Page:The Acts and Monuments of John Foxe Volume 3.djvu/97



only for offenders, that no infamed persons should be received by any bishop; for they were wont, when they could not celebrate or do their office under their own bishopric, to go to another; which now is forbidden by the laws and precepts. The private law is that, which, by the instruction of the Holy Ghost, is written in the heart, as the apostle speaketh of many who have the law of God 'written in their hearts.'" And in another place: "Forasmuch as the Gentiles have not the law of God, but naturally do those things which are of the law, they are laws unto themselves." And afterwards he saith, "the private law is much more worthy than the public law. For the Spirit of God is a law ; and 'they who are moved by the Spirit of God, are led by the law of God. And who is he, that can worthily resist against the Holy Ghost?' Whosoever therefore is led by the Spirit of God, albeit his bishop do say him nay, let him go freely by our authority; for 'the law is not appointed for the just man,' for ' where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty: and if ye be led by the Spirit of the God, ye are not under the law.'"

Behold, here it is affirmed, that the sending by God through inspiration, is not bound under the bondage of the law; for that law is more worthy than the public law. Secondly, that the law is made for transgressors and offenders, and not for the just. Thirdly, that whosoever is led by the Spirit of God, although his bishop stand against him, he may proceed unto a better life. Whereby it is evident, that a deacon or priest disposed to preach, and being led by the Spirit of God, may freely preach the gospel of Christ, without the spiritual license of his bishop. It is evident, forasmuch as it is good, that a deacon or priest do live well, and preach fruitfully. Ergo, he may proceed from idleness unto the labour and office of preaching, and so to a better life.

But whereas it is said before, that forasmuch as the inward sending or calling is secret, therefore it is not sufficient for a man barely to affirm only that he is sent of God, when every heretic may so say; but it is necessary, that he do confirm and prove his invisible sending by the working of some miracle, or by some special testimony of the Scripture: here is to be noted, that there are two kinds of preachers; those of the Saviour Christ, and those of the seducer Antichrist. The first sort, following their Master, Christ, teach the people in truth. The kinds of other sort, being of a corrupt mind, and reprobate touching faith, resist against the verity; and, through covetousness by their feigned words, do make merchandize of the people. And these men do give, and shall give miracles, as our Saviour saith [Matt, xxiv.], "There shall arise false Christs and false prophets which shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch that even the elect themselves, if it were by any means possible, should be brought into error." And the apostle [ 2 Thes. ii.], as touching their head, Antichrist, writeth thus:— "Whose coming shall be according to the operation of Satan, with all power and signs, false miracles, seducing unto iniquity those which do perish, because, they have not received the charity and love of truth, that they might be saved: therefore will the Lord send upon them the operation of error, that they shall give credit unto lies; that all such as have not believed the truth, but consent unto wickedness, should be judged." Behold how expressly our Saviour, by himself, and by his apostle, doth teach us, how the disciples of Antichrist, with their head, should shine through their great signs and wonders. But the true disciples of Christ shall not so do in the time of Antichrist. For, as St. Isidore saith, in his first book, 22 par., "De summo bono:" "Before Antichrist shall appear, all virtues and signs shall cease from the church, that he may the more boldly persecute the same, as an abject. For this profit, shall all miracles and signs cease under Antichrist, that thereby the patience of the holy men might be known, and the lightness of the reprobate, who are offended, may be opened, and also that the cruelty of the persecutors should be made more fierce."

Thus writeth St. Isidore; and St. Gregory, in his twenty-fourth book of Morals, saith, "For why? By a terrible examination of God's secret dispensation shall all signs of virtue or power be taken away from the holy church, before that the Leviathan appear in that most wicked and damnable man, whose shape he doth take upon him. For prophecy is hidden, the gift of healing is taken away, the virtue of long abstinence is diminished, the words of doctrine are put to silence, and the wonderful works of miracles are extinguished; which things nothing can utterly take away, but only the dispensation of God. But this dispensation is not so openly and manifoldly declared, as it hath been in