dren, and walke ye in loue as Christ also hath loued vs, and hath deliuered vp him self for vs, an offering and sacrifice to God of a sweete sauour. To the Philippians thus he speaketh in the first chapter: Onely let your conuersation be worthy of the Gospel of Christ, that either when I shal come and see you, or els in mine absence I may heare of you, that you stand stedfast in one spirit, labouring together with one accorde for the faith of the Gospel. And in nothing be ye afrayde of the aduersaries which is to them a cause of damnation, but to you of saluation, and that of God. For to you it is geuen, not onely that you should beleue in him, but also that you shuld suffer with him, you hauing the like fight and battayle that both you haue seene in me, and also nowe do heare of me. If therefore there be anye consolation in Christ, if any comfort of charity, if any felowship of the spirit, if any bowels of compassion: fulfil you my ioy, that you may be of one iudgement, hauing one and the self same charity, being of one accord, of one maner of iudgemēt, doing nothing of contention, nor of vaine glorye, but in humblenes accompting other amongest you euery one better then youre selues, not euery bodye lookinge vpon the thinges that be his owne, but those that belong vnto others. MarginaliaPhilip. 1.And to the Colossiās. 3. chapter thus he wryteth: You therefore as the elect of God, holy, and beloued, put vpon you the bowels of mercye, gentlenes, humblennes, lowlines, modesty, pacience, bearing one with an other, and geuing place to your selues (if any haue a quarel against any body) euen as the Lord forgaue you, so doo you also. Aboue all thinges haue ye charitie, which is the bond of perfectiō, and let the peace of Christ triumph in your hartes, in which peace you also are called in one body. And be ye kinde and thankefull. MarginaliaColos. 3.And to the Thessalonians thus Paule writeth in the. 4. chapter. As concerning brotherly charity, we haue no nede to write vnto you: for you your selues haue learned of God, that you should loue one an other. And the same thing ye doo towardes all the brethren throughout all Macedonia.
[Back to Top]MarginaliaThes. 4.Out of all these and many other places of the holye scripture it sufficiētly appeareth, that the law of Christ is charitie, neither is there anye vertues commaunded of Christe, or any of his Apostles to bee obserued of the faithfull people, but that it commmeth out of charitye, or els doth nourish charity.
[Back to Top]The law is geuen by Moises, and the truth by Christ. Christ came not to vnlose the law and the prophets, but to fulfill them. MarginaliaMany things obserued in the old law which be not obserued now. Many thinges vnlawfull in the old law, which be lawfull now. How Christ did loose and not loose the law.But yet many thinges were lawfull and might haue bene obserued in the time of the law, which in the time of grace must not be obserued. And manye thinges were vnlawfull to them that were vnder the law, which in the time of grace are lawfull inough. After what sort then he did not loose the law, but did fulfill it, it is necessary to declare, for those thinges which here after must be sayde. For amongest Christians, manye thinges are iudged to be lawfull, because in the former Testament in the law, they were lawfull: and yet they be expresly contrary to Christes Gospell. But the aucthors of such thinges do argue and reason thus: Christ came not to loose the law or the Prophetes. Nowe after what sort he did not vnloose them, it is manifest by the holy scripture: that the law geuen by Moyses, was written in tables of stone, to declare the hardnes of the peoples hart towardes the loue of God, or of Christ. But Christ hath written his law in the harts & in the mindes of his, that is to saye, the law of perfect loue of God and of Christ. Which law whosoeuer obserueth, he doth obserue the law of Moyses, and doth much greater workes of perfection, then were the workes of the lawe. Thus therefore were the morals of the old lawe fulfilled in the law of the charitie of Christ, and not vnloosed: because they ar much more perfectly obserued, thē of the Iewes. This I say, if the Christians do obserue the commaun-demēts of Christ in such sort, as he comaūded the same to be obserued. Christe hath fulfilled þe lawes morall of the old testamēt, because that the morals and iudicials were ordayned, that one person should not do iniurye to an other, and that euery man should haue paid him that is his. Now, they that are in charity, wyll not do iniury to others, neither do they take other mens goods away from them. Nay it seeketh not her own thinges. For charity seeketh not the things that be her own. Wherfore, much lesse by a stronger reason it ought not to seeke for other mens goods. And when as the Iudicials and morals were ordayned: Christ did not by the workes of the law iustifye the beleuers in him, but by grace iustified them from their sinnes. And so did Christ fulfill that by grace, that the law could not by iustice. MarginaliaFree iustification, by faith onely.Paul to the Romaines declareth in a godly discourse, and to the Galathians likewyse: that none shal be iustified by the works of the law, but by grace, MarginaliaGrace that is, free fauor, mercy and goodnes of god.in the faith of Iesu Christ.
Brut's criticism of ceremonies and good works is interesting, but Foxe is stretching a point to hail it as justification by faith.