Works

[Sidenote: 1 Joan. 2.]

[Sidenote: 1 Tim. 2.]

[Sidenote: Heb. 9. 10.]

We nathing dowt, bot that the selff samyn body, quhilk was borne of the Virgine, was crucifeit, deid, and buried, and quhilk did ryse agane, did ascend into the heavinis for the accompleischment of all thingis; quhair, in oure names, and for our confort he hes resavit all power in hevin and in earth, quhair he sittis at the rycht hand of the Father inaugurat in his kingdome, advocat and onlie Mediatour for us; quhilk glorie, honour, and prerogatyve he allone amangis the brethren sall possesse, till that all his ennemyes be maid his futestule, as that we undoubtedlie beleif thay sall be in the finall jugement; to the execution quhairof we certainlie beleif that the same oure Lord Jesus sall visibillie returne as that he was sene to ascend: And than we firmlie belief, that the tyme of refresching and restitutioun of all thingis sall cum, in samekill that thay that from the begynning have sufferit violence, injurie, and wrang for rychteousnes saik, sall inherit that blissit immortalitie promesit from the begynning; bot contrariewyse, the stubburne, inobedient, cruell, oppressouris, filthy personeis, adulteraris, and all sortis of unfaithfull [men] sall be cast in the dungeoun of utter darknes, quhair thair worme sall not dye, neather yitt thair fyre [sall] be extinguischeit. The remembrance of the quhilk day, and of the jugement to be executit in the same, is not onlie to us ane brydill quhairby oure carnall lustis ar refranit; but alsso sick inestimabill confort, that neather may the threatning of wardlie princeis, neyther yitt the feir of temporall death and present daingear move us to renunce and forsaik that blissit societie, quhilk we the members have with oure Head and onlie Mediatour Christ Jesus, whome we confesse and avow to be the Messias promissed, the only Head of his Kirk, our just Lawgevar, oure onlie Hie Preast, Advocat, and Mediatour. In whiche honouris and offices, yf man or angell presume to intruse thame selfis, we utterlie detest and abhorre thame, as blasphemous to oure Soverane and Supreame Governour, Christ Jesus.

[Sidenote: Joan. 14. 15. 16.]

[Sidenote: 2 Corin. 3.]

This our Faith, and the assurance of the same, proceidis not frome flesche and blood, that is to say, frome no naturall poweris within us, but is the inspiratioun of the Holy Ghost: Whome we confesse God, equall with the Father and with the Sone; who sanctifieth us, and bringeth us in all veritie by his awin operatioun; without whome we should remane for ever enemyes to God, and ignorant of his Sone, Christ Jesus. For of nature we ar so dead, so blynd and so perverse, that neather can we feill when we ar pricked, see the lycht when it schynes, nor assent to the will of God when it is reveilled; onlie¹ the Spreit of the Lord Jesus quickinneth that which is dead, removeth¹ the darknes from our myndis, and boweth oure stubburne heartis to the obedience of his blessed will. And so as we confesse that God the Father created us when we war not; as his Sone, our Lord Jesus redeamit us when we war ennemyes to him: so also do we confesse that the Holy Ghost dois sanctifie and regenerat us, without all respect of any merite proceading from us, be it befoir, or be it after oure regeneratioun. To speak this one thing yit in more plane wordis, as we willinglie spoyle oureselves of all honour and glorie of oure awin creatioun and redemptioun; so do we also of oure regeneratioun and sanctificatioun: For of our selves we ar nott sufficient to think ane good thoght; but he who hes begune the good work in us, is onlie he that continueth us in the same, to the praise and glorie of his undeserved grace.

