Christ he serveth them with all love. His wife, children, servants and subjects are Christ unto him, and he teacheth them to serve Christ, and not himself and his lusts.

And

he thanketh God in
And his neighbour
And his neighbour
such things as God

if he receive any good thing of man,
Christ, which moved the man's heart.
he serveth as Christ in all his need, of
hath lent, because that all degrees are bought as he is,
with Christ's blood.

And he will not be saved, for serving his brethren, neither promiseth his brethren heaven for serving him. But heaven, justifying, forgiveness, all gifts of grace, and all that is promised them they receive of Christ and by his merits freely. And of that which they have received of Christ, they serve each other freely as one hand doth the other, seeking for their service no more than one hand doth of another each the other's health, wealth, help, aid, succour, and to assist one another in the way of Christ, And God they serve in the spirit only, in love, hope, faith and dread.

antithesis between

When the great multitude that be called and not A pretty chosen, Cain, Ishmael, Esau, and carnal Israel that serve God night and day with bodily service and holy works, the pope's such as they were wont to serve their idols withal, behold little flock that they come not forth in the service of God, little flock, they roar out, Where art thou? Why comest thou not

Wherefore, saith the little
Nay brethren, God forbid

forth and takest holy water?
flock? To put away thy sins.
that ye should so think, Christ's blood only washeth away
the sins of all that repent and believe. Fire, salt, water,
bread, and oil be bodily things, given unto man for
his necessity, and to help his brother with, and God that
is a Spirit cannot be served therewith. Neither can such
things enter into the soul to purge her. For God's
word only is her purgation. No, say they, are not such
things hallowed? And say we not in the hallowing of
them, that whosoever is sprinkled with the water, or eateth
of the bread, shall receive health of soul and body? Sir,

church and Christ's

church anThe popish swereth.

The little flock.

The pope's church.

The manner of the pope's clergy.

Little flock

goeth ever to wreck.

the blessings promised unto Abraham, for all nations, are in Christ, and out of his blood we must fetch them, and his word is the bread, salt, and water of our souls. God hath given you no power to give through your charms such virtue unto unsensible creatures, which he hath hallowed himself and made them all clean (for the bodily use of them that believe) through his word of promise and permission and our thanksgiving. God saith, If thou believe St. John's gospel thou shalt be saved, and not for the bearing of it about thee with so many crosses, or for the observing of any such observances.

.

God, for thy bitter passion, roar they out by and by, what an heretic is this! I tell thee that holy church need to allege no Scripture for them, for they have the Holy Ghost which inspireth them ever secretly, so that they cannot err, whatsoever they say, do, or ordain. What, wilt thou despise the blessed sacraments of holy church wherewith God hath been served this fifteen hundred years? (yea, verily this five thousand years, even since Cain, hitherto, and shall endure unto the world's end, among them that have no love unto the truth to be saved thereby) thou art a strong heretic, and worthy to be burnt. And then he is excommunicate out of the church. If the little flock fear not that bug, then they go straight unto the king. And it like your grace, perilous people and seditious, and even enough to destroy your realm, if ye see not to them betimes. They be so obstinate and tough, that they will not be converted, and rebellious against God and the ordinances of his holy church. And how much more shall they so be against your grace, if they encrease and grow to a multitude? They will pervert all, and surely make new laws, and either subdue your grace unto them, or rise against you. And then goeth a part of the little flock to pot, and the rest scatter. Thus hath it ever been, and shall ever be : let no man therefore deceive himself.

AN ANSWER TO M. MORE'S SECOND BOOK.

The pope will not be tried by Scripture, Scripture must be judged by him.

but the

IN N the first chapter ye may not try the doctrine of the spiritualty by the Scripture: but what they say, that believe undoubtedly and by that try the Scripture. And if thou find the plain contrary in the Scripture, thou mayest not believe the Scripture, but seek a gloss and an allegory to make them agree. As when the pope saith, Ye be justified by the works of the ceremonies and sacraments and so forth; and the Scripture saith, that we be justified at the repentance of the heart through Christ's blood. The first is true plain, as the pope saith it, and as it standeth in his text, but the second is false as it appeareth unto thine understanding, and the literal sense that killeth. Thou must therefore believe the pope and for Christ's doctrine seek an allegory and a mystical sense: that is, that thou must leave the clear light and walk in the mist. And yet Christ and his apostles, for all their miracles, required not to be believed without Scripture, as thou mayest see John v. and Acts xvii. and by John v. their diligent alleging of Scripture throughout all the

New Testament.

