Page:The Church, by John Huss.pdf/120

68 about himself and refusing to believe what he did not wish to be believed about himself, he believes every article, affirmative or negative, which is to be believed about Christ. This faith Peter had implicitly when he expressly confessed Christ to be true God and true man, saying: "Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God." And yet the same Peter explicitly set himself against Christ and his Gospel when, after Christ had said, "All ye shall be offended in me this night" [Matt. 26:31], he denied and said: "Though all be offended in thee, yet will I never be offended." Thus also many of the faithful in common [that is, as a body] believe implicitly all the truth of Scripture, and when a truth unknown to them is proposed, they search to see if it is laid down in holy Scripture, and if this is shown to be the case they at once acknowledge the sense which the Holy Spirit insists on. Therefore, whoever has in common with others faith formed in love, this suffices for salvation when accompanied with the grace of perseverance. For God, who gave the first faith, will give to his soldier clearer faith, unless he puts some hindrance in the way. For God does not demand of all his children that they should continuously during their sojourn here be in the particular act of thought about any particular point of faith, but it is enough that, putting aside inertia and callousness, they have faith formed as a habit.

Faith, therefore, we must understand, is twofold: the one unformed, which is exercised by the demons who believe and tremble; the other faith formed in love. The latter, accompanied with perseverance, saves, but not the former. Hence with reference to the faith formed in love the words were spoken: "Whosoever believeth in the Son of God, hath eternal life," John 3:15. And the Saviour said to Peter, who had that faith and professed it: "Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah." This faith is the foundation of the other virtues