A Treatise of the Cohabitation Of the Faithful with the Unfaithful | Page 5

that theise teachers ar not deceyued in Religion / bicause they be of an exacte and perfect knowledge in these liberall sciences / and philosophie. This (I saye) may happen of it that men ar wont to attribute mutch vnto their teachers. Yea that it may be so / I will proue by the contrarie. Origen by teaching the Mathematicalls / and such sciences / did bring many men to the knowledge of christe. For furst he dyd begyn to reade among them such sciences with which they wer delighted / In which he being expert / dyd shew vnto his hearers suche connynge / that he dyd forthewith gett amonge them great estimacion / and so the more easili drawe them vnto the doctrine of christe. Augustine likewise cam to Millaine / to heere Ambrose / bicause he was counted an excellent Rhetorician. And so whilst he desirusly herd hym / at the lenghth by hearinge he was tourned form the sect of the Manichees / vnto the true catholiques. As therfor by lerning of these sciences of godly teachers / the vnbeleauers haue beene conuerted vnto the faithe of christe / euen so / yea mutch more easilie it maye comme to pas / that they which ar weake and vnlearned / may vnder vnbeleauinge masters / be drawn from christe to vngodlynes.
Wherefor seing that this can not be doone without great perill and daunger / that such a weakling shuld vse an vnfaithfull Master / I thincke that he shuld abstayn alltogether from suche.
Sum do heere obiect and saye / that S. Paul to the Corinthians doth appoint no such Rule condicion not exception / as I haue spoken of / vnto the weake and vnlearned: but he playnly saith.
[[1 Cor. 10.]]
If ony of them which beleaue not / do bidd you to a feaste / and yf ye will go / whatsoeuer ys sett before you that eate / &c. In which wordes he teachith / that it is lefte vnto our own will as a fre thinge to go / or not to go. I answer / that ye must marcke well thos wordes of Paule / (and yf ye will go.)
[[Hovv theise vvordes, and if ye vvill go, ar to be vnderstonded.]]
He doth not grant vnto euery mans will thys libertie / and fredom / but vnto a goode and a right will he gyuith libertie to go. For yf a man wold go thether to drincke droncken / glotonusly to fill the belly / or to gyue the tongue to filthie and vncomly talke / without doubt that man shuld syn / euen for the wickednes of hys will / and for hys corrupt entent and purpose. Euen so / yf a man dowbted hys own strenghth / and dyd certaynly perceyue that he could not profite them that shuld be there / and yet wold go thether / vndowbtedly with a safe conscience and with a goode will he could not take that thing in hande / for he can not direct hys doing to the glorie of godd / as he ys commaunded to do. Wherefor though Paul expressely doth not adde that rule / yt folowith not therfor / that yt is not to be added: yea that yt ys to be added I will proue by other places of the Scripture. And to thend that we do not herin depart from Paul / the same thing / and doctrine of will /
[[1. Cor. 7.]]
he teachith in the .7. chapter of the same epistle: wher he entreating of gyuyng or not gyuinge a virgine to mariage saithe / That he doth well which keapith his virgin / and that purposith it surely in his harte / (addinge this condicion) hauing no neade / but that he poure ouer his own will: for if he shuld do otherwise then his daughter either wolde / or then her necessitie required / then shuld he neither will / nor do well. Thus to do a goode worcke / or to make an acte prefect / yt sufficithe not to take heede that it be not euell of nature / or repugnant vnto gods worde / but vnto this ys also required / that we do go about the same with an vpright and perfect mynde and will. S. Paul / therfor / doth not simply permitt this going / but with certayn circumstances. Which ar / to go with a goode will to enstruct the vnfaythfull: Agayn to go with an assured purpose / not to be, and taste of such strenghthe / that he shall not be ouerthrown. And thus this proposicion remaynith true / that the man whiche ys weak and vnlearned / must separate himself from the company and famyliar