hym and praye vnto him: but what God will have done that will nother turke nor sareson nor the most parte of vs do. what so ever we ymagyon rightheous / that must God admitte. But Goddes righteousnes / w­ill not oure hartes admitte Take an other ens­ample. Let there be two soch as I speake of before & I promise both / ād the one because he fealeth not hys dysease cometh not. So is it of Goddes promyses. No man is holpe by them but synners that feale ther synnes / morne and sorrowe for them and repente with all ther he­rtes. For John Baptiste wēte before Christe & preached repentaūce / that is / he preached the lawe of God righte / ād brought the people in to knowleage of thē selves / & vnto the feare of God / and then sente them vnto Christe to be healed. For in Christe & for his sake only hath [Page] God promised to receave / vs vnto mercye / to forgyve vs & to give vs power to resiste sinne How shall god save the / when thou knowest not thye dānacion? How shall Christe deliver the from synne / when thou wilt not knowele­age thy synne? Now I pray the how many t­howsandes are there of them that saye I bel­eve that Christe was borne of a virgī / that he dyed / that he rose agayn & so forth / and thou cāste not bringe thē in belefe / that they have any sinne at all? How many are there of the same sorte which thou canst not make beleve that a thousande thinges are sinne which god dāneth for sinne all the scripture thorowe ou­te? As to bye as good chepe as he cā / & to sell as deare as he can / to rayse the marker of co­rne and vitaile / for his owne vauntage / wit­houte respecte of his neyboure or of the poere or of the cōmune wealeh and soch lyke. Mor­eover how many hūdrede thousandes are th­ere which whē they have sinned / & knowleage ther sinnes: yet trust in a bald ceremonye or in a lowf [...]e freris coete & merites or ī the praiers of thē y ^t devoure widowes howses & eateth y ^e pore oute of howse & herboure / in a thinge of his owne ymaginaciō / in a folishe dreme ād a false visiō / & not in Christes bloude & in the tr­ueth that god hath sworne? All these are fayt­h [...]lesse / for they folowe ther owne righteous­nes [Page lxj] & are disobediēte vnto all maner righteo­usnes of god: both vnto the righteousnes of gods lawe where with he dāneth all oure de­ades (sor though some of thē se ther sinnes f­or feare of payne / yet had y ^e lever y ^• soch dead­es were no sinne) & also vnto y ^e righteousnes of y ^• trueth of god in his promises where by he sayeth all y ^• repēte & beleve thē. For though y ^e beleve y ^t Christe dyed / yet beleve y ^t not y ^t he dy­ed for there sinnes & that his deeth is a suffi­ciēte satisfacciō for there sinnes / ād that God for his sake wilbe a father vnto them and gere them powere to resiste sinne.

Paule saieth (to y ^e Romains ī the .x. Chap.) iff thou confesse with thy mouth that Jesus is the lorde and beleve with hyne herte that God raysed hym vp from death / thou shalte be safe. That is if it thou beleve he reysed hī vp againe for thy salvacion. Many beleve that God is rich and almyghtye / but not vnto them selves and that he wilbe good to them and defende them and be there God.

Pharao for payne of y ^e plage was cōpellede to cōfesse his sinnes / but had yet no power to submitte hī selfe vnto y ^e will of god ād to lette the childer of Israell goo ād to loose so gret­te profet for Gods playsure. As oure prela­tes confesse there sinnes sayenge: though we be never so evyll / yet have we the power. And [Page] agayne / the scribes ād the phareses (say they) sate in Moyses se ate / do as they teach but not as they doo / thus cōfesse they that thei are ab­hominabile. But to the seconde I answere / yf they sate on Christes se are they wolde pre­ach Christes doctrine / nowe preach they the­yre owne tradicions ād therfore not to be he­rde. If they preached Christe we ought to he­re them though they were never so abhomin­able / as they of them selves confesse and ha­ve yet no power to amende nether to let lowe­se Christes flocfe to serve God in y ^e sprite wh­ych they holde captyve compellinge thē to ser­ve theyre false lyes. The devils felte the power of Christe and were compelled agaynst there willes to cōfesse that he was the sonne of G­od / but had no power to be contēte there with nether to consent vnto the ordinaunce & eter­nall cowncell of the everlastīge God / as ou­re prelates feale the pover of God againste thē but yet have no grace to geve rowme vnto C­hriste / because that they (as the devils nature ys) wyll thē selves sitt in his holy temple / that ys to wete / the consciences of men.

