Catechismus, that is to say, a shorte instruction into Christian religion for the synguler commoditie and profyte of childre[n] and yong people. Set forth by the mooste reuerende father in God Thomas Archbyshop of Canterbury, primate of all England and Metropolitane

Nowe foloweth the seconde petitiō, wherin we pray, y^t God wil graunt vs strength to fulfyll the

thirde commaundement whyche is, reuerently, to vse and to halow y^• sabboth day, whiche is not done, by easynge only from all outward bodely laboures, but it is chieflye done, whan we mortifye the desy∣ers of the fleshe, dilygentlye heare the worde of God, and obeye the same in our hartes whiche we can not do, without a special and syn∣guler grace and fauoure of God. Therefore we haue nede, feruent∣ly to praye, euyn as Christe hath caught vs in this secōde petition.

Thy kingdome come.

That you maye vnderstande these wordes rightly & iustly, take good dilygent hede, that you may lerne, what y^t kingdome is whiche you do aske. The kyngedome of God (as saynt Paule saieth Rom. xiiii.) is iustice, peace and ioye, in the holy gost. And although these

wordes paraduenture seme vnto you harde and darke, yet you shal vnderstande theym, yf you take good hede. You knowe that Em∣perours & kinges in this worlde, haue their realmes & kyngdomes, and those people that be within their landes and dominions, and dewly obey their lawes and com∣maundemētes, those be their true and faithfull subiectes of their realmes. And euery king geueth commaundementes vnto his sub∣iectes, & gouerneth theim in suche wyse, that they do not, euery man what he lyst hym selfe, but what it pleaseth his prince to cōmaunde hym.

Euen so almighty God hath here in earth in his church an heuenly kyngdō. And this kyngdō (which Christ in his gospell so often cal∣leth the kyngdome of heauen) be∣gynneth

among his faithful peo∣ble, in this worlde. And al that truly beleue, & kepe his commaū∣dementes, parteyne vnto thys kyngdom. And whan God by his gospel, begynneth to cal vs vnto this kyngdom, than the kyngdom of God commeth vnto vs, and begynneth in vs. For God begin∣neth, and in dede is the kyng and Lorde of theim that be godly, he gouerneth and ruleth theim, so that they worke not after y^e lustes and desiers of their owne fleshe, but as the Lord God (who is their kyng) teacheth and commaūdeth theim by his worde.

And kynges and great men in this worlde, rule and gouerne by forse, by soore threatenynges and greuous paynes, and comstrayne their subiectes to obedyence (and so they ought to do, for it is the or¦dinance

of God) but God doeth not order his affaires so, ī this for∣said kingdom of heuen, but ruleth his subiectes lyke a gentle father, by the worde of his gospel, and by the holy gost, & that after this sort.

God causeth his ghospel to be preached vnto vs, howe Christe for our sakes suffered death, was buried and rose againe, as before you herd in y^e Crede. Moreouer he openeth oure hertes, & gyueth vs faith, to beleue his gospel. And to them y^t beleue his gospel he giueth the holy gost, which doth gouerne vs, and leade vs vnto all trueth.

For fyrste by faythe we be iusti∣fied before God (for fayth maketh vs partakers of y^e iustice of christ, and planteth vs in Christ) and he that by true faithe, do receyue the promyse of grace, to him God gy∣uethe the holye ghoste, by whome

charitie is spred abrode in our her∣tes, whiche perfourmethe all the commaundementes. Therfore he that beleueth in Christ, and truely beleueth y^e gospel, he is iust & holy before God, by y^e iustice of Christ, whiche is imputed & gyuē vnto hī as Paule saith. Ro. iii. we thinke y^t mā is iustified by faith w^tout wor¦kes.* 1.1 He is also iust before y^e world, because of y^e loue & charitie, which the holy gost worketh in his herte.

Secondly, faith worketh peace and quietnes in oure heartes and consciēces. For by faith we be cer∣tified that our synnes be forgiuen. Therfore saythe sayncte Paule to the Romanes.* 1.2 Beyng iustified, we haue peace and quyetnesse wyth God, by our Lorde Iesus Christ.

Thirdely, this peace bringeth vnto vs a great and synguler ioy in our hertes and consciences, and

maketh vs, for this excedyng be∣nefite of gods mercy and grace to∣warde vs, feruentely to loue him, gladly to laude and praise him, to honoure his name and to professe the same before all the worlde, e∣uermore to gyue vnto hym moste harti thankes, and to be swift and redye to do all thinges that maye please God, and to eschewe those thynges that may dysplease hym.

Thys good children is the sayd kyngdome of God, whan by the gospell and the holy ghoste, God raygneth in oure hartes, whan he worketh in vs our Iustification, that we hauynge peace of consci∣ence may haue ioye and comforte in the holy gost, of the abundance and plentifulnes of grace and the benefytes of Christe. And this is that thinge, whiche sayncte Paule speaketh of to y^e Romaynes.* 1.3 The

kyngdome of God is iustice, peace and ioy, in the holy gost.

