Whole Works, Tracts 1 · Tract 4 · Part 1 · Section 12
¶ The maner and order of our election.
EVen ſo goeth it with Gods electe. God chuſeth thē firſt, and they not God, as thou readeſt Iohn. xv. And Ioh. 15.then he ſendeth forth and calleth them, and ſheweth them his good wil which he beareth vntounto them, and maketh thē ſee both their owne damnation in the lawe, and alſo the mercy that is layde vp for them in Chriſtes bloude, and therto what he wil hauehave them do. And If we conſider how mercifull god is vntounto vsus, we cānot chuſe but ſubmit our ſelues vntounto hys lawes.then when we ſee his mercy, we louelove him agayne, and chuſe him and ſubmit our ſelues vntounto his lawes to walke in them. For when we erre not in wit, reaſon and iudgement of thynges, we can not erre in will and choyſe of thinges. The choyſe of a mans will doth naturally and of her owne accorde follow the iudgement of a mans reaſon, whether he iudge right or wrong. So that in teaching onelyonly reſteth the pyth of a mans liuing. How be it, there be ſwine that receaue no learning but to defile it. And there be dogges that rent all good learning wyth their teeth. And there be Pope holy, which following a righteouſnes of their owne faining, reſiſte the righteouſnes of God in Chriſt. And there be that cannot attend to harken vntounto the truth for rage of luſtes, which when luſtes abate, come and obey well inough.
And therefore a Chriſten man muſt Chriſtian mē muſt be patient.be patient and ſuffer long to win his brother to Chriſt, yt he which attēdeth not to day, may receaue grace & heare to morowe, we ſee ſome at their very latter ende, when colde feare of death hath quenched the heate of their appetites, learne & conſent vntounto the truth, wherunto before they could geue none care, for the wylde rages of luſtes that blynded their wittes.
And though Gods elect can not ſo fall that they riſe not agayne, becauſe that the mercy of God euer wayteth Mercy waiteth euer on the elect.vponupon them, to deliuer them from euil, as the care of a kynde father wayteth vppon his ſonne, to warne him and to keepe hym from occaſions, and to call him backe againe if he be gonne to far: yet they forget themſelues ofttymes, & ſinke downe into traunces and fall a ſlepe in luſtes for a ſeaſon. But aſſoone as they be awaked they repent & come agayne without reſiſtaunce. God now and thē withdraweth his hand and leueth them vntounto their own ſtrength, to make thē feele that there is no power to do good but of God onelyonly, leſt they ſhuld be proude of that which is none of theirs. God layd ſo ſore awaight of perſecution vpp…n Dauids backe that Dauid.paſſed his ſtrēgth to beare. So that he cried oft out of his Pſalmes, ſaying that he had liued well and folowed the right way of God in vayne. For the more he kept him ſelfe from ſ…nne, the worſe it wēt with him, as he thought, and the better with his enemy Saul, the worſe he was. Yet God left hym not there, but cōforted him & ſhewed him thinges which before he wiſt not The elect of God muſt hauehave patience & be long ſufferers.of, how that the Saintes muſt be pacient and abyde Gods haueſt, vntill the wickedneſſe of vngodly ſinners be full ripe, yt God may ripe it in dew ſeaſon.
God alſo ſuffered occaſions ſtronger then Dauid, to fall vponupon him & to carie him cleane out of the way. Was he not ready for a churlyſſe aunſwere to hauehave ſlayne Naball & all the males of his houſe, ſo much as the child in the cradell? howbeit God with held hym and kept him backe frō that euill, thorough the wiſedome of Abigall. How God trieth his elect by ſuffering them to tell into temptation.long ſlomberd he, or rather how hard in ſlepe was he in the adultery of Beth ſabe. And in the murther of her huſbād Ʋriah, But at both times aſſoone as he was rebuked and his fault told him, he repented immediatly & turned agayne mekely. Now in all that long tyme, from the adultery of Bethſabe vntill the Prophet Nathan rebuked him he had not loſt his fayth nor yet his louelove vntounto the lawes of God, no more then a man looſeth his wittes when he is a ſlepe. He had forgot him ſelf onelyonly and had not maliciouſly caſt of the yocke of Gods commaundements from of his necke. There is no man ſo good, but We may cōa…t ſinne and yet not forget Godthat there commeth a tyme vponupon hym, when he feeleth in him ſelfe no more faith or louelove vntounto God, then a ſicke mā ofttymes feeleth the taſt of hys meate which he eateth.