¶ Simon magus beleved / Actes .viij. with soch a sayth as y ^• devils confessed Christe / but had no righte fayth / as thou seyst in the sayd chapter. For he repented not consentinge vnto the lawe of God. Nether beleved the promisto [Page lxij] or longed for thē / but wondred only at the my racles which Philippe wroughte and becau­se that he him self in Philippes presence had no power to vse his wicheraste / sorcery and art magyte / wherewith he mocted ād delud­ed the wittes of the peeple. he wold have bou­ght the gyft of God to have sold it much de­arer / as his successours now do and not the succestoures of Simō peter. For were they Symō Peters successours / they wold preach Ch­riste as hedyd / but they are Simon magusses successours of which Simon Peter well pro­phesied in the seconde Chapter of his seconde Pistle sayēge / there were fals prophetes am­onge the people (meaninge of the Jeves) evē as there shal be false teachers or doctours a­monge you / which pryvely shall bringe in se­ctes damnable (sectes is partetakinge as one holdeth of fraūces another of dominyct wh­ich thinge also Paul rebuketh .i. Corinthi. i. and .iij.) even denienge the lorde that bought them (for they wyll not be saved be Christe ne­ther so fre any mā to preach hym to other) And many shall folowe there dānable wayes (th­ou wilt say shall God so fre so many to goo oute of the right wayes so lōge? I answere ma­ny must folowe theyre dānable wayes or else must Peter be a fals prophete) by which the waye of trueth shal be evyll spoken of (as it is [Page] nowe at this presente tyme. For it is heresye to preach the trueth) and thorowe co [...]etousnes shall they with fayned wordes make mercha­undyse of you / of theyre merchaūdyse and co­vetousnes it neadeth not to make rehersall / for they that be blinde se it evidently.

Thus seyst thou that James when he sayth (fayth withoute deades is deed / ād as the bo­dy withoute the sprite is deed / so is fayth wit­houte deades / and the devyls beleve) that he meaneth not of the fayth and trust that we ha­ve in the trueth of Gods promises and in hys holy testamēte made vnto vs in Christes bloude / which fayth foloweth repētaunce and the consente of the herte / vnto the lawe of God / & maketh a mā safe / & setteth hym a [...]peace with God. But speaketh of that false opinion and ymaginacion where with some saye / I beleve that Christe was borne of a virgine / and that he deed and so forth. That beleve they veryly / & so strongely that they are readie to sley whoso­ever wolde saye the contrarye. But they beleve not that Christe deed for theyre sinnes / ād that his death hath peased the wrath of God and hath obtained for thē all that God hath pro­mised in the scripture. For how cā they beleve that Christe deed for theyre sinnes / and that he is there only and sufficiente savioure / seynge y ^• they sefe other saviours of ther owne yma­ginacion / [Page lxiii] and seynge that they feale not theyre sinnes neyther repēte / excepte that some repēte (as I above sayd) for feare of paine / but for no love nor cōsente vnto the lawe of God nor lō ­ginge that they have for those good promyses which he hath made them in Christes bloude Yff they repented and loved the lawe of God & longed for that helpe which God hath pro­mised to gyve to all that call on hym for Chri­stes sake / then veryly must Gods trueth gy [...]e them power and strength to doo good workes when so ever occasion were given / eyther must God be a fals God. But let God be true and every man a lyer as scripture sayth. For the trueth of god lasteth ever / to whom only be all honor and glorie forever.

Amen.