The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3 · Chapter 15
The .xv. Chapter. ¶ That those thinges that are commōly boasted concernyng the merites of workes, do ouerthrow as well the praise of God in geuing of righteousnesse, as also the assurednesse of saluation.
NOw we hauehave declared that which is ye chefe point in this matter: that bycause yf righteousnesse be vpholden with workes, it must needes by & by fal downe before the sight of God, it is conteined in ye only merciemercy of God, the only cō municating of Christ, & therefore in only faith. But, let vsus diligētly mark that this is the chefe stay of the matter, least we be entangled with that general error, not only of the cōmon people, but also of learned mē. For so sone as question is moued of the iustificatiō of faith & workes, they flee to those places which seme to geue to workes some merit in the sight of God: as though the iustification of workes were fully wonne, if it be ones proued that they be of any value with God. But we hauehave aboue plainely shewed that the righteousnesse of workes cōsisteth only in the perfect and ful keping of the law. Wherupon foloweth that no mā is iustified by workes but he that hauyng climbed vp to the hiest top of perfection can not be proued gilty of any offense be it neuer so litle. Therefore it is an other & a seueral questiō: Howsoeuer workes suffice not to iustifie a man, whether yet do they not deserue fauour with God?
First of the name of merit I must needes say this afore hand, y• whosoeuer first applied it to workes of mē cōpared to ye iugemēt of God, he did very ill prouide for the purenesse of faith. Truely I do by my good wil absteine frō striues about words, but I wold with yt this sobrietie bad alway bē vsed amōg Christian writers, yt they wold not hauehave foūd in their heartes to vse words strange frō the Scriptures, which engēdred much offense & no frute. For whereto, I beseche you, was it needeful to hauehave ye name of Merit brought in, when the price of good workes might be fittly expressed by an other name wtout offense? But how much offense ye word cōteineth in it, is euident with ye great hurt of ye world. Surely as it is most proude it cā do nothing but darkē ye grace of God, and fill mē with froward pride. The old writers of the Church, I graūt, hauehave cōmonly vsed it, & I wold to God they had not with the abusyng of one litle word geuē to posteritie matter of error. Howbeit they thēselues also do in many places testifie, how in no case thei meant to geue any preiudice against ye truth. For thus sayth Augustine in one place,…. Let Merites of men here hold their peace, which hauehave perished by Adā: & let the grace of God reigne, by Iesus Christ. Againe, The saintes geue nothing to their owne Merites: they will geue al to none but to thy merciemercy,… 88 O God. In an other place, Whē mā seeth yt whatsoeuer good he hath, he hath it not frō himself, but frō his God, he seeth that al yt which is praised in him, is not of his own Merites, but of the merciemercy of God. You see how taking frō men ye power of doing wel, he also throweth downe the dignitie of Merit. And Chrysostome sayth,… Our workes, if there be any, which folow ye free calling of God, are repayment & det: but the g…tes of God are grace & boūtifulnesse & the greatnesse of liberall geuing. But, leauing the name, let vsus rather loke vpō the thing. I hauehave verily before alledged a sentence out of Bernard▪ As it sufficeth to Merit, not to presume of Merites: so to want Merites, sufficeth to iudgemēt. But by adding forth with an expositiō, he sufficiētly mitigateth ye hardinesse of ye word, where he sayth: Therfore care thou to hauehave Merites: whē thou hast thē, know y• thei are geuē: hope for frute, ye merciemercy of God: & so thou hast escaped al dāger, of pouertie, vnthākfulnesse, & presumptiō. Happy is ye church which neither wāteth Merites without presumptiō, nor presumptiō without merites. And a litle before he had largely shewed, how godly a meaning he vsed. For of Merites (saith he) why shold the Church be careful, which hath a stedfaster & surer cause to glorie of ye purpose of God? God cā not denie himself, he wil do yt which he hath promised. If there be no cause why ye shuldest aske,…. xx…vi …ii. by what merites may we hope for good thinges? specially sith y• hearest it sayd, Not for your sakes, but for my sake: it sufficeth to Merit, to know yt Merites suffice not.
