The Badges of Christianity, Book 1 · Chapter 13
Chap, 13. Of the fir st v se ofa Sacrament.
HItherto of the parts of a Sacra. both outward and inward: now we come to the vses therof. For vnlesse we know the vse, and vnderstand the end why they were ordained, it shal not profit vsus to know the parts. Every thing must be referred to his right vses and propper endes: so must the Sacramentes be. The endes are especially aThree chief vses of the sacraments,these three. First, to strengthen faith. Secondly, to seale the Couenant betweene God and vsus. Thirdly, to bee a badge of our profession. Touching the first end, the Sacraments serue for the better confirmation of our faith, as appeareth. Where the Apostle hauing set down the drowning of the world, and the preseruing of Noah by the Arke, he saith our baptisme bPet. 3, 21,directly answereth that tipe, which is a taking to witnesse of a good conscience, and sauing vsus by the resurrection of Christ. So then, by faith confirmed in Baptisme, we hauehave an infallible assurance in the death of Christ of our saluation. Many indeed come to the sacraments, are present at Baptisme, are partakers of the Lords supper, that feele no strength of faith, no increase of Gods graces, no spiritual groth in the body of christ, so that they worke not saluation in them, but further their condemnation. For the sacramentes (as we hauehave shewed) giuegive not grace, but more firmely, surely, and comfortably confirme faith, they apply and seale vp Christ crucified. The sacraments cannot giuegive faith to the faithlesse, neither were they instituted to the end men should beleeue but because they do beleeue: as meat was not giuen that men should learne to eate, but that the eating might be nourished. Faith indeede receiueth them, caugust. …, dei, lib. 25, cap. 25,and then they serue to nourish it. And they confirme not faith by any inherent power included in them, but the holy spirit applyeth Christ to vsus, and frameth this comfortable conclusion in our hearts, All such as are conuerted and do rightly vse the sacraments, shal receiue Christ, and al his sauing graces: But I am conuerted & do rightly vse the sacraments: Therfore I shal receiue christ & his graces. Thus doth the cōforter comfort al those that come rightly & religiously to the Lords table.
Now, if we would enquire and search after the reasons of this first end, we should find that one cause why they confirme faith is, because god is true in his promises, he confirmeth and maketh good that which is gone out of his mouth. All the d2. cor, 1, 20,promises of God in Christ are yea and are in him Amen, vntounto the glory of God through vsus. For … Princes seales confirme their charters, assure their grantes, and make certaine their pardons: so do gods sacraments witnesse to our hearts and consciences, that his words and promises are true and are established to continue for euer. For as he declareth his mercies by his word, so he sealeth and assureth them by his sacraments. Againe, this appeareth by the example of Abraham, who first beleeued the promise, and it was imputed to him for righteousnes being yet vncircumcised, and afterward receiued the signe of circumcision as the seale of the righteousnes of faith, as the Apostle eRom, 4, 5, 10, 11,teacheth We say that faith was imputed vntounto Abraham for righteousnes: How was it then imputed? when he was circumcised, or vncircumcised? Not when he was circumcised, but when hee was vncircumcised, &c. Where he sheweth that Abraham was iustified in vncircumcision, but yet was afterwarde circumcised, that the gifte of righteousnes might be confirmed in him. The fAct, 8, 36,Eunuche likewise beleeued before hee receiued baptisme, and therefore it sealed vp the increase of his faith and of Gods graces. And Act 2. They that gladlie receiued the wordes of Peter, gact, 2, 41, & 10, 44, 47, 48 and 22, 16.were baptized. And. as Peter preached to Cornelius and others of the Gentlies, The Holy-ghost fel on them all which heard the word, and he said, Can any forbid water that these shoulde not bee baptized, which hauehave receiued the Holyghost as wel as we? So he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Wherefore, when the minister washeth with water, it representeth our buriall with Christ, into his death, and our rising again with him into newnes of life. As bread norisheth and strengthneth man: so the body of christ taken by faith, feedeth the soule. We take the bread and cup into our hands, we eat, we drink, we are refreshed: so we feed on Christ, whose flesh is meat indeed, and whose bloud is Vse. 1.drink indeed, and we are comforted. Let vsus nowe come to the vses, as we hauehave seene the reasons. And first of all, do the sacraments serue to strengthen our faith? then let vsus all acknowledge our failings and infirmities: Let vsus labor more and more to feele the weakenes and wantes of our owne faith. True it is, if our faith were perfect and entire lacking nothing, hChrisost in Math. hom, 83.we should not neede the sacraments. We must not therefore abstaine from them for the weakenes of our faith, but for that cause come to God and to the Sacramēts of God, praying for strength and confirmation thereof, iMar. 9, 23, 23as that father did, whose sonne was possessed with a dumbe spirit when Christ saide to him, If thou canst beleeue, all things are possible to him that beleeueth he answered crying with teares Lord I beleeue, help mine vnbeleese. And Luk. 17. the Apostles kLuk. 17, 5say to the Lord, Increase our faith. Vndoubtedly he that neuer doubted, neuer beleeued: For whosoeuer in truth beleeueth, feeleth sometimes doubrings and wauerings of his faith. Even as the sound body feeleth oftentimes the grudginges of a feuer and distemperature of the body, which if he had not health he could neuer finde and feele: so the faithfull soule findeth sundry doubtings, which if his faith were not sound, he covld not diseerne. For, we feele not corruption by corruption, nor sinne by finne, lLuk. 11, 21, 22because when the strong man possesseth the house, all things are in peace: but we feele sinne and perceiue corruption in vsus by a contrary grace of gods spirit. The lesser and smaller measure of grace we hauehave, the lesser is our feeling: and the more grace we hauehave the more quick we are in feeling of corruption. What is the reason, that many hauehave no light of