And in like maner the Apoſtles of Chriſt at his paſſiō were aſtonyed and The āpoſtles beyng amaſed wt tēptations forgat all Chriſtes myracles.amaſed and in ſuch a ſtorme of temptations, for the ſoden chaunge from ſo great glorie into ſo vyle and ſhamefull death, that they had forget all the miracles and all the wordes which he had told them before, how that he ſhould be betrayde and deliuered on the ſame maner vntounto death. Moreouer they neuer vnderſtode that ſaying of hys death becauſe theyr hartes were all way heauy and ouer lade with earthly thoughtes. For though they ſaw hym raiſe vp other, yet who ſhould rayſe him vp, when he were dead, they could not comprehend.
Read what thou read canſt, & thou A great temptation layd vpō y• Apoſtles.ſhalt finde no temptatiō like vntounto that from the creation of the world, or ſo great as it by the hūdred part. So that the wonderfull ſoden chaunge and the terrible ſight of his paſſion and of hys moſt cruell and moſt vyle death, & the loſſe of whō they ſo greatly loued, that their hartes would fayne hauehave dyed with him, and the feare of their owne death, and the impoſſibilitie that a man ſhould riſe againe of his owne power, ſo occupyed their mindes and ſo aſtonyed them and amaſed them, that they could receaue no comfort, either of the Scripture or of the miracles whiche they had ſene Chriſt do, nor of the monitions & warnings wherwith he had warned thē before, neither of the women that brought them tydynges that he was riſen. The ſword of temptations with feare ſorow, mournyng and wepyng, had depely pearced theyr hartes, and the cruell ſight had ſo combred their myndes, that they could not beleue, vntill Chriſt him ſelfe came, death put of, and ouercome, yea & whē The Apoſtles were very doubtfull.they firſt ſaw him, they were aſtonyed for wonderyng and ioy together that thoughtes aroſe in their hartes; alas is this he or doth ſome ſpirite mocke vsus? he was fayne to let them feele hym and to eate with them, to ſtrēgth theyr faythes.
Howbeit there was none of them that was fallen in his hart frō Chriſt. For aſſoone as the women brought word, Peter and Iohn ranne vntounto the ſepulchre & ſaw and wondred & would fayne hauehave beleued that he was riſen and longed for him? But could not beleue the wound of temptation beyng greater then that it could bee healed with the preaching of a woman without any other miracle.
Ioſeph of Arimathia and Nicodemus whiche while he yet lyued durſt not be a knowen of him aſſoone as he was dead, begged his body and buried hym boldly. And the women aſſoone Chriſt hys reſurrectiōas it was lawfull to worke, prepared their annoyntments with all diligēce. And the hartes of the Diſciples that wēt to Emaus burned in their breſ…es to heare him ſpoken of.
And Thomas had not forſaken Chriſt, but could not beleue vntill he ſaw him, and yet deſired and longed to ſee him and reioyſed when he ſaw him and for ioy cried out, my Lord my God. There was none of them that The Diſciples were not without fayth but yet the …ame was very doubtfull.euer …ayled on him and came ſo farre foorth, to ſay, he was a diſceauer and wrought with the deuils craft all this while, and ſee where to he is come in the end? we defie hym & all his workes falſe wretch that he was, and hys falſe doctrine alſo. And thereto muſt they hauehave come at the laſt, when feare, ſorow and wonderyng had bene paſt, if they had not bene preuented and holpe in the meane tyme.
Yea and Peter a…ſoone as he had denyed Peters fayth fayled not.Chriſt came to hym ſelfe immediatly and went out and wept bitterly for ſorow. And thus ye ſee, that Peters faith failed not, though it were oppreſſed for a tyme: ſo that we nede to ſeke no gloſes for the text that Chriſt ſayd to Peter how that hys fayth ſhould not fayle. Yes ſayth M. More it fayled ☞in hym ſelfe, but was reſerued in our Lady.
But let vsus ſee the text and their gloſe together. Chriſt ſayth Luke. xxij. Symon, Luke. 22.Symon, Sathan ſeketh you to ſifte you as men ſift where: but I hauehave prayed for thee, that thy fayth ſhall not fayle, wherfore whē thou art come vntounto thy ſelfe agayne ſtrēgth thy brethrē. Now put this wiſe glo…e thereto and A fooliſh gloſe made by M. More.ſee how they agree together. Symon, Sathā ſeketh to ſift you as where, but I hauehave prayed for thee, that my mothers fayth ſhall not fayle, wherfore when thou art come to thy ſelfe again, accordyng as my prayer hath obtained for thee, that my mothers fayth ſhall ☜not fayle, ſtrength thy brethren. How ſay ye, is not this a proper text & well framed together? Do ye not thinke that there is as much witte in the head of mad Colens, as in the draynes o… ſuch expoſitours?