So that the caus of Good workis, we confess to be, nott our free will, but the Spreit of the Lord Jesus, who dwelling in oure heartis be trew faith, bringis furth sick good workis as God hath prepared for us to walk into: for this we most boldlie affirm, that blasphemy it is to say, that Christ Jesus abydis in the heartis of sick as in whome thair is na spreit of Sanctificatioun. And thairfoir we fear nott to affirme, that murtherraris, oppressouris, cruell persecutaris, adulteraris, whoremongaris, filthy personis, idolateris, drounkardis, theavis, and all workaris of iniquitie, have neather trew faith, neather any portioun of the spreat of Sanctificatioun, whiche proceadeth frome the Lord Jesus, so long as thei obstinatlie continew in thair wickednes. For how sone that ever the spreit of the Lord Jesus, (whiche Godis elect children resave by trew fayth,) takis possessioun in the heart of any man, so soon dois he regenerat and renew the same man; so that he begynnis to hate that whiche befoir he luffit, and begynnis to luif that whiche befoir he hated; and from thence cumis that continewall battell which is betwix the flesche and the spreit in Godis children; while the flesche and naturall man (according to the awin corruptioun) lustis for things pleasing and delectable unto the self, grudges in adversitie, is lyfted up in prosperitie, and at everie moment is prone and reddye to offend the Majestie of God. Bot the Spreit of God, whiche giveth witnessing till our spreit, that we ar the sones of God, makis us to resist the devill, to abhorr² fylthy pleasouris, to groane in Godis presence for deliverance from this boundage of corruptioun; and finally, so triumphe over syne that it reigne not in our mortall bodyes. This battell hes nott the carnall men, being destitut of Goddis Spreitt; but do follow and obey syn with greadynes, and without repentance, evin as the devill and thair corrupt lustis do prick thame. But the sonnes of God (as befoir is said) does feght against syn, do sobb and murne, when they perceave thame selfis tempted to iniquitie; and gif they fall, they ryse agane with earnest and unfeaned repentance. And these thingis they do nott by thair awin power, but the power of the Lord Jesus (without whome thai war able to do nothing) wyrketh in thame all that is good.³

[Sidenote: The workes of the First Table.]

[Sidenote: The workes of the Second Table.]

[Sidenote: Ezek. 22. Jere. 22. Esai 50. 1 Thes. 4. Luc. 2.]

[Sidenote: Things contrari to the Firste and Second Table.]

We confesse and acknawledge, that God hes gevin to man his holy law, in whiche not onlie ar forbiddin all sick workis whiche displease and offend his Godlye Majestie; but also ar commanded all sick as please him, and as he hath promised to rewarde. And these workis be of two sortis; the one ar done to the honour of God, the other to the proffit of our nychtbouris; and baith have the reveilled will of God for thair assurance. To have one God, to wirschepe and honour him; to call upoun him in all our trubles; to reverence his holy name; to hear his word; to beleve the same; to communicat with his holy sacraments;—ar the workis of the First Table. To honour father, mother, princes, reullaris, and superiour poweris; to love thame; to supporte thame, yea, to obey thair charges (not repugnyng to the commandiment of God); to save the lyves of innocents; to represse tyranny; to defend the oppressed; to keep our bodyes cleane and holy; to lyve in sobrietie and temperance; to deall justlie with all men, boyth in word and in deed; and, finallie, to represse all appetite of our nychtbouris hurte;—ar the good workis of the Second Table, whiche ar most pleasing and acceptable unto God, as those workis that are commanded by him self. The contrarie whairof is syn most odiouse, whiche always displeasses him, and provokes him to anger,—as, nott to call upoun him allone when we have nead; not till hear his word with reverence; to contempne and despyse it; to have or to wyrschipe idolles; to mainteane and defend idolatrie; lychtlie to esteame the reverent name of God; to prophane, abuse, or contempne the sacramentis of Christ Jesus; to disobey or resist any that God hes placed in authoritie, (while thei pas not ower the boundis of thair office); to murther, or to consent thairto, to bear hattrent, or to suffer innocent blood to be schedd geve we may ganestand⁴ it; and, finallie, the transgressing of any other commandiment in the First or Secound Table, we confesse and affirme to be syn, by the which Goddis hote displeasour is kendilled⁵ against the proude and unthankfull world. So that Good workis we affirme to be these onlie that ar done in faith, [and] at Goddis commandiment, who in his law hes expressed what be the thingis that please him: And Evill workis, we affirme, nott onlie those that ar expressedlie done against Goddis commandiment, but those also that, in materis of religioun and wirschipping of God, have no [uther] assurance butt the inventioun and opinioun of man, whiche God frome the begynning hes ever rejected; as by the prophete Esaias, and by our maister Christ Jesus, we ar taught in these wordis—"In vane do they wirschepe me, teiching the doctrine being preceptis of men."⁶

[Sidenote: 1 Joan 12. Rom. 10. Gal. 3.]

