A Christian Instruction Containing the Law and the Gospel, Exposition 2 · Part 35 – Part 36
Hovve that the vvill of man cannot by any meanes be conſtrayned, no, not by the deuill himſelfe, but only of his ovvne vvickednes.
T.
FOr my parte I graunte to all that which thou haſt ſayde, but yet canſt thou not denye, but that mā is yet oftentimes conſtrained to ſinne by meane of ye temptacion and ſoliciting of the deuill.
D.
This conſtraint wherof thou ſpeakeſt, is cōſtraint without cōſtraint, for it is not in the power of al the deuils nor of al ye creatures that are, to conſtraine the will of one mā. Wherfore, what temptatiō or ſolicitatiō ſo euer happē vntounto him, if he did not willingly conſent therevnto, he could not be induced to do any kinde of thyng againſt his will. But it fareth with hym as it doth with a harlot: for if ſhe be ſolicited by bawdes and whoremaſters, ſhe will giuegive ouer hir ſelfe vntounto them, which thing an honeſt woman will not do, but will reſiſt all ſuche temptations and procurements, & wil ouercome them. Therfore albeit that the harlot may impute ſome parte of the cauſe of the offēce that ſhe hath committed, to thoſe that did entiſe hir and procure hir therevnto, yet notwithſtanding ſhe may not ſay that ſhe hath bin conſtrayned ſo to do, nor may by that meane excuſe hir ſelfe, for if ſhe had not agréed therevnto of hir owne will, ſhe had not at all playde the harlot, but bycauſe that ſhe was already naturally thervnto enclyned, theſe procuremēts did ſerue hir as it were matches, oyle & wood throwne into the fire, which would kindle nor ſlame neuer the ſooner nor the more, if it were not naturally enclyned and prompte therevnto. In like ſorte is man broughte to euill thorough his owne concupiſcence, the which being wakened and ſturred vp by the diuell,Iames. 1. dothe the more declare it ſelfe, and ſheweth more plainely what his nature is: wherfore thou ſéeſt here howe that man dothe continually ſinne of his owne will, and if he will ſaye that he hath bin conſtrayned to do any kind of worke the which he knoweth manifeſtly to be againſt the will of God, it muſt be conſidered wherein he hath bin enforced and cōſtrayned, if he hauehave in any wiſe bin enforced by ye force of others, ſo that he could not be in any wiſe maſter of his members, although he did reſiſt it by all the meanes that he coulde, and dyd declare by his wordes and actes that hys harte and will did in no wiſe conſente thervnto, he may be excuſed as an honeſt womā may that hath bin takē of force, the which notwithſtanding hath cried and reſiſted by all meanes poſſible againſt the whoremaſter, and hath bin as willing to loſe hir life as hir chaſtitie: but if thou doeſt an euill worke, either to pleaſe men, or elſe for feare that thou ſhouldeſt fall into their diſpleaſure or indignation, and receyue any diſhonor or wordly hindrance, thou maiſt in ſuche a caſe alledge none other conſtrainte but only that of thy wicked wil: no more than Pilate might whē he condemned Ieſus Chriſte,Matth. 27. Iohn. 29. enforced by the conſtrainte of the Iewes. For if thou didſt louelove God with al thy harte, and better than thy ſelfe, and didſt more eſtéeme his glory than thine owne, and thy ſoule, than thy body, and the heauen more than thou doeſt the earth, thou moughteſt be frée from loſing, that whiche thou feareſt to loſe,Matth. 10. Iohn. 13. and ſhouldeſt not loſe it at all, but ſhouldeſt gaine it double. For as Ieſus Chriſt ſaith, he that ſhall looſe his life for my ſake, the ſame ſhall finde it, and he that feareth to looſe it, the ſame ſhal looſe it, and therefore thou wouldeſt not leaue God for any creature, nor woldeſt change the inheritaunce whiche is prepared for thée in heauen, for no earthly inheritance, nor the bleſſing of God thy father, for a meſſe of potage,Geneſ. 2.25 Hebr. 11. as did Eſau, but woldeſt rather looſe thy life which ought not to be ſo deare vntounto thée as the honoure of God, and the ſaluation of thy ſoule.
Of the contrarietie vvhichwhich ſemeth ſomtime to be among the commaundements of God, and vvhat conſideration is required in the ſame, and of the deuiſion of the vvhole lavve into tvvo tables, and of the order of the matters that are diſpoſed & cōteined in thē.
T.
I Do knowe righte well now by that whiche thou ſaiſt, that all ſuche clokings cannot excuſe vsus before God: but from whence commeth it, that God ſomtimes dothe allow workes, whiche he ſeemeth to hauehave forbidden? he commaundeth to honoure father and mother, and to obey the magiſtrates, and yet notwithſtāding he doth often times greatly commend thoſe which do not obey thē at all. He forbiddeth murther, and yet ſometime he commendeth thoſe that do committe it.
D.
That diuerſitie cōmeth of the nature of the commandementes of God, and of the order whereby he hathe diſpoſed them in his Lawe, for he hathe broughte and deuided the whole into two Tables, in which he hath written & diſpoſed his commaundementes, according to the order & worthyneſſe of the thing that eueryevery one of them cōteyneth.
T.
Declare that order vntounto me.
D.
In the firſt he hath written foure, which do properly and directly concerne his glory without ſpeciall conſideration of any other than of him, as the three firſt requeſts which are written in the prayer of our Lorde Ieſus Chriſte. The ſecond conteyneth ſixe, which do concerne thoſe things that do belong to oure neyghboure, which muſt be meaſured by the firſt foure, of which they do depende, and to whoſe ende they oughte alway to hauehave regard: as the thrée laſt requeſtes of ye prayer of our Lord Ieſus Chriſt,A leſſon of gret weght ought alway to be referred to that ende wherevnto the thrée firſt do pretend, wherefore, if any thing do happen, for the which any commaundement of the firſte table muſt be broken, to accompliſh any of the ſecōd, it behoueth them in ſuche a caſe that the ſeconde giuegive place to the firſte, and that it hauehave recourſe vntounto the ſame, to hauehave the true vnderſtanding and the true vſage of that which it doth conteyne.