What al our workes deserue, ye scripture sheweth whē it saith yt thei can not abide ye sight of God, bicause thei are ful of vncleannesse: then, what ye perfect obseruing of ye law (if any such could be found) shal deserue, whē it teacheth yt we should think ourselues vnprofitable seruātes when we hauehave done al thinges that are cōmaunded vsus:…. xv.i.… bicause we shal hauehave geuē nothing freely to ye Lord, but only hauehave performed our due seruices, to whiche there is no thanke to be geuen. But those good workes which he himself hath geuen vsus, the Lord both calleth oures, & testifieth that thei are not only acceptable to him, but also that they shal hauehave reward. It is our duetie againe for our part, to be encouraged with so great a promise, & to gather vp our heartes, that we be not weried with wel doyng, & to yeld true thankfulnesse to so great boūtifulnesse of God. It is vndouted that it is the grace of God what soeuer there is in workes that deserueth prayse: that there is not one droppe, which we ought properly to ascribe to our selues. This if we do truely & earnestly acknowlege, there vanisheth away not only all affiance but also opinion of Merit. We (I say) do not part the prayse of good workes (as the Sophisters do) betwene god & mā: but we reserue it whole, perfect, & vnminished to ye lord. Only this we assigne to man, that euē the self same workes that were good he by his vncleannes corrupteth & defileth. For nothing cōmeth out of mā, how perfect so euer he be, yt is not defiled with some spot. Therefore let the Lord cal into iudgement euē these things that are best in the workes of mē: he shal verily espie in them his owne righteousnesse, but mans dishonestie & shame. Good workes therfore do please God & are not vnprofitable to the doers of them, but rather they receiue for reward the most large benefites of God: not bicause thei so deserue, but bicause ye goodnesse of god hath of it self apointed this price vntounto thē. But what spitefulnesse is this, that men not contented with that liberalitie of God, which geueth vndue rewardes to workes that deserue no such thing, do wt ambitiō full of sacrilege endeuor further, that yt which is wholly of the liberalitie of God, maye seme to be rēdred to the merites of mē. Here I appelle to the cōmon iudgement of eueryevery man. If any mā that hath a takyng of profit in a pece of ground by an other mans liberall graunt, do also claime to himselfe the title of propretie: doth he not by such vnthankfulnesse deserue to lose the very self possession whiche he had? Likewise if a bondslaue beyng made free of his Lord, do hide the basenesse of the estate of a Libertine,Libertine, is he that is free by manumissiō, not by birth. & boaste himself to be a freeman borne: is he not worthy to be brought back into his former bondage? For this is ye right vse of enioyeng a benefite, if we neyther clayme to our selues more thā is geuē, nor do defraude the author of the benefite of his praise: but rather do so behaue our selues, that yt which he hath geuen frō himself to vsus, may seme after a certaine māner to remaine with him. If this moderation be to be kept toward men, let all men loke and consider what manner of moderation is due to God.
