Answer to Book by Romish Priests, Doctrine 21
XXI. That Faith only juſtifieth; and that Good Works are not abſolutely neceſſary to Salvation.
Anſwer.
WHat ſhall one do with a man that oppoſeth he knows not what? The firſt part of this Propoſition is St. Paul's, who in effect ſaith the ſame, III. Rom. 28. II. Gal. 16. Therefore no man ſhould be ſo bold as to contradict it, but rather explain it; which it is eaſie to do; for when we ſay, Faith only juſtifies, this Faith includes in it a ſincere purpoſe of good living; without which, we believe it will not juſtifie. And therefore the ſecond part of it is a new ſlander, That we affirm Good works are not neceſſary to Salvation; the direct contrary to which, we heartily believe: For it is abſolutely neceſſary to our Salvation, we all affirm, that we act according to our Faith; tho by ſuch Good works, we can merit nothing, neither Juſtification, nor Salvation: But we are accounted righteous before God, only for the merits of our Lord Jeſus Chriſt; by Faith, not for our own works or deſerving, as the words are in the XIth. Article of our Religion. So that when we ſay, by Faith, it is manifeſt we exclude not Good works, but only the merit of them. And thus Luther himſelf ſhows (upon V. Gal.) That Faith alone will not ſuffice, tho Faith alone juſtifies.
Therefore all his Scriptures might have been ſpared, eſpecially the firſt of them,1 Cor. XIII. 2. 1 Cor. XIII. 2. which ſpeaks of a miraculous Faith; and beſides, doth not contradict us, who believe Faith without works will not avail to Salvation; though let us do never ſo much, we can never merit it by what we do.
The ſecond Text, II. Jam. 24.James II. 24. is agreeable to what we ſay, That the Faith which juſtifies, includes in it a purpoſe of well-doing. Such an one as was in Abraham, whoſe Faith, in purpoſing to offer up Iſaac, was imputed to him for Righteouſneſs, tho he had not actually done as he purpoſed to do. In like manner, if any man ſincerely profeſs the Chriſtian Faith, and be baptized, he is juſtified, tho he have not as yet brought forth the fruit of it in good works; (witneſs the Eunuch, VIII. Acts 37.) which if he ſhould not produce afterward, he could not be ſaved. St. Auſtin in that very Book and Chapter which he quotes, expreſly ſaith, Good Works follow him that is juſtified, they do not precede him that is to be juſtified. What doth he think of the Thief upon the Croſs, who only believed, and was not ſo much as baptized?
II James 14. is not contrary to what we ſay, but according to it. Mr. Calvin himſelf upon theſe very words, ſaith, Therefore we are ſaved by Faith, becauſe it joins us to God; which is done no other way, but that living by his Spirit, we be governed by him. St. Paul and St. James agree very well; though the one ſay: We are not juſtified by Faith only, (which is St. James's Doctrine); and the other, St. Paul, in effect ſays, We are juſtified by Faith only, when he ſaith, We are juſtified by Faith, without Works. As he ſhows in Abraham's caſe; where he oppoſes Juſtification by Faith, and Juſtification by Works; and affirms Abraham was not juſtified by Works, but by Faith. St. James alledging the ſame caſe, and the very ſame words, proves he was juſtified by Works, and not by Faith only. Can any one think they make uſe of the ſame inſtance, for quite contrary ends? It is a wonder men do not learn this plain and eaſie truth from hence; That Faith alone (having in it a purpoſe of well-doing) enters us into the ſtate of Juſtification, before we have done what we purpoſe; but Good Works are neceſſary to continue us in this ſtate, and ſo may be ſaid to juſtifie us; that is, continue our Juſtification, which Faith only cannot do.
The laſt place, V. Gal. 6. we have noted ſo well, that we expreſly declare in our XIIth. Article, That Good works cannot put away our ſins, and endure the ſeverity of God's Judgment, (theſe are the great things we deny) yet they do ſpring out neceſſarily of a true and lively Faith. And the Doctrine of St. Auſtin *L. de F… de & Operib. c. 14.is perfectly ours; which I will ſet down, becauſe it explains all that I have ſaid: A good life is inſeparable from Faith; yea, in truth, Faith it ſelf is a good life. And again*Lib. Queſt. 83. q. 76. How can he that is juſtified by Faith, chuſe but work Righteouſneſs? But if any man, when he hath believed, preſently depart this life, the Juſtification of Faith remains with him; no good work preceding, becauſe he came to it, not by Merit, but by Grace; nor following, becauſe he was not ſuffered to remain in this life. From whence it is manifeſt what the Apoſtle ſaith, We conclude a man is juſtified by Faith without works.
All his other Scriptures therefore ſerve only to ſhew his Ignorance, if not his Malice, in charging us with the denial of that which we affirm, That good works are neceſſary to Salvation. His Fathers he had better have kept to himſelf; for they frequently ſay, Faith only juſtifies. Even Origen *In Cap. III., upon that very Book, the Epiſtle to the Romans, affirms, that Juſtification of Faith alone ſuffices, tho a man hath not done any works. Which he proves by the example of the Thief upon the Croſs; and the Woman in VII. Luke, to whom our Saviour ſaid, Go in peace, thy Faith hath ſaved thee. But perhaps, ſaith he, ſome reading this, may think he may neglect to do well, ſince Faith alone ſufficeth to Juſtification. To whom we ſay, That if any man doth wickedly after Juſtification, without doubt he deſpiſeth the Grace of Juſtification. Neither doth a man receive Forgiveneſs of ſins for this, that he may think he hath a Licenſe given him to ſin again; for a Pardon is given him, not for ſins to come, but for ſins that are paſt. And what he ſaith upon the next Chapter, (not the Vth. as this man quotes him, but the IVth.) doth not contradict this; Faith cannot be imputed to thoſe who believe in Chriſt, but do not put off the old man with his unrighteous acts. Which very well agrees with what he ſaid before, and we with him: Faith enters us into a ſtate of acceptance with God; but we cannot go to Heaven, unleſs we bring forth the fruit of Faith in new Obedience. So he explains himſelf moſt excellently, in that very place, a little before, in theſe words, which comprehend the whole buſineſs: I think that the firſt beginnings, and the very foundations of Salvation, is Faith; the progreſs and increaſe of the building, is hope; but the perfection and top of the whole work is Charity. I will not trouble the Reader with what the reſt of his Fathers ſay, ſince they themſelves are ſenſible their Cauſe is endangered by the Fathers. Which is ſo notorious, that they have taken care to have this paſſage expunged out of the very Index of St. Auſtin's works*Printed 1543. apud Ambr. Girau. upon the Pſalms, Through Grace we are ſaved by Faith; tho St. Paul affirms the ſame, II. Epheſ. 8. And out of the very Text of St. Cyril upon Iſaiah, theſe words are ordered to be expunged (by the Spaniſh Index of Gaſp. Quiroga) the Grace of Faith is ſufficient to the cleanſing of ſin; and Chriſt dwells in our heart by Faith. In I. Iſa. & in 51.No wonder then they have dealt thus with later Authors of theirs own, who followed the Fathers Doctrine; particularly with Vatablus, out of whoſe Annotations upon VIII. Iſa 32. they have ordered theſe words to be blotted out, They that beliive in the Lord, ſhall be ſaved; but they that do not, ſhall periſh. And theſe upon VIII. Luk. Faith ſaveth.