An excelent comfort to all Christians, against all kinde of calamities no lesse comfortable, then pleasant, pithy, and profitable: Compendiously compiled by Iohn Perez, a faithfull seruant of God, a Spaniard (in Spanish) and now translated into English by Iohn Daniel, of Clements Inne, with diuers addicions by him collected and therevnto annexed.

Of an excelent comfort by the loue of God. Cap. vii.

SO it restith, y^t all that men can doo, or may or can inuent to work, by any kinde of meane: by this scripture it is ex∣cluded & condēpned for most horrible, wicked, & abhominable. For why: ther is but one Iesus Christ who is the pardener of our sinnes by god y^e Father, there is no cause why without Christ, that we should be par¦doned by god the father for them. By Christ onely are we pardoned, we are the vnrightuous, & he y^e onely aucthor of rightuousnesse. In vs there is no cause why, but that we should be most iustly cōdempned, and in him onely is there great cause why, we should by him be saued. S. Peter saith,* 1.1 there is none other name vnder heauen giuen vnto men wherby we should be saued but onely y^e name of Iesus Christ. In an other place. S. Peter saith again,* 1.2 y^t neither we can not, nor our forefa∣thers could not, beare the weigh∣tie yoke of the Lawe, yet we are in béeléefe to be saued by our Faithe in

Iesus Christ our Lord, & by his grace as well as they. For as by fayth God dyd purify their hartes,* 1.3 so likewyse dooth he purifie ours. Christ sayd vnto his disciples that by the word which they had heard and beleued, they wer made cleane, and thereby had purified them of their sinnes, and made them freindes with God. So that we haue rightuousnesse and diuine holinesse by fayth that doothe remaine to vs in the promises of god, and the hope that we haue in his mercy and trueth, with y^t which he doothe promise vs to be our fréendly Father and pittifull for the loue of Iesu Christ: From hence it is that the Prophet Dauid doothe ac∣knowledge that there is but one righ∣tuousnesse,* 1.4 that is of any valour at all before god, and that may apeare and come valiently before him in his di∣uine iudgement. The Prophet sayth, I will thincke and all wayes haue in remembraunce thy onely iustice and rightuousnesse. By which reason he dooth recken, houlde, and account, all humaine and carnall rightuousnesse

and holinesse for most wicked and vn∣rightuous. Bicause they are so filthie,* 1.5 fowle, and spotty, that men may haue no help of them, to satisfie in part nor in all, before the diuine iudgement of God. But of necessitie they are to retourne againe condempned eternal∣ly, bicause they ioyne y^e cleane works of the Lawe, with the vncleane and filthy fowle spottid woorkes of the fleshe.

Wherby we sée derely beloued bre∣thren, that there is no more but one Iesus Christ redemer of the world, wherfore we can haue no more righ∣tuousnesse but that which is his, by the which we are to be saued. Nor there is no other meane and waye to obteyne a pardon generall for our sinnes, and reconciliacion with God, then the fayth and hope whereby we doo beleue his diuine promises, and do assure our selues of all that, which by those promises are declared vnto vs. Wherby we haue frée libertie giuen vs to call and saye, O our Father. &c. The holy ghost doothe teach vs in his

Church, the doctrine of this true ca∣tholicke. And therefore as taught and guided thereby, let vs imbrace & fo∣low him, by whose word we haue re∣ceued this reuelaciō & clearnesse. For this cause dyd Iesus christ giue thāks to god y^e father in the name of all his faithfull,* 1.6 and therewith together dyd shewe y^e cause of so supreme a benifit. Sayinge,* 1.7 I giue thée thankes O Fa∣ther, Lorde of heauen and earthe, bi∣cause thou haste hidden these thinges from the wyse & prudēt of the world, and openid it vnto babes, euen so fa∣ther, for so it pleased thée. The cause of this benefit and of all ioyned with it, commeth to vs by the great good will of God, and the delight which he hath in his sonne. (As before it is sayde,) & forasmuch as we doo knowe it is so, let vs desire that we may be of that numbre of the lyttle ones, that our Sauiour Christe dyd giue thankes vnto his Father for, and not leane to any false & variable doctrine,* 1.8 whose ende is to bringe them that doo

beleue in the same from the vnitie of the true faith, which the prophets, Apostles, and Iesus Christ himselfe hath taught vs.

Wherefore, being partakers of the fruite of redempcion, that our sauiour and Lorde Iesu Christ hath redemed vs with, and by fayth that we haue in y^e Gospel: let vs concider wel what we haue to doo: that to our best pow∣er, we may perseuer and increase, in that rightuousnesse and holinesse that he hath communicated vnto vs. Be∣fore we were called, and when we had not receiued pardon for our sin∣nes, we were such, and euen the lyke as the children of perdicion were.