I know yt the Sophisters do abuse certain places, to proue therby that the name of Merit toward God is foūd in the Scriptures. They allege a sentēce out of Ecclesiasticus,Eccl. xvi.xiiij. MercieMercy shall make place to eueryevery man, accordyng to the Merit of his workes. And out of the Epistle to the Hebrues,Hebr. xiij.xvi. Forget not doyng good and communicating, for with such sacrifices men merite of God. As for my right in resistyng the authoritie of Ecclesiasticus, I doe now release it. Yet I denye that they faithfully allege yt which Ecclesiasticus, whatsoeuer writer he were, hath written. For the Greke copie is thus: foreign. He shal make place to eueryevery merciemercy, and eueryevery man shall finde accordyng to his workes. And that this is the true text, which is corrupted in the Latine translation, appereth both by the framing of these wordes, & by a lōger ioyning together of the sentence goyng before. In the Epistle to the Hebrues, there is no cause why they should snare vsus in one litle word, when in the Greke wordes of the Apostle is nothing els but yt such sacrifices do please & are acceptable to God. This alone ought largely to suffice to subdue & beate downe the outragiousnesse of our pride, yt we faine not any worthinesse to workes beyōd the rule of Scripture. Now ye doctrine of the Scripture is, that all our good workes are continually be sprinkled with many filthy spottes, wherewith God may be worthily offended and be angry with vsus: so far is it of, that they be able to winne him to vsus, or to prouoke his liberalitie toward vsus: Yet bicause he of his tēder kindenesse doth not examine them by extremitie of law, he taketh thē as if they were most pure, and therfore though without merite, he rewardeth them with infinite benefites bothe of this present life and of the life to come. For I do not allow the distinctiō set by mē otherwise learned & godly: that good workes deserue the graces that are geuen vsus in this life, & that eternal life is the reward of faith alone. For the Lord doth cōmonly alway set in heauen the reward of labors and the crowne of battell. Agayne to geue it so to the merit of workes, yt it be taken away from grace, that the Lord heapeth vsus with graces vponupon graces, is against the doctrine of the Scripture. For though Christ sayth that to him that hath,Mat. xiv.xxj. & xxix. shalbe geuen, & that the faithful and good seruant which hath shewed himself faithful in few thinges, shalbe set ouer many: yet he also sheweth in an other place, that the encreases of the faithful are ye giftes of his free goodnesse. All ye that thirst (sayth he) come to the waters:Esa. lv.i. & ye that hauehave not monie, come and bye milke and honye without monie and without any exchange. What so euer therfore is now geuen to the faithfull for help of saluation, yea & blessedne…e it selfe, is the mere liberalitie of God: yet bothe in this and in those he testifieth that he hath consideration of workes: bicause, to testifie the greatnesse of his louelove toward vsus, he vouchsaueth to graunt such honor not only to vsus, but also to ye giftes which he hath geuē vsus.
If these things had in the ages past ben handled & disposed in such order as thei ought to hauehave bē, there had neuer arisen so many trobles & dissensions.1. Cor.iij.xi. Paul sayth yt in ye bulding of Christian doctrine, we must kepe stil that fundation which he had layed amōg the Corinthiās, biside which no other can be layed: & that the same fundation is Iesus Christ. What māner of fundatiō hauehave we in Christ? is it, that he was to vsus the beginning of saluatiō: that the fulfillyng therof shold follow of our selues? & hath he but only opened the way, by which we should goe forward of our own strēgth? Not so: but as he sayd a litle before, when we acknowlege him, he is geuē to vsus for righteousnesse. No mā therfore is wel founded in Christ, but he yt hath full righteousnesse in him:i. Cor. i.xxx. for asmuch as ye Apostle sayth not yt he was sent to help vsus to obteine righteousnesse, but that he himself might be our righteousnesse. Namely, yt we are chosen in him frō eternitie before the making of the world,Eph. i.iiij by no deseruyng of oures, but accordyng to the purpose of the good pleasure of God:Col. i.xiiij. & xx. yt by his death we are redemed frō the dānation of death, & deliuered frō destruction: that in him we are adopted of the heauenly father into children & heires: that by his bloud we are recō ciled to the Father:Iohn. x.xxviij. that beyng geuen to him to be kept we are deliuered from peril of perishyng & of beyng lost: that beyng so engraffed in him, we are alredy after a certaine manner partakers of eternall life, beyng entred into the kingdome of God by hope: and yet more: that hauing obteined such partaking of him, how so euer we be yet fooles in our selues, he is wisdom for vsus before God: howsoeuer we be sinners, he is righteousnesse for vsus: howsoeuer we be vncleane, he is cleannesse for vsus: howsoeuer we be weake, howsoeuer vnarmed & lieng open in danger of Satan, yet oures is the power which is geuē him in heauē & earth,Matth. xxviij.xvii… whereby he may treade downe Satā for vsus, & breake ye gates of helles: howsoeuer we stil cary about wt vsus the body of death, yet he is life for vsus: brefely that al his things are oures, & we in him hauehave all things, in our selues nothing: vpō this foundation, I say, it behoueth that we be bulded, if we wil encrease into a holy temple to the Lord.