[Sidenote: Deut. 26. Eph. 1. Rom. 4.]

To put trust in our own workes, is damnable idolatrie.]

The Law of God, we confesse and acknawledge most just, most equall, most holy, and most perfite; commanding those thingis, whiche being wrocht in perfectioun, war able to geve lyfe, and [able] to bring man to eternall felicitie: But our nature is so corrupt, so weak, and imperfite, that we ar never able to fulfill the workis of the Law in perfectioun; yea, "Yf we say we have no syn, (evin after we ar regenerat,) we deceive our selfis, and the veritie of God is not into us." And thairfoir it behoved us to apprehend Christ Jesus, with his justice and satisfactioun, who is the end and accomplishment of the Law, to all that beleve, by whome we ar sett at this libertie, that the curse and maledictioun of God,⁷ fall not upoun us, albeit that we fulfill not the same in all pointis. For God the Father beholding us in the body of his Sone Christ Jesus, accepteth oure imperfyte obedience as it ware perfite, and coverith our workis, whiche ar defyled with many spottis, with the justice of his Sone. We do not meane that we ar so set at libertie, that we awe no obedience to the Law, (for that befoir we have plainelie confessed); but this we affirme, that no man in earth, (Christ Jesus onlie excepted,) hath gevin, geveth, or shall geve in work, that obedience to the Law which the Law requyreth. But when we have done all thingis, we must fall doun and unfeanedlie confess, "That we ar unprofitable servandis." And thairfoir whosoever boast thame selves of the merittis of thair awin workis, or putt thair trust in the workis of supererogatioun, they boast thame selfis of that whiche is not, and putt thair trust in damnable idolatrie.

[Sidenote: Joan. 5. 6.]

As we believe in one God, Father, Sone, and Holy Ghost, so do we most earnestlie beleave⁸ that from the begynning thair hes bein, now is, and to the end of the warld shalbe a Churche; that is to say, a company and multitude of men chosin of God, who rychtlie worschip and embrace him, by trew fayth in Christ Jesus, who is the onlie Head of the same Kirk, whiche also is the body and spous of Christ Jesus; whiche Kirk is Catholik, that is, universall, becaus it conteanes the Elect of all aiges, [of] all realmes, nationis, and tounges, be thai of the Jewis, or be thai of the Gentiles, who have communioun and societie with God the Father, and with his Sone Christ Jesus, throcht the sanctificatioun of his Holy Spreit; and thairfoir it is called [the] communioun, not of prophane personis but of sanctis, who, as citizens of the heavinlie Jerusalem, have the fruitioun of the most inestimable benefitis, to witt, of ane God, ane Lord Jesus, ane faith, and of ane baptisme; out of the⁹ whiche Kirk thair is neather lyfe, nor eternall felicitie. And thairfoir we utterlie abhorr the blasphemye of those that affirme, that men quhilk live according to equitie and justice, shall be saved, what religioun soever they have professed. For as without Christ Jesus thair is neather lyfe nor salvatioun, so shall thair nane be participant thairof but sik as the Father has gevin unto his Sone Christ Jesus, and those [that] in tyme come to him, avow his doctrine, and beleve into him, (we comprehend the children with the faythfull parentis). This Kirk is invisible, knowin onlie to God, who allone knoweth whome he hes chosin, and comprehendis alsweall (as said is) the Elect that be departed, (commounlie called the Kirk Triumphant), as those that yit leve and feght against syne and Sathan as shall leve hearefter.