Nowe as an earthly kyng doeth gouerne his subiectes by hys law∣es and commaundementes, and by his mighte and power, so doeth God rule and gouerne his church and true faithfull people (whiche although they be here in earth, yet they be of his heuenly kyngdome) suche I saye he gouerneth by the holy worde of his gospell, and the power of the holy ghost (whom he powreth plentifully vpon al them that beleue the gospel) and by that comfortable worde of the ghospell he gentilly entiseth and drawethe vs vnto him, that we should glad∣ly of our owne free will obey him. For God loueth not seruyce con∣strayned by forse, suche as slaues and bonde menne do, more for the feare then loue, but he wold haue

his people to serue him willyngly of hearte and loue,* 1.4 as Dauid said in the .cx. Psalme.

And this is the forsayde kyng∣dome of God, whan he dothe in suche wyse raigne in vs and go∣uerne vs, that we do not wourke after our owne wylles, but in bo∣dy and minde do ceasse & rest from our owne euyl workes, and shre∣wed wylles, and folowe the wor∣kyng of God and the holye goste in vs. And this is to sanctifye the sabbot daye (that is to say, to kepe an holy rest) whan we honor God with true honour, whan we heare dilygently the worde of God, whē we yelde our selfes clerly to God, that his holy spirite maye worke in vs, holy, godly & heuenly wor∣kes, y^t is to say, iustice, peace, com∣fort & other workes of y^e holy gost.

Therfore he that praieth thus.

Thy kingdome come, he prayeth, nothynge elles, but that God wil gyue vs grace, that we maye rest from our own propre willes, that we do not those thynges that de∣lyte the body, and please oure ap∣petites, but that we maye suffre God, by his holy worde & spirite, to worke in vs holy workes, that so the thirde cōmaundement maye be fulfilled. Remembre that thou sanctifye the sabboth daye. For so doth Esaye declare this commaū∣dement,* 1.5 saying. If thou worke not after thine own wyl, in my ho∣ly day, than thou shalt be called a pleasant rest, to sanctifye and ho∣noure the Lorde, yf thou honoure him so, that thou worke not after thyne owne wayes, nor fynde the meanes to folowe thyne own wil, nor speake thyne owne pleasure, than shalt thou haue pleasure in

the Lorde. For all these thynges therfore good children, ought you to praye to God, that hys kyng∣dome maye come, that he wil here in earth begynne his kyngdome in vs, that we maye obey him in suche wyse as you haue herde.

Nowe the kyngdome of God commeth vnto vs two maner of wayes, first by his worde & faithe, whan the gospell is preached vnto vs, that our Lorde Iesus Christ, delyuered vs frō synne, death and hel, by crosse, death & resurrection. For by the preaching of his word we do lerne to put oure truste in God and to loue God. And this knowlege and faith in Christe, in∣creaseth from tyme to tyme, not on¦ly in theim that haue but newlye begonne to beleue, but they also whiche many yeares haue profes∣sed Christe, do profyt in the same

faith more and more. For their faith and loue towardes God, by the dayly preachyng of the gospel is confirmed & made more strong. Secondly, the kyngdome of God shall come to vs at the laste daye whan the euerlastynge glorye and kyngdome of God shalbe re∣ueled, whan at the laste daye we shalbe raysed from death to lyfe, and be receyued into the kyng∣dome of heauen, where we shalbe made perfytely iuste, holy and safe for euer, whiche thynge so long as we be here in this worlde, is hyde from vs, and appereth not clerlye vnto vs, but at that last daye shal appere to all men, that excedynge ioye, which no tonge is able to ex∣presse. As saith saint Iohn in hys Canonical epistle.* 1.6 Yet it appereth not, what we shalbe, but we know that whan it shall appere, we shal∣be

lyke vnto hym, and we shall see hym, euen as he is.

All these thynges oure Lorde God causeth to be preached in the hole worlde, of his mere goodnes and most abundāt mercie, not for our workes or merites, but before we desiered him. But although it be preached through y^e world, yet it should not auayle vs, if we be∣leued not, that is to say, if he came not into oure hartes, yf the kyng∣dome of God wer not within vs. Therefore must we with all dily∣gence praye, that God not onely may make this to be preched, but also y^t he wil gyue faith, not onely to other, but also to our selfes.

And shortly, this is the summe of this petition, that God by his syncere preachers, wil sende his worde and gospel of Christ, and by his holy spirite brynge vs to

the faith, and obedience to God, and daily to encreace the same. And than vtterly to abolyshe and take awaye from vs, the rest of the worlde, whiche is wicked and disobediēt, withal their sinne and wickednes, and to receiue vs in to his eternall kyngdome and glorye.

This is the meanyng & plaine vnderstanding of this secōde pe∣tition. The kyngdome of god cō∣meth of it selfe, w^tout our prayer, but here we pray, that it may com to vs. Whiche commeth to passe, whan the heauenly father gyueth vs his spirite, to beleue his holy word, to lyue wel and godly, here in his churche for a tyme and af∣ter in heauen for euer.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Roma. iii.
• * 1.2

  Rom. iiii.
• * 1.3

  Rom. xiiii.
• * 1.4

  Psal. cx.
• * 1.5

  Esa. lviii.
• * 1.6

  i. Iohn. iii