And in the end he saith for his pleasure, that we knowledge, that no man may minister sacraments but he that is derived out of the pope. Howbeit, this we knowledge, that no man could minister sacraments without signification which are no sacraments, save such as are of the pope's generation.

THE THIRD CHAPTER.

IN the third chapter, and in the chapter following, he uttereth how fleshly-minded he is, and how beastly he imagineth of God, as Paul saith, (1 Cor. ii.) The natural

man

The natural God.

and carnal

man sa

voureth not the

things that

be of God.

cannot understand the things of the Spirit of He thinketh of God as he doth of his cardinal, that he is a monster, pleased when men flatter him, and if, of whatsoever frailty it be, men break his commandments, he is then raging mad as the pope is, and seeketh to be venged. Nay, God is ever fatherly minded toward the elect members of his church. He loved them ere the world began, in Christ. (Eph. i.) He loveth them while they be yet evil, and his enemies in their hearts, ere fatherly to they be come unto the knowledge of his son Christ, and ere his law be written in their hearts: as a father loveth his young son, while he is yet evil, and ere it know the father's law to consent thereto.

Rom. v.

God is

his elect

members.

Rom. vii.

If we sin of frailty God is merciful and ready to forgive.

not.

And after they be once actually of his church, and the law of God, and faith of Christ written in their hearts, their hearts never sin any more, though as Paul saith, (Rom. vii.) the flesh doth in them that the spirit would And when they sin of frailty, God ceaseth not to love them still, though he be angry, to put a cross of tribulations upon their backs, to purge them and to subdue the flesh unto the spirit, or to all to break their consciences with threatening of the law, and to fear them with hell. As a father when his son offendeth him feareth him with the rod, but hateth him not.

God did not hate Paul, when he persecuted, but had laid up mercy for him in store, though he was angry with him, to scourge him and to teach him better. Neither were those things laid on his back which he after suffered, to make satisfaction for his fore sins, but only to serve his brethren and to keep the flesh under. Neither did God hate David when he had sinned, though he was angry with him. Neither did he after suffer to make satisfaction to God for his old sins, but to keep his flesh under, neighbour. and to keep him in meekness, and to be an ensample for our learning.

The new life doth tame the flesh, and

serve her

THE FOURTH CHAPTER.

God seek-.

we not him.

IN the fourth saith he, if the church were an unknown company, how should the infidels, if they longed for the faith, come thereby ? O whither wandereth a fleshly mind, as though we first sought out God. Nay, God knoweth his, and seeketh them out, and sendeth his mes- eth us and sengers unto them, and giveth them an heart to understand. Did the heathen or any nation seek Christ? Nay, Christ sought them and sent his apostles unto them. As thou seest in the stories from the beginning of the world, and as the parables and similitudes of the gospel declare.

More a ly ing papist.

And when he saith, he never found nor heard of any of us, but that he would forswear to save his life. Answer, the more wrath of God will light on them, that so cruelly delight to torment them, and so craftily to beguile the weak. Nevertheless yet it is untrue. For he hath heard of sir Thomas Hitton, whom the bishops of Rochester Sir Thomas and Canterbury slew at Maidstone, and of many that suffered in Brabant, Holland, and at Cologne and in all quarters of Dutchland, and do daily.

Hitton.

martyrs.

And when he saith that their church hath The many marpope hath no tyrs, let him shew me one, that died for pardons, and purgatory, that the pope hath feigned, and let him take the mastery.

And what a do maketh he, that we say, there is a church that sinneth not, and that there is no man but that he sinneth, which are yet both true. We read, (1 John iii.) He that is born of God sinneth not. And (Eph. v.) Men, love your wives as the Lord doth the church, and gave himself for her, to sanctify her, and to cleanse her, in the fountain of water through the word, and to make her a glorious church unto himself, without spot or wrinkle.

And (1 John i.) If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and make him a liar and his word is not in us. M. More also will not understand that the church is some

There is a

church that sinneth not.

1 John iii.