Page:The Church, by John Huss.pdf/262

210 milk and wool of Christ's sheep, and do not minister the things due from the pastoral office for the working out of the eternal salvation of Christ's sheep. For the non-performance of pastoral ministries is, by Scripture testimony, the killing and perdition of Christ's sheep. And that these two classes of sins, although they are distinguished, are the very worst, and every other class of sin inestimably excels them, is clear from this that, although distinct and dissimilar, they are directly contrary to the very best things. For that is the worst which is contrary to what is best, etc. And because, in good things, the cause of the good is better than the thing caused; and, in evil things, the cause of the evil is worse than the thing caused—it is clear how those who introduce into the church of Christ those worst murderers of godlikeness and divinity among Christ's sheep are still worse than those worst murderers themselves, and more like Lucifer and antichrist than they. And in this gradation of badness those do more abundantly excel who, in view of the greater and the diviner power given them for edification and not for scattering the sheep, are the more held by the church of God in duty bound to exclude and exterminate those worst murderers." Thus much he of Lincoln.

He wished briefly to establish that the killing and driving to perdition of Christ's sheep are the two worst sins, although they may be distinguished, even as the making alive of the sheep by grace and their glorification are the two best things for the sheep, although different, and to them the killing and the destroying are opposites. And as killing is the opposite of making alive and murder of glorification, it follows that by as much as these two sins are more serious by so much are they opposed to the good things which are more excellent. And, as God of himself is the cause of these good things, it follows that by as much as the killers and murderers of the sheep are worse than others, by so much are the killing and murdering of the sheep the worse sins. And it is clear that