But ye world hath a long time bē otherwise taught. For there hauehave ben foūd out I wote not what moral good workes, by which mē may be made acceptable to God before yt thei be graffed in christ.i. Ih. v.xij As though the Scripture lieth, whē it sayth that they are al in death which hauehave not possessed ye Sonne. If they be in death, how shold thei bring forth matter of life?Ro. xiiij.xxiij. As though it were of no more force, that whatsoeuer is done without faith, is sinne: as though there may be good frutes of an euell tree. But what hauehave these moste pestilent Sophisters left to Christ wherein he may shewe forth his power? They saye that he hath deserued for vsus the first grace, namely the occasion of deseruyng: that it is nowe our part not to faile the occasion offred. O desperate shamelesnesse of vngodlinesse. Whoe would hauehave thought that men professing the name of Christ, durst so strippe him naked of his power, & in a manner treade him vnderunder foote? This testimonie is eche where spoken of him, that all they are iustified that beleue in him: these felowes teache, that there cōmeth from him no other benefit, but this, that the way is opened to eueryevery man to iustifie himselfe. But I would to God they tasted what these sayenges meane: that all they hauehave life yt hauehave the Sonne of God:i. Ih. v.xi… Iohn. v.xxiiii. Rom. iii.xxiiii. i. Ioh. iii.xxiii. Eph. ii.vi. Col. i.xiii. that whosoeuer beleueth, is already passed from death into life: that we are iustified by his grace, yt we might be made heires of eternal life: that the faithful hauehave Christ abidyng in them, by whome they cleaue fast to God: that they whiche are partakers of his life, do sit with him in heauēly places: that they are transplanted into the kingdome of God, & hauehave obteined saluatiō: & innumerable other such. For they do not declare, that there cōmeth by the fayth of Christ nothing but the power to obteine righteousnesse or saluatiō, but that they are bothe geuen to vsus. Therfore so sone as thou art by fayth engraffed into Christ, thou art already made the sonne of God, ye heire of heaūe, partaker of righteousnesse, possessor of life, and (that their lies may be better cōfuted) thou hast not obteyned ye fit abilitie to deserue, but euen all ye deseruinges of Christ: for they are cōmunicated to thee.
So ye Sorbonical schooles, ye mothers of al errors, hauehave takē frō vsus ye iustificatiō of faith which is ye sūme of al godlinesse. They graūt verily in word, yt mā is iustified by formed faith: but this they afterward expound, bicause good workes hauehave of faith this that they auayle to righteousnesse: yt thei seme in a manner to name faith in mockage, sithe wtout great enuiousnesse it could not be passed ouer in silence, seyng it is so oft repeted of the Scripture. And not yet cōtēted, they do in the prayse of good workes priuilie steale frō God somwhat to geue away to mā Bicause thei see that good workes litle auaile to aduaūce mā, & that they can not be properly called Merites if they be accompted the frutes of the grace of God: they picke them out of the strength of free will, oyle forsothe out of a stone. And they denye not in deede that the principal cause of thē is in grace: but they affirme that thereby is not excluded free will, by whiche is all merit. And this not only the later Sopisters do teach,Lib. …. dist. …8. but also their Pythagoras, Lōbard: whom if you cōpare with these men, you may say to be sound witted and sobre. It was truely a point of maruelous blindenesse, that whē they had Augustine so oft in their mouth, thei saw not with how great carefulnesse that mā prouided yt no pece of the glorie of good workes were it neuer so litle, shold be cōueyed to men. Here before whe we entreated of free will, we recited certaine testimonies of his to his purspose, of whiche sort there are often times found many like in his writinges: as whē he forbiddeth vsus yt we should no where boste of our merites,… Psal. 14.4. Epist. 