But now being reconciled to GOD by his sonne Iesus Christe we are taken foorthe of the Empire, rule, and dominion of the diuell, and re∣ceiued of GOD by the holy Ghost:* 1.9 and by the vertue of the same, ioyned with Iesu Christ, & made one body w^t him. From whome as from our head

there is deryued into vs membres with lyfe and spirit, by the which we ought to doo the works of lyfe, for that thereby is a plaine testimony, y^t Iesu Christe who dyd pardone vs of our sinnes, and paye his moste precious bloud for a raunsome for y^e same, dooth liue in vs, and that he onely is y^e foun∣dacion of our hope and affiaunce, and also that of him and by him we are be∣loued of god the father as his childrē. As teacheth sainct Peter saying,* 1.10 that Iesus Christe is the liuinge Stone, refused of men, but elected, chosen, and precious with god, and sayth further, you also as liuing stones, are built in one spirituall buildinge, and one holy presthoode, for to offer a spirituall sa∣crifice acceptable to god by Christ Ie∣su, and a little after that, you (that be∣léeue and trust in Iesus Christ) which in tymes passed were no people, are nowe the people of God: but before now you had not obteined mercy, yet now you haue, and are a chosen lyn∣nage, a royall presthoode, a holy naci∣on, a peculiar people, for y^t you preach

and shew the vertues of him that cal∣led you, from the darcknesse in which you were, to an admirable & most mer∣ueilous light. In this he dooth giue vs to vnderstand, how we ought to spend our whole lyfe tyme: and that is in perpetuall sacrifise of prayse vnto the Lord, for that he hath béene so merci∣full and pittifull towards vs, so that all our woorks ought to be w^t a chear∣full voyce singinge and makinge pro∣clamacions, of his glory, & of his ver∣tuous prayse.* 1.11 For to dooe this (saythe Sainct Paule) we ought to renounce and deny, the vngodly & worldly desi∣res of the flesh, and in this transitory lyfe to liue temperatly, in rightuous∣nesse and godlinesse, tarying and loo∣king for that blessed hope & glorious apearing of the mightie God our Sa∣uiour Iesus Christ. So that we ought to put away all kinde of supersticion, false religion, all desires and concupi∣sences of the flesh, and the worlde, and to liue a godly lyfe according to y^e wil of God: the which is declared vnto vs by his worde.* 1.12 But sith that we are

bought with the inestimable pryce of the most precious bloud of our Lord Iesus Christ his sonne, & so made his seruants, we ought not to serue him in anye other maner, nor with any other thinges then those which hée hath commaunded by his worde and lawe.

The Lorde dyd call and electe vs for that we should be holy, and without reprehencion,* 1.13 but we be prophane before him, and no such saints, if we serue him with any other thinge then that which his lawe dooth commaund, or by the rule of his cōmaundements. For that we be called in Iesu Christ, (as Sainct Paule sayth in the same Chapter) bicause we should dooe the good workes that God dyd ordeyne for hs,* 1.14 and that we should walke in them, for those onely are good that he hath commaunded by his worde: we ought also to imploy our whole stu∣dies in those workes.* 1.15 For the apo∣stle dooth teache vs, that Iesus Christ

dyd giue him selfe for vs, to redéeme vs from all kinde of wickednesse, and to purify vs that we might be a pecu∣lier people vnto him, and that we might be onely dedicated to his ser∣uice & feruently giuen to good works. All true beleuers sayth the Prophet Esay are tréese of rightuousnes, and planted by the heauenly Father,* 1.16 that he might be glorifyed in them.

Wherefore we ought to adresse our whole myndes, all our affections, and all our desires and thoughtes, to glo∣rifie him: with all those things which we are sure and certeine he dooth and will allowe. But sith he, euen our God, hath opened our eyes for to sée the lighte, it were not iuste nor rea∣son that we should walke any more in darcknesse, (that is to say,* 1.17) thinck∣ing falsly that those thinges will con∣tent his goodnesse, which dooth content vs, or those thinges which are al∣lowed of men, without the holy Ghost.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Actes. 4. &. 1••
• * 1.2

  Actes. ••. &. 10.
• * 1.3

  Iohn. 15. &. 3, 4. &c.
• * 1.4

  Psalm. 61, &. 16,
• * 1.5

  Esai, 64, &, 6.
• * 1.6

  Math. 11. &. 25.
• * 1.7

  Luke. 10. &. 22.
• * 1.8

  Hebre. 13. &. 9.
• * 1.9

  Ephes. 1. &. 22.
• * 1.10

  1. Peter. 2 &, 4.5.9, 10,
• * 1.11

  Titus, 2, &, 12, 13,
• * 1.12

  1. Peter. 1. &. 18.19,
• * 1.13

  Ephes. 1. &, 1.2. &c.
• * 1.14

  Note which are good wor∣kes.
• * 1.15

  Titus. 2. &. 14.
• * 1.16

  Esai. 61. & ••
• * 1.17

  Rom. 14. & 2.3.4. &c.