sinne, no feeling of their corruption, no tentations, no trembling, no terror, no feare of gods wrath, but wholly liue, lie, and dye in their lustes? Surely, because they are without grace, without gods spirit, and without his inward worke in them. But the faithfull, who are not led by the slesh but liue by the spirit, are often tempted, assailed, tormoyled, tryed, and prouoked to many euils, according to the mLuk. 22, 31, 32words of our blessed sauiour, Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to winnow you as wheat, but I hauehave prayed for thee that thy faith faile not, therefore when thou art conuerted, strengthen thy bretheren. Asa man carried vp and set vponupon an high to wer or on the pinicle of a temple, and ther fast bound in chaines of Iron that he cannot fall although he would, when he looketh down, feareth, and al his ioynts tremble, because he is not acquainted and accustomed to mount vp so high in the aire, and to behold the earth so farre beneath: but when he remembreth himselfe and perceiueth himselfe fast bound and out of all danger, then he conceiueth constant hope of continuing, and casteth away all feare of falling: So when we looke down-ward vpō our selues and our owne waies, we hauehave doubtings, wauerings, astomshments, horrors, terrors, tremblings, and feares: but when we looke vpwards, to be hold the sweet consolation which god hath promised, Christ hath purchased, the word hath published, the Holy-ghost hath sealed, and eueryevery beleeuer hath tasted, wee feele our selues sure, and cease to doubt any more. For faith though assaulted with doub tings, may be certain. The Sunne alwaies shineth in the firmament, though the clouds hauehave couered it, and the light appeare not. The tree hath life in it, though it be not in winter discerned. So faith hath his assurance and perswasion, though it bee shaken with doubtings and assaulted with tentations. Wherfore, so often as we feele these doubtings and imperfections, let vsus set against them the certainty of gods truth: let vsus set before vsus the vnchangablenes of his promises: let vsus draw neere to the holy Sacraments, and therby seeke strength and increase offaith. Moreouer, was Vse. 2.this one end of the Sacramentes to strengthen faith? Then god refuseth and … none for weakenes of faith. For a weak … his a true faith, as well as a strong faith. A Leprous hand can hold that which is offered vntounto it, as wel as a sound and strong hand, albe it not so strongly: so is it with faith, though it be feeble & as a grain of mustard seed, yet if it be vnfained, it wil aply christ effectually, which weaknes leaueth God in vsus as a meanes to stir vsus vp to go to the sacraments. We read that Dauid called lame n2 Sam. 9, 7, 8… to his table, therby honoring the son for the fathers sake: so doth god receiue vsus al deformed and defiled to his heauenly supper. And as Mephibosheth professed himselfe vnworthy to eat bread at the kings table, saying, What is thy seruant, that thou shouldst looke on such a dead dog as I am? So must we confes our vnworthines, and be oMath, 15, 26, 27.contented with the crums of his grace, that fal from his heauenly table. And thus acknowledging our selues to be blind, he will restore vsus: to bee poor, he wil inrich vsus: to be wounded, he wil cure vsus: to be captiues, he wil deliuer vsus: to besick, he wil heale vsus: to be weake, he will strengthen vsus: to be lost, he will saue vsus: to be hungry and thirsty, he will resresh vsus: to be brokenhearted, he wil binde vsus vp: to be sold vnderunder sinne, he wil ransome and … vsus.
Thirdly, it reacheth vsus to abhor the absurdity of Bellarmine, a factour and at turney of the church of Rome, pBellar. de sacram. lib. 1. cap. 14.who Vse. 3.denieth that the Sactamentes are seales of the promises, or serue to … and confirme our faith, and to assure vsus of free remission of sinnes by the death of Christ. Contrary to that we heard before, in the example of Abraham, who receiued circumcision to seale vp & assure his iustification, by faith, whose example is set forth to shew how all men are … before God, qRom. 4. 11.and what is the vse of the Sacraments in all that are partakers of them. So doth Baptisme seale vp to vsus Gods promises in Christ, and assureth the remission of sinnes, r1 Pet. 3. 21.as Peter teacheth.
Lastly, if the chiefe end of the Sacramentes, and of the ordinance of God in the institution of them, be to confirme Vse. 4.faith, and to assure vsus of regeneration, mortification, sanctification, iustification, remission, and saluation: then how say so me, we cannot be assured in this life of our standing in the estate of grace, of the forgiunesse of sinnes, and of our adoption in Christ? Doth not the sRom. 8. 15. 16holy ghost testifie vntounto vsus particularly the adoption of children, the remission of sinnes, and saluation of our soules? As Rom. 8. We hauehave not receiued the spirit of bondage to feare, but the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba father: the spirit beareth witnesse with our spirits, that we are the children of God. In these words, gods sanctifieng spirit, and our sanctified spirit, are made the two witnesses of our adoption. This we must certainly beleeue by faith. And this made the Apostle tRom. 8. 38. 39.most confident in the end of the same Ch. saying, I am perswaded, that neither death, nor life, nor Angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shalbe able to separate us from the louelove of God which is Christ Iesus our Lord. If any obiect, we may hope well for forgiuenesse of sinnes, but we cannot beleeue the same. I answer, faith and hope cannot be separated, they do … as louing frends accompany each other, they are neuer sundered and diuided, so that if we may be assured of our saluation by hope, it followeth we may be certainely perswaded. True hope followeth true faith, as the effect doth the cause, and no man can truely hope, that is not truely assured. Besides, this is the property of hope, uRom. 5 4, …it neuer maketh any ashamed, they shall not be confounded and disappointed, they shall attaine vntounto the thing hoped for, according to the doctrine of the Apostle, Experience bringeth forth hope, and hope maketh not ashamed, because the louelove of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy-ghost, which is giuen vntounto us. Hitherto of the first end of a Sacrament.