105. bicause euē thei also are the giftes of God: And when he writeth, yt all our merit is only of grace, that it is not gotten by our sufficience, but is al made by grace. &c. It is no maruell that Lombard was blinde at ye light of the Scripture, in which it appereth that he was not so wel practised. Yet nothing could be desired more plaine against him & his disciples, than this word of ye Apostle. For whē he forbiddeth Christiās al glorieng, he adioyneth a reason why it is not lawfull to glorie: bicause we are ye handyworke of God,Eph. ii.x. created to al good workes, that we should walk in thē. Sithe therfore there cōmeth out of vsus no good thing, but in so much as we be regenerate: & our regeneratiō is whole of God without exceptiō: there is no right why we shold claime to our selues one ounce in good workes. Finally whereas they cōtinually call vpō good workes, in the meane time they so instruct cōsciences, that they neuer dare hauehave affiāce, that they hauehave God wel pleased & fauorable to their workes. But cōtrarywise we, without makyng any mētion of Merit, do yet by our doctrine raise vp the courages of the faithful wt singular cōfort, whē we teach them yt in their workes they please God & are vndoutedly accepted vntounto him. Yea & also here we require yt no mā attēpt or goe about any worke without faith, that is to say, vnlesse he do first with assured confidence of minde determine that he shall please God.
Wherfore let vsus not suffer our selues to be led so much as one heare bredth away frō this only fundatiō: which beyng layed, wise bulders do afterward wel & orderly bulde vponupon it. For if there be neede of doctrine & exhortatiō,…. Ioh. i….ixij. i. Pet. iiii.iij. i…. Tim. ….…x. Luc. i….xx… thei put men in minde, that the Sonne of God hath appered to this end, that he may destroy the workes of the deuel: that they should not sinne which are of God, that the time past is enough for the fulfilling of the desires of the Gentiles: that the elect of God are velleis of merciemercy chosen out vntounto honour, whiche ought to be made cleane from al filthinesse. But al is spoken at ones, when it is shewed that Christ wil hauehave such disciples, which forsaking themselues, & taking vp their crosse, do follow him. He yt hath forsakē himself, hath cut of the roote of al euels, that he maye no more seke those thinges y• are his owne. He that hath taken vp his crosse, hath framed himself to all patience & mildenesse. But the example of Christ conie…neth both these and al other duties of godlinesse & holinesse. He shewed himself obediēt to his father, euen to the death: he was wholly occupied in doyng the workes of God: he with his whole heart breathed out the glorie of his father: he gaue his soule for his brethren: he bothe did good & wished good to his enemies. If there be neede of cōfort, these wil bryng maruelous comfort,ii. Cor. iii… viii. that we be in affliction, but we are not made careful: that we labour, but we are not forsaken: we are brought lowe, but we are not cōfounded: we are throwē downe, but we do not perish: alway bearing about with vsus in our body the mortifieng of Iesus Christ, that ye life of Iesus may be manifestly shewed in vsus,ii. Tim. i…. Phil iii.x. that if we be dead with him, we shall also liue together with him: if we suffer with him, we shal also reigne together with him: that we be so fashioned like to his suffringes,Rom. viii.xxix. till we atteyne to the likenesse of his resurrection: For asmuch as the Father hath predestinate these to be fashioned like the image of his sonne, whome in him he hath chosen, that he maye be the first begotten among all his brethrē: and therfore that neyther death, nor present thinges, nor thinges to come, shall seuer vsus from the louelove of God which is in Christ: but rather all thinges shall turne to vsus to good and to saluation. Loe, me do not iustifie a mā by workes before God: but we say that all they that are of God, are regenerate & made a newe creature,ii. Pet. i.… that they may passe out of the kingdome of sinne into the kingdome of righteousnesse, & that by this testimonie thei make their callyng certayne, and are iudged as trees by the frutes.